I think you presume too much idealism. It's more along the lines of "if you want a 'free' phone, you take the shiniest one your carrier gives you for contract

I think you presume too much idealism. It's more along the lines of "if you want a 'free' phone, you take the shiniest one your carrier gives you for contract renewal" Oh you want more GB's (metric unspecified)? This one is only 100 currencies more, but it'll just be five more per month for 24 months. That's all? What about for a better camera? Oh, for a top of the line photo app, you'll want our xl series, just ten more currencies a month! For 70% of sales, the is matters zero.