Mobile Choice Blog

Patchy EDGE coverage may hamper UK iPhone users

At last, Apple has announced full details of iPhone's launch in the UK. It will only be available on O2, will cost £269 on an 18-month contract, and goes on sale on 9th November (for more details, see the story on the main Mobile Choice website).

At the launch Apple boss Steve Jobs said he wasn't worried about the handset's lack of 3G, because "The EDGE network works really well for most of the iPhone's applications", while surfing the internet using Wi-Fi is faster than 3G, if you're within range of a hotspot.

But there's a catch. According to O2, it will only have rolled out EDGE to 30% of the country by the time the iPhone launches - everywhere else, it'll be surfing at GPRS speeds. That's S-L-O-W if you're viewing full websites through iPhone's Safari browser. Here's hoping O2 provides full details of where you will and won't have EDGE access before taking people's money.

Does O2's EDGE upgrade mean the UK iPhone won't be 3G?

An internal memo from O2 has revealed that the operator is upgrading its GPRS network to offer EDGE technology for faster data speeds. However, the news has been seized upon as proof that O2 will be selling Apple's iPhone, which in the US uses EDGE for its mobile internet surfing.

If true, the news isn't worth celebrating, as it would seem to imply that the UK iPhone won't be 3G, as has been rumoured. In the US, Apple has tackled criticism over slower EDGE speeds by pointing out that the iPhone also has Wi-Fi for faster surfing, but here in the UK we're a bit behind in terms of the rollout of public Wi-Fi hotspots.

Either way, the details won't be known for sure until Apple actually announces its UK operator partner, which is likely to be later this month.

(via Engadget Mobile)

Steve Jobs says sorry to iPhone early adopters for price cut

There was plenty of celebration about Apple's decision to slash $200 off the price of an 8GB iPhone on Wednesday, but some people weren't so happy: the people who bought one at the original price point in the last two months. Apparently, hundreds of them emailed Apple boss Steve Jobs to express their disgust too.

Jobs has responded with a letter published on the Apple website, effectively saying sorry and offering each and every one of them a $100 credit for Apple's online and offline stores. We think people should stop moaning: the whole point of buying a new piece of technology is to get it first, in the full knowledge that it'll probably be cheaper a couple of months down the line.

Steve agrees, although he's a bit more polite about it than us...

Still no UK iPhone launch date, but it'll be 8GB with Wi-Fi iTunes Store

Last night saw a stack of new product announcements by Apple, but sadly a UK iPhone launch date wasn't one of them. Instead, the company focused on its iPod MP3 players, introducing several new models including a touchscreen iPod and new video-capable iPod Nanos.

However, there was some US iPhone news, which provides a taster of what we can expect when Apple's phone comes here. For starters, the company is phasing out the 4GB iPhone to focus on the top-spec 8GB model, and announced a sizeable price cut of $200 for the latter, meaning it'll now sell in the US for $399 (around £197). We're assuming this means that when iPhone comes to the UK, it'll be only the 8GB model from day one.

Will Apple announce a 3G iPhone for the UK tonight?

That's what T3 magazine is claiming on its website. Apple is holding a major product launch at the BBC this evening, and according to T3's sources within the Beeb, a 3G iPhone could be announced, along with final details of which operator will be selling it in the UK.

This is speculation, obviously - most rumours about tonight's event have focused around the debut of new iPod MP3 players, rather than the iPhone. But the timing would be right if the iPhone is going on sale in the UK this side of Christmas, and it would make sense to include 3G in the European iPhone in any case.

Watch this space tomorrow for full analysis of whatever Apple does announce tonight.

(via T3)

Why unlocking your iPhone could prove an explosive mistake

The buzz right now among online hackers is how to unlock Apple's iPhone, and make it usable on operators other than the current exclusive operator, AT&T Wireless. There's clearly a big potential market too: one US teenager who managed to unlock his iPhone subsequently traded it for three more 8GB iPhones AND a $30,000 sports car.

But before you get your soldering iron out, beware. You could get a nasty surprise. One iPhone owner who followed unlocking instructions from a website managed to blow their handset up. Ouch.

(via Engadget Mobile)

Previous iPhone posts
Video tutorial on how to hack the iPhone
Latest Euro iPhone rumour: O2, T-Mobile AND Orange have got it!
The $4,190.76 iPhone bill that proves Wi-Fi roaming is the future

Video tutorial on how to hack the iPhone

That's not hack in a dodgy way, but in an 'install custom applications and ringtones' way. It's a slightly frightening thing to do though, as it involves messing about with the iPhone firmware. Thankfully, this tutorial from Gearlive makes it simple and accessible.

Now, if only we could actually BUY an iPhone on this side of the Atlantic...

Latest Euro iPhone rumour: O2, T-Mobile AND Orange have got it!

Today's Financial Times - not a publication given to printing rumours without some justification - has a story on Apple's plans for the iPhone in Europe. It claims Apple has struck three separate deals with operators, meaning that O2 will exclusively have the iPhone here in the UK, while T-Mobile will have it in Germany, and Orange in France.

Besides making us feel a bit sorry for poor old Vodafone, which appears to have been left out of the iPhone party for the time being, the story also has got us excited. Why? Because it claims Apple will announce all these deals next week at the IFA tech industry show in Germany, bringing the actual launch of the iPhone here closer.

But we're steeling our wallets for a shock. The FT also claims that Apple isn't letting its operator partners subsidise the price of the iPhone. As we calculated the other day, this could mean shelling out £399 for an 8GB iPhone.

(via FT.com)

The $4,190.76 iPhone bill that proves Wi-Fi roaming is the future

Have you ever experienced the phenomenon known as 'bill shock'? It's what happens when you get your mobile bill at the end of the month, and it's much more than you expected - either because you've overstepped your texting/talking limit, have used too much data, or spent too long calling home from that beach holiday.

Well, spare a thought for a man called Pierre, who took his US iPhone on holiday with him to Europe, and racked up a $4,190.76 bill, mainly for data roaming fees. That's got to be a nasty surprise, although he did manage to talk his operator into retroactively putting him on the 20MB-per-month international data plan, which cut the bill to a more manageable $900.

We wonder what Pierre was thinking when he went online with his iPhone, and why he didn't try to find Wi-Fi hotspots instead.

Why the iPhone will cost £329 and £399 in the UK

It's the question on everyone's lips. Well, everyone on this side of the Atlantic anyway. How much will the iPhone cost when it eventually goes on sale here in the UK?

Well, we've been doing some number-crunching to try and figure it out, and we think we've got an answer. The 4GB iPhone will cost around £325 here, while the 8GB model will cost £395. At least, that's our guess.

We based it on the evidence that Apple isn't keen on operator subsidies for the iPhone, meaning that Apple will be in charge of the price. Then we looked at the US-to-UK price differences of four other Apple products - the new iMac, the 30GB iPod, and the basic Apple TV and Macbook products.