Price comparison - iPad 3G versus iPhone 3GS

Reactions to the iPad launch last night have been quite mixed. Some are unsure how you’ll manage to type on the same plane as you read, while others marvel at the blisteringly fast high resolution games.

Few were disappointed when Steve Jobs offered up the opening price point of $499 for a 16GB, non-3G iPad, though. For hot new hardware, that’s going to take some beating. But if you’re looking to go on the road with an iPad, there’s a slightly heavier price tag, plus data costs.

No iPhone has been considered cheap yet, of course, so we thought we’d tally up a few figures and see exactly how hard an iPad 3G will pillage your wallet compared to an iPhone 3GS.

Much of the comparison has to be marked down as speculation, since the networks aren’t in the throes of competition to get their hands on your data money yet, and it’s not an entirely fair contrast anyway.

By the way - we’re working in dollars since the iPad hasn’t been given any other prices yet (and with roundabout figures for the iPhone 3GS device cost). I wouldn’t be entirely surprised if dollars weren’t swapped for pounds and Euros one-for-one, to be honest. The corporations don’t call this the Golden Isle for nothing.

The iPad starts at $499, this is true, but a 16GB iPad with 3G capability is a fair way up the ladder at $629, so it’s this model we’ll be pitting against a 16GB iPhone 3GS.

All iPads are going to be unlocked, which was something of a surprise, and for a similarly unlocked 16GB 3GS you’re looking at $700 minimum (and closer to $770, in fact). Ouch. So there you have it - the iPad is a going to be a good $100 cheaper than an iPhone 3GS.

But it’s fair to think your iPad is going to be expected to deliver at least two years of service, and that means a contracted iPhone 3GS is still in the running. On the cheapest contract, there’s still a handset charge of $199, which is a lot easier on the bank manager’s nerves.

Commander data to the bridge

AT&T attempts to camouflage some of its iPhone 3GS plan costs by offering the lowest tariff at $39.99 per month. Not too bad, until you realise you’re also obliged to take its $30 data plan on top, making the minimum contract price for a 3GS $69.99 per month.

Coupled with a one time connection charge of $36, this lumps another $1715.76 on top of your handset price, bringing the total up to $1914.76 over 24 months.

Steve Jobs told us last night that Apple has worked out two data options with AT&T to provide cellular data to your iPad. The first option is $14.99 per month for 250MB, or $29.99 for unlimited data.

This is supposed to be a device optimised for web browsing, and buying a few apps while out and about is going to eat 250MB for lunch. But right now we’re looking at the cheapest options, so adding 24 months of the minimum data package brings the iPad 3G to a cost of $988.76.

Should you go for the more practical (and comparable to the 3GS) option of unlimited data, the two year iPad 3G price tag comes out at $1348.76 - still a long way behind the iPhone 3GS’s basic costs.

It’s worth bearing in mind, however, that the iPad 3G is unlocked. As long as you can get a new type of micro SIM from your favourite network provider, you can shop around for data, so chances are you can tailor your data costs to your own usage.

That’s not really an option for the iPhone 3GS, unless you go right back to the beginning of this feature and buy an unlocked one.

Just for funsies I thought I’d take a stab at guessing Apple’s European costs. Given that Euros and quids are about the same right now, we’ll work it out in pounds (also, there’s a pound symbol on my keyboard - mentally substitute it for the irksome Euro symbol if that’s what should be in your wallet).

$629 for an iPad 3G. Hmm. Giving Apple some small benefit of the doubt, I reckon £550 is likely, with the basic non-3G model starting in the upper £300s. Maybe £500 at a push, but not much less.

You can bet data plans will most likely be dollar-for-pound, with an unlimited package coming in at about 30 quid. But the networks might cap it off in an effort to make it look more reasonable against their iPhone contracts, and bring it down to £25.

You can get an 18 month iPhone 3GS contract over here, so over a year and a half my estimation is that an iPad 3G is going to run up something in the region of a clean £1000 (and therefore about the same in Euros). Over the same period, and factoring in the handset price, Vodafone will give you a 16GB iPhone 3GS for just over £800.

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We’re supposed to get some concrete figures around June for worldwide iPad prices, so we’ll keep you posted.

In the meantime, why not let us (and Apple) know whether an iPad is in your price range, or whether you’ll be plumping for the 3GS.