Nokia, Sony Ericsson, all refresh their dozens of models on a yearly or less basis. It's logical to expect a new revision of the iPhone this year. However, my decision still remains. If Apple sells the iPhone unlocked out of the box like in some countries like Hong Kong, I'll buy. If not, no buy.
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Next Generation iPhone Model Revealed in Firmware
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Unless they do something quite special, I'm happy with my 3g thanks.
£35*18 = £630
I don't need anywhere near a £35 contract, thanks. I typically use 100 of my 500 text messages and 70 minutes of my 600 minutes.
I think in hindsight I'd rather have an extra £25 a month in my pocket.
£35*18 = £630
I don't need anywhere near a £35 contract, thanks. I typically use 100 of my 500 text messages and 70 minutes of my 600 minutes.
I think in hindsight I'd rather have an extra £25 a month in my pocket.
Glad I did 12 months contract...
I'm glad I did a 12 months contract for my actual iPhone. I know cell phones are released on a yearly basis. Apple would have done nothing different than what they do with iPods.
I'll be the first in line for the new phone
Hoping that it will have GPS navigation in it, with preloaded maps (downloadable via iTunes) so that it doesn't become useless as soon as I step out of my country. (roaming...)
I think the new software (push services, copypaste, other stuff) will be released for current 3G owners "for a small fee". Since many are still bound to contracts with carriers. I also imagine Apple having a less strict carrier exclusivity program this time around.
I'm glad I did a 12 months contract for my actual iPhone. I know cell phones are released on a yearly basis. Apple would have done nothing different than what they do with iPods.
I'll be the first in line for the new phone
Hoping that it will have GPS navigation in it, with preloaded maps (downloadable via iTunes) so that it doesn't become useless as soon as I step out of my country. (roaming...)
I think the new software (push services, copypaste, other stuff) will be released for current 3G owners "for a small fee". Since many are still bound to contracts with carriers. I also imagine Apple having a less strict carrier exclusivity program this time around.
I have similar useage to you and might go for the pay and go iPhone. You only have to put £10 a month on it and still get data access.
Nokia N95 has had a dual core CPU for about two years now, Dual 332 MHz Texas Instruments OMAP 2420 (ARM11-based).
This might be as simple as pulling version numbers straight to reference the common hardware platform of iPhone and iPod with same version identifiers, introduced with the most recent update to the iPhone. No Panic!
What could they really improve?
The 2G -> 3G switch was much more dramatic, and I can't imagine what they really could do to make my 3G obsolete overnight.
Obviously it can get a faster CPU and GPU and maybe more battery life and a better resolution camera. But all that stuff is pretty incremental. An OLED display might be cool, but the 3G screen still looks awesome to me. The graphics are certainly capable enough for some pretty amazing games. The camera works well enough for a phone (could use a flash and video mode I suppose, but I hardly miss it and the people who really care will probably never be satisfied no matter how good the camera gets.)
I think the lack of a missed call/message waiting light kind of sucks, and I know they have a patent for a secondary localized backlighting light source to deal with that (I mean a small section of the existing display lit by an alternate ultra low power led as opposed to the main backlight. If it's OLED it's even more trivial.) Faster CPU/GPU could increase the external video output to allow it to do 720P (it's 480P now) which would be kind of cool too (although then I'd want a true DVI/HDMI output mode at that point.)
And I think the lack of the accelerometer to detect rotation perpendicular to the horizontal plain is kind of frustrating. I don't know, that seems like everything I can conceive of is pretty much icing on an already substantial cake. That said, I'm ready to be astonished.
The 2G -> 3G switch was much more dramatic, and I can't imagine what they really could do to make my 3G obsolete overnight.
Obviously it can get a faster CPU and GPU and maybe more battery life and a better resolution camera. But all that stuff is pretty incremental. An OLED display might be cool, but the 3G screen still looks awesome to me. The graphics are certainly capable enough for some pretty amazing games. The camera works well enough for a phone (could use a flash and video mode I suppose, but I hardly miss it and the people who really care will probably never be satisfied no matter how good the camera gets.)
I think the lack of a missed call/message waiting light kind of sucks, and I know they have a patent for a secondary localized backlighting light source to deal with that (I mean a small section of the existing display lit by an alternate ultra low power led as opposed to the main backlight. If it's OLED it's even more trivial.) Faster CPU/GPU could increase the external video output to allow it to do 720P (it's 480P now) which would be kind of cool too (although then I'd want a true DVI/HDMI output mode at that point.)
And I think the lack of the accelerometer to detect rotation perpendicular to the horizontal plain is kind of frustrating. I don't know, that seems like everything I can conceive of is pretty much icing on an already substantial cake. That said, I'm ready to be astonished.
My 12mnth contract has just completed on my N95 8gb, and I was thinking of getting the iPhone this saturday.
I really do want an iPhone now - even with the major down-grade in camera. My plan was, if I can ensure that I will keep the 3G iPhone 100% spotless by the time june/july comes around - I may sell handset pay the difference for the new handset. Obviously, as long as that model will be on offer for PAYG...
It all depends too, on how much difference in features there will be in the next update. If it's just a bump to 3.2mp for the camera and 32GB for the storage, I may pass.
Some thinking to do...
I really do want an iPhone now - even with the major down-grade in camera. My plan was, if I can ensure that I will keep the 3G iPhone 100% spotless by the time june/july comes around - I may sell handset pay the difference for the new handset. Obviously, as long as that model will be on offer for PAYG...
It all depends too, on how much difference in features there will be in the next update. If it's just a bump to 3.2mp for the camera and 32GB for the storage, I may pass.
Some thinking to do...
Mayhaps someone at Apple is tampering with the reality distortion field again.
Remember the (still non-existent) Mac Mini plist entries from last month?
Remember the (still non-existent) Mac Mini plist entries from last month?
I felt this was sort of inevitable that in true Apple fashion they'll release a new handset well before my contract finishes.
My contract ends sometime July 2010. I'll be skipping the iPhone 3, and getting the 4G (or however it'll be called).
I'll be ready to buy in about 12 months (have to let my current contract finish), really looking forward to seeing this new iPhone!
Hmm.. I wonder how they're going to handle the upgrade considering the iPhone 3G moved to subscription subsidy model. iPhone UK is on an 18 month contract so - if it comes out in June - even those who bought on July 11th will have 6 months still to go before they are eligible to upgrade..
I can see quite a few peed off customers as no current iPhone 3G owner (apart from those who paid the outrageous £400 ($550) on pay as you go will be eligible for upgrade.
Reminds me of those "new customers only" adverts by the Nationwide...
If it is a major upgrade though, how are they going to handle the apps? Will there be a 2 tier system? What if the screen res is higher? Or is this merely the "iPhone nano" for China?
I can see quite a few peed off customers as no current iPhone 3G owner (apart from those who paid the outrageous £400 ($550) on pay as you go will be eligible for upgrade.
Reminds me of those "new customers only" adverts by the Nationwide...
If it is a major upgrade though, how are they going to handle the apps? Will there be a 2 tier system? What if the screen res is higher? Or is this merely the "iPhone nano" for China?
Very good questions. If that's the case,
would have a BIG problem. The same thing goes with the iPod Touch, at some point. They can't 'abandon' the previous gen. models.Unfortunately all we can do is speculate... until it comes out; whenever that is.
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Ahahaha, it seems like people have forgotten about the background push feature. Hey apple, you said it will be available back in September.
Ahahaha, it seems like people have forgotten about the background push feature. Hey apple, you said it will be available back in September.
clearly you don't read on here very often if you think people have forgotten about that
I think there's a new thread about it every other day
No. You become eligible for an upgrade 18 months after you signed your contract.
what about all of those people who upgraded to a 3g from 1st gen like 1 year later? what was the time requirement for them?
They do that with all other phones, why not? The phone company already has you locked in for at least another year.. there's absolutely no advantage to them in them letting you upgrade early on the cheap - if you want to do that you buy out of your contract like everyone else.
eg. I can't upgrade until January 2010. Or I can pay the remaining months on the contract and switch phones tomorrow if I'm crazy enough. If the phone company were to announce tomorrow that we could upgrade a new phone they'd be conning themselves out of £360 (>$500) per customer.. no sane company is going to do that... their shareholders would lynch them.
The 2G->3G upgrade was different.. the 2G wasn't subsidised - the 3G is. We haven't finished paying for it yet, so an early upgrade isn't likely.
I can't believe I have to explain this again... -.-
4 words: WPA has been cracked.
Want more words? Ok...
I can only assume by your post that you're new to Apple's UI strategy.
Apple is all about EASE of use.
I could stop right there, but I'll explain...
The idea is that if you have quarter of a brain.... and it's damaged....and drowning in alcohol... you can still use Apple's products.
It's one of the main reasons why they are gaining success over Linux and the like. So understanding that, expecting Jane (the-quarter-brain-alcoholic-tard) Doe to know how to setup her wireless access-point with a secure WPA encryption (impossible btw since wpa being cracked it's not truly secure anymore) and with additional mac-address white listing in place is SO far from anything even remotely like Apple's definition of ease of use or simplicity that it's laughable.
Bare minimum, Apple would REQUIRE confirmation that the network is secure before allowing the connection, and with all the third-party wireless routers/APs out there, there is no way for Apple to interface their software with the competition's firmware to coordinate such security confirmation.
It's just not going to happen.
It's not even practical in any business sense.
Even implementing it and making the option available for those interested would just flood the "Genius" Bar (geniuses in quotes on purpose) with too many non-apple hardware wifi network configuration questions (as opposed to apple product related questions, which the "Geniuses" can parle into accessory sales as they often do). And paying the Genius-drones to spend hours answering those non-apple network related questions is not a good business strategy. Especially not in our ****** economy.
Additionally, to be useful the sync would have to be initiated by the iPhone, and since any wifi network can easily be configured to be identical to any other network, the iPhone would have no way to confirm that the network it is attempting to sync on is the known SAFE network before it broadcasts your authentication (not something you want to be broadcasting on just any network).
Your phone would just eat battery life checking if the network is available, then checking if it's recognizable, then secure, then checking if the expected itunes server sync software is running and ready. All being done over a wifi radio which is far less efficient than a properly implemented Bluetooth radio (Talk about killing battery life).
And then there's the problem of the lack of pairing protocol for wifi.
Bluetooth on the other hand was designed from the get go to be a replacement for wired connections. So Apple could EASILY restrict the pairing on the iPhone to a specific machine (or a set max number of machines, as is done with iTunes syncing via USB). The same can't reliably be said for wifi.
Finally, anyone on the wifi network can easily EASILY sniff packets or poison the DNS cache and redirect the traffic to a malicious server.
That task is arguably easier than setting up a secure wifi network.
AND..
(yes.. ok...I lied, there's more)
Regarding the speed issue...if Bluetooth 3.0 were to be implemented, the speed of communication would be up to 480 Mbit/s which would leave 802.11n with it's 300 Mbit/s rate in the dust (and that's N's TOP speed under absolute PERFECT conditions).
...
Now an induction charging option...why Apple hasn't implemented THAT for their products, especially with Steve's LOVE for streamlining the cases (and dislike for screws/seams/connection-ports) is BEYOND me.
