Apple CEO Steve Jobs has posted an open letter to all iPhone customers on Apple’s website. Here it is verbatim:
To all iPhone customers:
I have received hundreds of emails from iPhone customers who are upset about Apple dropping the price of iPhone by $200 two months after it went on sale. After reading every one of these emails, I have some observations and conclusions.
First, I am sure that we are making the correct decision to lower the price of the 8GB iPhone from $599 to $399, and that now is the right time to do it. iPhone is a breakthrough product, and we have the chance to ‘go for it’ this holiday season. iPhone is so far ahead of the competition, and now it will be affordable by even more customers. It benefits both Apple and every iPhone user to get as many new customers as possible in the iPhone ‘tent’. We strongly believe the $399 price will help us do just that this holiday season.
Second, being in technology for 30+ years I can attest to the fact that the technology road is bumpy. There is always change and improvement, and there is always someone who bought a product before a particular cutoff date and misses the new price or the new operating system or the new whatever. This is life in the technology lane. If you always wait for the next price cut or to buy the new improved model, you’ll never buy any technology product because there is always something better and less expensive on the horizon. The good news is that if you buy products from companies that support them well, like Apple tries to do, you will receive years of useful and satisfying service from them even as newer models are introduced.
Third, even though we are making the right decision to lower the price of iPhone, and even though the technology road is bumpy, we need to do a better job taking care of our early iPhone customers as we aggressively go after new ones with a lower price. Our early customers trusted us, and we must live up to that trust with our actions in moments like these.
Therefore, we have decided to offer every iPhone customer who purchased an iPhone from either Apple or AT&T, and who is not receiving a rebate or any other consideration, a $100 store credit towards the purchase of any product at an Apple Retail Store or the Apple Online Store. Details are still being worked out and will be posted on Apple’s website next week. Stay tuned.
We want to do the right thing for our valued iPhone customers. We apologize for disappointing some of you, and we are doing our best to live up to your high expectations of Apple.
Steve Jobs
Apple CEO
Source: http://www.apple.com/hotnews/openiphoneletter/
Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. – Steve Jobs, June 12, 2005
Above and beyond the call of duty? The squeaky wheel gets the grease? Insanely great or greatly insane? Too little, too late? The foundation of justice is good faith? I love it when a plan comes together? Do what you feel in your heart to be right, for you’ll be criticized anyway; you’ll be damned if you do and damned if you don’t? The customer is always right? It was preordained? Played like a fiddle? That you may retain your self-respect, it is better to displease the people by doing what you know is right, than to temporarily please them by doing what you know is wrong? Keep true, never be ashamed of doing right; decide on what you think is right and stick to it? The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing; if you can fake that, you’ve got it made? If life were fair, Elvis would be alive and all the impersonators would be dead?
Hey, we’ve got hundreds of ’em. What’s your take?
Wise decision
That is why I have bought over 50 Macs!
Wow. Moses has come down from the mountain with the tablet.
90 million buck decision. Smart. I bought my iPhone 12 days ago, so I get 200 back. Jobs be da man. Naysayers, eat me.
*Cry* Thanks Steve. You make me love you even more. I love my iPhone!
What? No one has complained that it’s not $200…
I would want one for 599 NOW!!! (I live in Belgium)
w00t!!
Of course El Jobso isn’t going to return the full $200, but this is the right thing for him to do.
Hopefully this will stop the whining…
Steve’s right. There is always something better on the horizon. I was one of the first to buy a 15″ macbook pro. Now they are faster, larger, and much more reasonably priced. That’s just the way the “technology cookie” crumbles.
This is a very gracious gesture on Apple’s part. Don’t expect the same from other companies.
for someone who has already gotten over the 200 dollars price cut, this is like free money.
good Idea I did not expect this. Im an apple nut , stock holder and I also Own a retail Business This $100 Store Credit Will get $ 200 in Puchsese. Another good Idea
Not a 90M decision exactly — it is store credit, and so given apple’s margins, it’s more like at most a 45M decision assuming 900K units sold.
Two good moves…
Lowering the price just before the holiday buying season and making early adopters feel better.
I’ve had my iPhone since day one and although the price drop stung a bit, I was not all that upset… this sort of thing happens all the time with new technology (CD burners, DVD burners, Blu-Ray, Razr, etc). There’s often a hefty price to pay for any early adoption of something totally new, but the early months of smug and usefulness is a lot of fun.
Apple/Steve are making a good call on this one.
now manybe the crybabies will STFU.
yes i have an iPhone. Yes i dont care they dropped the price.
Still disappointed. I suspect this decision was considered long before the iPhone was launched on June 29th. Steve is a savy and brilliant Man. That said, we early adopters should receive the $200 break. After all, it is us loyal customers that made iPhone a success, Without the strength of the Apple consumer community there would be no Apple. I fear that as Apple continues to grow that it will be very easy to forget the customers (fans) that stood by Apple during the not so profitable years.
Apple needs to remain loyal to those that support Apple.
Makes perfect sense. Those in the normal 14-day window for price matching get the full $200. Those who have had the benefit of using the product for a while get a prorated $100 store credit.
And the really savvy people with credit cards that do price guarantees may just get their cake ($200 refund) and eat it too ($100 credit).
Kudo’s to Apple and Steve. This is the best way to unpiss-off many iPhone owners. I didn’t want or expect $200 back. But something is what was needed, and I am glad that it is going to be what it is.
This simple act will help everyone in the public trust the company and know that the company cares about their customers after the purchase. Great job and great choice. Thanks Steve and everyone at Apple.
cue bitching about it being “only” $100.
MW: would—Would you shut up about it already?
I wouldn’t have given you shit.
Nice – appreciated – not necessary – but I’ll take it. They did the same thing with Aperture. Very classy. Been a Mac-Apple buyer since the Apple II. Lived through the bad years without Steve and am enjoying the years WITH Steve immensely. This is just ONE reason why I appreciate Apple and the Mac. Yeah, yeah – I’m a fanboy and drank the Kool-Aid. So what!
Steve,
This is absolutely the correct thing to do. Most people that bought the phones aren’t bitching about the money per se but about the drastic price cut so soon after the release. It just hurts a bit. We could’ve initially used that $200 elsewhere in the store and now we can! It still helps you guys out and it makes me love Apple even more than I did before!
bought two refurb 4G iphones last week for $399 each. just got off the phone with apple: they’re giving me a $150 refund on each of ’em. sweet.
Now, all you crybabies, shaddup!
Thanks, Steve…enough said.
Control, meet Damage.
Damage, meet Control.
Shrewd move.
Apple makes me a happy customer. I don’t think ANYONE would have been mad if they lowered the price by $100. So this is a good move on Apple’s part. It will also give me a chance to buy stock after it goes down again tomorrow.
If they would add Exchange Support, there would be NO reason not to buy an iPhone.
A blood FAIR and obviously very APPLE move.
The only company on the planet to teach all others how to deal with consumers.
Steve – you are amazing!!!!
dd
*sniff* I love you again Steve. Thank you for acknowledging that your most fervent supporters.
That should dampen the mass reaction of “I won’t be shopping at Apple again anytime soon.” Or, “I won’t be buying iLife ’08 / iWork ’08 / OS X 10.5 Leopard” etc…
Wow. Just wow! The free publicity alone will pay for this move.
My goodness, Apple has been feeding off this iPhone frenzy since January and now it’s gonna sustain them for the rest of the year!
We are not worthy!
And all MS can do is offer a measly $50 rebate on the Zune? Now MS not only looks retarded but stingy as well. Maybe MS should start giving Zunes away to the victims of Hurricance Katrina or global warming or trans fat or something.
Stock has dropped about $2.00 since this announcement…I lost more in stock price than this rebate….
Thanks!…..
Steve – where is the make up for the stock price drop????
Boo,hoo,hoo….
Store credit = come in to the store to spend it.
Steve, you magnificent son of a bitch.
now folks are more likely to buy Leopard than “borrow” it
I’m glad that happened so quickly. I was getting tired of hearing so much whining! Now that you have a $100 store credit, you will go into the Apple store and spend that $100 and so much more. Smooth move on the part of Apple. Give back a little, gain a lot more in good will, in-store traffic, good pr!
MW=nation
Who in this nation won’t want an iPhone now?
If people buy Leopard who wouldn’t have done so otherwise,the credit is less to the bottom line than it actually appears.
Wall Street has it all wrong. The stock has lost over 1 Billion since the announcement but all they did was give a few million back to their most loyal customers and get another day’s worth of publicity tomorrow. Brilliant.
w00t
New nano or Apple bluetooth headset???
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This is why i am a “fanboy”… what other company takes care of its customers like that!!
I would wait in line 15+ hours all over again!!!
Thanks Steve
What is truly awesome is how this is all running on internet time. And it shows leadership in that a decision was made quickly. Boom
I bought an iPhone day 1. And never felt that a rebat was necessary. I bought the item at a price I felt was reasonable for what I was getting when I was getting it. I had decided on purchasing the iPhone immediately after walking out of the Keynote in January.
That said this is a good public relations move for Apple and for their base. It does create a certain sense of entitlement though and that may bite Apple in the future.
I guess you can’t please everyone. I am sure there are people that will complain that it is ONLY a store credit.
MDN Word – Likely as in It’s “likely” there is an iPod Nano in my wife’s future. Or maybe I’ll buy her the touch and take back my old iPod 5G, so I can use it can have it as a backup and for file storage.
Hmmmm decisions, decisions.
Despite all my bitching and complaining, I feel very satisified with this.
Thank you Apple, Thank you Steve. You have restored my confidence in you!
Mike
>> Maybe MS should start giving Zunes away to the victims of Hurricance Katrina
What? And make their suffering even worse?
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This is a good move by Apple, and thank-you.
Phew! I was afraid that Apple might not find a way to stay in the headlines for the next couple days.
Wall Street won’t appreciate this due to the impact on short-term revenue, but it is a brilliant move by Apple. It will build loyalty with new customers, and give consumers who are contemplating the purchase of Apple products greater confidence in the brand. The long-term benefits to Apple will be worthwhile.
C1, ditto and well put. Classy move. I’ll stop mocking your turtleneck now, Steve.
Leopard will cost me $29 + tax.
Boy, did Apple handle this badly! Glad they did the right thing by their most loyal customers (which they really didn’t have to), but they had to know before yesterday the tsunami of negative reaction would be coming.
smart
I’m going to write and complain if I can’t apply the $100 to the cost of the iMac I bought 2 weeks ago!! Kidding.
Actually, I may take the credit along with the coupon from the iPod class action settlement that will expire soon and go buy myself an Apple TV.
Thanks you apple….we can go back to making out now….
slobber slobber grope slobber slobber
Ha! More free marketing for Apple and the iPhone. Everyone had stories this morning about the iPhone price cut and whether it was fair or not. Now, everyone will have more stories later today and tomorrow about the $100 store credit.
Slick move
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Geez, but SJ is a friggin’ genius. I’d bet my lost dollar that he had this all typed up before yesterday’s announcement. What a ringmaster.
Steve: “TVH… we cool?”
TVH: “Yeah Steve, we cool.”
I have to admit… I was pretty pissed. But honestly, would any other company do this? I don’t think so.
Steve met the iPhone users in the middle… and that’s good enough for me.
Steve gives me a hundred and I’ll go into an Apple Store and end up spending a thousand. Smooth move, Steve.
For me, the money wasn’t the issue. What hurt was that Apple’s move made their most fervent supports open to ridicule: “Idiots” “Sheep” “Ha Ha, you paid $200 more…boy are you stupid.” The $100 gift is a cooling balm to my reddened and embarrassed fanboy face.
>> Maybe MS should start giving Zunes away to the victims of Hurricance Katrina
What? And make their suffering even worse? “
Sorry, that was uncalled for. (Actually, didn’t MS offer a “free” year of MS services/software to SMBs in New Orleans? The catch: They had to sign a three year contract. Now that… I’m speechless.
My take on all of this is on my blog. <a href=”http://www.applesource.us/”>
Sorry, here’s the link. http://www.applesource.us/
Synthmeister said, “And all MS can do is offer a measly $50 rebate on the Zune? Now MS not only looks retarded but stingy as well. Maybe MS should start giving Zunes away to the victims of Hurricance Katrina or global warming or trans fat or something.”
Microsoft would get sued if they tried to give brown Zunes to Katrina victims.
Heck , what’s $60,000,000 between friends.
They’ll time the rebate on the day they release Leopard.
Kerr..ching !! It’s only money and if Apple gives it back you’ll only return the favour and give it back again.
An imaginary August conversation in a conference room in Cupertino:
Marketing Guy: How much should we spend on commericals telling people the iPhone is now a great deal at $399?
Jobs: Screw that! We will just announce a lower price, let all the fanboys and early adopters make a ruckus, let the media write a crapload of articles about the ruckus, then, with all the advertising money we saved, give early adopters a $100 credit.
Marketing Guy (slapping his hand on his forehead): BRILLIANT!
Just a theory.
I spoke earlier to this topic. I thought that maybe a 50 itunes certif would be good although not expected. I think that Steve has responded above and beyond the call. My father and I ran a men’s clothing store from roughly 1985-88. Our cash register was an Apple IIe, running point of sale and tracking inventory for 6 stores on an 12 megabyte hard drive. We updated each system nightly via a 300baud modem. That’s when I started following Apple.
It was only during the non Steve Jobs years that I gave up on Apple. Since Steve has been back I have renewed my interest in Apple and bought many ipods and computers. Fortunately, I also put my faith in them through their stock at $40 before the split at $80. I don’t have loads of cash but I still put away a few $$ every week and continue to buy a share or two at a time. This is the kind of company that has just scratched the surface of what is possible. The more phones they sell the more Macs they sell, the more music and video content they sell.
I think they have done everyone a favor in this instance. They did right by their biggest fans and they did right to the stockholders by proving that they are good to their customers and that by being good to their customers they will grow more customers and more revenue.
I would hate to be an executive at any consumer electronics maker that is not Apple. The game is on baby. I just wish that Apple made automobiles. They would work right and use the latest technology to give consumers what they want in a vehicle wether it was high fuel economy (Nanobile) or to carry all their stuff (Ipodmobile classic) with clickwheel steering of course.
Thanks Steve. I am gonna put my $100 on that creepy green nano so you are gonna get another 100+ from me.
Weasel words.
People should get their full $200 overcharge back and compensation. I’m starting a class action suit, $2,000,000 per user compensation claimed, I’m only claiming half of that because I never bought an iPhone but I was subjected to all the media hype and subsequent whining which caused me great anxiety, stress, distress and embarrassment as I couldn’t afford $599 but could have afforded $399, not that I’d have bought a fake smartphone anyway.
On top of all that all those MAC lemmings that saw the light and swore never to buy a MAC product again will go back to being sheep. This is a bad day for fairness and justice in the world.
@ The 84 Mac Guy
BRILLIANT!!!
Of course, those that were complaining about all the “whiners” shouldn’t be eligible for the $100 credit. After all, it was the whining that got Apple to do this. That is why we complain about these types of things, not because we hate Apple but because we want them to do the right thing.
Bad precedent.
Just my $0.02
“Stock has dropped about $2.00 since this announcement..”
No it hasnt. And even if it had, the drop wouldnt have had anything to do with this announcement.
“We have done the impossible and that makes us mighty.”
Fair enough, Steve!
This is the difference between Apple and all the other companies. It’s a community, a conversation, a two way street. We are on the same TEAM. Steve and Apple Co. continue to listen to their users in order to develop the best product ever. Not to mention they use their own products! The strategy of creating the hardware to run their outrageous software is going to pay off over the next 5 years. I was an early iPhone adopter (Jun 29th), I would of liked some money back; but also understood seizing the upcoming holiday opportunity and the fact Apple has to be lowering their costs as very hot iPod touch uses the same Build of Materials (practically). The fact they have done this is amazing and appreciated.
Steve- you made the right decision AND you exceeded my expectations. I’ll be loyal forever. Thanks!
PS: For anyone who thought $200 was the end of the world let me tell you that after spending 4 hours installing a label printer as a shared device on Windows Server- the advantages of the Macintosh environment – priceless.
There you go !!
Apple never fails you, whether you are a fan boy or not !!!
David Sylvian,
You said, “We early adopters should receive the $200 break. After all, it is us loyal customers that made iPhone a success”
I used to be a frequent early adopter, and not just for Apple products. But whenever I slapped my credit card down to buy the Latest Thing in technology I always thought of it as a donation. That’s right, for me it was like when you give money to the World Wildlife Fund and in appreciation they send you a sticker with their logo on it so you can show off that you’re a good person, except with tech your reward is a little fun and bragging rights.
With tech you give them some extra cash and you get to have a shiny gizmo a few months before everyone else, buggy and unfinished though it may turn out to be. But in return for gambling on them, and for making a donation to help them pay for their R&D;, I never got a check in the mail. Or even a store credit.
Steve is a class act.
LOL…. you little cry babies are now happy. Instead of arguing and screaming about the lack of features, you cry about the price drop. Oh well you get your 100 bucks, guess what, your just putting it back into Apple hands. LOL
This is exactly why I use macs and have done for 16+ years.
Apple appreciated its customers.
That letter is one that will never come from Microsoft – regardless who runs the Dinosaur.
@Stockboy
“Stock has dropped about $2.00 since this announcement…I lost more in stock price than this rebate….
Thanks!…..”
“Steve – where is the make up for the stock price drop????”
Don’t you worry… it will return to it’s upward track. AAPL is in a super hot position right now across the board – iPhone, iPods, Macs, Software, etc. I’ve never seen it this good and I don’t doubt there will be some record-breaking quarters announced soon. Hold onto that stock for another couple years (or even more)… you won’t be disappointed. I easily made enough profit to purchase several iPhones this year.
Liberal Commies! This is not pure capitalism, give nothing.
now stop complaining…
i expect my apple stock to take yet another dump shortly…
Hope all the crybabies are done crying now….
to those suggesting that they get a credit card rebate and the in store credit – from the open leter…
“Therefore, we have decided to offer every iPhone customer who purchased an iPhone from either Apple or AT&T;, and who is not receiving a rebate or any other consideration”
MDN word is way, as in there probably is no way around this. Either take the full rebate your card gives you, or the in store credit.
Okay… I’ve vented and let the dust settle. I knew a price drop would happen. Just not so fast. Steve is right. Technology is a gambit of bigger, faster, stronger, sooner. I like many of you, were shocked that sooner happend in 10 weeks and reduced the price by 1/3.
I wasn’t looking for the $200 back. I just wanted to know I could trust Apple again in the future.
This small gesture started to restore my trust in Apple. To know that I am not being punished (again this year, first for the AppleTV HD increase) for being an early adopter. But then I’m torn… as a stock holder I want the price cut so Apple can sell more phones.
$100 for being able to play with the iPhone 10 weeks early. That’s okay with me. Looks like I can upgrade to iWork ’08 for free or upgrade to Leopard for $29….
Or buy a new iPod Nano for someone for christmas.
Then Steve takes $100 more of my money…. plus the money from Leopard…. and then more than likely the money from iWork ’08…
Steve Jobs, you crafty business man.
MDN Word = term as in “I should come to terms with the fact that Apple owns my wallet anyways.”
Oh good… now you can all go buy a couple of $49.95, “I love Apple” tee-shirts (organic hemp of course)
wait, can i apply that $100 to the limited time 4 gig iPhone?
if so that is a $200 iPhone, and they sure as hell better last that long….
Geez, but SJ is a friggin’ genius. I’d bet my lost dollar that he had this all typed up before yesterday’s announcement. What a ringmaster.
Spoken like a true conspiracy theorist
The only people bitching now are those A) that WERE NOT early adopters, B) that got on these boards and attacked others for their early purchase, C) that attacked those who felt slighted by the early price slash.
You people can shut the fuck up now. It wasn’t a great move. Early adopters didn’t think so. The press didn’t think so. Apple didn’t think so. Steve Jobs didn’t think so.
Flame on all you want. The people have spoken. Apple has listened. Your attacks are irrelevant. You’re not getting your cake, and you won’t be eating cake.
Smart decision. It would not have been wise for Steve Jobs to alienate and piss off his very best customers.
Once again, screw all of you who complained about our “whining”. It was a bad decision by Apple in the first place and Jobs recognized that after the onslaught of emails.
That said, Steve indeed had restored my faith. It was the right thing to do, and I believe he should be commended for this action. A $100 store credit is an outstanding solution to this debacle, and is very fair.
And now I’ll be using it to buy an 8GB iPhone for my wife at the out-of-pocket cost of $299 (he he he).
I’ll save my credit and use it for my overpriced new battery that I’m bound to need very soon from my overuse of my beloved iPhone
Can the cynicism, guys. They did NOT need to do this, and they did it anyway.
Classy.
Bought our 8GB iPhone at La Cantera in San Antonio on June 29th and have been amazed by its funtionality and design. When I heard about the $200 price drop (via EDGE on iPhone while driving to Austin during Steve’s keynote!), I was surprised but still happy with what we had paid–after all, no one made us buy our phone. Will be going back to La Cantera soon to spend the $100 rebate. The decision to give us a break is a above and beyond the call of duty. Thanks, Mr. Jobs, for making this decision.
Hey justified,
I’m with you, dude. Your post says it all.
ferf
Wow, what a classy move by Apple.
I was in at the ground floor, and I wasn’t upset about the price cut… That’s the price we pay for early adoption. And besides, as an Apple shareholder I will easily make that money back in the next couple of months as even more people are now priced into the market for the iPhone.
“Above and beyond” is how I’d describe the decision to give me a $100 store credit for something I bought more than 2 months ago. now I have to figure out what I want to spend it on…
PS: All you asswipes finger-pointing and calling other “crybabies” need to shut your holes. You’ve got some scorned-kid-on-the-playground complex that you need to take care of offline. There’s really no reason for you to be commenting at all unless you’re all pissy that you don’t have an iPhone or that you were going to get some great deal and now your advantage has been lessened.
Whining is whining, and you bitches have been whining the loudest.
Not a 90M decision exactly — it is store credit, and so given apple’s margins, it’s more like at most a 45M decision assuming 900K units sold.
From what I have read, Apple’s margins are more like 30%, so it was a $63 million decision.
Was sad about it, but learned to live with it. But this is cool, now i get leopard for 29 bucks. Sweeeeet
100 more reasons why I’m proud to be an Apple user… and an Apple stockholder. This is how you run a successful business. Take the $100 million hit, and earn it back ten times in customer satisfaction and loyalty.
It was a wise thing to do. HOWEVER don’t anyone dare say way to go Steve, or thank Apple. The trolling anal MS apologists will be all over you for drinkin’ the cool-ayde.
You see, whatever you as an Apple product user, an actual Apple product, or Apple does, it will always be a damned if you do, but twice as damned if you don’t unless its 4 times as damned if you do situation. Nothing will ever make some “I’m entitled” snobs happy except for someone to fork over the entire world and everything in it to them, and even that wouldn’t be enough.
On this end, a big thanks to Apple & Steve. My son started saving for the iPhone the day it was announced. He got it a few days after it was out. (We were camping, just not at the AT&T;or Apple Store) He now has $100 to spend on something else iPhone/iPod/Mac related, and I can get almost 2 for 1 pricing on new iPhones for me and my wife. Happy day in our house!
Pure and Simple
An apology and a rebate: classy.
I could not be happier with Apple right now. Every experience I have had with my iPhone has been a pleasure. I bought a refurbished one about 10 days ago. Bought the least expensive one, 4gb, and paid 399.00. Now I just got a 150.00 dollar rebate which = 250.00 iPhone and I love it. Lots of cool features. BTW can’t tell ANY difference between my refurbished iPhone and a new one.
Thanks Apple
So, they still sting you for $100 and then entice you into the Apple Store to spend even more money. Could only be Apple. Think Different (TM).
I just hoped they learned from this. Apple customers rely on the fact that their pricing will be consistent, and they won’t feel ripped off two months later. It may be irrational, but it is what it is. This has deviated drastically from their normal pattern. I appreciate the $100 but the damage is done. I am going to be more careful about the way I spend my money at Apple.
It was a brand new product. They needed a margin in case of product recalls or other unforeseen problems that come with a new product.
Turns out the iPhone was designed better than they thought. No expensive problems. Time for a price cut.
The Apple Store credit (aka Aperture) was just what I thought they should do.
Good Job Apple!
“And all MS can do is offer a measly $50 rebate on the Zune? Now MS not only looks retarded but stingy as well. Maybe MS should start giving Zunes away to the victims of Hurricance Katrina or global warming or trans fat or something”
Good Lord in heaven above man, (or woman) Haven’t those poor people been through enough already? And on top of everything you’d force a Zune on them? Maybe the earth should just open up and swallow you whole right now.
This was a very good move. Having just gotten an iPhone a mere 5 days ago, I called Appl Customer Service and asked for (and recieved with no hassles) the full $200 refund; but if I were past the published 14 day window that is company policy, I would have happily accepted the $100.
As mentioned in other posts, early adoptors know (or should know) that the price is always high for a new product (hell…my first CD recorder, purchased for my business in 1992, cost $6000…blank CD-R disks were $27 EACH). While I will have to agree that the iPhone price drop was very dramatic and unusually early in the game, I think that Apple’s response was wise and fair, all things considered. Most other companies would not have bothered, I’m sure.
This was a very shrewd and positive PR move by his Steveness.
How about I donate the $100 credit toward an add-on that implements GPS?
A perfectly reasonable compromise. Glad Apple is acknowledging the issue.
@RealityCheck
What “sting”? Prices drop. All the time.
I bought one of the first high-end home fax machines for what I thought was going to be a home-based business, back in the late 1980s. I paid $1700. Three years later, you could find a better machine for $200.
I also bought a top of the line Beta machine early in the VCR wars, about 1982. Paid $1100 (back when that was REAL money). Best VCR I ever owned, incredible features, but eventually it was replaced when I couldn’t find the movies I wanted to rent in Beta.
Some times I choose to be an early adopter. Other times (DVD players, cel phone, flat screen TV), I choose to wait. With the iPhone, I’ve waited. And I’m not sure I’m done waiting (Do I need 16MB, GPS and very likely 3G downloads? Uh, maybe?).
I’m glad a million people have been lovin’ their iPhones since day 1. But should they be shocked — shocked! — the price tumbled? No. The price of LCD HD has fallen by about 50% in the last year. Should people moan about it? Maybe, but it’s not anyone’s fault. Steve’s right: it’s just technology.
N/T
$100 off leopard sounds good to me
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This is great! Tell me how I can send an e-mail to Steve, please.
It’s a solid recovery from a shaky rollout of the price reduction. They should have anticipated the reaction, but everyone goofs. Jobs interview comments should have been more gracious and understanding, but I think this stikes a positive balance and is a very fair offer.
Frankly, as a stockholder, this annoys me more than losing the fscking whiners does. I’d rather lose them than give away money out of my pocket to make them feel better. Apple will gain far more customers with the price cut than it will lose by it, and that is money IN my pocket.
And I bought an iPhone first week. The increase in stock price since the iPhone was announced has been far more valuable than a measly $200 for buying early.
… I hear the stockholders are running to the Apple forums in droves to whine and complain.
I WANT MY IPHONE NOW!
Can I have 10€ refund from every second that I have to wait iPhone to happen in the Europe????
My advise to Steve is that you should take the iPhone price up in the US $2000 so that we can buy it here for 999€ all of them.
One year waiting is bad. Two years waiting makes you go crazy. Months after the release………………..
My worst nightmare is that they hava delayd the iPhone release in the Europe. Talks with the European telecompanies aren´t going well so they want to sell the iPhones in the US. I did buy some more AAPL now totalling 7000 shares.
MDN magic word: member
STEVE RULES … APPLE RULES … the right thing ….respect for the user family by the leadership … it’s great to be a Mac user .
This is what separates Apple Inc. from all the faceless Consumer Electronics Companies. Sony would have been piss-off, Apple saw an opportunity to smooth some feathers and generate more iPhone buzz with mega positive spin (which is worth more then the $75.00 to $55.00 per customer that it will cost them in the end) . While some FUDsters will say Apple should give all iPhone owners that paid more the full $200.00. The fact is the first 45-60 days of production of the iPhones, it did cost a lot more to make an iPhone then it does today. The multi-touch screen cost 50% to 75% less, now that the process to make them is fully automated. In the beginning each screen was vacuum sealed to the glass by hand. The optical glass even cost less now that the process to cut the sheets down to the proper iPhone size is computer automated. The nature of the electronic Biz is things cost more and margins are less at the beginning of a product life cycle then at the end of that cycle, the trick is to meet the margin in the middle. The promotional write off for the $100.00 Apple Store credit for early iPhone buyers will just help off set some of Apple’s Taxes. It’s a win win here.. enjoy it!
RE: ” And the really savvy people with credit cards that do price guarantees may just get their cake ($200 refund) and eat it too ($100 credit).”
You mean the really DISHONEST PEOPLE don’t you Jamie?
http://fakesteve.blogspot.com/2007/09/happy-now-bitches.html
@ rob
Stop the BS – the $100 credit is still $100. I work in marketing for a larger coatings manufacturer and we offer this type of credit all of the time to settle customer complaints. It’s used widely throughout industry and it is a win-win situation for the supplier and the customer. The value is still there.
Don’t be an ass.
I’m still unhappy. This all seems like it was planned from the beginning. That letter has been sitting in a drawer waiting for this day. They had to know there would be an uproar over this. Add to that the fact that as a 4 gb iPhone buyer, I now own a phone that is basically obsolete about a month after I bought it. What I want is either an upgrade to the 8 gb phone, a $200 credit, or $100 in cash. This isn’t over as anyone who’s been reading the Apple discussion forums today can attest.
Just sent Apple a thanks and I don’t even own an iPhone. How many companies would have done this? If you appreciate it, let Apple know. Nothing like positive reinforcement.
And what an example of what people can do when they unite!
Obsolete?! WTF are you talking about?!
It is the same phone but half of the memory size of the bigger one. After 30 years it is collection item and you get your money back ten times the inflation. I have a 60 GB iPod Video and I haven´t managed to fill it up. I simply don´t have that much porn nor music. 4 GB iPhone is not obsolete! It will work happily many many years. My friend bought an iPod Shuffle because he liked it better. I said that it has not that much of capacity. He said that he does not need more capacity. iTunes takes care of that. I was quiet because he was right. Needs… you have to think what your needs are… What do you want? If this is what you want then it is you.
@ stop whining posters……
Why is it that people posting a valid problem or compliant have to be classified as whiners or babies? Why do so many MDN posters just swallow anything Apple shoves down their throat?
Steve Jobs in his open letter is admitting that Apple should do a better job taking care of their early iPhone customers since they trusted Apple. Further than that he even apologizes.
Therefore the people that were so called “whining” must have been justified in their complaints!
It would be nice if MDN posters could be a little more objective and be willing to push back if Apple is making a mistake.
Steve Jobs is definitely doing the right thing here….Apple does not need this negative publicity hanging over it. In fact this move will polish the Apple even more.
This definitely separates Apple from the HPs, Dells, etc. For all the zdnet bloggers saying Apple screwed their customers….You can now shove it….and eat your words.
Go Apple! Looking forward to getting more of your awesome products!
Oh please. Just get over it. How the heck is your phone obsolete? Does it do any less today than yesterday, or the day you bought it? No. And soon it will do more. So just let it go.
to Galloway and all the SHAREHOLDERS who are bitching NOW about the credit:
If you really knew anything about what makes a company a class act you’d look beyond profits and the money you claim you are “losing”. This will make your investment that much more valuable. A company consumers can trust is worth a helluva lot more than one you can’t. So STFU.
MDN magic word: suddenly… Suddenly I realized that I may need speeling chiker?
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I WANT MY IPHONE TOMMORROW!
Whine whine whine, how about those people who bought those huge plasma tv’s which seemed to drop monthly in price? You want it first you pay for it. Apple giving $100 towards the Apple Store is unnecessary but typical of how great a company like Apple is. Maybe two months is a short time frame, but I work in the cell phone industry and two months for a 30% drop is not uncommon as the new hot toy comes out. So suck it up! I live in Canada and can’t even get one.
bunch a f@%$#^ing whiney babies
everybody knows the first ones are the most expensive
is everyone going to bitch and whine when the bluray comes down in price?
just like every other thing in history
you whiney babies make me wanna puke.
i got my phone 3 weeks ago
i not whining
and i will not use the 100 dollar credit
you guys suck
I bought my 30 in Sony CRT HD TV eight years ago for 8000 bugs! Look at now, a 40 in LCD costing less than 2000 clams! I want my money back Sony!
You obviously bought your iPhone for the wrong reason. You bought it to be “cool”. Now people will say to your fragile ego “Hey, your iPhone is discontinued! You’re a dork!”. And you will cry.
BTW, you aren’t cool.
It was the right thing to do, Bravo!
Now perhaps Bill Gates will do the right thing and rebate $200 for the $199 Zune.
@ferf muckmeyer
For your information, I own a company that is by far the most respected in its entire field. It is respected because we provide good product, excellent customer service, and on occasion we kiss our customers’ asses in just the way that Apple did with this entirely undeserved $100 credit.
As much as I would often like to tell my customers to go fuck themselves, it’s not good business. So I suck it up, flatter them nicely, and make a shitload of money.
Just like Apple.
Trust me when I say I have forgotten more about customer service and good business that you will ever know.
So, they still sting you for $100
Perhaps a $200 price INCREASE with no store credit for anyone would’ve been a better move?
Mother of God. I had no sympathy for the self-involved complainers, since virtually every other news story / blog post about the iPhone in late June was about the various perils of being an early adopter. They couldn’t wait, and they paid freely what they considered to be a fair price.
But Steve Jobs moves in a mysterious way, and I guess the level of bad publicity generated by the Whining Machine was enough to make him think that paying them off to the tune of $90 million was a good investment. It kind of sucks for the rest of us, though. That money could have been reinvested in new products or acquisitions.
Still, I love how Jobs totally called everyone’s bluff.
The whole thing will make a textbook chapter in the psychology of economics–particularly the recent findings that people would rather get less money, with a larger difference between the money given to them and someone else in the experiment, than more money with a smaller difference.
People are weird.
Dear “justified”,
You are a pussy, a whiner, and an entitlement class loser.
Deal with it!
IMO the jury’s still out on this one. Success is about making great products, not apologies.
Although success is also about taking care of your customers, and Steve earns big points for offering the store credit. Think what you want, that’s class. And a refreshing change from the profits-first mentality at so many modern businesses.
Let’s see Dell or Wal-Mart (the queen whores of price cuts) do something similar…
did the right thing
still gonna think again ’bout buying right out of the block
thx sj
@ @justified,
Fuck you and both of your ugly dads. You’re an asshole so ashamed of yourself that you only launch attacks without making any valid points.
Pull your head out of your ass and go get a life, loser.
The whiners really do need to understand what it means to buy cutting-edge technology before they blame Apple for “betraying their trust.” What hogwash! Anyone who’s not content just to be one of the lucky owners of a first-generation iPhone should have waited at least a year before buying one. There will be more changes. Get used to it.
Wow. Just wow. I totally didn’t ask for or expect this. I’ll happily spend my $100 store credit! Woot!
justified: I don’t think you should sugarcoat your posts.
;-p
While I’m happy to get the $100 and I certainly won’t refuse it, in reality this price drop is no different than any other high-end cellphone. The Razr dropped about $250 in price after the first couple of months. I have no problem with Apple dropping the prices after sixty days. I had two additional months of the best cellphone experience I’ve ever had and consider it money well spent.
You have to have not done your research when buying the phone in the first place to expect the prices to stay the same for even as long as six months. And you never buy anybody’s product right before they have a media event.
Look people, a $100 “store credit” is not going to do it. I want my full $200 back. My brother is a lawyer and I’ll be speaking with him tonight about a lawsuit against Apple Inc.
And all of you people that complain about my “whining” can just ROT IN HELL for all I care. I’ll SAY what I want, I’ll DO what I want, I’ll be what I want, and I’d kick any of your sorry asses for telling me otherwise. You dickheads better be glad you don’t meet me in person.
Apple has lost me as a customer…….FOR LIFE!!!
They’ve raped me and ripped me off, and I’m not going to tolerate it!!!
You don’t want to hear that? Just leave this forum!
@chrissyone
Great Patton quote. still the best poster…
“Anyone who’s not content just to be one of the lucky owners of a first-generation iPhone should have waited at least a year before buying one.”
Or 68 days.
Some of you whiners seem to not understand that if you purchased your iPhone early, that’s longer that you get to use it before it becomes “obsolete” by the introduction of a new version.
And with the iPod Touch coming out, without a price drop the iPhone sales would’ve been unduly hurt.
I must say that once this whole brouhaha has simmered down, I think an awful lot of people are going to recognize that the iPhone is VERY well priced.
MW “covered,” as in “Got it.”
Um… wow.
They really didn’t have to do this – but wow. Rock-on Apple! Can’t wait for my new 10.5 MacBook!
A truly class act, from a classy company! Wait a go Steve!
You whiners made the Mac community look bad.
Congrats! Way to go you Costanzas!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Costanza
… exhibits a number of negative character traits, among them stinginess, dishonesty, insecurity, and neurosis. Many of these traits form the basis for his involvement in various plots, schemes, and awkward social encounters. Episode plots frequently feature George manufacturing elaborate deceptions at work or in his relationships in order to gain or maintain some small or imagined advantage
justified
Take a look over your shoulder….I’m the guy that can and would drop you like a bad habit.
***THE ABOVE WAS NOT MY POST***
It was posted by a true pussy.
We don’t know who you are. But YOU know who you are. And you know that you are a true pussy.
FAKE STEVE –
Again, VERY funny!
And “stormy” (ooooh, scary name *rolls eyes), you don’t know me very well. I’m not a big guy, but when I get pissed, I’m like cornered wolverine. DON’T SCREW WITH ME, PEOPLE!!!
Sheesh!
Hurry Up Apple.. give us Leopard so this will be dust in the wind!!!…
I LOVE my iPhone and didn’t care if there was a rebate because the $200 is SO FAR gone and the benefits of using it for a month has been and still is worth more…
I just HATE the bashing on yahoo finance board ripping this to shredds and making up rumore about a Apple boycott…
Live Long and Prosper!
Loyal Apple Customer and Stock Holder for YEARS!!!
HURRY UP STEVE!!!!!!! LOL
Keep on fighting the good figh,t people. And don’t let these anti-whining prick jobs shut you down. We early adopters made the iPhone the success that it became, and we deserve something for going out on a limb and getting REEMED. As of yesterday, I feel like I spent a drunken night in the Crisco wing of a Turkish prison.
A lifelong boycott sounds great to me. We’re gonna shut CrApple down! Can you say, “Buh hye, Apple?”
shit, i want my money back on my titanium laptop. i bought it five years ago and it’s now obsolete. you early adopter whiner idiots can shove it. you get it firsthand you pay the price.
Steve jobs deserves the Nobel Peace prize for this one..!
Look people, a $100 “store credit” is not going to do it. I want my full $200 back. My brother is a lawyer and I’ll be speaking with him tonight about a lawsuit against Apple Inc.
Heh, good luck. You’ve already spent way more than $200 in legal fees. A GOOD lawyer will charge his own family, without blinking.
While your at it, sue every other company that ever did a surprise price cut. Should be a great payback if you can pull it off.
It takes a real man and a respectable company to go out of their way to please the voices. Good move.
Wow… this iPhone SNAFU has really divided Apple users into two camps.
Those who got ripped off of $200, and the rest who didn’t and are laughing at those who did.
Ok… I understand the whole credit ordeal but how are they going to identify the early adopters to whom to give the $100 credit (myself included)? I dont have my receipt and Im sure thousands of others don’t either. The letter clearly stated EVERY iphone customer yada yada yada… hmm any thoughts?
Yesterday: Steve = Devil
Today: Steve = God
Some people would sell their soul for $100
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@MPC Guy
I think it’s more those who THINK they got ripped off $200, and those who are laughing at those who think they did.
I bought early, I didn’t get ripped off a dime, and I have no intention of using the $100 credit.
As I said elsewhere, I bought a IIsi 30 days before the price dropped $1000, and I didn’t complain a bit. And that’s when I was making $7.25/hr. That’s life, and them’s the breaks. You don’t like it… oh well.
Unless you are a card carrying member of the entitlement generation, and then you whine and whine and whine and sue and do your part to ruin America bit by bit.
I am so glad they did this because I am saving for a new Mac (which I told them when I left feedback) and I chose to use part of that savings for the iPhone. I had decided if I didn’t get an iPhone right away, I would make myself wait until I got the computer. so I am happy.
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I think a 100 rebate is reasonable, anymore would have been excess (and could have screwed up their image) and less could have been kinda demeaning (yeah we know you are upset, here’s $5) – this shows that they appear (I can’t say whether they actually do or don’t) to care about their loyal customers and how they feel about things.
@MPC Guy,
You total sissy whiner. You and all the other whiners are just begging for a total ass kicking, and I’d love to give it to you. Slap you like a bitch, and then keep you for a night in my Turkish prison for boys.
Funny, but I always make my posts with an available e-mail address… because I’m not a PUSSY, you poser.
$100 Store Credit – Apple markup = $40 * (10% of 900,000 who take the discount) = $3,600,000 loss to Apple
The image of being fair to customers combined with all the free advertising = PRICELESS.
Apple never loses on a deal, even when it seems that they will.
This is very good of Steve & co. I was stung by the price drop, but figured I’d bought it at the more expensive price point, so that was that. This really is above and beyond what they had to do–but it was the right thing to do, so THANKS!
BTW, I wonder if they’ll be emailing all of us who bought an iPhone and registered it with them? They have our reg info, so it should be easy enough for them to do….
>Galloway wrote: I think it’s more those who THINK they got ripped off $200
Some yield to Apple’s every whim, some don’t. You’re set in your beliefs and it works for you. Great.
However, you ruin your credibility when you form unfounded criticisms of people. Entitlement cards? Blasting a generation of people? Whiners?
Yikes. Your willingness to yield to Apple shouldn’t be applied to everyone. In fact, that sort of complete yielding to such a greatly innovative company is harmful to them.
There’s no need to personally attack people either. I’ve worked a job (sometimes 2) since the age of 14. Worked full-time throughout college as well. Graduated about a decade ago and working hard for my money. Yet, you don’t see me bashing anyone because they feel ripped off of $200.
Step off the high-horse already.
—–
>do your part to ruin America bit by bit.
Excuse me! Bending over every time someone says so is the worst thing anyone can do… American or otherwise.
Wow… you really do need to step off the high-horse. Yikes. What an amazingly arrogant and outrageous view you have of the world.
That’s because I’m entitled to my arrogance, you social retard! If you don’t like it, get out of my country!
@MPC Guy
Despite what the idiot posing as me was trying to imply, I was not trying to personally attack you or anyone else. I am certainly not the first person on these boards in the last day to call those complaining about the price reduction “whiners”.
You yourself implied that you were laughing at those who feel they were ripped off… although you were implying that we WERE ripped off. I was pointing out that not all early adopters of the iPhone believe they were ripped off, including myself.
I’m also not yielding to anyone or anything. Apple has a price drop policy of, I believe, 14 days. This is not at all uncommon. I bought before that, so I’m out of luck. So what? Prices on… well, on everything, really, drop all the time… it’s a fact of life. Maybe they don’t drop as much as the iPhone did after as short a period of time… but they often do. Hell, when was the last time anyone on this board bought a car for the sticker price? Does getting it for less than someone else mean the “someone else” got ripped off? Or how about buying right before the model year changes? Lots of examples have been posted on these several threads here, so I won’t bother recounting more.
I disagree with you that my crisicisms of the people complaining are unfounded. Unfounded in whose opinion? Unfounded perhaps in the opinion of some, but not of others. As for “blasting” a generation of people, well, they call it the “Me Generation”, do they not? Of course it doesn’t include everyone from that generation. Generalities do not work for that very reason.
But tell me how someone like “justified” — and I apologize if I’m referring to the impostor and not the “real” “justified” — saying they are going to start a class action suit against Apple because of the price drop is not a heinous perversion of what the American justice system is supposed to be about… getting actual justice?
I kind of expected this move yesterday. Yeah, yeah, I know some dolt out there will tell me I’m just making this up for some assinine reason, but really, it made the most sense.
Apple knew this was coming and they decided to grab a ton of press with it. I’m sure that they knew how much the Apple fan base (jeez that sounds weird, like they’re some kind of rock band) would hoot and hollar at the first anouncement and then rejoice and once again sing Apple’s praises at the second.
Which reads better:
Apple today slashed the price of the iPhone $200.00 and oh by the way they also gave the people who already bought one a $100.00 store credit.
or
Day 1: Apple today slashed the price of the iPhone $200.00!
Day 2: After “listening” to their loyal customers, Apple has decided to generously “reward” these early adopters of the iPhone with a $100.00 rebate.
The first one just makes Apple sound like they just realized that they were charging too much for their product. The second one makes for high drama and great press.
Nice move Steve & Co.
And thanks for the $100.00
gonna that $100 and buy my girlfriend an iPhone for $299. Not bad Steve, not bad at all.
I’m so sick of all the whiners on the various sites today complaining about a price drop! So what if you bought an iPhone at $599. It was a price you were happy to pay at the time for a product you wanted. Period.
With technology, prices are always dropping and features are always improving. Yes, it was a quicker than usual drop in price. So what. If Apple’s costs of materials and production have dropped due to sales volumes or new suppliers, and they are willing to lower the price on a high demand product this quickly, then that makes Apple a hero in my book. Plus, with the price drop, sales will increase even faster and that will spur on even faster and better innovations in the next version. Which of course will then lead to more complaints at the time when someone is not happy that they bought version one 15 days before version two is released. Shut up!
If it weren’t for early adopters paying high prices – which cover initial research and development costs – to own the newest products, a 42″ Plasma TV would still cost $8,000 and a PC or Mac would still cost $5,000 and run at 25mhz!
Galloway…
Boy, these internet forums can sure be problematic when trying to have a civil trade.
You know what… I’m just going to end my participation in this particular thread and thank you for sharing your ideas. We may not agree on this issue, and I imagine a bunch of others in the future.
BUT… I imagine we’d be civil about whatever trades we have, whether in agreement with each other or otherwise.
Shame some of us on this board add a bunch of noise and insults.
So as one fellow iPhone owner to another, an Apple customer to another, one American to another, heck… just as one man to another… Have a nice day, friend. All the best…
MPC Guy
@MPC Guy
I have to share this, since it reminds me so much of “discussions” on this board: http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1771556
Hope to have some truly civil exchanges in the future.
Cheers!
magic word : “life”
@justified
I understand there are very effective medications now for those with conditions like yours.
@justified
I understand there are now very effective medications for those with conditions such as yours.
I never repeat myself
I have never repeated myself
I was worried that the next time Apple had a new product there’d be a lot fewer folks lining up as early adopters, and that there’d be angry picketers with messages like “Remember the iPhone.” Now I’m satisfied that the vast majority of us early adopters will look back on our “Summer of the iPhone” with great pleasure. Steve, you did good. Thanks.
@WBFS,
Chirp.
So, MPC Guy and Galloway are gonna get all mushy. Next think you know, they’re be swapping spit. HAGS!
After justified, you sissies are too easy!
why are we all so please with $100? The price drop was $200. Return your phone to apple, they have a $50 restocking fee. then buy a new phone you will be up $150
@Crickets
Crunch!
I remember a day when you could come to this board for mac news, discussion, and even heated debate. now it’s just a bunch of fight picking kids with too much time on their hands. oh well. MDN must love the hits.
why are all so please with $100? The price drop was $200. Return your phone to apple, they have a $50 restocking fee. then buy a new phone you will be up $150
Apple Inc. wasn’t obligated to do anything. This is beyond the call of duty. Early adopters of a new product are just that, early adopters.
Apple has every right to drop the price of any of their products as they see fit. Haven’t we all bought electronic equipment to see newer models introduced weeks or months later, with better spec’s for lower prices?
To everyone who bought an iPhone already, quit whining! You made the decision to buy a brand new product. Of course Apple was going to lower the price. What’s surprised everyone is the rapidity and amount of the price drop. So what? Like others have said, they’re in business to make money.
Some people were interpreting this price decrease as a sign that the iPhone was not selling well. It was a “bad sign”, supposedly. Apple does not go into these things will nilly and talking out of their butt like so many people on the internet.
Fact is, they had to do something major to the iPod line, since it’s been a very long time since they have. And the last thing they’d want to happen is for MS to have learned from their initial Zune mistake and actually get some things right on their second try. I mean, as much as I hate MS, that is a possibility.
So you have the iPod Touch. But it could siphon off too many iPhone sales if you’re not careful, so the price *had* to come down to where it is if they want to own these markets. And clearly, the really want to own these markets.
SJ wants to hand Bill Gates ass to him this time around. There is still some soreness there, from MS having “won” with a grossly inferior product. And SJ is just the kind of ego-driven genius that won’t let it stand.
Love the iphone its awesome and for me that I bought 2 4g models & with the price drops it hurts but i never did worry steve always comes through all the time and by next week things (Apple) will probably be good to us. Just one day into the price break Jobs realized his apple fans felt the pain and decided to do something bout it gota love steve. Apple fan forever!!!
I’d saaayy…quit complaining oh “loyal customers”.
It’s marketing genius, and almost certainly planned to go down exactly like this from the very start. Drop the price of the iPhone – big publicity and boosted sales. Early adopters complain – give them $100 back. Apple look like heroes who listen to consumers and act on it quickly, they get even more free publicity (most of it good), and they know that there’ll be thousands of people spending at least $100 (because lets face it – most people will put the credit towards something that costs more rather than just spend exactly $100) in apple stores before the holiday season, making the sales figures for the quarter look astronomically good and easily offsetting the cost of the payout in increased sales that otherwise wouldn’t be there.
Again, marketing genius.
BFD.
The headline for this article should have been, “Judas promises to return fifteen pieces of silver”.
Betrayal cannot be easily covered by a bribe for many of Apple’s most devoted customer base. We, who are regular Apple customers, understand how tech works, how prices fall and how products improve. But why didn’t prices fall in the six months BEFORE the launch? Because Apple thought it could sodomize it’s most faithful and then send them flowers afterward. For many that is not going to be good enough.
When a love affair ends it’s never pretty. Oh, we can be friends…someday. But things will never be the same as before. Never. And for a LOT of people their love affair with Apple ended yesterday.
“Apple thought it could sodomize it’s most faithful and then send them flowers afterward.”
Apple Knows it can sodomize it’s faithful they’ve done it time and time again with unreliable products and platform changes and yet the victims keep coming back. That’s what it means to be one of the Apple faithful. And if they had any intention of sending flowers they would have announced the $100 back at the same time as the price drop.
“why didn’t prices fall in the six months BEFORE the launch”
The answer is simple. It’s a desperate move.
After the initial surge the iPhone’s sales have dropped off. Clearly Apple miscalculated big time the number of people would buy a $600 cellphone. Steve has to pay the piper now or later.
If the drop were planned, Steve would have introduced a new iPhone, say 16GB version, dropped the price on the old ones, and discontinued the 4GB and everyone would be (relatively)happy. A huge price drop after 2 months is in no way planned.
If they didn’t drop the price, already miserable August sales would continue through September and in the next earnings call Steve would have to announce that the iPhone was a iFlop and the stock (and Steve’s net worth) would drop like a stone.
As it is they’re dropping the price to stimulate demand in the hope of getting a 2nd iPhone purchasing surge before the end of the quarter so they can report some good news.
Unfortunately margins will be in the toilet, but maybe they will be able to show an acceptable number of units sold.
The $100 rebate clearly wasn’t planned either. If it was, it would have been announced at the same time to take the sting out of the drop. If it was that would be classy. Given that it wasn’t it’s just another desperate move to cover another miscalculation in how the faithful would react.
“The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing; if you can fake that, you’ve got it made? If life were fair, Elvis would be alive and all the impersonators would be dead?
“Hey, we’ve got hundreds of ’em. What’s your take?”
My take is MDN should lay off the weed before writing takes on stories.
Are you for real?
And as for “Actually”: “miserable sales”? You mean, as in outselling every other smartphone? And “Steve has to pay the piper”? — wow, I’ve never heard such drivel coming out of someone’s ass before. No, actually, Apple is just trying to keep the momentum going.
Above and beyond the call of duty?
The squeaky wheel gets the grease?
Insanely great or greatly insane?
Too little, too late?
The foundation of justice is good faith?
I love it when a plan comes together?
Do what you feel in your heart to be right, for you’ll be criticized anyway; you’ll be damned if you do and damned if you don’t? The customer is always right? It was preordained?
Played like a fiddle?
That you may retain your self-respect, it is better to displease the people by doing what you know is right, than to temporarily please them by doing what you know is wrong?
Keep true, never be ashamed of doing right; decide on what you think is right and stick to it?
The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing; if you can fake that, you’ve got it made?
If life were fair, Elvis would be alive and all the impersonators would be dead?
Originally my thoughts were that Apple shouldn’t have to owe anyone anything. EVERYONE, especially those who waited in line, knew that the iPhone was going to drop in price. I don’t even want one and I knew it! My feeling is that consumers need to take more responsibility with their purchases and spend less time bemoaning the companies that they purchase from.
But I think this is a really slick move on Apple’s part, and I applaud it. Firstly, it lets his early adopters know “We’re not Microsoft, we’re going to take care of our fanbase” and secondly, “We appreciate your faith and we want to make it known.”
Slick, and very impressive! I’m not usually a fan of Steve Jobs, but this is applause-worthy. There’s certainly something to be said about reaching out to your customers even AFTER they have bought something. I don’t feel that these customers were owed this money, which makes it even nicer. Now they can just apply this $100 credit to their next fan-boy purchase
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Fkn-A!!!!
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This is simply nickel and diming. It is not a “refund”, but a “credit”. Meaning that you have to buy something in the future. And why not go full throttle and give the full $200? After all, most people don’t use credits due to procrastination, etc. – so they should be easy to give away.
The reason that Jobs answer is disingenuous is that this type of price reduction on a new Apple product is unprecedented. It’s one thing if the product is out for 6 months before a price reduction (and you bought at month 5) – then what cousin Stevie has to say is correct – it’s a completely different thing for a new first generation product. One, incidentally, that I love, but that I have also had to exchange once because of problems with “no signal” after 20 days.
So I rate this a big failure – and this is from someone who has bought 3 iMacs and a MacBook for my family within the past year.
200 comments in 24 hrs for this story.
Nothing short of amazing.
Can you read, you friggin’ moron?
Appple HAD to lower the price on account of the iPodTouch!!!
To quote my earlier explanation, for the hard of learning:
“Some people were interpreting this price decrease as a sign that the iPhone was not selling well. It was a “bad sign”, supposedly. Apple does not go into these things will nilly and talking out of their butt like so many people on the internet.
Fact is, they had to do something major to the iPod line, since it’s been a very long time since they have. And the last thing they’d want to happen is for MS to have learned from their initial Zune mistake and actually get some things right on their second try. I mean, as much as I hate MS, that is a possibility.
So you have the iPod Touch. But it could siphon off too many iPhone sales if you’re not careful, so the price *had* to come down to where it is if they want to own these markets. And clearly, the really want to own these markets.
A thief stole my iphone on Monday and I was pissed I lost $599.00 How with iphones at $399.00 and a $100 credit due me, I only filled half as bad.
Do they sell condoms at the Apple Store?
It just so happens that I need exactly $100 worth.
“Can you read, you friggin’ moron?
Appple HAD to lower the price on account of the iPodTouch!!!”
Apparently I’m a moron because I don’t understand that the Touch was in the pipeline, and it’s pricing set well before the initial iPhone launch.
That leaves you with 2 unpalatable choices, Either Steve consciously set out to milk the early adopters, with a preconceived plan to drop the iPhone price $200, and already had a secret strategy to offer a $100 rebate a day later (Your take on events),
Or that Apple messed up in thinking that the iPhone was good for a $200-$300 premium over the iPod Touch, then when that turned out not to be so, thought that fanboys would shut up and take the price drop without whining and quickly found out with massive fanboy complaints how wrong that was, and again corrected (My take).
“You mean, as in outselling every other smartphone?”
Yes, for a month, then sales slowed dramatically. Look up “pent up demand”
And “Steve has to pay the piper”?
Yes, there are such high expectations for the iPhone that they must hit the forecast numbers, or take a hit to the stock price.
No rationally conceived marketing strategy would have arrived at the idea for such a drop so quickly. There you have two choices Steve is stupid (Your take) or Steve messed up then corrected as events unfolded (My take).
Given that Steve is not stupid, the fact is that Steve did what he needed to do, re-set the price point on the phone to head off slumping sales, then dealt with the fallout.
“No, actually, Apple is just trying to keep the momentum going”
In your own retarded way I think you hit the point right there. Momentum had slowed. If there was still robust sales at $600, there would be no need for a price drop.
“Do they sell condoms at the Apple Store?
It just so happens that I need exactly $100 worth.”
An Apple representitive will be over shortly to insert $100 of condoms into your ass one by one, using his huge tallywacker.
You will be expected to smile throughout the process and keep buying Apple products.
Hang on, that already happened to you all on Wednesday…
Apple spankeded you, and you all likeded that shit.
NBC News (via MSNBC’s “Countdown” reported tonight that those who bought iPhone’s within 14 days of the announced price reduction would get a refund of the $200 price difference. If that’s true, that’s sweet…I was planning to take my $100 store credit and get myself a pair of the Shure earbuds for the iPhone, but with that $200 I just might get the 160GB iPod classic so I don’t have to flip a coin as to what to leave behind when I’m traveling…
@Jay — If you bought it at an Apple Store, they might be able to look up your receipt by serial number of the system, or they may be working out some deal with AT&T;to verify when the phone was activated (assuming it was activated by the purchaser and within a certain amount of time of purchase). That’s probably what’s delaying the system.
I deleted the receipt that was emailed to me when my iPhone worked perfectly, and I just bought mine last week (and it’s already saved my rear a couple of times); hope they’ll be able to track me down…
“Apple spankeded you, and you all likeded that shit.”
That’s right, we may all complain a bit, but in reality we know that Steve’s so smart that we really don’t mind giving him that extra money for 70 days use. Come to think of it, if the iPhone were a turd in a box with an Apple logo on it, we’d buy it for $600.
You have to understand that our job as fanboys is to put up with shit like this then come up with ridiculous explanations that only other fanboys will believe as to why it was always planned to be that way, and what a masterful strategy it was.
We then need to post those explanations on the Internet.
There are two issues here: the first Is that all technology comes down in price eventually, sometimes sooner rather than later. It’s all part of costing and trying to remain competitive. Apple, perhaps having accounted for falling component costs, its revenue stream from subscriptions, and predicted future sales in Europe and Asia, may have determined that they were ready to reduce the price of the iPhone (perhaps well ahead of schedule, perhaps not). Apple might also have known they were going to bring out a new iPod based on their multi-touch display and could not afford, from a market share perspective, to continue to price the iPhone as high as at launch. Remember, they purposely delayed Leopard so they could bring the iPhone out in June.
So, in your opinion, when should technology come down in price? After three months? After six months? After a year? Are you so certain? Again, unless you know what Apple intended or did not intend, you’re just talking out of your ass.
Which brings me to the second point: so let us imagine for a moment that Apple did make a mistake and overestimated the demand of the iPhone (and I do say, imagine, because you can’t offer any proof, just speculation). So what does Apple do? They quickly intervene in the market and reduce the price substantially to now compete with almost every other smartphone on features alone. That was going to happen anyways sooner or later (as it did with the iPod). That Apple acted quickly here (even in their response to the early adopters) shows why this company is so successful.
But you’d like to just focus on the idea that Apple made a mistake and then make facile statements like “Steve has to pay the piper” blah blah blah.
“That leaves you with 2 unpalatable choices, Either Steve consciously set out to milk the early adopters, with a preconceived plan to drop the iPhone price $200, and already had a secret strategy to offer a $100 rebate a day later (Your take on events), Or that Apple messed up in thinking that the iPhone was good for a $200-$300 premium over the iPod Touch, then when that turned out not to be so, thought that fanboys would shut up and take the price drop without whining and quickly found out with massive fanboy complaints how wrong that was, and again corrected (My take).”
I think I’ve shown why your first “choice” is absurd (except to conspiracy theorists) and your second “choice” is also. How could Apple mess up the price difference between the iPhone and the iPod Touch when they weren’t even released at the same time?
“No rationally conceived marketing strategy would have arrived at the idea for such a drop so quickly. There you have two choices Steve is stupid (Your take) or Steve messed up then corrected as events unfolded (My take).”
Again, in the world of technology in a highly competitive market, your oh-so-certain view of what is “rational” here is tenuous at best, if not quaint. And if, as I mentioned above, Apple did make a mistake, what is more important? That they “messed up” as you put it? Or that they “corrected as events unfolded”? Your entire argument hangs on flogging the former, like someone always looking for the spot on the tie but oblivious to all reality. This, coupled with your glib use of the word “fanboy” leaves me with two unpalatable choices: either you’re a troll or a jackass.
Do I have to choose?
I,m pissed, my son spent six months saving for that phone.he was going to buy a apple lap top, but i,m going to make him wait now.
What can you do? thats technology for you. I’m just happy about the $100, probably buy a new keyboard for my iMac.
“So, in your opinion, when should technology come down in price? After three months? After six months? “
Not after 70 days and not by that much. That points to a miscalculation. All your stupid arguments are just trying to prop up your view of an Infallible Apple. Slurp Slup, this Koolaid tastes good!
” do say, imagine, because you can’t offer any proof, just speculation”
The only proof are the channel checks which say demand has dropped off radically.
“I think I’ve shown why your first “choice” is absurd (except to conspiracy theorists) and your second “choice” is also.”
Clearly not. You seem to be arguing for the first choice.
“But you’d like to just focus on the idea that Apple made a mistake and then make facile statements like “Steve has to pay the piper” blah blah blah.”
Because Steve did make a mistake and did have to make a correction or face a worse fate (or colloquially, pay the piper now or later). Sorry if that’s tough for you to get your pea sized brain around.
“-so-certain view of what is “rational” here is tenuous at best,”
Right. If you say so. Nobody who puts together marketing plans for a living would agree with you. Clearly tens of thousands of unhappy customers don’t agree with you and don’t think a drop that fast was rational. And that’s ultimately the best test of whether the strategy was good or bad.
“Apple did make a mistake, what is more important? That they “messed up” as you put it? Or that they “corrected as events unfolded”?”
Neither, what is probably more important (for you not me, as I don’t really care how deluded you choose to remain) is fanboys coming to the realization that this Debacle is not part of some Master Plan by Apple, but a series of mistakes reacted to on the fly.
Is it good that they’re reacting an making touch choices Sure. Is it good that they screwed up so badly making the initial choices? No.
And verily it came to pass that the Jobs looked upon the Chosen People and said, I have made for you a wondrous device and it shall be called the iPhone. And thou all shalt buy one, and it shall cost you thirty score dollars, and to buy one shall mark to the world your faith unto me.
And the People looked upon the iPhone and saw that it was Good. And they went forth and brought their iPhones in great multitudes.
And proudly did they showith their iPhones to the Unbelievers, as a sign of their Faith. But Haugthy and Arrogant they did become.
And the Jobs looked upon his followers and thought that it was Bad. So he called them together and said unto them. For you I have prepared a mighty chastisement. Thou iPhone shall now be worth only forty score dollars and it shall be brought in great quantities by the members of the tribe of No-kee-a and Mo-to-rolla And thou shalt be special in people’s eyes no more.
Thou iPhone will serve as a mark of your sinful pride, and people shall laugh muchly at you.
And so it was done.
And there was much wailing, and sniveling and crying among the Chosen People. And the People spake unto the Jobs, Why Jobs have you now forsaken us? For verily as we may be great tossers, surely we do not deserve such a price cut? We shall seek out a new God.
And the Jobs listened, and heard their cries, and considered the loss of future worship. And so the Jobs said unto the People, Go unto the Temple of Apple, and thou shalt receive Goods to the value of five score dollars.
And the people then rejoiced, and sad until themselves, surely this was the plan of the Jobs all along. Praise be to the Jobs. The Jobs is all merciful and compassionate.
And the People went forth and worshiped the Jobs for all the days of their lives.
I do not see any discussion about the 4g IPhone now being obsolete. In addition to the $100 rebate, SJ should allow 4g owners to upgrade to the 8g iPhone at no cost. My fear is that Apple knows something that the rest of us do not. Will 4g be enough to service new software, etc. over like of our contracts? Will 8g be the new standard? Heck, I would be happy to forego the $100 instore credit for a free upgrade to an 8g iPhone.
“My fear is that Apple knows something that the rest of us do not.”
Apple now knows something they didn’t at launch time, that nobody wants a high end music/video phone with only 4GB of memory.
iTunes glitch reveals rental movies coming soon!
http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/07/09/08/apple_itunes_glitch_reveals_movie_rental_preparations.html
I feel the same as a lot of readers– although the rebate was appreciated, people value the quality of the products that Apple puts out to justify the cost. This, coming from someone who bought a 2G 20GB iPod for $899 Canadian! At the time, I thought it was expensive, but reasonable for a revolutionary product.
Didn’t MS drop the price of their Zune the same day? Where are the stories that MS has problems? Where is the outrage? Has MS offered a rebate to their loyal first adopters? Redmond we are waiting for a Press Release!
I really have nothing interesting to say. I just want to be one of the last people to blog this topic.
Last?
Yep, I think that you are the last blogger for this thread.
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en
I agree too. You’re the last. Kudos.
damnit.
No worries, M@c!