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Final Fantasy I and II on sale, ESPN app free, Real Racing on sale this weekend
Here's some good news about a few popular apps on the App Store: Square Enix has dropped the price on retro titles Final Fantasy I and II. The games were originally released at US$8.99, but to celebrate more widespread localization, the apps have dropped down to $3.99. Great games, nice price. ESPN's Scorecenter XL app for the iPad has gone completely free. The app provides news and scores from around the sporting world -- it was $4.99, but the network has apparently decided to go free for good. And Firemint is putting its Real Racing title on sale for the iPhone next week -- as of September 30, the app will be available for just $2.99. That's a rare occurrence for them. It's the first time this game has ever gone on sale, probably because the title has been so popular. It offers a quality racing experience, with full Game Center integration. These are all great deals on really popular apps. If you've been waiting to pick one of these up for cheaper than usual, now's your chance.
A Mild-Mannered Reporter: Party hardly
I think by this point I have a well-established reputation as being a fairly positive guy on the subject of City of Heroes. It wasn't a conscious decision or anything -- it's just that I've been pretty happy with the game's development and content, and I do tend to be a bit of a developer supporter. I don't expect the game to be something other than what it is, and I enjoy what it is. Not to mention the obvious fact that the game has given me a lot of enjoyment over the years. So I usually come down as being part of the sunshine and light crowd. But that's not by design -- it's just how things have shaken down. I hand out praise and criticism as the situation warrants. And this week I'm going to talk about something that most definitely deserves criticism. I'm talking, of course, about the Party Pack, the newest mini-addition to the game and one that's already produced more than a little fan rage. But it's deserved, and even if I can see why Paragon Studios went the route that it did, I find it a little hard to just dismiss it with the usual "if you don't like it, don't buy it" routine.
Verizon CEO confirms plans for tiered data pricing
We told you so. The Wall Street Journal has updated its recent article detailing disclosures from Verizon Wireless chief Ivan Seidenberg, and the latest news is as bad as it is predictable: VZW plans to consign unlimited data plans to the annals of history over the next four to six months, to be replaced by tiered, consumption-based pricing. Seidenberg says Verizon's prices will surely differ from what AT&T recently introduced, noting that his company values data differently to the competition -- though he wouldn't say whether that means costs will be higher or lower. Either way, Droidsters, enjoy your last few months in the unlimited sun. [Thanks, Tyler]
Capcom's titles go on sale for 99 cents
Good news everyone! Capcom's putting some of its iPhone titles on sale this weekend, so head on over to the App Store to pick up Resident Evil 4, 1942: First Strike, Mega Man II, Dark Void Zero, or a few of Capcom's other licensed games for just a penny short of a buck. Not all of the titles are on sale, so no luck with Street Fighter IV or Phoenix Wright, but there are some good options in there anyway. I'm especially excited for Mega Man II, since that was such a favorite of mine as a kid. It turns out that being patient on the App Store can save you a lot of money, and even bigger developers are learning that going cheap, if only for a limited time, can significantly raise apps in the rankings.
Samsung suggests Galaxy Tab will cost between $200 and $400 on contract -- also coming to Vodafone
Early reports indicate Europe will pay a pretty penny for Samsung's Galaxy Tab, but the 7-inch tablet may cost a good bit less when it comes to US shores -- the Wall Street Journal paraphrases a Samsung executive who claims it could run between $200 and $300 depending on the all-important carrier subsidies. The Korea Times, meanwhile, suggests a $300 to $400 retail price according to a different Samsung bigwig, who added that the Tab "will cost slightly more than the Galaxy S smartphone." As you're probably aware, Sammy's Galaxy S typically retails for about $200 in the US -- excepting Sprint's Epic 4G at $250 -- so if you held a bursting Li-ion battery to our head and forced us to guess, we'd say the latter range of dollar signs is far more likely. By the way, Vodafone shows the Galaxy Tab as "coming soon." Hit our more coverage links for details. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Samsung Galaxy Tab reported to retail at €699 and €799 in Europe (update: O2 Germany pricing)
An increasing number of Euroland news outlets are reporting an eye-watering set of prices for Samsung's Galaxy Tab. Although still unofficial and therefore not yet to be trusted, the values we're hearing are €699 ($890) in France and €799 ($1,020) in Germany. Those presumably represent the cost of the 16GB and 32GB Tab, respectively, and align perfectly with Apple's iPad WiFi + 3G pricing -- aside from the fact the iPads have double the storage at each price point. Oops! That does make us wary to believe these numbers just yet, but if you want a laugh, why not check out UK importer Expansys today, which is offering a cracking deal for the 16GB Galaxy Tab at £680 ($1,050). And with only a 39-day wait! [Thanks to everyone who sent these in] Update: So we're hearing some conflicting information here. Samsung itself is telling us at IFA that no pricing has been announced and that any prices floating around are speculation -- but it seems the company has already announced a suggested retail prices of SEK 9,000 in Sweden including VAT, which works out to about $1,240 (or $930 without VAT). In other words, even after taxes have been removed from the equation, you're looking at a pretty pricey option for an unsubsidized device here. Let's hope we see some steep discounts on contract, eh? Thanks, Rasmus! Update 2: O2 Germany's official Twitter account informs us that the Galaxy Tab will cost the Bundesrepublik roughly €759 (about $972) in all -- a €99 ($127) deposit to start off and then €27.50 ($35) a month likely over two years. Thanks, Nils!
The iPhone 4 comes to Portugal at a 'louco' price
The good news: Portugal is getting the iPhone 4 next week. On August 27, mobile provider Optimus will start selling the iPhone 4 (here's a Google-translated link for the Portuguese-impaired). The bad news: the price is going up by 70 euros, meaning Portuguese customers will pay more for the iPhone 4 than just about anybody else. I thought we had it bad in New Zealand, where we pay NZ$1299 (about US$918) for an unsubsidized 32 GB iPhone 4. But at 769.90 euros, a 32 GB iPhone 4 costs nearly NZ$100 (US$71) more in Portugal than in New Zealand, where mobile handset prices are usually among the highest in the world. The 16 GB iPhone 4, at 679.90 euros, is an even worse deal: over NZ$130 more (US$92) than the New Zealand price. I've never been thrilled with handset prices in New Zealand, but we are kind of in the middle of nowhere, so it's almost excusable. It makes much less sense for the Portuguese to have to pay such a high premium for the iPhone 4. Optimus hasn't offered any reasons for raising the price by 70 euros, and I have to wonder how happy Apple is with the decision -- rumor has it that Vodafone's bungled launch of the iPhone 4 was precipitated by pricing disputes between the two companies, so it'll be interesting to see if something similar plays out in Portugal.
iPhone 4 prices from around the world
Now that the iPhone 4 is available around most of the world, iFun designed this interesting little infographic that compares the various prices of the handset around the globe. Note that all of these prices are in Euros, and that they all reflect the out-of-contract price -- because the US iPhones are locked to the AT&T network currently, our country doesn't appear on this list. But if you want to buy an unlocked iPhone elsewhere in the world, you should probably go with Hong Kong, where an unlocked 16gb phone will set you back US $653. Italy sells the costliest iPhones, with the price reaching up over US$1000 there for an unlocked phone. This whole thing is really just more of a fun comparison rather than a really solid analysis -- most people who want an iPhone will probably buy it in the country where they live, especially if they need a certain contract. But it is interesting to see just where Apple has determined it can go higher on the price, either because of certain tariffs or shipping that must be paid, or just because the demographic calls for it. [via MacStories]
Star Trek Online adds more C-Store options and controversy [Update]
There's a pattern that seems to repeat itself every time Cryptic adds new items to Star Trek Online's C-Store -- or at least, a sequence of events wherein players are at first excited, then angry or annoyed when the prices are revealed. A bunch of new items have been added to the store: two additional costume slots (not on the website at the moment), two additional ship slots, and two additional bridge officer spots. The trouble arises with the handling of the upgrades, particularly with the new costume slots, as they're counted on a per-character basis. A similar upgrade is available in the store for Champions Online, for the exact same price -- but it increases the number of costumes available on every character rather than just the character it's purchased on. The per-character upgrades, coupled with a reduced importance for costumes in Star Trek Online, all help make many players feel a bit shorted by the price tag. Others are arguing that the add-on is only $2.50, an argument that's gone on at length on the official forums. Controversy is nothing new to the game, but this much debate over a fairly minor item leads one to be a bit curious about what reception future items might find. [Update: Cryptic has contacted us with news on upcoming changes to this system, "We're going to change the way the costume slot purchases work so they become account-wide rather than per-character. And, of course, our customer service department will be able to assist anyone who purchased the upgrade multiple times to cover multiple characters."] [Thanks to Cap for the tip!]
Dell Streak now available unlocked for £449
Not a fan of being tied down to a single network? Neither are we, so let's all hold hands and rejoice at the news that Dell's 5-inch Streak has today become available to purchase unlocked over in the UK. Freedom lovers will have to pay a hefty £50 extra for being unshackled from O2's chains, but the £449 ($676) price point remains significantly lower than the 16GB iPhone 4 and should prove mighty tempting. Then again, if you wait until next month, you might be able to import one from the good old US of A, where Dell will be selling the unlocked Streak at a thrifty $500. It all depends on what you have more of, money or patience. [Thanks, Manuel B.]
Tesco Mobile announces cheapest UK iPhone 4 tariffs yet
You're not going to believe this, but someone actually bothered to turn up to the iPhone 4 launch with a bit of competitive spirit. Tesco Mobile, an MVNA riding atop O2's network, has busted out its idea of what represents good value for iPhone lovers' money, and it has put everyone else to shame. 1GB of data and unlimited texts come as standard (seems like O2's network can handle the load after all). Two 12-month options are available, at £20 ($29) per month for 250 minutes and £35 ($52) per month for 750 minutes, accompanied by the big spender platter of unlimited minutes and an almost free 16GB iPhone 4 for those willing to spend £45 ($66) over two years. It's all great news for Brits, and you can see exactly how it compares to the big networks in our comprehensive, chart-intensive breakdown right here.
Amazon's Kindle conveniently falls to $189, Nook looks stunned and bitter
Oh, snap! Merely hours after Barnes & Noble came out swinging with a $149 WiFi-only version of its Nook and a price-reduced $199 3G Nook, along comes Amazon to rip a massive hole in B&N's billowing sails. As of this very moment, the $259 Kindle 2 -- complete with global 3G and the 6-ink E Ink display you've come to know and love (or hate) -- is now the $189 Kindle 2. Oh, and there's also free 2-day shipping. Looks like the undercutter just got undercut, huh? [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
$149 WiFi-only Nook confirmed, 3G price dropped to $199 (update: official)
Turns out all our snooping was spot on with this one. We first spotted a simpler, cheaper Nook making its way through the FCC late last month, and then only last night we got tipped off to a $150 price point for the e-reader sans cellular connection. Now Best Buy has confirmed the whole thing with its listing of the BNRV100 model, which comes in over $100 cheaper than Barnes and Noble's original ($259), although Best Buy has seen fit to give that a price trim as well. We like where this is going, especially if it triggers B&N's competitors to lower their own fees. [Thanks, Paul] Update: Barnes and Noble has now gone fully official with its new $149 Nook. The 3G version has taken a price drop to $199 as well, matching the pricing indicated by Best Buy. B&N is today also outing its firmware version 1.4, which allows the free use of AT&T wireless hotspots everywhere.
Microsoft confirms: $199 new Xbox 360 coming soon, as well as Kinect bundles
Well, none of this will come as a big surprise here, but it's always nice to hear it straight from an official source. Microsoft has confirmed that a $199 version of new Xbox 360 will be coming in the fall to replace the now-$149 Arcade, which is no longer in production. In addition, the company's also spilled a few more beans -- Kinect will be available as a bundle with the new Xbox 360, and though there isn't any official pricing information on that one just yet, we've seen some telltale evidence on that front which would lead us to believe it'll run somewhere in the neighborhood of $399 for an Elite and $299 for the Arcade. So now you know.
How-to: figure out the best value iPhone 4 contracts in the UK (updated)
Choices, choices. Do you get the 16GB or 32GB iPhone 4? The black one now or the white one a little later? We can't tell you which variant of Apple's next phone will hold its value best over the coming months, but we can try to clear up a bit of the fogginess surrounding price plans on offer from UK networks. Orange and O2 are the first to drop handset pricing and full contract details, but they haven't made it easy for the discerning buyer, with each carrier offering more than a dozen options. Vodafone, T-Mobile, Three, and even Tesco Mobile are set to follow suit in the coming days and weeks, but we thought we'd get the ball rolling with the pair we have now. Update: And just as we publish this, Voda has gone official with its tariffs. We've now broken them down into a more digestible format as well. Just for you. Update 2: Tesco Mobile has also outed its pricing and it's by far the best of the bunch. Check out the full chart inside the post. Update 3: Three's iPhone 4 pricing has now also been made known.
Rising labor costs in China may lead to pricier electronics, manufacturing relocation
You might recall that Foxconn, faced with the searing spotlight of the world's attention on its working conditions, recently announced not one but two wage increases for its employees, which is now looking like part of a larger trend in China toward higher pay. The city of Beijing has said it'll be raising its minimum wage by 20 percent, to 960 Yuan ($140) a month, and is expected to be followed by others. The New York Times pins this on numerous factors, including growing competition for workers, state authorities insisting on higher standards, and a national policy effort to ease the gap between rich and poor. All good news, you might think, but these worker-friendly measures are taking their toll on manufacturing costs, and now there's talk of companies relocating production to cheaper locales. Vietnam, India and Indonesia are the prime suspects for taking production duties away from China, with some companies also apparently contemplating shifting to poorer regions within the nation. These changes are unlikely to perturb high-end electronics manufacturing in the short term, due to its more sophisticated infrastructure and supply chain, but the end consumer might still feel their effect in the form of higher prices. Inflation within China and a projected increase in its currency value are likely to drive up the cost of exports, so we'd advise buying what you need sooner rather than later. [Thanks, Daniel]
Will we pay more for magazines on the iPad?
Business Insider has a post up from AdAge about magazine pricing on the iPad, and they've got bad news for anyone planning to transfer all of their magazine subscriptions to Apple's magical device: It'll cost ya. While a year's worth of Popular Mechanics goes for $12 from the publication's website (or even cheaper if you can pick it up from Amazon or that random kid wandering your subdivision selling subscriptions), the iPad subscription will cost $29.95; that's over twice as much. You can buy a year's worth of Wired on Amazon for just $10, but one issue on the iPad costs you half of that. Why? At first, the cost seems like a ripoff; publishers don't have to pay for paper, ink, or postage, so you'd think the content should actually be cheaper. Then you calculate in the cost of interactive designs and features, researching new technologies, and creating new workflows, and creating an iPad version of the magazine starts to get more expensive. Throw in that publishers are wary of pricing their content too low, and you get a higher price than a print subscription -- which plenty of readers will probably pay anyway. That's a pretty fragile pricing state, though; e-books are already cheaper than their print versions, and while comic books are the same price in the store as they are on something like the Marvel application, you have to think that those prices will drop too. As usual, early adopters will pay the most, but I wouldn't be surprised to see the price of "e-magazines" drop as publishers and consumers alike even out the rough edges of the transaction.
Gold Capped: Market timing
Want to get Gold Capped? Watch this space every week as Basil (also of the Call to Auction podcast, the Hunting Party podcast and outdps.com writes about making gold in the World of Warcraft. Have questions, comments, or threats for him to get off your damned server? Email Basil! The prices for all kinds of things fluctuate. I talked a little about this in my post for casual auctioneers, but there is serious money to be made with market timing for very little investment. Basically, the goal is to watch prices for a few weeks, try to predict their next swing, and take advantage by buying low and selling high. Watching prices Easier said than done, like most things worth doing. You might get hundreds of items you'd like to watch, and short of a photographic memory or a manual spreadsheet, you're going to need some help keeping track of it all. Enter Market Watcher. This is a nifty addon that, once configured, allows you to scan the auction house for just the things you're interested in, and will show you a graph of their prices over time once you get a couple scans done.
iPad international data plans roundup: Japan gets SIM-locked devices, Spain gets a great deal more (updated)
With international pre-orders now being taken, more data plan details have started emerging for Apple's iPad. We now know that Rogers will be charging Canadians pretty similarly to how AT&T treats American 3G users, albeit with the inclusion of a 5GB monthly data cap on the pricier tariff. O2 has also outed its plans, though it's not much better news in the UK where it's matching Orange's pricing with a 3GB monthly allowance for £15 per month ($22), while Vodafone has completely lost its marbles with a 250MB offers a 1GB option costing £10 a month and 5GB costing £25 per month. Apple engages in a bit of false advertising in Germany, claiming unlimited data plans with O2 (€25) and Vodafone (€29.95), but there are clear limits set out on the carriers' sites of 5GB and 3GB per month, respectively. Finally, Japan gets the stiffest deal of all with iPads there officially confirmed to be SIM-locked to Softbank Mobile's network, something that has already earned plenty of ire from the local populace. The carrier does offer a variety of monthly payment plans for obtaining your tablet, though its data tariffs are nothing special: ¥2,910 ($32) for a month's unlimited use if you sign up to what seems like a longer-term plan, or ¥4,410 ($48) for a 1GB allowance if you go pre-paid. There's a third option for spendthrifts, costing ¥1,510 ($16) for 100MB pre-paid, but that's not even enough for you to watch a full Engadget Show, so we'd probably advise against it. You can find price breakdowns for each country after the break. [Thanks, Bram] Update: Rogers has killed that lovely third option shown in the image above. Hope you weren't excited about it. Update 2: Turns out Apple had the wrong details about Vodafone UK too -- you get 1GB of data if you spend £10 a month. [Thanks, Rob] Update 3: Movistar, Telefonica's consumer arm in Spain, has announced a pretty stonking deal: if you already have a smartphone data plan costing €25 a month, you can get a Micro SIM and 3G data on your iPad for free. Espana totally just won the "best place to own an iPad" contest. Update 4 (12 May): The perpetually-emailing Steve Jobs has apparently chimed in to say Japan's iPad 3Gs accept international SIMs, so feel free to pick one up and take home on your next trip to Fukuoka. [Thanks, David]
iPad international launch is go on May 28 (update: pricing)
We knew it was coming end of May, now we have a date: May 28th and up for pre-order on May 10th. That's when the iPad will hit Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK. It lands in Austria, Belgium, Hong Kong, Ireland, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand and Singapore in July. Sorry, still no pricing. Full press release after the break. Update: Tax-inclusive pricing is out. Très cher! Oh, and Orange UK has fessed up to pricing details for the iPad 3G + WiFi. Update II: A handy pricing chart has also surfaced, helping you get a better grasp on what Apple's charging for its first tablet in the first international launch markets. Europe: 16GB WiFi-only €479 32GB WiFi-only €579 64GB WiFi-only €679 16GB WiFi+3G €579 32GB WiFi+3G €679 64GB WiFi+3G €779 UK: 16GB WiFi-only £429 32GB WiFi-only £499 64GB WiFi-only £599 16GB WiFi+3G £529 32GB WiFi+3G £599 64GB WiFi+3G £699
