Upgrade to Nokia N95 or wait for Apple's iPhone?

PeterPiper007

I want to get a new contract and high-demand phone but then sell the phone for a profit on eBay as a SIM-free/no contract item. I don't mind spending in the region of £100 for the phone as long as I can get at least £300 off eBay.

But my dilemma is: should I get the Nokia N95 and sell it on eBay for around £300 (making a £200 profit) or should I wait for the iPhone as that might sell for even more? The only problem is the iPhone may not be out in the Uk until June 07. Plus I'm not sure how much the iPhone's offline price might be but hopefully around £400??

JAYMARSH2005

It depends really on the monthly line rental you will have to pay dfor the i phone, I have seen the best prices recently for the lg prada

placebo_2

You'll have to wait for at least 3 to 4 months before the iPhone reaches the UK. By then the N95 will have started to lose its hype and value. If you want your profit now, then go for the N95, if you can wait then go for the iPhone. Or...why can't you do both if your profit is high enough to cover the price of the whole contract!

Helix

Apple said originally the iPhone wouldn't be over in the UK until early 2008 but now I think they are aiming for November in time for Christmas but if there as high demand in America as expected it could still be 2008 before its released.

epz_2

in my opinion the iphone has a lot more going for it, the max memory (at the moment, i think they are still trying to update firmare) of 2 gigs is pretty pathetic.

it depends what you want, frankly i think the sony W880i is the best new phone at the moment.

PeterPiper007

It basically all depends on two things: whether the iPhone is released within the next few months and whether it will have a high offline price (hopefully £400+).

robellett

Get both, and buy the iphone, when available, with your profits from the N95. I love my N95, though it's not perfect.

There also seems to be a good deal of price fluctuation on the N95, so shop around sharply.

Good luck! Rob

strawberri_shortcake

I was going to ask the same question - so I searched for this first!

Does anyone know what the terms are likely to be on the iPhone? I heard that it will be locked to a network (yet to be confirmed which one) and that the phone will be expensive, as will the contract.

PeterPiper007

Here's what Wiki says:

wikipedia wrote:

The iPhone is scheduled to be released in the United States in June 2007. It will be available from the Apple Store and from Cingular Wireless, with a price of US$499 for the 4 GB model and US$599 for the 8 GB model, based on a two-year service contract. Apple has also announced plans to make the iPhone available in Europe and Japan at a later date.

Cingular Wireless will be the exclusive carrier of the iPhone in the United States and will remain so until 2009. The iPhone may be purchased only with a two-year service plan with Cingular. Jobs announced that the iPhone will first be available in late June 2007 in the U.S., during the fourth quarter 2007 in Europe, and in 2008 for Asia.

iPhone partnership with which UK network operator?

Based on Apple's entrance into the US market with the iPhone, Apple might also try to have an exclusive partner here in the UK but this is not definitive. If I'm not mistaken, the US mobile phone network market differs considerably to the UK. Cingular has quite a strong and monopolistic position reaching a high percentage of mobile users (around 60million americans). The Uk's market is, on the other hand, much more oligopolistc, with intense competition and a reasonable distribution of subscribers amongst the main competing networks.

In this case Apple may go for an agreement with two partners (Vodafone and 02 possibly?). The lower exclusivity might lower the price as well. Let's just hope there are no obligatory 2 year contracts included in the deal as that would be rather annoying!

Handset Price

Based on the US sim-free pricing:

4 GB model= $499 >>> probably approx. £300
8 GB model=$599 >>> probably approx. £399

With a 12month contract of £30-£35 a month it's likely the iPhone would cost approx. £130-£160 straight up.

The thing is with all the uncertainty about the Ts&Cs I might as well just upgrade to the N95 now and sell it for a tidy £200 circa profit.

justpaper

iphone out ment to be out in Nov 2007,. but as always it will get pushed back,.

W880i is a nice phone,. if any ones after one a bit cheap, look out on CPW clearance contract page, or phone4u's page