Motorcyclesaur <gpostbox.zerospam@gmail.com> wrote:
> "Gavin" <gavin@mindless.com> wrote in message
> news:er79q2petobqhp27936h6ma41d8pdipbd9@4ax.com...

>>>Would you like to hear the price of my first mobile phone, an old OKI that
>>>I
>>>bought in 1993? And the cost of the MicroTac that I bought after that (it
>>>must have been in 1994)?
>>>
>>>The point is: the new iPod costs $600.
>>
>> No the point is when did you last buy a phone, there almost always
>> subsidised, heck most people balk at spending #50 on a new mobile

> Hi Gavin,

> If you want to put it under the "last purchase" point of view, then you have
> to compare it to when you (or me, or anyone) bought a truly innovative
> product, where the price is of secondary importnace. After all, there have
> been many mp3 players at bargain prices for a while on the market, but a
> large amount of people decided to forgo that extra #50 in favour of an iPod.
> With the iPhone, Apple announced a cracking product, and I would expect
> people to react in the very same way.


>> And the UK data charges mean it will never be used as an interent
>> applicane to any grea degree or you'll get stuffed by the phone co.

> WiFi is free, if you have an access point at home and one at work; nearly
> free if you don't. For what concerns mobile telecoms, things will have to
> change "soon", and they will.

The mobile telcos aren't usually keen on devices with enough
communications flexibility to be able to easily find cheaper
connections than the ones your telco offers you. Not only do
increasing numbers of people have free wifi at work and home, but it's
becoming increasingly easy to find it in the streets.

--
Chris Malcolm cam@infirmatics.ed.ac.uk DoD #205
IPAB, Informatics, JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK
[http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/]