Yesterday, RadioShack's Twitter feed carried word of a new discount on the iPhone 4 and the iPhone 4S. The retailer will, for a limited time, let customers save $50 instantly on the two most recent models of iPhone. The discount follows a similar move by Target. Earlier this week, Target announced it would discount the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S by $50 with a two-year contract.
The number of Americans buying iPhones from Best Buy is just under the number buying them from Apple itself, according to a Consumer Intelligence Research Partners survey. The firm polled people in December, January, and February to learn where they picked up their devices. Retail stores accounted for 76 percent of iPhone sales, compared to 24 percent online. The ratios were 67 percent and 33 percent during the launch of the iPhone 4S in October.
Apple in its customary pre-launch details both confirmed a launch time for the new iPad and outlined the next wave of countries after the initial March 16 date. True to recent leaks, the first 10 countries will start selling the new tablet at retail at 8AM through at least Apple stores. Best Buy, RadioShack, Sam's Club, Target, and Walmart will also have the iPad, although some of these are likely to open later.
A day after the start of Apple's own efforts, electronics retailer RadioShack has started pre-orders for the third-generation iPad. Shoppers must pay for a $50 gift card, although the card can be used towards picking up an iPad. Like Apple, RadioShack will carry the tablet in stores on March 16th.
Some RadioShack outlets may still be stocking the 16GB version of the iPhone 4, a new training document suggests. The document states that both 8 and 16GB models are available for $100 with a two year contract, and that the offer is "good for AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon." No 16GB iPhone was ever built for Sprint however; only the 8GB option is available with that carrier.
Best Buy Mobile and RadioShack will offer sales on two netbook PCs when paired with mobile broadband service contracts, including the Nokia Booklet 3G and LG X120, respectively. The latter is LG's first netbook and exclusively offered at Radioshack and will cost just $50 until Christmas Eve when buyers also sign up for a two-year, $60 per month contract from AT&T for mobile broadband data. The Nokia Booklet 3G from Best Buy, meantime, will cost $200 on a similar plan, which represents a $400 savings.
Radio Shack has confirmed plans to expand iPhone distribution across the US in 2010. Although the retailer has already begun selling Apple's handset, availability is currently limited to approximately 250 stores in select areas. The move is expected to help reinforce the company's recent marketing which has focused on mobile phones.
The LG X120 netbook introduced early this year will soon be available in US, exclusively at RadioShack, the computer maker announced on Monday. LG's first netbook for the country sports a 10.1-inch LED backlit display with a 1024x576 resolution, Intel's 1.6GHz Atom processor and 1GB of RAM. The 160GB hard drive is preloaded with Windows XP, not Windows 7 Starter, and users can quickly access the web, photos, IM programs and an MP3 player through LG's Linux-based SmartOn interface without waiting for the operating system to boot.
