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Rogers iPhone 3G in-store activation process gets detailed
For the smattering of Canadians wealthy enough to pick up an iPhone 3G from Rogers Wireless without worrying over the lack of an unlimited data plan, we've stumbled across what appears to be internal verbiage detailing the in-store activation process. Quite frankly, there doesn't seem to be any real surprises here, but it is somewhat interesting that retail locations will be required to download and use a special version of iTunes with an "Activation Only Mode," which will enable employees to unbrick the mobiles before customers leave. In any case, feel free to hit the read link if you're anxious to know exactly what the sure-to-be-hair-raising experience will be like come July 11th.[Via GearDiary, thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Apple sends iPhone 3G FAQ to retail employees: play dumb over activation
A frequently-asked questions list apparently recently distributed to Apple retail store employees doesn't reveal a ton of exciting new information, but it does address the simple reality that neither Apple nor AT&T are entirely sure yet how the hell they're going to complete the activation process for iPhone 3G customers come July 11. If a customer asks about how activation is going to work -- something we've previously said might be able to be finalized from the comfort of your home -- staffers are instructed to simply reply "I don't have any details at this time about activation." Well, screw you too, Mr. / Mrs. / Miss Apple Store Employee! Also funny is Apple's prediction (a correct one, we'd bet) that shoppers will be curious about the iPhone / iPod touch price matchup, to which the response is "iPhone 3G is offered at such a terrific price because, like most cell phones, it requires a 2-year carrier contract." There's quite a bit of reading material in here, including details on multi-phone activation for businesses -- so it's worth a quick read if you're into that sort of thing.
O2 briefly shows off prepaid pricing for iPhone 3G
It's a far cry from free, so just how badly do you want to avoid that postpaid contract? O2 had posted pricing for the iPhone 3G when purchased through its Pay & Go prepaid program, showing £300 (about $591) for the 8 gigger and a brutal £360 (about $709) for the 16, though the information was mysteriously pulled just moments later and replaced with a promise that details (the very same details they've already leaked, we presume) would be available "shortly." Though those sticker prices will eat holes through even the mightiest of wallets, buyers will take some comfort in the knowledge that they include six months of WiFi access, after which it'll run £10 (about $20) a month.[Via TUAW]
iPhone 2.0 software securely erases user data
The fact that the iPhone doesn't securely erase user data when you select "Erase All Content and Settings" has prompted a lot of hand-wringing (and given rise to a lot of complicated manual workarounds) as people get ready to flip their old phones and upgrade to the iPhone 3G, but it looks like there's a simpler solution coming: AppleInsider says the iPhone 2.0 software now securely erases user data. The process is apparently similar to Leopard's Secure Erase Trash feature, and it'll unlink data and overwrite it with random bits, making your personal info impossible to recover. Of course, that'll take some extra time -- you're looking at an extra hour of progress bars in your life. That's not so bad -- and if it keeps anyone from checking out our super-embarrassing 80s pop playlists, we're all for it.[Thanks, Mark]
Apple's iPhone 3G to go on sale at 8:00AM on July 11th?
Don't take a vacation day just yet or anything, but early word has it that Apple's iPhone 3G will actually go on sale at 8:00AM (local time, most likely) on July 11th. If you'll recall (how could you forget, right?), the original iPhone didn't go on sale until 6:00PM on launch day, but considering that the whole checkout process will likely be a fair bit more involved this go 'round, we'd say it's a smart move to get the line rolling early.
China Unicom to fetch iPhone 3G in August?
Chalk this one up as just another rumor for now, but whispers around the Chinese web have it that China Unicom could be netting Apple's latest handset (yeah, that 3G one) this August. If you'll recall, Steve had issues in the past getting Chinese carriers to buy into his demanding revenue sharing model, but now that those days are gone, we suspect talks may go a little smoother. And c'mon, Apple didn't add in Chinese character recognition for kicks and giggles, now did it? As of now, China Mobile has yet to make a peep on the rumblings, but we've only got a few months before finding out either way.[Via IntoMobile]
TomTom speaks up about iPhone situation
As if the iPhone 3G launch could really have any more misinformation floating around, we've got yet another tidbit that needs clarification. Shortly after Apple's second iPhone was announced, out flew a report from Reuters suggesting that TomTom already had iPhone navigation software ready to go. French site Mac Generation was able to get ahold of TomTom spokesperson Yann Lafargue, and here's the gist of what he had to say. First off, the aforementioned Reuters statement was said to be inaccurate, though he did affirm that an iPhone version of the software was running in the labs and working "pretty well." Unfortunately, the question of "will you guys ship this for the iPhone?" was answered with a "We don't know" style response, but he did clarify that the questionable SDK verbiage we saw wasn't an obstacle at all. Check out the full interview in the read link below -- hope you're fluent in French and / or machine translation!
iPhone 3G must be activated in-store (and other followup questions answered)
Yesterday we went over a few of the more confusing bits of the iPhone 3G launch -- and let's be honest, this launch is way more confusing than the original go-round. Of course, there were a lot of burning questions to be answered from the audience, so we got an AT&T spokesperson to weigh in on what's on your mind. The most surprising answer? Contrary to reports implying otherwise, AT&T pretty much categorically claims that no matter where you buy your iPhone 3G, be it from AT&T or Apple, you have to walk out of the store an activated customer. Check it all out over on Engadget!
Found Footage: Flixwagon iPhone Vidcasting
One thing I'm sure a lot of iPhone fans were upset about this week was the lack of an announcement of video broadcasting capability in the 3G iPhone. I mean, OMG, how else are we supposed to make obsessive fan videos of Britney Spears?!Don't worry, the brilliant folks at Flixwagon are demonstrating live vidcasts from a jailbroken iPhone and are apparently working towards a true iPhone app that will work "as long as your battery lasts." TV networks? Who needs 'em! We'll make our own entertainment.Thanks to Chris Albrecht at NewTeeVee.com for the tip!
No worries: AT&T doesn't want your grubby, used iPhone when you upgrade
Seems there are some rumors floating around today that AT&T plans on scooping up the old iPhones of subscribers that come into stores to upgrade to the iPhone 3G at the tantalizingly subsidized $199 / $299 prices for the 8GB and 16GB models. This feels totally bogus at first glance, considering that some of us have destroyed our iPhones in one way or another, sold them without changing plans, or otherwise made our devices disappear permanently enough to be unavailable to the clerk at the store. We checked with AT&T, and sure enough, we're happy to report that there won't be anyone at the store giving you a pat-down and confiscating it -- the only circumstance where you'll have to turn it in is if you're taking advantage of the exchange deal for folks that bought it since May 27th. So, you know, resume making sure that your eBay and PayPal accounts are in good standing.Update: To be clear, anyone taking advantage of the $199 / $299 pricing will need to enter into or extend their contract by two years. Though many (most?) will be able to make that happen, AT&T says that there will be a "non-qualified" upgrade price as well, though the terms of that qualification and the actual pricing have yet to be disclosed. Obviously, we're following this one closely.
iPhone SDK agreement forbids real-time route guidance, dancing, rock'n'roll
Apple's always been known for its amusingly-conservative disclaimers (you can't use iTunes to "design a nuclear weapon," for example) and it looks like the products-liability team at the Fruit has had their way with the iPhone SDK agreement as well, inserting a provision specifically prohibiting developers from creating apps "marketed for real time route guidance; automatic or autonomous control of vehicles, aircraft, or other mechanical devices; dispatch or fleet management; or emergency or life-saving purposes." Yep, that's right -- no real-time route guidance (or, uh, fleet management) allowed. That'd be a huge bummer -- except, of course, that TomTom has already come out and said that its app is ready to go on the iPhone. Assuming TomTom used the SDK and not the jailbreak toolchain, we'd bet that Apple is just covering its ass here and that it's worked out an agreement with TomTom to pass along any liability -- you can bet Steve doesn't want to get sued when iPhone users start careening into sandpiles and into oncoming trains. We'll see for sure when the App Store finally launches, though -- until then, it's all just cheap speculation.Update: Astute commenter Austin points out that these terms are copied almost word-for-word from the Google Maps API terms -- which means that TomTom and others are probably free to use their own maps to do real-time guidance.[Via BoingBoing Gadgets]
How to completely erase user data from an iPhone, part two: command-line edition
Steve might have finally made with the iPhone 3G yesterday, but as we've mentioned before, would-be upgraders have a slightly bigger dilemma than just shaking down the couch cushions for an extra $199: getting their user data securely erased from their old iPhones. Simply hitting "restore" still leaves your data in an accessible state, and while we've covered ways to do a three-pass wipe with iTunes playlists, Jonathan Zdziarski has posted up a set of instructions for getting at your flash from the command line and wiping it directly. Sure, you'll have to jailbreak your phone and it'll take at least an hour or so -- but hey, you've got a month to kill anyway, right?
(Not) Faked photos of 3G iPhone
The folks at iLounge provided us with a link to real photos of a 3G iPhone body, along with commentary on the new design. It's refreshing to finally see actual photos of the new iPhone instead of badly Photoshopped mockups.One close-up of the back of the black 3G iPhone shows that the material being used for the shell picks up very visible smudges and fingerprints, with the suggestion from Jeremy Horwitz that this may end up making the white model much more popular.The iLounge article speculates that a Product (RED) 3G iPhone may be available in late 2008 or early 2009. If you're wondering if your current iPhone case or accessories will work with the the new device, Horwitz feels that products that are designed to work for either existing iPhones or iPod Touch should be fine. However, docks, cases, and other accessories that were designed only for the first generation iPhone will not work. I, for one, am happy to see that Apple is making sure the iPhone / iPod economy continues to thrive!
The iPhone 3G on AT&T: we ask the burning questions
So wait just a second here -- you say you have to activate the iPhone 3G in-store, and unlimited data is going to run another $10 a month? With the new model comes an entirely new way of doing business, it seems, and that brings on a whole slew of new questions for the good folks at AT&T. Here are a few we've managed to ask so far, the official answers, and in some cases, information we've managed to gather on the side.
iPhone 3G purchase and activation will be in-store only
Like many, you were probably planning on hanging back, sipping on Bacardi 151, and waiting for your new iPhone 3G to arrive in the mail following a timely pre-order. Unfortunately for your foot-kicked-onto-desk plans, Apple and AT&T have something else in mind. Word on the street is that you will not be able to purchase and / or activate a new device via any other method than in-store, thus doing a full 180 on the way the dream team was doing business last time around. So not only has Apple's revenue sharing gone into that good night, but it appears the innovative DIY activation that was such a big deal this time last year is shuffling off as well. So what gives guys? And more importantly, why are you making us leave the house? Hear what AT&T reps had to say about it after the break.
So, are you gonna get an iPhone 3G?
We hear Apple popped out a new phone or something today. All hearsay, but we though we'd run it by you. The $199 pricepoint for the 8GB, Exchange support, A-GPS and 3G data all make an extremely compelling case, but Apple still has plenty to improve on -- there's still no physical keyboard, if you hadn't noticed (a dealbreaker for some), and Apple has yet to confirm things as common-sensical as copy and paste, video recording and MMS. There's also another little problem for a few folks out there: the resale price on your iPhone is now approximately nil, so good luck offloading that sucker. But enough about what we think, what's on your mind?Poll after the break.
Apple's lucrative iPhone revenue sharing goes away, replaced with "traditional" model
AT&T (well, Cingular at the time) and Apple entered into a very peculiar marriage of convenience to bring the original iPhone to American airwaves whereby AT&T shelled out cash to Cupertino each and every month for iPhone subscribers on its network (the exact terms were never publicized). Very simply, Apple had something good; they knew it and leveraged it to the very maximum of their ability, dangling the tantalizing prospect of endless publicity and droves of new customers in exchange for the deal. That same logic left Apple struggling to find partners in Europe, though, ultimately deploying the 2.5G model in just five markets there under AT&T-like terms.Fast forward to July 2008 and the iPhone 3G, and the picture has changed just a bit. At least 70 countries will see the updated version before the year's out, but why the sudden change of heart by the world's carriers? Turns out the answer might lie in a revamped sales model that more closely mirrors the deals carriers set up with other manufacturers. AT&T has gone on the record saying that it'll take a huge revenue hit -- 10 to 12 cents per share both this year and next before finally planning on profitability in 2010 -- in order to deeply subsidize the phone on its own accord, taking Apple and its precious monthly kickbacks out of the picture. This is presumably the same kind of setup Apple is offering to carriers around the globe, a setup that they're already well acquainted with that provides a clear path to black ink (or so they would hope, anyway).What does this mean for Apple, then? There's some chatter that the move away from a monthly revenue model will "force" Apple into charging for firmware updates much the way it does for the iPod touch, but that's not really a valid train of thought. We already know that Apple's committed to updating iPhones at no charge, something it can do by virtue of its accounting model where it recognizes revenue from the sales of devices over time. That accounting model was chosen precisely because it looked best on paper while Apple was continuing to churn out fee-free upgrades, not because of the original revenue model in place with AT&T. For what it's worth, they're still going to be rolling in the dough; carriers, on the other hand, are going to be waiting a while to dig out of that deep subsidy hole.
MobileMe gets a video tour, and John the Apple guy is your guide
By now you've probably heard about .Mac's replacement, MobileMe. It's like Yahoo! Mail, Google Docs, and every other Ajaxy web app you've ever used... just way more Apple-ish. If you're feeling confused by all the synchronized over-the-air options it presents, your good friend John (aka Classy Apple Dude) is here to explain things in a simple, easy-to-understand tour. Just watching this makes us feel safe, secure... and frankly, a little sleepy.
iPhone 1.0, R.I.P.: 2007-2008
If you hadn't heard, Apple stopped producing the original iPhone at around the 6 million mark, clearing out stock worldwide and paving the way for the iPhone 3G to take the stage and carry the banner without the baggage of an older sibling cluttering up store shelves. This old EDGE unit was slow, GPS-less, closed to developers and way overpriced, but we still loved it dearly... but seriously folks, one slightly-used iPhone going cheap: $199 OBO.
iPhone 3G is finally official, starts at $199, available July 11th
It's been a long, leak-filled wait, but Apple finally took the wraps off its 3G iPhone. Thinner edges, full plastic back, flush headphone jack, and the iPhone 2.0 firmware -- Apple's taking a lot of the criticisms to heart from the first time around. Obviously 3G is at the forefront, but they're also making sure it's available all over internationally, works with enterprises, runs 3rd party apps... and does it all for cheaper. Apple claims its 3G speeds trounce the competition, with pageloads 36% faster than the N95 and Treo 750 -- and of course it completely trounces the old EDGE data speeds.Battery life isn't getting put out to pasture though, with 300 hours of standby, 8-10 hours of 2G talk, 5 hours of 3G talk, 7 hours of video and 24 hours of audio. GPS is also a go. Apple is using A-GPS, which supplements regular satellite GPS data with info from cellular towers for faster location. (WiFi data is also worked into the mix, which should give users a pretty solid lock on where the heck they are on this planet.) Unfortunately, as expected there's no front-facing cam, and while its edges are thinner than before it's still about a millimeter thicker at the center (12.3mm over 11.6mm before). Apple hopes to launch in 70 countries this year, with the black 8GB going for $199 and 16GB for $299 in black or white. (Both price points require a contract, of course.) Apple will be hitting the 22 biggest markets, including the US, on July 11th. More info after the break.Update: Just bought an iPhone? Listen up: "Customers who purchased a 2.5G iPhone on or after May 27 and want to swap it out for a new iPhone will be able to do so without incurring an additional handset charge for the new device. They will of course need to turn in their 2.5G iPhone." And for the rest of you, AT&T says there's no way to buy it without agreeing to a contract. So sorry. More details here.We've got our hands-on impressions right here.Get the full roundup of iPhone 3G coverage here!Our full iPhone 3G review can be found here!%Gallery-24719%%Gallery-24721%
