Thursday, June 22, 2006

The $6,400 Phone


Would you buy one of these phones? Sak's (or maybe it was Barney's) was advertising a Vertu phone in the paper today, at the mind-boggling price of $6,400. Even on EBay you can't find these things for less than $1,300, and one model is even listed at a buy-it-now price of $12,920.15!
I've bought what I thought was an expensive phone-- I spent about $450 on my first cell phone, a Nokia 8890. It was a great phone and well worth it, until it was stolen! I'd still be using it today otherwise. After it was stolen I bought the same model again on Ebay for about $100, used. It wasn't in the greatest condition but it still lasted me a few years, with some minor repairs. (Yes, I could have bought a new phone for what I spent on repairs, but I still liked it better than any new phones that were available.) And now I am seriously tempted by Nokia's latest version, the 8801, which they list at $800, though I could get it for $549.99 with a service contract from T-Mobile.
But shiny electronic gadgets are not my spending priority these days, so I will be sticking with the beat-up phone that I got as a hand-me-down from a friend. And even if I win the lottery, I don't think I'll be coughing up $6,400 for a Vertu!

No comments: