iPhone 4G speculation and rumors (1 Viewer)

[Michael_K_Sr]

Ha...I always get a kick out of the people that think Gruber is such an infallible sage.

 

[Craig S]

Originally Posted by Michael_K_Sr ">[/url]

Ha...I always get a kick out of the people that think Gruber is such an infallible sage.

 

[Sam Posten]

Yeah but when he's wrong, he's REALLY (bluray) wrong =(

 

[DaveF]

Nice rollup of rumors Engadget. My (least) favorite: June 22 announcement...what's that mean for release? August or September? This rumor was given previously in my thread.

http://www.engadget.com/2010/03/29/wsj-apple-developing-new-iphone-plus-another-for-verizon/

 

[Ted Todorov]

As others have said Gruber is far from infallible, but I love how none of the wishful thinking sites that report the WSJ story quote "appears to be" -- instead they present a VZW iPhone as certainty.

Engadget is the worst of those I've seen -- they quote Gruber as confirmation without so much as a whisper that he calls the WSJ/VZW thing BS.

Here is my take: Gruber's sources are Apple engineers -- thus his knowledge of technical specs. Either because they don't know or because it is false, CDMA is not part of those specs.

I suspect that the Verizon rumor printed in the WSJ comes from Verizon. True or false, Verizon has an intense interest in spreading rumors about a Verizon iPhone to keep people from giving up waiting and jumping to AT&T.

My personal guess -- the new iPhone will appear this June/July as usual and there will not be a CDMA iPhone. Feel free to make fun of me if I turn out to be wrong, but anyone buying the Verizon wishful thinking now should be willing to admit they were wrong if that happens, and in the future think three times about the ulterior motives of those spreading (false) rumors.

 

[DaveF]

I maintain my conspiracy theory: AT&T bought continued iPhone exclusivity with the non-subscription 3G data plans for the iPad. There will be no Verizon iPhone this year.

 

[Ted Todorov]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaveF

Nice rollup of rumors Engadget. My (least) favorite: June 22 announcement...what's that mean for release? August or September? This rumor was given previously in my thread.

The last two years, iPhone updates were announced at WWDC, which starts on a Monday. June 22 is Tuesday. I call BS.

My firm prediction: the new iPhone will come out at the end of June, beginning of July as usual. Apple have too much competitive pressure to let it slip. iPod upgrades happen in September, and that can't slip at all due to the holiday season.

 

[DaveF]

I like your reasoning much better, Ted

My wife is getting anxious for a new phone / PDA, and I'm eager to upgrade ASAP.

 

[Andrew Pierce]

If I were Apple I'd have a team put a CDMA communications module into an iPhone, even if it's just a negotiating tool to hold over AT&T's head. How hard could it be to do?

 

[DaveF]

Who's to say they haven't?

And the accounts I've heard are mixed: some say it's a readily available, dual-mode radio that could make the iPhone do both GSM and CDMA. Others say it's complex to make each individual radio function correctly and so revising for CDMA is non-trivial.

Some perspective: in hindsight, we know that Apple was working for years creating an Intel-capable version of the Mac OS. When the time was right, they revealed it and switched processors from the PowerPC. It seems highly likely that Apple has some engineers working out the bugs for some flavors of CDMA, LTE, WiMax, etc. versions of iPhones. So when and if the time comes to change cellphone technology, they're ready. But unlike every other computer and car company, they don't boast about all the unseen technologies. They (simply) release them when complete (and stun the entire world).

 

[Ted Todorov]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrew Pierce

If I were Apple I'd have a team put a CDMA communications module into an iPhone, even if it's just a negotiating tool to hold over AT&T's head. How hard could it be to do?

Dave gave a good answer, but to look at the other side of it -- there is every indication that Apple has done just that -- AT&T is giving unheard of low data prices for iPad users (without a contract, yet); they are paying the highest in the industry per phone subsidies for the iPhone. There is nothing left for Apple to squeeze out of them -- to improve their network, I suppose, but unless AT&T management is in a very deep cave somewhere, they don't need Apple telling them to do that.

 

[DaveF]

Quote:Originally Posted by Ted Todorov

It's not if Verizon will get the iPhone, but (almost certainly) when. Eventually Apple will have sold an iPhone to every AT&T customer who will buy one. And they will have switched every switcher out there. That will still leave a US market of 2x to 3x the size of AT&T's customer base. Apple will not let that be ignored. If nothing else, Wall Street will demand they expand their market share to continue growth. And with that will come non-exclusivity. Now perhaps, as we've discussed, total profit will always be higher with an exclusive AT&T. Personally, based on nothing but my own imagination, I doubt it

 

[Nelson Au]

I really wish the data plan rate was the same as the iPad! The $15 plan that is, and I realize that's a limited plan.

 

[Ted Todorov]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nelson Au

I really wish the data plan rate was the same as the iPad! The $15 plan that is, and I realize that's a limited plan.

It'll be a long while before it happens -- simple reason -- for the vast majority of iPhone users out there the $15 plan will be fine. I just checked my usage today, and even though I would consider myself a heavy iPhone user (and have no WiFi at work, or really any other place I spend time outside my house) and I still used exactly 250MB per month over the last 6 months.

 

[Nelson Au]

That's interesting Ted, that you use the exact amount that is in the limited iPad plan.

 

[Joseph Bolus]

I have WiFi just about everywhere that I go -- except when "in transit", of course -- so that $15/month plan would more than serve my needs as well.

The only way it would happen, though, is if you were willing to pay around $600 for your phone up front. (Which you may have the option of doing before the year is out! )

 

[Nelson Au]

So I am not now a smart phone user. This is all new to me. There is the voice plan which is what I do now with my AT&T plan and my Razr.

The $30 you pay for the data plan and is required for an iPhone is for the amount of data you download? Such as email and or files from emails and downloading stuff from iTunes? Or is it the data you download or load into the iPhone such as the Home Theater Forum and any other web pages count as part of the MB count? That's what they call the data that is downloaded? And download really means the pages that your iPhone loads?

Confusing! As it almost sounds like downloading data are actual files and not just going onto the internet. Thanks for indulging my lack of understanding here. If I go for the this new 2010 iPhone, I want to understand it better.

 

[Sam Posten]

iPhone has a required unlimited data plan of $30ish a month in addition to your chosen voice package and you can add texting on top. All told it runs me about $105 a month with taxes and stuff, and I have a low limit texting plan.

The unlimited plan covers any and all data you get, and you have no way of telling how much of it is web pages, graphics, video and files such as apps and music from the App store or iTunes. It's just a big pile of bits. I am also averaging about 250 megs a month. I can post a screenshot of my data usage if you want to see it.

 

[Nelson Au]

Thanks Sam. No need to post your data usage. Though I've never seen that before, that's nice of you to offer! Interesting to see averaging 250mb for the users here!

I am understanding from a friend that if one uses wi-fi when they can, this greatly reduces the drain on battery power to access the web. Plus it's faster then 3g access. But this raised the question, if one uses wi-fi, then you're not actually clocking up bits going towards the 3g 5gb cap. So the only benefit of paying for 3g is anytime and any place access if there is no wi-fi, which is the selling point.

Perhaps the new 2010 iPhone will have better battery performance and also improve the 3g speed.

 

[Ted Todorov]

Originally Posted by Nelson Au

Perhaps the new 2010 iPhone will have better battery performance and also improve the 3g speed.

The iPhone has very fast 3G -- in Italy where the nationwide 3G network is 7.2Mbps my iPhone 3GS was loading stuff much faster than it does over WiFi/DSL at home. It is up to AT&T to speed up their network to European standards.

As for battery -- I'm sure it will be better -- but what the left hand giveth, the right hand taketh away -- with multi-tasking heavily rumored for iPhone OS 4.0, when you start running a bunch of apps at once, what it does to the battery can't be pretty.