A provocation and a benchmark
Articles by Marek Pawlowski of MEX are always interesting, and the latest one is no different. In “Moving from mobile capabilities to mobile compulsion“, he looks at what the impact of the iPhone and the App Store really is, and who’s best placed to suceed though understanding user experience.
There is some great insight in the article, but this struck me in particular:
You could transplant the iPhone UI and App Store into an equivalent Nokia or Samsung handset and it wouldn’t succeed without the myriad other elements which comprise Apple’s overall experience.
Review: Carphone Warehouse Silicon Case for iPhone 3G
Having finally managed to track down a 16Gb model, I was looking for a case for my new iPhone. I wanted something similar to my original iPhone case, which was made by XtremeMac. This case has fared fairly well in my hands, but had been destroyed by those of a toddler. Anyway, it wouldn’t work with the new iPhone because it covers the optical sensor.
Requirements were:
- Soft case, not hard plastic
- No need to remove the case or open a flap to dock
- Slim and form-fitting – the iPhone is brick-like enough already
- Relatively inexpensive – in case of needing replacement thanks to toddler attack
- Available in-store for instant purchase – any waiting could result in scratches
Replacement cost of a lost iPhone
When I upgraded to my new iPhone last week I was warned by the O2 sales rep about not taking out any insurance. “If you lose your phone, that’s it. You can’t buy a new one, at least not until the PAYG version is released at Christmas”. It turns out of course, you can.
CPW’s iPhone FAQ states:
If you don’t have Lifeline insurance, you’ll need to get a replacement phone and SIM card:
To replace your SIM, contact O2.
If you want to buy a replacement iPhone contact our Direct sales team on 0800 049 0049, option 2. (You must have a Crime or Lost Reference number to buy a replacement SIM free handset. The 16GB model costs £410, the 8Gb model £352).
So if you’re with CPW, then you can at least get a (costly) replacement. No news yet on whether O2 will permit this as well. It’s also an indicator of the minimum amount that PAYG iPhone are likely to be when they finally launch.
No online ordering with O2 anytime soon
O2 have updated their iPhone availability page, and it now states:
2.3. We are expecting further stock this week.
2.4. For the forseeable future the only place to purchase iPhone 3G will be in an O2 Retail, Carphone Warehouse or Apple store if you are new to iPhone. Existing iPhone customers looking to take advantage of the special, early upgrade can do so in any O2 or Carphone Warehouse store up until 11th October, 2008.
Previously, O2 had said:
2.3 We are expecting considerably more stock from Friday 25th July onwards.
2.4 Soon after this date we are hoping to open our online upgrade shop for existing customers and online shop for new customers
Obviously, demand is still far outstripping supply, and O2 have not received considerably more stock. Either Apple is not able or not willing to supply the UK with enough phones to satisfy demand. The last update to the iPhone availability tracker indicates that there seem to be plenty of iPhones available in the US, so I would imagine they have stuffed their home channel first, and left the international carriers on a slow drip until manufacturing can catch up.
So no online ordering for the foreseeable future. If you’re still after an iPhone 3G, then your best bet is to phone your local Apple, O2 or CPW to check availbility, then get in the queue.
Only on O2 – but for how long?
Over the weekend, El Reg alerted me to a blog post at Omio which reckons Orange will be the next iPhone provider in the UK. The original iPhone was only launched in four countries – the US (AT&T), UK (O2), France (Orange) and Germany (T-Mobile) – and none of those carriers have so far lost the exclusive deal to sell iPhones in their markets.
How long are these exclusive deals?
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O2 promises more iPhones on Friday
But how many will they get?
If – like me – you’ve been unable to get your hands on a 3G iPhone yet, then the O2 iPhone availability page has been refreshed a fair bit lately. Recently, O2 have updated the page to state that “We are expecting considerably more stock from Friday 25th July onwards.” They also say that “Soon after this date we are hoping to open our online upgrade shop for existing customers and online shop for new customers.”.
Fingers crossed they will have a lot more coming in. But how many are Apple going to ship over? Chris Barnes has whipped up an iPhone availability tracker for the USA, based on Apple’s own data feed. What does this tell us? There are a lot of stores without iPhones. And which market do you think Apple will resupply first? Yep, home sweet home.
Up early again on Friday, then…
Bungie + iPhones = ?
This little tidbit came to me along the grapevine. I have it on very good authority that Bungie is handing out free iPhones to all its employees. Why would the company behind Halo be giving them away to their staff?
I’ll bet there are all sorts of excellent freebies to be had working for Bungie. However, I’m sure that this move is more than just generosity on the part of the company, and that they are going to develop titles for the iPhone.
iPhone OS 2.0 Cheers and Jeers
The new firmware is a very welcome upgrade for existing iPhone owners, but what have I found good and bad so far?
Carnival of the Mobilists 132 is out
I’m a bit late on this one, but there are some great reads as ever. One article of interest to iPhoneistas should be Igor Faletski’s post about the 3G lifestyle. He writes about how his new iPhone is essentially a digital multimedia portal, and that in hours of usage, he hadn’t made a single telephone call.
The level of non-telephone use will come as no surprise to people toting other HSDPA-tastic devices. But, what really comes through in his writing is the seamless nature of the connectivity, coupled with ease of use of the device.
Also, Krisse at All About Symbian has the Post of the Week with “Have you seen what budget phones can do now?“. For all the hype with the iPhone 3G, some budget handsets outstrip it in pure hardware terms, and the software features are often very impressive. Apple will need to keep up the pace of iPhone development, lest it be overwhelmed by a tidal wave of feature rich “budget” smartphones.
The Carnival is up at Mippin Blog
How to get even cheaper iPhone tariffs
“O2 Open” is O2’s offer for the employees of selected corporate accounts. In a nutshell, if you or a friend work for an eligible company, then you can get 30% off any retail monthly tariff or £20 off any pay and go mobile that costs more than £80. Not bad.
It’s for in-store tariffs only (no online or SIMplicity deals), and Blackberrys, XDAs and PDAs are not part of the scheme. Until last Friday, iPhones were also excluded, but that has now changed.
This means you can get a free 8Gb iPhone on the £45/month tariff, which works out to £31.50 a month with the 30% discount applied. That’s pretty tasty!
There must be a gotcha?
From the FAQ: “The scheme is open to all new and present customers with the same deal. However, you cannot cancel your present O2 contract mid-term to join O2 Open.”
Until October 11th, O2 are offering those with existing iPhone contracts the choice to break their existing contract and upgrade to the iPhone 3G. I asked in-store on Friday, and was told that existing iPhone customers can also upgrade using O2 Open!
So: a new phone and I’ll be paying O2 less per month (for more minutes). What’s not to like? Suddenly, I’m not so bothered about missing out on a 16Gb iPhone on day one 