I don't understand what's the novelty of the first example (payments split into regular intervals). Where I'm at (India) this has been a thing forever. They ca

I don't understand what's the novelty of the first example (payments split into regular intervals). Where I'm at (India) this has been a thing forever. They call it EMI (I think it stands for Equated Monthly Installments). For example, I linked the Amazon India listing for iPhone 13 Pro down below [1]. It costs ₹119900. If you don't want to spend that amount in one go, you can split it into multiple installments spanning several months. Click the 'EMI Options' link and you can see plans. Some of them are interest free. So it's possible to buy that phone and pay for it over several months. It's not just Amazon India. There's many providers across different segments offering such schemes for different products. Whether this is good economics is a different matter altogether. I personally have never bought anything on EMI. But keep in mind that what works in America may not work in India, and vice-versa due to different mindsets and economic situations. [1] https://www.amazon.in/Apple-iPhone-13-Pro-128GB/dp/B09G99YPQM/ref=mp_s_a_1_1_sspa?crid=99JB24KDPOLK&keywords=iphone+13+pro&qid=1655531653&s=electronics&sprefix=iPhone+13 https://www.amazon.in/Apple-iPhone-13-Pro-128GB/dp/B09G99YPQ...