AT&T

People awaiting iPads in the Czech Republic were told they’d be in the first group of countries (outside the US) to get an iPad on March 25th.

We’re not sure why but the Czech Republic iPad website now shows they just got pushed back a month. (for those not in the know, Dubna=April).

Update: Apple has removed (not corrected) the launch date.

Update 2: Apple has finally got its Czech translator on the ball – says Brezna (March) now

Could be some issues with equipment and government specific to Czech Republic, a translation error or could be supply constraints like last year.

Time to hit eBay?

(Thanks Pavel!)
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Just like the previous iOS device launch days, today’s iPad 2 launch is spawning reports of some minor issues.  We’re getting some images of the yellow tint we saw last year.

Reader N. Peach sent this in. In all likelyiehood they yellow will dissipate just like last year’s issues as the glue from the factory dries.  Another reader’s is below:
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COMPUTERWORLD: After a CES no-show, Verizon is teasing us with an iPhone-generated Tweet today on the eve of its press event where it is expected Verizon will at last introduce the iPhone, meaning US customers will now enjoy some choice of which network carries their iPhone. The move should also boost Apple in its battle with Android. So, what do we know?

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Park Chan-wook is one of South Korea’s best directors, and he’s generated a huge story with the revalation that his latest short film was shot entirely on an iPhone 4.
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Wow.  New York.  And I am in SF.  We had a hunch.

Also the unverified source that gave us that earlier info also told us:

VZiPhone: Release window: Feb 9-16.  The vacation blackout :Feb 1-16 give or take.

iPad2 will be announced on the 1st week of March, released within 30 days.

Update: The Wall Street Journal says it’s the Verizon iPhone.

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SAI breaks down Piper Jaffay Apple follower Gene Munster’s predictions for 2011, complete with probabilities.  I’ve got to say, these are pretty conservative.  (I like Appleholic’s 2011 list much more).  Anyway, here we go…

– Verizon launch of the iPhone: Probability 95% (March qtr) (our est)

– Mac App Store: Probability 100% (Jan. 6 launch)

– iTunes cloud services: Probability 90%

– iPad geographic expansion: Probability 100%

– iPad subsidies from carriers: Probability 80%

– OS X Lion: Probability 100% (summer 2011)

And here’s when we can expect upgrades to the hardware:

– iPhone (March quarter). We are modeling for Apple to launch a CDMA version of the iPhone at Verizon in the March-11 quarter. The fifth generation iPhone will likely ship this summer with NFC capability.

– iPad (spring). We believe the second generation iPad will launch in spring 2011.

– Macs (uncertain). We have moderate confidence that Apple will release redesigned MacBook Pros in 1H11 and redesigned iMacs in 2H11.

– iPods (fall). As usual, we expect Apple to refresh its iPods in the fall.

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From Fortune:

Tran says that [Android] phones made from the BCM2157 chipset will retail for under $100 and may dip as low as $75. Those devices should debut in just 3-6 months (and we might hear about them next month at CES).

That means that popular pre-paid Android devices that currently can be found as low as $180 will drop by half in the next half year.

Apple’s low-end strategy so far has been to offer the last year’s model for $99 with a two year contract.  That contract is at least worth $350 (AT&T’s ETF) which puts old retail iPhones at $450. Buying an iPhone 4 off contract costs $650.

What’s more important is that with Apple’s AT&T agreement, you have exactly one data plan option in the US (soon to grow).  Even with Verizon and maybe even Sprint and T-Mobile, there isn’t going to be a $25/month data plan for the iPhone anytime soon.  For the budget conscious, Android is the only smartphone game in town.

So how does Apple respond?

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Merry Christmas iPhone 4 lovers with Radio Shack’s impressive $149 price tag on the 16GB model now undercut by Sam’s Club, which plans to offer the device on AT&T for just $147 (plus 2-year contract).
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[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4yApx5zyCk&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3]

OK, we’re excited to see this, even if it is just an ad.  Adage says that it is the only iAd we’ll see on iPad this year.  Next year we’ll see plenty more.   On iAds, digital agencies are gushing about the quality even if it takes a lot of time and effort to bring the ads to fruition.

“I think as a media format it has the potential to surpass anything that has come before,” said Carrie Frolich, digital director at WPP unit MEC Global, which bought iAd inventory for Citi, AT&T, Chanel and Campbell Soup. “It delivers all the emotive qualities of television or video advertising with the interactivity of a website, plus the functionality of location and all the bells and whistles of Apple devices like the accelerometer.”

More from Adage:
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COMPUTERWORLD: If you thought Apple had a busy year in 2010, expect even more in 2011, when at least one analyst is expecting significant acquisitions, a move into 3D, the introduction of its connected TV set and the emergence of multi-core processors in the iPhone and other mobile devices.

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Look, we want the most awesome iPhone available to be on Verizon’s network ASAP.  But the rumor today about the 4G iPhone waiting in stockpiles isn’t realistic at all.

Remember how Apple’s original iPhone was EDGE at a time when most new phones were coming out with the new 3G technology?  The reasons: Cost, complexity, size, battery life and benefit to the user.

Every single one of those factors also applies to 4G.  The chips aren’t mature, the network is just being rolled out, and the battery life will take a hit.  Have you seen how long an EVO 4G battery lasts with 4G on?  How big it is?

Besides, one of the big benefits of 4G is use as a hotspot, something no un-jailbroken iPhone can do yet.

So iPhone 4G?  Yes!  January?  No.
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Asymco has an interesting report today in which analyst Horace Dediu argues that Verizon may need the iPhone more than its letting on, and suggests Google Android may not be as big a business as many think it to be.

To be fair, while Dediu makes a good argument for his points, critics are already pointing out that they are based on data which may not be 100 per cent accurate, and that Verizon’s best month was in August, two months after iPhone 4 shipped. (Though it was only a slightly better month on back of hype around new product from Samsung).

We’ve had an update from the sources of the orginal data, which is posted at the foot of this article:

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