I don;t think they are either. I think most people wold be happy to spend 30 quid month plus on an iPhone with data package.
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Apple Unable to Find iPhone Partner in Europe?
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I don;t think they are either. I think most people wold be happy to spend 30 quid month plus on an iPhone with data package.
In Italy there is no premium to pay for 3G. It happened in the past but not now. The cost of services which you can have on GSM are nearly the same (phone calls, sms), with differences only related to the specific profiles offered. You have to pay a premium only if you use the specific 3G services like video-calls (but in some cases they cost less than a voice call), or television or press-news, etc.
Even if the GSM/EDGE technology is obsolete, iPhone has the strong point of small size and incredible easy use, so it will be very requested in my opinion.
However if Apple will decide to sell it sim-locked, it will not reach the full Italian market but only the market of customers of that operator. Except few Apple-maniacs like-me, very few peoples will change their operator for it. Main use of a cell-phone in Italy is always phone-call, so everybody search the best tarif for him. You change it frequently but only when another operator offer a more convenient profile for you. I see more probable that people change phone to have a better offer than to change operator to have a better phone.
Piermac
I'm not surprised. Apple appearently hasn't a clue how the European phone operating system works. What's the problem, anyway, with releasing a sim-less phone? Because the visual voicemail feature won't work with all operators?
Welcome to Europe, Apple.
Welcome to Europe, Apple.
hahaha that's about the long and short of it from where I'm sitting.
Edit: when the iPhone lands in the UK and it turns out it isn't 3G I will replace my limping SE t610 with something like the n95 or the forthcoming SE k850i. I'm under no illusions that that is equivalent to the iphone but it'll keep me going until revision B with HSDPA
Apple needs to play nice entering a new market with enormous players, many of which having seriously strong ties to each other. Making unconventional demands cos they have the hottest phone at the moment is definitely not clever. And if it absolutely requires the demands, and is not just a revenue share thing (or something along those lines), then I'd hope they put them across in the least arrogant way possible.
Annnywaayyy, it's not like Europe is a big market.
*cough*
Annnywaayyy, it's not like Europe is a big market.
*cough*
Or the just announced SE W960i (arriving Q4). 8GB Walkman, 3G, WiFi, touchscreen. Need I go on.
It's a bit of a bore, isn't it? I have an aging SE K800i and was hanging on for the iPhone, but it sounds like it's going to be a damp squid unless Apple makes some major changes. Time to start browsing the Orange shop methinks...
Unbelievable
I am astonished by how many people do not understand what SIM free means.
You want a SIM free iPhone.
A SIM free iPhone will work on compatible networks anywhere, generally speaking, in the world.
That's to say that in the US, you would have CHOICE. AT&T or T-Mobile, for example.
You could find the carrier with the best plan and drop in your SIM card and make calls. BETTER YET the carriers would have to compete over pricing plans.
As it stands now, AT&T has an exclusive for 3-5 years. They have absolutely no incentive to be competitive.
Worse yet, iPhone users will be locked into AT&T for the period of the contract.
To put it plainly, the UK customers will have it made if the iPhone ships SIM free. In fact, that's how the industry is moving. Unlocked phones are slowly becoming the norm. As a shareholder I was not happy to learn that Apple had penned an exclusive with the iPhone; that immediately left many potential customers out of the equation.
I am astonished by how many people do not understand what SIM free means.
You want a SIM free iPhone.
A SIM free iPhone will work on compatible networks anywhere, generally speaking, in the world.
That's to say that in the US, you would have CHOICE. AT&T or T-Mobile, for example.
You could find the carrier with the best plan and drop in your SIM card and make calls. BETTER YET the carriers would have to compete over pricing plans.
As it stands now, AT&T has an exclusive for 3-5 years. They have absolutely no incentive to be competitive.
Worse yet, iPhone users will be locked into AT&T for the period of the contract.
To put it plainly, the UK customers will have it made if the iPhone ships SIM free. In fact, that's how the industry is moving. Unlocked phones are slowly becoming the norm. As a shareholder I was not happy to learn that Apple had penned an exclusive with the iPhone; that immediately left many potential customers out of the equation.
Actually most of what they demanded is actually good for the normal cell phone user. Almost every feature on your cell phone is there for an additional money chain for the cell phone service provider. Apple probably insisted that the cell phone features not be curtailed by the service provider. I'm a Verizon subscriber because of the cell phone coverage is better than the others around here, not because they disable just about every feature in my Motorola cell phone. Many of those disabled features can be used for an extra fee.
If cell service revenue sharing is true then that would be the thing that you would think could cause problems. First many paid for features would be usable without a fee, then Apple would take part of a smaller pie. That would cut out many companies in a normal market. Many people do not worhip Steve Jobs & Apple like some seem to do in the Apple User Arena.
Things should be interesting in the cell phone service market if the iPhone or iPhone look-alikes all will demand service fee concessions from the service provider. That will be the greatest legacy of the iPhone in my opinion.
Bill the TaxMan
Yes because all mobile phone companies are bastions of wanting what's best for the consumer.
Have just taken a look at Vodafone's UK website, and it seems the business model in the UK is completely different from Norway (and probably whole of Scandinavia). We don't have things like "Data packages", National Calls, Local Calls (not even on landlines - just one price).
The subscription prices also seemed much higher in the UK. There was one for UKP 9 but that went up to UKP 18 after 3 months, then up again to UKP 20 at some stage.
The cheapest subscription from Telenor here is UKP 2.50 a month; 20 free minutes, then: 4p/min call price, 18p/min Video call, 4p/SMS, 16p/MMS, Free Voicemail, 80p/day max.internet.
So, with people used to very cheap mobile telephony here, the iPhone would struggle with the US pricing structure.
I live in Portugal and I've never bought a locked cell phone here.
However, our network providers do sell locked phones, but I hate the idea of having no other choice but going "Vodafone". I hate locked cell phones...
And Apple cannot take the risk of turning it's back on the Europe market, Mac's have been selling well here, same as iPod's... they just have to realize that Europe is a HUGE market for computers, mp3 players and especially phones.
IMO they can't afford to be "arrogant" in this, if the iPhone flops... it will be a disaster.
However, our network providers do sell locked phones, but I hate the idea of having no other choice but going "Vodafone". I hate locked cell phones...
And Apple cannot take the risk of turning it's back on the Europe market, Mac's have been selling well here, same as iPod's... they just have to realize that Europe is a HUGE market for computers, mp3 players and especially phones.
IMO they can't afford to be "arrogant" in this, if the iPhone flops... it will be a disaster.
Check out the P1 too: http://www.sonyericsson.com/spg.jsp?cc=gb&lc=en&ver=4000&template=pip1&zone=pp&pid=10864
Not as pretty as an iPhone but does much more. I could be tempted.
I love it. Battle of the undelivered untested phones.
You all should consider that this entire article is FUD put out by the cell phone carriers to put pressure on Apple - not unprecedented.
I do think the iPhone is a great bit of kit, looks very slick and no doubt will be very nice to play with. But with competition like the w960i providing these kinds of features and at a tiny fraction of the cost I just can't see how it will work.
That w960 looks the nuts, iWant!
Unbelievably arrogont? Kind of like the unbelievably arrogand demands that cellular providers ask of their customers? Like asking them to pay 10c for a single SMS message even tho SMS is the most bandwidth friendly way of communicating with a cell phone? I think it's the cell phone companies that need to pull their heads out of their hind parts. I'm not saying that Apple is a golden child, but this is definitely an instance of the pot calling the kettle black.
I agree. Who matter of voicemail? I will never use it. People with eye problems, who need it, will buy a card of the operator which will offer this service. What is the problem?
We want iPhone in place of our current phone! No more work than moving our SIM card from the old to the new phone.
...and lower tarifs for Internet traffic, please, otherwise no way to download music, google maps and wheater predictions!
P.S. Apple, spend time to allow opening and correction of attachments in Word format.
The Sony K and W series are known to be a good line of handsets, these specific models haven't been tested, but it's not unreasonable to speculate that they will be good, and will cost next to nothing on normal existing contracts.
The iPhone on the other hand we know from what we hear from the Apple+AT&T deal that it is expensive, and that from current specs there is no 3G.
Yes it's speculation, but it's reasonable speculation based on the information we're being given.
'Arrogant' said the carrier to Apple
It is difficult for me to imagine some company more arrogant than the carriers themselves (both mobile and web), with such a poor image and such abysmal customer support ... So they have found a company that can be as arrogant as them ! ... This is going to be funny
It is difficult for me to imagine some company more arrogant than the carriers themselves (both mobile and web), with such a poor image and such abysmal customer support ... So they have found a company that can be as arrogant as them ! ... This is going to be funny
Check out Callwave, I see no reason why Apple could not have just established a VM replacement service and implemented it that way.
glad to see someone is standing up to apple.
apple is arrogant, now they see how the rest of the world really operates.
guess steve will run home to mommy.
apple is arrogant, now they see how the rest of the world really operates.
guess steve will run home to mommy.
First of all there IS 3G. It has been said consistently from day one that the European release, at the end of this year, WILL be 3G. So this 'speculation' is way off.
Second, you just compared a subsidized phone price (price with contract) with unsubsidized, which is also ridiculous as one just hides the cost of the other. What is the unsubsidized cost of these phones?