The UK government’s Department for Work and Pensions is reportedly buying 11,000 iPhone SE handsets for use by employees.
The report claims that it is paying around (4.1 million British pounds) $5.7 million for the total quantity of 64GB handsets.
That would suggest that the government is paying pretty much full price for the handsets. The 64GB iPhone SE, circa 2020, starts at $399. By my rough calculations, the government office will be paying virtually full price for the phones or maybe just under.
In the UK, the iPhone SE starts at 399 British pounds, making it slightly more than expensive than it is in the United States. It seems, however, that the iPhones will be slightly different to the conventional models. The report reads:
“As part of the deal DWP’s devices will be supplied with waterproof and tamper-evident asset tags holding bar codes and numbers, with XMA providing the details of the tag number, IMEI identifier and serial number of each phone issued.”
The UK government has long carried out bulk buying of Apple products. For example, as far back as 2012, it purchased iPads for parliamentary use. Last year, it also bought 11,000 iPads for use in care homes. This was intended as a safety measure to stop the spread of COVID by giving residents a different way of seeing family without physical visits.
Source: Public Technology
Via: Apple Insider
