FFFFFUUUU cell phone taxes

[sb335is]

I'm not sure if this is in other states, or in all states, or just in California - But it pisses me off.

So I'm interested in preordering the new Droid X.... they've got it at best buy for 199 w/ a contract. Nice- I've had my Alias for a few years now and I want to jump over to a nice smart phone.

What I forgot is that you've got to pay sales tax based on the fucking RETAIL price of the phone, which is like 550 bucks!

So basically, I'm paying ~60 bucks worth of tax for a 200 dollar phone? The fuck? Who the hell pays retail for a phone these days anyways? It really pisses me off I'm gunna have to pay over 25 fucking percent tax for some shitty motorola phone made in a goddamn sweatshop!

I mean, if I walked into a car dealer, and they said "Hey welcome to XXX BMW, your lease is up, lets get you into a new car!" And I find one for 40K and they sell it to me for 30K, wouldn't most people consider it piracy for the state to charge sales tax based on the MSRP? fuckers.

[Feyd]

Ha. Kalifornia... so happy I moved, still.

[montreal red]

what?? i have bought phones under contract before here in quebec and they only charge me taxes based on the final sale amount. must be a california law then.

[sb335is]

Originally Posted by montreal red

what?? i have bought phones under contract before here in quebec and they only charge me taxes based on the final sale amount. must be a california law then.

[sb335is]

I would have gave them the already massive 8.775 on 200 bucks today. But since they tried to be absurd and tell me im paying that on 600 bucks, guess what I'm gunna do?

Get it on Amazon when its out in a few weeks, get free shipping, and not pay tax. Fuck you California, greedy sons o bitches. I'm in a state, not a goddamn sporting event.

[NYCGarbagePrince]

Arnold's getting to the choppah with your tax money. That's what you idiots get for voting a fucking actor into state office.

[infinitekidM2C]

E-buying electronics is where its at..or so i've heard.

[Feyd]

Originally Posted by NYCGarbagePrince

That's what you idiots get for voting a fucking actor into state office.

Didn't help a ton when this happened, but boy oh boy was it broken before he took office.

Corruption/Enron/Corruption/Corruption... Enron/Enron/Enron...




If anyone ever wants to get pissed off, give this a watch.

.

[pmeloche]

Originally Posted by NYCGarbagePrince

Arnold's getting to the choppah with your tax money. That's what you idiots get for voting a fucking actor into state office.

I resent that comment.

Ronald Reagan

[BMW F22]

Yup I questioned that too when I got the iphone.

[Rochdale Pioneers]

Surely a sales tax is a tax on the sale value. If $199 goes through the till how can they charge you tax on more? Everywhere in Europe has a sales tax (called Value Added Tax), the difference being that the price you see on a ticket is the price you pay - the tax is part of the sale price.

[persian54]

Very simple:

You are paying $200
but ATT is paying the remaning $400
however, in the ATT contract, if I'm not mistaken, it mentions to not pay the tax, but have the consumer pay it

Paying tax on the retail price in CA has been going on for some time now.

buy a BB for 130 at T mobile, but you end up paying a $40 tax

it's just how this state works

tax is at 9.75, or higher in some areas. It's the "sunshine state"
I'm surprised you're surprised to be taxed...
prices go up, taxes go up, wages stay the same/decrease/disappear
not everything is fair

would you rather pay $660 for the iPhone instead of $260?

when the iPhone 2G came out 3+ years ago, you had to pay $500/600 PLUS sign a 2 year contract with ATT
soooo which is more fair? 260 or 660?
Be happy ATT is giving you such a high rebate

[mJ335]

The freak?! Me too! I paid 299 for the iPhone4 and they added $60 TAX!!! Has anyone else got this?

[samwoo2go]

Originally Posted by twoturboz

I'm not sure if this is in other states, or in all states, or just in California - But it pisses me off.

So I'm interested in preordering the new Droid X.... they've got it at best buy for 199 w/ a contract. Nice- I've had my Alias for a few years now and I want to jump over to a nice smart phone.

What I forgot is that you've got to pay sales tax based on the fucking RETAIL price of the phone, which is like 550 bucks!

So basically, I'm paying ~60 bucks worth of tax for a 200 dollar phone? The fuck? Who the hell pays retail for a phone these days anyways? It really pisses me off I'm gunna have to pay over 25 fucking percent tax for some shitty motorola phone made in a goddamn sweatshop!

I mean, if I walked into a car dealer, and they said "Hey welcome to XXX BMW, your lease is up, lets get you into a new car!" And I find one for 40K and they sell it to me for 30K, wouldn't most people consider it piracy for the state to charge sales tax based on the MSRP? fuckers.

you just don't understand how this shit works, you are not really buying the phone for $200, it's still $600. The difference is ATT is paying the $400 for you, so the supplier is still getting $600 for the phone. Which means a taxable event still occurred at $600 and that tax has to be paid, and unfortunately, it's you. and you are not really getting a deal, because ATT will make more than $400 back in the 2 years of contract plan price you pay vs non contract price. In other words, it's better to just buy the phone for full retail and get on the non contract plans.

Getting it at bestbuy is rip also, because you can walk in any Asian phone store and negotiate with them. I can prob get the Droid X for FREE and no tax, because the indie stores get a big cut from ATT for bring your business and they use part of that money to pay the $260 something for you to fight for business. At least that's how it worked before with ATT, but I've been with Tmobile since the Iphone came out, so I dunno, but T-mobile is still like that tho.

[escobar929]

its a cali thing, another reason ill never live there

[Seminole]

Originally Posted by persian54

tax is at 9.75, or higher in some areas. It's the "sunshine state"
I'm surprised you're surprised to be taxed...

Florida is the Sunshine State.

Also, ATT is not covering the other $400. They are getting the phones from Apple for less than $600, so the amount they are covering is less. And they more than make up the difference when the lowest cost for a two year plan for an iPhone is $2,000 for two years.

And yes, this is a California only thing.

[HPFREAK]

Ya this is common in a capitalist society. Corporations do not pay taxes in teh US. They pass that on to the customers like us. They do not pay federal or state income taxes. Sure they file taxes but the cost is passed onto us. This is just the way it is, and in this shit state(CA) we get it from behind with no lube or even a courtesy reach around. This is because with have liberal shit heads running our state that want us to foot the bill for every thing, so they can spend and spend on useless programs and illegal aliens. They spend all the money in the general fund on things they should not and then come to us and hike our car registration, sales tax, income tax, and then tax oil companies and corporations more knowing they will just increase the cost to us to cover their taxes and then get more sales tax revenue on the higher cost gas, and merchandise. It is a vicious circle we have allowed to go on. It is time to put a stop to it by voting these people out of office like dianne feinstein, nancy pelosi, and arnold, along with every other state legislature employee with their hands in the cookie jar like a fat kid.

Yes I know I am supposed to capitalize peoples names, but they are not people. They are crap, and you don't give crap respect.

[infinitekidM2C]

Taxes are not solely a "liberal" thing. I'm pretty sure the recent wars have cost us a pretty penny.

[dth656]

Originally Posted by infinitekid2002

Taxes are not solely a "liberal" thing. I'm pretty sure the recent wars have cost us a pretty penny.

+1. but don't worry, war away as long as the chinese keep buying us t-bills. the day they stop buying t-bills, and that iran wants euros for their oil instead of dollars, will be a painful day indeed.

[sb335is]

Originally Posted by samwoo2go

you just don't understand how this shit works, you are not really buying the phone for $200, it's still $600. The difference is ATT is paying the $400 for you, so the supplier is still getting $600 for the phone. Which means a taxable event still occurred at $600 and that tax has to be paid, and unfortunately, it's you. and you are not really getting a deal, because ATT will make more than $400 back in the 2 years of contract plan price you pay vs non contract price. In other words, it's better to just buy the phone for full retail and get on the non contract plans.

Getting it at bestbuy is rip also, because you can walk in any Asian phone store and negotiate with them. I can prob get the Droid X for FREE and no tax, because the indie stores get a big cut from ATT for bring your business and they use part of that money to pay the $260 something for you to fight for business. At least that's how it worked before with ATT, but I've been with Tmobile since the Iphone came out, so I dunno, but T-mobile is still like that tho.

so then why can people in the other 49 states avoid this? you're telling me every cell phone carrier pays the extra tax except for california consumers? sounds a bit ridiculous. I don't see the logic in that the tax has to be paid by ME in CA but then its paid by ATT for John in Arizona. I mean ,if ATT isn't paying it for John, then who is?

[Saigon]

asian mom and pop shops or wal-mart(don't have to pay taxes) if you're trippin about tax. Smart consumers (thrifty ones will not buy from bestbuy or costco)

[Freakazoid]

Originally Posted by twoturboz

so then why can people in the other 49 states avoid this? you're telling me every cell phone carrier pays the extra tax except for california consumers? sounds a bit ridiculous. I don't see the logic in that the tax has to be paid by ME in CA but then its paid by ATT for John in Arizona. I mean ,if ATT isn't paying it for John, then who is?

exactly...samwoo you're completely wrong here... it's nothing more than california trying to get more money through taxes