iPhone Family: 1 389 000 Members and Counting!

Apple announced the financial results for its 2007 last quarter ended September 29, 2007. Boring? Maybe, but besides learning that Apple generated over $24 billion in revenue and $3.5 billion in net income, we learned that the company ended their fiscal year with $15.4 billion in cash and no debt. Not bad for a company that was dying 10 years ago. This cash gives them a lot of room to work on new versions of these toys that we like so much.

Talking about toys, they've sold 10,200,000 iPods during the quarter, representing 17 percent growth over the year-ago quarter. Quarterly iPhone sales were 1,119,000, bringing cumulative fiscal 2007 sales to 1,389,000.

What is your bet for fiscal year 2008 (October 2007 – September 2008)? Mine is 50 million iPods and 12 million iPhones.

UK iPhone customers to get fairer usage

But some usage is more fair than others

O2 has decided that iPhone users on its network won't be limited by their "fair usage" policy, and really will get "unlimited" access to the internet. But other customers signed up for "unlimited" contracts will have to wait and see if O2 decides all their usage is fair too.

UK punters signing up for an iPhone, exclusively on O2 from Friday, will be able to use the Edge network (where available) without having to worry about hitting the company's "fair use" limit.

We now appreciate that having set limits as part of the fair use policy conflicted with our objective of encouraging internet usage on the iPhone. People don't speak in megabytes and customer feedback has been that if we say unlimited, it should be unlimited.

But while O2 is keen to encourage iPhone users to use the internet, those opting for any other technology are stuck with the 200MB limit O2 imposes on the £7.50 a month flat rate data tariff, unless they want to shell out an extra £22.50 for Web Max, and even then they're limited to 3GB.

When we suggested this was a little unfair on those not seduced by Mr Jobs' toy, O2 told us it was "currently reviewing the fair use policies on our other unlimited data offerings".

The problem for O2 is that the only difference between "O2 Web" and "Web Max" is that fair use limitation. Remove that and anyone paying £30 a month for Web Max is going to look a fool.

It would, presumably, be possible to sign up for the iPhone tariff and then slip your SIM into an N95 or similar to enjoy truly unlimited access, though it's hard to say if that would give you 3G access as the iPhone has no use for such technology.

O2 should be applauded for offering a proper unlimited data tariff, but limiting it to the customers of one device isn't going to make things easier for customers to understand, or any fairer.

The iPhone comes with a cost for Rogers

Carrier would have to revise wireless pricing plan if it aims to bring Apple's coveted multimedia device to Canada

The iPhone will hit Europe this week, and at prices that are likely to put pressure on Rogers Communications Inc. to cut its cellphone rates if it wants to be the carrier that eventually brings the popular device to Canada

European carriers will offer service plans that start at the equivalent of $70 a month. A rough calculation based on Rogers' current fees for its existing cellphone services indicates that similar features are more than double the price here, based on the cheapest plan. With some other data plans for Rogers' cellphones, customers could rack up bills of hundreds, or conceivably thousands, of dollars.

The data price gap could set the stage for intense negotiations between Toronto-based Rogers and Apple Inc., which designed and markets the popular multimedia phone. Apple was able to wring substantial changes from carriers in the United States and Europe.

Apple wants to see the iPhone reach millions of consumers, and high rates in Canada could interfere with that goal. Speaking from the point of view of users, Dawood Khan, a partner at wireless management consulting firm Kazam Technologies Inc., said: "You can't be counting in the back of your mind how many megabytes you use."

The iPhone hype is alive and well in Canada. Just yesterday, the Apple store in Toronto's Eaton Centre said it is working on removing some iPhone workshops that its website said were scheduled for November. An employee blamed a server error. Last month, Molson pulled the iPhone from a marketing contest in Quebec after it mistakenly said the device will be available in January.

So far, Rogers has had little to say about pricing. On timing, it says the launch plan is in Apple's hands.

"Apple clearly has a schedule and a plan for their rollout on a worldwide basis," Robert Bruce, president of Rogers' wireless division, said last week.

It could be that Apple, based in Cupertino, Calif., is focusing on bigger markets for now.

But wireless carriers in the United States, Britain and Germany had to adjust their packages of services to get the opportunity to sell the coveted iPhone. So the phone's arrival in Canada may not be entirely up to Apple. Rogers may have to make concessions, either by slashing data prices or finally embracing the idea of WiFi for cellphones.

There's a reason carriers are willing to make such adjustments. The iPhone is the most talked-about cellphone in history, creating instant buzz around a carrier's brand. Time magazine just crowned the iPhone the year's best invention.

New York-based AT&T Inc., which launched the iPhone in the United States on June 29, recently posted its biggest gain to date in third-quarter wireless subscriber additions. So far, 1.39 million iPhones have been sold south of the border.

Britain's O2 Ltd. and Deutsche Telekom AG's T-Mobile in Germany are next up, slated to introduce the iPhone on Nov. 9.

But to secure the iPhone, carriers have had to do things a bit differently, including ceding some power to Apple.

According to news reports earlier this year, New York-based Verizon Communications Inc. passed on the iPhone because Apple wanted to restrict the places where it would be distributed and also asked for a cut of service fees.

Carriers are used to bossing around the device makers, telling them what features to add. Apple changed that relationship, deciding for itself how to design the cellphone/Internet device/music player.

AT&T spokesman Mark Siegel figures his company worked with Apple for 2½ years before the iPhone finally arrived on its shelves. He wouldn't give details about those talks.

With companies that introduce the iPhone, the biggest change is the way services are bundled. At AT&T and O2, voice minutes and data services are packaged together for one flat price, instead of forcing users to cobble together different plans. T-Mobile combines a plan with cellular data and WiFi hot spots for the first time. And the rates for these plans are very appealing.

The new iPhone plans are "very clear, very straight," said Alexander von Schmettow, a spokesman for T-Mobile. If they are a success, he believes they could provide a "hint" of what its other wireless plans will look like in the future.

With the iPhone, Rogers would also have to warm up to the idea of letting people access WiFi hot spots on their cellphones.

Rogers now offers a few business-targeted devices that allow people to use both cellular and WiFi networks, but other high-profile WiFi cellphones from the Nokia and BlackBerry brands are missing from its product lineup. WiFi, with its flat fee for Internet use, could cannibalize more lucrative data revenue from Rogers' cellular network.

Shutting off the WiFi function on the iPhone, however, doesn't appear to be an option. Rogers many decide to follow AT&T's example and charge an extra rate for WiFi access on the iPhone, instead of including in the package like O2 and T-Mobile, Mr. Khan said.

Head to head

A comparison of iPhone monthly plans with Rogers' prices*

AT&T $59.99 (U.S.)

450 any time minutes and 5,000 night and weekend minutes

long distance in the U.S.

unlimited e-mail and Web

200 text messages

voice mail

Rogers: $161

500 minutes for $50

unlimited evening and weekend $15

long distance in Canada $6

500 MB data for $80

25 text messages and voice mail package $10

T-Mobile (Germany) €49 ($66)

100 any time minutes

unlimited incoming minutes

unlimited data

unlimited WiFi

voice mail

40 text messages

Rogers: $133

Mega plan with 100 any time minutes and 1,000 evening and weekend minutes $20

500 MB data for $80

voice mail $6

30 text messages for $3

WiFi $24

02 (Britain): £35 ($68)

200 any time minutes

unlimited incoming minutes

unlimited data

unlimited WiFi

200 text messages

voice mail

Rogers: $144

Mega 200 minutes and unlimited evening and weekend minutes $30

WiFi $24

500 MB data for $80

voice mail, 125 text messages package $10

*Rogers data prices based on fees for Window mobile plans. Data rates for other Rogers' cellphones are $10 for the first 10,240 kilobytes and then 3 cents for each additional kilobyte. So 200 megabytes (MB), equal to 204,800 kilobytes, could cost $5,837.

CATHERINE MCLEAN

250 000 Unlocked iPhone in the Wild

Just after announcing that iPhone sales reached nearly 1,4 million units in 3 months, Apple stated, on the Q4 earnings conference call, that they estimate the number of iPhone bought potentially to be unlocked, to a quarter of a million units. Unlocked iPhone users can then use their mobile phone on a different provider than AT&T and they don't have to sign a two year contract with the provider.

That's roughly 18% of all iPhones out there. That's a lot! If we could have an idea, on how many of these phones have been unlocked for a domestic use (to avoid signing the AT&T contract) and how many have been exported around the globe, it would give us a better picture on how well the "exclusive partner" strategy developed by Apple is working or not.

Source

iPhone to be Released in Canada in January 2008

According to a contest organized by Molson in Canada, Rogers will release the iPhone in January 2008. Molson does not say much about the iPhone availability on Rogers' network, but we learned that the iPhone has an $800 value in Canada. The picture is a screenshot of the official Molson contest website. You need to register to see the information.

We've heard many rumors about the iPhone availability in Canada, but this is one step above everything we've heard before. Having an iPhone giveaway is one thing, but explicitly mentioning Rogers as the carrier and providing a specific date is something else.

The only thing I don't get is the $800 value. It makes no sense that a $400 product would be available in Canada at twice the price. But an iPod is also on the contest prize list with an estimated value of $400, even though the 80GB iPod classic has a known retail price of $249. Can this hide a 16GB iPhone?

A Rogers' representative was not available to comment on this at this time.

UPDATE: The Globe and Mail reached a Molson representative that said that they've made a mistake by saying that the iPhone would be available in January. Molson spokeperson also said that Molson has no idea when the iPhone will be launched in Canada and is only on a waiting list with Rogers for the device.

Via MobileinCanada

Meebo Brings Instant Messaging on the iPhone

One of the major iPhone flaws is the lack of a native instant messaging client. But thanks to Meebo, iPhone users can now chat using an iPhone friendly interface.
Simply browse to Meebo.com with your iPhone and you will automatically be directed to the iPhone-formatted site.

Unlocked iPhone: You Can do it Now in Europe!

t looks like the guys from Hackint0sh have finally been able to truly unlock the iPhone. Using a very complex procedure posted by forum member Sassha, the hack makes your iPhone compatible with European SIM cards. You can now make and receive calls and sms. According to the hacker, the Youtube application is the only thing that won't work with this hack.

But before you rush over to the forum, you must know that if you perform this hack, your provider can block your subscription. You also need to know that performing this type of modification is completely illegal and could also void your iPhone warranty permanently. Still want to know more about it? Ok then, here are the prerequisites:

• iPhone, of course…
• SIM Reader/Writer (Infinity USB Unlimited, Dynamite Programer(I used this) ,etc...)
• SilverCard
• V1 SIM card (U must be able to get Ki number)
• Download - http://simemu.gsmhosting.net/SIM_EMU_6.01_CFG_v2.1.zip
  - http://www.kinforce.com/down/kinforc...rsim/ws109.zip

Go to the hackint0sh for a complete description of the hack.