In a surprising turn of events we have calculated that the total cost of ownership of an iPhone 4 is far cheaper in the UK than it is in the USA. Although Orange are the only UK Carrier to have currently published their pricing it is reasonable to assume that O2, Vodafone and 3 will have similar pricing options.

So if you want a new 16Gb iPhone 4 with no existing contract it will cost you £169 from Orange on a 24 month contract. From AT&T it will cost $199+tax = $211.94 (approx £143) so it is £26 or so cheaper in the USA. But here is the real cost… the airtime. For Orange the cheapest airtime contract is £30 a month ($44) from AT&T it is $70+tax = $74.55 (£50.32) a difference of $30 (£20.32) a month.

So adding all this up together it looks like it would cost $2,001 (£1,355) to own an iPhone 4 in the US for 2 years, and just £889 ($1,312) in the UK a saving of £466 or $689.

On the assumption that in 12 months time you will be wanting to upgrade to the latest iPhone 5 )or whatever) you have more options in the UK. Again with Orange you can get the same iPhone 4 on an 18 month contract costing £229 and £35 a month for a total of £859 or $1286 making an even bigger saving of £496 or $715.

When all the UK carriers have published their prices and tariffs we will be looking to find the cheapest way to own a new iPhone 4. In the USA it is simple you HAVE to use AT&T and you HAVE to sign up for a 24 month contract. In the UK things are much more open, we have 5 carriers offering iPhones plus you can buy them SIM free and use PAYG tariffs.