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I was thinking of picking up an iPhone, as my current phone is subpar. I can apparently get one here at the Apple store in China for about $250. I'm just trying to get your guys opinion on whether or not you guys feel they're worth the price (especially those who already own one).

The price isn't too much of an issue for me--simply whether or not I'm getting value for my money--or if there's better alternatives out there in the $250-350 price range.

Right now the iPhone has no significant competition in terms of software availability and ease of use.

If you can afford a 3GS then it's worth it. Every time I looked at the iPhone prior to the 3GS there wasn't enough value in the platform.

But whether it's worth it for you completely depends on what you'd use it for. If you don't already have a PDA, MP3 player, and cell phone, and use them daily, then you won't get much use out of it.

-Adam

Wait, so if I DON'T have an MP3, PDA and a cell phone, I wont get much out of it, or if I already have those things, I *will* get use out of it?

What he meant: If you have those things, you'll find the iPhone redundant. If you don't have them, the iPhone may be worth it for you.

Er yeah, now I got it. Thanks Well thanks for the info. I'm going to head over to the apple store today and take another look at it.

I think it's worth it. It's nice having all of those things in one tidy package that works so well on a lot of levels. The 3GS throws in video and a slightly faster processor...which, to me, isn't really worth the price of the upgrade since I have a 16GB 3G. There are a ton of aps...plenty of great ones. Go for it.

He may also have meant - and even if he didn't this is my advice - unless you're gonna use it as more than just a phone on a regular basis you probably really don't need to spend the cash on this thing.

I'm wishing I'd never bought my phone with all its extra bells and whistles that I rarely bother with; my next phone is gonna be the most basic thing. A nice simple 9 button phone. (yes, I'm reference that tag down there; and yes, even a basic phone has more than 9 buttons; smurf you! No, not you in particular; just you whoever's being nitpicky)

What I meant was:

If you don't already use a PDA and phone every day, then it's unlikely to be worth it - the iPhone will not be more than a toy that you'll soon grow bored of and rarely use other than for calling and simple features.

But if you already use a PDA daily, then you know you're going to get a great deal of use out of it.

If you don't have one, but expect you'll use it - well, it's a risk like anything else. Whether it's worth it or not depends on how much you value what it can do for you, and whether you'll take the time to integrate PDA type features into your daily life.

-Adam

stienman said:

But if you already use a PDA daily, then you know you're going to get a great deal of use out of it.

Click to expand...

This.

I used to have a crackberry, which got me in the habit of checking my email on the go, using map, voice recording, gmail apps, etc.

Switched to the iPhone 3G because I was interested in the App Store, never looked back.

I use the iPhone for everything my crackberry did, and it kind of trained me in to using lots of other apps, and games as part of my daily routine.

Funny how that works.

Forget about the iPhone itself. Yes, it is a very handy platform and the 3Gs is probably the first one that really has me thinking about getting one. But again, forget about the device. What you really want to do is investigate the plan that comes with it. Plot out exactly what you're going to get and what you're going to have to shell out over whatever contract length you'll have to sign up for to get the shiny new toy.

And if you can't justify the price of the phone AND the plan together, I'd think really hard about whether it really was worthwhile.

--Patrick

Agreed I think its probably has a lot of nice features, but it maybe a few choices, are you going to actually play around with all of them, can you afford the price for the extras you may not use, and can you afford / want the price of the plans.

Actually it appears I spoke too soon. I had heard from a friend that his friend had bought one for $250...I was wrong. The cheapest I could find was 5,300RMB..with is about $750. Good. Lord. I'm thinking about looking into a Samsung Omnia II (if the've been released here) or a N 97. They all seem relatively comparable to the iPhone 3GS. If they're all around the same price..I might just opt for the iPhone. I haven't decided yet..

Terrik said:

Actually it appears I spoke too soon. I had heard from a friend that his friend had bought one for $250...I was wrong. The cheapest I could find was 5,300RMB..with is about $750. Good. Lord. I'm thinking about looking into a Samsung Omnia II (if the've been released here) or a N 97. They all seem relatively comparable to the iPhone 3GS. If they're all around the same price..I might just opt for the iPhone. I haven't decided yet..

Click to expand...

*cough* You were actually looking at the Omnia HD. *cough*

Was it the HD? Hmmmmmmmmmm. Isnt the Omnia II the newest one out or am I mistaken?

Well I ended up buying the Nokia N97 anyhow. Yay me

booooooooooooo