Appeasing Early iPhone Adopters with $100 Refund

Mae : Wireless Mobility Blog
Mae
| News and views on everything wireless and mobile, from WiFi and WiMAX to 3G and fixed-mobile convergence (FMC).

Appeasing Early iPhone Adopters with $100 Refund

If you happened to visit Apple’s Web site today, you may have noticed the “Open letter to iPhone owners from Steve Jobs,” posted Apple-style inside an image of the phone’s screen itself.
 
If you happened to be among the folks who stood in line to snap up one of the first iPhones in June, the letter probably came as a bit of a victory. You see, this week Apple revamped its line of iPods and iPhones, and lowered the price of the 8GB iPhone from $599 to $399. That means earlier adopters essentially paid $200 extra solely for the benefit of having an iPhones for a few weeks longer than everyone else.
 
In the letter, Jobs acknowledged the “hundreds of e-mails” he received from iPhone users upset that the value of their new toy dropped $200 only two months after they bought it.
 
To appease these irked customers, Apple is now offering a $100 “store credit toward the purchase of any product at an Apple Retail Store or the Apple Online Store.” Further details a slated to be posted on Apple’s Web site next week.
 
Despite offering the store credit, Jobs stood by the decision to lower iPhone’s price: “I am sure we are making the right decision to lower the price of the 8GB iPhone from $599 to $399, and that now is the right time to do it.” He hinted that the price cut has at least something to do with the pending holiday season—it’s a way to boost sales during what is usually the busiest part of the year for companies that sell consumer electronics.
 
Did you buy an iPhone early for $599? If so, is the $100 store credit enough to sooth your ruffled feathers, or do you still feel gypped?