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Speculation: iPhone Not Just Verizon

tnick777

tnick777

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 14, 2010
111
0
First off-- bare with me
Second off -- this DOES make sense :p

We've all heard the vicious CDMA iPhone rumors that point to Verizon being the favorite candidate for the first non-AT&T iPhone.

However some of Verizon's comments have made it seem as if iPhone isn't going to Verizon any time soon...

Ivan Seidenberg said:
"We don't feel like we have an iPhone deficit. We would love to carry it when we get there, but we have to earn it," Seidenberg said.
"I think 4G will accelerate the process, and any other decisions Apple makes would be fine with us," he added. "Hopefully, at some point Apple will get with the program."
Click to expand...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100923/ap_on_hi_te/us_tec_verizon_iphone

Now usually companies would be coy if they were going to get the iPhone but didn't want to reveal it... But here Seidenberg bluntly states that Verizon doesn't need the iPhone, and in fact will wait until Apple can make the iPhone work with their LTE network that has yet to be deployed to a market that anybody would be interested in.

Who does that leave for the CDMA phone? Well... Actually... Everybody

According to a very revealing article here, it basically says that (1) the iPhone will be GSM/CDMA based which means it probably would work on all networks and (2) the new iPad for Verizon is a bundled iPad WiFi with Verizon's Hot Spot...

This leaves my favorite part of this story... Sprint has been openly publicizing it's ability to make Apple products better.

Earlier this year there was a commercial where they made the iPhone 4G, and now they are taking on the iPad by offering a case that has a 4G hotspot pocket and a slot that the iPad perfectly fits... Which can be seen here.

And contrary to Seidenberg's comments, Sprint's CEO Hesse has sidestepped any comments quite nimbly.. Offering quotes like

When asked, Mr. Hesse has declined to answer whether or not there will be a Sprint iPhone, only saying that he "doesn't comment on its relationship with vendors and the conversations it has with third parties."
Click to expand...

Maybe there's more behind the scenes that we don't know about? Maybe Sprint approached Apple, and unsure about their devotion to the iPhone, asked Sprint to "prove themselves" :p by showing how their products would benefit on the network.

Just food for thought, some wishful thinking too ;)
 
Nothing really new here, rumors have circulated for quite some time about a CDMA capable iPhone that could be offered by companies other than Verizon.

If you check the articles on our host website you will find an article of a rumor that Apple may have plans to do away with the SIM chip and replace it with a chip that will allow the phone to be activated by any provider so it could be sold by Sprint or T-Mobile or anyone else.

There was also an article on our host site about a GMA/CDMA chip that again would be activated by the provider.

With the exclusive contract between Apple and AT&T coming to a definite end in the near future you will hear many other such rumors.
 
If I were to guess, I would say that Verizon would share exclusivity with AT&T for about a year and then iOS phones would be made available to all carriers after that.

Apple just wants to keep up with Android, which means they need to be on the biggest two carriers. Sprint and T-mobile are small frys in comparison to AT&T and Verizon, so I doubt there is much urgency in putting the iphone on those networks.

After all, Verizon does have exclusivity on half the high-end Android phones out there... so they are the primary source of the threat of Android's growth.

Verizon, however, is very eager to maintain a competitive advantage over Sprint, who has been poaching more customers from them than normal this past year.

I wouldn't put it past them to throw some money Apple's way to keep the iPhone on AT&T and Verizon for at least a year.
 
The CEO of Sprint sounds like he has been coached by Apples PR rep. He's replies sound just like the ones frmo Steve and co when questioned about anything which is not announced. Sprint iPhone could be in the works if we're basising it off of quotes only! Plus Android and Verizon took huge shots at Apple and the iPhone early on in its release. Steve and Co. dont like people who bad mouth them and often hold grudges.
 
I too wouldn't be surprised with a Sprint iPhone. Their network is just as good as AT&T's if not better, Sprint is apparently in the best position spectrum wise, and their network is vastly underutilized. They have had their problems in the past but their new CEO is a huge improvement over their previous one. They'd be more than happy to appease Apple with the little things such as no logo placement on the phone, letting Apple do all of the hardware support, and so forth.
 
I think an iPhone on Sprint would be awesome. Honestly though I can't see them getting it. Apple making both a WiMax and LTE model to function with 4G internet is too much to hope for. I hope I'm wrong.
 
Goldinboy17 said:
I think an iPhone on Sprint would be awesome. Honestly though I can't seem them getting it. I can't see Apple making both a WiMax and LTE model to function with 4G internet. I hope I'm wrong.
Click to expand...

Sprint is talking LTE. Word is Apple is holding off on LTE. Perhaps by the time Apple rolls out an LTE iPhone, Sprint will be getting LTE going.

moneyman118 said:
Steve and Co. dont like people who bad mouth them and often hold grudges.
Click to expand...

And you get this information from where? Have you even read the Fortune story?
 
Geckotek said:
Sprint is talking LTE. Word is Apple is holding off on LTE. Perhaps by the time Apple rolls out an LTE iPhone, Sprint will be getting LTE going.
Click to expand...

Really? Now I wonder if they just regretted using WiMax in the first place or this was their plan all along. I'm also curious as to what will happen to their current 4G devices. I can't imagine the EVO/other new phone being compatible with LTE.
 
Goldinboy17 said:
Really? Now I wonder if they just regretted using WiMax in the first place or this was their plan all along. I'm also curious as to what will happen to their current 4G devices. I can't imagine the EVO/other new phone being compatible with LTE.
Click to expand...

They don't seem to completely regret it as they are continuing their rollout from what I've seen. But I think they did it as a strategic decision to lure subscribers from the other carriers by having the first 4G network. But the fact that they are divesting from Clear and talking LTE really sounds like they realize they bet on the wrong horse.

Edit.....nevermind all that...hahaha

http://gigaom.com/2010/10/29/sprint-ceo-dan-hesse-on-clearwire-lte-wimax/
 
Geckotek said:
They don't seem to completely regret it as they are continuing their rollout from what I've seen. But I think they did it as a strategic decision to lure subscribers from the other carriers by having the first 4G network. But the fact that they are divesting from Clear and talking LTE really sounds like they realize they bet on the wrong horse.

Edit.....nevermind all that...hahaha

http://gigaom.com/2010/10/29/sprint-ceo-dan-hesse-on-clearwire-lte-wimax/
Click to expand...

Too bad... Maybe it's best for them. They'll have one of the best 4G networks within a couple of years although it'll be completely different technology. It's too much to hope for Apple to add the iPhone to Sprint.
 
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/532.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0.5 Mobile/8B117 Safari/6531.22.7)

Intel, hence the power pc.
 
ohaithar said:
Oh no I won't. I know your post was sarcastic (i hope it was) but I'm just tired of hearing all of this Verizon iPhone business. I hope it comes out soon so people would shut up about it.
Click to expand...

There are other threads, forums and web sites. I hardly think it's anyone's problem but your own if you're tired of reading about it. If you can't be bothered to put in a little effort to find something you actually like, try exercising a little self-restraint and don't click on the links you don't like.

Per the matter at hand, I'm all for the iPhone going to as many carriers as want to carry it. Competition is always good and either AT&T gets it's act together or it shrivels and turns back into the second rate carrier it had been at one time. At one time I've had Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile phones at home and they all have excellent coverage, only AT&T sucks so hard I was forced to buy a repeater. Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, Nextel, Boost Mobile, Uncle Joe's Cellular and Tire Rotation Service, whatever...if they can sell a phone, they should get the iPhone. I'd also think Apple is fairly tired of having to drum up excuses for a phone with so-so reception on a second rate carrier.
 
It kind of seems like the I phone will be out for verizon since verizon just released the Ipad on there network.
 
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