Crossing the border for an iPhone

People travel to Canada for cheap generic drugs and maple syrup. And they cross into Mexico for affordable dental care and plastic surgery. Now there's another reason to head to Tijuana: The new iPhone will be far less expensive there when it goes on sale Friday.

Mexican wireless carrier America Movil SAB said today it would sell the iPhone 3G for 773 pesos, or about $75, with a two-year service plan, according to a story from Bloomberg. In the U.S., a low-end version of the iPhone 3G -- a new version of the Apple gadget that runs on faster wireless networks -- will cost you $199 with a two-year contract with AT&T.

But wait, before you pack your bags: As is true in the U.S., iPhone buyers must register for a wireless service plan at the time of purchase. America Movil offers three such plans with the incentive that if you sign up for the more expensive plan, you'll get a price discount on the phone. 

The complications should curtail iPhone trafficking except for a few hardy souls.

-- Michelle Quinn

Photo: From left, Mexican President Vicente Fox, U.S. President George W. Bush and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper at Chichen Itza, Mexico.

Credit: Tom Hanson / Canadian Press

Comments

[Danny]

Crossing the border to save $124? no such a great idea specially with the gas prices. and the Iphone is good but I think is overrated there is a lot of good phones in the market no need to go all way down

[susana sanchez]

Why is there a photo of Chichen Itza to go with this blog post? You can't buy a phone there! Use a photo of the border or something showing Tijuana. Chichen Itza is nowhere near the border.

[James]

Or, come to Canada and get KILLED buying an iphone 3G. $60.00/month min, with restricted data plans. http://www.iphonecanada.net

[Rob]

If you sign up to a contract in Mexico and bring it back to the US, won't every call you make be on a roaming basis, ie outside of your free minutes and therefore cost you a fortune?