Someone help me out here. Trying to justify the $1k pricetag.

[Nippero]

Well let me start by saying hi, I'm new around here. First post, first thread.

Anyway, I really want the X1... been looking at it for a few months now. But after watching that newest video review from theunwired.net, I'm really starting to question it.

What is there really that justifies the $1,000 price tag?

So far, I've personally only come up with these reasons:

- It looks damn good.
- Its all metal (right? or mostly atleast)
- The high res screen
- Qwerty keyboard (although I've heard a lot of negatives about this.. will probably have to try for myself)

The lack of an accelerometer bugs me tho

Is there really anything else?

Oh also, (and I'll do a search on this tomorrow when I have more free time) how probable is putting Android on this phone?

[sleazeball]

Approach 1: HOW you can justify it in fact depends on WHAT you're justifying it against.

1. If you're thinking "1000 is a lot of money", consider the price of the Touch Pro, N96 and other expensive smartphones. Then the X1's price tag isn't out of line at all. It does NOT matter if it's going to cost $1000, it's not ridiculously expensive in its own market.

2. If your problem is "$1000 can buy me a nice laptop", then remember you're paying for the portability.

* * *
Approach 2: subjective reasons

a) I have an inherent preference for Sony and therefore SE. I prefer their sense of aesthetics, and I trust their quality demands more than I do HTC (I am after all from HTC's home turf). There are countless stories of Taiwanese vendors who meet quality demands from int'l clients, but will drop it several notches for their own products.

b) I refuse to be caught holding an Omnia in my hand, it's fugly.

c) The X1 is the best combination of hardware features for my purposes.

d) and like you, I just happen to really like the X1 as a gadget.

* * *

I'm trying to help, but I get the feeling that this is not the angle/approach you're asking for with your post... but I think you need to consider the whole picture, and not just compartmentalize and say "oh an acclerometer is worth $100 in MSRP". If that's the case, then it means you in fact can't justify the X1, and you should look elsewhere for something that matches your expectation of value.

[Rudegar]

another thing is that one cant really compare the pricetag
of a unlocked phone without a contract with
a phone you buy with a contract which mean
unless you dont already have a contract
means a lot of hidden costs
which often end up being a higher min cost for the binding
period then getting the unlocked phone
and using it with an existing contract

the unlocked price is what the phone really! cost

what you see when you see a price with a contract

is the phone company paying a large % of that real price
and binding to to their services for a period of time

and unless you believe those phone companys to be
retards who cant do math
or that they really really like you and want to do right
by you rather then their shareholders

they must expect to that % they pay of the phones price
and more back in return from you as a customer

wait for it to get offered with a contract where you live
before you compare it's price with phones with a contract

[bloob]

I look at the total value that the phone can bring to me, in terms of...
- design - is it something I want to hold and be seen with
- usability - is it practical and reasonably easy to use
- features - does it have the specs and performance that I want
- price - how does it compare with other similarly spec'ed products
- wow - how is all of the above put together, build quality and x factor

[KevVo]

i would say, if you're having 2nd thoughts, then hold off on buying it. The phone hasn't been released yet and it's going to be very expensive at first. Let the suckers like myself pay the premium price to get it in advance and work out the kinks before they refine their production process and make a few revisions to improve it. That should bring the price down along with carrier subsidies. By that time, so many people should have provided feedback as to whether or not that initial $1000 was worth it.

[norseman]

I would agree if you are having 2nd thoughts wait until we give you our review (I will be getting it as son as it is released in the UK ). I wouldn't recomend that you buy orr don't buy a phone based on a single feature unless you can really justify it, the accelorometer is nothing majorly wonderful and it doesn't work with many applications, in a year or two it could be really useful for certain things but at the present time its a fun thing with now major advantage.

Just a quick comment on Rudegar regarding the contract way.

For me in the UK the contract way is by far the cheapest method, I don't yet know how mucgh it is going to be in the UK sim free because it isn't released yet but the figure £550 seems resonable (price of touch diamond pro sim free).

I can get the HTC TDP for free on a £30 a month contract which will give me something like 500 mins and texts a month included on an 18 month contract so my total cost is £540 spread over 1 1/2 years with everything I would use included, that alone saves me £10. Whereas sim free I have pay another £10 upfront and then pay for my calls on top, over the same period of time i will probably spend another £360 on calls and text makeing my total commitment £910.

People keep forgetting one thing with phones, that the price we pay is the retail price and not the wholesale price that the operators get them at (I don't know what this value is but it could easily be less than 1/2 that). lets assume that it is half price, so they paid £275 for the phone that I got free, they will still make (540-275 =) £265 minus the cost of whatever I use on the calls etc which is minimal.

I don't know if the US is similar but for me contract is always better if you are going to use your phone moderatly if the phone you want is mid level or higher.

[Nippero]

Thanks for the help so far guys.

Just to clarify what the purpose of the thread, I want to know about the "special features" of the X1. As in what sets it apart from the other smart phones in the same price range? Or, what makes it better than the other smart phones that are a bit cheaper.

Like, one of my alternatives to the X1 is the HTC Diamond. The advantages I see from the X1 is only the screen, possibly build quality and keyboard, but I like TouchFlo 3D much more. Is there anything else?

Oh and how long do you guys think the phone would last me? As in, will it be so far outdated within a few months that it'll seem so useless compared to other phones?

[Rudegar]

it have a normal "walkman" 3.5mm minijack headset connector
where diamond have htc's extUsb where a converter is required if one
wish to use normal headsets

and diamond dont have SDIO slot
sdio can be used for normal microSD memory cards to expand storage
and for various sdio functionality cards like pci cards in a pc you might say

and it have the sdio connector on the outside
unlike touch pro where it's under the backpanel
in which case many functionality cards which mostly stik out of the port
would only work when the backpanel was off

think it have more hardware button on the front which often games can only use as in many games cant use the full keyboard

under the hood it use the same cpu as diamond and touch pro and many other htc phones

panels v.s. touchpro is a matter of taste really
but if one like to develop sonyE have already release the sdk
which makes it easy to start developing ones own panels
pretty sure that htc havent don the same if one want to add functionality to TouchFlo 3d

prices for them at uk expansys
£494.99 touch pro
£584.99 X1
£429.99 Diamond

[i_will_not_buy_iphone]

Ok, let's look at this:


1. What do I need to do (daily business)
-> I'm a computer science student: I need to check Wikipedia during the lecture and view the slides (pdf) and Facebook sometimes. I also need to write down my expenses and manage all my tasks and due dates with Outlook. SSH remote connection to my Linux-Server.

2. How do I do it now:
-> Heavy-duty Thinkpad Notebook, Post-Its. I have a cheap Palm and a normal cell-phone. Using the palm just isn't productive, it takes too long to type with the stylus.

3. Requirements:
-> Fast device with cellphone, WLAN, VPN, webbrowser (the bigger the screen the better). Tasks must be supported, synchronization with Outlook is a must. QWERTY for SSH would be nice.
-> 3rd party apps and a SDK

4. Extras:
-> GPS is cool because I never find my way around in my new city.
-> Camera for the occasional document/blackboard snapshot (that's where macro/autofocus is key)
-> Media player I don't really use, got an iPod. Maybe for jogging.
-> Panels. I don't need them. Shortcuts are enough.

5. Justification:
-> Either I get a smaller Internet tablet or an eeePC. But then again, my cellphone is old and broken (vibration doesnt work, etc), so I could just get one of those.

6. When wouldn't I buy the X1?
- iPhone gets Task capabilities (with Outlook sync) and a bigger/replaceable battery. Then I would save a lot of money.

I hope this helped.

[sleazeball]

I like what i_will_not_buy_iphone has done here. When I first began wondering if I should get the X1, I had my motives, requirements and alternatives completely laid out, and then reviewed it several times down the road. what I found out was that, if I were going to get a smartphone, the X1 is the most compelling option right now, and that's solely because of its hardware features.

So the "special feature" for me is that the X1's got the features I want, looks good, but is still relatively svelte, with a larger battery and adequate camera. The other smartphones might be cheaper, but not by that much.

The Diamond was another choice of mine, but it's been struck out. Its specs are inadequate on several fronts, if I factor in the investment I'll have to make to cover them, its cost will be very close to that $1000 mark. My other option? If Apple would just make their bluetooth keyboard compatible with the iPhone or iPod touch, and also allow for windows media streaming, then I'll be happy with that. But knowing Apple, that'll never happen.

I think it really helps to know what you want out of the device.