Tips for Buying an iPhone

Tips for Buying an iPhone
Page content

Shopping

Though buying an iPhone seems like a standard purchase there are still choices you need to make and problems that can arise. Since the product is singly manufactured and holds a monopoly over its service you have limited locations, but there is a time and a place to go for the iPhone. Here are a few tips when you are getting ready to throw down the money.

Phone Calls

AT&T is the only service that comes for the iPhone, so know that ahead of time. If you have that service you can then get the iPhone for it, yet the prices you are going to encounter will often be little different then what was anticipated. The usually advertised rate for an iPhone is $199 for the eight gigabyte model and $299 for the sixteen gigabyte one. This is only true if you are in the right position to resign your contract, which would be the place that you would get an upgrade. Without this it could be two hundred dollars more, making it much less of a reasonable purchase. Make sure that you are re-approaching your contract with AT&T or are becoming a new customer at this time.

Data Pack

When you do purchase your iPhone you need to make an alteration to your AT&T mobile account immediately. Since you will be using the 3G network constantly, especially through the iPhone’s data fetching services, you need to make sure you add the data pack to your account. This will usually be about thirty extra dollars to your account, but without it you could be looking at hundreds or thousands of dollars a month in fees.

Look Ahead

The best advice for potential iPhone users is to simply wait. There are new models rumored and in the works, including the iPhone Pro and iPhone Nano. The iPhone 3G is on the horizon and new iPhone purchased after this will come with this as well. You do not need to wait too long, but just enough to see what is about to be available and what you want. The 4G network should be made available in time for the next winter Olympics, so that is another landmark to look to.

Buy New

Try not to buy pre-cracked iPhone’s under any circumstance. There is no insurance that the iPhone will work properly or be supported by AT&T. AT&T threatens to “brick” jailbroken iPhone’s, which means it will relinquish service and make it unusable. This is usually an empty threat, but it is possible. If you want a jailbroken iPhone then just buy a new one and do it yourself. You may want to just stay away from used or refurbished iPhone’s in general.

This post is part of the series: iPhone Repair and Replacement

Here are articles with information about cases when you need to repair or replace your broken iPhone.

  1. Options for a Cracked iPhone Touch Screen
  2. An iPhone Buyer’s Guide
  3. Prolong Your iPhone’s Life
  4. How to Decide if a Refurbished iPhone is a Good Idea to Buy
  5. iPhone Quick Maintenance Tips