
How to Buy an iPhone at the Worst Possible Time - shawndumas
http://designdare.com/how-to-buy-an-iphone-at-the-worst-possible-ti
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nuclear_eclipse
Or you could just buy an Android phone supported directly by Google, like the
Nexus One or Nexus S, get first dibs on OS upgrades, and not be locked into a
carrier contract, not pay extra for tethering, and not pay a subsidy tax every
month for two years...

~~~
gcheong
Where in the US can I get an unsubsidized Nexus S that won't cost me a couple
hundred over the retail price? Can I just go to Best Buy and say I don't want
the contract - just the phone? I find it odd that Google sells dev phones but
only the ADP2 and the Nexus One. Why not sell the Nexus S directly to devs as
well?

Edit: Thanks for the responses about being able to go to BB and get just the
phone at the unsubsidized price. This was the answer I was looking for as it
wasn't clear to me that this was an option and I was just more confused that
Google wasn't selling it as an option for devs in their marketplace.

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trotsky
Unless I'm missing something?

 _Introducing the Nexus S. Starting at $199.99. Only at Best Buy®. Also
available without a 2-year contract for $529.99_

[http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Google+-+Nexus+S+Mobile+Phone+-+...](http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Google+-+Nexus+S+Mobile+Phone+-+Black+\(T-Mobile\)/1484107.p?id=1218262482328&skuId=1484107&contract_desc=REPLACE)

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lini
Nice trolling attempt :) Of course anyone that visits HN knows that after
buying an Android phone, you just go to xda-developers and get free rom
updates from the 4-5 different cooks there. Next phone I'm buying will be
determined by the number of people that visit the phone's rom development
forum :)

~~~
zyb09
Heh, now that you say it, I actually looked at the topic counts on the device
forums over at CyanogenMod recently to help me decide which phone to buy. Was
considering the HTC Desire HD, but it seemed to have way too few threads, so I
went with the Nexus S. Figured that's a safe bet :)

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weego
The genius of the troll here is that he shows the release cycle of the iPhone,
but below he shows the release cycle of every Android manufacturer, thus
creating visual clutter which instantly gives a negative impression on the
viewer and thus you feel an instant pang of agreement.

~~~
FraaJad
while I agree with you assessment, isn't the smart phone battle presented as
between "iPhone" and "Android" in almost every comparison, including
(especially by) Android fans?

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jrockway
No, only by John Gruber.

As an Android fan I don't even know if the iPhone still exists. It can't run
any software I need and won't work with the infrastructure I have setup, so
its existence is meaningless. Except, perhaps, that it will lower the price of
nice 3" screens.

Really, my eye is on the Next Cool Android Phone instead, because I can buy
one and I won't have to make any compromises.

~~~
wmf
_Really, my eye is on the Next Cool Android Phone_

I think that was FraaJad's point; you probably don't care about the next HTC
Android phone but the next Android phone regardless of vendor. While the
iPhone gets one new model per year, there are three or four Next Cool Android
Phones per year. Thus the original article isn't a troll; it reflects the way
Android users actually think.

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orangecat
Alternative interpretation: I can buy an Android phone at any time and be sure
I'm getting something reasonably current, whereas I have to track iPhone
release schedule rumors to avoid paying full price for a year-old model.
Trolling is fun!

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mcantelon
No mention that Apple's free iOS updates will turn your phone into a sluggish
brick.

~~~
bradleyland
At least Apple gives you the option. Many Android phones either can't be
upgraded at all, or aren't on any kind of unified release schedule, so you
never know when you're going to be able to upgrade.

The only Android phone analogous to the iPhone is the Nexus line directly from
Google, and it's future is far from a sure thing.

~~~
cookiecaper
If you aren't happy with your release schedule, you can download a custom ROM
for your device that implements the new version of Android. I use CyanogenMod
6.1 (Android 2.2) on my G1, which officially is still on 1.6. It's not very
bad for me, a bit sluggish but definitely still usable and workable.

~~~
bradleyland
I know Android supports OTA updates -- which I really love, btw -- but I'm
entirely unfamiliar with the custom ROM process. Does it involve anything like
"jailbreaking" your device, or are you able to simply install it.

What I'm wondering is if it's something I could have my mom do. That's kind of
my litmus test for whether something is a mass-market solution, or if it's
something only geeks will do. If it's not a mass-market solution, I'd argue
that the chart designer's point still stands. Jailbreaking or rooting your
device to support an upgrade cycle isn't exactly a solution for most people.

~~~
cookiecaper
It does have its issues and is probably not something that you should
recommend universally. However, most Moms don't even know when a new version
of Android has released unless you tell them, so it's probably not really an
issue for them.

The process differs from device to device. Most of the time it will include
pretty advanced stuff from the Mom's perspective, things like commandline
usage and installation of bootloaders.

That said, it's not very hard for your average Linux user. Just follow the
tutorials.

~~~
bradleyland
I disagree strongly regarding the Android version issue and moms. My mom,
cousins, and co-workers (non-programmer) all seem to upgrade their iPhone iOS
without issue. I would expect the same from Android.

~~~
cookiecaper
Uh, do they all use jailbroken iPhone versions? A standard Android upgrade is
easy and great. Rooting your phone and replacing with a custom ROM isn't at
"Mom" skill level, just like jailbreaking an iPhone isn't "mom" skill either.

~~~
bradleyland
No, they don't run jailbroken iPhones. That's my point. They don't need to in
order to get the latest OS, but you often do with Android.

<http://techcrunch.com/2011/01/17/ios-android-breakdown/>

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StavrosK
Who are the 42 people who upvoted this, that's what I'd like to know. This is
so obviously trolling that I can't even begin to refute it.

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code_duck
This reminds me of an analysis I heard on the radio yesterday.

The synopsis is that it's better to offer people less choices, because given
more choices, people are more likely to be unhappy with the one they choose.
Apple does a really good job of handling that.

If you were to only single out one manufacturer and line, say Motorola Droids,
the chart would look exactly the same. But since there are 5-6 manufacturers
offering good Android phones, it seems disappointing that there are new ones
coming out right after yours. Really, it's a good thing.

I felt regret at buying the Android phone I did, as the Nexus S came out 3
months later. But you have to buy one sometime!

~~~
jarek
This is also why America has only two large political parties.

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grayrest
That's widely considered a side effect of the system:

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plurality_voting_system#Effect_...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plurality_voting_system#Effect_on_political_parties)

~~~
jarek
That was sarcasm.

As an aside, Duverger's law appears to not hold in Canada, which is FPTP
(regrettably IMO) but nevertheless has seen repeated rise of major third
parties (CCF/NDP, Reform/Alliance who now de facto hold power).

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optimusclimb
Not trolling, really, but - In America, what is the upside to buying an
unlocked Nexus? AFAIK, my plan options will be the same price whether I have a
contract or not, so really I'm just costing myself an extra $330 dollars. OK,
so I get to "choose" carriers, but again, if I choose not to use T-Mobile,
won't I be stuck with edge?

~~~
alex_c
Canada here, but - here's one scenario.

One of the local carriers, Wind Mobile, added a plan in December that includes
a lot of goodies - unlimited calling in home areas, unlimited text, unlimited
data, etc. - for $40/mo.

[http://shop.windmobile.ca/ProductCatalog/VoicePlans/PlanDeta...](http://shop.windmobile.ca/ProductCatalog/VoicePlans/PlanDetails.aspx?id=Holiday+Miracle+Plan%28WINDCA%29)

This is miles ahead of the competition - the catch is that Wind coverage isn't
great, but not an issue if you rarely leave the metro area.

At least 3 of my friends have told me they would love to switch, but don't
want to pay the cancellation fees for their current providers.

That alone is reason enough for me to avoid multi-year contracts - even if I
don't end up ahead financially by switching to better deals, I have almost a
philosophical objection to this kind of coercion.

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bryanlarsen
To relate back to the original post, the salesman at Wind told me that they
have no plans to update any of their phones. Which is why I'm on Mobilicity
which offers a Google phone.

~~~
jarek
Which is why you upgrade your phone yourself.

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dlevine
Android device support really depends on your carrier. Some carriers are MUCH
better than others at releasing updates.

If you're willing to go the unsupported route, most popular phones seem to
have unofficial ROMs available. You can definitely get Froyo on your G1, and
you might even be able to have Gingerbread.

I think that the trick with Android is to get a phone that seems like it will
be pretty popular. Don't get a cool but oddball device (I have a Droid Pro,
which fits into that category, and a Droid2, which seems to be pretty well
supported by the ROM community).

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aidenn0
He really needs the WebOS chart where the next phone comes out exclusively on
a different carrier.

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hc5
iOS 3 update wasn't free - $5 or $10 IIRC.

~~~
mortenjorck
Only for iPod Touches, not for iPhones.

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baby
troll...

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acconrad
Yeah, but then you have to have an iPhone.

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GavinB
Or you could buy an android phone and have it break with 5 months to go on
your contract. You can't get it repaired because the warranty is expired, you
can't upgrade without paying full price of $500, and you can't leave the
contract.

So you learn to live with 1/4 of your "touch"screen being not touchable at all
--move your apps to the left side, get an app that lets you answer the phone
without swiping, and forget about playing games or ever pressing the search
button--and you hope that the new verizon iphone will create a glut in the
used market.

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barake
Is there some reason you can't pay for an out of warranty repair? I don't
think products breaking outside the warranty period is Android specific - if
you dunk an iPhone a year after purchase you'll be spending dollars on a
repair.

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GavinB
Wasn't offered at Verizon, but it could have been an unhelpful salesperson. If
not them I can probably find a 3rd party repair. Don't know why I wasn't
considering this, thanks for pointing it out.

I wasn't trying to trash android, just annoyed at the whole lock-in/upgrade
scheme.

~~~
cookiecaper
They usually want you to pay for insurance so they make these things difficult
without such plans. The insurance has been worth it in my experience -- it
adds $7-$10/mo, but covers a lot of damage that the warranty excludes, and you
don't have these hassles or worries after warranty expires. I agree that it's
a greedy, crappy scheme, but that's how the carriers want you to get your
phone "repaired".

