Apple Says iPhone Worth Premium Price

Apple’s chief operating officer Timothy Cook compared the iPhone to other cellphones on the market, responding to recent claims that the iPhone is too expensive:

A lot of people pay zero for a cellphone. Guess why. That’s what it’s worth.

This will be a big piece of the Apple story for years to come. If we offer something that has tremendous value, that is sort of this thing people didn’t have in their consciousness – it was not imaginable – then I think there’s a whole bunch of people that will pay $499, $599.

Cook also said Apple believes it will sell at least 10 million iPhones this year.

I agree that the iPhone is very much unlike, say, a Motorola RAZR that you pick up for free with a 2 year contract. $499/$599 is pricey but I think a lot of people will be willing to pay that price – at first – for new, sophisticated technology. What do you think?