So You Decided to Skip the iPhone 14, Where Can You Invest That Much Money?
(SPOT.ph) Defying hard times, the Philippines' Apple faithful queued up until midnight of October 14 to be the first owners and of the iPhone 14 series. With tens of thousands worth of freebies, it's a sweet deal for those who are at the front of the line.
Compared to the iPhone 13 series, the pro models on the 14 have a 48-megapixel wide lens in the triple-camera array and a new "dynamic island" or a shape-shifting notification bar at the top of the screen to hide the front-facing cameras and Face ID sensor. The vanilla 14 comes with plus model instead of a mini to cater to big screen lovers who don't want to pay too much of a premium.
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Joey Reyes, who was customer No. 1 at a Power Mac Center outlet in Greenbelt, Makati, lined up for a total of 41 hours, just to be the first to get the new iPhone at official launch, according to an ABS-CBN News report. A mall sales staff, Reyes said he saved money for more than a year and received financial help from his colleaguesto purchase his dream gadget.
“Pero sulit... the best kasi iPhone 14 worth it. Magagamit ko yan sa trabaho," Reyes was quoted in the report.
Aside from P28,000 in freebies for the first 50 customers, Power Mac Center also offered P14,000-worth of accessories to 51st to 100th customers, while the next two batches of 50 customers got P10,000 and P5,000-worth of accessories, respectively.
The iPhone 14 retails at P56,990 for the base model, while the cheapest iPhone 14 Pro is priced at P70,990. The iPhone 14 Pro Max, which features a larger display with all the Pro features, costs at least P77,990.
Where to invest the iPhone 14's worth?
With its new features, the iPhone 14 feels like a must-have for smartphone enthusiasts. But with a steep price of P77,990 for the base Pro Max model, it’s also an expense that could be better spent on more important matters.
While there is nothing wrong in buying the new iPhone, make sure that you have saved up first for emergency situations and you will not bury yourself in debt, according to financial coach Joanna Marie Almonte-Detera.
If you have P77,990 and you’re not sure whether it would be wise to spend it on the new iPhone, you may consider putting your hard-earned money in an investment so that it could grow and earn interest, like VUL or Pag-IBIG MP2 savings, she said.
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While investing your money is a possible option, you can also build an emergency fund. You may also use the money to invest in a business, she added.
If you are really intent on buying a new gadget like the iPhone 14, just make sure that it’s a good purchase, meaning it has something in return to you. Check your finances and your portfolio first, and see to it that you have saved up for your emergency funds when things go south, Almonte-Detera said.
“Kung pang-balance naman yan sa life mo, it can make you happy, it can make you more productive, you can purchase the iPhone.... Basta hindi masa-sacrifice yung ating finances, good purchase yan,” she added.
