Customers in a rush to preorder the iPhone X from Best Buy on Friday morning may be in for a bit of sticker shock when they double-check the final bill, as the retailer tacked on an extra $100 for full-price purchases of the handset [updated with comment from Best Buy].
Best Buy took the same approach in September for the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus. But with many customers waiting for the debut of the iPhone X, some may not have realized that the 64-gigabyte handset actually cost $1,099.99 with the company -- $100 more than Apple's own price.
Customers who opted for monthly installment plans through carriers saw no such price increase.
Bumping up to the 256-gigabyte capacity for iPhone X resulted in a $1,249.99 price.
Similarly, the iPhone 8 bought outright at Best Buy starts at $799 for 64 gigabytes, while the iPhone 8 Plus carries a starting price of $899.
Update: After this article was published, Best Buy reached out to dispute some of the details in this story. They asked that AppleInsider refer customers to their official price matching policy, and also provided the following statement:
"Our prices reflect the fact that no matter a customer's desired plan or carrier, or whether a customer is on a business or personal plan, they are able to get a phone the way they want at Best Buy. Our customers have told us they want this flexibility and sometimes that has a cost."
Since this story was published Friday morning, the Best Buy forum link, with comments from an official social media representative from the retailer, have become inaccessible to the public, and now require a registration. The remainder of the story remains as it was first published.
Customers who noticed the price discrepancy back in September asked why on the company's forums, and were given this response from a Best Buy social media representative:
"I would not be able to say why our price for the unactivated iPhone 8/8 Plus are $100 more than what Apple is charging, but I can say we work to remain competitive, and we do have our price match guarantee where we would lower prices found at a competitor in most case. With that said contract phones like the iPhone 8/8 Plus do not qualify for our price match guarantee."
Another user followed up, asking if a handset bought outright at full price, without a commitment, would be considered a contract phone. Allan, the social media representative, said that all iPhone models are considered contract phones, including the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and the iPhone X.
"Believe it or not when it comes to Apple products we have very little to say as to what price we sell their products for," Allan added.
If Apple did play a part in the extra $100, it would be odd. Carriers, for example, had no such price disparity. Retailer Target will be selling the iPhone X at launch, but as of Friday morning its website did not yet list pricing.
Those who have not yet ordered the iPhone X could be waiting for awhile. The launch day supply sold out in minutes, and new orders are not scheduled to ship until December.
Those hoping to get an iPhone X on launch day of Friday, Nov. 3, will need to try their luck in person at a retail store. Apple has said it will have walk-in purchase availability, but cautioned that customers are "encouraged to arrive early."