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More Claims of Unlocked 3G iPhones... Belgium, India, Australia?

Would they be version 2.0?

If these rumors are correct, the phones will be released in some limited numbers sometime in May, some say May 12. Since the new version of the iPhone software is not scheduled to be released until sometime in June, the big question in my mind is what version of the OS they will come with?
 
Arn or whoever is moding, I think we would all highly benefit from an article outlining all of the known specs of the Apple/AT&T iPhone exclusivity contract as well as the revenue sharing/free update specs with maybe an overview of the pros and cons (visual voice mail etc.) of unlocked phones with a poll for US members of whether or not they would pay more for an unlocked iPhone if free of contracts etc. Could we get something like that on the home page???

Thanks :)

I am SOOOO EXCITED to get my iPhone 2.0 :D
 
northy124 said:
They will come but not unlocked but locked to all networks that sell them.
Click to expand...

That would be an interesting idea, that may actually work. I know there is a large group of people who would like an iPhone without switching their carrier, so why not implement something along those lines?
(after the exclusivity contract in the U.S.)

I also really like the idea by MacFly123 (see above post).
 
k2spitfire88 said:
That would be an interesting idea, that may actually work. I know there is a large group of people who would like an iPhone without switching their carrier, so why not implement something along those lines?
(after the exclusivity contract in the U.S.)
Click to expand...

In the UK it is successful but then again we do get the phones for £100 and under (Normally free), I really do hope that Apple can finally get it right in the EU with the iPhone as it has been a flop, especially seeing as it was was 2G/2.5G and a majority of mobiles in the EU are 3G based now.
 
MacFly123 said:
Arn or whoever is moding, I think we would all highly benefit from an article outlining all of the known specs of the Apple/AT&T iPhone exclusivity contract as well as the revenue sharing/free update specs with maybe an overview of the pros and cons (visual voice mail etc.) of unlocked phones with a poll for US members of whether or not they would pay more for an unlocked iPhone if free of contracts etc. Could we get something like that on the home page???

Thanks :)

I am SOOOO EXCITED to get my iPhone 2.0 :D
Click to expand...

the only real benefit i see to locking a phone to a carrier is a lower price from subsidizing. otherwise unlocked & unbranded is the way to go.
 
Kilchzimmer said:
Good: unlocked phones and choice! :) :)

Bad: Apple raising price on iPhone to keep same profits. :mad:

Good: Other companies making good, affordable phones that bite into Apple's sales to remind them that they are not alone in the game. :p
Click to expand...

Good: Having your cake
Bad: Eating it too.
-----Apple's not a charity.

Indifferent: 3rd rate competitors trying to catch up to where Apple was yesterday. Some competition.
 
GQB said:
Good: Having your cake
Bad: Eating it too.
-----Apple's not a charity.
Click to expand...

Nor on the face of it do they have any idea about the European markets.

Indifferent: 3rd rate competitors trying to catch up to where Apple was yesterday. Some competition.
Click to expand...

Oh dear. I think somebody needs to look at worldwide sales and growth.
 
Kelmon said:
Finger's crossed for the iPhone in Belgium. Given that we seem to get hosed when it comes to phone prices here (I'm from the UK where it's normal to get a free phone with a contract) I dread what the price will be but the option to buy one will be nice.
Click to expand...

If you guys get it before we do, and they're unlocked...
EXPECT AN INVASION FROM YOUR NORTHERLY NEIGHBOURS!!!
:D
We will flood your streets... trying to get one. :p
 
Mobistar sells iPhone first in Belgium, other operators follow 2 Months later

6 weeks ago I had a presentation from a technical person from Mobistar (Belgian mobile operator) in Belgium.
He confirmed that the iPhone will be sold in Belgium unlocked, but that Mobistar gets the exclusivity for the first two months.

The other operators will sell the iPhone after this period of two months.

Its an interesting idea if this is true. In this way, Apple can still earn profit through one operator in each country by asking the agreed price for the iPhone. This before other operators start selling the iPhone for lower prices...

We'll see...
 
Donnacha said:
:) Good points, but how long is the exclusivity contract anyway?

Is it likely, in terms of competition law, that AT&T would have included a specific clause again VOIP?

My impression has been that Apple has been a lot shrewder than the telcos in those negotiations.
Click to expand...

How long is not public information, but I am pretty sure it will still be in
effect by the June timeframe you referenced. We all are only going on
impressions, since the contract details are not public. As smart as we all
believe Apple is as a company, AT&T are not babes in the woods. I would
be surprised if their "exclusivity" did not exclude VOIP.
 
pagansoul said:
I think Apple is a smart enough company to have an 'OUT' of the contract under certain terms. I don't think AT&T will be getting more switchers with un-locked phones being so prevalent. There is a point where sticking to your guns isn't worth it. Maybe without the contract Apple looses their % of all new subscriptions. AT&T gets to charge what the want w/2 year contract and apple only gets money from the sale of the phone. This way AT&T or who ever can give away an iphone with their subscription model, Apple doesn't care because they already sold the phone to the carrier. Service contracts will be worked out same way as a computer purchase.
Click to expand...

I hope you are right, but AT&T is a smart company too. If there is a way
out, it will likely be onerous to Apple.
 
ruinfx said:
does the exclusivity contract apply to ALL apple iphones, even future models (3G) or just the first gen?

also i saw a video on youtube of a kid making a call on his ipod touch using a microphone adapter he bought.
Click to expand...

We can only speculate on the terms of the contract. It would be great
if it only applied to the first generation iPhone. I have a feeling it
might be like a "non-compete" clause. That is, Apple agrees not to
produce any product which competes with the AT&T iPhone for the
duration of the exclusivity period, in exchange for numerous
considerations from AT&T.

The OP was writing about Apple selling a VOIP capable iPod touch.
I didn't think he/she was referring to what was possible with
accessories and software hacks.
 
If it does happen in Belgium, I'll take a train there (from Amsterdam) to buy it. Sadly no news about a Dutch iPhone release yet, but if it's unlocked it doesn't really matter.
 
@ Donnacha

It is a good theory. However I wonder, if Apple were to include Skype with the iPhone and lock out all other VOIP software there would likely be an anti-competition case against them in the manner of the Microsoft one when they bundled Internet Explorer and Windows Media Player in Windows without options of uninstall or the use of competitors products as default software.

I know this is different since the hardware is essentially proprietary and owned by Apple too. This is different from what happened with Windows, where they do not make PC hardware. However I still think this would be considered anti-competitive. I also cannot imagine Apple owning Skype without changing its name and a lot of other characteristics that fly against Apple's product conventions. All subdomains of Apple's business have been self-built, as far as I know. They do work in major partnerships, such as with Intel and AT&T but I am not sure they have bought out (m)any companies. I cannot imagine them changing their model and losing focus.
 
this is great news for us in australia, considering that our CDMA network is closing in...6 days and NextG covers about 90% of our population and the iPhone will be 3G. i think there will be a worldwide release for the new iPhone, and chances are that it will be unlocked in Australia too becuase we have many telco's with 3G and telstra with nextG and the ACCC considers locking an iPhone anti-competitive, so Apple really has no choice but to sell them unlocked.
 
iPhone teleconferencing via skype.. (for business)

Imagine if you could stand your iPhone up in a meeting and have a teleconference and be able to see everybody who is in the meeting. It will be video conferencing only on an IP based service. Businesses would pay big money for this and it would be easy to do.

Roocka
 
That would be nice to see. I wonder though, would the unlocked phones be still restricted for use only in the specific country where they were purchased? :confused:
 
MacRumors said:
Despite technical measures in place to prevent the use of the iPhone on unauthorized networks, the practice of "unlocking" iPhones has become a big business with reports that as many as 400,000 unlocked iPhones running on China Mobile's network.
Click to expand...

I'd say that's pretty spot on, while not China, while I was in Hong Kong recently every other person I saw on the street or in a restaurant who had a job, had an iPhone.

So many of them in Hong Kong now and if Apple fails to see these places as markets then they don't deserve what extra mark-up they'd charge. Sure, Apple still gets the original cost of the unit, but they're letting someone else cleanup too :rolleyes:
 
PDE said:
it was just a matter of time before Apple would have to back down and curb its own greed. Apple thought it could push its model on the rest of the world but it overestimated how much people would be willing to compromise to own the iphone.
Click to expand...

I keep hearing the word "greed" and "apple" in the same sentence recently, it's so unfounded its beginning to bug me.

what is so 'greedy' about trying a new business model? apple have a profit margin to meet, and they will get their money out of you if it's through higher priced unlocked iphones or lower priced subscription model. if it brings funky new technologies (as closer ties with a carrier can only bring) then i dont care what method apple uses to prise the pounds(£) from my pocket.

Frankly the rest of the world needed a push from apple, and it sure got it, the industry was well and truly shaken, to the consumers benefit. Yet Apple are the bad guys all of a sudden? for what? being innovative?

Also, mostly when I hear about apple being 'greedy' it actually has nothing to do with apple whatsoever, but restrictions placed on apple due to contract requirements by TRULY GREEDY content providers(pricing/DRM/16bit AD converter/swapping restrictions etc), or carriers just watching their own backs from imminent technologies that could render their business model redundant (VOIP/IM etc) .

Then you get people who think apple is based on an entirely 'greedy' proprietary business model, completely ignoring the fact that inside apples proprietary OS lies a multitude of open source/ open standards which apple regularly contributes to and embraces.
Infact apple is what it is today through NOT being greedy! It's in apples long term interest to use open standards where and when it can, the user experience is much better because of this, and thats why people buy apple products.
The other options are linux or windows(which you are free to buy at any time apple does not force you to buy its products), but both suffer in usability from being too open or too proprietary, they are their own worst enemies.
Apple is the best of both worlds, they provide a playground of open standards within a proprietary OS which only works on their hardware, a fair deal, and as apple are exceptional at creating hardware also, I frankly couldn't give a damn.

Overpriced hardware? really? Compared to what? There rarely is a comparison. Oh thats right, compared to junk. Compared to crappy OS with crappy hardware, resulting in a crappy miserable experience for the sake of a small premium (if that).

Think yourself lucky apple exists today, we would still be in a technological darkage trapped and leached for every penny, true "greed", and true "evil".
Or maybe they are all just businesses doing what they do, I doubt either have an allegiance with Lucifer, but it sells papers, and dumasses read and believe every word.
The new bad boy on the scene is apple, lead by satan spawn Steve Jobs, beware, he wants your children's souls...

Of particular annoyance was that stupid wired story about how "Evil" Apple is...
http://www.wired.com/techbiz/it/magazine/16-04/bz_apple
...I have never read such dire crap...

"Apple is irredeemably evil, behaving more like an old-fashioned industrial titan than a different-thinking business of the future."

apparently :rolleyes:
 
mikey.f said:
That would be nice to see. I wonder though, would the unlocked phones be still restricted for use only in the specific country where they were purchased? :confused:
Click to expand...

imo the issue would be buying a 3G iphone with euro 3G bands that wouldnt work on AT&Ts network.
 
Ti_Poussin said:
Nothing about Canada? damn I would love to have one that I don't need to jailbreak, and messing around at every firmware update.
Click to expand...

I have had a iPhone for two months and haven't had one problem with it. You don't have to worry about firmware updates. I have all the features except the individual voice mail checking. It's great!
 
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