iPhone subscription service — rumors and how much it ...

Apple could introduce an iPhone subscription service alongside the iPhone 14. If the rumor proves true, how would it work? We break down the ... Skiptomaincontent Tom'sGuide Tom'sGuide Search Subscribe RSS (opensinnewtab) (opensinnewtab) (opensinnewtab) (opensinnewtab) (opensinnewtab) (opensinnewtab) AustraliaUKUSCanada TechnologyMagazines(opensinnewtab)(opensinnewtab)Whysubscribe?Thebesttechtutorialsandin-depthreviewsTryasingleissueorsaveonasubscriptionIssuesdeliveredstraighttoyourdoorordeviceFrom$12.99(opensinnewtab)View(opensinnewtab) BestPicks News Reviews HowTos Phones Streaming Deals More Antivirus Audio Coupons Fitness Gaming Home Laptops Mattresses PersonalFinance Security SmartHome TV VPNs Wearables WhatToWatch AllTopics Forums(opensinnewtab) TrendingSurfacePro9PrimeDayPixel7Pixel7ProPixelWatchiPhone14 Tom'sGuideissupportedbyitsaudience.Whenyoupurchasethroughlinksonoursite,wemayearnanaffiliatecommission.Here’swhyyoucantrustus. (Imagecredit:Future) WemayseeanewiPhonesubscriptionservicedebutattheAppleevent,whichcouldreallyshakeupthewayyouacquiretheiPhone14andotherApplehandsets.It'snosecretthatiPhonesareexpensivephones,andtherumorsaresuggestingthattheiPhone14Proinparticularwillbemoreexpensivethanever.Havingtheoptiontopayforthephonemonthlybutwithouthavingtogetanewphonecontractcouldbewhatyouneedtoenjoythelatesthardwarewithoutneedingtopayalargelumpsum.We'veonlyheardaboutthisrumoredsubscriptionservicefromonesourcesofar,butit'sonewithaproventrackrecord.Here'saround-upofwhatweknowabouttheiPhonesubscriptionservice,soyoucanfigureoutifthismightbehowyoubuyyournextiPhone,whetherthat'sthisyearorinthefuture.iPhonesubscriptionservice:HowitcouldworkAccordingtoBloomberg'sMarkGurman(opensinnewtab),weshouldseetheiPhonesubscriptionserviceappear"beforetheendoftheyear."TherewasnomentionofasubscriptionmodelattheAppleSeptemberevent,butGurmanstillsaysthere'sachanceofseeingitarrivethisyear,orotherwisenextyear.Perhapswe'llinsteadseethesubscriptionmodeldebutattherumoredAppleeventinOctoberwhereitcouldappear.GoingbacktoGurman'soriginalreportinginMarch(opensinnewtab),thishardwaresubscriptionplanwillapparentlyworksimilartoleasingacar,orlikeacellphonepaymentplanwithacarrier,onlywithouttheserviceincluded.It'snotsimplyapaymentplanthough,Gurmansays,asyoucanalreadyoptformonthlypaymentswhenbuyingaphonethroughtheAppleStore. Instead,thisrumoredsubscriptionplansoundsmorelikearentalplan,withtheideayouaren'tactuallypayingoffthedevicebutareloaningitforashortperiodoftime.HavingthisinplacemaymeanAppleretainssomecontroloveryouriPhonethatitwouldn'totherwisehave.Itwouldn'twantyoucontinuingtousethephonewithoutpayingforit,afterall.OneinterestingdetailGurmanaddsisthatthissubscriptionmaynotbeanindependentprogram,butpartoftheexistingAppleOnesubscription.ThatcouldmeanyouhavetopayforallofApple'sothersubscriptionserviceslikeAppleMusic,AppleFitnessPlusandAppleTVPlusaspartofabundlewithyourphone.Asdescribed,thatsoundslikeitcouldbemoreexpensivethanjustpayingforthephone,butatleastyou'dgetthefulliPhoneexperiencewhensubscribing.TheclosestthingAppleofferstothisalready,asidefrompaymentplans,isitsexistingiPhoneupgradeprogram.ThisletsyoupayasetamounteachmonthforyouriPhoneandAppleCarePlus;you'rethenentitledtoanupgradewhenthenextiPhonemodelarrives. WemayevenseeAppleofferthisforotherdevicesasidefromtheiPhone,accordingtoGurman,allowingustodreamoftryingoutApple'smostluxuriousproductslikeaMacStudiowithouthavingtopaythousandstobuyoneoutright.Fornow,though,itseemslikeApplewillbestartingoffthisnewpaymentplanwithitssignatureproduct.iPhonesubscriptionservice:HowmuchitcouldcostItseemslogicalthatthepriceofyouriPhonesubscriptionwoulddependonwhichmodelyouwant,andGurmanagrees.Heestimatesmonthlypricesof$35,$45and$50fortheiPhone13,iPhone13ProandiPhone13ProMaxrespectively,basedontheiPhoneUpgradeProgram'spricing.Atthatrate,youwouldenduppayingoffthepriceofthephone(andthensome)overthecourseoftwoyears,butifApple'stryingtomakethisdifferentfromaregularpaymentplan,perhapsitwon'tallowyoutokeepthedeviceforthatlong.Also,Gurman'spricingtheremaynotaccountfortheAppleOnebundlehealsosayscouldplayapartintheiPhonesubscriptionservice.SinceanAppleOnesubcostsfrom$14.95/£14.95amonth,thatcost(orapercentageofit)maybeaddedontotherumoredpriceabove,thereforegivingyouthefullbreadthofApple'sservicesbutatamuchhigherpricepermonththanbuyingthephoneandsubscribingtoAppleOneseparately.Howeverthisnewplanworks,we'llbewaitingtoseeifthisnewserviceisrevealedattheAppleeventtomorrow(September7).TakealookattheotherAppleeventrumors,aswellasouriPhone14andiPhone14Prohubstoensureyou'reinthelooprightuptothemomentTimCookwalksonstage.Today'sbestAppleAirPods(3rdGeneration)dealsReducedPrice(opensinnewtab)(opensinnewtab)$179(opensinnewtab)$149.99(opensinnewtab)View(opensinnewtab)(opensinnewtab)(opensinnewtab)$179(opensinnewtab)View(opensinnewtab)(opensinnewtab)(opensinnewtab)$179(opensinnewtab)View(opensinnewtab)ShowMoreDealsWecheckover250millionproductseverydayforthebestprices BeIntheKnowGetinstantaccesstobreakingnews,thehottestreviews,greatdealsandhelpfultips.ContactmewithnewsandoffersfromotherFuturebrandsReceiveemailfromusonbehalfofourtrustedpartnersorsponsors RichardPridayStaffWriterRichardisaTom'sGuidestaffwriterbasedinLondon,coveringnews,reviewsandhow-tosforphones,tablets,gaming,andwhateverelsepeopleneedadviceon.FollowingonfromhisMAinMagazineJournalismattheUniversityofSheffield,he'salsowrittenforWIREDU.K.,TheRegisterandCreativeBloq.Whennotatwork,he'slikelythinkingabouthowtobrewtheperfectcupofspecialtycoffee. 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