First we had a solid rumor that the long-awaited
Nokia E71x would finally go on sale come March 24th, but that day -- yesterday -- sadly came and went without a single handset hitting shelves. The
latest intel suggests that a last-minute bug discovered in the phone's email app was the monkey wrench that brought the whole Rube Goldberg machine of a launch process to its knees, and sadly, the thousands of units already produced are just going to sit around while they await a firmware update -- an update that's several weeks out, the story goes. Though the idea of a subsidized
E71 that carries over most of the original's openness and throws in a dose of S60 3.2 for good measure is an enticing idea indeed, the unlocked models have been around since July of last year, so the scary question becomes: will this product still relevant by the time AT&T finally manages to get it out the door?
posted Mar 25th 2009 11:33PM
Is this really a surprise at all? Every time a Symbian phone is brought to AT&T, *something* goes wrong with it. Every. Single. Time. Despite the fact that the unlocked versions have typically been working fine for months.
So has many Windows Mobile phones ... Maybe AT&T has issues.
The question is why this phone would be relevant at all once it comes out.
The E71x is rumored to be $149 or $199 after subsidies. It will be classified as a "smartphone", so unlimited data will be $30/month.
The unlocked E71 now costs less than $350 online. Like with other unlocked phones, unlimited data on AT&T is $10 or $15 per month, depending on whether you also have unlimited messaging.
The price difference in the data plan adds up to $360 or $480 over the 2-year contract period for the E71x (and the longer you go without renewing, the higher the difference). More than enough to pay for the unlocked version.
So the question is why would *ANYONE* get a by-then-obsolete (considering the E75, N97, etc) phone for the privilege of paying more for it?
(Maybe roughly the same people who bite into this iPhone craze, much for the same reason.. )
Sure, the E71 is yesterday's news, but not obsolete. There is no newer version of the E71 (the downgrade of the E63 doesn't really make the E71 obsolete - with the exception of the 3.5mm plug). The Matrix Pro will compete with the E71, but the two have similar features and neither can really be called 'superior'.
While I do agree with your data-$$-math, but remember that many people will buy from ATT because it's convenient and they need a phone NOW, and there are still others who (believe it or not) think that they need to buy a phone from ATT if that's the service provider they use.
first of all, i completely agree with getting the unlocked and foregoing the 2-yr contract.
but i guess the other perspective is, some people for various reasons don't want to shell out the $350 right off the bat for a device. some would rather pay a little more per bill than all in a lump sum. think of it like a loan paid back in payments of $15 a month. an obvious example of someone who would choose this is one whose work pays for their phone bill. their company may not pay for a smartphone, but may subsidize up to 100 or 150 a month for phone expenses. (i actually know someone in this situation) in this case i can see why they'd opt for the at&t version of the e71.
that said, maybe i'm a little selfish, but being a proud owner of the unlocked e71 it's nice that i'll be different for that much longer. once at&t carries it i'm expecting to see more people with it.
Well, that workbook you see in the background is a New Hire guidebook and typically all of the leaks that come out of the stores are the new kids and I emphasize KIDS that are in 'training'. So, yeah the handsets real. AT&T is probably just pissed it cant get more of its bloatware on the Goddamnd thing.
There's MORE!?
The E71x will have the AT&T Navigator, MEdia Mall shortcut, "MEdia Net" to replace "Web", Cingular Video, and last but not least, SIM lock.
What more do they want!?