Feature Articles

Apple iPhone 4S Prices in Singapore

By Seow Tein Hee - 26 Oct 2011

Apple iPhone 4S Prices in Singapore

Apple iPhone 4S Prices in Singapore

On 28th October, Apple's updated iPhone 4S will be made available in Singapore. If you've been waiting to purchase the iPhone 4S, you can pre-order it without a 2-year telco contract from the Singapore Apple Store right now. But before you do hit that pre-order button, here's a quick look at how the iPhone 4S prices stand, against its predecessor from a year ago:

  iPhone 4S Price iPhone 4 Price
8GB NA S$788
16GB S$948 S$888
32GB S$1088 S$1048
64GB S$1238 NA

As apparent, the 16GB version has been marked up by S$60, while the 32GB by S$40. In comparison, we've seen Android smartphones such as the Samsung Galaxy S II with a launch price that's S$100 lower than its predecessor.

Some might say the 32GB is the best option since it does come with the least amount increased in pricing. This might be true for someone who's upgrading from the iPhone 4 to iPhone 4S. However, consider the ratio of increasing the storage capacity to the additional cost. To put it simply, here's a table to look at:

 iPhone 4S Storage Increase Additional Cost Cost per GB
16GB to 32GB 16GB S$140 S$8.75/GB
16GB to 64GB 48GB S$290 S$6.04/GB

Now, this ratio is based on the fact that you are choosing between the 16GB, 32GB and 64GB versions of the iPhone 4S. As such, you might want to consider the lowest or highest tier iPhone for the best storage to cost ratio.

iPhone Prices with 2-year Contract

There are some slight changes to the iPhone 4S price and its accompanying monthly subscription.

Likewise, the three Singapore telcos, namely SingTel, M1 and StarHub, have also announced the pricing of the iPhone 4S when customers sign up for a 2-year contract. Nonetheless, comparing against what we've seen from the previous year, there are some slight changes to the pricing mechanics for this year's iPhone 4S. Here's some points to note regarding the new pricing:

1. All three telcos will be selling the new iPhone 4 8GB, priced at S$400 for the lowest tier plan, and S$0 from the second highest plan onwards.

2. Except for its highest tier price plan, SingTel has raised the monthly subscription across the remaining three tiers, from S$39 to S$39.90 for iFlexi Lite, S$56 to S$59.90 for iFlexi Value and S$95 to S$99.90 for iFlexi Plus.

3. Talk time remains the same, though SingTel has raised the SMS limit from 500 to 550, 650 and 750 for the iFlexi Lite, Value and Plus plans respectively.

4. All three telcos will provide download speeds of 14.4Mbps for new sign-ups or re-contracts for the iPhone 4S.

In a nutshell, here are the prices of the iPhone 4S and the newly introduced 8GB iPhone 4 with the accompanying price plans:

  M1 StarHub SingTel
Monthly fee (w/GST)
  • Value: $36
  • Lite: $56
  • Extreme: $98
  • Max: $198
  • SmartSurf iPhone 100: $38
  • SmartSurf iPhone 300: $58
  • SmartSurf iPhone 700: $98
  • SmartSurf iPhone Unlimited: $205
  • iFlexi Lite: $39.90
  • iFlexi Value: $59.90
  • iFlexi Plus: $99.90
  • iFlexi Premium: $205
Voice credit (mins)
  • 100
  • 300
  • 700
  • Unlimited
  • 100
  • 300
  • 700
  • 2000
  • 100
  • 200
  • 500
  • 2000
SMS/MMS credit
  • 500
  • 500
  • 500
  • 2000
  • 500
  • 500
  • 500
  • 2000
  • 550
  • 650
  • 700
  • 2000
Data credit (GB)
  • 12 (capped at S$30)
  • 12 (capped at S$30)
  • Unlimited
  • Unlimited
  • 12 (capped at S$30)
  • 12 (capped at S$30)
  • 12 (capped at S$30)
  • Unlimited
  • 12 (capped at S$30)
  • 12 (capped at S$30)
  • 12 (capped at S$30)
  • 30
iPhone 4S 16GB
  • S$505
  • S$235
  • S$0
  • S$0
  • S$498
  • S$248
  • S$0
  • S$0
  • S$498
  • S$248
  • S$0
  • S$0
iPhone 4S 32GB
  • S$630
  • S$370
  • S$70
  • S$0
  • S$678
  • S$378
  • S$108
  • S$0
  • S$668
  • S$368
  • S$98
  • S$0
iPhone 4S 64GB
  • S$770
  • S$510
  • S$210
  • S$115
  • S$818
  • S$558
  • S$228
  • S$128
  • S$798
  • S$538
  • S$208
  • S$108
iPhone 4 8GB
  • S$400
  • S$140
  • S$0
  • S$0
  • S$400
  • S$130
  • S$0
  • S$0
  • S$400
  • S$120
  • S$0
  • S$0

Now here's something interesting we noticed. Earlier on, we've mentioned the price difference between the 16GB, 32GB and 64GB iPhone 4S. Similarly, we will be looking at the price difference between all three versions with a two-year plan, compared against the price difference if you had purchased it from Apple Store Singapore. To simply the comparison, we categorized each price plan as tier 1, 2, 3 and 4, 1 being the cheapest price plan from all three telcos.

 iPhone 4S Cost Difference (without contract) Cost Difference (Tier 1) Cost Difference (Tier 2) Cost Difference (Tier 3 and 4)
16GB to 32GB S$140
  • M1: S$125
  • SingTel: S$170
  • Starhub: S$180
  • M1: S$135
  • SingTel: S$120
  • Starhub: S$130
  • M1: S$70 and S$0
  • SingTel: S$98 and S$0
  • Starhub: S$108 and S$0
16GB to 64GB S$290
  • M1: S$265
  • SingTel: S$300
  • StarHub: S$320
  • M1: S$275
  • SingTel: S$290
  • Starhub: S$310
  • M1: S$210 and S$115
  • SingTel: S$208 and S$108
  • Starhub: S$228 and S$128

Now if you're alternating between the different storage capacity, you have to consider the extra amount you're paying for the upgraded storage capacity. M1 has the distinct advantage of a heavier subsidy on all tiers and iPhones except for the 16GB iPhone 4S at Tier 1 and its iPhone 4S 64GB at Tier 3 and 4. Even when it comes to the price difference between the three storage capacities, the cost difference is lower than what you'll get if you had purchased it without a contract.

SingTel, on the other hand, has a lower subsidy, and a higher monthly subscription to go along with the iPhone 4S. More importantly, we noticed that the price difference between the 16GB and 64GB iPhone 4S on Tier 1 is S$300, while you'll only pay S$290 more had you purchased it from Apple Store. The only benefit you'll get, is a slightly cheaper 64GB iPhone 4S on the highest two tiers, though your monthly subscription will bear a higher cost.

StarHub has kept its monthly subscription similar to the previous year. However, the cost is now transferred over to the iPhone 4S, which is higher than both M1 and SingTel across all tiers (except the 16GB tier 1) of the price plans. More importantly, the price difference between the 16GB, 32GB and 64GB versions are significantly higher than the other two telcos.

Here's the cold, hard truth: you will need the iPhone plans to go along with your new iPhone. This is especially true if you are a non-iPhone or iPhone 3GS user, since your price plan is most likely an older one that doesn't have the necessary data plan to go along with the iPhone.

Hence, there's really no way about it, so what you are looking at, is the savings from the subsidy, and the price difference for each version.

In other words, choose the price plan that you need, select the storage capacity required and purchase the cheapest iPhone 4S amongst all three telcos

Upgrade - Yes or No?

iPhone 3GS users, we think it's time you said your final farewell to your outdated device. More importantly, if you've purchased the 3GS during the initial launch, you'll definitely be eligible for the upgrade with no penalty to worry about. And this is the group of iPhone users that will most likely benefit from the purchase, with a much faster iPhone 4S compared to their dated 3GS and a new micro SIM card with a 14.4Mbps data plan to go along with it.

However, iPhone 4 users will probably have at least another year to go before the contract is fulfilled. You'll have to consider if the additional amount (which varies according to telcos) is worth it to bump up to an iPhone with a dual-core processor, 8-megapixel camera and Siri loaded within.

An alternative option is to purchase the iPhone 4S straight from the Apple Store without worrying about the equipment penalty. As the equipment penalty varies according to the price plan you signed up for and the remaining number of months on your contract, consider the following equation before you purchase a contract-free iPhone 4S:

Cost of iPhone 4S from Apple Store < Termination Fee + Subsidized iPhone 4S pricing with telco

Do note that should you purchase the iPhone 4S from the Apple Store, your data plan will not enjoy the updated 14.4Mbps speed since this is only applicable for customers who re-contract or are a new sign-up with the telco.

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