Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple Testing iPhone for T-Mobile USA
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Is this just a European iPhone on T-Mobile there?
Sound more and more like a rumor - AT&T and Verizon are exclusives to the iPhone here...
Sound more and more like a rumor - AT&T and Verizon are exclusives to the iPhone here...
When one company acquires another like that, they don't just tear down all the old company's equipment and replace it with their own. If that were the case AT&T would simply skip over the whole mess with getting the deal approved by the US Department of Justice and the FCC and just buy a crapload of equipment to put up themselves with that $39 billion.
If the deal is approved T-Mobile's assets will be integrated into AT&T's network and AT&T is probably having all their handset manufacturers run similar testing on T-Mobile equipment to ensure compatibility.
Apple is not "wasting money" on a cell phone provider that is going away, and T-Mobile is not "getting" the iPhone.
No one asks what happens to Tmobile if the merger doesn't go through. Do they just continue along their merry way with the nice 3 million bonus from ATT? What will Deushe Telekom do with them if ATT merge doesn't go through? Go to the next bidder? Or just continue being the "4th" network provider?
A few clarifications that pertain to AT&T/T-Mobile and this story:
* The most valuable thing T-Mobile has is it's *spectrum*. The network itself, while quite valuable, isn't the key here at all. Oh, it's a factor, but it's not the reason why the Death Star is after it.
* T-Mobile has not been bought. There's just a stated intent for AT&T to buy T-mobile. The purchase process will take many months, and there are many regulatory hurdles to overcome. Since this will mean reducing the number of national (or near national) carriers, it will get heavy scrutiny, and there's more than a small chance that the deal will be rejected, or come with so many conditions that AT&T will withdraw the offer.
* Between now and the actual purchase, the companies can do some exploratory work with each other but they cannot operate in any way as if the deal has already taken place. AT&T cannot ask APPL to test the iPhone at T-Mobile bands.
There are probably some ways around the last bullet (called "gun jumping") but with a deal with this level of scrutiny, nothing is going to happen which jeopardizes the deal.
* The most valuable thing T-Mobile has is it's *spectrum*. The network itself, while quite valuable, isn't the key here at all. Oh, it's a factor, but it's not the reason why the Death Star is after it.
* T-Mobile has not been bought. There's just a stated intent for AT&T to buy T-mobile. The purchase process will take many months, and there are many regulatory hurdles to overcome. Since this will mean reducing the number of national (or near national) carriers, it will get heavy scrutiny, and there's more than a small chance that the deal will be rejected, or come with so many conditions that AT&T will withdraw the offer.
* Between now and the actual purchase, the companies can do some exploratory work with each other but they cannot operate in any way as if the deal has already taken place. AT&T cannot ask APPL to test the iPhone at T-Mobile bands.
There are probably some ways around the last bullet (called "gun jumping") but with a deal with this level of scrutiny, nothing is going to happen which jeopardizes the deal.
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8G4 Safari/6533.18.5)
An iPhone 4 pic was posted by a Chinese guy on Twitter in DECEMBER. This is nowhere near as bad.
An iPhone 4 pic was posted by a Chinese guy on Twitter in DECEMBER. This is nowhere near as bad.
There are people who think ignorance is acceptable. 
Now, all they need is to unlock the phone and we'll know the exclusivity contract is broken.
Now, all they need is to unlock the phone and we'll know the exclusivity contract is broken.
Last edited:
No, the European iPhone is the same hardware as the AT&T iPhone. It will handle voice and pokey EDGE/GPRS data on the T-Mobile USA network, but not 3G data because they use the AWS band for that.
Whether you believe that there is carrier exclusivity is irrelevant. Apple probably tests on many different carriers around the world.
The fact of the matter is Apple doesn't announce the terms of their contracts with mobile operators, so your so-called "exclusivity" could have ended at midnight yesterday.
T-Mobile USA has spectrum, but also cell towers. AT&T's can benefit from the short term from cell tower access. Spectrum will come later, after an orderly migration of current T-Mobile USA customers using devices that access the AWS band.
It is highly likely that Apple has been testing devices on a variety of carriers, many of them who are unofficial/unannounced. It is likely that this T-Mobile testing unit is such a device.
Lastly, APPL is the stock symbol for Appel Petroleum. The stock symbol for Apple Inc. is AAPL.
Frankly, you shouldn't use stock symbols to talk about a company, unless you are specifically referring to shares. Only dorks do that. It's the same as using an airport code to talk about a city. San Francisco isn't SFO. Los Angeles isn't LAX. Portland isn't PDX. Paris isn't CDG.
The USA mobile networks are such a random mish mash of technology and frequency. I can't believe they have existed so long in this way, talk about overcomplicating things for no reason.
Interesting, so I guess T-Mobile 's network has more spectrum depth than att's network, seem t-mobile's network allows high 3G speeds
Acquiring frequencies allocation is a huge premium, and with customer base and existing install too.
For all the T-Mobile users just keep your fingers crossed and hope that the merger doesn't pass. wouldn't it be really nice to finally have an iphone at an affordable rate.
What product will the T-Mobile chic bash now???
The same one: AT&T's network. The phones never really mock the phone so much as they mock the slow network.
People jail break their iphones to use them on T-Mobile with Edge. It is only the 3g that is on the different frequency set.
I would go for that. I would even happily pay the no contract price. If it means that I can tell ATT that they have to knock $16.66 off my monthly bill because I'm not paying them back money they didn't put in and they can't refuse.
T-Mo no longer needs the iPhone
Their are many factors why this is true and I will list the them in order of which ones I think are the most important.
1. The people who will jump to any carrier just to have the iPhone will, and have done so in the last four years. Those people have iPhones already. They are not likely to pay 100-300 dollars to break contract go to T-Mo then pay another 200$ for an iphone with contract.
2. Android: Yes I have to say it but it is true. People feel less of a need for an iphone when they can get android Phones cheaper. Also people are being lured in by many of android's commercials that make the phones look so good. When a T-mobile customer sees a commercial for a thunderbolt they want that phone. They end up getting a High end phone on network. It is even getting more popular on the iPhone networks, AT&T for the most part ignored the android because it had the iPhone. Then after millions of customers came into the stores demanding not iPhones but Androids AT&T had to reconsider. Face it android is changing the game. People are seeing the android as less of an alternative to iPhones if you can't afford it or not on your carrier but more as a real iphone beater.
Yeah it will not help if they where to obtain the iPhone. But for the most part it will not make a huge difference to them. Also Verizon did not need apple to put the iPhone on the its network, Apple needed to Put its iPhone on Verizons network. Verizon's droid line was becoming a major threat to iPhones.'
In all it will help T-mobile to get the iPhone as much as me getting into a steady relationship: It will help but it will not change things in the long run.
Their are many factors why this is true and I will list the them in order of which ones I think are the most important.
1. The people who will jump to any carrier just to have the iPhone will, and have done so in the last four years. Those people have iPhones already. They are not likely to pay 100-300 dollars to break contract go to T-Mo then pay another 200$ for an iphone with contract.
2. Android: Yes I have to say it but it is true. People feel less of a need for an iphone when they can get android Phones cheaper. Also people are being lured in by many of android's commercials that make the phones look so good. When a T-mobile customer sees a commercial for a thunderbolt they want that phone. They end up getting a High end phone on network. It is even getting more popular on the iPhone networks, AT&T for the most part ignored the android because it had the iPhone. Then after millions of customers came into the stores demanding not iPhones but Androids AT&T had to reconsider. Face it android is changing the game. People are seeing the android as less of an alternative to iPhones if you can't afford it or not on your carrier but more as a real iphone beater.
Yeah it will not help if they where to obtain the iPhone. But for the most part it will not make a huge difference to them. Also Verizon did not need apple to put the iPhone on the its network, Apple needed to Put its iPhone on Verizons network. Verizon's droid line was becoming a major threat to iPhones.'
In all it will help T-mobile to get the iPhone as much as me getting into a steady relationship: It will help but it will not change things in the long run.
Last edited:
It surely can't be that hard
It surely can't be that hard to add support for T-Mobile's network to the iPhone. All you need are three thing:
a) Support for the 1700/2100MHz AWS frequency bands
b) Support for 3G
c) Putting it all together and adding it in.
The frequencies are already there. One part of the AWS frequency band is within the European 2100 MHz 3G band, which the iPhone already supports. The other part is within the 1800 MHz European GSM band, which the iPhone also already supports.
The support for 3G is already there, that goes without saying.
All you have to do is put them together (and that's already half done, see above) and make sure that it all works from an engineering point of view, then add a bit of software to support the extra capabilities, and you're there.
Liron
It surely can't be that hard to add support for T-Mobile's network to the iPhone. All you need are three thing:
a) Support for the 1700/2100MHz AWS frequency bands
b) Support for 3G
c) Putting it all together and adding it in.
The frequencies are already there. One part of the AWS frequency band is within the European 2100 MHz 3G band, which the iPhone already supports. The other part is within the 1800 MHz European GSM band, which the iPhone also already supports.
The support for 3G is already there, that goes without saying.
All you have to do is put them together (and that's already half done, see above) and make sure that it all works from an engineering point of view, then add a bit of software to support the extra capabilities, and you're there.
Liron
I think gkarris point was that T-Mobile operates in other countries as well, where they have the iPhone and where they do use 3G frequencies that the regular iPhone supports.