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I really hope that the Vodafone rumour pans out. It's the only network with reception in my flat!

Thats good for you but in general I have found vodaphone to be pretty crap in large parts of the country, including big areas of sheffield, nottingham, watford and birmingham. Where as 02 and even orange, although worse, have better coverage.
 
We can but hope. I just signed a new 18 month contract with Vodafone. If there's a 3G iPhone at a reasonable price on a good tariff at the end of it they might just rope me in.

Although Vodafone have recently revamped their data tariff is is still a huge rip-off. £7.50 for 130MB of usage. Morons.

I am seeing a decent level of 3G coverage on my SE W880i though, which is positive.

18Months :eek: ???
Did they told you that min. contract is 18months? Thats rubbish, if you order by phone, it's only 12 months, and after 10 months you can get a new mobile phone for free too.
 
18Months :eek: ???
Did they told you that min. contract is 18months? Thats rubbish, if you order by phone, it's only 12 months, and after 10 months you can get a new mobile phone for free too.

A lot of mobile phone companies in the UK are trying to push these 18 month contracts now.

I hope we get some definitive news tomorrow on the iPhone for the UK.

:)
 
I think Vodafone's big price cut tomorrow (Monday 2nd July), which will consolidate their hold over the UK data card market, is part of their attempt to woo Apple.

The 50% cut will make them as cheap as T-Mobile for UK data but the real game-changer is their new European roaming charge of just £8.50 per 24hr session (cheaper than hotel access) or £70 per month (+ the £25 unlimited UK plan), showing that Vodafone are smart enough to forego fat profits today in order to jump-start their future market.

The iphone fits right into that strategy and is probably why they are making these huge cuts now. As such, I wouldn't be hugely surprised to see some sort of Apple + Vodafone announcement in the very near future, possibly even tomorrow to tie-in with the price cuts.
 
Check if 3G Chips are in iPhone?!

Check if 3G Chips are in iPhone?!

My guess is they might be in this iPhone w/firmware update enabling? But who knows till someone dissects the iPhone!
 
Vodafone are currently running a big TV campaign

'The internet is NOW mobile'...NO specific phones are mentioned - just the 'idea' that the internet is going to be somehow usable all of a sudden!!


I can't see much to be accomplished by promoting the internet on their current phones unless they're softening people up to the idea for ...uumm- an iphone!!.... I tried using it on my wifes brand new RAZR over the weekend and the words shocking do not do the experience justice. Just awful - simply awful - -up up up down down down left left right up down enter' on the nasty joypad - and that was just the first 'baby vodafone intro page' which looked exactly as steve says like 'the baby internet'...then having clicked select nothing happened for minutes and minutes...just terrible...The 'joypad' navigation element of all these other phones has just been ignored..being able to use your finger like a mouse is just so obvious that it's genius!.

To say that I am gagging for the iphone is the understatement of the decade...
 
Vodafone are currently running a big TV campaign

'The internet is NOW mobile'...NO specific phones are mentioned - just the 'idea' that the internet is going to be somehow usable all of a sudden!!


I can't see much to be accomplished by promoting the internet on their current phones unless they're softening people up to the idea for ...uumm- an iphone!!.... I tried using it on my wifes brand new RAZR over the weekend and the words shocking do not do the experience justice. Just awful - simply awful - -up up up down down down left left right up down enter' on the nasty joypad - and that was just the first 'baby vodafone intro page' which looked exactly as steve says like 'the baby internet'...then having clicked select nothing happened for minutes and minutes...just terrible...The 'joypad' navigation element of all these other phones has just been ignored..being able to use your finger like a mouse is just so obvious that it's genius!.

To say that I am gagging for the iphone is the understatement of the decade...


Dont get over excited - this is part of a campaign www.vodafone.co.uk/mobileinternet

Not to do with iphone
 
Well sure, the N95 uses Apple's WebKit for the browser. :D

But still, I don't like scrolling around with the 4-way pad on the N95. Do you? The speed is awesome though, a 300 Kb page loads in 2-3 seconds.
 
There's another thread discussing this... but it's a bit hidden!

From what I heard, CPW signed the deal with Apple a few months back (wasn't publically announced).

The reason CPW doesn't sell Vodafone contracts is because Vodafone asked CPW to push its contracts harder than those of other companies - CPW refused, so Vodafone pulled out.
 
First off, hello to everyone as this is my first post here.

Regarding the Vodafone / T-Mobile / Carphone Warehouse deal - having working in themobile industry for numerous years I can tell you the following:

1. Phones 4u have the exclusive rights to sell Vodafone contracts in the UK. This is a deal that they signed last year. Carphone Warehouse (I think) have the exclusive deal for 02 (cannot confirm this).

2. There are very few none 3G phones being released this year throughout the UK and if Apple did release a 2G / 2.5G phone, they would be loosing out on alot of revenue.

3. The US market and the UK / European market is totally different. MMS is a big thing over here and from what I am reading, the US iPhone does not allow MMS.

4. The camera - this is open in my view. A 2MP camera is okay, but the standard in Europe is a minimum of 3.15MP.

My big worry is that when Apple decide to launch the European iPhone, that is will be a soft launch with not alot of hype. If they do release the same model as the US, then the impact throughout Europe will be huge. If they want to launch to Europe, then then need to make it big and a 3G answer to the iPhone would be the way to do that.

It is possible that we might see an announcment over the next few weeks to who the carrier is (they annouced AT&T 6 months before release!) but as for the 3G, ten we might have to wait until the US hype has died down and people over there have their iPhones.
 
4. The camera - this is open in my view. A 2MP camera is okay, but the standard in Europe is a minimum of 3.15MP.

I thought we'd all stopped going on about the "limited" 2MP camera when we all saw the images from the iPhone - they're VERY very good for ANY phone camera, full stop. I've tried lots of camera phones, most more than 2MP, and they don't come close to the image quality of the iPhone (on the other hand, I would like a flash, zoom, and more options). More MP = a higher resolution (read: LARGER) image, not any better quality. 2MP is MORE than enough to display full screen on most computer monitors, to print out A4...so unless we're all printing big posters from our phone's pictures, this is a non-issue. I'm sure most of us know this though.

Just like the iPhone itself isn't particularly impressive on paper (lacking 3G, phones have been able to do email/web/music capabilities for years etc.), it's when you actually USE the device that you realise how special it is - it's the interface, the joy of using it, and the way everything works seamlessly together, that makes it a cut above the rest, not the actual spec or features for the most part.

As far as marketing is concerned, yes it's a numbers and spec game. But that's never what Apple has been about.
 
I thought we'd all stopped going on about the "limited" 2MP camera when we all saw the images from the iPhone - they're VERY very good for ANY phone camera, full stop.

I agree, i was just pointing out that the standard is 3.15 in the European market. 2MP is good quality - it all depends on the type of camera and who makes it. I agree that the 2MP camera is not a deal clincher.

I will be buying one no matter what as I will use all the functions and the iPhone is something special on paper, in my opinion.

Everyone is going to have their own opinion and every opinion is right. We all want to see things on the European phone. For me it should have 3G as I do use video calling, MMS and the GPS, the N95 GPS is good and for me - on par with Tom Tom for what I use it for.
 
First off, hello to everyone as this is my first post here.

Regarding the Vodafone / T-Mobile / Carphone Warehouse deal - having working in themobile industry for numerous years I can tell you the following:

1. Phones 4u have the exclusive rights to sell Vodafone contracts in the UK. This is a deal that they signed last year. Carphone Warehouse (I think) have the exclusive deal for 02 (cannot confirm this).

2. There are very few none 3G phones being released this year throughout the UK and if Apple did release a 2G / 2.5G phone, they would be loosing out on alot of revenue.

3. The US market and the UK / European market is totally different. MMS is a big thing over here and from what I am reading, the US iPhone does not allow MMS.

4. The camera - this is open in my view. A 2MP camera is okay, but the standard in Europe is a minimum of 3.15MP.

My big worry is that when Apple decide to launch the European iPhone, that is will be a soft launch with not alot of hype. If they do release the same model as the US, then the impact throughout Europe will be huge. If they want to launch to Europe, then then need to make it big and a 3G answer to the iPhone would be the way to do that.

It is possible that we might see an announcment over the next few weeks to who the carrier is (they annouced AT&T 6 months before release!) but as for the 3G, ten we might have to wait until the US hype has died down and people over there have their iPhones.

Well said, especially with the differences between the US and European differences. No 3G won't cut it here, I don't think.
 
I tell you. If Voda try their branding bollocks as it's depicted in the link, then I for one will be waiting until it can be stripped out before I get an iPhone.

Hideous, just revolting...

Agreed. I'd hate to think of the beautiful sleek iPhone design being contaminated by Vodafone and it's ugly, user-unfriendly, money-farming, experience-limiting cr*p.

Shudder.

SL
 
I tell you. If Voda try their branding bollocks as it's depicted in the link, then I for one will be waiting until it can be stripped out before I get an iPhone.

Hideous, just revolting...

I doubt Apple would let them get away with that, lets hope so anyway :)
 
There's another thread discussing this... but it's a bit hidden!

From what I heard, CPW signed the deal with Apple a few months back (wasn't publically announced).

The reason CPW doesn't sell Vodafone contracts is because Vodafone asked CPW to push its contracts harder than those of other companies - CPW refused, so Vodafone pulled out.

hehe - funny - where did you read that? The Daiy Mail?
 
Wow. That Vodafone branding actually took my breath away. How to make one of the most beautiful gadgets in the world into a pile of poo, with one silk print. Who'd have thought it possible? :D
 
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