Apple announced that it has cut the price of the iphone by $200, bringing down the price to $399 from the hefty $599 (a 33% price drop in under two months). This is by far one of the hardest lessons learned to early adopters of the Iphone. That is quite a price to pay to be first in line.

While the exact reasons were not discussed, it is probably save to assume that Apple wants to meet the one million target it gave the Street by the end of this month. Missing this target would appear far worse than upsetting the loyal customers that waited in line to buy the Iphone in the first few weeks of its release.

Investors, however, did not take the news lightly. They brought down the stock by 5% in trading today closing at $136.76. This will be of little concern if Apple succeeds at beating the target 1M mark before the end of the month. At $399, the phone now competes directly with most other carrier’s smart phones.

Let this be a great example to the rule of buying new technology before it has had a chance to mature. In almost any product line, if you can wait to the next version you will usually get a better performing and lower priced product.