[3g-g]

Seconds out, round one!

Who will carry the iPhone? Do we care that much? Will it be 3G? Does my bum look big in this?


While we're still waiting for the June launch of the iPhone on this side of the pond, U.K. carriers Orange and Vodafone are fighting it out for exclusive rights to the device when it debuts in Europe later this year.

According to this report, Vodafone has long been the front runner in the fight for the iPhone.

Demand for the iPhone in the U.K. seems every bit as intense as in the U.S.:

Many UK retailers are receiving emails and phone calls on a daily basis asking when the iPhone will be released, where they can buy it and how much it will cost. Apple hasn't even released any TV or media adverts in the UK yet and customers are clearly confused about the situation. The sooner Apple picks a carrier the better.

An announcement is expected by September with a launch throughout Europe during December.

Of course this demand may deflate if the U.S. version of the device doesn't perform as expected. Some wireless industry insiders have also suggested that markets like the U.K. which already have higher rates of smartphone usage may not flock to the iPhone as rapidly as Americans.

What do you think? Will the iPhone be as big a hit in the U.K. as in the U.S.? And will the U.K. version of the iPhone have 3G? Or will it too be stuck with EDGE data access?

http://informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2007/05/vodafone_and_or.html

[Ben]

So we're going to endulge in rumour and hearsay, are we? Oh goody :D

What do you think?
I think I want the iPhone to be on Vodafone. I have a suspicion that Vodafone's long-time-coming attention to data pricing could have the aim of being a more friendly network to the data-centric iPhone. I believe that Vodafone are going to be extremely determined in the negotiations, and play up their network quality and quite possibly the amount of subsidy they're prepared to throw at sales. If one network gets iPhone in the UK then it is their one and only differentiating tool for triggering mass migration from other networks. I also believe that Orange's EDGE coverage puts it in a strong position, negotiations wise, and rumour has it they have been testing Visual Voicemail - so, just maybe, they've already won!

Will the iPhone be as big a hit in the U.K. as in the U.S.?
Yes. I think Apple will sell stacks of iPhones in the US and the UK. However, I think there will be mixed reactions to the actual number they manage to sell, with some being disappointed. The real phenomenon will take place after a few generations of the device, in my view.

And will the U.K. version of the iPhone have 3G? Or will it too be stuck with EDGE data access?
There are many reasons why Apple is launching the iPhone in the US a good six months before anywhere else in the world. I don't believe that Apple will sell the iPhone for six months in the US, then try and flog the exact same model in the UK. By this time the already-average technical specification will be below-par. However, never say never - anyone who thinks the iPhone can't still do very well here without any modifications needs to go and see a head doctor.

No, in my mind and perfect world, such a large time delay is due to the development/testing/approval of a 3G version of iPhone. Bringing 3G to the iPhone is going to excite Orange and Vodafone into throwing in vast subsidies and pretty much anything else Apple calls for. I don't believe we'll see any fundamental changes to the original iPhone, but to not be receiving it for such a very long time after the initial launch suggests to me that we really could have 3G for launch - and as Steve has already hinted (if I remember his keynote correctly) that 3G versions would be on the way, then great credibility is leant to my theory.

(The other, far less exciting theory is about customer feedback and damage control. A June launch in the US, with 6 months of sales and software development time, could be essential if the iPhone is to succeed outside of the US. Why? Apple has a vastly smaller number of Apple stores this side of the pond. Apple stores will play a key part in gaining new subscribers and resolving technical issues. Apple stores will undoubtedly have the power to resolve many issues on-the-spot in ways that other manufacturers, and mobile shops in the UK, can't. Why do BMW's get free emergency service? Because BMW doesn't want us to see its cars broken down at the side of the road. It's the same thing with the iPhone.

So, during this six month period there could be extensive updates to the software and fixes for any underperforming hardware, reducing the customer service burden in Europe where Apple has a smaller footprint. As a result, by December we could receive a truly excellent, stable product - but with absolutely no new features. Needless to say I'd rather have 3G ;) )

[Hands0n]

I dont want one until Service Pack 1 is out.

Oh! ......... I'm sorry ... I thought someone said Windows Mobile :D ;)

I actually think that the Apple iPhone in its UK guise will be little if any different from the June 07 US version. Why? Because by December 07 they'll only just have begun to satisfy US demand sufficient to be able to deliver any reasonable quantity into the UK and elsewhere. Apple is, first and foremost, an American company and will cater to the home market first. Anyone and anything else is a distant second.

Why not 3G? Apple will have it in the plan and quite possibly on the drawing board. But I do not feel that they will play to the UMTS market just yet, not while they can hedge their development costs on the back of EDGE/2G. The backfill for the lack of UMTS is surely going to be the in-built WLAN capabilities to get all of your content and suchlike.

My money is on a 2008 delivery for a 3G variant of the Apple iPhone.

Now turning to networks - I favour Vodafone myself but do think, given my opinions above re EDGE, that Orange with their EDGE network will outwin Vodafone. I suspect that Voda will get the 3G variant when it [finally] arrives. But Orange has a number of attractions to Apple - it has a strong brand, but it is also not as big and powerful as Vodafone (even if it is owned by FT) and thereby Apple will have greater leverage over it than would have over Vodafone. So my money is on Orange - although my personal fave would be Vodafone (out of the two - but I'd prefer it to be T-Mobile with their excellent Data tariffs).

Oh this is going to be a complete minefield!