Compare the New iPhone Models

The cheapest of the new phones is 7500DKK ~ 1175USD. That is just insane. I get that I can get an older models and that Apple is a "luxury" brand, but at $1000+ I don't get who buys new iPhones anymore.

Apple seems stuck in a mentality of subsidized phones, which might still be how the US does it, but it makes their product unreasonably expensive in other parts of the world. I can accept that Apple can't do a $200 phone, but that this point I'd be happy with a $500 phone.

The entry price for iPhone 17 matches the entry price for Pixel 10 and other flagships in the United States. Does it not in Denmark?

The original iPhone was $499 in 2007. That's $800 today with inflation per https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm. The cheapest model is "from $799", so… the price is basically unchanged for two decades.

Unless the 17 is meant to replace it, the 16e is the "entry" model at a price of $599.99.

Which is not a $500 phone, but a $600 phone. Take that as you will.

Checking a price comparison site I say that's about right. With Android I can just pick a different phone that does the few things I need and save thousands. Apple doesn't provide me with that option anymore.

Competitors like Samsung don’t have any trouble selling models that are even more expensive than iPhones, so there’s definitely a market for high end phones.

Closer to $850 here, so I guess it's used phones for me, or time to switch.

Did Apple ever provide that option?

Keep in mind that the last few years have seen a lot of inflation in general.

At least here in Poland, the base model is ~20% cheaper than the iPhone 11 at release, inflation-adjusted.

The first iPhone in Denmark was 5500DKK in 2008 (at least that's the number I can find). In 2022 I could get the iPhone SE for 4500DKK, så the price actually went down a bit

I think Apple sees other (not North American) markets as... not necessarily expendable, but they don't have the foothold they do here outside of the iOS devices, so maybe they just focus on getting more out of the people who already do have devices?

I'd be interested to know their logic. It obviously hasn't caused them too many problems, revenue-wise.

its their slick financing products btw

Inflation calculation doesn't quite work like that. Mobile phones are part of the basket of consumer goods prices that are tracked ( with weightings applied to compensate for increasing complexity and capability ). So they help to define inflation, rather than being the outcome of it.

You'd really need to compare to average salary or purchasing power instead.

It's a perfectly useful way of looking at it, but if you prefer:

Average salary 2007: $40,405.48; 2023: $66,621.80.

https://www.ssa.gov/oact/cola/awidevelop.html

It was $499 with a multi-year contract with AT&T.

AT&T most year offers me a free!* iPhone pro every couple years now so it has actually gone way down.

You're likely paying a lot for your phone plan. Unlimited plans these days are in the $25-35 range.

This logic doesn't make sense. The opportunity cost (i.e. the basket of goods you forego buying) of buying an iPhone is exactly the same as it was when the device first launched. No single good in the basket is such a large component of overall measure that you can't use inflated prices to understand, in relative terms, the cost of a good.

The entry price of the iPhone lineup is lower than ever. Their strategy is to reduce it by selling older phones at lower prices. The entry point of the newest iPhone is, inflation adjust, basically the same since iPhone was first introduced. As a result, I don't really understand your complaint.

I think my complaint boils down to the fact that my usage can't justify a $1000+ phone. Rather than stuffing ever more features and processing power into the iPhone, I'd like the progress to be spend on making the phones cheaper and have more battery life. For people like me the iPhone hasn't improved in 10 years, the last feature I sort of cared about was TouchID. So given that I'm stuck in a 2015 use case, seeing no progress, why shouldn't I expect prices to come down significantly?

You can buy iPhone 12 on the refurbished market for $300. Apple intends to serve your needs by making great hardware that lasts with long periods of software support.

I have their cheapest unlimited plan.