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Pretty sure the 3GS doesn't use an A4 processor but I may be wrong!

Of course, all options are out if you can't afford the dang plans. I have had Verizon forever and their customer service sucks and they charge ridiculously.

kemperman, on 24 November 2011 - 08:10 AM, said:

You're not. My fault—and fixed. Thanks!

Would love to have an iPhone, but not until the carriers drop the requirement that you have to pay for both a data and texting plan. That puts any smartphone out of my budget. I don't text and refuse to pay extra for something I don't use, and they charge entirely too much for data when all I can get is EDGE service here. No thanks!

DeSurinamer, on 24 November 2011 - 12:07 PM, said:

All right, the comments are messed up over here. The a with a thingee on it followed by the strange bracket is supposed to be a Euro sign.

The iPhone 3GS has been free, as in $0.00 for some time now through AT&T, with a 2 year contract. It's been so popular that they've sold out and have backorders that has been putting them behind by a couple of weeks. But people still want them ,because it's a iPhone, and the price puts them into a phone that they've always wanted. these are the people that are tossing that Samsung Android in the back of the desk drawer to collect dust, and right next tro it is that HTC INspire Android that has more issues that the New York Times.
My advice, STICK WITH THE IPHONE. I have used BlackBerry's for years, and just decided that NO iPhone could touch them. Then on a whim I tried the iPhone 4. Those BlackBerry's now reside with the HTC Inspire and the Samsung. Shortly after getting the 4, I went for the 4S. Let the others eat their hearts out. "Can't touch this!"

Macnutjohn, on 24 November 2011 - 11:00 AM, said:

AT&T doesn't require that you have a texting (messaging) plan for any smartphone, including the iphone. Data plan? Yes. But they're not much if you don't use that feature a lot. Start @ $15.00, plus a regular plan which I think is about $39.99. If you didn't want the messaging plan, but could benefit from unlimited mobile to any mobile, then for 20 buck you would have both added, whether or not use ever send a text. By the way, AT&T works with EDGE.

Macnutjohn, on 24 November 2011 - 11:00 AM, said:

Uh, I don't want to sound like a troll, but if you don't want text or data services, what the heck do you want an iPhone for?

Oh, well. Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!

Ever hear of apps? That's why I currently have a 3rd gen iPod touch and only use a "feature phone".

Macnutjohn, on 24 November 2011 - 07:34 PM, said:

I've thought about the same - except with an iPad instead of a Touch - probably a cell-capable model I could hook up to a celluar net if I found I needed to - either for a month or two or regularly. (I've got fingers crossed that the iPad3 will be Apple's 1st 4G device - given the chassis size available for chips and battery capacity.)

The iPad would also serve as my mobile computer for at least daily tripping about, where it would also meet nearly all my productivity needs during such sojourns - and I don't want to be doing that on a 3.5" screen, so I'm committing to carrying two devices anyway (and lightening my current load by close to 50% or close to 3 lbs.

Using the data plan lightly (or not at all - as WiFi's more and more ubiquitous) would eventually recover the cost of the iPad - with virtually none of the functionality of the iPhone lost or even needed.

Ashgrove, on 24 November 2011 - 07:08 PM, said:

The iPhone does have Wi-Fi, so data should not be a requirement. You can text for free with the TextFree unlimited app, and now iOS 5 offers free texting across iOS 5 devices, including iPod Touches and iPads with Wi-Fi only. Text plans are not required, but data plans are, and that keeps many from buying a smartphone. If the iPhone and other smart phones did not require data services, I would probably find one worth having for $39/month for the base voice plan. They would probably sell even more that way. But $70/month average is crazy expensive. As the article mentions an average cost of $1700 over a two year period. So as long as consumers continue to pay for the high cost of combined data and voice, the carriers will continue that price structure. My solution to that problem was selling my original iPhone on eBay last year and buying an iPod Touch 4 with 4x the storage. The iPod Touch does not have a monthly plan, and with Wi-Fi, it gives me all the same access as an iPhone would, but without the cost. As for the cell phone, I have a pay-as-you-go phone, and last year, I spent $80 for the entire year. Compare that with your iPhone and you can quickly see how much money you lose on a smartphone. People have the option of buying the iPhone for full price without contract, they should have the same option to use it without a data plan and stick with Wi-Fi only.

You know, one would expect that a buying guide article would contain all relevant information, that it would be accurate. Your piece fails on both counts. There are FOUR U.S. carriers offering the iPhone. C Spire is the 4th. Prices for the iPhone 4 and 4s are the same as the other three carriers, but C Spire plans are much more affordable. Lets have the whole story next time. Oh, and FYI, I do NOT work for C Spire.