Paying two grand for a phone?

Allan Keiter, whose MyRatePlan.com helps consumers compare cellular calling plans, figures that's the bottom line commitment for anyone wanting an Apple iPhone - and in a market where cell phones are practically given away, $2,000 won't exactly bring in the mass market. (By the way, he comes up with that number by figuring $59.99-per-month service fee for 24 months, plus the $500 phone, plus taxes.) Here's what Keiter tells Tom Taulli on Blogging Stocks.

Nice leap forward in the goal of a converged device (i.e., carry one phone/music player/camera device instead of 3 gadgets). Touch screen innovation will probably be appealing, particularly to the early adopters. If someone wants a phone with a full-featured iPod, and price is no object, it is really the only game in town. However, price points are quite high in a market conditioned to pay nothing, or next-to-nothing for a new cell phone. As I point out on the link I sent earlier, it will be much more cost-effective to get a free music phone, and save the $500. If you have to have iTunes, take $200 and buy a Nano (same 4GB memory), then take the $300 left over and fill your music library with 300 songs from the iTunes store.