[meansizzler]

The I-phone comes out on friday and as far as I know the O2 stores, maybe even carphone warehouse are refusing to take cash or solo card as payment, isn't there a consumer law against this?... Luckily I order from O2 via Phone they take Solo Card..., but as for those unlucky ones....

[pixelated]

One assumes they're doing it to enforce the "two per customer" rule... can't think of a consumer law that'd this would infringe!!

[Steven]

Not really

Shops are entitled to accept any (legal) currency they so wish

[WibXL]

I think that I remember reading that a store isn't legally obliged to sell you anything if they don't want to.

[Steven]

Yes that is correct. Even if you offer asking price, shops can refuse to accept your custom. Long story short because you are making the offer and the merchant has to make the acceptance. Common law precedent

[Moosh]

The reason they are not taking cash is because everyone's friend, Jobs, has spoken from his golden pedestal. It's to stop anonymous purchases and the "illegal" unlocking of the phones.

Cheers
Moosh

[Miyazaki]

Originally Posted by mmahmed

The reason they are not taking cash is because everyone's friend, Jobs, has spoken from his golden pedestal. It's to stop anonymous purchases and the "illegal" unlocking of the phones.

Cheers
Moosh

I wouldn't bother with the iphone. Get a new ipod touch and wait for an iphone which has some decent features.

[Woodywizz]

Originally Posted by LFC_SL

Yes that is correct. Even if you offer asking price, shops can refuse to accept your custom. Long story short because you are making the offer and the merchant has to make the acceptance. Common law precedent

2nd Year Law Student

[Moosh]

Originally Posted by Games Guru

I wouldn't bother with the iphone. Get a new ipod touch and wait for an iphone which has some decent features.

Very good advice.

Personally, I will not be buying any version or variation of the iPhone.

Cheers
Moosh

[Steven]

Originally Posted by woodywizz

2nd Year Law Student

Yeah but I learnt that first year of A Levels

[961]

Originally Posted by LFC_SL

Yeah but I learnt that first year of A Levels

If we want to get totally pedantic then

You offer to buy

The shop agrees to sell. Legal contract then exists unless shop has at that point stipulated it will not accept legal tender but requires payment by some other stipulated method

THEN (if in England) you pay in legal tender (Bank of England notes), or if they are acceptable to the seller, by other means. If shop refuses legal tender refer to Trading Standards or Bank of England (But look how they handled Northern Rock)

If in Scotland, there is no such thing as legal tender, so you are stuck

However, as said above, this is pedantic unless you are after a John Cleese type argument, in which case you can no doubt bring the store to a hilarious standstill

AND, as said elsewhere in this thread, why would you buy one anyway?

Surely the issue is that you can only get the iphone on a contract basis through O2 in the UK.

Saying stores refusing to accept cash is not really the same thing is it?

No company offering services where you can spend variable amounts would take on new customers paying by cash as history shows their overheads and bad debt provisions escalate massively.

Also O2 are known to be paying Apple a slice of the contract revenues.

You could always scoot over to France, the iphone is unlocked there and I think you can just buy one. It's apparantly illegal to sell a restricted phone in France. Bet they have them in Calais, Boulogne and all the Brits on tour hot spots by Xmas.

[Pat_C]

Originally Posted by mmahmed

The reason they are not taking cash is because everyone's friend, Jobs, has spoken from his golden pedestal.

Well that's good enough for me, and it should be good enough for anyone else too.

It's to stop anonymous purchases and the "illegal" unlocking of the phones.

How could you buy one anonymously when you need a contract and the associated ID? They're not available on PAYG are they?

[gazbarber]

Originally Posted by Bluehorse

No company offering services where you can spend variable amounts would take on new customers paying by cash as history shows their overheads and bad debt provisions escalate massively.

You mean like utility bills or a mortgage

[gavan]

Originally Posted by Pat_C

Well that's good enough for me, and it should be good enough for anyone else too.


How could you buy one anonymously when you need a contract and the associated ID? They're not available on PAYG are they?

If it's like the US system, you buy the phone and are then supposed to go home and activate it via iTunes on Apple's chosen provider (o2 in the UK, AT&T in the USA).

So you just go to the shop, buy the phone, take it home .. but run a hacking tool to unlock it instead of signing up. You then just put your existing SIM in there and ignore any mandatory, expensive, 18 month O2 contract that Apple did the deal to force you to buy.

[Uridium]

Originally Posted by gavan

If it's like the US system, you buy the phone and are then supposed to go home and activate it via iTunes on Apple's chosen provider (o2 in the UK, AT&T in the USA).

So you just go to the shop, buy the phone, take it home .. but run a hacking tool to unlock it instead of signing up. You then just put your existing SIM in there and ignore any mandatory, expensive, 18 month O2 contract that Apple did the deal to force you to buy.

So everyone hopes.......

.....must admit it would be mildly amusing if Apple & O2 had done something else to the firmware that stopped the current unlocking tools working as everyone expects

[Pat_C]

Originally Posted by gavan

If it's like the US system, you buy the phone and are then supposed to go home and activate it via iTunes on Apple's chosen provider (o2 in the UK, AT&T in the USA).

So you just go to the shop, buy the phone, take it home .. but run a hacking tool to unlock it instead of signing up. You then just put your existing SIM in there and ignore any mandatory, expensive, 18 month O2 contract that Apple did the deal to force you to buy.

Interesting, I hadn't realised that was how it worked. That might explain the very recent iTunes upgrade. And yes, that contract really isn't a very good deal. It seems that they expect me to go from 600 mins to 200 mins for the same money each month. They're wrong.

Very nice looking devices though.

[sim667]

Mcdonalds have only just started taking cash last month, and glastonbury festivals you can only buy a ticket with a Credit card if you live in the UK and Debit card if you live outside??!?!?!?

[WibXL]

Originally Posted by Uridium

So everyone hopes.......

.....must admit it would be mildly amusing if Apple & O2 had done something else to the firmware that stopped the current unlocking tools working as everyone expects

I've heard that the UK Iphones will ship with firmware 1.1.2 which which can't be unlocked with the current methods and will also be available through Itunes this Friday so that you can update older devices but I'm not sure why you'd want to.

[pixelpixel]

How long did it take to unlock the USA model ?

Also, with the French version being unlocked as standard all it takes is for someone to cross link the region settings on the UK model and force the phone to think that its French.

[gavan]

Originally Posted by Uridium

So everyone hopes.......

.....must admit it would be mildly amusing if Apple & O2 had done something else to the firmware that stopped the current unlocking tools working as everyone expects

Yep - with the mandatory and frankly, rather rubbish, 18 month deal (cost: 18x35=630) the total price works out at a pound shy of 900 quid! It's a nice toy but no way is it worth almost a grand.

A mate at work brought one back from a holiday in the States a while back - Cost of phone 150 quid (300 dollars) and he just ran the unlocker and put his own UK SIM in. Sweet.

[samjpullen]

Originally Posted by sim667

Mcdonalds have only just started taking cash last month, and glastonbury festivals you can only buy a ticket with a Credit card if you live in the UK and Debit card if you live outside??!?!?!?

[geomuss]

the reason you can not buy the iphone with cash, is they want to know if you can get the airtime agreement!

If you pay by credit/debit card your more likely to pass there scoring system for the O2 contract.

[MikeTV]

I think more stores should refuse to take cash. Nasty, dirty, smelly stuff that spreads diseases. We should pay for everything using plastic or an equivalent.

[Miyazaki]

Originally Posted by MikeTV

I think more stores should refuse to take cash. Nasty, dirty, smelly stuff that spreads diseases. We should pay for everything using plastic or an equivalent.

Go back to the good old days of trade eh?

4 pounds of potatoes and a goat for your iphone sir? No?

[WelshBluebird]

Originally Posted by geomuss

the reason you can not buy the iphone with cash, is they want to know if you can get the airtime agreement!

If you pay by credit/debit card your more likely to pass there scoring system for the O2 contract.

I doubt it.

Cash was accepted for iPhone purchases in America up until about a month ago when Apple decided they didn't want to you to buy using cash. Thats the real reason - apple.

[Phil57]

Originally Posted by sim667

Mcdonalds have only just started taking cash last month, and glastonbury festivals you can only buy a ticket with a Credit card if you live in the UK and Debit card if you live outside??!?!?!?

I have always used cash to purchase a big mac and fries, how many shots of the hard stuff did you drink before typing the above?

[dognosh]

Originally Posted by WibXL

I've heard that the UK Iphones will ship with firmware 1.1.2 which which can't be unlocked with the current methods and will also be available through Itunes this Friday so that you can update older devices but I'm not sure why you'd want to.

version 1.1.2 was broken before it was released, apparently, but there still seems to be problems regarding some apps not running on it.

The iPhone has NOT got 3G , which is a big no no for power users, and apart from the touch screen and it's prettyness(I am not an Apple fan but their stuff is stylish) every other phone beats it. especially in the photo/video department.

If you really love the iPhone then wait 6 months for the next version as I have heard some new features will be in it.