Get Ready to Call iTunes

[MacBytes]

Category: Tunes
Link: Get Ready to Call iTunes (http://www.macbytes.com/link.php?sid=20041216200917)
Posted on MacBytes.com (http://www.macbytes.com)

Approved by Mudbug

[rdowns]

Normally, I'd yawn a this but since I got a new Acura TL, I want a BT phone. The car supports BT phones via a hands free controller on the steering wheel, heads up display on dash and sound through stereo.

[blasto333]

I might get a cell phone now!

[centauratlas]

Not Motorola again. I hope they do better with phones than with the PPC. Given their previous performance against Nokia, I hope they are turning things around or that Apple has significant design/engineering control. ;-)

It has a ton of potential, I just hope Apple ensures that Motorola gets it right!

[jaw04005]

Thats great, but I hope Apple & Motorola work with all the major players (Cingular/Verizon/T-Mobile/Sprint) to bring the phone to the market. When are cell phone companies going to realize that we don't want to sign a new contract everytime we get a new phone? :(

[Wonder Boy]

i dont care about itunes support. so far, ive probably downloaded 50 songs. ive never been in a situation where i needed to have a song or cd so badly i'd pull over on the side of the road or stop in my tracks on a walk and downloaded the newest hit.

i just want an apple quality cell phone with a elegant interface that makes syncing that much easier. oh ya, i wont buy anything over $250. and even that is pushing it.

[autopilot]

i hope that apple design really comes through on this project. a really clean, functional design will be a nice change from all the other ridiculous cell setups you have now.

stick to the basics, and do everything WELL. i won't mind paying a premium price if the phone is anything like what i would come to expect from apple.

[thex]

phone with iTunes compatibility and media card slots? maybe this is the "flash iPod" that we're hearing about...

[Stella]

Motorola phones suck.

Hopefully there will be a port to other more popular phones such as Nokia and supporting Symbian pretty soon. Symbian being the Number ONE smart phone OS in the world by far.. surpassing microsoft ***** by 50%.

SonyEricsson are pretty popular too.

In fact most European mobile phone companies are more popular than american ones.

However, Since these aren't american companies one can assume Apple aren't pairing with them.

[ThomasJefferson]

Nothing is allowed in my house that says "Motorola" on it.

[MattG]

I had a Motorola/Nextel phone before I got Sprint, and it was awful. I hated that thing. If Apple comes out with a phone made by Motorola, it better be a hell of a lot nicer than the Motorola I had.

[Surreal]

other than bluetooth...of what use would an iphone be?

syncing? really? yoiu would buy an apple phone SIMPLY for syncing?

this is not to say they wont do something..but what they will do should be the rumor..the special reason that you would buy the iphone...what will it be?


and if they do all this...but don't give me a @#$@#$#@ line in on the ipod...there will be no end to my dismay.

[wHo_tHe]

Apple and Motorola can't seem to get the V600 to work with iCal, but they can invest millions in R&D to create a niche phone with a limited userbase in the face of oodles of sexy competition... Hmm. I've never liked Nokia much, but their lineup includes a phone for just about anybody, including several that don't look like phones at all. Always been more of a Sony/Ericsson man myself...

[Stella]

Apple and Motorola can't seem to get the V600 to work with iCal, but they can invest millions in R&D to create a niche phone with a limited userbase in the face of oodles of sexy competition... .

ROTFL.

You are SO spot on.

[jimjiminyjim]

To these first posts dissing motorola: Agreed. The phones I've experienced are utter crap. Yes. "Utter crap". Other than that, cool to see Apple anticipating the next move of the culture.

[ThomasJefferson]

Remember that time Steve tossed a digital camera across the stage. I would love to see him toss a motorola phone. It might be great therapy for him...

[StarbucksSam]

As much as I would LIKE to have the Apple-based phone if it comes out.. it's not like I would NEED it... I have my iPod and my new LG fone.

[Porchland]

Thats great, but I hope Apple & Motorola work with all the major players (Cingular/Verizon/T-Mobile/Sprint) to bring the phone to the market. When are cell phone companies going to realize that we don't want to sign a new contract everytime we get a new phone? :(

When you realize that mobile carriers subsidize expensive phones with contracts.

[Xtremehkr]

I'm really interested to see what innovations Apple can bring to the old cell phone. There is no distinction between cell phones these days, the number of gadgets has increased exponentially but they are all the same.

How will Apple improve the old cell phone, other than providing a really nice design and high quality. Would it be fully intergrated allowing you to send pictures and to retrieve from iPhoto. As well as providing access to .Mac and Mail. Maybe a remote control for your Mac. Oh the possibilities.

[Kenny Pollock]

Christ.
Just bought a Motorola i860 (Nextel) a few weeks ago.

[noel4r]

an Apple phone? this is gonna be cool. my contract w/ AT&T is about to expire. i think i'll wait for this one. hopefully it's a GSM phone.

[the_mole1314]

Rember what the West Wing said about the third rail: "It's electrified and you can get politically killed, but it's where the power is."

[narco]

I've been considering the new Motorola Razr, but I'm not sure if I should wait or not. If it has iTunes support, I already have an iPod and I rarely purchase from the music store. It better be a hell of a lot more than just that.

I also don't think this would be the rumored Flash pod. That's an entirely different market; but they probably got a great deal on flash cards in bulk if both rumors are true.

Fishes,
narco.

[broken_keyboard]

The cell phone is a key part of the digital hub, it wouldn't surprise me if Apple released a phone. But I don't see them becoming a service provider of course.

[Porchland]

I assumed when I read about the new Motorola RAZR V3 and how much marketing strength Motorola is going to put behind it that this IS the iTunes phone. It has Bluetooth and MPEG4 playback capability, and I could swear I read on Motorola's web site that it would play MP3; now I can't find that anywhere.

Is the iPhone going to be the RAZR?

[Stella]

an Apple phone? this is gonna be cool. my contract w/ AT&T is about to expire. i think i'll wait for this one. hopefully it's a GSM phone.

If its not GSM then apple will lose a significant of potential customers ( GSM being the most popular standard throughout the world).

It would be very unfortunate if Apple didn't port iTunes to other phones such as Nokia, SE, Siemens, Acatel ( sorry, spelling) and other popular manufacturers.

Motorola is too limited.

[MacPutz]

How about with sync/access to .mac account, now that would be worth checking out.

[lordmac]

I am very excited to see an apple phone thing happening. Im hoping that it will have a metal case rather like the ipod mini. I the thing im hoping for the most though is some sort of super unique revolutionary feature and then just all basic stuff in their. In other words I hope they keep it on the simple side except for one very unique featuer that is so you unique that I can't even speculate what it might be. Also hopefully it will have a nice aqua style os on on it.
Oh and opitional engraving like the ipods would be nice. :)

[sprescott1974]

the forbes article states that this phone will be an ipod accessory. i wonder how that is possible besides playing music from my itunes library.

i for one would be very apple with an apple phone. my current phone is too big and doesn't do everything i would like it to do. i imagine sitting at my powerbook toiling away at work, i have on a bluetooth headset, the phone rings and when i click answer on the popup window from Address Book the call is automatically transferred to the headset. I'd like SMS messages recieved from the system to show i have voicemail or that my bill is due to show the appropriate sender not a random name from my address book. i'd like to be able to drop a couple of songs on my phone to use as ringers and to listen to on those trips where it is impractical to always have my iPod with me like on my way to a clubor something. i'd also like it to just work when using it as a bluetooth modem for my laptop or my palm because even though i have gotten it working the experience has lacked the typical apple ease of use. how about iphoto integration, i don't expect all my photos to be on it, but i'd like to easily sync photos taken with my phonecam into iphoto without having to go through bluetooth filetransfer. (with smart albums and such i'm sure this would be easy)

i'm just spitballing here.

[fucanay]

I've been considering the new Motorola Razr, but I'm not sure if I should wait or not. If it has iTunes support, I already have an iPod and I rarely purchase from the music store. It better be a hell of a lot more than just that.

I also don't think this would be the rumored Flash pod. That's an entirely different market; but they probably got a great deal on flash cards in bulk if both rumors are true.

Fishes,
narco.

Maybe the Flash iPod doesn't really exist. It could be that the rumors got started when somebody leaked something about Apple buying flash media or developing something that takes it. Has it been confirmed anywhere that the Flash iPod is a real thing?

Either way, I think I might get one these phones if the price is right and I can use it with my carrier. I could imagine some kind of .mac integration along with seamless syncing with iCal and Address Book and the like. Could be pretty cool.

fucanay

[pivo6]

Why doesn't Apple try improving iSync instead of creating a new phone? I doubt I'll have the money to buy this when/if it comes out.

[nagromme]

iTunes music on a phone? Sounds neat. As opposed to, say, fun... or useful... But I'll wait and see what they do with it.

Now, if Apple's helping to design how the thing WORKS, I'm interested! Everything should have the simplicity and ease of use of the iPod.

I guess we'll probably know soon. Might just be a totally Motorola-designed phone and UI, with some Apple software stuck in one menu and some joint marketing.

[Mainyehc]

Nothing is allowed in my house that says "Motorola" on it.

Seeing from your public profile, it seems you have an iMac 600... Ok, it says "Motorola" IN it. Are those things allowed in your house ;)? (The first cell phone we had was a Motorola, and even though it was a huge rounded-brick-like thing, it would connect to the network in remote places where other newer phones couldn't. But yeah, it sucked :p)

Anyway, I haven't anything with "Motorola" in it anymore. Now it's more like "IBM" :eek: :D

[ASP272]

Woohoo! It's nice to see so many rumors and news popping up. The sites been slow for a while. An Apple phone would be awesome! Especially with Bluetooth. Can't wait to see it, but probably won't be able to afford it. I just got my first iPod. It only took 4 generations! Still though, excellent concept, and Motorola phones are pretty cool already. :)

[Stella]

[QUOTE=nagromme]iTunes music on a phone? Sounds neat. As opposed to, say, fun... or useful... But I'll wait and see what they do with it.

I'm all for Apple porting iTunes to cell phones ( as long as its not just Motorola).

I've one concern:

Battery life.

Cell phones don't last long as it is, when they are actively used - let alone playing music.

[kugino]

Nothing is allowed in my house that says "Motorola" on it.

wait - so you don't have any g3/g4 systems at home? nice...g5 all the way...

[Yvan256]

I think we can read a bit into this quote:

---
At the event, Jobs took pains to point out that the phone would not compete with Apple's popular iPod music player, but should viewed as an iPod accessory. "Wouldn't it be great if you could take a dozen of your favorite songs with you" on a cell phone, Jobs said at the time.
---

So, a dozen of your favorite songs won't compete with the iPod. What's a dozen songs? Twelve x 4MB? That means 48MB... Let's round that to 64MB? (isn't the iPod buffer 64MB of Flash already?)

For a possible Flash iPod mini, it means it should at least have at least 4 or 8 times more space than "just a phone", which lands the capacity from 256 to 512MB. Unless they want to leave the iTunes-enabled phone in the dust, and put 1GB on it ("16 times more space than the Motorola phone").

But even if they update the iPod mini to 5GB, a Flash iPod at 1GB would only be 5 times less... Which is "too close to a regular iPod", unless they do consider the iPod Flash to be part of their "regular iPod" family... This is getting confusing. ;-)

Unless of course all those "flash iPod" rumors really are the one and only same rumor as this iTunes-enabled phone...

In any case, this would prove that Apple is at least interested in licensing their technology to other companies, which is a good thing.

[nagromme]

Unless of course all those "flash iPod" rumors really are the one and only same rumor as this iTunes-enabled phone...
To those who suggest this... I think you have a good theory! I think that's at least very possible.

Has it been confirmed anywhere that the Flash iPod is a real thing?
I wonder the same thing. Everyone assumes it's coming very soon, and the rumors have SOME basis... but I still think Apple wouldn't want to release a super-small-capacity/nearly-useless player. In which case, I don't see a flash player happening YET--not until 2 GB (500 songs) becomes cheap. Then a flash iPod has a reason to exist.

Or maybe Apple will stoop to selling iPods that hold so little music they're as frustrating as other flash players. They'd make a buck in the short term. I won't deny the demand is there. (And for a small number of people, a 60-song flash player really is just the right solution. But for must listeners, it's merely cheap.)


Why doesn't Apple try improving iSync instead of creating a new phone? I doubt I'll have the money to buy this when/if it comes out.
They should create multiple divisions so they can do both ;)

BTW, iSync in Tiger is totally different. For the better, I hope...

[hob]

Yes please

soon please

well... before may - my contract's up for renewal! If O2 don't offer it I WILL swap service providers!

Hob

[PlaceofDis]

Why doesn't Apple try improving iSync instead of creating a new phone? I doubt I'll have the money to buy this when/if it comes out.

apple is improving isync with tiger or so i hear

[maya]

Who can say:

iTunes x86 for iPod and mini Mac + PC

iChat x86 for iPhone Mac + PC

iPhoto x86 for i? Mac + PC


Well members it seems iLife x86 is making it way to the PC market with Hardware to support it as iPod did. It seems if Steve and Co cannot have the desktop market they are going after the much richer mobile market, notebooks (already a given for computing), iPod and mini (already a market leader for music and external storage), iPhone ...you get the drift.

Apple is now getting into the HIP consumer electronic market. Look how well the SideKick is doing, I believe Apple is doing something of that nature. :)

"iLife to Life". :)

[nagromme]

All G3s (and G5s) are from IBM. All G4s are from Motorola... or, now, Freescale.

The iMac 600 was a G3. (The G4s started at 700.)


Seeing from your public profile, it seems you have an iMac 600... Ok, it says "Motorola" IN it.
wait - so you don't have any g3/g4 systems at home? nice...g5 all the way...

[maya]

apple is improving isync with tiger or so i hear

improving nothing, iSync does not exist anymore its now integrated into "Tiger" and it's called "Sync". :)

[maya]

[QUOTE=nagromme]iTunes music on a phone? Sounds neat. As opposed to, say, fun... or useful... But I'll wait and see what they do with it.

I'm all for Apple porting iTunes to cell phones ( as long as its not just Motorola).

I've one concern:

Battery life.

Cell phones don't last long as it is, when they are actively used - let alone playing music.

Looking back I don't think Apple cares too much for battery life the 1G, 2G, 3G and mini have rotten battery life as well as the PowerBooks.

battery life is last on Apples kewl list. even if the phone gets 12-24 hours on a single charge its good enough you can always charge it every night right. :)

[Omad0n]

i just want an apple quality cell phone with a elegant interface that makes syncing that much easier. oh ya, i wont buy anything over $250. and even that is pushing it.

odds are that unless you're getting a discount for a contract, it'll be a bit more than that. So you may be waiting quite some time till they become an older item. Getting the latest in phones is an expensive endeavor.

[maya]

Woohoo! It's nice to see so many rumors and news popping up. The sites been slow for a while. An Apple phone would be awesome! Especially with Bluetooth. Can't wait to see it, but probably won't be able to afford it. I just got my first iPod. It only took 4 generations! Still though, excellent concept, and Motorola phones are pretty cool already. :)

Transferring mp3 or even HE-AAC and AAC over BlueTooth will be SLOOOOOW. maybe WiFirewire will make its way into this so called iPhone.

WiFirewire on iPod and mini
WiFirewire on iBooks and PowerBooks
WiFirewire on iPhone
WiFirewire maybe on desktops.

[Rajj]

I wish it was Sony Ericsson instead of Motno, they work together better.

[Steven1621]

When this does come out, I'll put money down that it will take Verizon a good year and a half or so before it becomes an option for is subscribers. That is the trade off to have best carrier = **** phones

[maya]

odds are that unless you're getting a discount for a contract, it'll be a bit more than that. So you may be waiting quite some time till they become an older item. Getting the latest in phones is an expensive endeavor.

The internals of almost every mobile have not changed much only the exterior form and features. Phones are easy to design and however its to make it compete with the rest that is a challenge. If it took a re-wire of all the internals on a mobile it would cost more that what you would pay today and most of what you pay today is PROFIT for the companies who make and sell them. :)

[maya]

I wish it was Sony Ericsson instead of Motno, they work together better.

AIM alliance, not a far fetched that Apple chose to work with Moto on a project as thing. :)

[maya]

Why doesn't Apple try improving iSync instead of creating a new phone? I doubt I'll have the money to buy this when/if it comes out.

And that is what the people said before the 1G iPods were released. Make iTunes better and then here comes iPod. :)

[evolu]

Tiger Mobile?

[maya]

How about with sync/access to .mac account, now that would be worth checking out.

With BlueTooth its possible.
With USB its possible.
With FireWire its possible.
With WiFirewire possible if released.
With Internet access its also possible however there will be a charge.

.Mac for contact information, iCal, iChat, iTunes as long as it has a decent amount of storage onboard. :)

[maya]

Tiger Mobile?

Not Tiger, more along the lines of QuickTime being scalable along with HE-AAC and HDTV signals being transmitted to mobiles. :)


Apple has already stated that they want to be in the LOOP for all multimedia and that includes HE-AAC, HDTV. :)

[Mainyehc]

I wonder the same thing. Everyone assumes it's coming very soon, and the rumors have SOME basis... but I still think Apple wouldn't want to release a super-small-capacity/nearly-useless player. In which case, I don't see a flash player happening YET--not until 2 GB (500 songs) becomes cheap. Then a flash iPod has a reason to exist.

I'm not saying I think it will happen, I just think it is possible and would be cool... Aren't you forgetting something? HE-AAC?? ;)


Or maybe Apple will stoop to selling iPods that hold so little music they're as frustrating as other flash players. They'd make a buck in the short term. I won't deny the demand is there. (And for a small number of people, a 60-song flash player really is just the right solution. But for must listeners, it's merely cheap.)

No, that is NOT a small number of people. There's a large number of people that aren't yet aware that you CAN actually carry your whole music library in your pocket. They just can't grasp the beauty of the concept [yet], and the tremendous ease-of-use of the iPod. A tiny flash version with HE-AAC could introduce the iPod to many more people, who might just ignore it otherwise, and end up buying a Rio or something (because it's just cheaper). And you know, as an iPod Flash would be ideal for some (or maybe even many) people (like those who like to listen to music while working out or doing some kind of sport), that would also mean it wouldn't be rendered useless the moment someone upgraded from it to a full-size iPod. :cool:

And I actually know two people just like that: both my parents. My dad has an extensive music collection, and loves to ride his bycicle to keep fit. Just imagine: he's actually thinking of getting *A CD PLAYER* to listen to music while riding his bike! :eek: Sure, I could tell him "WTF? Go buy a Rio instead!", but I'd rather tell him "WTF? Go buy an iPod flash instead!". He doesn't like dealing with cumbersome configuration processess, so I guess iTunes would be the right choice for him :rolleyes:. And I could easily imagine him lusting over a 60GB iPod, which wouldn't probably hold his 100+ CD collection, but would be a great way for him to listen to it on vacation, for instance... I already told him about the iPod, I even showed off my 3G 20GB, but I'm not insisting, as I didn't get much feedback, and I don't want to become tiresome and too much of an "iPod evangelist"... However, I think an iPod flash would be the deal clincher!

And my mom... Oh, I know she would go crazy if she had a mini. But she thinks they're too expensive. Not anymore, if there were three iPods in the house :D

[macridah]

motorola phones are usually ugly with a stupid GUI. What better part to have than Apple to solve their problems. :D

Motorola slipped from #2 to #3 market share in mobile phones, maybe this may bring motorola's market share up?

[bbarnhart]

Figures - At age 35, I got my first cell phone last week.

I'd rather them put some guts into iSync. They could have a fantastic app that could sync all types of phones, pda, other machines, and different types of data from software. I'm thinking of a magic box that would translate from one device or software to another.

Right now, it just barely, barely works and that is if the wind is blowing in the right direction. It is a nightmare to sync my wife's handheld. Maybe it is just me.

[Omad0n]

most of what you pay today is PROFIT for the companies who make and sell them. :)

I agree with you on the making part, as far as the carriers are concerned (sprint/Nextel, Cingular, T-mobile, etc.) they're loosing money on selling them and make the money back in contracts and waht not.

[evolu]

i don't know. Apple likes to have control over most aspects of their products... This Apple designed phone is a pretty specific product with many features you don't normally see working together in the same mobile unit.

Why design an apple fone, then leave the OS to motorola? Motorola OS is so unintuitive (unApple)!

If Apple is going to get into the fone game halfway, they would just create a couple of apps to handle music & movie delivery and playback.

I can't imagine Apple designing a fone without the intent of revolutionizing the product as we know it. Only an Apple Mobile OS could handle a revolutionary fone.

[maya]

I agree with you on the making part, as far as the carriers are concerned (sprint/Nextel, Cingular, T-mobile, etc.) they're loosing money on selling them and make the money back in contracts and waht not.

The carriers loose SOME money however not much since its a joint contract between the maker of the phone and the carrier, the carrier will carry the makers phone as advertising for phone quality and are allowed to stamp they logo on the phone. The carrier gets advertising and part of the contract profits. a 50/50 deal (depending on the company and carrier and product). They will always profit no matter what no company is in a business to LOOSE money. :) <--- Pardon only M$ with they XBOX, ROTFLMAO but then they are making loads of it from HALO 2 sales. :)

[iostream.h]

I would buy this in a second. I just hope it works with Verizon (I'd get a GSM carrier, but they all suck in Albuquerque)!!!

[iomar]

Wow, yahoooooooooooooo.... I have been looking forward for this day. I hope this is true .. I can't wait to buy an Apple Cell phone!!!!

[swissmann]

I hope it has a lot of PDA functions as well.

[maya]

I hope it has a lot of PDA functions as well.

The iPod already has some BASIC BASIC PDA functions minus the data entry with a stylus. :)

[sluthy]

Risky, because there are thousands (probably) of models already from several companies (Nokia, SonyEricsson, Kyocera) who have heaps more experience and marketshare. They can't possibly try to take them on head on, Apple can never compete pricewise with Nokia (we're talking Apple here).

Anyway, about the iPhone (name? iTalk's taken, iSpeak probably too), what would the form factor be? I'm thinking flip-top, with the bottom steel backed and white click-wheel front iPod-style and the top white with screen similar to iPod Photo...? I might try Photoshopping something...

[~Shard~]

Geez, if true, this might actually make me want to own a cell phone! Let's hope if it happens, Apple does it right... :cool:

[dmealiffe]

To these first posts dissing motorola: Agreed. The phones I've experienced are utter crap. Yes. "Utter crap".
To be fair, that statement should be qualified.

Motorola make excellent phones on the radio access side, among the best in the business, if not *the* best. That being said, I absolutely can't stand Motorola's UI - it's been terrible since day one, all the way back to their "brick" and basic flip phone (DPC-550) days.

Since Apple is so great at design, and can engineer a great UI, this is actually a very promising relationship in my book. Motorola can *build* great phones, they just can't design them. With Apple taking care of design, we may be in for a gem from Motorola.

I have no need or desire for iTunes or iPhoto integration, though... I wish they'd stick to phone basics.

[abhishekit]

Wow, this is great news. Most probably this phone will be the flash player as many of you suggested. And its just in time. I am waiting to buy a new phone to replace my t616.

cheers

[jholzner]

One of the big deals will be ring tones! Right now they cost 2 or 3 bucks for a hacked up song that kinda sucks. Now we will be able to use any mp3 or iTMS purchased song as the ring and for $.99 for the whole song instead of the rip off that's goin on now.

[FlashXL]

O.K.

Why couldn't this phone do just a little more than just play downloaded MP3s? Why couldn't it sync with you home computer and access your entire library of songs through your phone? Why couldn't it allow you to iChat, and do video conferencing? Where else can you go besides just playing a few songs that your phone could hold? Short videos perhaps. Access to your PDA files and contacts etc. iTunes may just become a paid service(just like some others), stream music, or just internet radio., and eliminate the iPod, cept for the moments when you want to be alone with just your music.
But I like the thought of the video conference to someone sitting at home on the computer.

later

[jbembe]

iTunes music on a phone? Sounds neat. As opposed to, say, fun... or useful... But I'll wait and see what they do with it.

Now, if Apple's helping to design how the thing WORKS, I'm interested! Everything should have the simplicity and ease of use of the iPod.

I guess we'll probably know soon. Might just be a totally Motorola-designed phone and UI, with some Apple software stuck in one menu and some joint marketing.

That would be a bummer if this was another analagous situation as with the hp branded iPod. Just stick another company's sticker on the product and sell it at a few new stores. YAWN.

[Mechcozmo]

I'd like to see something like the Newton... but how did this get to page numero uno?

(Page number one for all of you non-Spanish speakers...)

[obeygiant]

Why doesn't Apple try improving iSync instead of creating a new phone? I doubt I'll have the money to buy this when/if it comes out.

good frickin idea. Make apple stuff more compatible with whats out there.

[Wonder Boy]

odds are that unless you're getting a discount for a contract, it'll be a bit more than that. So you may be waiting quite some time till they become an older item. Getting the latest in phones is an expensive endeavor.

youre probably right. guess we'll just have to wait and see.

[wnurse]

Thats great, but I hope Apple & Motorola work with all the major players (Cingular/Verizon/T-Mobile/Sprint) to bring the phone to the market. When are cell phone companies going to realize that we don't want to sign a new contract everytime we get a new phone? :(

when customers tell them they are willing to pay full price for the phone

[HomesliceJ]

I assumed when I read about the new Motorola RAZR V3 and how much marketing strength Motorola is going to put behind it that this IS the iTunes phone. It has Bluetooth and MPEG4 playback capability, and I could swear I read on Motorola's web site that it would play MP3; now I can't find that anywhere.

Is the iPhone going to be the RAZR?

The RAZR already came out, and it's not as cool as people thought it would have been. Even the Sony Ericsson T610 has more bluetooth functionalities. But apple will not start competing with Cell phone companies yet. I really don't think the cell phone is where Apple wants to take it's technology. iTunes on Motorola phones... sure. That's fine. But an Apple phone?

Apple will somehow integrate their iChat technology with something like the phone before they make a new product. the iPod was one of the greatest risky moves Apple ever made. Apple tried PDAs, Laser Printers, Scanners, and where are they now? Those creations are all gone. They've learned their lesson and when they made the iPod they were so sure it was going to be a hit. so an iPhone... they can't compete. I do see something like OS X on a phone though. So the phone will use a low end, low power consumption PowerPC processor, maybe a G4; that will run a Mobile OS X. With that, iLife will be integrated in the phone.

[clicknbet]

Have you guys seen the Motorola RAZR V3? I think Moto can build Apple one hell of a phone. Team that up with an Apple based OS and I will place my order the day it comes out.

[crachoar]

I do see something like OS X on a phone though. So the phone will use a low end, low power consumption PowerPC processor, maybe a G4; that will run a Mobile OS X. With that, iLife will be integrated in the phone.

...........

Right.

The G4 sure is known for running cool. Not to mention it's top-notch energy saving.

And yes, I'm sure Apple wants to release 'iLife' onto a cell phone interface....that'd be practical.

Ok, I'm done being a dick. :o

Personally, I think it's just going to be another way for apple to make money on this 'iTunes' cashcow before the well dries up (see: HP + iPod).

Terrible idea. Worthless.

What we really want, is an upgrade to the Newton. I imagine that the 'iPod' will eventually be that (perhaps years from now).

[dejo]

Please stop calling it iPhone. That name is just too darn corny for me.

Besides, it's not going to be an Apple-branded phone...

[sunilraman]

I wish it was Sony Ericsson instead of Motno, they work together better.

people, listen up :)

if you haven't already, just get yourself a sony ericsson T630 or check it out with a friend of yours that has one.

it is likely once you have experienced it you will enjoy 40-50% of what you think the iPhone will give you, and you will view motorola as rubbish and nokia as a company that has just lost the plot :D

okay, so i will only consider the iphone if it is
something like an iPod mini + sony ericsson T630

even better, when is apple going to come out with
iConsumerCool = iPod + phone + pda
????

when apple when ???

but i understand, the mobile phone market is such a bloody zoo at the moment yet apple has to act on ipod and itunes momentum...

........... :cool:

[gsdali]

Motorolla phone are far from my first choice. I've flitted between Sony Ericsson and Nokia Phone all my mobile life apart from one awful motorlla cancer brick in the mid 90s.

Unless this is something amazing it'll be a Nokia 9300 for me.

In Europe Apple/Moto are going to have trouble selling this phone. Phones are heavily subsidised by the networks; network which are pushing their own Content services, especially music and video services. I imagine that this is not going to be a 3G phone but it will have to be an EDGE/GPRS/GSM phone. This will also not make it popular with networks who are all pushing 3G phones right now, (except 02 here in the UK which is hanging back but already has it's own mp3 player and music download service).

Any downloads are going to incur vanilla data charges which are still quite high on non-business contract and especially in the popular pay as you go market. On my provider (Orange) £4 pm get's you £4 MB a month. Enough for IMAP email headers and a few emails or one song. Unlimited data costs £88.13 a month before you've even bought songs.

What any Mac phone should have though is a good email client, bluetooth (not a Motorola speciality, they still prefer USB cables), a camera that blows away the rest of the market (1 Megapixel is fairly normal now with 1.3 and 2 megapixel cameras also available), an interface taken from the iPod, (so the click wheel has to be there, this would be great on a phone), and the best .Mac and iSync integration.

If the phone is just a rebadged Motorola whatever then Apple will have failed and will have made their biggest mistake since Jobs returned to Apple. However I actually believe that this could be something good, providing motorola have been enablers rather than designers on this project. It may still bomb though without network acceptance, although hopefully moto/apple will be able to cut some revenue sharing deals to enable this.

We'll see though, and let's see if they can coax me away from buying that Nokia.

[AmigoMac]

One of the big deals will be ring tones! Right now they cost 2 or 3 bucks for a hacked up song that kinda sucks. Now we will be able to use any mp3 or iTMS purchased song as the ring and for $.99 for the whole song instead of the rip off that's goin on now.

You can do that already ... just a little iMovie/QT work ;)
My ring tones come from my itunes library...
Hello, Hello! Hola! :)

[Abstract]

I think we can read a bit into this quote:

---
At the event, Jobs took pains to point out that the phone would not compete with Apple's popular iPod music player, but should viewed as an iPod accessory. "Wouldn't it be great if you could take a dozen of your favorite songs with you" on a cell phone, Jobs said at the time.
---

So, a dozen of your favorite songs won't compete with the iPod. What's a dozen songs? Twelve x 4MB? That means 48MB... Let's round that to 64MB? (isn't the iPod buffer 64MB of Flash already?)

This means that the product itself is an iPod accessory where you can move music from the iPod to a Moto phone with iTunes installed with no issues. It's not a new mobile phone, exactly. I mean, he has given you all the info you need ---- "viewed as an iPod accessory". Unless he means that this new mobile IS an iPod accessory, then no, there isn't going to be a new phone coming out designed by Apple, just an iPod accessory that lets you do something that I can't think of at the moment.

Anyway, how would they get the clickwheel to work on a phone? ;)

And although my SE K700i rocks, Moto phones aren't that bad. BT sucks, but it sucks for the Mac the most, which is what most of us use, so what do you expect the response to be on a Mac board concerning Motorola mobile phones, right? My friend has a Moto e398, and it feels solid and takes much better pictures than my SE K700i (and all SE phones in general). The sound coming from it is also amazing.

Too bad about the BT and Mac compatibility issue, though. That, plus the horrid menu system.

[dobbin]

Listening to MP3s on a phone is nothing new. I was doing this about 4 years ago on my Siemens SL45. OK, I had to drag and drop files onto the memory card rather than having itunes syncing, but its hardly revolutionary is it!?

Buying songs over the phone would be a proper leap in technology, but how long would it take to download files unless you had a 3G phone? Is the 3G technology taking off in the US like it is almost doing over here?

What I'd really like is a small clip-on gadget to turn my ipod into a phone. It would be the size of something like an iTrip and could use the battery, screen, processing power of the ipod. Would be neat if it was really small, but I doubt this will be brought out anytime soon.

[macidiot]

As much as I dig the idea of a cell from Apple, I'm going to have a seriously hard time buying into anything from Motorola. It better be God's gift to cell phones for me to get one. I swore I'd never buy a cell from Motorola again. I've gone through 8 of them (5 in the space of 6 months) and they haven't made a quality phone since the first few startacs.

Motorola has good design, terrible engineering. Nokia is pretty much the opposite. My Nokias, in my experience are well made but utterly boring and feature-poor. Motorolas are junk. Sony seems to be somewhere in between.

couple of other things...

why is engadget scooping macrumors on mac rumors?? Lately they seem to be a lot more active in reporting Apple news.

And is anyone else really tired of the i-anything moniker? If I remember correctly, "i" was added to everything to give internet cache. Its so 1997/amazon is going to $400/food processing company watches its stock double in one day after it announces it is entering the web portal business(true story)/I'm 20 with no work experience at all but I just got 50 million in vc for my iBusinessPlan to sell iJunk on the internet. I get that the iMac and iPod are the biggest branded items Apple makes, but do they need to keep beating it to death? Hope they call it the ePhone, the ApplePhone, PowerPhone, G5phone, QuadraPhone, DuoPhone, anything but iPhone.

Personally I like QuadraPhone or PowerPhone. Or maybe DuoCell :D

[Loge]

Interesting to see how the mobile networks react, given that the approach here makes more use of the computer as the hub and improved synchronization that removes much of the need to use their expensive network services. We've seen already networks crippling BT file transfer and use of non-purchased mp3 files as ringtones.

I think the bundling of handsets and contracts will probably end in the next few years as the interests of the phone makers and mobile networks diverge.

[evolu]

Basically you make a device that can connect to any available wifi connection, in which case you can ichat anyone for free. use the integrated camera for video chat.

Also, the iTunes in the phone has you logged in under your .Mac name, and any songs you've purchased under that name are available to stream when in a hotspot. Think of how easily you can stream a sample clip in iTunes. If you're not in a hotspot, your phone uses the installed cellular chip to connect you to your cell network and it's cmda data access capabilities.

Just fantasizing

[Sabenth]

Having just bought a se k700i yes a bit limited via lack of memory stick and the camera isnt as grand as id like but still it dose the job for what i want it to do entertain me and make phone calls on what else do i need.. With the prices as they are on networks at least with the uk ones ill be damed if i setup e mail wap 3g or any other fan dangle bolt on as they call them out here ..

I am happy with the plastic ive already got could do with a memory stick though Come on SE think about it oh and while u at it stick on a firewire port or somthing make the thing the size of a brick again these pocket sized things i keep loosing them down the back of the sofa LMAO

[iamkida]

ok.... the v3 razor by motorola... kick butt phone... doesn't have as many features as the v551. way overpriced... the ring on the phone is quiet compared to the v600 and the v400.... sony ericsson makes some really cool phones... the software on the newer phones is amazingly slow... the s66 for example... great pictures.... you wait forever for it to save the picture.. most phones do offer the same things... some do it better. imho nokia has the fastest software... motorola makes the coolest phones (they are selling faster than any other two companies combined in the store i work at) ... and SE is somewhere in the middle... as for apple/moto... i'm looking forward to that phone or device... apple for the most part does things right so i do believe that they could fix a couple of things that moto doesn't do right... ie.. bluetooth and isync... anyways... that's my 2cents... all i do is work for att/cingular and read all i can about apple.

[slipper]

Im glad this rumor was strong enough to make page 1. Espwcially since i just sold my crappy POS Blackberry 7100T. (what a bunch of wasted hype, its OS is as stable as a virus ridden PC)

I have a feeling this 'iPhone' will be in the smart phone category competing with the Nokia 6230 and 6600 phones and its Symbian OS. The Motorola Razr is a bunch of crap and is only worth maybe a couple hundred at most when people start to realize that there is nothing special about it. I hope the 'iPhone' will have NOTHING to do with it the Razr.

[techgeek]

The internals of almost every mobile have not changed much only the exterior form and features. Phones are easy to design and however its to make it compete with the rest that is a challenge. If it took a re-wire of all the internals on a mobile it would cost more that what you would pay today and most of what you pay today is PROFIT for the companies who make and sell them. :)

I have developed mobile phone software for several big names in the industry and I can tell you the margins are pretty tight!
A new phone is a major project involving hundreds of people. Phones don't get smaller or develop new features by themselves you know. Companies put a lot of resources into development of hardware and software plus all the testing and type aproval that is involved.
Even a trivial development of adding a new camera to an existing phone (and restyling the case) was a 6 month project and at it's peek involved 8 software engineers.
I'm currently working on a new platform that has been in development for the past year and it's going to be at least 6 months to a year before our customers release phones based upon it.

[Powerbook G5]

When I heard this rumor I was a bit upset since I just recently bought a Nokia 6600 through T-Mobile to ditch my horrible Sprint phone. But I realize that I don't see why I'd care. My Nokia has great Bluetooth integration with OS X since I can use it to go online wirelessly in over 100 countries with my PowerBook for wireless internet anywhere there is GSM coverage, which means free internet all in the US and such, perfect iCal syncing and Address book syncing, and I can easily transfer photos to iPhoto and send files to and from my phone simply by the press of a button. Furthermore, I can access my .mac email with my Nokia phone using t-zones right from the homepage when I open my phone's web browser and I can even check the latest Macrumor news as well. I can play mp3s on my phone, I can assign just about any song I want as a ringtone for free by downloading the song I want and transferring it to my phone and with the Symbian OS, my phone has full theme capabilities and 100's of applications I can download to customize its interface. Even with all that, I have a nice quality digital camera, a vga video camera, a voice recorder, and 64 megs of memory with an additional 6 megs internal memory and the capability to expand to a full gig of memory if I so choose. Not bad for a phone I paid only $49 for. Unless Apple can compete against that, I don't see much reason for an iPhone.

One last thing, if anyone has seen those new RAZR phones, they really are crap. They have so much body flex that if you put just a little pressure you can tell it can be broken pretty easily and both the layout of its software is poor and simple things as ring level and speaker volume are pretty poor as well. If this is the best that Motorola can do, then I hope Apple knows what they are getting themselves into.

[savar]

what the H does "itunes" phone even mean?

you can download from iTMS? kinda cool, but why would i pay for 4 megs of cell phone internet transfer fees and wait 25 minutes?

you can sync with itunes? then why carry an ipod? sounds like a bad move for apple.

and it won't be in the high-end price range? yeah right. especially if it has the apple logo on it. hopefully this is more of a licensing thing than a joint venture thing.

why doesn't apple get motorola to build them an ipod/hd-based/PDA phone?

[DamageInc]

One of the big deals will be ring tones! Right now they cost 2 or 3 bucks for a hacked up song that kinda sucks. Now we will be able to use any mp3 or iTMS purchased song as the ring and for $.99 for the whole song instead of the rip off that's goin on now.

Out of all the posts I've read, jholzner is the only one who has mentioned this (I think). In my opinion, all this phone will be is a Motorola phone with a special version of iTunes on it that lets you download songs for 99 cents, use them as your ringtone, and then transfer them to your Mac (or even PC) when you connect via iSync/Sync or iTunes.

I think you guys are getting worked up over very little. What Apple will provide is a much better alternative to the stupid ringtones everyone seems to be buying for $2-$3. This will be marketed toward people who are ringtone buyers. The big advantage, of course, is that you're downloading the whole song, and can then transfer it to your iTunes library, and of course, your iPod - hence the 'iPod accessory" part.

Oh yeah, this is my first post here!

[MacSA]

When will Apple be changing their name from "Apple Computer" to "Apple Electronics" ?

[~Shard~]

When will Apple be changing their name from "Apple Computer" to "Apple Electronincs" ?

I guess whenever they would be able to settle legal matters with the real Apple Electronics (http://www.appleelectronics.com/) for stealing their company name... :p :cool:

[fixyourthinking]

Apple and Motorola should have jointly purchased Danger Inc - the company headed by Steve Wozniak.

They should have taken this phone and its concept - added a secure digital slot (with SDIO so a wifi card could be added) - added Bluetooth and then marketed it to Cingular/AT&T - TMobile - Suncom and international GSM Sim card type phone carriers.

Right now, TMobile is NOT a big enough base for this phone.

I was told by a high ranking exec - the SideKick played a major role in the AT&T purchase since AT&T Wireless carried it.

The sidekick II is an awesome phone - it just doesn't have SDIO or bluetooth.

I hope this is NOT a flip phone - and for the price range - we know it can't be a Moto Razr (which retails for $600)

I currently use a Sony Ericsson T637 - it's perfect for my needs and I use it more for Bluetooth - Salling Clicker - than actual calls.

I also use it as an address book/quasiPDA and as an alarm clock / watch

Apple should try to take the lead and introduce a cameraphone with 4 megapixels and a decent CCD.

Camera phones with this quality are just beginning to sell in Europe with a $200 price tag - so it is within range.

Carriers take the loss on phones to get customers - so Apple/Moto would not have to worry about price - and I'm not sure why it's even being made into an issue.

[zelmo]

Cool. Even if this rumor ends up as Apple simply providing a s/w gateway for a Moto phone to dl iTMS content and/or transfer songs to/from iPod either directly or via a computer, it's a step in the right direction.

i hope this does not mean there will be no flash iPod micro, though. Apple bringing out a sub-$500-market phone that has some flash memory capacity (128, 256 or even 512) does nothing to address the low-end MP3 player market Apple needs to become involved in. People who can't afford a $250 mini are not going to buy a $300 iPhone that has some song capacity, either.
Apple needs to have a flash player that holds 512MB ($119), 1GB ($149), or 2GB ($199) of music. At least one of those, not all three. An iPhone, no matter how cool it is, is not doing anything to tap into this market for Apple.

Can we hope for an iPod micro AND an iPhone at MWSF?

[fixyourthinking]

The iPod was one of the greatest risky moves Apple ever made. Apple tried PDAs, Laser Printers, Scanners, and where are they now? Those creations are all gone. They've learned their lesson and when they made the iPod they were so sure it was going to be a hit. so an iPhone... they can't compete. I do see something like OS X on a phone though. So the phone will use a low end, low power consumption PowerPC processor, maybe a G4; that will run a Mobile OS X. With that, iLife will be integrated in the phone.


Apple didn't actually make Laser Printers, Scanners, and Digital Cameras (I added Quicktake Cameras)

The iPod is an all in house production or at least contracted and designed strictly by Apple.

The Laserwriter II series were HP IIP printers that Apple had HP DESIGN AND BUILD

Some later laserwriters were Canon

Inkjet printers varied from HP (last models) to Canon (first models)

The imagewriter II was almost solely designed by Apple but produced by Panasonic

The Scanners were Canon - these were just a beige plastic instead of white and had an Apple logo - Apple designed the software

The Digital Cameras - first two were Kodak - the Quicktake 200 was NO DIFFERENT than a Fuji Ds7 - just a different software compliment.

Again, the iPod, the iSight, Airport Base Stations- like Macintosh Computers; are all Apple - this iPhone seems like it may be a partnership like the old days. It may even be Apple branded - but it's not really an Apple product - just a remarketing of something.

[SiliconAddict]

Does anyone else think this i crap needs to go? Its so played out its not even cool or even funny anymore. Sure iPod. But come on. Someone at Apple can think up something other then iPhone. ICK.

[XForge]

Not Motorola again. I hope they do better with phones than with the PPC. Given their previous performance against Nokia, I hope they are turning things around or that Apple has significant design/engineering control. ;-)

It has a ton of potential, I just hope Apple ensures that Motorola gets it right!

The last Motorola phone I had was great; the Nokia phone I got from Verizon is a screaming piece of crud. So, YMMV I guess. If the price is right I would totally love to own an iPhone, even though I'm not really a gadget junkie.

[freddiecable]

don't think apple will exclude themselves from other manufacturers by making a "real phone" - but rather include and develop their technology for different manufacturers. living in sweden, having some contact with sonyericsson - I know apple have something going on with them. I can see different brands with apple "content"...

sonyericssons phones has really become useful and enjoyable! there is much difference from only a few years ago...and they are more "appleinspired". the se-ceo is very "pro-apple" and they got more machines from apple at the office...etc

thus - i hope iTMS branded with lots of cellphone-makers...

[Object-X]

I assumed when I read about the new Motorola RAZR V3 and how much marketing strength Motorola is going to put behind it that this IS the iTunes phone. It has Bluetooth and MPEG4 playback capability, and I could swear I read on Motorola's web site that it would play MP3; now I can't find that anywhere.

Is the iPhone going to be the RAZR?

The price is right...$600!! That sounds about right for Apple. It is a sweet phone though. But rest assured, whatever it is it will be expensive.

[Object-X]

Does anyone else think this i crap needs to go? Its so played out its not even cool or even funny anymore. Sure iPod. But come on. Someone at Apple can think up something other then iPhone. ICK.

I agree, but given how much money they are making on the iPod, iThink it is going to stay.

[Object-X]

Please stop calling it iPhone. That name is just too darn corny for me.

Besides, it's not going to be an Apple-branded phone...

I think you're right. Somehow I don't think it will have a little Apple logo on it. Remember the developer's conferrence? They were showing of the new H.264 codec and stated that it can scale down all the way to size of a phone. I think we will see a phone showing off that codec with video capability, or perhaps they will release a phone with iTunes support first and then iMovie when Tiger is released.

[sinisterdesign]

a phone that plays itunes??!? wow! now if only i could get a 60GB HD in there, a great navigation tool....oooo, and a color screen. oh, wait.

i'm very excited about the possibility of an Apple branded mobile, but lukewarm to a motorola w/ AAC support & iTMS download ability. who cares? my DSL at home is much faster than a cell download & it's easier to get onto my iPod from there.

BUT, i don't think apple would do that to us. they know better (right?) hope so.

[toughboy]

I assumed when I read about the new Motorola RAZR V3 and how much marketing strength Motorola is going to put behind it that this IS the iTunes phone. It has Bluetooth and MPEG4 playback capability, and I could swear I read on Motorola's web site that it would play MP3; now I can't find that anywhere.

Is the iPhone going to be the RAZR?

I was going to say the same thing...

Look at the description "sleek and sexy" "with iTunes support" "bluetooth integrated"... These all are telling us little clues about the Razr V3.. Razr is the new iPhone, probably they will put a Apple mark on it and make it Razor V3i or something like that..

[testnull]

I work for Motorola, and I have a few things to say to all of those people who say that "Motorola phones suck". Yes, quality has been a huge issue on Mot phones in the past. I think a lot of this was due to the lack of concern about quality from the top, our previous bozo CEO Chris Galvin. Our new CEO is Ed Zander (formerly from Sun), and he's done a lot to focus on quality. Yes, it's still an issue, but it's one that's being addressed. The build quality of the RAZR is very, very high. I know nothing about any potential Apple / Motorola phone but if it's a reasonably high-end phone like the others we have been producing, it should be a great product.

As for those of you who say that nothing Motorola is allowed in your house: get a life. For the record, we make the softmodem that Apple uses in (AFAIK) all Apple computers, so be sure to order your G5 without a modem. For the rest of you, I hope you evaluate whatever product we come up with on its strengths and then make a reasonable decision. Ed Z and Steve Jobs are big buddies and I'm sure they've worked hard to come up with something that will satisfy both the mac users and the fans of high-end phones.

[cr2sh]

I'm glad to see that (if it is true) Apple is acknowledging the future of personal computers. It may not compete with the iPod now... but it will one day replace it.

[lmalave]

i dont care about itunes support. so far, ive probably downloaded 50 songs. ive never been in a situation where i needed to have a song or cd so badly i'd pull over on the side of the road or stop in my tracks on a walk and downloaded the newest hit.

i just want an apple quality cell phone with a elegant interface that makes syncing that much easier. oh ya, i wont buy anything over $250. and even that is pushing it.

I think you're missing the point. The main point is not to let people buy songs with their phone. The main point is simply to let people play MP3 and AAC files on their phone. In just a couple of years, Apple is going to be facing a huge threat from mobile phones that come equipped with built-in MP3 player and an SD card slot, not to mention a camera. It makes sense for Apple to partner up with a mobile phone company. Apple would provide software (iTunes) and perhaps design expertise. Ideally Apple would be able to work out a co-branding agreement a la Sony Ericsson. Can you say MoPod?

[toughboy]

I work for Motorola, and I have a few things to say to all of those people who say that "Motorola phones suck". Yes, quality has been a huge issue on Mot phones in the past. I think a lot of this was due to the lack of concern about quality from the top, our previous bozo CEO Chris Galvin. Our new CEO is Ed Zander (formerly from Sun), and he's done a lot to focus on quality. Yes, it's still an issue, but it's one that's being addressed. The build quality of the RAZR is very, very high. I know nothing about any potential Apple / Motorola phone but if it's a reasonably high-end phone like the others we have been producing, it should be a great product.

As for those of you who say that nothing Motorola is allowed in your house: get a life. For the record, we make the softmodem that Apple uses in (AFAIK) all Apple computers, so be sure to order your G5 without a modem. For the rest of you, I hope you evaluate whatever product we come up with on its strengths and then make a reasonable decision. Ed Z and Steve Jobs are big buddies and I'm sure they've worked hard to come up with something that will satisfy both the mac users and the fans of high-end phones.


Everyone who says "motorola sucks" should listen this guy.. I've seen low quality phones of Moto too, but things change, destinies change.. Just like Apple did with iMac and iPod.. I saw and tried Razr and V600.. I was a big fan of 7110 once, but my new "god" is Razr.. Motorola will change things, and I hope they will be walking together with Apple..

[virividox]

not really into moto phones but if rumor is true and gets good reviews then imma get one :)

[silvergunuk]

I doubt apple will make a phone with motorola. Maybe a product that you can attach to any phone that will give you atleast 5 gigs of hardrive that you can store your tunes and will be able to play songs bought from the itunes music store or ripped from CD. It will have an itunes built in and even buy songs from the music store and downloaded using the phone line provider. It would have a larger user base than just 1 phone.

[shamino]

you can sync with itunes? then why carry an ipod? sounds like a bad move for apple.
I doubt they're going to put a hard drive in the phone. It's going to store the songs in the phone's flash memory, which won't be able to store more than a very small number.

And even if they did slap in a hard drive (like the 0.85" 4G hard drive from Toshiba), it would add several hundred dollars to the price, and still wouldn't have a click-wheel.

This device won't ever compete against an iPod.

[johnpaul191]

i dont care about itunes support. so far, ive probably downloaded 50 songs. ive never been in a situation where i needed to have a song or cd so badly i'd pull over on the side of the road or stop in my tracks on a walk and downloaded the newest hit.

i just want an apple quality cell phone with a elegant interface that makes syncing that much easier. oh ya, i wont buy anything over $250. and even that is pushing it.

RTFA! it specifically says the phone would be able to connect to a windows/mac desktop machine via cable or bluetooth to transfer files. this makes it sound like they are not (at least for now) pushing it as a mobile way to buy music, just a way to always have some songs with you. it makes it sound like you will use iTunes to transfer some songs or playlists. i'm sure it will support iSync (as Moto phones generally do) so you will also be able to sync iCal and Address Book.

[shamino]

First off, cool! This would be an awesome feature - to be able to play purchased iTMS songs on a phone without jumping through hoops (like burn and re-rip) to convert them to a standard format.

Nobody here has yet pointed out that this venture, if true, will be Apple's first effort to license FairPlay to third parties. It may well be a sign of things to come. (And I'm very glad that Real has absolutely nothing to do with this :) )

But I don't think most of us will ever see this feature. As the Forbes Article says:
That fact has raised concerns among some industry observers that carriers, eager to convince consumers to boost their usage of expensive data networks, might object to phones that don't need a network connection to download music. Those carriers, who are generally very picky about the phones they sell in their retail stores and what features they support, can easily veto a feature they don't like.

One recent and much criticized example is Motorola's V710 mobile phone (see: "A Great Phone, Tied Down"), carried by Verizon Wireless. The carrier required Motorola to disable certain features, such as the ability to sync with a PC via Bluetooth.
Verizon is one of the biggest carriers, and they have a long history of forcing phone manufacturers to cripple their devices.

For instance, my Audiovox 8600 is supposed to be able to receive ring-tones, screen-savers and games via EMS text-messages. Verizon's version of this phone, however, has the entire EMS feature disabled, in order to force you to buy them from their expensive "get it now" service.

I can absolutely guarantee you that if this hypothetical iTunes-phone ever gets built, Verizon will force Motorola to hack the firmware in some way that will force users to load the songs over the air for an additional fee. And if anybody at Motorola or Apple dares object, Verizon will refuse to sell the phone at any price, and may even refuse to activate one you buy on your own.

[testnull]

I can absolutely guarantee you that if this hypothetical iTunes-phone ever gets built, Verizon will force Motorola to hack the firmware in some way that will force users to load the songs over the air for an additional fee. And if anybody at Motorola or Apple dares object, Verizon will refuse to sell the phone at any price, and may even refuse to activate one you buy on your own.

The most likey reason for Verizon to refuse to sell the phone is that it's likely to be a GSM phone. Apple sells to a worldwide market (as does Motorola), and GSM is a multicarrier standard that's easy to support worldwide. While it's not impossible, I highly doubt that this will be a CDMA phone.

[johnpaul191]

I doubt they're going to put a hard drive in the phone. It's going to store the songs in the phone's flash memory, which won't be able to store more than a very small number.

And even if they did slap in a hard drive (like the 0.85" 4G hard drive from Toshiba), it would add several hundred dollars to the price, and still wouldn't have a click-wheel.

This device won't ever compete against an iPod.

i think you are right. cameraphones didn't destroy the digital camera market. in the article Job says how it would be nice to always have a dozen of your favorite songs with you. i'm sure it will hold more than a dozen, but probably not 2,000 songs.

the Moto V720 now lets you put MP3 files on the flash card and listen to them via speakerphone or use them as ringtones. i am guessing this phone will take it a step farther (speculate away), and support Apple's DRM?

it will be interesting to see how much effect Apple has on the phone overall... if anything. Phones have been able to carry and play MP3 files for a while. some even have stereo headphones so they are a dual purpose device. maybe this will be like that? maybe it will link into a car to listen to songs and that would be the driving hands free model as an accessory kit. who knows. you could guess and dream all day, but at the very least we can probably assume the phone will support songs bought at iTMS?

[johnpaul191]

...... Ideally Apple would be able to work out a co-branding agreement a la Sony Ericsson. Can you say MoPod?


that's funny you mention that since their bluetooth phones seem to be the most fun with OS X.

remember a few months ago when Apple had a job posting looking for someone to hire to the iPod division that has wireless experience? maybe this is related to that? iPod + bluetooth syncing + cell phone

makes more sense than trying to sync a 40 gig iPod over bluetooth.

[wdlove]

Does anyone else think this i crap needs to go? Its so played out its not even cool or even funny anymore. Sure iPod. But come on. Someone at Apple can think up something other then iPhone. ICK.

I happen to like the i designation that Apple uses. We still have the iPod, iPhoto, and iBook. So the more the merrier.

[shamino]

The most likey reason for Verizon to refuse to sell the phone is that it's likely to be a GSM phone. Apple sells to a worldwide market (as does Motorola), and GSM is a multicarrier standard that's easy to support worldwide. While it's not impossible, I highly doubt that this will be a CDMA phone.
Motorola makes all kinds of phones, including CDMA.

What makes you think they would not put this feature into a CDMA phone? It's not like the wireless technology has anything to do with it, since the songs would be loaded via USB cable or BlueTooth.

It's more likely that they'll test market the feature in one model, using one carrier, and the wireless tech used will be whatever that one carrier uses. If it sells well, they'll likely incorporate it into several subsequent models, using a wide variety of technologies.

But if a Verizon customer wants to use it, he's going to have to buy it on his own, at full price. Because Verizon is a bunch of money-grubbing pigs.

[dongmin]

Just to be clear, Apple's original partnership with Motorola was to involve software, NOT HARDWARE. So everyone expecting an 'iphone' will be disappointed. This guy Eddy Cue is in charge of applications at Apple. If Apple was making a new gadget, you'd expect it to come out of the iPod group. Apple may have some input on how Moto is designing this new iTunes-enabled phone, but I don't think Apple is actually doing the design.

Also, if you look at the original announcement, Apple is explicitly saying that they are writing 'a new iTunes mobile music player.' What I'm reading from this is that iTunes Mobile was do more than just play music. Apple doesn't call the iPod software 'iTunes' lite because all it does is play music. So if they're calling this app iTunes, I'm thinking it'll have some feature that allows you to connect to the music store. A bit of speculation on my part.

[SiliconAddict]

I also find it somewhat telling:

In true Apple style, Cue declined to say whether Jobs will indeed address the phone at that event. "What we've talked about is a something that is valuable for the mass market," Cue says. "It has to be a phone in the middle-tier of the market, not a $500-tier phone. It has to be very seamless to use. And we're very happy with the results."

So we could be seeing a relatively cheap Apple phone on the horizon. All I ask is please for the love of all that is good no shiny metal.

[jmsait19]

And I actually know two people just like that: both my parents. My dad has an extensive music collection, and loves to ride his bycicle to keep fit. Just imagine: he's actually thinking of getting *A CD PLAYER* to listen to music while riding his bike! :eek: Sure, I could tell him "WTF? Go buy a Rio instead!", but I'd rather tell him "WTF? Go buy an iPod flash instead!". He doesn't like dealing with cumbersome configuration processess, so I guess iTunes would be the right choice for him :rolleyes:. And I could easily imagine him lusting over a 60GB iPod, which wouldn't probably hold his 100+ CD collection, but would be a great way for him to listen to it on vacation, for instance... I already told him about the iPod, I even showed off my 3G 20GB, but I'm not insisting, as I didn't get much feedback, and I don't want to become tiresome and too much of an "iPod evangelist"... However, I think an iPod flash would be the deal clincher!

And my mom... Oh, I know she would go crazy if she had a mini. But she thinks they're too expensive. Not anymore, if there were three iPods in the house :D

See I don't understand why you can't ride your bike with a normal iPod. I do it with my 3G. i just clip it on my pants and it works great.

[maya]

I have developed mobile phone software for several big names in the industry and I can tell you the margins are pretty tight!
A new phone is a major project involving hundreds of people. Phones don't get smaller or develop new features by themselves you know. Companies put a lot of resources into development of hardware and software plus all the testing and type aproval that is involved.
Even a trivial development of adding a new camera to an existing phone (and restyling the case) was a 6 month project and at it's peek involved 8 software engineers.
I'm currently working on a new platform that has been in development for the past year and it's going to be at least 6 months to a year before our customers release phones based upon it.

You are forgetting about licensing the hardware technology to other companies. I know QualComm licenses it technology hardware to many companies such as LG, AudioVox, etc.... :)

[maya]

So how about AppleTalk 2100 Series for a phone name? ;)

How about iTalk for a name for this? :)

[maya]

I also find it somewhat telling:



So we could be seeing a relatively cheap Apple phone on the horizon. All I ask is please for the love of all that is good no shiny metal.

The shell of the phone is most likely going to be made of "ionized aluminum ". The iBook has this for the latch, mini, iPod has it on its HOLD button, the PMG5. Need I say more Apple always incorporated new materials in they todays designs as a guideline. :)

[testnull]

Motorola makes all kinds of phones, including CDMA.

I'm well aware of the type of phones that we make.

What makes you think they would not put this feature into a CDMA phone? It's not like the wireless technology has anything to do with it, since the songs would be loaded via USB cable or BlueTooth.

It's more likely that they'll test market the feature in one model, using one carrier, and the wireless tech used will be whatever that one carrier uses. If it sells well, they'll likely incorporate it into several subsequent models, using a wide variety of technologies.


My hypothesis is that there's been much more Apple involvement with this project than was originally planned. Consider the difference between the original HP iPod prototype (the ugly blue thing that Carly was showing off at CES) and what eventually came out. Ostensibly the motive was that the 4G iPod had just arrived and so HP wanted that - but Apple knew that the 4G iPod was coming, so they could have planned around that. Rather, I think Apple wanted more control over the product, and wanted to make it an Apple product "from HP", which is why the current product is obviously an Apple iPod, that happens to have a HP logo silkscreened on the back and in the firmware.

But if a Verizon customer wants to use it, he's going to have to buy it on his own, at full price. Because Verizon is a bunch of money-grubbing pigs.

It sounds like you have a beef with Verizon (so do I) and so you've convinced yourself that it WILL be coming out with Verizon. Given the number of CDMA phones we make relative to the number of GSM phones, and the fact that a CDMA phone can't be sold outside the States, I'd consider it to be much more likely that it's a GSM phone and not a CDMA phone. Of course, it's not impossible that it's CDMA, but if it is, I would bet that a GSM version would soon follow anyway for the simple reason that GSM is the worldwide standard.

There is a name for what you're doing and it's called "catastrophic thinking" by psychologists. Avoid it if you can; it's not healthy. ;)

[brap]

Frickin' huge news. I can't wait.

No, seriously, I need a new telephone now. It seems all the rumours and snips of informaiton are finally coming together. Awesome!

[PBGPowerbook]

okay, so i will only consider the iphone if it is
something like an iPod mini + sony ericsson T630

I could not have said it better!!!!

[fudgebrown]

if this were an add on to the iPod - will it work with the current iPod line? I'm simply posing the question, since i would hate to get a new iPod AGAIN!

[173080]

Gah, just when I was about to buy a Razr V3.

Now I'll have to wait until it's announced.
Quite honestly I don't care about all the "cool" features and crap. I just want a phone that can make/receive calls, looks awesome, has an aluminum frame and the price tag is in the $500+ range to keep it somewhat exclusive (Even though apparently it's in the $300 range :( ). The Razr V3 looks like it can do that, but if two companies I love are making a phone (Apple + Motorola) then I am forced to wait.

I just hope they make that phone out of Aluminum, like the Nokia 8890 or Motorola Razr V3. Like PowerBooks. It makes or kills the phone IMO. Its essential. :cool:

If they took the Razr V3, made some cool Apple OSX-like interface, changed the keypad backlight to white and slapped some Apple logos here and there it would be THE phone to get. BMW integration would be nice too (being able to answer and hang up from the steering wheel controls).

[Lord Blackadder]

*yawn*, I don't use a cell phone, though I'm probably the only one here.

Apple has always been a top-notch hardware design/engineering company, so this will probably be another feather in their corporate cap.

[taeclee99]

Gah, just when I was about to buy a Razr V3.

If they took the Razr V3, made some cool Apple OSX-like interface, changed the keypad backlight to white and slapped some Apple logos here and there it would be THE phone to get. BMW integration would be nice too (being able to answer and hang up from the steering wheel controls).

I've had the razr for about two months. As a phone, it works perfectly fine. The call quality is superb. The phone's design is gorgeous. However, the built in camera is utterly useless. The picture quality is atrocious. The phone-book is an absolute joke. If a contact has more than one phone number, you have to create separate entries for each. The OS is really slow. It is the same OS as on Motorola's v5-6X line of phones.
Also, there are no memory card slots on the phone, the phone itself has about 5.5 megs of free memory. So, forget about using itunes on it in the future.

If I were you, I would wait until the next revision of the razr. Hopefully, motorola will ditch the awful OS which in my opinion cripples this beautiful phone and replace it with a more modern one like Windows Mobile.

[173080]

I've had the razr for about two months. As a phone, it works perfectly fine. The call quality is superb. The phone's design is gorgeous. However, the built in camera is utterly useless. The picture quality is atrocious. The phone-book is an absolute joke. If a contact has more than one phone number, you have to create separate entries for each. The OS is really slow. It is the same OS as on Motorola's v5-6X line of phones.
Also, there are no memory card slots on the phone, the phone itself has about 5.5 megs of free memory. So, forget about using itunes on it in the future.

If I were you, I would wait until the next revision of the razr. Hopefully, motorola will ditch the awful OS which in my opinion cripples this beautiful phone and replace it with a more modern one like Windows Mobile.

That's exactly why I would like the Razr. I don't want those useless features, I will never use the built-in camera. I will never use PDA features on a phone, I don't want to save files on it so the lack of expansion cards and the 5.5MB of memory is more than enough. I will have no more than 10 entries on the address book so that's not an issue. In fact, the color screen is overkill. The only thing I will use it for will be to put a nice BMW wallpaper on it. I won't listen to music on it either, I have an iPod mini and B&O Earphones for that. I will probably make about 5 calls a month. I just want a nice phone that looks awesome and is made out of aluminum.

None of your complaints apply to any of my needs or expectations on a cell phone. The Razr V3 is fine as it is for me. I just want to see what Apple and Motorola come up with before I buy one.

[parrothead]

Hopefully this phone is GSM. There are far too few GSM phones available in the US market. Also, hopefully this phone will be easier to use than my last stinker of a Motorola.

[SLCentral]

In the past two years, I've gone through a dozen plus cell phones, and currently I'm using the Motorola v80, probably the most stylish phone I've ever seen, and in my mind, totally kicks the Razr's ass. It's pretty much the same thing as the V600, which has its problems, but if you took a phone like that, added a memory card slot, changed the UI/OS, and do a few minor exterior tweaks, you have a iPhone right there :).

[Stewie]

an Apple phone? this is gonna be cool. my contract w/ AT&T is about to expire. i think i'll wait for this one. hopefully it's a GSM phone.

I dont' see where it would be anything but a GSM phone.
So I guess sprint, verizon and nextel will be left out in the cold.

[Stewie]

[QUOTE=shamino]Motorola makes all kinds of phones, including CDMA.

What makes you think they would not put this feature into a CDMA phone? It's not like the wireless technology has anything to do with it, since the songs would be loaded via USB cable or BlueTooth.QUOTE]

Doesn't Verizon disable all bluetooth functions forcing you to pay them to transfer files to and from the phone?

[Stewie]

When I heard this rumor I was a bit upset since I just recently bought a Nokia 6600 through T-Mobile to ditch my horrible Sprint phone. But I realize that I don't see why I'd care. My Nokia has great Bluetooth integration with OS X since I can use it to go online wirelessly in over 100 countries with my PowerBook for wireless internet anywhere there is GSM coverage, which means free internet all in the US and such, perfect iCal syncing and Address book syncing, and I can easily transfer photos to iPhoto and send files to and from my phone simply by the press of a button. Furthermore, I can access my .mac email with my Nokia phone using t-zones right from the homepage when I open my phone's web browser and I can even check the latest Macrumor news as well. I can play mp3s on my phone, I can assign just about any song I want as a ringtone for free by downloading the song I want and transferring it to my phone and with the Symbian OS, my phone has full theme capabilities and 100's of applications I can download to customize its interface. Even with all that, I have a nice quality digital camera, a vga video camera, a voice recorder, and 64 megs of memory with an additional 6 megs internal memory and the capability to expand to a full gig of memory if I so choose. Not bad for a phone I paid only $49 for. Unless Apple can compete against that, I don't see much reason for an iPhone.

One last thing, if anyone has seen those new RAZR phones, they really are crap. They have so much body flex that if you put just a little pressure you can tell it can be broken pretty easily and both the layout of its software is poor and simple things as ring level and speaker volume are pretty poor as well. If this is the best that Motorola can do, then I hope Apple knows what they are getting themselves into.

I only wish my Nokia 6620 worked as well as the 6600. I am hoping apple fixes isync to work with the newer symbian phones soon.

[cubist]

When you realize that mobile carriers subsidize expensive phones with contracts.

False. The phone prices are only slightly less than prices in Europe, where phones are sold unlocked. Yet I can't even pay extra in the US to get an unlocked phone. The carriers are ripping off US consumers. No big surprise there.

[MattB]

CDMA Verizon PLEASE!!! Lord knows Verizon could use an awesome BT phone!!

[applekid]

Hello, Moto! :)

I bought Motorola stock waiting for something show up about the iTunes partnership. I got more than I bargained for :)

I may have to replace my phone as well. As long as Verizon is compatible.

[ccrandall77]

Like a lot of people here, I'm not very happy with the choice of Motorola to produce this phone. I've owned 2 Moto phones; a StarTac, and a V600. My recent experience with the V600 was horrible. The dial-up networking was disabled (you needed to pay $60 for the connection kit) and the contact application was really bad (although not quite as bad as Nokia's).

I just hope that this phone is:

1.) Slim
2.) Expandable with standard memory cards like SD
3.) Has bluetooth and supports multiple, simultaneous connection
4.) Apple PIM-style applications
5.) Seamless integration with iSync
6.) Can run Salling Clicker (if you have a Mac and a Palm, or Symbian or Sony Phone... download the trial... it's AWESOME)
7.) EDGE support
8.) If possible, a real OS like Symbian or Linux (with the Palm layer)

It'd be really cool if they upgraded the A630 to meet these requirements... the keypad is excellent for SMS. And if it ran Symbian, I could load Putty on it so I could log into work via SSH.

But, I think if it met all these requirements, the phone would be priced in the $400+ range and I doubt Apple wants to do that.

[noel4r]

Apparently, Apple is furious about this leak and they filed a suit against whoever is responsible.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=575&ncid=738&e=12&u=/nm/20041217/wr_nm/tech_apple_dc

[nagromme]

*yawn*, I don't use a cell phone, though I'm probably the only one here.

You're not. I don't use one--and I wish my friends/contacts didn't either! Not with quality being so spotty. It's really annoying.

The benefits are obvious, and I'm sure someday I'll get one. But from contracts to connection issues to coverage area, I have yet to hear of anyone getting an experience from a mobile phone that I'd find acceptable. (I'm in the US of course.)

[appleface]

so, will bluetooth headfones be available for the ipod? can i listen to my ipod and hear the phone ring? is there a mic built into my bluetooth headfones?

i can't wait :)

[slipper]

I work for Motorola, and I have a few things to say to all of those people who say that "Motorola phones suck". Yes, quality has been a huge issue on Mot phones in the past. I think a lot of this was due to the lack of concern about quality from the top, our previous bozo CEO Chris Galvin. Our new CEO is Ed Zander (formerly from Sun), and he's done a lot to focus on quality. Yes, it's still an issue, but it's one that's being addressed. The build quality of the RAZR is very, very high. I know nothing about any potential Apple / Motorola phone but if it's a reasonably high-end phone like the others we have been producing, it should be a great product.

As for those of you who say that nothing Motorola is allowed in your house: get a life. For the record, we make the softmodem that Apple uses in (AFAIK) all Apple computers, so be sure to order your G5 without a modem. For the rest of you, I hope you evaluate whatever product we come up with on its strengths and then make a reasonable decision. Ed Z and Steve Jobs are big buddies and I'm sure they've worked hard to come up with something that will satisfy both the mac users and the fans of high-end phones.
i totally agree with you as far as quality of Motorola phones. It has improved big time over the past 1 or 2 years. as far as the RAZR, theres absolutely nothing great about it. the nokia 6600 and 6230 pisses all over it.

[StarbucksSam]

False. The phone prices are only slightly less than prices in Europe, where phones are sold unlocked. Yet I can't even pay extra in the US to get an unlocked phone. The carriers are ripping off US consumers. No big surprise there.

I fully agree. I hate having to get a new contract to get a non-ridiculous price on a phone.

[autopilot]

...and the fact that a CDMA phone can't be sold outside the States...

is that a fact? i'm on bell mobility in canada and i believe it's a cdma network... please correct me if i'm wrong though.

PLEASE don't make me go back to fido or to (gulp) rogers for an apple gsm phone...

[Powerbook G5]

I think he meant North America and not just the States. Sprint and Verizon have some coverage spots in Canada and Mexico as well. It's just within the North American continent that we seem to pride ourselves at going against the global standard. All I can say is that now that I have switched to GSM with T-Mobile, I will never go back. I get such better reception and the technology is just years ahead of what Sprint has been pawning off on its customers. Not to mention I just have to pop my SIM chip into any phone and it'll work instead of the hassle of paying a new activation fee and going through customer service and all that just to upgrade and the ability to make a call when I go out of the country.

[testnull]

is that a fact? i'm on bell mobility in canada and i believe it's a cdma network... please correct me if i'm wrong though.

PLEASE don't make me go back to fido or to (gulp) rogers for an apple gsm phone...
Oops. I forgot that the rest of the continent is as backwards as we are in that respect :)

[FelixDerKater]

Does anyone else think this i crap needs to go? Its so played out its not even cool or even funny anymore. Sure iPod. But come on. Someone at Apple can think up something other then iPhone. ICK.

Do you have a better name to propose?

[~Shard~]

Do you have a better name to propose?

He may not, but I'm sure that Apple will in the end.... ;)

[AT71]

I'm not keeping my hopes high on this one. It could be just a Motorola phone and an Apple iTunes Lite for mobile phones.

I don't think Motorola phones suck. Just some design issues. But I believe that Motorola has improved their offerings. As why an Apple/Motorola collaboration, I guess it's all American.

But it's an Apple branded mobile, it would be nice to see what Apple comes up with. I still love the Wristomo but it only works in Japan and already out-of-production.

[theROZ]

remember the wwdc when that guy spoke about the new compression format...hd to cellphone!!!! quicktime on your cellphone is coming....

voice activated spotlight technology??? call dave at 2 and make a note about the meeting on tuesday..


safari built in...whoa...

[Philsy]

My concern here is that the US has long lagged behind the rest of the world with its mobile phone technology - it's only just getting to grips with GSM, while the rest of us are moving to 3G.

The iPhone (for want of a better name) needs to be 3G to appeal to a worldwide market. It would also then have the ability to download music from the iTunes Music Store, which would make it a winner with the youth market. If it usess 2G technology it'll be dead in the water outside the US.

[sluthy]

I don't know what you're talking about CDMA at the top of this page, because my Dad just bought a new CDMA phone here in Australia to use out when fishing and places because it has better coverage in remote areas than GSM. There's not many CDMA phones available but there's a reasonable selection.

[alex69]

My concern here is that the US has long lagged behind the rest of the world with its mobile phone technology - it's only just getting to grips with GSM, while the rest of us are moving to 3G.

The iPhone (for want of a better name) needs to be 3G to appeal to a worldwide market. It would also then have the ability to download music from the iTunes Music Store, which would make it a winner with the youth market. If it usess 2G technology it'll be dead in the water outside the US.

It doesn't need to be 3G to appeal. First of all, why would Apple/Moto develop a 3G phone that couldn't be used widely in the US? Secondly, the reason why 3G is (finally) taking off in the UK where you are, so your perspective may be skewed to the local situation, isn't because of the multimedia capabilities, but because of voice. Yes, voice is still the killer application on phones and some of the tariffs on 3G phones are really cheap - that's why people are switching to them. Just because operators are pushing sports highlights, movie trailers, news, and other services that will make them more profitable, that doesn't mean that that's why people are buying the 3G phones or how they are using them.

[sunilraman]

that's funny you mention that since their bluetooth phones seem to be the most fun with OS X.

sony ericsson all the way !! woot woot woot :D

[sunilraman]

I could not have said it better!!!!

right on, brotha...!!!!

apple, if it please you, iPhone = sony ericsson t630 + ipod Mini !!!!

**prepares for flames for wanking on too much about SE phones :rolleyes:

[Philsy]

right on, brotha...!!!!

apple, if it please you, iPhone = sony ericsson t630 + ipod Mini !!!!

**prepares for flames for wanking on too much about SE phones :rolleyes:

Leaving wanking out of it :p , I agree that Sony Ericsson phones are presently the most Apple friendly.

Still maintain that Apple needs to go down the 3G route - the obvious choice for a forward-thinking company - remember when they dared to offer Macs with USB for the first time? ;)

[shamino]

Doesn't Verizon disable all bluetooth functions forcing you to pay them to transfer files to and from the phone?
Go back and read my first post in this thread.

Most carriers disable all kinds of features in order to force you to pay for services that should be free. Verizon is one of the worst examples, but they aren't the only one.

But this has nothing to do with the post I was replying to, where the OP claimed that the new Motorola phone would be GSM-only.

[shamino]

My concern here is that the US has long lagged behind the rest of the world with its mobile phone technology - it's only just getting to grips with GSM, while the rest of us are moving to 3G.

The iPhone (for want of a better name) needs to be 3G to appeal to a worldwide market. It would also then have the ability to download music from the iTunes Music Store, which would make it a winner with the youth market. If it usess 2G technology it'll be dead in the water outside the US.
You seem to be under the insane impression that Motorola has to pick one technology and refuse to support everything else.

What is there to prevent Motorola from putting iTunes compatibility into several different phones, using several different technologies.

The fact that you are only interested in the one your carrier uses doesn't mean thre's no money to be made in everything else.

[shamino]

Still maintain that Apple needs to go down the 3G route - the obvious choice for a forward-thinking company - remember when they dared to offer Macs with USB for the first time? ;)
Why does Apple have to do anything? They're not making the phones, and they probably never will.

[Philsy]

You seem to be under the insane impression that Motorola has to pick one technology and refuse to support everything else.

What is there to prevent Motorola from putting iTunes compatibility into several different phones, using several different technologies.

The fact that you are only interested in the one your carrier uses doesn't mean thre's no money to be made in everything else.

Fair point in that Motorola could use different technologies, but I'm far from insane and I didn't say I was only interested in the one my carrier uses. Rather, I said that any such phone that Apple is linked with (whatever it's branded) should take advantage of the latest technology, which is 3G. That would then give the capability for people to purchase and download music from iTunes using their phone.

[Mechcozmo]

remember the wwdc when that guy spoke about the new compression format...hd to cellphone!!!! quicktime on your cellphone is coming....

"that guy" is Steve Jobs, aka, CEO of Apple. Makers of the Macintosh.


voice activated spotlight technology??? call dave at 2 and make a note about the meeting on tuesday..

There was an Apple product called the Newton that did something to that effect. You would write "Lunch with Bob at noon" and then tap on a button called "Assist". It would then look up Bob in your address book, and schedule an appointment with him at 12:00 the next day with the title "Lunch".

[nagromme]

That would be a bummer if this was another analagous situation as with the hp branded iPod. Just stick another company's sticker on the product and sell it at a few new stores. YAWN.
As "bummers" go, the HP deal is pretty profitable ;)

[afields]

I wonder if I should hold off in buying the sony ericsson k700.... :confused:

[rohitp]

Yup - both sitting in my closet here. Haven't used them for 2-3 years now... OK. OK. There actually was a company called InfoGear that made an "iPhone" (TM) It as a nice 2 line desktop phone with internet connection/small screen built in - is pretty cool actually and many still use them to check e-mails/stocks/quick websites -- easily.

The the big bad bear came to town - one named CISCO - and acquired InfoGear. As they did with 90% of their purchases whant they were in the bubble buying spree... they did NOTHING with it and development just died. At least the thing still works through an ISP named Big Planet.

So, my guess is that unless Apple pays $$$ to CISCO, the name "iPhone" is out.

[iMan]

Everyone is trying to figure out how Apple is going to make a flash based iPod - based on a lot of rumors of them buying large quantities of the stuff...

How about if the flash iPod in fact is the iPhone... ? It would make sense to use flash-memory in a gadget like this... maybe with the new AAC plus technology (would make sense if they could then squeeze more tunes in less space).. maybe even with the Sirius satelite radio...

[zelmo]

Everyone is trying to figure out how Apple is going to make a flash based iPod - based on a lot of rumors of them buying large quantities of the stuff...

How about if the flash iPod in fact is the iPhone... ? It would make sense to use flash-memory in a gadget like this... maybe with the new AAC plus technology (would make sense if they could then squeeze more tunes in less space).. maybe even with the Sirius satelite radio...

I think that Apple is just helping Moto out with s/w development on the alleged iPhone. Mostly, I'm hoping that Apple is in control of iTunes integration and is developing the GUI/OS. Moto needs help developing an intuitive GUI.
Assuming that there really is going to be a Moto/Apple phone that plays iTunes music, and maybe even has the ability to dl songs from the iTMS, I still think Apple is best served by developing and releasing a flash iPod micro. At $300 or so, the iPhone would be in the same price range as the iPod and mini, and isn't going to attract all that many people looking for a less costly solution for their portable music. Yes, a phone that plays music will be attractive, particularly to those who want a single device for both and don't need to cart all their music around with them everyehere they go. OTOH, if I can't afford $300 for an iPod, or I already have a phone with a contract, then I'm not interested in an iPhone.
These two devices do have some crossover, but they each primarily serve their own market.

[transistor]

I'm not keeping my hopes high on this one. It could be just a Motorola phone and an Apple iTunes Lite for mobile phones.

I agree. I certainly hope that Apple does indeed have something to do with the operating system of Motorola cellphones, but I don't see that happening.
Apple designing an operating system for someone else?

[MAC@LEX]

First version : I think that probably it's will be a Motorola phone series E that, almost like E398 but with iTunes on it.
Why? Because Black Eyed Peas - Let's get it started were used by Moto and Apple at the same time to promote their products iTunes+iPod (iMac G5 intro) and Moto used them to promote E398 include in their video clip.
Second version: Motorola will release next version of their phone series E that will actually compatible with Apple iPod, so you just stick it in the FireWire slot and it transfers on the your phone your favorite songs lib, bluetooth is too slow for that kind stuff.
--
I use SE P900 256Mb Memory Stick DUO (50 songs) with Ogg player and use iTunes on the PB and the only problem for me is sync the lib, it's slow. :(

[davecuse]

What I would ideally like to see in an iPhone...

1. BlueTooth module
2. Wireless iSync
3. iTunes Remote (Salling Clickeresque for Airport Express)
4. iPhoto integration (with 5 megapixel digicam built in)
5. iCal and Address Book
6. Maybe iChat (Sidekick style)

I think they could probably make that similarly sized to an iPod, maybe slightly bigger, but definitely something that I would purchase.

[hob]

What I would ideally like to see in an iPhone...

1. BlueTooth module
2. Wireless iSync
3. iTunes Remote (Salling Clickeresque for Airport Express)
4. iPhoto integration (with 5 megapixel digicam built in)
5. iCal and Address Book
6. Maybe iChat (Sidekick style)

I think they could probably make that similarly sized to an iPod, maybe slightly bigger, but definitely something that I would purchase.

Well, I'm happy using my Sony Ericsson T630 - it even LOOKS like an iPhone, with it's white cover....

1. Done
2. Done
3. Salling clicker
4. Ok, the camera sucks
5. Done
6. One day... though I hear you can do it on PC...

Hob

[hob]

I think he meant North America and not just the States. Sprint and Verizon have some coverage spots in Canada and Mexico as well. It's just within the North American continent that we seem to pride ourselves at going against the global standard. All I can say is that now that I have switched to GSM with T-Mobile, I will never go back. I get such better reception and the technology is just years ahead of what Sprint has been pawning off on its customers. Not to mention I just have to pop my SIM chip into any phone and it'll work instead of the hassle of paying a new activation fee and going through customer service and all that just to upgrade and the ability to make a call when I go out of the country.
Why IS GSM such a big deal? I think it was all hip and cool in the UK about... 9 years ago? Back when Nokia phones would gave their funky GSM logo stamped on the front of their phones (see Nokia 5100 - my dad had one!)

Is it because the companies don't want to pay to upgrade every single non-gsm part of the country? (I don't have much knowledge here - help me out?) I would think this should come first, before they start talking about... what was it called? EDGE? Hi-speed stuff like that...

Hob

[MAC@LEX]

Forget about transfer on the phone mp3 files over Bluetooth, 256Mb it’s will take over 3 hours and will drain the phone battery to 0. Believe me, I’m using SE P900 and it’s sucks to transfer over Bluetooth mp3 files, really slow.

[iMan]

Why IS GSM such a big deal? I think it was all hip and cool in the UK about... 9 years ago? Back when Nokia phones would gave their funky GSM logo stamped on the front of their phones (see Nokia 5100 - my dad had one!)

Is it because the companies don't want to pay to upgrade every single non-gsm part of the country? (I don't have much knowledge here - help me out?) I would think this should come first, before they start talking about... what was it called? EDGE? Hi-speed stuff like that...

Hob

GSM is being phased out even in Europe in coming years. New standard should be the 3G net (UMTS) - which is already big in Japan and other areas of Asia. Multiplying the bandwith, so TV and videochat on the cell is a breeze - even opens up the possibility for downloading high quality music of course... :)

[davecuse]

Well, I'm happy using my Sony Ericsson T630 - it even LOOKS like an iPhone, with it's white cover....

1. Done
2. Done
3. Salling clicker
4. Ok, the camera sucks
5. Done
6. One day... though I hear you can do it on PC...

Hob

I forgot two

7. Works as a WiFi VoIP Phone when in the vicinity of my network. (to reduce airtime charges)
8. Carried by Verizon

[rdowns]

I forgot two

7. Works as a WiFi VoIP Phone when in the vicinity of my network. (to reduce airtime charges)
8. Carried by Verizon

Surely you jest. Can you hear me now?

[jkung]

The only reason Apple should release a Cell Phone is if they can complete out-do the competition convincingly. Kinda like what they did with the Ipod or PBs way back in the day. (firewire when it was new, etc)

SO i think they need to have at least these features:

1)Design- Must look SHARP and Apple-esque. Ipod Phone basically.

2)Some form of removable storage

3) a "smart phone" OS that will work with osx

4) mini iTunes software

5)....this is the most important one......at least a 2 megapixel camera on the phone. if they really wanna stun us, a 3 megapixel (not likely) the 5 mega pixel is even less likely i think as mentioned above. Sharp and Sony and even Samsung all have this feature. SO......

Ichat and all that would be based on the network so that would vary by continent so i would be too upset if they ommitted the iLife suite....but it should be part of the future development of the product..

That would be the must have toy of next year. Cool phone (triband gsm) iTunes, Apple design, and a sick camera. replaces the point and shoot, as well as simple PDA and a phone.....PERFECT.......

[jmerk]

imagine the audio abilities of the iPod AND a phone built TOGETHER. in other words, you DON'T have two, three or four devices but ONE.
i have a SE T616 and I love the bluetooth functionality, salling clicker, etc. but the camera is a joke and there is no aac/audio functionality. if i could smash it together with my iPod i would be ECSTATIC because i hate having keys, a wallet, my phone, an iPod, a digital camera...et cetera in my pockets!

people have made the point that Apple is going to be facing huge competition in the near future being that many phones can play .mp3 files NOW. if someone else made a phone that could store 4GB of music on it and worked with iTunes/aac, i wouldn't even have an iPod. if apple doesn't leverage their market dominance now, then they are going to lose out...again.

the other point that people are missing that just got mentioned is that GPRS EDGE and UMTS are MUCH faster and will make downloading a song DIRECTLY to the phone a reality. not a ringtone, a full-length, .aac audio file.

apple really only has two options, build their own proprietary phone OR, make a deal with cell phone manufacturers to license iTunes and iPod functionality to them to have them integrate it into their phones. how did their last round of proprietary computing decisions work out? (3% marketshare).

imagine: a bluetooth phone (with Salling Clicker) that works with iSync, an integrated hard drive and iTunes, GPRS EDGE and UMTS for SUPER FAST connectivity to the internet. sit down with a super slim laptop anywhere and dial into your phone in your bag or pocket and iChat and e-mail on your computer (where you can actually use a QWERTY keyboard that is built at human scale and has a screen that you can see). then, later go for a run with your phone/iPod and have your music and communication with you!

digital camera tech keeps getting smaller and smaller as do hard drives and phone connectivity keeps getting faster...isn't it logical that these devices will merge?

lmalave made the best point.
"The main point is not to let people buy songs with their phone. The main point is simply to let people play MP3 and AAC files on their phone. In just a couple of years, Apple is going to be facing a huge threat from mobile phones that come equipped with built-in MP3 player and an SD card slot, not to mention a camera. It makes sense for Apple to partner up with a mobile phone company. Apple would provide software (iTunes) and perhaps design expertise.

[porkCHOP]

I found this online? anyone seen this picture yet.?
seems to be a page from a magazine.
http://www.shampoopoo.com/pictures/iphone.jpg[/IMG]
CLICK HERE (http://www.shampoopoo.com/pictures/iphone.jpg)

[hob]

I found this online? anyone seen this picture yet.?
seems to be a page from a magazine.
http://www.shampoopoo.com/pictures/iphone.jpg[/IMG]
CLICK HERE (http://www.shampoopoo.com/pictures/iphone.jpg)

I'd love that to be true, but according to this source (http://news.mobile9.com/2004/06/sony-ericsson-iphone-wishlist/),

Ever wonder what happens if Sony Ericsson and iPod is to work together? This ‘iPhone’ has everything of Sony Ericsson T610 but with iPod’s directional pad. The image comes from the wish-list of iCreate, a Macintosh magazine.

Sorry,
Hob

[edwardcheah]

I found this online? anyone seen this picture yet.?
seems to be a page from a magazine.
http://www.shampoopoo.com/pictures/iphone.jpg[/IMG]
CLICK HERE (http://www.shampoopoo.com/pictures/iphone.jpg)

i love that, if that happens i will be the 1st person to get it

[~Shard~]

I found this online? anyone seen this picture yet.?
seems to be a page from a magazine.
http://www.shampoopoo.com/pictures/iphone.jpg[/IMG]
CLICK HERE (http://www.shampoopoo.com/pictures/iphone.jpg)

Nice, but definitely fake. On a style note, as my good friend pointed out to me, Apple would never say, "Say Hello to the iPhone", they would say, "Say Hello to iPhone". :cool:

[alex69]

Nice, but definitely fake. On a style note, as my good friend pointed out to me, Apple would never say, "Say Hello to the iPhone", they would say, "Say Hello to iPhone". :cool:

The image is from issue one of iCreate magazine. It's a very good UK published Mac mag with minimal advertising, cover disc and really useful tutorials. It's aimed at consumers, but does occasionally provide tutorials for prosumer and pro apps.

Every issue they have a feature called "What if Apple made ..." They let their imaginations run wild coming up with a new, wished-for product and also design it. Issue one's product was the iPhone. The iPhone image basically went around the world and got them noticed - not a bad way to launch a magazine! So, technically, not a fake as they never claimed it to be real - it was more other people hoping it was real - but it's not real either.

[~Shard~]

The image is from issue one of iCreate magazine. It's a very good UK published Mac mag with minimal advertising, cover disc and really useful tutorials. It's aimed at consumers, but does occasionally provide tutorials for prosumer and pro apps.

Every issue they have a feature called "What if Apple made ..." They let their imaginations run wild coming up with a new, wished-for product and also design it. Issue one's product was the iPhone. The iPhone image basically went around the world and got them noticed - not a bad way to launch a magazine! So, technically, not a fake as they never claimed it to be real - it was more other people hoping it was real - but it's not real either.

Thanks for the background. Regardless, it's a very well done mock-up, intentional or otherwise. ;) :cool:

[Bubbasteve]

Oh man and to think I almost got a Nextel i860 (well I still might get it with Christmas just around the corner :( ) I was reading up on this idea for the past couple of weeks and I was skeptical because I don't buy ALOT of music from the ITMS, I just copy them from my CD's. The things that makes me want to hold out for the iPhone are:


Much wanted Bluetooth (I mean it's on my PB and I have yet to use it)
The possibily of beeing able to listen to music from it
A rumored ability that it would have a camera (which is why I'm interested in the i860)
and Of course, the Apple name


I believe I have another year and a half on my Nextel contract but my monthly bills are so high that it would be cheaper to pay the early termination fee when the iPhone is released (if you have Nextel you know how outragous the bills are... my bills are about $65-80 a month)

Thank you all very much for supplying the right ammount of rumors to convince me to hold out for the highly anticipated iPhone (well I think it's highly anticipated)

[rdowns]

Motorola Phone Demo a MacExpo Possibility; Ship by July
, 12.23.04, 1:39 PM ET

The Mac Observer

Apple Computer and Motorola are ready to demo a yet-to-be released new cellular phone with an iTunes software client built in that could be in the hands of consumers by July 2005, American Technology Research analyst Shaw Wu told clients in a commentary released Thursday.

"We believe that Apple and Motorola are ready to demo a yet-to-be released new cell phone with iTunes software client," Mr. Wu wrote in his report, obtained by The Mac Observer. "Apple and Motorola announced a deal back in July and we believe Steve Jobs may give an update on its progress during his keynote speech at the MacWorld Expo on January 11, 2005."

Mr. Wu said he believed the joint product was "on track to be ready for consumers in the first half of 2005."

Mr. Wu said he believed the phone would have both USB and Bluetooth connectivity to transfer music files, offer 12 to 24 song capacity, but offer no direct access to the iTunes music store.

"Like an iPod, we believe one still needs access to an iTunes on a PC client (Mac or Windows) to transfer files to the cell phone," he wrote.

The west coast analyst said he considered the venture a "win-win" for both companies.

"For Apple, this deal expands its iTunes footprint beyond PCs (Mac and Windows) and iPods into the cell phone space with Motorola one of the top cell phone manufacturers in the world. We also believe this gives Apple further differentiation versus its competitors in the digital music space and gives more users the iTunes/Mac "look and feel" experience and could help accelerate AAPL's sales."

Mr. Wu reiterated Apple shares as a 'buy' with a $78 price target. "We believe that the move to digital music is a multi-year trend that Apple is well-positioned to capitalize on, having arguably the industry's most powerful and complete stack of hardware, software, and service."

Eddy Cue, Apple's vice president of applications, told Forbes magazine Dec. 16 a joint venture with Motorola was "on schedule" for a 2005 debut, but gave no further details. Both companies announced a joint venture in July.

The Mac Observer: Daily Mac News, Reviews, and Tips. You'll Get Your Mac news Here From Now on. <a href=http://www.macobserver.com>http://www.MacObserver.com</a>

Copyright 2004 The Mac Observer, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

[Bubbasteve]

Well so much for it being a Sony Ericcson...oh well it still might be a SE...

[diehldun]

I always thought that when I got my Moto V70 phone (sort of rare), it could have been an Apple iPhone; it's got the looks and stuff in it (not the mention the price- very A$$ple) :)

[fonch]

Christ.
Just bought a Motorola i860 (Nextel) a few weeks ago.


Was it you, or Christ?

[oingoboingo]

Apple didn't actually make Laser Printers, Scanners, and Digital Cameras (I added Quicktake Cameras)

The iPod is an all in house production or at least contracted and designed strictly by Apple.

I think large parts of the original iPod firmware and core electronics were designed by PortalPlayer, and then licensed to Apple.


Some later laserwriters were Canon


The original Apple Laserwriter was built around a Canon-sourced printing engine, but the control boards, enclosure and software were all done by Apple in-house (the control boards were designed by Burrell Smith, who was also responsible for much of the board design of the original Macintosh).

[Agathon]

Motorola Previews itunes phone

http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1749056,00.asp

[Agathon]

From PCmag

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1749057,00.asp

Motorola Previews iTunes Phone
01.06.05


By*Matt Hicks, eWEEK


LAS VEGAS—A Motorola executive on Thursday previewed an upcoming mobile phone that can play music from Apple Computer Inc.'s iTunes store.

Speaking during a keynote at the International Consumer Electronics Show here, the executive demonstrated the phone, which in many ways mimics the iPod. It syncs with a computer and the iTunes Music Store like an iPod does, and incorporates the iPod interface for navigating and playing digital music, said Ron Garriques, a Motorola executive vice president.

The phone is the first of many Motorola devices that will support iTunes this year, said Garriques, also president of Motorola's personal devices business. He didn't provide product details for the phone or say when it would be available.

But the demo at CES bolsters rumors that an iTunes-compatible Motorola phone would be launched this month, possibly at the Macworld conference and expo that opens next week in San Francisco. Last month, an Apple executive revealed that the phone was due in the first half of 2005.

In July, Motorola announced a licensing deal with Apple to use iTunes in its phones.

Garriques cited the Apple partnership as an example of Motorola's push into what he called "seamless mobility 2.0." While mobile devices already are allowing consumers to communicate multiple ways and to take digital media with them, the next-generation products will bridge gaps between networks and devices so consumers can access their digital content anywhere and without interruptions.

"You'll know we hit 2.0 when the Internet is no longer visible … and the PC is a peripheral," Garriques said.

In another demo, Garriques showed off a Motorola RFID tag that allows a consumer to continue to play a digital music or video file while moving between locations and devices. In the demo, a music video clip moved with him as he walked among an LCD TV, MP3 player, laptop computer and mobile phone.

The tag is part of Motorola's "Liquid Media" technology, and it is slated to be available later in 2005.

Also on display was a collection of Burton Snowboard apparel that incorporates wireless technology and digital media playback. Motorola had announced the products, which include a helmet, jacket and beanies, earlier in the day at CES.

Motorola chairman and CEO Ed Zander was originally schedule to deliver the CES keynote, but Garriques replaced him after Zander had to cancel.