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Also most people are on family plans so it's just $10 extra a month for a line plus your data plan which could be around $40. So ~$50/month for the cellphone. The iPhone they could have gotten refurbished or on Ebay.
I've said it before and the answer is really simple. They have a respectable income.
What is a respectable income though? it is different in everyone's eyes I think...
We have friends who make less than $50K, 2 children and have more than we do & my husband's income is 2x that.... they have 2 computers, 3 tvs, an iphone, both children have the DSI which can also acess the internet,etc...
So, I don't think it matters anymore, people will always find a way to have the latest & greatest, it doesn't matter how much $ they make..
What is a respectable income though? it is different in everyone's eyes I think...
We have friends who make less than $50K, 2 children and have more than we do & my husband's income is 2x that.... they have 2 computers, 3 tvs, an iphone, both children have the DSI which can also acess the internet,etc...
So, I don't think it matters anymore, people will always find a way to have the latest & greatest, it doesn't matter how much $ they make..
A respectable income for purchasing an iPhone is whatever income is required in respect to being able to afford an iPhone. It is certainly variable from person to person as you suggest.
Your friends might have the latest electronics, but they might also shop for clothes at sears and macys. It's just a matter of where you make the sacrifice. I think a family making $50k can certainly afford an iPhone by not spending money elsewhere.
A respectable income for purchasing an iPhone is whatever income is required in respect to being able to afford an iPhone. It is certainly variable from person to person as you suggest.
Your friends might have the latest electronics, but they might also shop for clothes at sears and macys. It's just a matter of where you make the sacrifice. I think a family making $50k can certainly afford an iPhone by not spending money elsewhere.
I don't see how income has much to do with it when you are talking about an item that really doesn't cost much and you don't need to prove much of an income to get. It's just too low of a cost to conclude people who have it have a "respectable income"
I don't see how income has much to do with it when you are talking about an item that really doesn't cost much and you don't need to prove much of an income to get. It's just too low of a cost to conclude people who have it have a "respectable income"
I think you missed my point. With respect to an iPhone a respectable income mat be as little as $10/hr.
I have an ipod touch and I use an old cell. Because I hadn't changed service in about a decade, my family plan is *extremely* cheap (total family plan including everything for less than $80).
I'm a student and yes, having an ipod touch is more than my negative income should be able to afford, but I also don't pay a data plan since I get wifi at the hospitals I rotate at. Plus, the ipod touch (which functions like an iphone minus the phone) has SO SO SO useful since i run around so much, have to do rounds, work long hours, and don't always have time/access to a computer:
- I save time by checking/returning emails on the run, looking up treatment and diagnosis and pharamceuticals on rounds or while walking to and from. May not seem much but in large hospital it may take several minutes to walk from point A to point B, and medicine rounds can lasts 3+ hours per day. Not having to sit and find a computer, look up something, THEN walk to my meeting place saves me a ton of time.
- I also can put my review books on the ipod touch, mitigating any need to carry heavy, bulky books on my already overstuffed white coat.
- when I was studying for my boards or an end of rotation exam, I can write and placed flashcards on my ipod touch. During rotations like surgery where the schedule is so irregular, I end up with 10 minutes freetime sprinkled sporadically through a 12 hour work day (six days a week), it means I can get a good hour or two of studying done per day because I have my study material on my person. I don't have to wait to get home after being in the OR for 12 hours to place another hour or two of studying. When I get home, both my work and studying is DONE.
- I have recreational reading materials and games for downtime when I don't feel like studying (without having to carry it on me).
- I place my schedule on the calender feature which is SO nice because my days can be very irregular and I don't always have luxury of coordinating schedules with a computer in front of me.
- I can do calculations on my touch without carrying a calculator (on my overstuffed white coat).
All this, coming from someone who only uses the most basic functionality of the computer. I've paid less than $10 for all my downloads combined and they are mostly games that I like playing with as a break from studying/boring rounds/boring conferences etc....
In short, my ipod touch costs me a bit upfront ($300) but in return, it serves as my computer on the go, and it saves me time and space in my very full white coat. Plus, no monthly fee! Yeah, it's a great deal for me, even though I can ill afford it given my student status. However, since it makes my rotations easier, and makes me a better, more efficient student, I write it off as an educational expense (the fact I can play games and read fun books on it is a side benefit!).
Here in LA it seems virtually everyone is carrying an iPhone. Many of these people I notice are also students with part time income or those that are in lower end jobs. I am truly surprised just how many people have one considering how expensive a device it is, especially the monthly service. Do you think this is just a reflection of our society living above their means?
You kidding me? Cell phones are dirt-cheap. Even a blingy one like the latest iPhone on a two year contract is a drop in the bucket in the grand scheme of things.
Now if everyone started inexplicably driving around in brand new 911 Turbos, I'd say yeah, that's a real butt scratcher, but those are actually expensive. Iphones are not. They're Chinese made junk for the consumer masses.
Parents- They buy them.
School Loans- They use them.
Refurbished Phones- Phone that are used, or have cosmetic damages they are normally cheap.
Employee Discounts
Buying them off the street for little to nothing.
There are many many ways..
Right now AT&T has Refurbished Iphones 3gs for $0-$49 and used iphone 4 for $199.
I've said it before and the answer is really simple. They have a respectable income.
oh really?
Couple needs help (http://springfield.craigslist.org/hou/2516164543.html - broken link)
Note where it says..... "Posted from Craigslist Mobile for iPhone"
20yrsinBranson
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