New iPhone prices from DiGi – buyer beware

UPDATE 20100710 1445: What looks like a damage control action, DiGi has removed the controversial iPhone 3GS discounted price and has updated its payment page to emphasize on iDiGi plan reduction savings. This does make it clearer that savings are achieved from the plan however they still insist on using those savings to reflect “Effective” iPhone price.  No matter how DiGi spins it, the fact remains that you are paying MORE upfront for the phone e.g. iPhone 3GS 16GB RM2,042 now vs. RM1090 previously for iDiGi 138. These so called savings are only enjoyed if you are taking up a 24 or 36 months easy payment plan. We can’t help but to say this is DiGi Savings done wrong. Thanks Dex for the heads up!

Original Post: When DiGi announced a price slash for its iPhone 3GS packages as well as a hefty reduction in the price of the device itself, it looked like a pretty good deal, but thanks to the comments from our readers, we now know that there is more than meets the eye with the new DiGi iPhone plans.

Don’t be fooled by what you see up front, as the savings that seemed pretty good is in actual fact not really that great. If you look at the plans, you would see that the monthly repayment does not tally and the phone price is FAR OFF from what was indicated in the earlier DiGi iPhone plans.

For example, the 16GB iPhone 3GS actually costs RM2,042 with a iDiGi 138 plan over 24 months NOT the advertised RM890! If you read the fine print, there’s actually a term that states that “iPhone prices are nett price after savings.”

Nett Price after savings? What it means is that DiGi deducted the potential savings obtained from the plans from the sticker price of the iPhone. Essentially you’ll be paying more for the iPhone 3GS NOT the price DiGi advertised openly. The savings are derived from the reduction in the monthly iDiGi plan plus whatever subsidy that DiGi is giving for the phone.

Why can’t DiGi state CLEARLY and make it EASY for consumers to understand their plans without being dubbed? They could have just stated that the iDiGi plans have been reduced but instead they made it look more enticing by making it look like they’ve reduced the price of the iPhone as well.

DiGi is known for burrying terms with hidding conditions in the fine print and with this, they’ve just hit a new low. Essentially, they’ve only reduced the monthly subscription for the iDiGi plans NOT the price of the actual iPhone. But at a glance it surely does make it look like you’re getting a good deal for the iPhone, actually you’re not. You’re paying more for the iPhone but in the long run you save on the monthly plan.

DiGi made it look like it is much, much more than that.

This is really not on DiGi. You’re blantantly misleading customers who many thought that there was a genuine reduction in the price of the iPhone outright. We are disappointed that DiGi is resorting to such tactics and gimmickry.

Thanks to our readers for for pointing this out.