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most people aren't paying anywhere close to full price. here in the US, the carrier trade-in deals almost make it stupid NOT to trade in. get a brand new phone for $0? (or a couple hundred if you have an older one) why not?

You pay with your monthly phone bill. How much is that?
In my country you can get plans with unlimited minutes/SMS and 50-200GB of 4G data for 10-15€ monthly.
In the US you'd be lucky to get away with 4 times that sum.
 
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You pay with your monthly phone bill. How much is that?
In my country you can get plans with unlimited minutes/SMS and 50-200GB of 4G data for 10-15€ monthly.
In the US you'd be lucky to get away with 4 times that sum.

I refuse to pay the prices of the 3 big carriers in the US. I use prepaid, Visible to be exact and it's unlimited everything for $25 a month, my husband's line is another $25
 
Someone has to pay all the laywer costs that the EU is causing.

And Apple needs to reduce it’s market share as EU thinks Apple is a monopolist, else the EU will cry more about Apple.

Apple will not want to shrink its market share in Europe as it’s twice the size of the US as a potential market. Why on earth do you think Apple isn’t bothered about selling products on the continent of Europe?
 
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It is what it is. The iPhone 14 starts at $799 which I don’t think is all that unreasonable. The only reason mine costs $1400 is because I want some upgrades. That is a bit of a silly price for a phone, but that’s on me for being willing to pay it. Not really sure where I’ll draw the line.
 
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It is what it is. The iPhone 14 starts at $799 which I don’t think is all that unreasonable. The only reason mine costs $1400 is because I want some upgrades. That is a bit of a silly price for a phone, but that’s on me for being willing to pay it. Not really sure where I’ll draw the line.


In the US yes. Here in Europe it starts at 1k. I understand you.

I think the starting prices are what is silly. There is a huge gap between the iphone SE and the iphone 14 that could be filled by offering a decent base phone to consumers.

Until that happens people will just hold on to their phones longer
 
They won’t have money for luxury products like iPhone’s soon anyway.
time will tell.
until now though, their margins seem to reinforce Apple's projections that an iPhone is not expensive enough yet
 
When will I stop?

Well, let’s see. Todays prices as follows:
14 Pro Max 256 gig purple with AC+ $1398

iPad Pro 12” 256 gig WiFi & cellular $1399

MacBook Pro 16” base model $3898

So if I were in need and could afford it, yep, I’d buy it.

Maybe the question isn’t “when will I stop?” but “when will I consider leaving the Apple ecosystem?”.

I left Android to come to Apple. Will I go back in the future? Dunno.
 
Likely what it will make me do is just upgrade less often, so every 3-5 years instead of 2-4. I still love the tech and still want it but I’ll enjoy it for longer.
Thats probably a good outcome for everyone though - if people slow down with buying Apple will eventually have to adjust prices downwards. Even though I could afford it - I wont go over £700 for a phone. I prefer apple software, but Im on an SE. Was considering an upgrade for better battery life, but will probably go with a 12 or 13 instead. In the UK the prices are way out of whack. Id rather top up my investments and retire earlier than have a new phone every year and be working to 70 to pay for it.
 
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I pay the same for the monthly service whether I have a phone pmt or not.
But how much is that though? The price of phone most be baked into all contracts so. In the UK I pay £20 a month for unlimited data and texts, and I think 3h calls....not sure as I never use it all. I own my phone and have a sim only contract.
 
I don't think these prices are too expensive to be honest. This is the most important device in my life, I use it every day and I will keep it for maybe 4-5 years.

£1200 is a good price for an iPhone 14 Pro relative to other expenditures in my life. Maybe relative to other competitors it's expensive (I genuinely don't know, I assume not). I would pay £1750 (2000 euros?) today if there was a (significantly) thinner and lighter model.

I don't really understand the shock and outrage at these prices. Obviously it would be nice if they were cheaper but if there was ever anything I'd be happy to spend a bit extra on for improved quality it would be my smartphone.

Plenty of people out there driving nice cars.
The outrage is the jump in prices from last year mainly, and the lack of a drop in price on the 13s. Personally theres nothing in the new 14s that justify that much of a price bump. And yes...inflation, currency etc etc - I still think people outside of the USA are getting screwed on price when you convert back to dollars. They have for many years now, and its getting to a point where more and more people will just stop buying.
 
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Just to add my thought as well:
I quit the yearly upgrade with the iPhone 6s (plus? Max?). It was painful in the end all the way up til iPhoneX.
Have an iPhone 11 Pro now and it’s no time to upgrade at all.

With this pricing I won’t get another iPhone. Plus, prices are way too high to recommend to my circle, so I also see lots of folks leaving reducing the benefits of being in the walled garden.

Apple is milking too hard and I’m no longer ok with that.
 
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But how much is that though? The price of phone most be baked into all contracts so. In the UK I pay £20 a month for unlimited data and texts, and I think 3h calls....not sure as I never use it all. I own my phone and have a sim only contract.

$40/month per line + a base price - we have a lot of lines though
 
In US, prices did not increase (I'm looking at annual upgrade for 13 Pro, not sure it's worth cost or effort this year) but trade in seems to be about $100 less. I need to find last year's invoice to be sure but this would mean a stealth price increase for me. I always trade in to Apple buy unlocked outright; I don't like carrier contracts or hassle of selling elsewhere. If I trade 256 13P for 14P, I calculate it cost $500 to use 13P for past year. That comes out to ~$42/month.
 
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Apple will not want to shrink its market share in Europe as it’s twice the size of the US as a potential market. Why on earth do you think Apple isn’t bothered about selling products on the continent of Europe?

The entire population of Europe is around 35% larger than the United States—and once you factor in income to pricing for luxury goods like this, it’s market size is not anywhere near “twice as large.”

“Why on earth do you think Apple prioritizes the US market” is the flip side of your question. The answers: Apple’s home market, worlds largest economy, and the worlds largest single market for disposable income (mean and median). (For reference, the mean for EU [not Europe in whole] ranks 16th). Europe had some very strong individual markets (prior to the ongoing war), and many more that are pulling the rest down.

So yeah, while Europe might be a large (and important) market, it is hardly twice the size of Apple’s primary market. The reality is that the unified economy, higher disposable income, and home turf means the United States is always going to be a larger, more important market for apple and many, MANY others.

Edit: Pulled incorrect population stats for Europe vs EU. Point still stands. EU or Europes economy, discretionary spending, and conflicting and multiple regulatory/governing bodies (44!) are all still behind the United States. This isn’t about any country being “better”. The facts stand that the American economy is both larger and stronger than the combined economies of Europe and the European Union. Even with twice the population, I have seen few to no projections over the next many decades that show Europe and/or the EU ever catching up.
 
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Just to add my thought as well:
I quit the yearly upgrade with the iPhone 6s (plus? Max?). It was painful in the end all the way up til iPhoneX.
Have an iPhone 11 Pro now and it’s no time to upgrade at all.

With this pricing I won’t get another iPhone. Plus, prices are way too high to recommend to my circle, so I also see lots of folks leaving reducing the benefits of being in the walled garden.

Apple is milking too hard and I’m no longer ok with that.
I also use Samsung devices in tandem (S22U and Flip 4). They make great phones and their software/update schedules are very good and comparable at this point. They offer much better trade-in values and freebies (watches, buds, charging stations) with trade-ins, esp at pre-order time so upgrading is more attractive. I ordered a 14P (replacing 13 P) to check out, also Watch 8 (to replace my stainless watch 6) but they will prolly go back unless they blow me away bc dang so expensive with paltry trade-in values.
 
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$40/month per line + a base price - we have a lot of lines though
That’s a pretty expensive - compared to what I pay here anyway. In the uk sim only contracts are cheaper than those where a phone is part of the package. I find it much cheaper to buy, use for few years and then sell privately and buy again. But with multiple lines that would be a hassle and sometimes convenience is worth the increased cost
 
Apparently my personal limit is somewhere around £1000, a 256gb 14pro which if I was going to get one is what I’d go for is £1209 and I just don’t think I can justify the expense for myself. 256gb 13pro new is around £1050 and that’s making me hesitate, especially when I could get a 2nd hand like new one for £856 and get it a new battery if it needs it I’m pretty certain that’s what I’ll end up doing. More battery life for home use and heavy use days is my primary reason for getting another one to have alongside my 13mini. So as much as I’m curious about dynamic island and the camera upgrades, I don’t think the extra cost is currently worth it for me. I’d turn off AOD like I’ve done on my watch, so I can’t even use that as an excuse, as it’s a feature I don’t use. I’ll enjoy reading about peoples experiences with their 14 series though.
I pay for my phones outright and just have sim only for £10 a month.
 
”This tech” continues to evolve. More functionality is added. The value proposition continues to grow. Tell me exactly what “this tech” will be 5 years from now? Or ten? Without knowing exactly what value subsequent generations will have, it remains a silly question.
As technology evolves, isn’t it supposed to get cheaper? Like 4K tvs, etc. So why are these phones getting more and more expensive instead?
 
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As technology evolves, isn’t it supposed to get cheaper? Like 4K tvs, etc. So why are these phones getting more and more expensive instead?
I think there's various factors. Less sales = more expensive production and component costs economically. They definitely get more expensive to produce currently with the chip shortages and the supply chain issues but costs haven't risen in the US and outside it's due to the strong dollar and not due to Apple. They still cost the same as far as what Apple receives from a sale. They may actually get less. But I'm sure Apple wants to know just how much we're willing to pay - they do that across all product lines as every business does. I'm pretty sure Europeans are voting with their wallet this year. But I'm also sure the iPhone is an indispensable tool for many so prices will rise as long as the ones it's indispensable to are willing to pay, and those people would pay a lot. The purpose isn't to sell the biggest amount but to make the most profit 🤷 And if there's enough people willing to pay that much already then why reduce the cost?
 
As technology evolves, isn’t it supposed to get cheaper? Like 4K tvs, etc. So why are these phones getting more and more expensive instead?
You are talking about top of the line devices. A top of the line tv when 4K was brand new was expensive. A top of the line 8K whatever TV is still expensive.

Things like radar cruise control used to be options only on the most expensive luxury cars, now pretty much every base model kia has that functionality.

You can get a 5G phone that does all the basic stuff well for much cheaper than you would have back when you needed a flagship to get that functionality.

Technology trickles down and gets less expensive, but there will always be that new top end device which is for the early adopters and true tech nerds... and it will be expensive.
 
The entire population of Europe is around 35% larger than the United States—and once you factor in income to pricing for luxury goods like this, it’s market size is not anywhere near “twice as large.”

“Why on earth do you think Apple prioritizes the US market” is the flip side of your question. The answers: Apple’s home market, worlds largest economy, and the worlds largest single market for disposable income (mean and median). (For reference, the mean for EU [not Europe in whole] ranks 16th). Europe had some very strong individual markets (prior to the ongoing war), and many more that are pulling the rest down.

So yeah, while Europe might be a large (and important) market, it is hardly twice the size of Apple’s primary market. The reality is that the unified economy, higher disposable income, and home turf means the United States is always going to be a larger, more important market for apple and many, MANY others.

35%?? The population of Europe is 746.5M and the United States is 329.5M, so it’s more than double. I realise that includes children and people who are not Apple customers but I said ‘potential market’.

You say about disposable incomes but our phone networks are much cheaper than in the US and iPhones are in the hands of the rich all the way down to the poor. iPhones are not exclusively appealing to people with high disposable income as financing is perhaps a lot more liberal here.
 
The comparisons to years prior using inflation is fine but thats assuming wages are also keeping up and employers are also adjusting their pay.

That’s definitely not the case for many jobs/careers.
True. Wages aren’t getting higher.
 
Here's why a $1000 iPhone make sense for a lot of people.

Consider how much money you would spend on:
- iPod
- phone
- PDA
- digital camera
- camcorder

Add on the cost of those devices separately, and the $1000 iPhone price actually is not that bad, considering it can do all those in one device. Plus, for many people, the iPhone is also their "laptop" and "TV". Then you can add social standing/status, the price becomes quite "affordable" for most.

For others, the iPhone is a tool that makes them money. So the cost is an investment for them to recoup from their job tasks that are helped by the tool/iPhone.

And Apple is not just selling a 1.500€ phone. They have the SE, 12, 13 mini, and 13. Plenty of price points.

If you are struggling to pay for electricity or food, you shouldn't even be thinking of buying an iPhone in the first place. It's a luxury item. If you need a smartphone, a $200 Android can do the job just fine, no need on a $1000 iPhone.

In short, I'm not following the point of view about having to choose between rent and iPhone. People struggling with rent shouldn't even be looking to buy an iPhone in the first place. Priorities. People who can afford an iPhone are mostly in a position where they are not struggling to get food on the table.
But why are these phones not getting cheaper as technology evolves and is cheaper to manufacture? I mean, does the 14 Pro have ANYTHING that justifies its price getting higher?

AOD? No. Dynamic island? No. 48Mpx camera? No. Satellite calling? Maybe only this one.

Everything else is the same as 3/5 years ago.
 
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