So we finally got the official retail price of the iPhone 4 from Globe today and while the price point is within the expected range, it turns out it is more expensive by at least 12%. Here’s what we got from a little digging.
The original no-contract price of the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4 is $699 (32GB) in the US via AT&T (exclusive of taxes). When the iPhone 3GS was released with Globe Telecom last year, the prepaid price was Php42,250 (which includes taxes and some margins).
At that time (July 2009), the exchange rate was in the Php48 : $1, which makes it about $880 when converted back to dollars.
Today (September 2010), the exchange rates are a bit lower — Php43.9 : $1. Common sense would dictate the local Philippine price would have also gone down, right? Nope.
Turns out the 32GB iPhone 4 will retail for Php43,699. In today’s exchange rates, that amount is equivalent to a staggering $1,002!
Had they followed the $880 intro price from last year, it would have been only Php38,600. A difference of Php5,100.
A $1,002-dollar 32GB iPhone 4 translates to:
- A +12% effective price increase from last year (price-corrected for forex rates).
- A +43.2% price difference from the US no-contract price of $699.
- A +13.2% difference from expected price and actual price.
Now, why would the price of the iPhone 4 in the Philippines gone up instead of down? Here are several possibilities:
- Inflation might have been a factor but that’s just around 4% so it shouldn’t have been a huge one.
- Inventory of remaining older units might have prevented Globe from pushing the prices down. If they adjusted the prices of the 3GS and 3G, they might not be making any profits from its sale. Maybe once the remaining inventories are all sold off, they can adjust the prices again.
- Supply and Demand might also play a role here. From the looks of it, there’s high demand for iPhone 4 (same with SG and HK) and supply is limited.
The numbers above are just loose estimates but they represent a trend. I remember that a lot of people were complaining about the launch price of the iPhone 3GS before that Globe decided to slash the prices a week before the release date. Maybe they’ll surprise us again. Who knows?
@dude2cool iOS is still software
@Joshua m If you know how to customize a smartphone from its stock UI to your liking that works for you. If you know how to root an Android and edit it’s ROM and have apps and converted media files placed and installed directly on it. Then perhaps that passes as techie. Coz for me it does. And you can’t do these things on iOS’. You can jailbreak though, assuming if your techie enough to know how to. If not, you can always pay someone to do it for you(minus techie point though lol). But thats it. So yeah, just few points that says techie for me.
This is the Philippines… what else we could think of.. >.<
@Dude2cool sige, techie ka na ba pag Android user ka imbes na iOS user?
Trust me you dont want the iphone4 when you have tried a high end Android phone (if your techie). Yes the resolution is great but that’s all your getting. So much for a revolutionary phone. Front facing cameras and Video calls are not tech revolutions, their antenna gate issue is LOL. And dont get me started about the price here in Phils. Its crap. I got my HTC Desire Android now and I say its way way better than my 3GS which i still use as my sun phone. Might as well buy iPod Touch 4th Gen. I’m planning to. Anyways, that’s just me. If your not too techie enough to for an android and wants something “user friendly” (like my aunt who got her iPhone4 from Canada) and got money to burn and waste…. your choice then. LOL.
Kung makakalipat lang ng carrier… like SUN or SMART wew pero parang malabo un its like iPhone on Verizon
High Price + Bad Service = NO TO GLOBE!!!
globe is more evil than apple…
Si Globe lang talga ang nag gagawa ng prices.
sabi ni Steve “We want this to be in the hands of everyone”
Globe says “F that!”
Anyway I’m buying an iPod Touch and a good dSLR in exchange for the cam. I’m not gonna use it for stills. I just want the A4 chip and retina display and development purposes. I would buy an iPhone if Globe wouldn’t be such an A hole with the pricing.
Anyway im on globe network paren lol
Kurakot talga globe. Hirap talaga bumili dito sa official wew. anyway about the contest?
If you can’t afford iphone, the best and I think the better alternative is the Samsung Galaxy and the Nokia N8
yep sana naman slash nila malaking bagay na din ang 3-5k sa panahon ngayon. saka para dumami din yun gumamit ng iphone.
or if madami demand malamang slash ng globe un price several weeks after launch.
Hi yuga,
Does that apply to HTC phones here as well?
I think we also have to consider that Globe isn’t just paying for the units. They’re also paying for the rights.
Also, I’ve never thought that converting currencies indicate actual value differences (remember the inter-country bigmac price difference?).
tignan niyo naman ang price pag naka line… its way cheaper kahit plan 299 brings down the price by almost 8k… I think sinadya nila taasan ang prepaid price para dumami ulet postpaid subscribers nila… cause much reasonable naman ang prices ng postpaid
@elbert Of course, they can’t do that. And even if Globe can do that, imagine the import tax they have to pay for every unit coming inside the country.
We could put the blame on Globe, but come to think of it, kung Smart or Sun ang nakakuha ng distribution rights ng iPhone, ganun lang din naman ang magiging presyo.
Still, Gray Market FTW. Apple, WTF.
@bariles
the thing is, it’s no longer an Ayala majority controlled company.
you have to blame the Singaporeans. Singtel owns 47.3344% of Globe Telecom.
Source: http://www.pse.org.ph/html/ListedCompanies/pdf/2010/GLO_Top100_Jun2010.pdf
well marami pa rin kasing mayayaman at mayayabang na naloloko ang Globe at Apple.
batu-bato sa langit…
PROFITEERING.
No other reason but the selfish motive of PROFITEERING!!
Los propietarios mestizos de español GLOBE deben ser llevados a la cárcel!
Al diablo con los Ayala!
Hopefully the price would be slashed this week. I have a feeling my aunt would reconsider her reservation when she finds out about the current price.