It is alot of money, depending on how you look at it...if you buy into a 2 year contract, you probably end up paying more, just because you are tied down, and they make you pay for data and things like that....considering you pay like 560-600 for the phone you are free to use it any which way you like. Buy a sim card and use the phone capabilities or just use wifi and use it as an internet tablet...its like a mini laptop in your hands...