iPhone: Expensive Phone or Inexpensive Laptop?


iPhones at Wal-Mart? If the rumors are true, Wal-Mart is about to become just the fourth place you can get an iPhone. While that would have been unthinkable a year ago, today it doesn’t look like such a crazy idea…. According to a Comscore report, iPhones are fast movers among those making $25,000-$75,000. In the third quarter, iPhones were up 21% overall, but they increased twice as fast among moderate income people, +47%.

While a $100 phone and $70 a month calling plan (well, if you are careful anyway), may seem extravagant, it looks like a real bargain as an all-in-one substitute for a laptop and Internet account, and that’s before you factor in the cool factor.

“Mark Donovan, senior analyst, comScore, said “These data indicate that lower-income mobile subscribers are increasingly turning to their mobile devices to access the Internet, e-mail and their music collections… the iPhone is appealing to a new demographic… satisfying demand for a single device for communication and entertainment… “

Since getting my iPhone, I have found myself leaving home without my laptop more and more. It’s just not necessary if all I am going to be doing is email, directions and checking breaking news. For people who are just plugging into the mobile digital life, the iPhone is the perfect starter kit. For Millennials, it may prove irresistible.

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