OK, we’ve been pretty hard on the 1.1.1 iPhone upgrade, the people who’ve happily upgraded, and Apple for having done it. For people not interested in the additional applications and who bought into a two year AT&T contract, it probably makes perfect sense. We even recommend the upgrade to a colleague that would never find any use in the additional apps – they actually didn’t even use email application either. That is cool. To each their own.
Dear iPhone 1.1.1 Updaters,
We know the feeling – we want the latest software too. Apple says, “update your iPhone, trust us, it is better for you, we’ve given you a new way to buy DRM’ed music from us, louder speakerphone AND a new way to write a period! Not enough?? How about landscaped email attachments, new passcode lock time intervals and adjustable alert volume! Are you kidding me, how could you not want that? You know you want all of this stuff – how can you possibly resist?” Dowit!
Apple, as expected released the iPhone 1.1.1 software update today. Initial reactions are that it breaks the anySIM hack and Installer.app so this is a one way street. We know it is tempting to hit the red button and download and install but hold on just one second while we let you take a gander at the pluses and minuses.
Listed on the 1.1.1 updates page is the following:
Not bad for a incremental update but nothing earth shattering. We think Apple could have called this 1.0.3 but when you juxtapose (triple word score) these features with what you get in the 1.0.2 HACK version you may want to pause..at least until everything becomes clearer..
What looks like a major outage has hit T-Mobile while Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint this afternoon are also seeing issues….
We know Rogers in Canada is a bit of a slacker on the iPhone front from our reader comments. However, they are the only GSM/EDGE provider in Canada and if you have a hacked iPhone they are your only choice. If Apple, for whatever reason, doesn’t want to deal with Rogers, they may have one of two already-established partners in Canada soon. AT&T and Tmobile are both rumored to be partners with Niagara Networks Inc. who are currently bidding on Canadian spectrum.
Either firm may be backing an auction application lodged earlier this month by unknown entity Niagara Networks Inc., which has no current operations in Canada. The company surprised industry observers two weeks ago when it appeared on an Industry Canada list of applicants for the spectrum auction beginning on May 27. Niagara Networks has applied to bid on all the spectrum being auctioned, requiring a letter of credit for $881 million.
Douglas Evashkow, president of Niagara Networks, told CBCNews.ca at the time that he was unable to disclose who was funding his company because of confidentiality agreements.
Obviously with a name like "Niagra" (as in "Falls" – which have both US and Canadian varieties), AT&T would be the easy guess of wireless partner.
We’ve known for awhile that TIM Italy was in the iPhone carrier settings…but for some reason they haven’t gotten the the green light to announce the iPhone. Perhaps it all went bad. Or they are waiting for 3G? Or maybe it is only a matter of days. Strangely, the created on dates for TIM are the same (Dec 12th 2007) as Orange in France, O2 in the UK and Tmobile in Germany, with Tmobile Austria and O2 in Ireland created later (February 2008).
Something tells us that TIM and Apple had a falling out.
Onto a possible Russian iPhone possibility…
Tmobile is offering the iPhone in Austria as expected. Details below. With Ireland, the iPhone is now officially available in 6/180+ countries.
Plans after the break…
The timing seems right for more iPhone countries to be announced at the iPhone SDK event next week. Earlier we reported on Italy, Spain and Switzerland getting on board around the time of the SDK launch. Recent rumors have also included Rogers in Canada, O2 in Ireland and Tmobile in Austria and possibly in the Netherlands.
Update: Ireland (O2) and Austria (Tmobile) by extension are officially on.
Adding fuel to the fire, Morgan Stanley is reporting that El Jobso has been getting some serious private jet time in over the past quarter – indicating he’s been doing some global traveling and possibly sealing some deals.
Big news day today – especially for us coffee addicts. Starbucks has announced that it was dropping its T mobile wifi access points around the world and going with AT&T. The new deal will give free wireless access to Starbucks card holders and AT&T broadband users and charge about half of what T mobile charged for WiFi access. $3.99/visit or $20/month.
Now this deal has Apple written all over it for a number of reasons – not just because taking your MacBook to Starbucks will be a whole lot cheaper. Starbucks and AT&T are also iPhone partners. Starbucks sells it’s music to iPhone and iPod Touch users through its Wifi Music store (now run by AT&T). AT&T is obviously the carrier for the iPhone.
One thing that stood out from all of the reviews was Ed Baig’s comment that Steve Jobs wanted to put 3G access into the Air but ran out of room.
Air does not come with the built-in ability to connect to a speedy wireless data network run by various cellular carriers. Jobs told me last week that Apple considered it but that adding the capability would take up room and restrict consumers to a particular carrier. Through a USB modem, he says, you can still subscribe to wireless broadband with your favorite carrier.
I hate to badmouth Mr. Baig and Mr. Jobs but there is no other way to put it. BS!…
The iPhone SDK is due next month and there is a lot of speculation on exactly how it will all work. Stevo has said he is fond of the Nokia model and we’ve heard comparisons to the Tmobile Sidekick’s delivery system.
We know that Apple has stockholder interests to protect and will likely take a cut of the cheddar on apps that it delivers. How picky Apple is about what type of apps get on the platform is another story entirely. We already know that, for whatever reason, Apple isn’t fond of putting iChat-type of Instant Messaging on the platform. Whether this is to encourage the lucative SMS services or to save AT&T some terrabytes on bandwidth is not really certain. The question is whether they will extend this blockage to the SDK.
For instance we know that a lot of VOIP providers would like to be on the iPhone. Will Apple let this fly? Doubtful.
Other services like Sling, which could be a competitor to AppleTV might also be in the doghouse.
Some pieces of the puzzle might be starting to come together on the technical details of the system Apple will employ to deliver these developer applications. The five new apps for the iPod touch were delivered by a system that is likely the basis for the upcoming mobile application delivery model.
http://services.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f8/452319854
You have to admire Walt Mossberg for taking his position as grand exalted leader amongst technology journalists directly to the US telecoms. He is single handedly trying to break the hold on consumers that the Sprint/Tmobile/AT&T/Verizon Cartel has on the US Mobile industry. To his credit, he has gotten Verizon to promise that in Q3 2008, that it will accept any device on its platform – as long as it meets a very simple set of requirements (like no VoIP?). If he were running for Office, we’d vote for him.
News is starting to trickle in. You can now officially buy an unlocked iPhone for yes, €999. Is this the actual price of the iPhone. Is this what Apple would charge if it wasn’t taking $10-$20 bucks a month of your Mobile bill? Perhaps it isn’t that easy to build an operationg system from the ground up for a phone that works as well as the iPhones?
I guess we know what price those unlocked iPhones are going to go for in France. The question is, are they different from a hardware perspective? Or can people who want carrier choice just buy a $399 iPhone at the Apple store and upload the new unlocked firmware?
That is how many O2 reported on the first day of iPhone sales. To put that into perspective, Apple sold 270,000 iPhones in the first weekend in the US. At that point it was an untested product. All of the reviews, mostly positive, have come in and have been taken in by British consumers.
Of course, there are a lot fewer people in the UK than in the US – probably about 1/5th. The weather was also rainy on the day of the opening – which wasn’t a help either (not that the UK is known for its great climate).
There are obviously a lot of hacked iPhones that have trickled into Europe over the last 3 months. That may account for some of the "opening day types" who went abroad and brought them back or bought them from ebay or other unauthorized resellers. The US models, which are reportedly the exact same hardware, cost much less before activation than their European counterparts.
Popular Steve Jobs satirist FakeSteve posted a nice piece on the percieved threat of the Google Open Handset Alliance on Apple and its iPhone franchise. Google’s stock is up and all of the alliance members are getting plenty of publicity. But in the end what have we really got?
EDIT – the call is over – you can treat this as notes – not much really to see – we’ll check back next week when we see the SDK!
Ed Shaig – welcome who is here:
Eric Schmidt: Overview
3 blliion users. Getting Google on there.
Want to create a new experience with android platform.
Not a Gphone. There is no suuch thing – there will be many devices. (Obviously reading this from a script)
Major platform change
Consumers have access to desktop type applications and new applications we can’t even imagine
Engadget this morning pointed us to the news that Apple was now only selling iPhones to people with credit cards – no Cash/Check money order. In addition, the limit on phones is now down from 5 to 2 per purchase.
Why?
According to Apple spokeswoman Natalie Kerris, the official Apple Line is, um:
"Customer response to the iPhone has been off the charts, and limiting iPhone sales to two per customer helps us ensure that there are enough iPhones for people who are shopping for themselves or buying a gift," Kerris said. "We’re requiring a credit or debit card for payment to discourage unauthorized resellers."
YEOUCH! The 1st 1/2 of that statement would seem to be untrue – there are plenty of iPhones out there no one is complaining of store shelves being bare – in fact, Apple will have to ramp up sales (Europe/Asia help) to meet its 10 million by the end of 2008 forecast.
While Apple’s official line is that the only 3rd party iPhone development will be on the EDGE-crippled Web 2.0 "SDK", behind the scenes, there is much more going on. Apple has been furiously working with their partners on games and applications for the iPhone/iPod and the standardized Human-Interface Controls that will go along with them. For instance, EA is currently porting their iPod lineup to the OSX iPod/iPhone platform to be sold along side the classic iPod OS versions. Other big developers with strict confidentiality agreements are also on board.
It’s a big stretch but here’s their story:
While it has been known for a while that LTE will be rolling out in select markets at some point next year. The most recent roadmap has 20-30 markets as a target for the second half of 2010. But our source says that Verizon is putting just about everything it has in to moving many of these markets up to Q1 2010 — which is the same time frame for this supposed new Apple device. While the source had no information to specifically tie Apple to this move by Verizon, they did note that there was talk of at least one non-dongle (wireless card) product that this LTE launch was being specifically geared towards.
The usual caveats apply. Apple couldn’t make it work like a phone – thus killing the mic on a Verizon/Apple device – because of the AT&T exclusivity arrangement. Also current iPhone hardware won’t work obviously if LTE isn’t rolling in an area yet. Yada Yada.
The question we have is this: Is it really that hard for Apple to build CDMA products? Every other manufacturer (Blackberry, Palm, HTC, etc) seems to be able to throw in a CDMA radio without breaking a sweat. We know that Apple and Verizon talk frequently. Is it that hard to imagine Apple making a run of four million CDMA Tablets? Who knows? They could even make some WiMAX tablets that drop down to 3G when a tower isn’t nearby. They’d sell.
In a move that can only be described as "for the love of everything decent and holy, why not in the US?!?!"…Apple is opening up the iPhone to be used on Orange and Tmobile in the UK according to MobileToday.co.uk. The liberation is set for September BUT will not include the iPhone 3GS (ok, that is a big BUT).
Orange and Tmobile obviously carry the iPhone in other countries. O2 is apparently furious with the news but what do you expect when you announce that you’ll be carrying the Palm Pre in countries throughout Europe?
Apple is poised to open the iPhone 3G to Orange and T-Mobile in a bid to boost sales. The move is set for as early as September and will end Apple’s two year exclusive deal with O2. Crucially, the manufacturer will continue to give O2 exclusivity for the new, faster 3GS version, but will grant distribution of the older 3G handset to another network. Orange and T-Mobile are known to have already begun pitching for the handset. T-Mobile’s call centres have also started telling customers it may stock the iPhone. Both networks sell the iPhone in several other countries. The addition of a new network selling the iPhone will break O2’s UK exclusivity on the coveted handset, and will offer a challenge to O2’s prices and tariffs. Sources said O2 has been furious with the news and is concerned potential rivals will undercut its prices on the older model.
We wonder if Tmobile in the US would like to carry the iPhone 3G or if US consumers would appreciate a choice?
Amazon has just released a new wireless portal, amazonwireless.com, where they try to simplify the process of buying a mobile device.
They have signed up the two biggest US carriers, AT&T and Verizon, and have most of the devices that each carrier sells on their own website. Tmobile and Sprint are said to be coming soon.
However, one phone in particular is missing from the AT&T microsite: the iPhone. Why? Walmart and BestBuy sell the iPhone, why can’t Amazon?
Look, we’re not in favor of getting the government involved in any of our gadgetry…but…well… they are already there (FCC allocates spectrum, etc.) so they might as well do something good. John Kerry last month petitioned the FCC to look into wireless carrier/handset maker duopolies, with the Sprint/Pre and AT&T/iPhone specifically being named. That petition looks to have some legs.
Now, the WSJ’s Amol Sharmais is reporting that the US department of Justice is also looking into the matter:
“Among the areas the Justice Department could explore is whether wireless carriers are hurting smaller competitors by locking up popular phones through exclusive agreements with handset makers, according to people familiar with the matter. In recent weeks lawmakers and regulators have raised questions about deals such as AT&T’s exclusive right to provide service for Apple Inc.’s popular iPhone in the U.S.”
We’re pretty sure Apple, in a purely capitalist market, would just love to let anyone on any carrier use the iPhone. Just look at France where the iPhone is booming on all three major carriers after the Orange-iPhone excusivity was deemed unfair to competition.
If the DOJ rules that carrier exclusivity is anti-competitive like France’s government did, Tmobile might get in on some of the iPhone McLovin…and we might get an iPhone that gets a signal in our neighborhood.
Today, Adobe is demonstrating a version of Flash running on the HTC Hero, the recently released Android device on Tmobile. The demo seems to work fairly well which may be an important benchmark to Apple’s iPhone and iPod touch owners.
.png)
As far as capability to run Flash (as opposed to desire), it would appear that the iPhone 3GS has more than the necessary hardware to do so. The HTC Hero uses an 528MHz ARM 11 based Qualcomm MSM7200A. This is roughly the same level of processor as the 2nd generation iPod Touch. As we know, the iPhone 3GS blows the iPod Touch out of the water in terms of performance. The iPhone 3GS uses the latest ARM Cortex A8 Processor running at 600MHz with a PowerVR graphics core that is also superior to other chipsets.
At a shareholder meeting last year, Apple CEO Steve Jobs said that the iPhone doesn’t support Flash because it runs too slowly on the device to be useful.
Update: It might just be a VoIP phone.
Forgive us if we don’t take this one at face value. Michael Arrington over at TechCrunch says there is a Google-branded phone in the works. They don’t have many details except that it will be heading to market in January, and that is only because it is taking longer than expected.
Sure, they might be doing another level of co-branding like Microsoft is doing with Sharp on their Pink phones. But they’ve already gone down that road. Verizon already sells the Droid with Google branding and Tmobile has sold the G1 “with Google” branding since day one. Expanding on that isn’t what we are talking about here.
