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iPhone Nano Coming in June, But Not to United States?

rtdunham said:
Lamar777, I also can't think of a foreign intro of an apple product that could have the impact of a Nano release. But I don't think the fact apple hasn't done it before precludes it. Lots of other companies do it. Apple's a worldwide business now. As a consumer, I'd like to see the phone released in the U.S. I have one daughter i think would prefer it to the iPhone G3 (what can i say?) :( But with ATT contract complications, etc., i can also understand why the company might intro it first into some of those foreign markets. As a shareholder, I'd welcome that.
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:)
 
lamar777 said:
I...Anything can happen and unprecedented things have for sure...I still think it unlikely that it would happen in China first. I don't believe the market is as big as some think it is but I cant be sure, I would love to see numbers on how well blackberry sells in China compared to the US. Secondly as stupid as it may be, I think it would be bad PR pure and simple in the current economic and world situation to initiate sales of your newest product in China.
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On your first point, isn't the blackberry a smart phone? I think much of the speculation here, at least, is that the Nano will not be. So its market would be the 600 million cell contracts currently in place in china.

As for your second point, can you elaborate? What's bad PR about it? I'm not trying to provoke you, i really don't understand the point, unless you mean US consumers would resent not being able to buy the device. That would happen, I'm sure. But PR happens in a bigger context. "Apple's tapping into a 600M market; some US buyers miffed; analysts say product will eventually make its way to US shores" is probably how the PR issue would be handled. And that's IF the intro is foreign first, which is still just a rumor, as is the Nano itself. It just seems easier to see the foreign intro of such a product first, unless apple's deal with ATT covers only smart phones.

To reinforce another poster's point: I think a non-smartphone (no browser, no GPS, etc) that can text, sync via USB my calendar, contacts--and email?--with all of apple's ease of usability, service reputation, and design, would be a blockbuster. Here or abroad.
 
lamar777 said:
... My point I guess is that there is a market here in the states that is ripe for the pickin and while China may be ripe I think that the harvest may be a little more difficult
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You're probably right. It's a ripe market, but hard to get into the fields to work them, to follow your metaphor: Apple hasn't been able to break into the China market with the 3G phone, right? So on the one hand that may be a (tightly government-regulated) market that's tougher than ours to enter; on the other hand, the fact that apple can't sell its 3G in such a large market no doubt puts much pressure on the company to come up with a product that can and WILL sell there.

Maybe the company already had a Nano under exploratory development, and sees China as the place to apply that product. Maybe it didn't, but started the development as a solution to the China 3G blocks. In either case, it creates an opportunity for the US market too, and i hope it can be exploited sooner rather than later.
 
this is site is getting less crediable by every rumor that's posted. seriously, Apple would NOT make an iPhone Nano. That's just stupid and a waste of resources. 1 inch in height isn't making to make a freakin' difference, so why bother.
 
Razeus said:
this is site is getting less crediable by every rumor that's posted. seriously, Apple would NOT make an iPhone Nano. That's just stupid and a waste of resources. 1 inch in height isn't making to make a freakin' difference, so why bother.
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Razeus, i dunno whether you read the posts here, but the speculation is not about the size but about the functionality and cost...a Nano might not be a smartphone, couldn't browse, no GPS, maybe couldn't do email. More like the standard non-smartphones every carrier sells from many manufacturers (but not from apple, because it doesn't have such a product.) The smartphones require costly service plans; the simple handsets don't.

Would your objection be less if the form factor was the same, but there were two models:
1) The "3G" smartphone, which browses, has GPS, geotags photos for iPhoto, has the slicket email interface on the market, etc, steep service plans buyers grudgingly pay because they conclude it's worth the benefits they get
and
2) the Nano, which is...just...a phone, which you can sync with your contacts and calendar via a cable, and which has design/service/usability superior to the other simple handsets on the market, and has the same cheaper monthly plans as other simple phones?
 
Call me crazy, but isn't it more plausible that the iPhone Nano doesn't exist except as a concept Apple played with in their gadget labs, and was never really going to be released, except as a rumor everyone allowed to feed in on itself.
 
rtdunham said:
On your first point, isn't the blackberry a smart phone? I think much of the speculation here, at least, is that the Nano will not be. So its market would be the 600 million cell contracts currently in place in china.
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Yes the Blackberry is a smartphone but it's equal in price to the iPhone, generally. In my opinion the iPhone is a smartphone too. I am still not comfortable with your 600M market, here is a link to a story about the iPhone in China and they are estimating only 28M potential iPhone (not stripped down nano) customers. Also I believe China would be similar to most countries I have traveled to in that the majority of cellular users are prepayed customers, check out Jamars comment on this thread I don't really see him as a potential nano customer.

rtdunham said:
As for your second point, can you elaborate? What's bad PR about it? I'm not trying to provoke you, i really don't understand the point, unless you mean US consumers would resent not being able to buy the device. That would happen, I'm sure. But PR happens in a bigger context. "Apple's tapping into a 600M market; some US buyers miffed; analysts say product will eventually make its way to US shores" is probably how the PR issue would be handled. And that's IF the intro is foreign first, which is still just a rumor, as is the Nano itself. It just seems easier to see the foreign intro of such a product first, unless apple's deal with ATT covers only smart phones.
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Offering a country such as China a premium (meaning newest and hottest not best) product over offering it in the home market would be a bad PR move in that it would not sit well with many in America as they see jobs outsourced, the economy crashing and Communist China in particular poised to have its way with us if they wanted. Especially because the same product launched here would sell, sell and sell. China owns us and we are all defensive about it so much so that if Apple did release a nano in China first Americans would be all bent about it and it would hurt Apples rep in the states.

rtdunham said:
To reinforce another poster's point: I think a non-smartphone (no browser, no GPS, etc) that can text, sync via USB my calendar, contacts--and email?--with all of apple's ease of usability, service reputation, and design, would be a blockbuster. Here or abroad.
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Exactly here or abroad.
 
It seems to me that this whole nano in china rumor may be a mix of two or more possibilities.

Possibility #1: Check out this link I could definitely see Apple conceding to eliminate some functionality and releasing a crippled iPhone in China$$$$ but it would be an iPhone China version not a new iPhone nano even if it was a little shorter. The release would be as far down on the headlines as when the iPhone became available in Australia.

Combine that with...

Possibility #2: Apple is preparing an iPhone nano for the US market to be released in June/July to a) Recapture all of those original iPhone adopters whose contracts are up and who have since realized that they loved the phone but cant afford the data(me). And to capture an entirely new market segment that always knew what it took me 2 years to realize, paying for data is poopy. I think this phone would not be crippled in that it will be able to browse and do email but only over wifi. Maybe 4 gig no bluetooth.

Also in June would be a refresh iPhone 3G with enough new features differentiate it from the nano (frontside video camera for vid conferencing, robust bluetooth for headphones and data transfer, 16 and 32 gig, 4MP camera etc). Some think a nano doesnt make sense but with an update of the 3G things look different.

As for "not being tested by ATT", I don't think it's necessary, Apple knows its radio chips work and I think that whole "we need to announce this now or it will leak when we test it" line was BS. Apple released it at Macworld because they wanted to dazzle and didn't have anything else to give that year.

Mash all that together and walla! iPhone nano to be released in China!
 
I'd like that. Let them start releasing it first at the international dateline and work their way west, like the course of the sun.
New Zealand first (US last hehe). :D
 
talkingfuture said:
It fits the iPhone product cycle but thats about it. I can't see them launching a non US product.
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I can. I guess they have finally figured that they won't be able to lure any more mobile operators into the original business model of the iPhone. The alternative is to sell it unlocked through their own stores (just like the ordinary iPhone is sold in Hong Kong), but AT&T won't let that happen in the USA as that business model is virtually unheard of stateside (unlike anywhere else in the world).

Ergo: start selling it unlocked-only worldwide except for in the US and let AT&T come to its senses later sometime. If ever.
 
Probably not true.

But if it is I don't see why it is a bad thing. A lot of Americans are criticising them releasing a product abroad and not in America but plenty of American companies do this.

They look to see whether it is something that though it may not sell well at home may sell well abroad.

Perhaps their research found it would not sell so well in the states.
 
oh absolutely, and the iphone shuffle will be sold in 2010. c'mon use some common sense. have you ever heard much complaint about the "size" of the phone? yes most people have something to say about the battery life, the lack of a2dp, bad camera and other things, but when since the beginning did people said anything about its size? i suppose that's just the size of a proper smartphone, not those korean "cosmetic" phones that needs a microscope to read the sms while can't send any due to the lack of a keyboard.

maybe the idea of iphone shuffle is to use brain sensing to dial the number for you at the same time you're thinking of doing it. then what might happen when one's in a dream? lol
 
2 reasons I don't like this article.

One, as has been said many times, it makes zero sense. There should be a rule for this written somewhere in "Global Competition for Dummies" if one existed.

Page 16, paragraph 21: ...A product mfg competing in the US does not release it's hot new products in foreign countries first if they expect to compete in the US later. This is also know as don't play poker with your cards face up you tool...


2nd reason I don't like this article, and I speak for me only. I already have an iPhone. why would I want a smaller one?! Wheres the iPhone XL? the big dog? the tablet?


oh and btw. I haven't run into a single person that said "I'm not getting an iphone because it's too big . So fine do the iPhone mini but I think the iPhone XL should be more of a priority.
 
nfl46 said:
New 3G iPhone in July 2009 for US
iPhone Nano in July 2009 for China

I can dig it!
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lamar777 said:
Possibility #2: Apple is preparing an iPhone nano for the US market to be released in June/July to a) Recapture all of those original iPhone adopters whose contracts are up and who have since realized that they loved the phone but cant afford the data(me). And to capture an entirely new market segment that always knew what it took me 2 years to realize, paying for data is poopy. I think this phone would not be crippled in that it will be able to browse and do email but only over wifi. Maybe 4 gig no bluetooth.

Also in June would be a refresh iPhone 3G with enough new features differentiate it from the nano (frontside video camera for vid conferencing, robust bluetooth for headphones and data transfer, 16 and 32 gig, 4MP camera etc). Some think a nano doesnt make sense but with an update of the 3G things look different.
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+++++1 :D
 
akonradi said:
China --> China helps the American trade deficit how, exactly?
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Someone obviously doesnt understand trade defecits. America is still getting the money from the trade, so it doesnt matter. Trade defecit isnt about where something is manufactured, or it would be called Manufacturing defecit, trade defecit is when you spend more on importing products than you get from selling exports.
 
I like wishful thinking too, especially when it's something I want. I just don't get why everyone keeps getting their hopes up for a front side video camera. There's really no evidence that Apple wants to do this. They don't even have a working version of iChat on the iPhone now.

Personally I think that video conferencing is a technology that is still in it's infancy...more in the fetal stage actually. It's a neat idea like the flying car but not very practical just yet. For mainstream.
 
boss1 said:
Personally I think that video conferencing is a technology that is still in it's infancy...more in the fetal stage actually. It's a neat idea like the flying car but not very practical just yet. For mainstream.
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Kind of like playing 3d accelorometer games on a phone...

The tech is there its about bandwidth and price. The itunes store just went live over 3G and edge so the reigns are loosening.
 
sushi said:
My guess as to what is spurring these rumors is a smaller 3G iPhone design for the next iteration of the iPhone. In other words, the next iPhone will be slightly smaller while having the same screen.
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The sides can be shaved quite a bit too.

We could see an iPhone with a 3.2" display, 480x320, 2 MP camera, and another iPhone with a 3.5"/3.6" display, 720x480, 5 MP camera. For the iPod line (that would extend up into the rumored mini-tablet), we might see similar dpi's to the existing iPod touch, but bigger display sizes.

Mad Mac Maniac said:
The concept of a smaller iphone is utterly absurd. Problems like app store, typing space, yadda yadda. I just wouldn't really understand why you would want to make it smaller with the current interface.
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I can see an "iPhone Air"…a slim iPhone along the lines of sushi's post and my reply, with a ≈3.2" display, but I don't see an iPhone nano. Application GUI elements are designed for a specific physical size, and a smaller display messes things up.

Trying to cram the iPhone OS GUI into a ≈2.5" display is like trying to cram the G5 into a PowerBook. (Maybe a better example is how Apple chose to use a full-size keyboard and display in the MacBook Air and make it very thin instead of reducing all three dimensions.)
 
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