We just pay. Retailers know this. So they just keep putting up the price. We’re paying R10 a loaf of bread now, for heavens sake … why? Because people will pay it.

If you buy the Nokia N95, any of the blackberrys or the HTCs from Vodacom you’re looking at $1000+ … If Vodacom priced the iPhone in at $200 or so … it would outstrip the demand for the others … but there’s something else we have failed to consider: South African Customs.

I imported my iPhone …

Base Cost = $400
Shipping = $100 (including the Insurance)
VAT = $80 (20% on imported electronic goods!)
Customs Duty = $200 (50% on imported electronic goods)

It took the price up to $780 (R6250). This is still cheaper than the R9000, but then I also had to deal with the schlep of jailbreaking the thing. And it has no guarantee on it. Vodacom will have to support the iPhone, provide it’s guarantees, etc.

The hacked-iPhone market in SA are all selling the phones in the region of R8500+ … some of them at R10 000.

I suppose, on contract it’ll go for R2400 with a fixed 24 month contract … and probably one of the business or talk contracts…definitely not the weekender.

Then again, I suppose we’re all speculating!

T

The subsidy-exposure thing only reveals the amount that consumers are saving on a contract vs. the cash price of the phone. Since Vodacom is the only point of entry for the iPhone in SA, they’ll be allowed to set the price at anything they want, and there’ll be no competition. I’m betting it’ll be enough to sell the iPhone to the people that really want it and can afford it, but not a cent less.

While Apple might be on a penetration drive, Vodacom probably only wants to make as much profit as possible – if that involves hiking the price by 350%, but only losing 25% of their customer base, they’ll see it as a prudent course of action. That’s the language of the bottom line – the only language South African businesses seem to understand.

~ Wogan

They might do the R9000 thing just to push people towards contracts but I don’t think that would happen, especially considering that their pre-order site specifically welcomes all comers.

I think they want to do volume on this rather than bleed a few customers.

This is the device that will do for consumers what the blackberry has done for business.

Also in August when they have to start publicising exactly what the subsidy is for the contract users any raping of the market will be exposed and I don’t think they would really want that bad publicity.

Given how the iPhone compares featurewise to other phones of its class, and given the fact that South African consumers generally want to be treated like mindless sheep and don’t mind paying exorbitant prices for things like phone plans and internet access, do you HONESTLY think that Vodacom is going to pass up this opportunity to rake in the dough?

They’ll be looking to pocket at LEAST R7500 per phone, which is what they would be retailing for if Apple wasn’t on it’s market-penetration pricing drive. This means that the prepaid versions would cost around R8500 once-off, and the plans would value in at maybe R10’000 for the basic package (which will be a 3G plan, no doubt, and those are expensive already).

Get real? We ARE getting real here.

Vodacom are not in the business of selling phojnes they are in the business of selling airtime, why would they want to encourage people to buy a phone from them that wasn’t tied to a plan and could also be used on MTN or Cell C(although why anyone would want to do that is beyond me).

Get real people. A pre-paid phone will be expensive and there will be big subsidies for those taking out the iPhone plan.

Well, added to my other reasons, I guess I just won’t be getting me an iPhone. Not if they roll out with prices like that, thanks.