Inflated prices for mobile phones

@LuciCJ (197)
Cluj-Napoca, Romania
September 7, 2016 5:38am CST
I keep getting frustrated at the higher prices we have to pay in Romania for phones that in the US cost significantly less.. For instance, today the exchange rate is 4.03 Romanian Lei for a US Dollar. A newly-released Blackberry Dtek 50 costs $299 in the US and no less that 1499 lei in Romania. That's $71 more. The iPhone 5S, an older model, is dirty cheap at Best Buy in the US ($239.99), while in Romania we need to pay 1449 lei, or $359 for the same device. Given that most mobile devices are nowadays mass-produced in China, South Korea, or other East-Asian countries, customs duties should apply when importing them either in the US or the European Union; moreover, the Sales Tax (or VAT, as called in Europe) isn't that higher in European countries as to justify the price difference. Has it happened to you to have to pay more for a product if trying to purchase it from a part of the world with lesser purchasing power, or when traveling abroad? Would you find it frustrating if you had to pay more just because you lived in a different area?
2 people like this
2 responses
@TheHorse (214475)
• Walnut Creek, California
8 Sep 16
Yes, but I do most of my calling from home. Is food more expensive there?
@skysnap (20153)
7 Sep 16
Yes not a lot of phones deserve the price over 300$ to be honest. it's same all features with change in camera lens that costs ..