Is any phone actually worth $1000?

Welcome to 2017, when the best phones from almost every company that makes high-end smartphones will cost just shy of $1,000. And plenty of people are buying them.

Samsung and Google tend to be pretty firm on the price and aren't going to haggle with you.

I'm not wondering why people are buying them. If you want to play, you have to pay and it's not like you're going to be able to call up Samsung or Google and make a deal. The phones themselves are better than ever, the parts inside of them are better than ever and even the way you can buy them — 0% interest for 24 months, anyone? — is better than ever.

Enthusiasts, as well as people who need the features that come with a top-of-the-line phone, have to pay the sticker price. I get that. Heck, I'm one of the people buying them, just like many people reading this are. If we want the flagship model with the most memory and biggest display, we're paying for it.

I just can't shake the feeling that paying $1,000 for a phone is crazy. Even while I'm doing it and can honestly recommend you do it, too.

Let me stop for one second and call out LG. We don't know when an unlocked V30 will be sold in the U.S. but we do know places like B&H already have a listing for it (opens in new tab). We also don't know the price, but most people are assuming it will be in the vicinity of $750 or so. We do know what U.S. carriers are going to charge (right around $850) and LG usually sells an unlocked model just a bit cheaper than a carrier does. $750 is a lot of money, too, but it happens to be about 75% of the price everyone else making a superphone at the end of 2017 is charging. And it's just as feature-packed and awesome as any of the others.

Where to buy the LG V30

And yes, there's an LG V30+ that's just the LG V30 with an extra 64 GB of storage. (Why, LG? Just stop.) Of course, you can only buy it through Sprint ($900) and U.S. Cellular ($800) because LG just does things like this. If you count those, and I don't because even LG knows that hardly anyone will be able to use them and nobody is switching to Sprint for 64GB of storage, then LG is creeping up on the $1,000 mark, too.

I'm not saying any company is trying to play a bit of the price gouging game. I sincerely don't believe that and don't want to believe that. But I know that I can buy a 2000 Honda Accord V6, with a warranty, for the same price as a new Note 8. I'm pretty sure the Honda uses even more premium metal and glass and a whole lot of Gigabytes would fit in the trunk. All that's missing is an S Pen.

13-inches of OLED, glass, and aluminum is cheaper than six-inches. ಠ_ಠ

While comparing a Note 8 (or any of these phones) to a 17-year-old Honda is silly, you can make the same comparison with a laptop. While you can spend $2,800 on a Surface Pro or $4,200 (WTF?) on a MacBook Pro, you can also buy a really nice Dell XPS13 (opens in new tab) for about $850. It can do everything your new Note or Pixel or iPhone can do, has an even bigger QHD+ display and is made of "premium" materials to be thin, light, and beautiful. Even the new Pixelbook, which everyone says is outrageously priced, is nicely spec'd at $1,000.

Anyway, let me circle back around to the beginning. I know why we pay so much: we have no choice. I know why we want to pay so much: these phones are really cool and we want or need the best. I just don't know what makes them worth the prices being charged.

Maybe someone out there can make a case better than "small stuff is more expensive" and help me figure it out.

Jerry is an amateur woodworker and struggling shade tree mechanic. There's nothing he can't take apart, but many things he can't reassemble. You'll find him writing and speaking his loud opinion on Android Central and occasionally on Twitter.

329 Comments

No.
No. again. Here's the problem. Most phone reviewers will put down a really really good mid-tier phone. Like the Moto G5S Plus w/4 gigs ram 64 gigs mem. In favor of a "premium feeling phone", with a glass back so it has wireless charging, NFC for Samsung or Android pay, Quad HD screen, aircraft aluminum, dual front-facing speakers, and about 8 gigs of ram and a water resistant rating of 200. Most people that are buying all these "features" more than likely will never ever use them. That is a fact! Most people get these phones for the sheer reason of bragging rights and showing off to their friends and family that they make enough money to afford them. Don't get me wrong, to each his own and I'm not hating. But here is one economic fact, as long as people are willing to pay an exorbitant rate for phones they're going to keep going up!!
I bought the note8 because I enjoy the functionality of the pen and I'm a display nerd and the display is fantastic. My friends and family have no idea what a note8 is or how much it costs.
Why don't they know? Does most of society live in a river?
They don't know because those things don't matter in the real world for the vast majority of people. All they know is its a Samsung, apple, Windows or BlackBerry. All that needy stuff means nothing.
I use Samsung pay nearly daily (probably in the neighborhood of 80% of my purchases).
I use android pay every so often (mostly only if there is a deal).
I use wireless charging nightly.
I use my S-Pen a few times a day (selecting text mostly).
I use my display constantly (so I like high resolution and good color).
I gravitate to high end phones, and because I have a problem I trend to but two or three a year. Hopefully I can not buy any more after the note 8 until at least the note 9 (again I love the S-Pen). I buy cheaper phones for my family who don't use the features I did and do can use cheaper phones without losing out. There's a market for pretty much every phone released, because of there's not then three company wouldn't release it.
2 or 3 phones per year, that's crazy. Seems more like nobody is building the phone with your needs. I have a Note 8 as well, but I am also aware that all those premium flagships are not worth the money we pay for them. We are simply helping these companies marketing campaigns set a new normal. The first argument I ear everyone say is: "But I carry my phone all the time, it is the tool that I use the most".
Since we accept that fact and we already know what the price of a good laptop is, we are comfortable with laptop prices.
I am glad that my basic need for a removable battery in a smart flagship phone was completely rejected by Samsung....Now I find myself never wanting to spend a fortune on mobile phones...I will stick it out for as long as possible with my two Note 4 phones....I simply enjoy removing the batteries from my phones to charge them in their external battery chargers (made by Samsung)....no need for me to worry about a Note 8 or any future Notes if they came with sealed up batteries. ...I never cared about buying an iPhone or a Sony phone or any other manufacturer's masterpiece....I got hooked on the Galaxy Notes 1 ,2 3 and 4 but then got badly let down regarding removable batteries in Notes 5 and 7 and now I am OVER it...
...I do not mind an old flagship phone in my pocket ...and just so that my original Note 4 might give up on me I bought another Note 4 as a spare (a pre owned phone in very good condition and at a very good price)...and I am happy with my lot now...
For me removable batteries remain more important than the new technology packed into the new Note 8 .....and the sexy look of the phone is a bit strange after the initial infatuation. ...it still does look good ..but I find my Note 4 to be much more comfortable to my eyes....
If I get the urge I might buy a Note tablet at some future time if some clever person posted a video on YouTube describing how to go about opening the back in order to replace the battery....
But I will not be shelling out money for a Note 8 or any future phone with a sealed up back.....
I agree totally ! I have a galaxy s5 that's about 3 1/2 yrs old. It survives because it has a removable battery that costs just a few bucks. I'm happy with it and it does all of the basics. When I bought it my girlfriend and I got the same phone and they only cost $125 each thanks to some samsung offers and bonus points from us cellular. Try finding discounts for existing customers now days. Like Mahendra I 'll keep it till it gives up the ghost. Unlike a used honda, modern, expensive phones, won't last more than a year before the battery starts to go and after a couple of years it becomes a very expensive throw away phone unless it can be torn apart and the battery replaced probably at a fairly major expense. The phone companies have duped people into thinking that style is more important than longevity.so now the sky is the limit when it comes to cost. Ever hear of "planned obsolescence " ?
Same here, I have that little Samsung flip open charger. I love not having to worry about battery life.
We are in the same exact boat with the same phone Mahendra. I 100% relate to what you're saying.
I agree with this comment. My last favorite phone was also the Note 4. I too had Notes 1, 2, 3, and 4. The waterproofing and stupid glass or metal backs that the pundits so like in their stupid blogs are no substitute for the removable battery. Another very useful feature is FM Radio and the 3.5mm jack. These are in the way out too along with MHL and Slimport to HDMI (Samsung does offer this with the S8 and Note). My daily phone is now the LG Stylo 3. It cost $225 plus tax. It has a lower end Snapdragon processor, excellent 5.7" screen, a Stylus, FM Radio, and a 3.5mm jack. It lacks only a decent camera. I have a LG V20 and a Note 4 that I use if I need to take good pictures. Phones are obsolete in less than 6 months. Why does one need "build quality" and a $1000 pricetag or $40 per month for a aluminum/glass phone with less features? I'm not paying for that anymore. If Samsung would go back to the removable battery, I would buy their stuff again. I'd prefer a lighter, less costly plastic frame and a flat screen I could protect with a cheap tempered glass shield and a plastic case. Everyone has followed the Idiot-Phone's design and build quality to our detriment. Thank you cell phone pundits and bloggers for judging build quality to be everything so we get less features.
absolutely with you on this one Alex. I had my Note 2 for almost 4 years. moved to Note 4 just so I can have a bigger screen and better CPU. Loved the phone, but it died on me in mid use after only 6 month. since it was a refurb, no warranty.
Samsung services could not troubleshoot the issue and guestimate a repair bill of about 250USD.
so LG Stylo 3 Plus here I come.
264USD total. good screen, even better than note 4, much better visibility in sunlight.
a little sluggish some times, but very usable. the only thing I wish LG had done are, in order of importance
#1. wireless charging
#2 Better camera, I sue my phone for everything and camera is **meh
#3. Stylus with a none-smooth head. it is a challenge to get the stylus out, especially when I use the case. need something to grip.
and as an after though, water resistance. good to have but I had used 5 phones over the years so far and none of them got wet.
I have to know why you use the Stylo over the V20. I have an S8 and V20 and like them both but can't imaging stepping down to a crappy camera, with 2GB of ram and a SD435 and leaving the V20 sitting at home. Must be the stylus I guess.
No, none of them are worth 1k, a couple hundred over cost and throw in another 100 for r&d but as long as us morons keep paying 1k for a damn phone the prices are just going to go up.
With in 10 years I predict a 2 and 3k phone easy, maybe more.
People are paying 400k for 50k house, 50k for a 8k car, the world has gone nuts!!
Price != value
I know right! I still keep going back to my Nexus 5X because it just works and seems to be the perfect phone size for me. It is fast enough, and does everything my S8 does! Without the bloat I might add!
Ironically, I seem to notice that it's the people who can't really afford them that are buying them. People who can, don't care enough to spend that much.
If the iPhone X didn't exist for $1000, this article about phones costing $1000 wouldn't exist. Sorry. That's the truth
Maybe.
No, definitely not worth it, but is a Rolex worth $10k or Chanel bag worth $5k or a Bugatti worth $2 million? If you compare the cost of engineering and materials for the price for one of these phones vs one of these expensive watches, bags, or cars, the phone would be a bargain. But not everyone can afford or have the desire to buy an expensive watch, bag, car, or phone so there are plenty of less expensive and pretty good alternatives. If you really want one of these expensive phones, you can always wait a year or 2 and buy it for at least half the price.
Except a Rolex bought 47 years ago is still working, and worth 4311.7647058824% more than its original selling price. https://www.minus4plus6.com/PriceEvolution.php https://www.bobswatches.com/vintage-rolex-submariner-5513-black-insert.html
Nailed it, Jerry!
Short answer is that a Rolex, a Bugatti, even an air cooled 911 is still usable and maintainable. A three year old phone is heading for landfill. Making a "premium" product with built in obsolescence is pure consumerism.
Hell No. My Nexus 5x can do 95% of what a $1000 phone can and it cost me $249.
Amen. I've got the Honor 8 and 5x and both are perfectly fine. I think I paid about the same as you for the 8 and significantly less for the 5x. I wanted my switch to a cheapo carrier (StraightTalk) to actually save money. If I switched just to get a more expensive phone, I wouldn't have saved anything.
Buy a used Honda and you'll be sinking more money into it for repairs over the next 2 years. It's a stupid comparison.
Buying a car is much more of a necessity than a phone
Depends on where you live. I know several people who have never had a car, or a driver's license.
Unless you're talking about the US, then a phone is MUCH more important than a car.
When's the last time you saw a phone booth?
It's been years. But I see car booths everywhere.
lol
1st 17 yr old Honda is more reliable than a new VW or Mercedes. And it definitely won't cost you thousands and thousands to repair unless it was salvaged auction sales.
2nd you must be one of those who takes everything literally. Of course, using a car is not adequate comparison. To recharge your car it will take you a trip to a gas station and $20+ to pay for it. recharging your phone more convenient and almost free (0.X cents). Jerry "struggles" finding the reasons, simply because they are not worth much more than any other mid range phone. no phone is worth more than a few hundred bucks. but, in the market based system with shareholders expecting great returns these prices are more than realistic. There is a huge infrastructure to support from hardware to software divisions, R&D, marketing, customer service, unsold devices in projected time (eventual discounts), etc and it all costs a lot of money, then you have to add all possible litigations current or future. Sum all that up and add sweet executive salaries with most important Investment Returns for shareholders to keep them happy and bring more in.
So, on top of the actual value of the device you need as much cushion as possible to add to it. Otherwise, your customers won't be happy (lack of support, quality control, timely updates, etc) or you are just going bankrupt. That's why the little guy can't compete - we just don't see great OEMs who just make phones.
Yup, I was thinking pretty much the same same thing. It's the rule of three. Whatever something costs, multiply by at least 3, to recoup as much cost of manufacture and pure profit as possible.
Forgot to add that if a phone actually cost $1,000.00 to manufacture, it would likely sell over $3,000.00 on that alone.
No it’s not. I just recently gave away my wife’s college years 1992 accord a few years ago for tax purposes. I drove the car to work and back everyday for almost 10 years. With proper maintenance and a good mechanic I spent no more than the price of an oil change every other month to maintain it along with an occasional expense for tires, battery replacement, etc. I’m presently driving a 2005 accord and I’ve been driving it every day for the past 8 years. Hondas have excellent long term durability if they are taken care of. And yes cell phones are too damn expensive.
It's Japanese, it won't need much repairing, if any.
Well, one that someone is willing to part with for $1,000 probably will.
I have an 1998 Toyota Avalon, and have taken good care of it. Mobile 1 only. I've dumped thousands of dollars into it to keep it running. Bearings, oxygen sensors ($1400 to replace California sensors), suspension, and so on.
May as well buy a good guitar. https://youtu.be/kzim1iYhmGA
Subjective. If someone wants to spend that amount of money on a device and they feel it is necessary then the answer is yes.
Buy the $1000 phone and use it like it's $200. Watch videos, text, social media and music 😂
Exactly...
Oh yah, and taking pics here and there lol
Please indulge me, how would I use my phone at a 1000 dollar rate? What activities would justify a phone above 200 dollars using your own set framework based on your statement. I'm curious.
What would you do with a 1k phone that's different from a much cheaper phone?
I’m assuming you carry a $200 device? You tell us...
Regardless of the price, I did exactly what I said earlier. Text, , social media, musics and pictures. Exactly what a 1k phone can do. Why pay more for something so little to do? Average consumers does the same thing.
Average customer isn’t paying $1000 for a phone. Average customer is still carrying their iPhone 6s.
Maybe they can afford the better things in life. And no one I know of paid $1000 for the Note....
Or use it for more than that. It's your choice with an upper end phone
If I could use more colorful language, I would. Since I can't, though, I'll just say, "NO!!!." Even so, if you're comparing Samsung to Google, at least Samsung gives you everything but the kitchen sink in terms of features to try and justify the prices they charge. Whether you use them or not is a whole other story; but even if you don't, it's still a comfort knowing they're there-- until the phone gets so bogged down by installed apps' cache and lag that it becomes unbearable. Then you have bare bones Google that runs like a champ, but is boring as hell, because instead of learning from Samsung and implementing some actually useful features, they instead give you the gimmick of a squeezable frame.
^^EXACTLY^^
I can't justify spending that kind of money on a flagship anymore. My last device was a OP3T, and I think that's the price range I'll be in moving forward.
No, it's not. The way we use our phones today haven't changed at all from 3 or 4 years ago. We use them the same way, mainly to consume media and make phone calls and receive text messages. There's nothing justifying these ridiculous hike prices.
Apparently there is
No phone is worth that kind of $$... Unless it has a removable battery. Your $1k will die a slow death after every 14-18 months.
This...
My Droid turbo will be 3 years old in 2 weeks. My battery life is fine.
The plus model iPhones are also fine after 3 years.
Choose wisely.
I should have added this point to my comment.
True that! I got the lg v20 last year. It totally has ever bell and whistle I ever wanted in a phone! Big beautiful screen, nice camera, removable battery and even an IR Blaster that I use everyday! No bootloop issued here 😊
That depends on how do you view a phone. Sure, there are more affordable phones that do the same things, but the experience you're getting from the more expensive ones are different in the sense of build quality level, software fluidity, and what people think when they see you with this phone. It's like getting a piece of jewelry. They cost so much, yet they do nothing much aside from being adornments and display of wealth. Yet, people buy it for the experience and feeling of joy it brings to them. It's like getting a luxury piece, a sense of opulence. That said, I'm not considering to get one soon, not until I can afford to have one.
There is an important difference though between expensive jewelry and an expensive cell phone. Jewelry will often increase in value over time and the more rare or elaborate the jewelry the more it can potentially go up in value. It becomes an investment. Then you can either sell it for a profit or hand it down to loved ones for future generations. Cell phones begin to lose value the moment they are turned on due to the nature of technology and unless your phone is made out of the same rare minerals that most jewelry is crafted from they will be worth less and less the longer you hold on to them.
Jewelry is not an investment
Read the entire jist of the comment. He's talking experience and he's right. If I can afford it why should I not have it?
As long as the sheeple pay that much, companies will continue to charge that much. What is particularly galling is how fragile and disposable they are. A device that is not supported after 2 years is definitely not worth it. One that is fully functional and up-to-date for 5 or more comes closer.
And you used sheeple, so we all know you don't really understand, but instead just parrot what others say.
Five years of software support? Not very likely, even Apple's support lacks that far out (missing features, lag, etc). Greeting Qualcomm, broadcom, etc. To support their chips that far out is not going to happen either, they don't have an incentive.
But yeah let's call people names and wish for the moon.
Why are you in particular taking this personally? Lol.
If Google can get it done with the Pixels, why not the rest of the OEMs? Apple though. It's $$$ so keep upgrading!
Hell No! Once T-Mobile came up with the idea of letting the customer pay the entire price for the phone. Well the sky is the limit! A mobile device is the most overrated device in the last 10 years. Let the buyer beware...
You can tell this is biased as as soon as he says that it costs 2/3 of all other high end phones. First of all, 750 is 3/4 of 1000, which is much more than 666 which is 2/3. Secondly, most high end smart phones coming out now are priced around 850, which, guess what, is also the current price of the LG phone. The LG phone is currently no cheaper.
no, that was just an editing error when I cut a ridiculously long paragraph about crazy deals with carriers. I know math, and I'm not biased because I think every phone mentioned in this article is crazy expensive. The V30 is just less expensive. I'll fix that.
So once they were up front about customers paying for the device instead of hiding the balance in the 2 - 3 year contracts .. the price of the phones went up? No, your comments are wrong. You paid the entire price over that period whether you knew it or not. Ignorance was blissful but that doesn't change the fact that they didn't go from $300 to $1000 because of payment structures. Sorry. Try again.
This. Right. Here.
I will say yes they are worth it today. Here is my reasoning.
For those of you that are under 50 you'll need to go to a used bookstore and pick up a copy of MacWorld or PC World to confirm what I'm saying.
In the mid to late 80's 1 MB of RAM for an Apple IIe cost approximately $50.00, so to outfit a PC today that comes with 6 GB of RAM in 1980's dollars that would be $300,000.00 alone for RAM. Want a 20 MB EXTERNAL hard drive to go with that IIe? You'll have to pony up another $2000.00. How about a whopping 128MB video card from Orange Micro? Another few thousand dollars please..
IMO There has never been a time for better consumer value per dollar in technology, as there is today.
Back in the 80s, 1mb was close to cutting edge in RAM and more than enough for most applications. So although you might be getting more bytes for your buck these days, thanks to Moore's law the argument isn't really valid.
OK, I get what you wish to convey, but unsure how Moore's law applies here. Please explain.
:-)
I remember 5 meg hard drives.. Not 5 gig and they cost a fortune.
Heres how I see it. I have a kid. I used to have a decent phone and a DSLR but that doesn't work anymore. I need a phone that's going to make me not really miss my dslr (as much as that's possible I know I know), that's also a good experience software wise and will keep me secure with timely updates. I get this out of my pixel XL 2 that's on the way, and I save about 3 to 500 dollars without a dslr in my life anymore. I also get a credit for buying on TMO of 30 percent of that investment and the Google home mini I was going to buy anyways is now free. It works out for me but may not for others. It depends on what you out value in.
You can get that experience with a $300 phone.
Gonna call your bluff, Show me a phone that gets updates on a monthly basis and has as a camera experience the pixel 2 does for 300....
Didn't see the timely monthly updates part. Uh Nexus ? But there are a lot of phones that offers great pictures. Not as good as the Pixel, but still great pictures.
Gotcha, no worries.
Wait... Wait hold up... Explain to me how you're a photographer who uses DSLR, but you think a phone without an expandable SD storage slot a viable solution? You're going to depend on internal memory and cloud storage? Why did you skip over the LG V30 and it's superior camera suite, the practical almost every shot wide-angle lens and expandable storage? How is a phone that removes functionality fit the bill for you at a higher premium?
Sure: Never claimed to be a photographer so there's that out the gate, reading is key no? Expandable storage is null with 128gigs on deck and unlimited storage at full resolution via both google and amazon + a chron job that backs up to my local machine's extra storage for redundancy. V30 literally doesn't have a superior camera suite; I think you meant to say more versatile. I have the G6 and frankly I have no use for the wide angle lens. It's of a poorer quality than the standard lens and I don't travel much.
What I do have use for is a phone capable of high quality portraits of people, since that's the subject of 99% of my photos. The wide angle lens to me is more a parlor trick than something very useful, the barrel distortion and inability to be decent in low light makes it borderline unusable for me in most scenarios. As far as functionality is concerned you're mistaken, the Pixel has more function, the V30 has more features and form. The V30 is by and large prettier imo. And it has more features, a wide angle lens on tap for those that see the value, wireless charging, expandable storage, a HiFI DAC etc. But it lacks the fundamentals imo; The absolute best capability for photographing people, and in low light.
Guaranteed monthly updates to keep you secure.
Guaranteed quick and pleasant software experience since there's no bloat or middleware. And suddenly I find myself with a phone that fits the bill at a higher premium, simple.
Well. Maybe. If it's one of those wealthy-nutcase models that are made of 18K gold and actual precious stones and still manage to have the lamest specs imaginable.
Nah. Value is subjective, and an object is basically worth whatever people will pay of course. But a Kilobuck is a ridiculous amount to charge or pay for a phone.
What an analogy :-) Nice try though.
I spend between $1,800.00 to $3,000.00 on phones a years. I don't mind. I actually love it.
You're an idiot then.
Yeah I'm an idiot for making a lot of money. Yeah I'm an idiot for working hard. Yeah I'm an idiot for not having an expensive drug habit. Yeah I'm an idiot for not have an expensive alcohol habit. Yeah I'm an idiot for have lots of expendable cash. Shame on me LoL
Enjoy your money how you see fit. Enjoy your toys. To bad people look down on your success.
No, you are not an idiot. Enjoy what you earned. Ignore the jealous little troll’s.
You're a judgmental troll
I just can't believe how many people buy phones at retail value. There are deals ALL the time. I got my S8 for $420. Pay attention people.
But wasn't that with a trade and/or Used S8?
Nope. It was a Best buy deal that was $300 off retail if I did monthly payments with Verizon. Brand new. No trade in. And the $300 off wasn't even through monthly statement credits. They basically just signed me up and put $300 down on it for me. Though to be fair that's definitely one of the best deals I think I've ever seen.
I don't know how one can buy a phone at full price unless their blind or totally ignore what's going on around them
I just bought a Moto G5+ at Best Buy. Normal price for the 64gig is $299.99, but I caught mine on sale for $239.99. It does everything that I need it to do and I saved a ton of cash. I won't even consider going full price flagship phone ever again.
Me too!!! (And the sad part about it is, it will probably outlast the Samsung Galaxy 8). And when they are ******** about updates we'll already had ours.
Wait what? Moto and timely updates don't look right in the same sentence. The G5 series has good features for the price but don't hype it much, especially in the software department.
Same! I've had my G5+ for a couple of months and it's worlds better than my S7 that cost me $750 over a year ago. I will never spend that money on a phone again. Unlocked mid range FTW!
Hey! I'm also a former Galaxy S7 user that went to the Moto G5+. Having this phone made me realize (with the exception of the average camera) that I no longer need to spend several hundred dollars to have a quality experience. It runs stock Android, great performance comparable to flagships, excellent battery life, and has a headphone jack!
If you're a car enthusiast and can afford it you would get a premium car. If you're a technology enthusiast and can afford it then you'd likely get a premium phone.
Define "premium".
More expensive materials, faster, high end hardware, better build quality, superior camera, 24/32 bit audio playback (with a headphone jack, seriously the pixel 2 and iphones are trash), samsung/android pay, waterproofing, no stutters in daily usage, and much more.
Brand name.
Perhaps. What's wrong with that?
I waste money with gusto on both phones and vehicles. I can do it and still think it's crazy :P
That's great. Some people want a device that's modern and will be modern for quite awhile
Phones are worth whatever people are willing to pay for them. If you pay the price, it's worth it to you. If it's not worth it, you wont pay it. It's simple.
We bought a 2000 Toyota Camry XLE V6 this past December for $3,000. It had 135,000 miles on it. We'll have that car for another 5 years. But I would never, in a million years, plop down $1,000 for something that depreciates faster than a car.
My first car straight out of high school was a Honda lol Acura Integra 87 to be exact. I paid $1150 it last me about 5 year's or so, and still sold it for $750. Now it's 2017 and I'd still choose an used Honda for around the same price over a high end device. $1,000 it's absolutely redicuoious in my opinion. Unfortunately people are very much willing to pay those prices. So these prices are here to stay.
You should have kept it, that car is appreciating in value these days.
So your comparing a 30 year old Honda to a phone?
If the phone is 6"+ big, has 4K resolution, IP68 water-resistance, a microSD card slot, a headphone jack, 5000mAh removable battery, 16MP back and front cameras capable of shooting in 4K, USB C, wireless charging, iris recognition, comes in 10 colours for you to choose from, and has a fingerprint sensor, then yes; it is worth $1000+.
Absent its weighing-in at a pound your specs sound pretty good.
No. That's the amount of the down payment I put on my car. I personally think getting a new phone every year is just flat out crazy.
A flagship phone is worth what people are willing to pay for it. I don't see too many of us volunteering to stop buying these phones. I get more work done on my phone than I do on my fancy work laptop. The convenience of the smaller form factor makes it easier to haul my phone around than a laptop.
Samsung's Note 8 is probably worth the $930 price tag, but it should have more internal storage. However, the Google Pixel 2 XL is definitely NOT worth the high price tag with its lack of features when compared to the Note 8 nor is the iPhone X worth its insanely high price tag.
I'd rather have the updates for 3 years than the gimmicky features of the note. Samsung will throw the device to the side next year.
I couldn't care less about software updates on the Note 8 for more than a year because I will have a Note 9 to replace my Note 8 next year. Software can be changed. You can't change the lack of hardware features.
Yeah, we love you being the guinea pig for updates. Utility is much more important than getting an update that you don't necessarily need.
What makes the Note 8 $930 worthy ? No new features. Just got a dual camera like other phones out there. S Pen ? Nope.
I think it literally has every feature that exists for cell phones all in one. Besides the 600 MHz. I think. And removable 🔋
Same with cheaper phones...
No other phone has an S Pen. Look at the specs.
It has all the high-end specs in a smartphone. But enjoy your $949 device that lacks a headphone jack and wireless charging. At least Apple finally joined 2012 when they added wireless charging this year.
Worth is based on individual utility, to people who read Android Central an iPhone X offers low utility and won't be "worth" $1000 to them, and we could probably determine the opposite to people who read iMore. Apple sells iPhones from $350 to over a $1000 to capture as many utility levels as they possibly can.
No
No! I have a Note 8 and it's not worth the $1k+ price tag my work paid for it.
From my view, most top smartphone brands are charging 40-50% more than 12 months ago and that needs to be investigated.
Bingo. Component costs have risen because the Asian companies making them are padding their accounts in case of a promised trade war that will kill them with tariffs. But they haven't risen nearly as much or as fast as the retail price of the finished products they are used in.
I can remember paying £250 for a startac way back in 1999(?!), Pixel 2 is £649. Has it really cost almost 3x more to manufacture / produce, I don't know anymore...
Investigated for what? You think there's collusion?? Simply don't buy the device.
Look at it this way. Would you pay $37.50 a month to have a brand new phone every 12 months? A premium phone? That is essentially what you are doing. You are financing a phone 37.50 a month for 12 months and you're getting a brand new one every 12 months.
Except leasing as a general rule has benefit corporations more than consumers because consumers foolishly continue to overpay for goods simply by company X telling them it is "only" X amount a month. When in reality it just gives companies the ability to charge more for what is really marginal improvements or no improvements at all.
I like the monthly thought. Even at TMobile all phones will be around 30 bucks a month, no matter how much they are. And your never really buying the phone outright because unusually upgrade every year . So your paying monthly for half the phone till the next one. Phone bill stays the same and you have the latest n greatest each year. Just get your phone bill where u want it to be at Max and add a phone payment accordingly. Moto X2 isb20/ month at TMobile right now.
That applies if you're paying over the full term of the lease. If you're on a program such as Jump from T-mobile or Galaxy Forever from Sprint, you only have to pay for 12 months, after which you can trade the phone in & get a newer model. That saves me the hassle of trying to sell my old phone (which may or may not have a good resale value), shipping it to someone, hoping I don't get ripped off, etc.
Plus an additional $12 a month for that privilege.
No.
Easy answer, no
This is becoming the car business. You already have to qualify for certain rebates. I.e. discount for those trading in an S7 for an S8
I will never ever spend 1k on a smartphone.
Jerry.. No they are not worth it...Not when they are made to be disposable. My HTC u11 is the last new flagship phone I plan on buying. It's a good phone but..... I don't utilize social media, I don't Facebook or Twitter. I do like to watch movies and listen to the FM radio on my v20 but when I am home I have my 65" 3d OLED to watch movies on that's hooked up to my Marantz 7011 9. 1channel that is fully emersive and when I want to relax my Jolida tubed pre amp and my Music Hall 7.1 and Grado Sonnata head for my 2 channel in my HT.. I'm used to paying to play, but these prices are way out of line IMHO for what you are getting.. and the experience does not come close.. I'll be looking for budget phones since they are all are going the disposable route now...and heck I might even try to find a good clamshell type.. Mac
You want to try to Moto G5S Plus. 4 gigs ram/64 gigs mem, all metal, dual cameras, almost pure Android . It even have a front facing selfie flash. $300.
It's not like $1000 is some magical number, it's just a multiple of ten so it seems that way, people were already paying like $800 for new iPhones. It does kind of make it Impossible to ignore the price differential versus phones from other manufacturers, to me the issue isn't that $1,000 is too much, it's that you can get a phone that does all the same stuff for half that, so it makes it hard to justify spending that much.
Will I continue to buy $1000 phones? I don't know. A lot of people are using their phone more than their personal computer at home - basic use is for communication (email - SMS - voice - scheduling etc.), web research, entertainment (movie - podcasts) traveling etc. And the iPhone X 256 goes for $1149 plus insurance. I guess I'll pay - if - the user experience is there and the security is excellent. But - the Android One phones are also very appealing. I honestly think the most desirable phone will be the one that is affordable, has frequent updates - has good hardware - a good camera - and software that is light weight. If you want more - just scale it up. And by that I mean - to include all of the amenities that an eco system can offer... 👍
Sure there should be $1000 phones and Pixelbooks. But they shouldn't be the top selling phone's on the market. Especially went they offer so little over the $200-$400 phones If you're buying a Maserati, you get a lot of features you won't get with a run of the mill Ford
If you're buying a Pixel or Note how much of an upgrade is there really over a 1 Plus or Honor 9?
Lots. Look at the Note specs. I don't know about Google but the Note is a different beast.
People need to look at it in that for the pixel and the iPhone you are paying for more than just the phone you also get prompt updates for a longer time than a one plus or Samsung. So you get better support and not just a phone. Android 8.0 is out now as I type this on my note 8. I waiting for my pixel 2 xl to ship now.
I'd say no then I remembered that I pre preferred the Pixel 2 XL 64gb which comes out to $914! I guess that's under $1000 technically so I'll stick with the no way would I pay over $1000 for a phone.....
Could you review the Blackview BV8000 pro? Please?
No.
I fully agree that $1000 is way too much for a cell phone...any cell phone. The only reason I currently own a Note 8 is that Samsung sold it to me for half price as a former Note 7 owner. Without that deal, I would be using another phone...another cheaper phone.
1k is a barrier that I don't think any phone is worth. But, the manufacturers don't get the message because they will still sell at that price. If someone came out with a phone for 1K, and nobody bought it, it would definitely be a message heard loud and clear. This is not picking on Apple in any way, and I'm only use them as an example because I don't have the numbers for anyone else, but the iPhone 7 costs $224.80 to make. That's the cost of components and manufacturing, but not packaging, shipping, etc. I'll be generous and say the iPhone X might cost as much as $100 USD more than the 7, but even there, that's plenty of profit left after putting some return on investment back into research and development. I think the R&D for the face mapping tech cost more than the physical components. I think part of the problem is that more expensive phones are perceived as better, for no other reason than the fact that they are more expensive. I mean, a $1,000 phone HAS to be better than a $700 phone, right? I actually had $800 set aside for a new phone, and although the one I chose was much cheaper (599! Yay), I would have paid more than that because it does what I want and it does it well. Today was a special day, and it was made even better because of that. I ended up taking our 6 year old to a farm with a bunch of other 6 to 12 year old girls, and EVERYthing I asked of it, it did in spades. Mapping out back roads smooth as silk, taking photos in the rain, recording smooth videos while bouncing on the hayride or swaying on the train, showing the other kids videos at our table, surfing the web while eating and trying to ignore the ladies debating about how old they think I am, flawless navigation back, making a movie of the photos and videos which it processed in 12 seconds, showing the resulting movie to an iPhone 7 Plus owner who was stunned at the quality, then Chromecasting the event to the TV. And the icing on the cake was not having a care in the world about battery life or charging. THIS, is why I would pay a little more than average for a device, but I still would not pay a thousand dollars. And then there's times you don't spend enough, like our $49 Amazon Fire tablet which has been bootlooping for the last hour...
I'm still trying to figure out what premium "feel" means.
It's subjective and is influenced by preference and perception. For me, it's just a feeling of being well made, and I've gotten that with metal, glass, AND plastic. It is harder to do with plastic, but I liked the way the HTC 8X Windows phone felt. On the other hand, I disliked the way the iPhone 5c felt.
I won't feel it with a g5. I think it starts at fluidity of the software overpowered type feeling.
Whatever brand a person just bought becomes the most premium when it's time to argue on the internet.
Lol.
But you still paid $50 more for your phone than for the iPhone 7 your friend has. And the iPhone could easily do all of the thing you stated. What phone did you get by the way.
Crosswhite - I actually bought the iPhone 7 though AT&T, and the U11 direct and unlocked. So, I have both, and used the U11 that day. True, you could do all that I mentioned with the 7, but it would not have been quite as easy. Photos on the U11 are one handed without feeling for a button or tapping the screen. It was raining, and raining fairly hard at times, so being able to literally "squeeze off a shot" with wet hands was a benefit. Sharing photos and video at the table worked out well because of the bigger screen (almost an inch difference), but I think the kids would have been fine with seeing it on the 7. One thing the iPhone 7 would not have been able to do, is spend the day like that and still have 70% left on the battery. The 7 has a smaller battery, so that is expected. The smooth video zooming on the iPhone is the bomb though, and I miss that feature when I use other phones.
Yep, all they have to do is 36 month financing and people will jump at it!
I bought keyone for 550 and it's the best damn phone I've ever owned.
bought an lg v30 result happy, it has everything i need, and no i dont use a pen. did i tell you its fast? ui got someone better but everything else is awesome, for now and forever i hope.
Real talk, how is the speaker on the V30? I'm coming from a stereo phone and I don't know if I can go back to single firing once you've been bathed with sound from two sides of a device. It sounds like you've gone deaf in one ear in landscape mode usually. It was fine on the back when it was single fire bit on the bottom it literally halves sounds when watching movies or playing games on most. But I've not rated the v30.
Honesly, I look at the new Pixel and realize the reason for the high-cost... Google can't make enough of them anyways. They seem to have inventory problems, always out of stock. And if they cannot fix that, then they are basically leaving money on the table by not charging more. People will buy them. I mean, not me. But others will. And Google only needs to empty their inventory to be happy. This is less about general customer expectations then it is about creating product for the few. While the rest of us shake our heads wondering why we're playing this game again. I would buy a $1200 pixel if it had a removable battery. If I could expect to keep it 5 years it would be worth it. But as long as the phone is built to die with the battery, then this is simple a waste.
How do you look at the new pixel 2 with no SD card expansion, removable battery and no headphone jack and realize the cost? Are you guys really looking at these phones with a clear mind?
SD cards are an option - but I have had SD cards go corrupt without ever taking them out - 7 Edge. So not a reliable form of memory - that is reality. Batteries can be replaced. Headphone jack? I find that more combersome than not - I have moved to Bluetooth about a year ago. I'm okay with that too... Security is a priority for me - no other OEM really is as good as Google as for publishing security updates in a timely manner. That takes precedence over the headphone jack etc as it should... Admittedly the Pixel 2 price is higher than what Samsung has to offer - regarding hardware features. But I'm after the security updates and other software amenities - such as the new AI, Lens etc. What I will miss is the wireless charging.
Exactly! SD cards are a pain. I'm good with 128 internal storage.
Yeah but my Nexus 6,s battery is still just fine. How old is that thing. Lol. I think batteries last long these days. Than the older two year death.
I agree. I've had two phones over the last 5 years. A 2012 Nexus 4, and a 2014 Moto X. The battery life on both phones has sucked, but it sucked from the very beginning due to the small battery size in both (2100 & 2300 MaH). I haven't really noticed a huge deprecation of the battery life until this past month when my Moto X started shutting down at 30%. But again, in general I've found that batteries can last for years.
No. Google WON'T make enough of them. That way they can keep the price high. Apple does this all the time
It's this simple:. As long as WE the consumers keep paying for them THEY'LL keep charging us those prices.
The realest truth right here
Not to me. Not to almost anyone around me. I can understand some people needing the advanced features of their phones (or tablets): the pens with their Galaxy Note or iPad Pro, a calibrated screen, a top-notch camera, low input lag.... but, frankly, most anyone will be perfectly served by a $200 phone, or, in rare cases, last year's $400 flagship. Anything above that is an indulgence in 99.99% of cases.
And that's exactly what I did earlier this year. I had 2 LG phones go bootloop just after warranty. A nexus 5X then a few weeks later an G6 I had used previously. I didn't want to spend as much for a pixel so I looked around. Found the Axon 7 for under 400 and jumped on it. Yes it's last year's flagship from them. It also has nougat 7.1.1 and a 2 year warranty. Now is any phone perfect? No but it sure gets lots right. I'd love to get a iPhone X or a Pixel 2XL. Am I going to spend that? No way in heck would I. When I need another phone I may see what these guys have. Then get what I need at a much better price. Far as I'm concerned they can all pound sand.
Wait a sec.. Lg G6 bootlooped? I thought the bootlooping days are behind after G5
My mistake G4.
No problem man :)
What's wrong with indulgence?
No.
I wouldn't say a single phone is worth £1000, unless it has something really going for it. I'll be honest I'm a Motorola fan-boy and own a MotoZ but this is mostly because I like to be different and it gives me freedom (expensive freedom, granted) to change my phone around for my needs. I fully agree with you that buying most of the Moto mods would easily rack up to £1000 maybe on their own but that's the point, I can buy what I want and leave what I don't but I can match the audio, battery life of most phones atm and do things they never can. £1000 for a phone that is basically a rebrand of every other flagship just seems dull to me now.
What you've said is true. I would never do it, but if I was forced to pay $1,000+ for a phone, I'd get a Moto Z, and load up on the mods before getting a Lagsung Note 8, or an iPhone Xcess.
It's clear you haven't owned a Samsung in awhile
They are worth whatever the market demands.
No.I have bought my last phone
For that price you can get two to three nice midrange smartphones on sale and enjoy some variety.
P.T. Barnum would love this.
It's not on the same plane.
I'll just keep my 128 GB f Nexus 6p another year, Hopefully an unlocked V30+ will be available by then. If not, I'll pay someone $70 to put a new battery in my Nexus 6p. I tried a V30. Its a nice phone but no way is it three or four times better than my Nexus 6p. Paying $1000 for one is just stupid.
I've got T-Mobile and I'm on jump on Demand after first phone $0 money down can change phone every 30 days and it used to be only 3 times a year. I have the Note 8 and I'm always going to upgrade so why would I buy one out right and struggle selling it? If you have T-Mobile and you change phones all the time take advantage of this awesome offer. Let's say I get tired of my Note which I won't until the Note 9 arrives. I can change my phone again hand them back the device in good condition and $0 money down to the next phone. I look at it as more of leasing a phone and that's what I'll always continue to do.
No. Rocking an s8 since launch but only because I got a buy one get one. I'm not paying a grand for one phone
I thought apple was coming back to America after Trump?lol. Maybe that would help. Idk. But I'm also with the dude that said the world's gone nuts. Lol
Considering I bought a new 64gb Nexus 6p in 2015 for $500, no. The 6p had all the latest internal specs you'd get in a flagship phone at the time while costing ~1-$300 less than similarly specced flagships. Ontop of that it had a fantastic camera, stock Android, a large battery, and (obviously) fast updates. There's no way today's flagships cost manufacturers twice that to make. They're just bring greedy because for some reason consumers are willing spend insane amounts on phones these days.
If LG is charging $800 for a phone, I don't mind paying couple of hundred more for a Pixel or iPhone since those two are the devices which justify the price for me personally. Will I be happy if it's less than $1000? Yes for sure but if there are phones which I'm ready premium price, it'll be iPhone and Pixel.
I'm keeping my Moto Z Play. It's a great phone with a lousy camera. With the money I saved I'm going to buy a good mirrorless camera that I'll keep for a long, long time; longer than the Z will ever last.
Are you going to carry it around everywhere you go?
I've actually thought about replacing the battery in my 2014 Moto X, but it has a leather back. Anyone here know if they could replace the battery while salvaging the back?
I just bought the Note 8, but not at the retail price. A bit of thinking and I got it for $735. Yes, it's more than twice the price of the Moto G5, but I'll pay it for the s-pen features which I need and the much better overall experience. I went through multiple phones this year (iPhone & OP 3T inc) before I settled on the Note 8 Yes, I've had the Moto G, and there are quite a few compromises for the price you pay for it. So it's totally based on the use case for the customer. My last long term phone was the Nexus 6. The yearly upgrade doesn't make sense for me though, since the upgrades are rather minor year on year. Hopefully, I'll keep this phone for 2-3 years before a major improvement comes about. If the battery weakens, I'll just get a battery case.
No. I would never pay that much for any phone.
Everything is worth what people are willing to pay. Seeing as how Samsung is forecasting record profits for Q3. The new flagship price just went from 700 to 950+.
heres my thinking on it. I preordered the pixel XL 2, it cost $850. T-Mobile is offering me $325 to add a line (I can just cancel it after a month) in form of a prepaid debit card. I use the card to pay $300 towards my initial finance from google, so now the phone cost $550. To top this all off I can safely assume Google will let me trade in my pixel XL 2 for $400 (right now the trade in for the original 32gb Pixel XL is $400) towards my purchase of whatever the new Pixel will be called, let's say the Pixel XL 3. So realistically i lost $150 over 12 months from what I paid. Now yes the deal tmobile is offering is not always going to happen. But even if you just take the trade in offer. They are essentially paying you half of your phone value in a year, so you paid $450 for a flagship phone. THIS is what a lot of iPhone owners do with there phones and upgrade year to year. Now waiting 2 years and doing so wont net you such a return. To end a long story short, if you want to be in the flagship game, year to year, then be ready to sell that phone on ebay/craiglists/trade in/etc when the new model comes out.
it doesn't work like that. T mobile is NOT going to give you $325 AND let you cancel the line a month later. You better read the fine print.
They do it all the time. I did the same thing with my S8 plus
Any phone should not cost over 350-400 USD. Its just a device used in mass and should be priced properly. Im having next to me a iPhone X, i think i made a big mistake buying it.
I'm glad you know what goes into creating a phone.
To some, maybe. To others, hell no.
Yes.
If I can get a 100 great photos of my newborn it'll be worth it.
Phone will be for my wife who will use it for Facebook and online shopping.
Several ways to look at buying an expensive phone. If photos are important to you than part of the cost is buying a nicer camera. The best rated cameras have been the latest iPhone, Samsung Galaxy or Pixel at about $1000 each. The other thing to consider, you'll get a large chunk of that cash back when you go to sell it, especially iPhones (though I'm an Android person). I just refuse to pay full pop for phone and prefer less than $400. However, you can still get a flagship phone. I've had great luck buying 6 month old phone used on eBay. Even new there's no reason to but a phone that's just been released. JFC be a little patient. I bought my Moto Z Force like new but used last Jan for $375. It updated to Nougat quickly and is scheduled for Oreo. I bought my wife a perfect used iPhone 6+ for $230. She doesn't know or care how old it is. If I want to switch maybe I'll check out a used V30 next summer.
Or maybe many people were able to get good discounts on their phones. I have a Note 8 and my cost is just a little over $500. Yes, that includes a $240 trade-in, but I received $125-$150 more than the phone was worth. Plus, around $100 in pre-order incentives (that I actually use). I don't know why people complain about one $940 phone, and no one comments about the people spend thousands of dollars buying multiple phones a year. Yes, some sell their old phones, but many do not. I have no idea how people use more than one phone at a time.
Nope. No phone is worth a grand, not even the Note8. You’d do better waiting for deals as you’d get more out of your dollars.
The 'have-to-have-it' factor drives/commands the premium upon release. When phones look so much alike it can be difficult to distinguish who's toting the latest, most expensive hardware.
I got a Note 8 but only because AT&T had the get-one-give-one deal so I got my wife an s8 active and did the payment plan. No way I would've bought it at full price.
This is subjective, guess it all depends. How much one makes and how much 1k is to the person. I bought the note 8 and iPhone 8 for husband out right. But for me that's no big deal. Guess for a lot of people buying a 1000 dollar phone with out payment plan is a no go....
The Note 8 is overpriced and missing at least 15-perfectly-reasonable-to-expect settings options that have appeared on the vast majority of custom ROMs for years. I was always against what was always an underwhelming phone for me, from leak to reveal. The only reason I caved and got one is because I was able to get it 20% off no strings attached, and I still feel dirty for giving Samsung the money and discovering the said lack of customization. At least I know I didn't help cover their Note 7 losses. Not happy with the chassis either, as it looks like a blurry rubbed-down/worn kind of chrome- not what I'd call a premium finish, I don't feel that wow factor at all with these materials and construction. I haven't come across another Note 8 owner but I'm sure I could tell mine apart from another one the same color if they were shuffled. I'm not a yearly upgrade person but I will absolutely dump this ahead of the Note 9 release.
You're in a minority as far as Note owners go. You should stick with phones you can play with
For better or worse manufacturers have gotten many to buy into the mystique of their devices but at the end of the day it's still just a telecommunications tool.
No. I bought my Galaxy S7 Edge for $794.99 on the Next plan with AT&T. Today I still owe $582.99. You can buy my phone for $489.99 on Amazon. See the problem here? Phones, like most electronics, depreciate way too fast. What is worse is software support for phones is three years at best making their useful life (think in terms of assets) the same. Aside from tablet, there are really no other electronics, tools or appliances that suffer from this. My girlfriend just bought a $300.00 unlocked Moto G5s Plus paid in full upfront. She is obviously smarter than I am. Even if that phone only sees two years of updates, she'll be out a whopping $12/month. I am going to wait until the price of these $1,000.00 phones comes down out of the stratosphere and pay full (sale) price upfront. Never going to be under water on a phone again.
No. I don't see the problem. It's your choice on the payments. You said the main word depreciation
Right but it was a bad choice (in hindsight). I'll definitely rethink this the next time I buy a phone that costs over $500.00. What's worse is it is all or nothing. You either make the installments or pay everything lump sum. It's not like you can throw extra payments at your phone installment plan like you can with a car loan or mortgage. Nor can you increase the amount of your payments to shorten the amortization. This means that pretty much everybody taking the option to make monthly payments on an expensive phone will eventually be underwater. The new lie of buy phones (before it was subsidies).
That must just be AT&T or I don't know if maybe some of the other major carriers but on T-Mobile you certainly can increase the payment, you can even double the payment, you can even pay the whole phone off whenever you want to.
Aw man, see that is so much better. At this point, it is too late for me, i'm already underwater on my phone. i wonder if buying direct from Samsung affords the same flexibility.
I had the Note 8 for a week and couldn't justify the price tag. I went back to the Moto Z2 Force which was on sale for $500. I also have the Huawei Mate 9 which I got for $500. So that means I have 2 flagship level phones for the price of a Note 8. Currently the V20 is like $300, which was $850 last year
Sounds like you buy too many phones.... And upgrade too often. Minimum two years between every phone I buy.... I'm hoping I'll keep my Note 8 until 5G lte network comes online, and phones that can use the frequency. Really... I'm good for 3 years, maybe 4.
A second V20 ( I have one also) as deep back-up (not necessarily future-proofed) is looking more like a good idea as time's gone by.
If you think $300 is a big difference than you might want to rethink your life choices. The Note 8 is 2 for 1. And comparing those two devices with a beast like the Note 8 is blasphemy!
$300 is a big difference to a lot of people, especially adults with other expenses. Like mortgages and car payments. It's not that much if you don't have rent to pay and always borrow a car though, I admit.
The problem is manufactures know people will pay any amount of money for a phone, that's why every year they go up. Personally, $500 is my max.
I don't know about that but if the financing aspect went away, the game would change. Tmobile is a good example. They don't generally let you finance more than $720.
Yes. The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 phone has superior specs to almost all Chromebooks. The CPU power of the Note 8 is very real. Unless you have a child that needs a Chromebook for school, I'd argue the Note 8 is both a Tablet and Chromebook killer. The Dex station is enough for most people, if they must have a keyboard and bigger screen. Best of all.... If a $1500 phone is unaffordable, the Note 8 will cost zero up front on a two year mobile plan in North America in less than a year from now. The real complaint by some is they can no longer afford the 'best new phone' when it is first released.... Well, take it as a lesson in budgeting or the cost of 'wants,' like a new phone.... There is plenty of stuff in this world that you can't afford.
It boils down to needs and wants and terms of the productivity you will get out of it. Me personally, yes a phone is worth the higher price tag because of the features that I can use and they incorporate into my work and I'm able to get my job done easier.
IMHO one cannot really rule out the possibility that smartphones will keep getting more expensive.
$999 seems expensive even for the Top Rated Smartphone experience in the world. Samsung was throwing in some great AKG and a wireless charger for preorders. I am sure those are worth something. Ever since Companies started outsourcing their manufacturing to China, they have become emboldened to only increase their prices and lower their quality. It applies to even the super premium brands like Armani. As long as brands outsource their products to super low paid workers' made manufactured, product prices will NEVER be justified. But long as iPhone throws around lower than flagship species phoes around at higher than flagship level prices, nobody else can be questioned for their pricing. Justified or not.
I agree, the 'freebies' do sweeten the deal.
No for me too. Been buying flagships for the longest while until I got snarled with a screen repair costing almost 3/5ths the price of the flagship device. Bought a budget 6incher Asus Zenfone instead (cheaper than repairing, beat that), and been on midrangers ever since. What I value now are min 3gb Ram, expendable storage, large battery and a Full HD 6 inch screen.
Gives me all I need. That said, I still pine for and ogle at the latest and greatest of phones. One can dream right?
I got honor 8 pro with 128gb 6gb ram dual camera huge 4000 mah battery ir blaster and more for half the price of any flagship and its awesome...only thing i miss at times is water resistant..but for that i have LG G6 soo if u think for price of 1 flagship i have 2 awesome phones Honor 8 pro and G6...
And now i have added 6s 64gb selling my old 5s
i guess, if u look that way you spend 5years with 1000$ in a row or make one time purchase for 5000$? no idea , the thing is everybody wants to look like kardashians while the paint in their flats are crumbling lol.
sooo anyway if you buy 1000 phone THEN next year you sell it to somebody that means some is getting their flagship for half price so its okay, go round ,buy,sell,buy...
the problem is OEM leeching out of people instincts for social approval and therefore pushing and selling same phones every year, completely lack of innovation and progress, complete lack of useful things in that SOCs,
im happy from my last year 599phone.
cheers
I don't know anyone who buys a flagship phone one year and sells it the next personally
I buy the galaxy new release every year, they are over $1,200 here. I don't need to. I just want to.
I never turn my laptop on these days...
I bought the Note 8 only because at&t had a $300 credit deal when trading your current phone. I gave away my nexus 6p and ended up with a new Note 8 for $650 (+ free wireless charger and 128gb sd card), which is about the price of an unlock phone except this one will be future proof for a while ^_^. However, paying $1000 outright for a phone is reckless :S
For me, $1000 is totally out of the question. I find that a year old TOL phone sells for about $500 or so and I tend to buy outright; no financing or carrier lullabaloo. I don't use half of what this one year old phone offers in capabilities for $500. So the answer to your question is "HELL NO".
The fact that you or anyone else of same opinion refuses to believe that this is price gouging for the sake of profits is seriously deluding themselves. As overall sales numbers go down because of market saturation, the prices go up to try to maintain the revenues and related profits. This has been done many times in the past and we're just seeing it again. It won't be successful in the medium or long term.
I'm glad you work in the industry and know what it takes to develop the technology. I think it's more likely you're deluded
Short answer before even reading all of it, NO.
Jerry, its marketing that takes advantage of the animal need to chase shiny objects. Most flagship phone buyers will never use or need the few features that seperate it from a good mid priced phone. But millions of flagship phones will be sold anyway. I bought a new LG G6 last month for $450. It is a great android phone by any measure. I won't contribute to the frenzy.
The chip is a big difference as well as the SoC
A phone is worth whatever someone is willing to pay for it. Simple. Ever since people started buying phones on installment plans the prices have gone way up. If people were not ok with that 30 bucks a month or whatever they charge, the prices would come down. So how many in these comment have said no, but then make payments on their phone?
1000 phone are not new. Last year I paid over 1000 for my iphone 7+ AND my pixel xl with tax and device protection plans. When I ordered my Pixel 2 XL it was over $1000 with just taxes and almost 1150 with google protect. I expect the iphone X to be almost 1450 with tax and apple care plus. I guess it is less than that if you count what I will get when I sell my existing devices. should be able to get 500-550 for my iphone and 400-450 for my pixel xl.
I still use a Motorola Startac...WTH is a curved screen and there is nothing wrong with my BIC (non S) pen!
Thanks Jerry. Always enjoy your articles (yours are generally the only articles I bother to read word for word on AC). Haven said that, I'll agree that paying these extravagant prices for a phone is crazy. I love having the latest and greatest as much as anyone but I use my head and wait a few months.... As a result, I picked up a Galaxy S8 plus in perfect condition (AT&T variant) on eBay 2 weeks ago for $500...that's $350 less than a new GS8+ from AT&T.
Yes if you wait a few months and buy used, then sell before the next year's model comes out you can do very well. I just bought a OP5 8/128gig on swappa for $450, I'll lose very little selling that when I pick up a used V30 for sub $500 early next year. In this way I buy 2-3 flagship level devices a year. This also allows me to try out different phones to find one that works for me, ie, the Galaxy s8 was no good, I didn't like the curved screen. LG G6, not a fan of LCD display, OP5, just right for now!
Nop. Smartphones on its core (calls, messages, mail take photos) do the same thing since day one. The technological advance Is only on speed and memory and some other mimics. They are just improvements and I don't think that is worth 1,000dls. Personally I think that the smartphone industry is stuck they are just filling little holes that nobody needs.
That's great if you need it to just do the minimum
Nope... Unless it can provide world Peace....
Because for some reason, people don't think $1000. They think $0 down, $42/month. To put that in perspective, that's roughly the same as some gym memberships. To me, the value of a $1000 phone over my $350 Moto Z Play isn't worth $650. Even the $450 premium for the $800 phones weren't worth it. But for some people, it is. Good example, the bluetooth support required for some hearing aids is only available on high end phones. You can get it on the $800 phones but not the $200-$500 range. For some people, that capability is worth the premium.
I think psychology comes into play here. How do we know that phone A is better then phone B? By looking at the price tag of course! Add to that the fact that we expect phones to be better every year and we end up where we are. We could be getting about the same phone as last year with a bit better specs for a lower price, given how the development goes. But cheaper simply is the better for the majority of us....
The phone is expensive, no question about that.
For me, I plan on using it for 3 years and that is the only way I see the value in it.
I wish Google give us choice about the Home Mini, a $50 discount or use it toward Pixel Buds or VR headset is better. I will sell it for sure
A phone has a life of 2 or maybe 3 years tops. My limit is about $3-400. That cost me about $1-200 per year. I will buy year old flagship or a near flagship phone. I currently have what was a 4 Mo old OP 3T 128 GB for $300 on eBay. Plan to keep it 2 or 3 years.
No
Not at all. $600 was my limit. I'll probably keep this phone for two or three years before I replace it.
I look at it this way: If you keep the phone for 2+ years, the real cost comes to less than $2/day. Most spend more than that on coffee/breakfast. If you are an every year type upgrader, then yes, the prices add up. But for how integral phones are to many people these days, the cost is very low over the long run.
I've always bought flagship phones, currently on the Nexus 6P. I've never paid more than £500 for a phone. I think that's a fair price. I think this year has been a watershed for flagship prices. I will never buy a flagship again.
Not worth the money. But that's what you have to pay. Maybe justify it if i could remove bloat , keep headphone jack, 4000mah removable battery, 5 years of security updates and annual system updates
Not unless it has holographic pron.
I disagree. I think that all these phone are worth the price. These companies are tired of doing all this work and making $10 profit per phone.
People are quick to accept junk as "good enough"
I would bet that every single person who won't buy a Note 8, Pixel XL, iPhone 8+ 256GB, are the same people who would go to best buy and grab the $500 4k because they can't see the value in the Master Panel in the $2000 TV that is the same size.
America is always looking for the best price instead of the Best Product.
I would also point out that most people who only spend $500 for a phone will upgrade twice as often so they spend Just as much in the end.
The Note 8 will get Android 8.0 , 9.0 minimum, and maybe 10. Take care of it and it will last 3-4 years. People are Still using a Note 4's today
^^THIS^^
I'd like to see your source for such data.
Any phone that one spends a valuable amount of time on is worth the $1000 price tag. Effectively many have been paying over $800 already so to talk about a marginal price change isn't really a strong argument against paying. Just chalk it up as inflation
People are upset because it went from 3 digits to 4 digits,,,
The changes from Year to year are not enough to justify upgrading phones. For me it's I upgrade when my current phone is broken, AND I cant repair it myself.
absolutely not worth the upgrade. Corporate greed period.
and if tomorrow, you stumble across an invention that everyone in the world wants, and you see that you COULD charge $1000 each and sell them by the millions, will you instead price it at $100? You know, so you don't seem greedy. ...
I'm not sure you know the definition of greed.....
Ha! I’ve seen people pay more than that for one concert.
exactly. "no way, I won't pay that much for a phone"
Next day: "Man, I just bought a my wife an absolutely USELESS diamond necklace that does NOTHING but sparkle, it cost $1900" Value is what you make it.
to Me, ALL (100%) jewelry is the most stupid waste of money in the entire world.
But, there has to be a reason my local mall had SEVEN jewelry shops. In ONE mall. not even a Big mall. and they've all been there now for 10 years, so they must be making money.
and yes, I know that $1900 necklace will last a long time and not drop in value, but unless someone hits bottom, they don't sell jewelry gifts.
and again, it does literally NOTHING. sparkles. shiny glass does the same thing at 1/1000th the price.
At least jewelry doesn't have a short life span and planned obsolescence. Sucker.
I think you missed the point. If one buys a mid range phone it'll just need to be replaced that much sooner.
People replace phones for one of two reasons: 1. They break.
2. They don't fulfill needs. If the midrange phone (which is simply last year's high end phone) fulfills one's needs and doesn't break, it won't need to be replaced any sooner than a high end phone would be. Not everyone needs to be on the cutting edge, so a midrange is perfectly fine until it breaks. Breaking, as I'm using the term, includes a battery no longer holding a charge.
Nope I begrudged paying even $320 for my SS phone, mid ranger!! these things should be like $150 no more, I'm going to get Nokia 2 my next phone 4000 battery, see it can be done!!!!. It's just a phone not a computer !. They get dropped broken screens, ppl make $$$$$$$ Fixing them its nuts! why hasn't a screen come out yet that doesn't break? Also tech changes to quick!!!!! dont get caught up in best like Apple........
With all these comments and of course your saying it right in the article "If you want to play, you have to pay and it's not like you're going to be able to call up Samsung or Google and make a deal." I'm sure someone has shared this sentiment before... As an avid smartphone enthusiast I love the latest and greatest as soon as it's available. But now that we've reached this price threshold I'm holding back for the deals. I'm letting someone else be "First!". It's just not economically feasible for me to be "First!" anymore.
Does anyone even bother trying to save money or at least not get caught up in the endless cycle of neverending upgrades? Anything not the latest design or stats is labeled obsolete even if it's two years old. It's not just phones, but all tech from computers to TVs and other home electronics. It's insane. Though phones are the prime example as they've offered cutting edge stats that are hardly necessary with ridiculous planned obsolescence (nonremovable batteries that degrade, no upgradable memory) and we've happily enabled them.
I'm glad the removable battery is gone and IP68 is here.
Well that would depend on one's perspective really. To me they certainly are not.
Jerry struck gold, here! Look at all of this engagement. No smartphone should be a $1000 dollars but they are, b/c it's all driven by brand cache, and Apple and Samsung set the prices for what qualifies as premium in the market. The Moto G5 Plus should be the best selling phone in the world, but people don't even know what that is. I was at a music festival today, and I saw 2 Samsung devices in a vast ocean of iPhones and nothing else. The $1000 phone exists b/c the market wholeheartedly supports it.
They are what the market bears.
Well i feel like this artical would be more valid if you had to buy phones outright but you dont and most people dont. I have never spent more than a few hundred on a phone and thats split up over a year.
I think people are missing the point here. A lot of people are saying that a Moto G5S is a good replacement for a 1K device. It is a good phone, but I've recently moved from the premium mid-end segment to a high-end (S8) and can talk a bit about the differences. First, the high-end phones perform much better in daily use. This phone flies when compared to my previous one. The camera is also a great upgrade. Mid-end devices shoot good to great pictures in daylight but result in grainy pictures with low light. The top devices shoot amazing pictures with good lightning and actually good ones with low light. The S8 is quite surprising, it's almost as if someone turned on the lights. The screen is also ridiculously better than my previous phone and the brightness makes it perfectly readable even under direct sunlight. It has a bunch of features included, but I would say that this is more like an attempt to justify the price. Some (like the Edge shortcuts, even if I dislike the curved display) are useful. These phones are also made for showing, using premium materials and so. I would rather have it with a removable plastic back: no need for cases. However, the mid end is much better than it was before. Five years ago a mid-end device would take blurry pictures, have a meh screen and be laggy. I remember some low ends I had that skipped even basic stuff, like lacking multitouch, a front camera or flash. Nowadays, it looks like the low end is more like the old mid and the mid segment evolved closer to the high end one. As a hardcore phone user and nerd, I think it's worth to have such high-end device. But I'm not sure I would recommend it for less demanding users. It's actually more useful for them to have a cheaper device they can replace quickly if it breaks than having to babysit an expensive phone. As a side note, I don't plan on sinking 1K on a phone. I actually wanted the Note 8 (due to the stylus), but it doesn't offer much more than the S8 and that was just 600 bucks 2 months ago when I got it. These kind of phones drop on price quite fast, so you have to be a real enthusiast to want one for that pricing. I recon Apple phones usually only drop the price after the next one releases (and it's like an insane 100 dollar drop), but you could consider the previous gen device. For Android owners it is easier because phones drop the price slowly over time, so waiting 6 months can actually save you 200 bucks easily.
No way .... I had both iPhone 7 Plus & S8 but sold them and got a Xiaomi Mi5s that cost 200€ and I'm very happy ! Has a very good battery , very speedy and nice software. And I saved a lot of cash !!!
Buying too many phones... Lol, you would be fine if you had any self control.... But you clearly don't.
Don't forget the lack of support you have as well
2 reasons:
You use your phone more thanna laptop usually as you ca. Always have it with you.
In technology, miniaturisation comes at a cost and is harder to manage. It’s more complicated to make a powerful phone than a computer (because lack of space, no vent etc.) so comparing it to a laptop or a car isn’t relevant
IPhone X, 256GB model, costs $1529, the 64GB model $1319, in Canada. The 64GB Note 8 is $1300. Lol, looks like my preordered Note 8, with the 128GB micro SD card & wireless charger thrown in was as bargain. $1300 / 730 days, or 2 years, = $1.78 daily, or $54 monthly... Lots of people buy a coffee a day, minimum, for the same price. Of course I justified my phone. I don't need a laptop, my phone is my online connection for everything. But I can't believe Google wants $1159 for the 64GB Pixel 2 XL, add $130 for the 128GB version... Lol, I only consider the new Pixel phones mid tier devices... Dream on Google.
The phone I would like to buy ?
- high quality plastic shell (Lumia style)
- 4000mAh battery
- very good single lens camera (big sensor, no hump thanks to the big battery)
- microSD support
- headphone jack + good DAC
- SD6XX / SD8XX (if really needed for camera quality)
- 4+ go RAM
- 5 inches OLED screen with shatterproof cover
- front speakers
- don't care about bezels (let say between Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL)
- Stock Android
- Software updates for 3 years
- IP68 certification
- 500€ (max 600€) I hoped the reborn Nokia would bring this kind of devices, but we got aluminum and poor cameras...
I'm with you.
Because the majority of users haven't changed their paradigm. Everybody keeps thinking they are buying a phone that can do some computing when in reality you are buying a miniature computer that can occasionally make phone calls. More and more power users are using their higher end phones to do work, banking, take notes, log into Google Docs and update a school paper, etc etc but are still getting mad when they have to pay a premium price. Yes, all of those things can be done on a laptop, Chromebook, etc etc, but if you have a computer that fits in your back pocket and you are sitting in the passenger seat of a car, it is easier to bust out the Phablet than the laptop (at times). Yes, if you want to text and make phone calls, that price is crazy. If you want to do ALL the things that you are doing (and don't stop to realize it) just like on a laptop, or even a desktop, then you will be paying the price for it. Can you get a laptop that is cheaper? Yes. Can you make phone calls? Sure, if you have a cellular card or a solid WiFi connection. The final point. I do more on my phone than I do on any of my laptops and my dedicated desktop. I even did college homework on it while I was out of town because I didn't want to lug around a laptop. I can watch movies on it, listen to music, play some pretty good video games, do my banking, check on my kids grades at school, and get mad at it when the battery runs down. Yes, it is silly to pay $1000 for a phone, but $1000 for a miniaturized productivity station that can make cellular phonecalls isn't that bad. There are others that can do the same for a cheaper price, but until that paradigm changes, people will still get mad at $750 dollars too. This isn't the age of the RAZR or the Nokia Brick anymore (which I loved both because they worked flawlessly and lasted forever).
My 2014 Z1C (I paid 250€ for this one) is already a pretty solid computer. It's plenty fast, compatible with all the apps / usages you mentioned.
It also have an headphone jack while still compatible with wireless headset and weather resistant (Apple, Google, you're just some greedy accessories sellers) I would pay more for a 2017 phone if I I could use it as a REAL productivity tool, like an improved Continuum W10M or Dex experience and replace my computer. But I don't see any of those $1000 flagships replace my laptop... There are a nice companion to it.
Speaking about laptops, 5 years laptop are still powerful enough and compatible with latest OS updates (and compatible with various OS). There are also less prone to be damaged / stolen than a phone...
Have fun carrying your computer around like a cellphone
What is the first thing you look at in the morning, the last thing you check before your head hits the pillow and you will drop everything to go get it if you forget it somewhere. It's your life in photos, videos, tells you where you need to go, when you have to leave and what you shouldn't miss. I spend money based on use and need, my phone is my lifeline.
I can't personally justify that price for any phone. With so many great mid range options, I see no reason to pay that amount of money for a phone. You can also pick up last year's model for way less and in most cases without any noticeable impact on performance. I would love to get a Pixel XL 2 but I just ended up picking up last year's model for less than half the price of the XL 2 and it runs fantastic.
You'll replace it sooner as well. I loved my Note 5 but compared to recent models it's a dog.
While you have a great point, and are totally correct, I think that you might end up saving more if you keep it for a couple extra years.
Ie, buy a used pixel now at 350 - in 2 years upgrade -> 3 year old phone when upgraded -> 175/year for your use
buy new pixel 2 now for 700 - in 3 years upgrade -> 3 year old phone when upgraded ->233/year
The price of every consumer electronic goes down. If you are paying more for a phone now than you did 5 years ago you have been played.
This website and those of it's ilk should be clearly recommending 'mid range' phones until these manufacturers knock about $400 of the top of the market.
While you pad your ego with reasons why you need the best, I'll keep using my Moto g5+ and save $750.
How so? Technology improves each and every year. What you are talking about is a particular item that at one point is mass produced and the tech remains basically the same.
A phone, or any other object is worth precisely what someone is willing to pay for it. It’s that simple.
This will always be what you feel value is. While yes you can get a very nice notebook or 2-in-1 for the same price that can do everything and more than your $1k phone, most people don't carry that notebook around with them everywhere. For me a $1k is worth it for what it does, the fact that I use it everyday, carry it with me everyday and rely on it for communication, music, entertaining, work, etc. If I'm going to carry it with me and rely on it, I want the best, the fastest, screen camera. Think of it this way. You aren't dropping $1k on a phone. You are essentially carrying a Digital Camera, MP3 Player, portable video player, notebook and phone in one package. Instead of grabbing all those items when you travel you now grab one item. I know when I used to have a large gear bag anytime I went somewhere I easily had more than $1k in that bag. Now I grab one very light handheld device that does it all. It all depends on what your definition of value is.
imo the problem is not so mainly because of that pricetag (1000+), but look example , 2017year 1000$ flagship android will be somehow obsolete in late 2018 even tho it was obsolete in 2017 because lack of innovation in industry. see the point? its complicated
there is literally nothing in real world enviroment that 2017 can do while 2016 android cant
You are correct, but if I intend to keep my phone for a long period of time, which I usually do, I'm also purchasing support years. That would be OS updates, security updates etc. While I can buy last years model, the support time is already 1 year less.
Except the Note. haha!!
No a phone isn't worth it. However, the greatest trick going for phone manufactures right now is that the bulk of people never pay that amount directly out of pocket since it's subsided or hidden into their monthly phone bill. If people had to actually shell out full value upfront (like I do since I've brought my phones outright for the past few years) they'd likely not buy it. I have already pre-ordered a Pixel 2 myself and I'm not happy about it, but I didn't really have a choice since my 5X screen cracked recently and since I'm also on Project Fi and have been with Nexus phones a few years now there isn't another phone that works on Project Fi and that I can get monthly updates directly from Google with (well the gen 1 Pixel but since that's already defunct and the cost savings is negligible isn't nil).
No not really. In fact when a phone and a tablet cost the same thing AND the size difference between the two is rapidly vanishing, one of those devices is going to vanish from the market. I worry that the the phone will disappear and we'll be saddled with 9" 'phones' that cost $1,200 soon. There a few 7" phones now and the trend, absent any new features seems clearly to head in the direction of bigger and bigger and bigger. Expect to see Apple and Samsung to simply give up and stick a SIM card in a massive tablet and then of course Google will weight in with a Chromebook/Phone. Never wanting to be left out, Lenovo will of course announce their 13" Yoga-Butterflyphone.
BTW it's pretty awesome that if i try to edit a post the website responds with a dump of the entire XML code for the post.
A, phone is worth only what people are willing to pay. If it has the style,, design, and in my case specialist functionality it's worth it. I run an engineering consultancy and we've traditionally used Note phones on site for various mechanical projects as Spen works well for annotating schematics and making changes on the fly, as well as use with AutoCad and some inhousr apps we developed for ourselves. We bought eight Note8 devices for our site engineers and 3 more for our planners. I think a lot of buyers are probably like us.. The Note customer base seems to be one that very few reviewers understand. They go comparing against standard flagships like LG V30, or iPhone, Pixel or Huawei or whatever else is new. The people I work with, designers, graphics specialists, architects, construction managers, site engineers, and in many other engineering and professional disciplines use Note phones as they replace bigger tablets but still have the stylus and csn work with AutoCad, Excel, and home grown apps. My wife, a copyright lawyer, also uses the Note in court for jotting down notes to be converted to text later. The silly arguments between people about which is a better phone makes me laugh. As an example you can buy a 2 liter Ford for $50,000 or a 2 liter BMW for $100,000. Everything is only worth what you are willing to pay.
P. S. Excuse my couple of typos.. Lol.,
I am not sure about premium feel or bragging rights. I mostly lean toward the top end because there is a set of things I want my phone to do well and I have no confidence that a midrange phone is going to do those things well. I read the reviews and assess the features, but in the end there is a certain level of ignorance that I can't overcome until I have the device in my hands. Leaning on the high end device to meet my list of "needs" means I can only afford one device every few years which just amplifies the feeling that I need to get it right. Ultimately, the high end phone gives confidence that the midrange phone does not. When I use my top of the line device and it fails at a task, I feel the (likely misguided) reassurance that I bought the best product I could. When I have the same experience with a midrange device, I will immediately believe I made a mistake and should have just bought the more expensive option.
I use flagships atm but I don't think I'm buying another one ever again. At this point, my limit is $300, maybe $400 if you can produce something incredible. My standards -- 1080 display, fingerprint reader, premium design, good performance, good battery, good camera -- are all becoming common in budget phones while flagships are struggling to attract consumers with pointless gimmicks and upgrades that don't meaningfully improve my experience. The Moto G5+ with 4 gigs of RAM and 64 GB of internal storage is all I need in day to day life.
Australia hasn't had a high end phone under $1000 in three or four years. Both the Galaxy Note 8 and iPhone X are $1500 down here.
Enjoyed reading this. Thanks.
Absolutely agree. I've never spent more than $360 on a phone (this years LG G5 bought back in Mar 17) and at no time have I felt left out. I've owned the LG G5, G4, G2, Samsung S3 and S4, a few Lumias (Windows Phone), a Droid Incredible 2, a Palm Pixi, and at no time have I had a substandard experience relative to whatever the trendy flagship was at the time. I expect to have a brand new G6 or S7 (or what ever else strikes my fancy but must work on Verizon which more unlocked phones do nowadays) for somewhere around 50% off launch price.
To answer Jerry's question. Absolutely not. Especially when Moto exists.
I just wanna know where Jerry gets a warranty on an 18 year old car.
No phone worth the money they are asking for.
The Pixel 2 XL is DEFINATELY worth one thousand dollars.
Why?
That was definitely sarcasm.
Supply, meet demand.
As an econ grad and Georgia Bulldog, you get an up vote.
"I know why we pay so much: we have no choice" you always have a choice.
If we simpply stop buying new Smartphones every time they get released the price wil drop.
Nice example is the essential Phone heralded as the next big step, now down in price.
Smartphones these days are looked upon by manufactures as throw away products [I know not the right translation} with a lifespan of 2 to 3 years.
As soon as we the consumer stop buying into that and use our phones longer then 3 years and manufactures and Google or Apple start suppoirting older phones those prices are valid until then I'm not paying top dollar for something that only lasts 2 to 3 years

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