Australian iPhone deal leaked? 3G?
Amidst all the iPhone kafuffle taking place in Europe last week, it looks like us Aussies might also have something to celebrate!
Just this week we were privy to a leak that the iPhone is not only going to use 3G in Australia but is in fact already being tested on a Virgin Mobile’s 3G network.
Word so far is that the device is performing “very nicely.”
In Australia, Virgin are a virtual network roaming on Optus. Unfortunately for Australians, Optus doesn’t have half as much reception as the national carrier, Telstra, but can we really see Telstra sharing revenue? (no).
As expected, Apple are pushing for Visual Voicemail “like there’s no tomorrow,” and also of interest, Virgin testers are concerned about the security of the new device, with worries that hackers might reprogram the phone’s modem to circumvent bandwidth restrictions.
It is expected that a new firmware update from Apple will bolster the modem’s security and ease concerns at Virgin well before any such launch of the iPhone in Australia.
At the iPhone’s Europe launch, Steve Jobs called 3G handsets “power hogs” in a bid to justify the continued use of edge, though he initially hinted at a 3G version when first launched. Could this now just be a bid to throw people off the scent?
Using Virgin Mobile certainly adds up: A groovy new company for a hip new piece of technology. Though, given the nature of negotiations in both the U.S. and Europe, anything is fair game, and Apple may merely be putting out the feelers ahead of a 2008 launch.
What does seem promising is that the revision will a least do away the slower EDGE technology. Especially seeing 3G reigns supreme in Australia.
It is expected that the phone’s Australian launch will most likely coincide with a worldwide release of the 3G, 2nd-gen iPhone in 2008, no doubt in a bid to prevent a frenzy of Australian phones being unlocked and flogged overseas. (Imagine! Finally the Australians can get a chance to make some money back on eBay with this thing!)
Virgin’s current data packs (3ooMB for AU$10/month) are already the industry best in Australia, making them the obvious choice for Australian iPhone Hackers Anonymous.
September 26th, 2007 at 3:01 pm
Interesting post … sounds like a rumour though.
what’s your source on this? Is there any more info online about it?
September 27th, 2007 at 12:28 pm
I guess the annoying thing with stuff like this is that it does sound like such a rumour!
We submited it to the regular rumour sites, who also seemed dismissive.
To avoid finger pointing, we’ve provided a pretty cut back version of events here, but plan to provide one site with full details (in confidence) in hope that they then take it seriously and pass the info onto the community!
What I can say, is that we’re both from Australia, and have had some exposure to a person working at the mobile netork in question.
November 7th, 2007 at 4:30 pm
Well this is the real kicker you see… if its edge… its probably going to be telstra… (telstra have the only current edge network in aus, and its not that bad, its not super fast but my phones data speeds arent to be ignored cause theyre not above 1Mbps… an EDGE iphone is a long term revenue stream for telstra using their existing GSM / EDGE equipment, and im pretty sure judging by the rate on my hiptop plan. telstra can easily give an EDGE iphone plan several GB of data to play with a month… i get 12GB of data on my plan… lol
And if its not edge… and apple sneak out a true 3g (edge is considered 3g in america surprisingly) HSDPA / UMTS ( I would much preffer a HSUPA version but its a bit of a stretch to expect it… but the faster uploads would be so much better for the iphone … more 2 way mobile networking please) iphone… telstra would be mad not to throw their big money at apple… a NextG iPhone would be the Jewel in the proverbial crown for their brand new mobile network. a truly must have for them.
So either way telstra looks likely…
December 30th, 2007 at 10:23 pm
Fire department, government need business-savvy…
It amazes me that the county has plenty of money to build unneeded golf courses, to purchase hundreds of acres…