The end of the free cell phone?

Carriers are releasing new phones for their upgraded networks. But instead of using heavy phone subsidies to lure new customers, the phones are targeted at veteran users who are willing to pay more for feature packed phones. This strategy make sense for now as the new networks are best suited to early adopters willing to pay for them. But in the long term, until carriers do a better job of marketing and packaging the advantages of the new networks, most users will probably just want the least expensive phone available that is good at making voice calls.