AT&T Raises Subsidized iPhone 3GS Price to $0.99

Along with the iPhone 4S unveiling in October, Apple also announced a new price for the iPhone 3GS; free with a two-year contract from AT&T. Smart move because this shows that Apple is taking on the lower-end Android handset market head-on.

Now, AT&T has raised the price of the iPhone 3GS smartphone to $0.99. Not a very smart move. One possible explanation for this decision comes from an AT&T employee, according to MacRumors:

    I work at AT&T, this is being done to help prevent fraud as the 99 cents cannot be billed to your bill. It must be charged to a credit or bank issued debt card. Fraudsters are using stolen identities to steal these handsets been an issue since they went free.

In fact, the two-year old iPhone 3GS has been second-best selling smartphone in the U.S. during the third quarter of this year, behind only its successor, the iPhone 4. I don’t understand how this is possible if Android is “winning”. Also, it should be noted that the iPhone 3GS is available for $0 with a two year contract at Apple Stores, Wal Marts, Best Buys, Radio Shacks, Targets, etc.

Bottom line is that over four years after the original iPhone, AT&T is still stupid. I still don’t see the need for a price raise.

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U.S. Carriers Still Struggling to Meet iPhone 4S Demand

Everyone knows by now that Apple recently released the iPhone 4S, but how well is the doomed phone exactly selling? Let’s take a look. A few days after, Reuters reported that AT&T is seeing an ”extraordinary demand” for the new iPhone 4S, which became available for preorder at 12:01 am Pacific time on Friday, October 7th. AT&T revealed that they have seen over 200,000 preorders for the iPhone 4S in the first 12 hours of sale. Pretty impressive for a “non-iPhone 5″

Then, just 24 hours after pre-orders started for the iPhone 4S, Apple pushed back expected shipping times for the device from expected delivery on October 14th to an estimate of 1-2 weeks. Just days after, Apple announced that the iPhone 4S sold one million preorders in its first 24 hours of availability, setting a new record for the company. Now, The Wall Street Journal reports that Verizon Wireless customers still need to wait for more than three weeks for their purchase to arrive. It’s an average 21-day wait at AT&T as well, whereas Sprint customers must wait up to 14 days. Hey! Wait a minute! What happened to “nobody wants this iPhone” nonsense? You know how insane that is? (in a good way). Just imagine what the demand will be like beginning next week since it is holiday season.

    Verizon Wireless customers may have to wait more than three weeks for the device, according to the carrier’s website. That compares with as much as 21 days at AT&T and up to 14 days at Sprint Nextel. While some tech blogs have suggested Apple’s manufacturing isn’t keeping pace, the carriers point to unexpectedly strong demand for the handset.

    “We are having some supply issues in the sense that demand’s huge,” AT&T’s president of emerging devices, Glenn Lurie, said Wednesday. “We have had just record-breaking sales on it.”

In fact, when was the last time you read an article about an Android phone’s demand? We read about the iPhone’s demand all the time, but never about an Android phone’s. How can that be possible if Android is “winning”?

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Apple TV Software Update 4.4.3 Released

Apple has ben releasing software updates for its Apple TV quite frequently. It seems that every few months there is a new software update released for the Apple TV, which is interesting because the Apple TV is just a “hobby” for Apple. Not trying to speculate anything, but it is something to be on the lookout for.

In August, the company released a new iOS software update for the second-generation Apple TV. The update brought  support for several new features including streaming access to purchased TV shows and support. Today, the company has released 4.3.3 for Apple TV, which is labeled build 9A4051, and can now be downloaded directly from the device. This is a minor update, fixing issues in the Apple TV version 4.4 software update.

Version 4.4.3 is third update to have arrived since the release of 4.4, which added AirPlay Mirroring support, Wall Street Journal Live, National Hockey League Content, Photo Stream, and iTunes Trailers.  Apple has not revealed details for the 4.3.3 software update, secretive, indeed.

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Apple: Worldwide Black Friday Sale

Oh hey! The holiday season is just about to get started and deals are being announced on a daily basis. Hot off the press today, Apple has begun putting teaser pages on its online stores for a “one -day shopping event” that will take place around the world this Friday.

Apple has been offering a sale on Black Friday for a while now and they are continuing the tradition this year. Speaking of sales, when was the last time Google offered a sale on Black Friday? The company has not revealed what items will be on sale this Friday. Black Friday occurs on the last Friday of November and is usually the biggest shopping day of the year in the U.S.

Going by their teaser page, it seems that  customers will discover “amazing iPad, iPod and Mac gifts” during the one-day event. MacStories reports that the teaser page has appeared on a number of Apple’s international online stores, including Australia, Italy and U.K., and the U.S. store is expected to receive its own banner within hours.

    The special one-day Apple shopping event. This Friday, November 25.

    Mark your calendar now, and come back to the Apple Online Store for the special one-day event. You’ll discover amazing iPad, iPod and Mac gifts for everyone on your list.

MacRumors reports that “Apple’s discounts are typically relatively small compared to other retailers.” In addition, last year, Apple offered $101 discounts on their iMac, MacBook Pro and MacBook Air lines, with $11-$41 discounts on the iPods and iPads.

So folks, mark your calendar for the 25th! :-)

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Samsung Galaxy S II Ad Mimics iPhone Line-waiters

As if patent lawsuits weren’t enough for copy-cat Samsung, now they have started to mimic iPhone line waiters. I really don’t understand how a company is supposed to win existing iPhone customers overs by insulting Apple product owners, but OK. Today, a new television ad by Samsung demonstrates its on-going rivalry with Apple by taking a swing at customers waiting in line for the iPhone. To me, this seems like a sign of jealousy. Why? Because nobody ever waits in line for a Samsung phone. In fact, when was the last time Apple insulted any of its customers during an iPhone ad? If you answered never, that’s correct.

According to Mashable, Samsung’s Galaxy S II smartphone commercial was set to debut on Facebook on Tuesday and begin airing on TV on Thanksgiving. The ad starts off by showing groups of people  waiting in line in major cities across the U.S. in an obvious reference to the crowds that Apple traditionally draws to its iPhone product launches. Samsung also takes a stab at battery problems with the iPhone 4S. HA! Who are they kidding? Android has had power management problems since day one, but have they ever mentioned that? Nope. In addition, Apple has already fixed the battery life issue. What’s really shameful is that Samsung does not mention the drawbacks of their phone. Unlike Apple, unfortunately, they continue to lie. For example, Samsung does not mention your phone may never receive an update. In an iPhone commercial, Apple demonstrates the true iPhone experience.

The commercial also demonstrated a complaint that appeared after the iPhone 4S was unveiled. ”If it looks the same, how will people know I upgraded?” a line-waiter asked. Why, yes, Samsung! That would explain why they are selling like hotcakes. The company ends the ad by boasting about the screen size and 4G capabilities. Once again, the lack of those two features in the iPhone 4S would explain why the iPhone 4S is selling like hotcakes, right? Samsung’s ad concluded with the tagline: “The next big thing is already here.” That’s what…uhh, never-mind.

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