Ways an iPhone can Save you Money

[disneysteve]

Okay. As many of you know, I am thinking about taking the plunge and getting a iPhone. My current cell phone is several years old and is wearing out, battery not keeping a charge very long, etc. It will be time for a new phone soon no matter what. I have always opted for the cheapest, simplest phone I could get, usually one that was free after rebate.

More and more, however, I'm starting to see the practical value of an iPhone. At first, I thought it was just a cool gadget and while I like cool gadgets, I am not one to go out and spend money to own them. I'm too cheap and too practical for that. As more and more apps have become available, though, some of them are truly useful and make having the phone worthwhile.

So here's my question for all of you iPhone users. Tell us about any ways you have found that having your iPhone saves you money.

For example, just today, a patient who works at a major retailer told us that his company is going to start making discount coupons available on the iPhone and Blackberry ONLY and stop mailing them out to customers.

I've also seen numerous examples of stores and restaurants having downloadable coupons that you redeem by showing the coupon at checkout on your iPhone. I think this would be particularly useful when traveling. If we are in an area away from home, we'd have no access to coupons for local merchants. The iPhone might provide that access. I know one restaurant that we always visit when we are in Florida has e-coupons for the iPhone.

Something we spoke about in another thread was using the iPhone to look up resale values for books and other items when shopping at yard sales and flea markets.

If you have any more examples, let's hear them. I don't expect to find ways to totally save the extra $30/month an iPhone will cost me, but if I can find ways to defray that cost, that would be nice.

[wincrasher]

I often use my iPhone to check prices. There is a cool Amazon app that lets me quickly look up an item. I've done this many times standing right in the Walmart or Costco - nobody seemed to care.

The biggest thing, though, is I get all my email in my hand - so I never miss a message. I also can do my billpay and check account balances - my bank has an iPhone app that lets me check all my accounts.

There literally are 140,000 applications in the app store. Most are free or only $.99. I think you'll find many useful items. There may be many that apply to your profession. There is an ebook reader that may be able to get your periodicals or reference textbooks on.

If you have a business use for your phone, it's cost may be deductable for you.

[disneysteve]

If you have a business use for your phone, it's cost may be deductable for you.

Hadn't thought of that. One of the companies I do an ongoing program with is available on the iPhone. It is one of the places I earn money for doing programs and surveys so with the iPhone, I'd be able to do that anywhere, not just when I'm sitting at my computer.

[Broken Arrow]

You probably already know this, but I carry a combination of Tracfone and iPod Touch.

The Tracfone works just great for me and my low overall usage. My phone averages around $5 a month, maybe $10 on high call volume months.

The iPod Touch gives me most of the functionality of an iPhone, minus GPS and 3G. However, while GPS is a neat gadget, I can't say that I've ever really needed that. The 3G would have been really handy, but the unlimited data plan is $30 a month.

By far, the best app I have on my Touch is Splashmoney, which is how I manage my personal finances (but not investments) down to the last cent. Second to that is maybe a password manager. It's not as necessary, but it does come in handy. I also use mine for a to-do list, alarm, and calculator. Oh, and games. There are plenty of other productivity uses, but I don't currently use them though I'm sure others do.

I've looked at the total cost of ownership back when the iPhone 3GS came out, and it came out to be something like $3500 for a two year contract. Nowadays, I think you could find a deal as cheap as $2500, especially if you stick with the older 3G model. The only difference between the two is the ability to record video with the newer one. That and you may have to update the older model's OS, which isn't a big deal.

By contrast, my setup for the first year costed me around $350. $200 for the iPod, about $50 for the Tracfone (but you can find one for cheaper than that), and then about $5 a month for the minutes. After that, it's mostly just minutes, say, about a $60 per year? That gives a rough total cost of ownership of around $410 for an equivalent two year.

The downside with my setup is that you have to carry two devices, you don't have 3G, and currently I have no camera (because I picked a Tracfone that didn't have one, but you can always pick one that does). However, the Touch does have WiFi, whereas the iPhone does not.

Hope that helps.

[wincrasher]

Correction - the iPhone DOES have wifi. It can be set to use wifi when it's available for faster service than 3G.

I'm looking forward to getting the iPad when it comes out.

I'll probably spring for the 3G model, as I don't have broadband at my apt near my project.

It's like a big ipod touch. There will be alot of cool apps specially designed for the device. They are saying that it will be popular in the medical field.

That may be a good option for you too. But probably not as a shopping tool while you are out and about.

I'll most likely use my iPad as a replacement for my netbook and still keep my iphone.

[Broken Arrow]

My bad about WiFi.

Don't get me started on the iPad though.

[disneysteve]

I've looked at the total cost of ownership back when the iPhone 3GS came out, and it came out to be something like $3500 for a two year contract. Nowadays, I think you could find a deal as cheap as $2500

This doesn't really apply for me. We are already AT&T customers. All I would need to spend to upgrade from my current phone to an iPhone is the cost of the phone itself and the $30/month for the data plan, so I guess a 2-year cost of about $1,000.

[Broken Arrow]

This doesn't really apply for me. We are already AT&T customers. All I would need to spend to upgrade from my current phone to an iPhone is the cost of the phone itself and the $30/month for the data plan, so I guess a 2-year cost of about $1,000.

Uh, yes, though to be clear, that would be the total cost of upgrade, which can certainly be acceptable for many others.

My total cost of ownership included voice, because I was comparing it with other providers with a different type of service (pre-pay).

[wincrasher]

My iphone plan (data & calling) is $77 a month with all the taxes included.

The 3GS with 32GB was $299.

So my 2 year cost of ownership is $2147.

[disneysteve]

Uh, yes, though to be clear, that would be the total cost of upgrade

That's correct. I wasn't counting the cell phone service itself that I already pay for. I was only looking at the added cost of switching to an iPhone.

I am not interested in switching cell providers. We are on a family plan with 5 phones and it wouldn't make sense for me to drop off that plan and go out on my own.

[FrugalTexan75]

Steve,

On my iPhone I have a free app copy of the Bible. I just looked in the app store, and I see that they have various apps of the Torah. So, that's not really a money saving app ... more of a less things to carry - make you more likely to read daily.

Yelp is a great app where you can search nearby (3GS only) for various stores, banks, etc that are nearby. So, if you are looking for the nearest Walgreen's, you'd just input it in the search, and it would give you all the info you need - plus you can then use the map function to get driving directions. People also do reviews of the various eating places and other businesses, so you can have an idea of whether or not its a place you want to try.

Another great app is Pandora. You can actually do this one on the web already - pandora.com. It's essentially personalized radio stations.

Another feature that I *love* are the podcasts! There are FREE podcasts for just about anything you can think of - and they can be listened to on Edge, 3G or Wi-fi.

I haven't used this app, but it may be useful for you - "Medical Spanish (with audio) - Spanish phrases to take you through the whole intake interview

There are lots of different budget apps, coupon trackers, price book type apps, etc. I'm waiting with bated breath for the YNAB app - should be soon!

Then, there is the fact of having the internet available just about anywhere! I'm sitting in SS class and there's a term we're not sure about - I just look it up on my phone! I don't ever have to call 411 for information - just look it up on my phone! So much more, but my brain is fizzled right now.

If you do decide to get one ... I would go with the insurance plan. For the $30/free phones it's not worth it ... but considering it would cost you around $400 to replace this if it got broken or lost before upgrade time ..... Also, *do not* skimp on the case. I thought I'd gotten the best case ... a plastic one ... but my brother showed me his - it has this flap like think that kind of takes most of the energy of a fall (if it falls on its back) and is better than just a plastic one. But seriously, you *have* to have some kind of case for it. It probably isn't a bad idea to also get a screen protector. I don't have one, and I wish I did. (probably would be better if I didn't eat meals while surfing or checking my email ....)

[safari]

Does anyone here have a Motorola Droid? I've heard some people saying that it's better than iPhone, particularly the screen and the camera/video. Droid also has a real keyboard, in addition to the on-screen one. I recently received an offer from Verizon, offering a Droid for $50 with a 2-year plan. Most likely I won't be getting it because I am currently averaging only $2-3 a month with T-Mobile prepaid, but I am curious to hear what the Droid owners have to say.