Apple iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus saw the good response in India. Many customers purchased the phone on the launch day. Online retailers including Flipkart, Snapdeal and Amazon also attracted customers with their discounts and offers.
Airtel also created the headline with its offer on iPhone 7. Airtel is offering iPhone 7 and 7 Plus in India starting Rs. 19990 with 12 months contract. We also reported that. The headline seems to be exciting but the offer is not as exciting as it seems to be.
Airtel is offering iPhone 7 with 12 months of the contract. So, you can just pay the downpayment and then opt for any contract plan. In the contract period, you get benefits of Airtel’s Infinity plan. So, you will get unlimited voice calling – local, STD, and on national roaming, 10 GB free 4G or 3G data, free subscription to Wynk Music and Wynk Movies. Data amount varies with monthly plan amount.
But there is a catch of Ballon amount.
Before I talk about detail, check the offer plans below.
| Model | Billing Price (Rs.) | Down Payment (Rs.) | Monthly Plan Options (Rs.) | Balloon Payment (Rs.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| iPhone 7 (32 GB) | 59998 | 19,990 | 1999/2499/2999 | 24000 |
| iPhone 7 (128 GB) | 69998 | 29,490 | 1999/2499/2999 | 24500 |
| iPhone 7 (256 GB) | 79998 | 35,990 | 1999/2499/2999 | 28000 |
| iPhone 7 Plus (32 GB) | 72000 | 30,792 | 1999/2499/2999 | 25200 |
| iPhone 7 Plus (128 GB) | 82000 | 37,292 | 1999/2499/2999 | 28700 |
| iPhone 7 Plus (256 GB) | 92000 | 43,792 | 1999/2499/2999 | 32200 |
You will have to pay the Balloon Payment after the 12 months or you have the option to return the device. Without paying the Ballon payment, you are just the person who rented the iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus models.
Once you pay the down payment, the rest shall be paid for by your Bajaj Finance Ltd (BFL) EMI plans at 0 percent interest rate. If after 12 months, you continue with the phone, Balloon payment will be auto-debited from their BFL plans.
After 12 months, you are required to visit the Airtel stores within 30 days to return your device. If you miss this, Bajaj Finance will auto-debit the concerned Balloon Payment account depending on the model, from your bank.
I am not sure why a person will return the device after paying Rs. 44000 on a phone in a time period of 1 year.
In the contract time period, you will not be able to switch plans or port your number of use any other network. This is mandatory as you already have 12 months of contract. If you want to terminate the contract, you will need to foreclose your bajaj finance loan and NOC to your nearest Airtel store. After that, you can switch to any Airtel plan.
Now calculate the total amount you paid if you went ahead with 5GB of data plan.
19990+23988+24000=67978
The original price of the phone is Rs. 60,000.
You paid around Rs. 8000 extra amount for unlimited local calling (local+STD+Roaming) and 5GB per month data.
Airtel also posted the guidelines in detail on its website for the devices if will take back in return. In short, it will take only working devices with no physical damage in return.
