Correction: the OnePlus 6T costs $549, not $350, and the Moto G6 costs $250, not $180

because midrange phones now are actually very decent, so flagship phones is more luxury than a must.

:because people want to make money, and consumers are paying

"Apple is running out of people to sell iphone to.." *Raise the price to $1000*

Ok folding phones don't count. They use brand new technology and are available in limited quantities.

did the verge just say the oneplus 6t costs $350?? maybe thats the tmobile price or something with more monthly costs but mine was $580 from oneplus's website

Why phones are expensive? Well, don't buy the flagship phones, problem solved.

I miss the days when smartphone flagships were 600-700 dollars...

What's with the BS prices? A OnePlus 6t is $550, not $350. A Moto G6 is $250, not $180.

In India The Redmi Note 7 Pro starts at $200 The iPhone Xs Max starts at $2000 Average person earns $450 per month Has to pay rent/loans $120 Has to pay for food $100 Has to pay bills $50 Misc- $50 What will he most likely buy? Does he get 10x the phone for 10x the money? Even if one buys an iPhone today. By the times he finishes paying for it in EMI's it will be outdated and even the cheap midrangers easily outperform it with more features

This guy is acting like he discovered the mystery of the universe while stating the most obvious simple facts

Market stopped growing they trying to squeeze the customers that still upgrade all the time. Last time I upgrade. I'm keeping my phone until it breaks than buying the cheapest one I can find!

My phone is $100 and I won't cry if I drop it accidentally 😂

Because the flagships need reasons to prevent people from going to the midrange or even entry-level phones, which do 90% of the stuff.

Anything over 400$ seems OP to me. Except OnePlus IMO.

Phones got expensive because... Apple could not sell more phones and yet could not cut down profits and let investor feel bad... So they began increasing prices to keep the profit up... That's the reason prices got high..!

The OnePlus 6T is actually $550, not $350 as mentioned in the video

That's why brand like Xiaomi are growing 🤑🤑🤑

What’s your price limit for a smartphone?

6:20 The Oneplus 6T is not 350$

Where can I get the OP6T for $350?

Yeah i stop buying flagships. Good phones might not getting cheaper, but cheap phones are definitely getting better.

Why does he look like Dr. Doofenshmirtz from Phineas and Ferb?

I'm still using a Nexus 6. I'll upgrade sometime this year but my phone still does everything I want it to do, has a headphone jack, 64gb internal memory and a 4K screen.

After a year the prices drop, got a new s9+ for 467$

"two dauson dollars"

Yay i got the best out there! Oh wait, where's the headphone jack?

The Verge is out of touch. They cost so much because companies (both manufacturers and carriers) are greedy beyond anything I have ever seen, that's the big picture.

In the end it all comes down to corporate greed. "Our economy is at war with many forms of life on earth, including human life. What the climate needs to avoid collapse is a contraction in humanity’s use of resources; what our economic model demands to avoid collapse is unfettered expansion. Only one of these sets of rules can be changed, and it’s not the laws of nature.” - Naomi Klein

If you think about it, a thousand a year isn't too much for something you depend on every single minute of the day and the fact is, most of us keep our phones within 3 feet ofbus all the time

800 was my limit but I stretched it for the “anniversary edition“. I will never buy a more expensive phone again. After taxes and the insane conversion rates it is just prohibitively expensive in Europe.

Your reasons are valid only in USA, expected in global market

Because people won't buy a cheap phone They always want an overpriced phone with popular brand 😒😒

Low competition is also the reason companies like Apple can do whatever they wants.Let Oppo and Huawei operate in us and you will see prices going down.

It's about the camera, it's one of the main selling points. Most low end and high end can perform task pretty much the same, but camera is where you see where the money is worth

Phones aren't expensive. I have a computer in my pocket that is more powerful than my desktop I had 10 years ago. The fact that smartphones are accessible to as many as they are is a modern miracle of technology and production.

It's a simple answer: corporate greed

Forgot to mention tech also gets less expensive as time goes on. You can't tell me Apple 720p LCD screen still costs as much to produce as it did over 6-7 years ago. Hardware components are also removed in some models which should account for the new parts added. This substitute should not account for such a price increase. And lets not forget the 5W charger that should be upgraded to 9W or 15W for fast charging. Profit is the main goal here.

I think my upper limit, as a student whose phones mostly come from my parents buying them, would be about the price my mother paid for my current one: R$1000, which is about 250 dollars. It runs very smoothly, has a pretty nice battery life (often ending the day with 40% or so of the charge) and a memory good enough for what I use.

just mention that as usual, this is damn american centric study vid in the title.

Along with buying a low cost phone and keeping it longer you can buy an expensive phone and *_know_* you won't be buying a new phone for 4+ years - once you get top of the line most improvements are incremental and many years later it's still _good enough_ - it's when you buy a cheap phone that you live with compromise and fall behind faster. The manufacturers charge what they think people will pay, then a few months later the price drops to adjust for expected sales, you _might_ get the same phone for 25% less a year later. Another factor is that the younger generation of workers wants to be paid fairly and advance themselves - to one day be able to afford the phone that they make.

Don't buy new phone often to save environment

We got the coolest phones in Southern Asia for dirt cheap prices.

Anyone else notice Jake says "Thousand" wierd

I'm still with my Pocophone F1 for $300 and honestly, it's soooo goooood

*512 GB iPhone Xs Max costs $2000 in India* Yes people still buying xD

I lived in Portugal until 2005. When I came to Canada I hate that my only options were to be locked into a 2-year plan or pay a stupid amount for pay-as-you-go. I'm glad change happened.

Cheap phones keep getting better & better, flagships are just putting more unnecesary things so they can excuse the crazy prices.

Just buy older models. Honestly, there aren't much innovations.

Cool video but maybe ditch the sideburns... actually definitely ditch the sideburns

This video on OLED looks awesome

Great video and it's very nice to hear other perspective other than 'companies are evil and greedy' I like a more professional, technical and accurate description of what's happening with prices and you just did that. Keep up the good work!

The smartphone market is saturated, thats the main reason. look up Porter

The only one qualified to tell me why something is something from the verge is Dieter Bohn

It's overpriced. There hasn't been any significant game changing tech on mobile phobes for the past couple of years.

TMO still has contracts. They just cleverly renamed them as "bill credits".

I know why iPhones are so expensive Because the damn logo

Yeah phones are expensive but having a flagship is dope as hell

I'm sorry but who thought they were only paying $200 for a phone when they had a contract for $60 a month. Everyone knew what they're paying for...

Iim still rocking a LG v30 unlocked does what I need to do I'm done buying these expensive phones for them to do the same thing as last year 😅😂🤣

The Verge: **swears in the title** KZfaq: *_D E M O N E T I Z E D_*

It's expensive because it's an overpriced product I don't think it's a mystery. 🤷🏼‍♂️

I think I'm happy with a $100 midrange phone. If it works, it works.

2:30 that’s why it’s good to just save up and pay off the phone in full at once

Just buy Xiaomi phones, flagship-quality for half the price! Innovation for all.

Well mostly because they are removing support for phones,for example I have 5S and with iOS 13 they are removing support for 5S,SE,6S so most of the people that has those will upgrade including me.And that's A LOT of people since 6S is most selling Phone ever with old Nokias

So listen up ,I don't need more than 1 camera on back of my phone, All I need is nice screen, excellent chipset, 4500Mah battery.

But... Mine is only $200.. **Cries in Corner**

Laughing while watching this on my Nokia 3310

Pretty sure it's because they have pads to prevent electrical shock. You get a cookie if you know what referenced to =D

That near £800 sub hd LCD display though....paying for quality!!!!

People are complaining about the high prices of recent flagships but STILL KEEP BUYING THEM instead of other high end phones for $700 like the old flagships used to be. If you want a phone for $700, buy a phone for $700 and not the one for $1000+ 🙄

I completely disagree on the having to pay more for the best out there. The iPhone X was £1000 and the OnePlus 6 was faster to charge the camera was better it was faster with day to day tasks and was half that price with more internal storage. So your point is subjective and you should point that out. The only reason as of now the second Gen X iPhones are faster is the 7nm chipset but as soon as OnePlus or any cheaper competition get the newest 7nm Snapdragon in a phone at almost half the price. The point your paying more for the best out there is once again just not true

TMobile's CEO is great. He has a Facebook live stream every Sunday calls slowcooker Sunday. He cooks when wearing a ridiculous apron. Just the best.

my current phone costs $300, runs everything, works well, no need to upgrade till 5G mainstream.

My dad and I got 2 iPhone XRs for $750 (for two) and about 3 years of use until the next upgrade comes out to $125 per year. Not bad in my opinion

More profit is the main motive for increasing phones prices.

In this 1000$ smartphone game, oneplus sounds reasonable

"Phones do have a lot more stuff" except for all the useful stuff, like fingerprint sensors, headphone jacks, usable sized screens, durable casings, removable storage, well placed physical buttons, stereo speakers, and meaningful alternatives to Android and iOS.

Verge forgot to mention iPhone XR isnt exactly value for money, LCD screens in 2018, come on Apple

Big Picture? Only for folks from US

I don't know why the people making videos like these always include R&D as one reason for the markup we see on phones. The purpose of R&D is to create better technology and the reason for creating better technology is to convince costumers to buy. I'm being charged to be convinced to buy your product? The reality is that if these companies could make the phones they make for $10, and be able to keep it a secret from us, then they would still keep hiking the price every year.

I really think that people don’t mind paying 1000-1400 dollars because they hold on to their phones for 2-3 years. Phones are something essential for your daily life, and if you’re paying about 350-500 per year for something that crucial, I don’t think people mind.

I have no kidneys left

first and only reason: apple started doing it

If Apple didn't sell their Phones for that much no company would do that.

This episode is sponsored by Apple.

Flagships are meant to be premium. They are expensive because they are supposed to be the best of the best. If you want a normal phone, get a j3 for 85 bucks.

"Smartphones are damn expensive"... oh boy, you should just google about the iphone price in Brazil...

"Very necessary devices" 0:31 HAHAHAHA! Aside from texting and calling most other features on phones are not necessary. Classic 1st world propeganda leads us to believe we need much more technology and convenience than we really do.

I swear it’s like you guys don’t even watch the video and pay attention. Y’all just stuck with your own opinions no matter what.

Canada’s telecom companies still have 2-year plans.

My phone cost me $200 of my own money, thank you very much.

Tiny bit of price trickery there; I notice you adjusted the price of the 4S vs 10R (cheapest end) for inflation, but did not adjust the 4S vs 10S Max (very most expensive). This made it seem like despite having the best, most expensive tech (10S Max), they’re charging the same (10R). When the 4S was made, it was the best smartphone possible. Its parts were “the best ever”, same as the 10S is these days, so I’m not buying the argument that having the best tech means the price has to go up. I think there’s a heavy dose of greed, coupled with/fuelled by the existence of new markets of phones like the 10R or even cheaper phones where companies pull their punches to create lower-end smartphones. This allows apple to charge a premium for premium phones vs 10 years ago when there was only one kind of iPhone. That said, inflation is a thing, so from time to time, all companies will have to bump their prices up to keep up. Plus phones are physically bigger and include OLED screens (which apparently have a higher manufacturing failure rate). So while I’m not surprised that the price has gone up, I’m not letting Apple/Samsung off the hook in terms of greed and I see no need to make excuses for them.

Once you focus on this dude's ears.. You can't unsee it lol

I understand that you discussed phone subsidization and contracts, but I still think it's critical to understand just how few of us Americans even buy expensive goods compared to other countries; we are stuck in perpetual lease and finance cycles, constantly getting goods and prolonging costs instead of buying within our means and buying more reasonable goods. Most people just don't care that they're getting a $1000+ phone since their monthly finance payment is only marginally higher than their previous $650 or $750 phone, and carriers tend to advertise their finance plans with the most similar payment options, so you'll find that the monthly cost for a Moto X will be similar to the iPhone X because they default the Moto to 12 months of financing and the iPhone to 36 months, and then the costs are similar per month, and people just see that monthly cost and just go with the pricier phone. These are just my observations, but I think it's definitely food for thought.

I love how everyone is making video excuses for phone companies

The title should be why is your *iPhone* so expensive.

Seems crazy that an iPhone Xs cost $999 but is also £999 in the UK, what happened to exchange rates? Seems the UK is paying almost £250 more for the same flagship phone

The yearly refresh cycle needs to stop. “Cellphones” need to go in the way of the computer. The yearly refresh is not gaining us any major breakthroughs anymore.