Apparently, tantrums do work
It looks as if all the iPhone users who have been kicking, screaming and holding their breath over the iPhone price cut have gotten their way:
Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs apologized and offered $100 credits Thursday to people who shelled out up to $599 for an iPhone this summer and were burned when the company chopped $200 from the expensive model’s price.
This, apparently, after Jobs received “hundreds of e-mails from iPhone customers” whining about the price cut. While I certainly won’t turn down $100 from the Apple Store, I really don’t understand why people are complaining.
Certainly, every person who waited in line on June 29 should have expected that, at the very least, a price cut would be soon to come.
After all the pre-release hype about what the phone could do, there was just as much hype about what it couldn’t do. People knew that they were going to be getting a less-than-perfectly-featured phone (no 3G capability, no GPS, low capacity, etc.), and yet they willingly waited in line to drop down a stack of billz for one (or more).
And now after two months, Apple merely lowered the price. But some early-adopters act as if Apple pulled a fast one on them and proceed to go all 3-year-old on Apple. What’s going to happen in another two months, when Apple releases a more powerful iPhone with 3G capability, GPS and more storage at the same $399 price point, just in time for Christmas?
I stood in line on June 29 with the rest of you, eagerly awaiting my chance to willingly give my money away in such fashion. I don’t feel the least bit cheated or swindled or whatever it is others are whining about. I gots mine, as the kids say. And so did you.
The people who sat on the fence for several weeks before deciding in the affirmative might have a legitimate beef. If I may relay part of an e-mail my dear friend Steve sent me Thursday night:
My receipt is dated the 20th. I think I just missed that (full refund) window…
But if you stood in line on the release day, you have nothing to complain about. It was your choice. You knew the risks, but you did it anyway. Act like you have a pair.
Oh, and thanks for the $100 in Apple Store credit, whiners. I’ll probably get the Remix Tools for GarageBand.
