Database Users

Why I Am OK With $530

After reading all the stories, lots of comments on blogs and forums, I have had enough of the BS about how $530 is over priced and way too much and blah blah blah. You guys want the latest and greatest but aren't willing to pay any more than $5 for it.
Every single phone worth money for years has had an unsubsidized price of at least $550 with a few exceptions of course (G1 is only $400, but it is a generation old hardware). An iPhone 3GS 32gb retails for $699 straight up. The HTC HD2 is $899 on Amazon. Good phones aren't cheap as I am sure a lot of you know. So in this respect, $530 is actually a pretty good deal; especially when you compare it to the HD2 which has the same processor and similar hardware. You are getting a next-gen phone with the best screen to ever be on a phone, double the ram of most high end phones, and double the resolution of most high end phones. You expected the best of the best to be cheap? Pfft...
Also, my current T-Mobile plan is superior to what is going to be offered. It will be cheaper and easier in the long run to just buy the phone straight up.
What I am seeing from people is they see $530 and freak the hell out because they have the $180 to compare it against. Sure, there is a big difference there, but you are locked in to a contract for 2 years. $80 * 24 months + $180 = $2100 over 2 years! AND you only have 500 minutes. If you bought the phone straight up and went with Even More Plus for $80/mo, you get unlimited everything. $80 * 24 months + $530 = $2450. Yes, this is more expensive, HOWEVER, how many times will you go over your 500 minutes in the next 2 years? If this is not a problem for you, by all means, go right ahead and get the contract deal since it suits you. But for me, and I suspect most people, 500 minutes is not enough. For the additional $350 over 2 years, or $14.58 and change every month, it is worth having those unlimited minutes.
Does anybody else agree with me on this? All of my phone junkies I talk to agree that $530 is reasonable. Sure, we all would love a less expensive phone, but lets get real here...
Oh, and if this "leak" turns out to be false, than what an awesome waste of time and all of this is moot! LOL

Agree with you on this. My current plan is dirt cheep for unlimited data and no 2 year contract, so I'll shell out the $530 if that's all official after the 5th!

people are trippin over $530 for a phone like this? I paid $550 for my unlocked fuze last year, $800 for unbranded touch pro 2 in April, unlocked motorola droid(milestone) is $800! Al least this phone has some kind of US 3G support, unlike most unbranded phones that come state side. I think I'm a get it day 1, and then get the Bravo when it come out later this year if Sense UI cant be import on the Nexus.

I agree with you guys wholeheartedly. To be honest though, I think it's most telling to compare plans in an apples to apples manner. I'm a dork with a background in finance, so yes, I created a spreadsheet to calculate all the costs incrementally to see where changes in costs were coming from in my comparison.
After running through the numbers and calculating total costs over a 24 month term, for the 500 minute EM and EM+ plans, with the respective phone costs, the total cost over 24 months if I bought the phone unlocked would be $1970. If I purchased it on contract for $180, the total I'd spend over 24 months would be $2100.
There's NO WAY that you'll spend more over the long term with the EM+ plan UNLESS you're eligible for a corporate discount on the EM plan (which I happily am). With my discount, the total for the EM plan comes to $1811, but that doesn't apply to everyone.
The problem here is that most people are spoiled by the subsidized prices of phones. What they're not realizing is that they're paying for that subsidy in the form of more expensive plans...and then some, as my illustration above clearly proves. If T-mobile allows us to finance unsubsidized phones for 20 months on EM+ plans, then this works out to be more manageable for consumers. Either way, though... people need to consider total cost of ownership (TCO)... not just monthly cost and initial cash outlay for the device.

Exactly! Thanks for doing that. People just don't look for future savings and would rather have instant gratification. They are excited by a cheap up front cost and monthly service fee be damned!

I totally agree with you. it is by far the best phone in terms of specifications and price compared to its competitors (iphone 3gs, HD2).
Thanks for explaining this to people.

T-Mo Unlimited Voice/Web/Text $79.99/mo x 24 months = $1,920
Phone: $530.00
====
Total: $2,450.00
IPhone Plan
AT&T Unlimited Voice/Web/Text $149.99/mo for 24 months = $3,600
Phone: $200.00
====
Total: $3,800.00
-No contract for the T-Mobile plan
-No texts? AT&T without any text message plan still comes to $3,320

I was hoping for unlocked-only availability. It would keep certain... um... people... from buying the phone and then flooding the forums with questions, tacky themes, etc.

Dont really care about the price. It's actually not too bad, but if they only offer a 3g for Tmobile version here in the states then why bother selling it from google? Now...if they offer a few versions that can do 3g on several of the networks, or the final device gives us 3g on AT&T and Tmobile (and perhaps they do a verizon version too!)...that would be an awesome sale.

lordmaxx said:
Dont really care about the price. It's actually not too bad, but if they only offer a 3g for Tmobile version here in the states then why bother selling it from google? Now...if they offer a few versions that can do 3g on several of the networks, or the final device gives us 3g on AT&T and Tmobile (and perhaps they do a verizon version too!)...that would be an awesome sale.
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I imagine that Google will be releasing high-end phones for all carriers this year. I think they started with T-mobile for a variety of possible reasons. It's not beyond the realm of possibility that they felt that T-mo should get preference because they were the first carrier to carry the Android torch to market. I also wouldn't be surprised if Google had planned this all along and that T-mobile was promised to get the first "Google phone". Obviously this is all conjecture, but it makes sense from a business perspective.

uansari1 said:
I imagine that Google will be releasing high-end phones for all carriers this year. I think they started with T-mobile for a variety of possible reasons. It's not beyond the realm of possibility that they felt that T-mo should get preference because they were the first carrier to carry the Android torch to market. I also wouldn't be surprised if Google had planned this all along and that T-mobile was promised to get the first "Google phone". Obviously this is all conjecture, but it makes sense from a business perspective.
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But the problem with getting the first of anything is it will be ancient by the time other carriers receive their Android devices

Not necessarily. Given the specs of this phone, I can't see it becoming obsolete as quickly as the G1 did. I could be wrong, but how soon would you think a phone would come out with over 1ghz processor and over 512 ram and rom?

uansari1 said:
Not necessarily. Given the specs of this phone, I can't see it becoming obsolete as quickly as the G1 did. I could be wrong, but how soon would you think a phone would come out with over 1ghz processor and over 512 ram and rom?
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Aren't there already two other snapdragon devices out? What about the rumors of another iphone being released later this year?
I think the g1 may have been just as big when it came out. Times change, so does technology. The N1 may seem like the hottest new device, but it's the Nexus ONE just as the Dream was the Gee ONE. Look at where we are now. With at least half a dozen android capable devices out in about a year and 50+ rumored by 2012.

andythefan said:
Aren't there already two other snapdragon devices out? What about the rumors of another iphone being released later this year?
I think the g1 may have been just as big when it came out. Times change, so does technology. The N1 may seem like the hottest new device, but it's the Nexus ONE just as the Dream was the Gee ONE. Look at where we are now. With at least half a dozen android capable devices out in about a year and 50+ rumored by 2012.
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Your points are well taken. No one's saying that this is THE ultimate phone of all time. It's simply the greatest Android phone to be released yet, and based on its specs, it seems to be a very significant advance forward in hardware as compared to other devices, aside from Droid.

uansari1 said:
Your points are well taken. No one's saying that this is THE ultimate phone of all time. It's simply the greatest Android phone to be released yet, and based on its specs, it seems to be a very significant advance forward in hardware as compared to other devices, aside from Droid.
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Before the Droid all the Android devices were mostly similar (form factor, screen resolution/size, cpu, etc). This is just like the Droid. It was supposed to be the greatest Android device until the next phone showed up a few months later. How do we know a device with similar or better specs won't show up soon? HTC's leaked roadmap has a lot of impressive devices scheduled for this year.
The marketplace is only going to fragment even more Developers aren't happy coding for all these different devices.

IDK if you all are missing the point or if maybe im just redirecting it but here goes
This does not fit into how google normally does things. Correct me if im wrong but the formula usually goes
Take good service/software and make it better + dirt cheap or free+data mining = profit$$
If they aren't subsidizing any of the cost, why should we let them have our data?

esincho said:
people are trippin over $530 for a phone like this? I paid $550 for my unlocked fuze last year, $800 for unbranded touch pro 2 in April, unlocked motorola droid(milestone) is $800! Al least this phone has some kind of US 3G support, unlike most unbranded phones that come state side. I think I'm a get it day 1, and then get the Bravo when it come out later this year if Sense UI cant be import on the Nexus.
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I am fully agree with your statement that at least this phone has some sort of US 3G support which many unlocked phones lacked or manufacturers are too slow to release the US 3G version (read: Nokia N95 NAM edition).
I think this angry attitude is a manifestation of our credit-driven lifestyle. Many people don't realize that paying cheaper price for a phone alongside mandatory 2 years contract (and ETFs if we decided to cancel) is more expensive. Even if they do, the fact that they can OWN the product NOW (regardless whether you can afford the whole price or not) is what makes it desirable in this part of the world.
Regarding the fact that it doesn't support AT&T 3G bands, well suck it up because iPhone didn't support T-Mobile 3G either and I'm sure there are many Tmob subscribers are interested to get that capabilities too. Until US cleared up these 3G band fragmentation (which probably won't happen), we are at the mercy of these manufacturers to step up their game and put in Quad Band UMTS as opposed to cherry picking 3 UMTS bands to be put into their phones.

Only thing making me think twice is when will a keyboard version of the hardware come out.

burton14e7 said:
Only thing making me think twice is when will a keyboard version of the hardware come out.
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The keyboard phone with these specs would be the next G1, most likely to come out just in time for the early G1 adopters to renew their contracts.

uansari1 said:
I agree with you guys wholeheartedly. To be honest though, I think it's most telling to compare plans in an apples to apples manner. I'm a dork with a background in finance, so yes, I created a spreadsheet to calculate all the costs incrementally to see where changes in costs were coming from in my comparison.
After running through the numbers and calculating total costs over a 24 month term, for the 500 minute EM and EM+ plans, with the respective phone costs, the total cost over 24 months if I bought the phone unlocked would be $1970. If I purchased it on contract for $180, the total I'd spend over 24 months would be $2100.
There's NO WAY that you'll spend more over the long term with the EM+ plan UNLESS you're eligible for a corporate discount on the EM plan (which I happily am). With my discount, the total for the EM plan comes to $1811, but that doesn't apply to everyone.
The problem here is that most people are spoiled by the subsidized prices of phones. What they're not realizing is that they're paying for that subsidy in the form of more expensive plans...and then some, as my illustration above clearly proves. If T-mobile allows us to finance unsubsidized phones for 20 months on EM+ plans, then this works out to be more manageable for consumers. Either way, though... people need to consider total cost of ownership (TCO)... not just monthly cost and initial cash outlay for the device.
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Expanding on this and assuming no discounts...
Option A) Buy the phone for $180 subsidized and the 500-minute plan for $80/mo, signing a contract to pay $2100 total over 24 mos.
Option B) Buy the phone for $530 unsubsidized and unlocked and choose the comparable 500-minute plus unlimited text/data Even More Plus plan for $60/mo for a total cost of $1970 over 24 mos with no contract.
So over two years of the phone and contract, you save $130 by going with option B.
But will you really last two years? Let's see what happens if you want to change phones after one year, which is entirely possible given the rate at which mobile technology is moving.
Option A) Early reports indicate a $350 early termination fee imposed by T-Mobile during the first 120 days, but no details have been learned about the fee past that window. Let's assume it reduces linearly to zero over the remaining life of the contract, meaning your fee for leaving early would be $210 at the one year mark. This puts you at $1350 to get out free and clear from the phone and contract.
Option B) You have no ETF, so you'll have paid $1250 at the end of one year.
So, even after just a year you still spend $100 less buying unsubsidized. Further, your phone will already be unlocked and unbranded, ready for quick sale on E-bay.
Pretty simple choice for me. Less money & easy to move on = no-brainer.

Upcoming Info from T-Mo Rep in Seattle, WA

So I went to the t-mobile store in Seattle, WA. I asked to see the HD2 demo model and they happily obliged. As I began look at all the neat features the HD2 had to offer, the kind rep told me that in about 15 months or so, they will be releasing phones that make the HD2 look obsolete! That made me ponder if I should get a 2-year contract (even more) with the HD2 or go no contract (even more plus). What do you guys suggest?
Also I think in about 15 months, that sounds like when new Windows Phone 7 Series phones are being released that will be using t-mobile's new network broadband speeds of up to 21 mbps!

Hmm, that doesn't phase me, I will still have this device running and I will probably be eligible for an early upgrade.

well in 15 months, when these new phones are released, another rep will be telling you that in 10 months there will be other phones that will make those phones obsolete. the point is, its an endless loop. also, i would google "WP7 cons" and keep those things in mind.

nice.. i'm seattle as well.. i'm gonna get the contract price.. and if a new phone comes out that is comparable to the hd3.. then yea i'll buy it at full price... either way..
i personally think that a phone "lifespan" is about 1 year anyways.. so that info that the rep told you.. was kinda common knowledge....
the way that technology moves forward...ESPECIALLY with mobile phones.. its no surprise if a phone comes out in 6 months that will surpass the hd2...

kcab87 said:
So I went to the t-mobile store in Seattle, WA. I asked to see the HD2 demo model and they happily obliged. As I began look at all the neat features the HD2 had to offer, the kind rep told me that in about 15 months or so, they will be releasing phones that make the HD2 look obsolete! That made me ponder if I should get a 2-year contract (even more) with the HD2 or go no contract (even more plus). What do you guys suggest?
Also I think in about 15 months, that sounds like when new Windows Phone 7 Series phones are being released that will be using t-mobile's new network broadband speeds of up to 21 mbps!
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The t-mobile rep was probably just spewing sales fluff out of his mouth. Most of them don't really know anything.
Saying that the HD2 will be obsolete in 15 months is like saying the sky will be blue. I mean, the HD2 makes phones that were released 15 months ago obsolete. Mobile technology is advancing at the rate that PC's were in the late 90's, early 2000's....mostly because mobile technology is right around the level of PC technology in those days.
The point is, obsolescence is a a real quick inevitability when it comes to mobile devices....especially if you're the type to care about having the best technology. This makes a 2 year contract that much bigger of a commitment. T-mobile was wise in pricing the HD2 at 200 bucks for a 2 year contact though. The price is right for me, knowing that in about a year, I'll probably be replacing it to a WP7 capable phone with an AMOLED screen. At that point I wouldn't mind spending 500 or so on a device that will probably last me another 2-3 years....maybe less if I qualify for a partial early upgrade discount.
But it really is something to consider.

No contract price of course.
It's only $450. I may buy it in a week or two after it's released.

Samsung Focus price drop looks PERMANENT

If you haven't heard already, AT&T's website shows a change in price for the Focus which was originally $199 and is now $99 on contract. I was assuming this was just a random New Year's sale but now I'm not so sure.
Yesterday on Gizmodo, I noticed that Microsoft was advertising WP7 and the Focus but those banners had been there for a while. Then I realized it was also advertising the $99 price and I don't remember AT&T advertising many of their sales before.
Today my cousin needed to return a router to AT&T so I went to the local store in Southern California and I decided to check out the price. There it was on the sign: "$99 on contract". That rules out a web-only sale too. So after my cousin had returned the router. I asked one of the employees there about the phone's price. He said they just got word of the new pricing last night and changed it in-store this morning. I asked him if it was permanent and he replied, "I'm not completely sure. Like I said, we only just got the message yesterday and it just said to change the price."
If it were a sale, then AT&T would probably be screaming about it from the rooftops and make their employees tell customers it was a limited time only...but that's not the case. So it looks like the Focus has officially dropped to $99 on contract.
Now the real question is: why? Seems convenient for the price to drop the week of CES so maybe thats a hint that AT&T will be getting some new smartphones in their lineup soon, maybe even more WP7s. Another thing to consider is that AT&T is trying to rope in as many customers as it possibly can before Verizon gets the iPhone 4, which is rumored and has some evidence to support it happening a couple of weeks after CES. Take it as you will, but a great cutting-edge smartphone is now $100 and thats pretty sweet if you ask me.

Well, assuming the Surround and Quantum haven't dropped too, the Focus is the only 8GB WP7, and the 8GB iPhone is $99. It could be Samsung/Microsoft/AT&T wanted that price lower so the Focus was clearly a better choice.

@FishFace - Both the Samsung Focus and the LG Quantum are getting the $100-pricepoint-treatment.
wwwDOTwpcentralDOTcom/ATT-lowers-price-quantum-and-focus

GrayWolf said:
@FishFace - Both the Samsung Focus and the LG Quantum are getting the $100-pricepoint-treatment.
www.wpcentral.com/ATT-lowers-price-quantum-and-focus
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That's what is so odd. Why are only the Quantum and the Focus getting the price drop?
My only theory right now is that AT&T wanted all three at the $100 price point but HTC declined while LG & Samsung both agreed. I'm sticking with my master theory that AT&T wants as many people as humanly possible to come to AT&T before Verizon's iPhone is announced as this also makes sense with AT&T offering early upgrades for people interested in buying the iPhone 4.

$99 on contract price is so so as most online dealers already sold them for $49 or free. However, the biggest story in this price reduction is that both Focus and Quantum now sell for $399 off contract. That's a very attractive price for me w/o (not even possible right now) sign up two more years of contract.
I suspect the HTC doesn't sell as well as the other two. And also this move is in anticipation of WP7 phones will be released to Verizon and Sprint soon, not iPhone. iPhone itself has the price drop as well at the same time.

iphone4 is not the threat. It would be the iPhone5 ! Or even WP8 !
And the strategy to go to a $100 now is brilliant. I mean how many smartphones that are really worth buying are at this price point? Seems to me that they have found a great price point and will sell millions of them. They proabably get some kind of rebate from Microsoft for selling so many units and Microsoft will benefit from increased users buying Apps or XboxLive games.
No different than a Toyota Corolla. Make a good car and sell it at a great price point and they sold LOTS of them. Build up a huge customer base and when the customer is ready to replace the Corolla, then they up sell to the Camry or to the Lexus., or sell them another Corolla. Eitherway they have huge following.

HTC doesn't know how to make a reasonably priced phone. Well, they know how to make a phone that should be reasonably priced, that's all they make, but they don't price them according to what they're actually worth.

In case you guys are interested, Amazon Wireless is selling the Focus for $0.01 today. Stock is definitely on the move. I'm guessing a Focus 2 with Super AMOLED Plus might be on the way.

Pretty simple, ATT is the only company presently that has a Galaxy S windows7 phone, my guess is the rest of the cell companies are about to get their versions too, much like they all did with Android.
If the Focus is priced $100 cheaper than tmobile, verizon, sprint galaxy S versions, they hope it will take the steam out of their fanfare.
Only reason there isnt a Windows7 phone in my house currently is cos I only have tmobile and sprint.
EDIT: And no galaxy S with the hummingbird or SAMOLED screen

kponti said:
Only reason there isnt a Windows7 phone in my house currently is cos I only have tmobile and sprint.
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T-Mobile has the HTC HD7 ! And yes it's a Windows 7 phone.
Darn nice phone. I had it but could not tether with or get 3G with it on FIDO (Canada). I'm sure there are many more models to come.

Lewisham said:
In case you guys are interested, Amazon Wireless is selling the Focus for $0.01 today. Stock is definitely on the move. I'm guessing a Focus 2 with Super AMOLED Plus might be on the way.
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Very unlikely I think, if they had a new Focus coming out it would have been announced at CES. And Focus is still a very new phone and apparently selling very well (no wonder, it's amazing).

PaullikesWINMO said:
T-Mobile has the HTC HD7 ! And yes it's a Windows 7 phone.
Darn nice phone. I had it but could not tether with or get 3G with it on FIDO (Canada). I'm sure there are many more models to come.
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Yes but too big and heavy, not to mention my Samsungs have consistently had better reception than my HTCs inside buildings where I use the phone 90% of the time

Just bought one off Amazon for $0.01. Friend got one through AT&T for the same price after he told them about the Amazon offer.
ATT told me that most likely its because its a 3g phone and they're in the process of rolling out the 4g network. Whatever, I got the phone for 0.01...Including shipping!

It says in the website that it can be as upgrade to an existing line. My question is, what if your line is not eligible for upgrade yet. Will your bill show up with the list price after a month or two? Has anyone encounter this yet?

If you are not yet qualified, you have to pay full out of contact price which is $399 if you go to an AT&T store or $499 from 3rd party online.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

Syst3m said:
Just bought one off Amazon for $0.01. Friend got one through AT&T for the same price after he told them about the Amazon offer.
ATT told me that most likely its because its a 3g phone and they're in the process of rolling out the 4g network. Whatever, I got the phone for 0.01...Including shipping!
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Could be but somehow I doubt it has anything to do with 4G, since the average consumer I don't think knows about 4G or cares at this point. The fact that they are willing to give you the phone for free tells you they know they will make their money back by the end of the contract, with a sizable profit .

phoneguy 4567 said:
Could be but somehow I doubt it has anything to do with 4G, since the average consumer I don't think knows about 4G or cares at this point. The fact that they are willing to give you the phone for free tells you they know they will make their money back by the end of the contract, with a sizable profit .
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Thats what I feel too. The other thought is trying to get people to Att network before the iPhone comes to Verizon or whatever.
It says in the website that it can be as upgrade to an existing line. My question is, what if your line is not eligible for upgrade yet. Will your bill show up with the list price after a month or two? Has anyone encounter this yet?
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i had 10 months left in my contract, and 2 separate phone calls by me (and one by a friend who got the same deal) said that my old contract was being ended, and they would create a new one that started the day the phone was activated. They know if you're eligible for an upgrade - they ask for your phone # and last name. My friend who called had 3 months left on his contract, and was unable to get the deal at first. When he called AT&T, they cleared his contract and he checked on their again -and it was eligible. He ended up buying through ATT because they said they'd match the same deal.

Syst3m said:
Just bought one off Amazon for $0.01. Friend got one through AT&T for the same price after he told them about the Amazon offer.
ATT told me that most likely its because its a 3g phone and they're in the process of rolling out the 4g network. Whatever, I got the phone for 0.01...Including shipping!
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Click to collapse
Could you ask him how he got it through AT&T? I just asked a branch store and they said they could not offer the $0.01 deal...

I'm thinking of getting one off contract for $400. (don't wanna get locked in to Rogers - $400 voice cancellation + $100 data cancellation, 3 yr contract).
What have your experiences been like with unlocking? I heard ATT is refusing to unlock, and unlock codes go for up to $40 online...

When I was in-store the other day, I'm pretty sure the sale price on the Focus said until 1/31. I think it's only good for a couple more weeks, but we'll see.

How does tmo Upgrade work

I wanna upgrade down the so I wanna know how the discount system work cuz don't wanna pay full price
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To quote directly from My T-Mobile:
Your phone upgrade eligibility is determined by the amount of time that has passed since your last upgrade, as well as the monthly cost of your rate plan.
You'll get our best upgrade pricing if it's been 11 months or more since your last upgrade (if you have a one-year service agreement), or 22 months or more since your last upgrade (if you have a two-year service agreement).
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I'm currently on a family plan with 3 other family members. I recently upgraded my phone so if I attempt to upgrade MY line for ANY phone I HAVE to pay the full MSRP: $399.99 for the Vibrant, $499.99 for the Vibrant 4G/G2, etc...even WITH a 2-year contract extension)
My aunt's line which has not been upgraded recently only forces her to pay the current prices of each phone with a new 2-year extension ($199.99 for the Vibrant 4G). It all depends on how you're willing to wait. But always know that most/all Android phones require a data plan of some sort. The options are limited online, but you can always go to a store and haggle prices of phones/plans

Buying outright is more cost for the phone upfront, it it is less cost for the plan. IT is always cheaper to go that way over 2 years, and you are not tied into a contract

I have not had a contract for over 4 years. I buy my phones off craigs list. Just check out the phone before you buy it. I have gotten my last 3 phones that way. Paid 200 buck for my vibrant.

If you have been a Tmo customer for a while (meaning several years and purchased at least 2 phones from them) You may be able to get something if you raise a little bit of a stink. They like to appease displeased customers and if you complain about something in an adult way, you can possibly get approved for an early upgrade.
A buddy of mine was able to get an early upgrade because he was not on an android device and was curious to see how much of an improvement in his mobile experience it would be to own one. So they allowed him to get a MT4G at the 2yr upgrade price.

I bought my vibrant full price the begining of Feb. and no contract. but then on Valentine weekend they were giving smart phones away for the weekend with 2 year contract. Needless to say my son needed a phone so I said what the heck. I ended up with a free mytouch 4g and my son a Vibrant. It ended up cheaper in the long run. But my MT4G sit's in my briefcase as I am having too much fun ROM'ing my Vibrant.
It's all in the timing as Tmobile is always having some kind of sale.

Bell in Canada offered my an "upgrade" when I bought my own phone at full price

Bell in Canada offered my an "upgrade" when I bought my own phone at full price
Got a funny call from a Bell marketer here in Canada. They only offer reasonable discounts on phones if you sign a 3 year contract. So a phone will be like $649.00 for no term, $599.00 for 2 years, and $99 for 3 years.
I ordered my own unlocked GT-i9100 Galaxy S2 from Amazon for $575.00 so I wouldn't get locked in. I got the phone in November of last year. it is not even a year old. As if I can going to let them lock me in now.
They actually called me to tell me about new hardware I might be interested in. This was my chance to tell them precisely what I thought about 3 year contracts (they are grossly unfair to the consumer and should be illegal, which I believe they are in many countries). I wasn't rude, but I was quite explicit about how I felt about their abuse of Canadian customers. I told them that I would be purchasing new hardware at full price again in November 2013 (exactly 2 years after I bought my GT-i9100). At that point the marketer knew I was a dead end and ended the call.
The sad thing (and the reason that I am posting this) is that I discovered that VERY few Canadians try this route (BYOD to avoid the draconian and abusive contracts). Seriously, if you can afford the up front cost, its better never to sign another 3 year contract again. Bell was nice enough to offer me a $10 BYOD discount which is why I am still with them. But yeah, the other two carriers transferred me around endlessly because they were very unfamiliar with how to deal with a BYOD customer. Sad.
The whole focus of the big 3 in Canada is to lock people in for the 3 years. Don't fall for it, there are better options. There are a number of resellers on the web that will sell you an unlocked phone. Of course, if they had decent 2 year contracts I wouldn't complain about that. The AWS carriers are sadly not an option because I tried them, and the 1700MHz spectrum does not penetrate my office at work at all, and also I have to travel outside their tiny zones.

Well, many Americans will be going this route now with the idiocy VZ is pulling, likely to be copied by AT&T eventually. The funny thing is that if carriers wouldn't act so foolishly they could continue raking in the cash but their own gouging is going to be what ends up bringing about more and more customers unwilling to do anything more than month to month as seen in much of Europe.

Phones are subsidized.
For example, you get a Fab 10 plan from Bell:
$35 + $30 (6GB) for Fab 10 + 6 GB + 200 mins + 6pm = $65.
$65 x 12 = $780.00.
If they give you an iPhone for $199 on a 1-year, and you leave after the year, you have a $650 phone, while paying a little under $1000. In other words, you've paid $25/month for your phone service for the year to get that plan.
They just can't have that, and those under 35 usually want the best phones out there in this country. Its just the way it is.