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O2 Refresh plans split service and handset charges for easy upgrades
Most people will have some experience of lugging around a tired handset, knowing they've an eternity to wait before upgrading. UK carrier O2 has just announced its solution to phone fatigue called O2 Refresh, which splits overall costs into a "Phone Plan" and an "Airtime Plan." Much like Phones4U's JUMP plan or T-Mobile USA's new UnCarrier model, you're charged for the handset separately, so you can switch whenever you like as long as the current one's paid off. That price will vary depending on how much you lay down upfront and the Airtime Plan you choose; also, if you're done with the old one, you can get up to £260 towards the new one using O2's Recycle option. Unlike the Magenta carrier's new direction in the US, however, you will still be locked into a two-year contract, with a £12 monthly payment getting you 600 mins, unlimited texts and 750MB of data. Increase that to £17 for 1GB and unlimited calls / texts, or head for the £22 tier to increase that cap to 2GB. So, you've decided on the Airtime Plan, but what about handsets? There's a solid choice of flagships (and some less exciting models), including the HTC One, Xperia Z, BlackBerry Z10, Note II, Nexus 4 and iPhone 5, with the Galaxy S 4 and BlackBerry Q10 arriving later -- hopefully in time for O2's 4G launch this "summer." To give you an example of what Phone Plans will be like, an HTC One will set you back £529.99 (around $815) in total with a £49.99 upfront payment and £20 each month. O2 Refresh is launching April 16th in stores, and will expand to online and phone orders "in the coming months." Head to the source link below to check out the full list of phones available at launch, but don't blame us if the loathing you have for your current pocket pal is subsequently increased.
Virgin Media unveils quartet of new SIM Only plans for data-focused Brits
It was only in June that we saw Virgin Media shaking up its regular mobile plans for UK residents. The carrier is back for another round, this time to serve the SIM Only customers who thrive on unlocked phones. Four plans starting from £12 ($19) a month all provide unlimited data and text messaging for bring-your-own-phone subscribers, with voice as the only real separating factor: the thriftiest callers get 150 minutes per month, while higher £15, £17 and £25 ($24, $27 and $40) tiers ramp up to a respective 250, 1,200 and 2,500 minutes for chattier customers. The chief gotcha is a lack of bundled landline calling for all but the priciest plan, although existing Virgin Media subscribers can knock an extra £5 off of that rate. If you're the sort who can't bear the thought of a contract, Virgin now has you better covered.
HTC confirms it's closing offices in Brazil, halting direct sales as well (update: Durham, too)
We don't have great news to share with Brazilian Android fans as the week winds to a close. After AndroidPit's initial word, we've since received extra confirmation from a spokesperson that HTC is closing its office in Brazil "after careful analysis of [its] business." The company wouldn't get any closer than that for reasoning, although the country's high tariffs on technology imports may play a part: they were high enough for Foxconn to open a Brazilian plant just so Apple could keep selling iPads and iPhones at comfortable prices, and HTC hasn't been making phones in Brazil for some time. There's also the matter of fighting to stay profitable in a market where Apple and Samsung are the only real money makers. HTC is vowing to keep up post-sale support, which we appreciate, but it's also stopping all direct sales in the process. As such, the only way you'll get a One S in Sao Paulo from now on is to go through an importer and take the added hit to the pocketbook. Update: Sadly, it looks like the company's Durham, North Carolina research location is also folding, with around 50 employees being impacted. "Some" may be offered relocation options, but the details remain unclear. For those keeping count, the facility is only around 1.5 years old.
New Virgin Canada Smartphone plans give you six of one thing, take half a dozen of another
It looks like Virgin Mobile Canada could be rolling out a new set of tariffs, which seem to take as much as they give. According to the blurry promo materials received by Mobile Syrup the new Smartphone plans offer slightly fewer minutes, in exchange for an extra hour's slice of "evening" time. The current $50 per month plan gives 200 anytime minutes, with unlimited weekends and early evenings from 6pm. Under the new scheme, you'd only get 150 minutes, with the evenings rolling in at 5pm instead. The $60 plan gets the same loss in minutes in exchange for the extra daily hour, plus a 500 MB data allowance bump. A new $55 option has also been created for those that still want a nice round 200 minutes. The plans are said to arrive tomorrow, so if you think you prefer things as they were, better get on it.
T-Mobile wants new customers to pay upfront, says it's nothing personal
A change to T-Mobile's billing methods means it'll want to see the color of your money before you've barely had time to play with your new handset. Normally you'd enjoy a liberating spell of non-topping-up telephonic joy before the cold, financial reality of the money being sucked out of your bank account. However, from the 20th of this month, new post-paid customers will be expected to trump up in advance for the recurring part of their bill. Don't panic though, while the first bill might feel a bit heftier (as it includes the pro rata amount for the month, and the next full month,) you're still paying the same amount over time. But, if you're used to the old method, it might come as a bit of a shock when that first magenta envelope hits your letterbox.
WTO says China's rare earths export controls violate international rules, US applauds
China's monopolistic approach to the rare earths market is in violation of international trade regulations, according to a new ruling from the WTO. The verdict, issued yesterday, covers exports of nine minerals -- including zinc, manganese and magnesium -- that are used to produce a wide variety of smartphones, tablets and other gadgets. China, which controls about 95-percent of the world's rare earth supply, had previously argued that its export restrictions were needed to prevent overproduction and to conserve natural resources, but the WTO determined that the country was "unable to demonstrate" these environmental benefits. The investigation was originally spurred 18 months ago, after the US and other countries complained that China's quotas and tariffs unfairly favored domestic manufacturers, while distorting global prices. Experts expect Beijing to appeal the ruling, but this extra international pressure, combined with shifting supply chains and newfound deposits, may bring about the changes many have been calling for. If it doesn't, we'll all be stuck with corn phones.
Verizon data charges leak continues, $30 tethering for 4G customers
The scan above purports to show a Verizon customer brochure that will appear in stores next Thursday, revealing nothing beyond the detailed leaks we've already reported but at least providing some reassuringly crinkled corroboration of the salient details. New customers will barred from the happy land of unlimited data, and will instead have to cough up tiered monthly fees ranging from $10 for 75MB up to $80 for 10GB, plus an extra $20 for tethering rights. In a separate turn to this tale, we hear that customers who want to tether to a 4G handset will have to pay $30 per month to keep Big Red happy. This might come as a shock if you've been living it up on the free tethering offer that ends next week, but we had a strong inkling it was coming. Besides, it's not all bad: those 30 bucks will get you unlimited data on the fastest LTE network around, whereas the $20 crew must make do with a mere 2GB monthly. [Thanks, Verizon Guy]
Tesco Mobile announces cheapest UK iPhone 4 tariffs yet
You're not going to believe this, but someone actually bothered to turn up to the iPhone 4 launch with a bit of competitive spirit. Tesco Mobile, an MVNA riding atop O2's network, has busted out its idea of what represents good value for iPhone lovers' money, and it has put everyone else to shame. 1GB of data and unlimited texts come as standard (seems like O2's network can handle the load after all). Two 12-month options are available, at £20 ($29) per month for 250 minutes and £35 ($52) per month for 750 minutes, accompanied by the big spender platter of unlimited minutes and an almost free 16GB iPhone 4 for those willing to spend £45 ($66) over two years. It's all great news for Brits, and you can see exactly how it compares to the big networks in our comprehensive, chart-intensive breakdown right here.
Is Canada's iPod tax back? And if so, will BJ Snowden get her cut?
We know, BJ Snowden is an American artist -- but since her song "In Canada" is probably on every iPod and computer up north, we have to wonder whether a proposed amendment to the Canadian Copyright act will help her finally get what's coming to her. The brainchild of the New Democratic Party's Charlie Angus, the bill would extend 1997's Private Copying Levy "to the next generation of devices that consumers are using for copying sound recordings for personal use." Proponents of the plan says that it ensures that artists get paid for their work -- essentially, the government wants you to pay upfront for the music you're likely to steal anyways by taxing your next digital audio player purchase. Of course, much about the plan doesn't make sense (it doesn't address digital video, for instance, or the computers that people use to download and store their music in the first place) but we guess we'll let the Canadian government hash that one out. This is obviously not a new idea, and it is one the courts have rejected already, but who knows? Maybe this time it will "take." Lets hope not, eh? Update: No surprise, but the levy is already being shouted down by Industry Minister Tony Clement calling it "totally nonsensical" and "180 degrees in the wrong direction" with regard to the government's strategy to embrace the internet, not stifle it.
O2 iPhone paygo plans coming Sept. 16
In June, O2 kind of announced that there would be a pay-as-you-go plan for the iPhone, and now they've finally set September 16 as its launch. UK customers can buy an 8GB iPhone for £350, and a 16GB handset for £400. Both plans come with free web browsing for the first year. (After the first year, it's £10 per month for unlimited data.) Pricey. Less pricey than, say, Greece, but still pretty steep. Tariffs will be based on the "Favourite Place" scheme. A £10 – £14 top-up gets you 500 minutes to any UK landline, £15 – £29 gets you 1000 minutes, and £30 or more gets you unlimited minutes. Texts are 10p each. Taking your iPhone abroad could get spendy, though: downloading 1MB of data in any EU country will cost three quid -- six outside Europe -- though this is no different than other O2 plans. O2 also said they will give customers 10 percent of the value of their top-ups over the last 18 months as call time worth up to £200. [Via iPhonesTalk and Total Telecom.] Thanks Ash and William for the heads-up!
iPhone customers on O2 now get more bang for their buck
So we've got to ask -- if the iPhone is allegedly O2's best selling device ever, why is fat already getting trimmed out of the carrier's plan offerings? No bother; we've always found that when a carrier wants to give us more for our hard-earned quid, we're best off blindly accepting the offer and asking questions later. A tariff restructuring currently underway now gives £35 / month subscribers 600 voice minutes and 500 texts -- up from 200 of both -- while current £55 / month subscribers will see £10 shaved off their bills and the current £45 plan goes away. The high-end £75 plan rolls deep with 3,000 minutes and 500 texts; not unlimited, granted, but at least all three new plans still include unlimited data. Current owners shouldn't have to do anything to see the benefits of the new plans.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
So-called iPod tax overturned by Canadian court
Splendid news on the Canadian front -- it seems as if that proposed tax on digital recorders and storage devices (you know, like Apple's iPod for instance) will actually not come to pass. According to Judge Karen Sharlow, the board "had no legal authority to certify a tariff on digital audio recorders or on the memory permanently embedded in digital audio recorders." The ruling enables all music lovin' Canucks to breath a sigh of relief, as it makes tacking on fees ranging from C$5 ($4.95) to C$75 ($74) in order to "compensate the recording industry for music that was copied" illegal . From here, a decision still needs to be made to clarify the legality (or illegality) of copying music from discs to DAPs, but at least we're seeing a touch of levelheadedness in the music biz, regardless.[Via ArsTechnica]
Vodafone and T-Mobile reduce roaming rates
At the risk of being forced into lowering their lucrative roaming fees across Europe, Vodafone and T-Mobile have agreed to cut these charges under their own, likely more-favorable terms. See, just yesterday Vodafone announced a drop by 40% for UK customers traveling in some 14 European countries... with a few catches. First, customers must register for a free "Vodafone Passport" which allows punters to be charged at UK rates after suffering a one-off connection fee of 75p ($1.38) per call. Kind of the equivalent of those mail-in rebates companies know we'll forget to return. Oh, and the discount won't go into effect until April 2007. T-Mobile is taking a different, more straight-up approach by charging a flat rate of 55p ($1.02) per minute for calls in Europe and North America starting June 1st -- a 27% savings over existing contract rates. It's not clear if these changes will appease the concerns of EU Commissioner Vivian Reding, but at least it's a step in the right direction.
