It was on Friday of last week that eager folks started hammering Apple"s website, along with wireless telco-carriers and retailers for the chance to purchase and own an iPhone X. Although prices should have been the same across the board since there is a manufacturer"s suggested retail price (MSRP), Best Buy was the lone shark in the water, offering the handset for $100 above MSRP.
The firm was called out, but defended its decision of offering the handsets for more by stating that "our customers have told us they want this flexibility and sometimes that has a cost.” The flexibility that is being referred to is about buying the phone off-contract. It has been only a few days since its response, but now it appears that the retailer has nixed the ability to purchase the smartphone without a contract altogether.
In a statement to Bloomberg, the retailer explained that:
"... although there was clearly demand for the un-activated iPhone X, selling it that way cost more money, causing some confusion with our customers and noise in the media."
Because of this, the company has pivoted its strategy and will now only offer the phone through monthly installment plans through carriers. The pricing will be as Apple intended, with the 64GB version costing $999 and the 256GB variant costing $1,149.