In this opinion we argue that there is something strange going on with the recommended retail prices of smartphones. In many cases they are much cheaper within just a few months. It is therefore increasingly worthwhile to wait a while before purchasing a new device.
Opinion: don’t look at suggested retail prices
In some sectors, the recommended retail price of a product is mainly intended as an enticement. Think of electric cars. By the time you’ve chosen the options you want, you’ll often end up spending thousands of dollars more. Apple MacBooks are also prone to it. Add extra memory and a larger hard drive and the price can sometimes be halved.
We increasingly see the opposite with smartphones. Of course, you can also opt for more expensive variants with more RAM or storage, but most people go for the entry-level version. The associated recommended retail price often turns out to be unrealistically high. Soon you can take it with you for much less money.
Take the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE, the new ‘affordable’ high-end smartphone from Samsung that was released at the end of September. The recommended retail price of 749 euros was quite high, but you can now get it for just €522. In six weeks (!) time, almost a third of the price has already been reduced. If you opt for a subscription, it will be much cheaper.
In any case, Samsung is often quick to throw in big discounts. The foldable Galaxy Z Flip 6 had a suggested retail price of 1,199 euros last summer and you can now buy it for € 759. At the time of writing, that is 450 euros, or more than 37 percent less.
Other brands can also benefit from it. 499 euros for the OnePlus Nord 4? OnePlus now settles for €369. You can order the Motorola Edge 50 Ultra for €698, while the recommended retail price earlier this year was €999.
Why are recommended retail prices so high?
It is very logical that manufacturers offer discounts over time. After all, products age, which also means they become less valuable. To get rid of the stock, lower the price. However, the smartphones discussed in this article were launched no more than six months ago. They have no successor yet and are still relevant.
The only logical conclusion of this opinion is that the recommended retail prices of smartphones are much too high in most cases. Why do manufacturers choose this? We can only guess, but it could simply be a psychological trick. If you see that a device has been discounted by 300 euros, you may think that you have got a good deal. While the original price may have simply been artificially increased.
However, you often don’t have to wait long. In our review of the Xiaomi 14T we wrote in mid-October that the smartphone was still a bit too expensive with its recommended retail price of 649 euros. For 500 euros it would be a good deal. The price has now dropped to €518.
If you wait a while, you save money
This monthly theme is sponsored by KPN. KPN has no influence on the content of the articles we publish.
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Source: www.androidplanet.nl
