My contract just expired with Softbank and I am thinking of upgrading to the iphone. There is some confusion regarding the price and the monthly charges. I searched here, went to Softbank's website as well as to a store and I am not smarter.
The news release on Aug 5th said the following:
"This revision for \2,990-\7,280 a month, iPhone 3G users can enjoy unlimited domestic voice calls between 1:00 and 21:00 to SoftBank handsets, 24 hours free sending/receiving of mail to all operators, unlimited use of packet communication such as web browsing and video services and map services as much as they like on iPhone 3G."

The lower cost includes up to 20,175 packets. One question is how much Internet usage that 20,175 packet allows?

In the store the guy said that the 2,990 yen is the monthly fee but I also have to pay 1,925 yen in addition, so all together my monthly bill would be 4,915 yen with a two year contract (provided I don't exceed the 20,000 packet limit and don't call phones with other service providers). I also have about 5,000 points with Softbank, could I use those to lower my monthly service fee?

I will call Softbank tomorrow but getting factual and correct information is always a challenge.
Any input from actual iphone owners would be appreciated.