Sleeker, faster, cheaper – Steve Jobs unveils new iPhone 3G

10 June 2008

How do you maintain interest in an iconic product that has already sold millions? Simple – you make it even better and even cheaper. Apple CEO Steve Jobs showed his commitment towards this winning marketing principle by unveiling the latest 3G avatar of the bestseller iPhone at its weeklong Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) in San Francisco, California.

In front of an audience reminiscent of rock star concerts, Jobs and his team displayed the innovative features of the new, better, sleeker, cheaper iPhone, which is being aggressively marketed with the tagline ''Twice as fast, half the price.'' 

So what's new about the new iPhone? For one, it is much cheaper. The new standard iPhone 3G with 8GB of storage will cost only $199, a dramatic decrease from the $399 of the earlier basic model, which incidentally, Jobs confirmed had been already sold out. Even the $399 price tag had been considered quite a steal from the initial $599 charged.

A higher capacity model with 16GB of memory will be priced $100 more. With these price cuts, Jobs acknowledged that the high price had been somewhat of a dampener to the iPhone's amazing popularity. However, proving that all good things come at a price, the new phone comes with an increased two year commitment to use preferred carrier AT&T services.

Unlimited data plans start at $30; voice plans start at $40 for 450 weekday minutes, setting the minimum monthly cost of owning a fully functional iPhone 3G at $70. Previously, the combined iPhone voice/data plans started at $60.

The iPhone price slash is part of a new deal between Apple and AT&T, the iPhone's exclusive carrier in the United States. AT&T has agreed to subsidise the cost of the phone. Under the agreement, though, AT&T will no longer give Apple a share of its revenue from data-usage plans.