Showing posts with label unlocked phones. Show all posts
Showing posts with label unlocked phones. Show all posts

Friday, May 28, 2010

$431 Average Unlocked Mobile Phone Cost

The average price of an unlocked mobile phone in April 2010 was $431.49, up from a March average of $387.22. ABI Research found the average subsidized April smartphone price from retailers (not mobile operators) to be $43.64.

In contrast, the subsidized average price available from operators (the big “top four” plus three Tier Two operators) was $117.08. The price differential between the largest four operators is about 18 percent.

The point, if you remember your college economics, is that lower prices for any product lead to higher demand. 

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Verizon Wireless Takes Reasonable Gamble


One might argue that Verizon Wireless is gambling with its whole business model in allowing use of technically-compliant devices and software on its network next year. But one can point to the experience of wireless operators in Europe, who have used this "open" model for years, to see it is not so dangerous.

In fact, Verizon gains more than it might potentially lose, just about any way you want to spin the matter. First off, it gets great press for breaking the "closed" mobile model on a voluntary basis. Also, it is betting, likely reasonably, that the overwhelming mass of buyers still will prefer the old model of "discounted phone, two-year contract."

Verizon also uses the CDMA platform, which already means there is less handset choice than possible on a GSM network, since the GSM market is so much larger, globally. Verizon just might stimulate a bit more handset and software choice by going open.

Also, open is inevitable. The 700 MHz spectrum requires such device and software openness, so it is coming to the market, in any case. Verizon might as well "look good" rather than resisting the inevitable.

Open also means Verizon has a shot at creating a more robust developer community, a helpful asset indeed as more innovation moves to the software realm.

There's very little, if any, downside and lots of upside. Not since AT&T launched its "Digital One Rate" has any leading mobile provider taken a step that will reverberate throughout the whole industry. Sometimes, innovation is not just something small companies pull off. Sometimes very large companies do it as well. And maybe, sometimes, only a very-large company can cause a major change. On occasion, innovation may require the push only a very-dominant firm can supply. This appears to be such a case.

"Tokens" are the New "FLOPS," "MIPS" or "Gbps"

Modern computing has some virtually-universal reference metrics. For Gemini 1.5 and other large language models, tokens are a basic measure...