3G iPhone In the Works

[QuarterSwede]

lol, US is the most backwards country in the western world. Take a look outside US. Europe and eastern asia has had 3G for about 5 years, some parts of asia is testing with 4G.

3G phone migth not be so important in the US but many people will not accept a internet speed reduction by 90% if they buy a new smartphone.

The US may be backwards in some respects but not in this one. One of the reasons the US takes longer to implement technology is because the country is a lot larger than any European nation. I'm not trying to defend the US carriers because they do suck but I'm constantly annoyed by others outside the US talking out of their behinds.

 

[andiwm2003]

The US may be backwards in some respects but not in this one. One of the reasons the US takes longer to implement technology is because the country is a lot larger than any European nation. I'm not trying to defend the US carriers because they do suck but I'm constantly annoyed by others outside the US talking out of their behinds.

the us is ahead in many respects but its backwards in the cell phone market. europe as a whole is as large as the US. despite being 16 nations (plus nations around the EU) the managed to have a common standard and a modern technology that works in all 16 nations. i can use my cell phone even in egypt for a reasonable price.

the US is still fragmented in several technologies. and they are not even state of the art. and the US is one nation.

and i'm inside the US.

 

[chr1s60]

Like I have said many times now, I think this rumor is BS. If a 3G iPhone was this close to being ready, Apple would not be releasing non 3G phones in Europe towards the end of this year. They would probably have simply waited a few months more to release the 3G iPhone. I believe there will be no new iPhone with 3G until at least Nov-Dec 2008. Steve seems to be very content with the current iPhone and he is sticking to his stance that 3G takes up too much battery life and is too big.

 

[QuarterSwede]

the us is ahead in many respects but its backwards in the cell phone market. europe as a whole is as large as the US. despite being 16 nations (plus nations around the EU) the managed to have a common standard and a modern technology that works in all 16 nations. i can use my cell phone even in egypt for a reasonable price.

the US is still fragmented in several technologies. and they are not even state of the art. and the US is one nation.

and i'm inside the US.

Right, but how many different companies (different financing) have implemented this. In the US there are only a hand full that have to implement the infrastructure and even then they don't want to work together because they see them as competitors.

Another factor is population density which of Europe is a lot more. Companies aren't going to spend money renting land to put towers on in Alaska or a large part of Texas, etc.

What I'm really saying is that there are good reasons why things take longer to implement here in the states. Most people don't even understand a lot about economics, business practices etc (not that I'm saying you're one of them).

 

[jellomizer]

lol, US is the most backwards country in the western world. Take a look outside US. Europe and eastern asia has had 3G for about 5 years, some parts of asia is testing with 4G.

3G phone migth not be so important in the US but many people will not accept a internet speed reduction by 90% if they buy a new smartphone.

The United States is also a Lot Bigger Then Most countries With China, Russia and Canada being the only countries larger in size. And being the 172nt listed in the density of the population. Comparing with Europe and other countries for policy and infrascture is actually quite silly. The United States while haveing a majority Europian hareteage and culture. Is actually very differnt in the fact of its size and density. In say Germnany you can set up a full country wide wireless network that will service 99% of its citizans is much easier then making a wireless network in the United States that can service the same number of people. The country of Germany is a 1/3rd bigger then Texas and has 4 times the population of texas. And Texas is the #2 in most populas state. It is actually a much diifferent scale we have here.

 

[QuarterSwede]

The United States is also a Lot Bigger Then Most countries With China, Russia and Canada being the only countries larger in size. And being the 172nt listed in the density of the population. Comparing with Europe and other countries for policy and infrascture is actually quite silly. The United States while haveing a majority Europian hareteage and culture. Is actually very differnt in the fact of its size and density. In say Germnany you can set up a full country wide wireless network that will service 99% of its citizans is much easier then making a wireless network in the United States that can service the same number of people. The country of Germany is a 1/3rd bigger then Texas and has 4 times the population of texas. And Texas is the #2 in most populas state. It is actually a much diifferent scale we have here.

Someone gets it! Thank you.

 

[freddiecable]

I have a 3G SE-phone and I don't understand the bigg fuzz about 3G. It drains the battery, it's not blazingly fast and I miss my K750 SE phone which had much better battery life. I gladly go with iPhone & Edge since I mostly use wifi anyway. iPhone brings exactly what i want. That said I would not mind 3G but I mostly phone, sms and ipod. When need for surfing I usually have wifi nearby.

 

[winterspan]

WRONG! Im so sick of this disinformation!

The United States is also a Lot Bigger Then Most countries With China, Russia and Canada being the only countries larger in size. And being the 172nt listed in the density of the population. Comparing with Europe and other countries for policy and infrascture is actually quite silly. The United States while haveing a majority Europian hareteage and culture. Is actually very differnt in the fact of its size and density. In say Germnany you can set up a full country wide wireless network that will service 99% of its citizans is much easier then making a wireless network in the United States that can service the same number of people. The country of Germany is a 1/3rd bigger then Texas and has 4 times the population of texas. And Texas is the #2 in most populas state. It is actually a much diifferent scale we have here.

This MISINFORMATION has been rehashed a thousand times, particulary with respect to wired telecommunications, e.g., "The USA doesn't have good broadband internet speeds cause its cost prohibitive to lay fiber optic cable in the huge land mass". "The USA is behind in cellphone technology rollout because it cost's too much to upgrade so many towers", etc, etc. This disinformation is vomited out there by the telecom monopolies in this country!

Whether its about wired broadband or 3G cellphone technology, the flaw in that argument is that the population density of the top 25 markets (or even top 50) in the United States is quite high, definitely high enough to warrant competitive wired/mobile internet and 3G cellphone technology.
If population density was the problem, then NEW YORK SHOULD HAVE TOKYO-LEVEL HSDPA/HSUPA!

The cellphone market situation in the US, especially in regards to GSM providers, is truly abysmal. Of the two carriers, AT&T has a tiny roll-out of UMTS/HSDPA(slow 1.2mbps) only in the largest of cities, and T-Mobile has NO 3G AT ALL. Its almost 2008 for gods sake. This technology has been available since the LATE 1990's!

]Indeed the CDMA 3G coverage isn't too bad in heavily populated areas, but we are still far behind the latest technology and we pay out the **** for what we do get. $49.99/$59.95 per month just for 'unlimited internet'? What a joke!

I don't mean to jump on anyone, but Im very passionate about this issue and wish to dispel any misconceptions about why the US is falling so behind in certain technological areas. I mean for GOD **** SAKE, THIS COUNTRY WAS ONCE THOUGHT OF AS HAVING ADVANCED CONSUMER TECHNOLOGY, ALMOST AT AN ASIAN LEVEL 20 YEARS AGO. AND NOW LOOK AT US.

You know what happened? 1994! The piece of *** corrupt Republican politicians sold us out to the wired telecoms long ago and now the wireless telecoms. I am so sick of it.

Im moving to Tokyo....

</rant>

 

[winterspan]

nah Id wait too

Yep, why buy a Macbook Pro when you can buy a Dell for less than half the price... it even comes with Vista standard! Something a Macbook Pro lacks...

If you are going to wait for a 3g iphone... might as well wait for the 4g version.
It never ends.

The reason I don't agree is because if he takes a plunge on the 2G iphone, you are in a contract for 24 MONTHS. Surely the 3G iphone will be out before then, probably in 6-8 months. Then what??? Pay another $499?

 

[winterspan]

CDMA isn't bad

Build the towers so people can access the 3G...what coverage are you talking about?

The U.S. has horrible 3G coverage, Sprint and Verizon's EV-DO network is more accessible but not as fast as ATTs 3.6 stuff. T-Mobile doesn't even have a 3G network yet and other countries are workin on 4G...

Dude -- check your stuff. *ALL* of Verizons EVDO is now Rev.A. which tops out at 1.8 megabits/s upload and 3.1 megabits/download. Now of course peoples average is less around 600-1200 kbps down and and 400-900 upload.
and it totally depends on signal strength and whether you are using a 3G laptop card or a cell phone (limited processing power maybe?) But still its BLAZING FAST compared to what I had with GPRS/1xRTT/EDGE.
So yes, GSM 3G really sucks (read my other post), but CDMA isn't too bad.

 

[512ke]

I just got back from a month in Spain. The USA has got 100 times more money than the Spaniards do, but they got: health care, cheap medicine (same manufactureres), PAL TV that smokes NTSC, faster cell networks, faster internet, much better cell coverage even in the remote countryside, no potholes on the highway, tons better produce and food (less industrialized Pringles-type junk than we have), cars that get 50 miles per gallon with a fraction of the pollution (TDI engines).

What the heck gives?

I know somebody will say, well then shut up idiot and go live there. But I don't wanna live there. I love it here. I just don't get what makes the USA "the great #1 country" when all our public stuff is like old, busted, with falling bridges, crumbling airports (LAX stranded 50,000 travelers this Summer 'cause their old Windows immigration routers crashed), our schools need serious paint, Medicare is about to go bye bye, etc etc.

Oh, and also, our country is like a quadzillion dollars in debt.

Is this off topic, when the topic was about 3G? I don't think it's off topic. I think there's a connection among our lagging phone system, our laggining educational system, our highway system and our school system.

All our systems are not "go."

But there's one that still kicks every other country's *ss: The U. S. Postal service my friend. They rock.

 

[winterspan]

Sad really...

I just got back from a month in Spain. The USA has got 100 times more money than the Spaniards do, but they got: health care, cheap medicine (same manufactureres), PAL TV that smokes NTSC, faster cell networks, faster internet, much better cell coverage even in the remote countryside, no potholes on the highway, tons better produce and food (less industrialized Pringles-type junk than we have), cars that get 50 miles per gallon with a fraction of the pollution (TDI engines).

What the heck gives?

I know somebody will say, well then shut up idiot and go live there. But I don't wanna live there. I love it here. I just don't get what makes the USA "the great #1 country" when all our public stuff is like old, busted, with falling bridges, crumbling airports (LAX stranded 50,000 travelers this Summer 'cause their old Windows immigration routers crashed), our schools need serious paint, Medicare is about to go bye bye, etc etc.

Oh, and also, our country is like a quadzillion dollars in debt.

Is this off topic, when the topic was about 3G? I don't think it's off topic. I think there's a connection among our lagging phone system, our laggining educational system, our highway system and our school system.

All our systems are not "go."

But there's one that still kicks every other country's *ss: The U. S. Postal service my friend. They rock.

Yep - It is all connected. It's called multin-national corporations ruling the roost --> 'bought and paid for' corrupt government, a greedy and self-concerned-only wallstreet business class, etc.
I think you are confusing the United States with a representative democracy. We in the US now live in a hybrid Kleptocracy/Oligarchy state where all the power and therefore the money rests in the small base of corporate elite who uses bullsh*t campaign financing, bribery, kickbacks, etc to control the corrupt politicians who respond to their every whim. Seriously, look at who the president is and who is around him. He's a failed Big Oil business owner. Apparently that qualifies you to lead the free world.

This phenomenon of Big Business taking over 'Big Government' has been happening for 30 years now, it was just VASTLY ACCELERATED by the 1994' Conservative Republican Win. the Newt gingrich days or as I call it "The year of the reptile" And since Bush got elected it has really Taken flight
E.g. Cheney's 'energy task force' , Invading Iraq (what? no invasion of north korea? oh wait.. thats right.. no oil), Bush admin officials editing scientific documents regarding climate change, keeping open our southern border, marching NAFTA forward, etc etc etc. I could go one for days.

Thankfully, at least a minority now is starting to see the light and is starting to ask questions like you are. Unfortunately the "average majority" in this country is so incapable of rational thought and the process of deduction, that Im am worried we may be too late. All it takes is some fear-mongering and "them liberals' are gonna' raise yer taxes' [sic] and we end up at square one.

Sad really.. I hope we can turn this around soon..

 

[studiomusic]

The reason I don't agree is because if he takes a plunge on the 2G iphone, you are in a contract for 24 MONTHS. Surely the 3G iphone will be out before then, probably in 6-8 months. Then what??? Pay another $499?

($399?)
If he wants 3g, yes. Then sell his 2g phone. The contract is not tied to the 2g phone, it's tied to the customer. If you find you don't want an iphone, you can switch to a different phone/plan.
If I want to get a core 2 duo EXTREME in my mbp, I'll need to buy a new macbook pro... the new one will still work on my internet connection.

If you want to wait, wait... I'll be using and enjoying my iphone until then.
To each his own I guess!

 

[winterspan]

Yes $399 my mistake

($399?)
If he wants 3g, yes. Then sell his 2g phone. The contract is not tied to the 2g phone, it's tied to the customer. If you find you don't want an iphone, you can switch to a different phone/plan.
If I want to get a core 2 duo EXTREME in my mbp, I'll need to buy a new macbook pro... the new one will still work on my internet connection.

If you want to wait, wait... I'll be using and enjoying my iphone until then.
To each his own I guess!

I understand the obligations of the contract, my point was that you probably wouldn't be able to get much for a 2G, 8GB iPhone when the next model comes out with 3G 16-32GB 800x480 screen, etc. He would pay $399 now and then $399 in 6 months maybe recouping $100-150 or so if hes REALLY lucky and first gens hold their value. 800-100 = $700 do that. But yea, it depends on how much money you want to spend on a phone. Me? I probably would do it if I wasn't in a 3G verizon contract with a decent phone. Ill just get the touch for now and be done with it.

 

[aapl.jlo]

This is just what they did for the Moto RAZR. They make these small upgrades to their phones and call them the next model-HARDLY. I can't tell the difference between the RAZR G1 and the current one, it's stupid. Lets hope that they don't do the same thing with the iPhone and expect people to rave over a slightly different product-i.e.-something 1/16 thinner.

 

[uNext]

Yep - It is all connected. It's called multin-national corporations ruling the roost --> 'bought and paid for' corrupt government, a greedy and self-concerned-only wallstreet business class, etc.
I think you are confusing the United States with a representative democracy. We in the US now live in a hybrid Kleptocracy/Oligarchy state where all the power and therefore the money rests in the small base of corporate elite who uses bullsh*t campaign financing, bribery, kickbacks, etc to control the corrupt politicians who respond to their every whim. Seriously, look at who the president is and who is around him. He's a failed Big Oil business owner. Apparently that qualifies you to lead the free world.

This phenomenon of Big Business taking over 'Big Government' has been happening for 30 years now, it was just VASTLY ACCELERATED by the 1994' Conservative Republican Win. the Newt gingrich days or as I call it "The year of the reptile" And since Bush got elected it has really Taken flight
E.g. Cheney's 'energy task force' , Invading Iraq (what? no invasion of north korea? oh wait.. thats right.. no oil), Bush admin officials editing scientific documents regarding climate change, keeping open our southern border, marching NAFTA forward, etc etc etc. I could go one for days.

Thankfully, at least a minority now is starting to see the light and is starting to ask questions like you are. Unfortunately the "average majority" in this country is so incapable of rational thought and the process of deduction, that Im am worried we may be too late. All it takes is some fear-mongering and "them liberals' are gonna' raise yer taxes' [sic] and we end up at square one.

Sad really.. I hope we can turn this around soon..

Bravo, Bravo.

 

[carltabet]

In the following video, Steve Jobs says 3G needs to get back up to 5+ hours of talk time, something he thinks we'll see late next year.

In other words, 1st quarter 2008 is likely early for 3G iPhones.

 

[spydr]

The need for 3G is over-rated.

Seriously, I thought I would wait for one - then yes, it dawned on me I would die without an iPhone if I kept waiting for the next upgrade. So I went and tested it out. Wifi speed was great. EDGE, was certainly acceptable. Perhaps not for videos - but that I don't really care. But what I CANNOT trade off is usage time - my phone is giving me about 7-8 hours (in combined usage) and 8 hrs of usage with 3G is not coming in 3-4 months and I can guarantee that.

And you sir — waiting for that 32 gb model with 3G and GPS transceiver, good luck!

 

[iLeoMarc]

Yep - It is all connected. It's called multin-national corporations ruling the roost --> 'bought and paid for' corrupt government, a greedy and self-concerned-only wallstreet business class, etc.
I think you are confusing the United States with a representative democracy. We in the US now live in a hybrid Kleptocracy/Oligarchy state where all the power and therefore the money rests in the small base of corporate elite who uses bullsh*t campaign financing, bribery, kickbacks, etc to control the corrupt politicians who respond to their every whim. Seriously, look at who the president is and who is around him. He's a failed Big Oil business owner. Apparently that qualifies you to lead the free world.

This phenomenon of Big Business taking over 'Big Government' has been happening for 30 years now, it was just VASTLY ACCELERATED by the 1994' Conservative Republican Win. the Newt gingrich days or as I call it "The year of the reptile" And since Bush got elected it has really Taken flight
E.g. Cheney's 'energy task force' , Invading Iraq (what? no invasion of north korea? oh wait.. thats right.. no oil), Bush admin officials editing scientific documents regarding climate change, keeping open our southern border, marching NAFTA forward, etc etc etc. I could go one for days.

Thankfully, at least a minority now is starting to see the light and is starting to ask questions like you are. Unfortunately the "average majority" in this country is so incapable of rational thought and the process of deduction, that Im am worried we may be too late. All it takes is some fear-mongering and "them liberals' are gonna' raise yer taxes' [sic] and we end up at square one.

Sad really.. I hope we can turn this around soon..

WOW. All this bashing America cause we don't have 3g?

 

[benzslrpee]

we do have 3G, last time i checked, Verizon and Sprint all have nationwide EVDO REV0/REVA networks out. only T-Mobile and AT&T/Cingular can't get their balls in one sack and implement a 3G network. trust me, to whoever posted that AT&Ts 3G speed is faster than either Verizon's or Sprint's, you might want to re-check that. Rev-A beats the snot out of what AT&T has to offer.

and umm...some of you are kinda scaring me with your political analysis. relax. in the end it's just a cell phone. don't blow a vessel over this.

 

[cervaro]

Talk about slitting your own throat Apple. If I was in the market for an iPhone, which I'm definitely not under the current O2 deal, knowing a 3G is on the way within 12 months would put me off even further. Whatever happened to Apple's legendary, bordering on anal sense of secrecy when it comes to hardware releases? Then again, at least he was honest in mentioning the 3G variant is in the works, but still, maybe it wasn't the time to be so honest Steve when the UK network/offer is pants!

 

[cliffjumper68]

Let's build a wide spread, reliable 3G network first.....

already exists, I have verizon and experience great bandwidth everywhere I go with my blackberry. Is apple locked in to att on just the one model of iphone or any phone model they release?

 

[evilbert420]

we do have 3G, last time i checked, Verizon and Sprint all have nationwide EVDO REV0/REVA networks out. only T-Mobile and AT&T/Cingular can't get their balls in one sack and implement a 3G network. trust me, to whoever posted that AT&Ts 3G speed is faster than either Verizon's or Sprint's, you might want to re-check that. Rev-A beats the snot out of what AT&T has to offer.

What's funny is that AT&T/T-Mobile's 3G is CDMA-based, while Verizon/Sprint is not... the opposite of their voice.

I just switched from a 3G phone. While its speeds as a wireless modem were great, browsing wasn't any faster than on EDGE.

There are two big benefits to AT&T's 3G: You can receive data while talking (you can't with Verizon or Sprint), so when I've had people emailing me during a conference call I can actually get their mails/attachments. Also unlike Edge you don't get the radio intereference with speakers.

Besides, if you buy a new iPhone next summer (when I expect them to release a 3G phone) they'll just extend your contract another 2 years.

 

[koobcamuk]

Im moving to Tokyo....

See you there my friend.

I just got back from a month in Spain. The USA has got 100 times more money than the Spaniards do, but they got: health care, cheap medicine (same manufactureres), PAL TV that smokes NTSC, faster cell networks, faster internet, much better cell coverage even in the remote countryside, no potholes on the highway, tons better produce and food (less industrialized Pringles-type junk than we have), cars that get 50 miles per gallon with a fraction of the pollution (TDI engines).

What the heck gives?

I know somebody will say, well then shut up idiot and go live there. But I don't wanna live there. I love it here. I just don't get what makes the USA "the great #1 country" when all our public stuff is like old, busted, with falling bridges, crumbling airports (LAX stranded 50,000 travelers this Summer 'cause their old Windows immigration routers crashed), our schools need serious paint, Medicare is about to go bye bye, etc etc.

Oh, and also, our country is like a quadzillion dollars in debt.

Is this off topic, when the topic was about 3G? I don't think it's off topic. I think there's a connection among our lagging phone system, our laggining educational system, our highway system and our school system.

All our systems are not "go."

But there's one that still kicks every other country's *ss: The U. S. Postal service my friend. They rock.

Nicely said.

already exists, I have verizon and experience great bandwidth everywhere I go with my blackberry. Is apple locked in to att on just the one model of iphone or any phone model they release?

Which blackberry has 3G?

 

[carltabet]

Let's not forget the US is as big as Europe and has a population of 300 million. There are many reasons to complain but this is a "young" nation that has been developing for a few hundred years, not thousands. The point is, the potential for growth is there and areas that lag behind such as cell networks will catch up. If demand for 3G is strong, operators will improve coverage on a state by state basis to start with. I suspect a 3G iPhone next year will push ATT to dramatically improve its network. If only there wasn't an exclusivity contract, all the networks would compete and improve their 3G coverage.