backtop

Print E-mail del.icio.us 36 comment(s) - last by evilharp.. on Jan 27 at 1:05 AM
Canadian customers can get Apple's iPhone, but only through Rogers

According to a Rogers Wireless customers advise notice sent out this week, Rogers will be the exclusive carrier of Apple's iPhone in Canada. The email sent out to customers indicated that dates and pricing have not been determined yet, but that besides Rogers, there will not be any other wireless phone companies that will offer the iPhone.

So far, everything appears to make sense. Rogers is the only carrier in Canada that offers GSM service. Fido, which was purchased by Rogers two years ago, also offers GSM service but Rogers claims that the iPhone will only be available under Rogers subscriptions. The following is from the original Rogers e-mail:
  • The iPhone will first be introduced in North America
  • Cingular is the only wireless carrier to launch the iPhone in the United States
  • Rogers is actively working with Apple to launch the iPhone in Canada as soon as possible and will be the exclusive provider of the iPhone in Canada
  • Apple is planning to introduce the iPhone in Europe (Q4 2007) and Asia (2008)
  • Please be advised that Rogers will be offering the iPhone exclusively in Canada
  • Launch date and pricing for Canada are not yet available
  • Other Canadian wireless carriers will not launch the iPhone, Rogers will be the only Canadian wireless carrier to offer the iPhone
In an interview with the Globe and Mail, Rogers chief operating officer Nadir Mohamed said that it makes sense for Rogers to introduce the iPhone to Canadian customers. "I’m not saying whether we have agreements or anything [with Apple], but given the iPhone was launched on GSM, we’re in a good position to reinforce that we’re the first and have the best-feature devices."

Apple launched its iPhone on January 9th with considerable applaud from consumers. There will be two initial models: a 4GB model for $499 USD and an 8GB model for $599 USD -- both are priced with a two year plan from Cingular, which will be the exclusive launch partner for Apple in the U.S. Analysts are expecting Canadian prices to be slightly higher with an estimated time of arrival sometime in late 2007 for Rogers customers.

Comments     Threshold


This article is over a month old, voting and posting comments is disabled
Deja Vu?
By vdig on 1/25/2007 10:59:43 AM , Rating: 4
I think I'm hearing things....

"The Apple iPhone, will retail for... 599 U.S. dollars."

And here I was, complaining about the price of the PS3. Compared to this phone, which is the better deal? They both sound too rich for my blood. Do I really want my cell phone to be my MP3 player? I personally would want a storage/mp3/video player at that price (80 GB video iPod). Still, I would bet that everyone and their mothers would drool over this phone. I... hold on a second.
*wipes drool from mouth*
...I know I am.




RE: Deja Vu?
By mforce on 1/25/2007 11:23:21 AM , Rating: 2
I said the same thing. This makes the PS 3 look not so expensive anymore . I was accused for that comparison though. Anyway the market is the only one that determines if the price is right or if it's just simply too much.
By the way I would recommend you take a look at an open source Linux based alternative here:
http://www.openmoko.com/press/index.html
It's not an Apple thing but it will be a completely open platform, so you'll be able to get all kinds of software on it. Also it will be available online for 350 $ in february, unlocked. Sure it won't have that much storage but I guess you can throw in a 1-2 GB SD card and you could maybe even get some software to play songs bought on iTunes , remember it is Linux after all.


RE: Deja Vu?
By masher2 (blog) on 1/25/2007 1:01:38 PM , Rating: 2
When you consider that-- according to Apple at least-- this will replace your phone, your Blackberry, and your MP3 player, the price isn't nearly so bad. If you're already using all 3 separarely, its a steal.


RE: Deja Vu?
By ATC on 1/25/2007 1:19:23 PM , Rating: 2
also, there's the possibility that if you sign up for a contract they will subsidise it further.


RE: Deja Vu?
By h0kiez on 1/25/2007 1:57:47 PM , Rating: 2
Negative. $599 is the "contract subsidized price".


RE: Deja Vu?
By ATC on 1/25/2007 3:17:36 PM , Rating: 2
ouch...that really hurts.


RE: Deja Vu?
By fxyefx on 1/25/2007 1:46:13 PM , Rating: 2
It seems overpriced, especially from the hardware standpoint. Although I don't know how development costs ended up, apparently the manufacturing cost of the iPhone will let Apple sell it for nearly 50% margins at that price... as compared to the costs/development of the PS3, where Sony loses ~$300 on every 20 gb model.

As far as the price of other phones in its category go, however, I'm sure it will get good adoption. Not to mention that it looks sweet...


RE: Deja Vu?
By sdsdv10 on 1/25/2007 6:37:19 PM , Rating: 2
The $499 (4GB) and $599 (8GB) are really not the far out of line. Most other "smart" phones have started at these same levels. The the Treo 700 still lists for $499 (comes out to $399 after $100 rebate) on Verizon here in the US. Granted, most "smart" phones are sold to business buyers, but more and more consumers are buying these types of phones. Remember, the Moto RAZR first listed at $500 with a 2 year contract when it was lauched in 2004, and it was just a standard phone.


Say it aint so...
By ATC on 1/25/2007 1:00:11 PM , Rating: 2
Not Rogers!

I used to be with them before switching to Telus. I can't speak for Central and Eastern but Western Canada's service under Rogers is poor and their customer service isn't much better.

Not that I'll be getting the iPhone but it would be beneficial for Apple if Bell/Telus can offer it as well. Maybe even Virgin, but please NOT Rogers exclusive.




RE: Say it aint so...
By aos007 on 1/25/2007 1:18:51 PM , Rating: 2
You're missing the point... Only Rogers can carry iPhone because other phone companies in Canada do not have the infrastructure to do so. It's physically impossible.


RE: Say it aint so...
By ATC on 1/25/2007 1:21:09 PM , Rating: 2
I know. But my point was why can't apple release a non-GSM version of the iPhone, or is that impossible?


RE: Say it aint so...
By aos007 on 1/25/2007 1:42:37 PM , Rating: 2
I think that's not as easy as switching out the cell phone module. It's rare to find the same phone in GSM and CDMA variants. It would require a lot of work. Considering that GSM is in world-wide use as opposed to primarily North America, they probably chose to only go for that one. It may limit their market in NA, but that's probably why they partnered with a big telecom (it's probably beneficial to
both companies).

I'm on Rogers personally, and I never considered TELUS because their selection of phones - read: CDMA phones - was always terrible. Only recently they have phones that I'd not be ashamed to own. And that even though I used to work for TELUS. Even 30% off employee discount didn't entice me to use them.


RE: Say it aint so...
By ATC on 1/25/2007 3:16:57 PM , Rating: 2
That's one thing I miss about GSM phones, there's an abundance of cooler looking and better featured sets compared to CDMA which look positively archaic in comparison.


RE: Say it aint so...
By tungtung on 1/25/2007 2:53:04 PM , Rating: 2
Well I can say for 100% that in the GTA (Toronto) area, Rogers do have the best signal pretty much anywhere compared to other wireless providers. However their pricing and customer service left A LOT to be desired for.

A friend of mine got her plan swithced to another plan that cost her close to 3 times more expensive than her old plan without any single notice. Then when she tried to change that to another cheaper plan, they refused out right because they said that the plan is a 1 year contract plan, which again was something which she never ask or being asked for.

Not to mention they always priced their handsets so outrageously expensive. I won't be surprised if they will offer this handset at somewhere around $800 with 3 years contract. And I won't be surprised that they will force you to take the voice & data bundle plan if you want to get this phone (one of those $50++/month plan). It's just a pity that they have a monopoly of GMS cellular in the GTA here (ps: they own Fido - as said in the article).


RE: Say it aint so...
By ATC on 1/25/2007 3:20:24 PM , Rating: 2
True. We're almost forced to go to Rogers in Canada for the better phones. Same thing with the Treo 680; looks like it's going to be a GSM-only set which means only Rogers will have that one too.


Exclusive
By nomagic on 1/25/2007 11:30:51 AM , Rating: 2
The device is a beautiful piece of hardware with acceptable battery life and sharp screen. I also admire its sleek design. The 600 dollar price tag is not hard to justify for many people.

But why does Apple have to make iPhone exclusively from cingular?" I hate the word exclusive. That means the phone will probably be locked and printed with the ugly cingular icon. Furthermore, although 600 dollars are spent on the phone, you are still bound to a mediocre wireless phone service provider for 2 years.

Doesn't this makes iPhone less attractive to you?




RE: Exclusive
By masher2 (blog) on 1/25/2007 12:05:12 PM , Rating: 2
> "But why does Apple have to make iPhone exclusively from cingular?""

Cingular (now AT&T) developed a lot of "server-side" functionality to support some of the iPhone's features.


RE: Exclusive
By h0kiez on 1/25/2007 12:43:45 PM , Rating: 2
How exactly do you know what the battery life will be like? If they can make it play tunes, take calls, and surf the net all day, I'd be impressed, but I'll believe that when I see it. As for the $600 price tag...it's hard/impossible to justify for the vast majority of people who would want it. And the lack of 3G is a complete dealbreaker for me. They talked so much about how it scales/formats web pages to look good...but I had Cingular's service until I switched to Sprint Powervision a few months ago, and I can tell you that it doesn't matter how good web pages look on that screen if it take 90 seconds to load each page.

Also, as for the $600 price, let's not forget that signing a 2 year contract typically takes several hundred dollars off the up-front cost of a phone...so it's not even really a $600 phone...more like an $800+ phone. If the iPhone is $600, then my PPC 6700 was $39.95.


RE: Exclusive
By h0kiez on 1/25/2007 12:47:31 PM , Rating: 3
Another related comment related to my dealings with Cingular. Did you guys know that Cingular does not offer - at any price - insurance on "Smartphones"...and many other phones (which I guarantee will include the iPhone). I'd personally be nervous knowing that if I dropped my iPhone and broke it, it would probably cost me $800 or more to have it replaced under contract.


Another reason to not get excited about iPhone
By Deathspawner on 1/25/2007 12:03:18 PM , Rating: 3
I am not sure what Rogers is like across Canada, but in the Maritimes the service is horrible. I have friends with them, and they complain about not being able to place a call 5 minutes out of town...

That... and the price of the iPhone doesn't have me too interested.




By dice1111 on 1/25/2007 12:33:34 PM , Rating: 2
Manitoba Rogers cusomter here. I travel out of town a lot and have both an MTS (local cell carrier) and a Rogers phone, (one work, one personal). I can tell you that Rogers has about 90-95% of the coverage MTS does (which is very good) and where it does have coverage, reception is great. In regards to services provided, Roger blows MTS away. Not even close in my opinion.


By GreenEnvt on 1/25/2007 12:46:32 PM , Rating: 2
I still find in Ontario at least, Bell has the widest coverage. When I go camping up north, my Bell cell phone still works, but friends with Rogers don't.

I actually would prefer to be on Rogers, as being GSM is makes swapping for a new unlocked cell phone much easier.


By vdig on 1/25/2007 1:26:40 PM , Rating: 2
Rogers in Ontario as well.

Around the GTA area, Rogers is, by and large, better than Bell. The reception is better than anything Bell served up. This is especially important in that Rogers is, by far, way more capable than Bell in pleasing their clientelle in having service work to its full potential.

Everyone I know who has Bell service, of any sort, notes that their service is less than 100%, whether the cell phone performance is mediocre due to weak signals or dropped calls, to their internet connections only going as fast as 20Mb/s on the download, even though they pay for premium services.


Email just didn't get the point across....
By jon1003 on 1/25/2007 11:14:33 AM , Rating: 3
I don't think they quite made it clear in the email that the only Canadian carrier to have the iPhone will be Rogers...

Calling the Department of Redundancy Department on that email and the bulleted list.




By CrasHxxx on 1/25/2007 12:36:23 PM , Rating: 2
Is that department maintained by The Redundant Department of Redunant Departments for Deperment Redundancy?


By InsaneGain on 1/26/2007 1:10:05 PM , Rating: 2
So am I to understand that I can use the iPhone with Telus? Is that what they are saying? I am calling Telus about it right away!


Telus users, MAY be able to use it....
By BrendonT on 1/25/2007 6:56:18 PM , Rating: 2
Now, this this assuming that there is some sort of Sim card within this phone, if there is, then Telus users can use the phone.

http://www.telusmobility.com/on/pcs/global_roaming...

Now, this is just assuming that there can be a Sim card in the iPhone that we can get to in some way. But, knowing Apple, they keep their products in a design that takes more than skill to get into.




By ATC on 1/25/2007 7:18:23 PM , Rating: 2
The problem with this is the phone itself will still need to use the GSM network, not Telus'. It allows you to roam GSM Partner carriers overseas. I don't think it can be used here.

I could be wrong and the info on their site is a little vague.


still Iphone?
By SSJGohanMlm on 1/25/2007 8:34:12 PM , Rating: 2
i thought apple is begging for cisco to let them use teh iphone name...what happened? its over already?




RE: still Iphone?
By evilharp on 1/27/2007 1:05:00 AM , Rating: 2
The Cisco issue is up in the air in the US...

In Canada Comwave already owns the name iPhone which they use for their VOIP services. See: http://www.comwave.net/CDN/iPhone/index.htm

It was mentioned in the news that as iPhone is currently only available in the US, there is no litigation pending. However, once iPhone is offered in Canada it is likely to occur.


Re:
By Canadian Bacon on 1/25/2007 12:46:39 PM , Rating: 2
Because it would cost too much to switch their entire network over from CDMA to GSM and the fact that there's no way in hell Rogers would license their network to them like some other carriers have. Although I'm just speculating here.




CGY
By gramboh on 1/25/2007 3:25:45 PM , Rating: 2
Here in Calgary, Telus has the best coverage (CDMA). Although I hate CDMA and the awful phones, I use Telus because I have an uber cheap corporate plan with unlimited minutes, otherwise I'd probably be on Rogers just to not support stupid Telus and CDMA investment.

RE: iPhone replacing BlackBerry, I thought it couldn't ActiveSync with Outlook/Exchange? They better resolve that one quickly.




Not going to be a big deal
By viperpa on 1/25/2007 7:05:07 PM , Rating: 2
I don't think it's going to be a big deal as everyone is making it out to be cause a lot of people are not going to spend $600 for a phone. Buying a IPhone would essentially make your $249 IPOD obsolete.

As for Rogers, I would think they are betting on droves of customers signing up just cause Rogers will be the exclusive provider of the IPhone.




"If you look at the last five years, if you look at what major innovations have occurred in computing technology, every single one of them came from AMD. Not a single innovation came from Intel." -- AMD CEO Hector Ruiz in 2007

DailyTech Poll
Which web browser do you use on your primary personal machine? 






44 Comments









botimage
Copyright 2009 DailyTech LLC. - RSS Feed | Advertise | About Us | Ethics | FAQ | Terms, Conditions & Privacy Information | Kristopher Kubicki