Marketing

If you want to get your hands on an iPhone and you live in China you can either get a job building the things or pay top dollar for an unlocked iPhone. AFP reports that that is about to change. Sources tell AFP that Apple is in the final stages of talks with China’s largest telecom provider China Mobile. According to AFP the holdup was over Apple’s revenue sharing demands. Apple wants a big slice of the iPhone pie? Is such a thing even possible?

China has a population of 1.3 billion and 608 million current cell phone users,so the opportunity is huge. If Apple can make the iPhone cool in China expect big sales and the goal of 10 million iPhones sold in 2008 to seem quaint.

Yesterday, a friend of mine found herself stuck on a runway for 5 hours because of poor weather conditions. If she had been a first class passenger, and had been the owner of an iPhone, and had been living two days in the future… she would have been able to hook up her Apple device to a dock connector right in armrest of those plush (and oh-so-expensive) leather seats.

The first iPhone-compatible flight left Washington D.C. for Zurich yesterday, and United promised that all of their international planes would be upgraded within the next two years. Unfortunately, this connectivity won’t be available where it is most needed- in coach. If you are flying first or business, however, you’ll be able to control your iPhone or iPod through your armrest, and watch movies on the existing personal entertainment system- a 15-inch LCD screen.

Although Greg Joswiak, an Apple VP, had lots to say about the system’s capabilities, he didn’t mention whether or not United planned on expanding iPhone support further down the aisle:

“The iPod and iPhone have become essential for millions of travelers around the world. We think United… more...

You are probably familiar with those iPhone commercials depicting people using their phones in real situations that would occur in life. Well I have my own.

I regularly attend a computer class at my local college. One day during class a discussion arose about the sharp rise in price of technology stocks. My teacher used Google as an example and asked if anyone knew what the price per share currently was and what it had been 1 year ago. Having had Google as one of the stocks I was monitoring, I quickly took out my iPhone and checked the price. The class was amazed at the speed with which I was able to gather this information. The professor soon used this information to calculate the amount of money one would have gained in investing a certain amount about a year ago. I was glad that our class was able to learn using valid information, and not a mere estimate. The professor then thanked me after class.

Thank you iPhone! You may have just gotten me an A.

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Most geeks are familiar with Black Friday. This is the day when there are insanely great deals on decent, sometimes great, electronics. This year there are many companies joining in to save the consumer some cash and kick off the holiday season. Apple is not one to miss out on the fun, so they will also have limited deals on electronics up on their site at 12:01 AM on the 23rd. Details are sketchy, but it is also believed that retail stores will participate and join in on the action. Here is what Apple has stated in a post up on their website:

Come back to the Apple Online Store the day after Thanksgiving for a special one-day-only holiday shopping event. You will find dozens of great iPod, iPhone, and Mac gift ideas all with free shipping.
Mark your calendars now. And until then, start your research by visiting our Holiday Gift Guide to find iPod, iPhone, and Mac gifts for everyone on your list.

Expect lines at some locations as well as much competition by those wanting in on the deals this holiday season. If you participate,… more...

As we all know a 3G iPhone is imminent, it’s not a question of how but a question of when. Coupled with the fact that Apple worked something out with Interdigital regarding 3G patents, it all but confirms the fact. However one analyst makes the claim that Apple will introduce a 3G iPhone before Christmas.

We all know how analysts are, to me they seem like those people who make seemingly reliable rumors but once you read into it there is little validity, but not all analysts are like this.

I know that the cellular industry is a fast paced industry, so much so that I had written that Apple may have killed the iPhone by pushing updates so slow and while I won’t whine that a 3G iPhone is somewhat overdue (depending how you look at the matter) it would be disatrous for Apple to unloose such a major update before Macworld.

Think about it, after Thanksgiving and right before Macworld sales are huge. Steve said himself that the price decrease was meant to lure in potential consumers for the… more...

Who would’ve thought that even with the millions splurged on its wireless network in preparation for the iPhone that AT&T is dropping “the fewest dropped calls” campaign.
Can you hear me now?

The marketing campaign started in March last year but it was flawed from the getgo.
The irony is that the Ads were based on a report by Telephia that clearly stated AT&T was not the most reliable network. Even funnier was AT&T’s competitor T-Mobile was the only one capable of claiming the title of “fewest dropped calls”.

Since Cingular and now AT&T has taken some legal flack over it they are now dropping the slogan (like its hot) because almost good is good enough.

Via: Digg

Steve Jobs had a goal of reaching 10 million iPhone sales by the end of 2008, but according to SeekingAlpha analysts, Apple will reach 13.5 million units by the end of 2008.

SeekingAlpha also suggest that Apple will be releasing new iPhone products soon, with a 16GB version available at some point next year and a 3G enabled handset by Spring (but this particular writer is hoping that 3G reaches Europe before then).

Whilst market share will still be rather low after 13.5 million shipped units next year, it’s thought that this number will crush Microsoft’s Windows Mobile devices as last year only 4 million units were sold. Whether or not the iPhone trend will slowly come down to a calm next year is anyone’s guess but it appears that it’s selling like hot-cakes at th minute.

A slip up on Amazon’s web site briefly showed the iPhone available for pre-order with a release date of December 1st and a selling price of £329.00 or $663

Nothing more was displayed about the iPhone’s UK launch, not even the carrier info just price and a suggested date of December 1st. The information has since been removed but a Cached version still exists.

Read More:Engadget

Apple has really gone all out to provide us, and thus you guys, with as much information as possible concerning the iPhone.

If you’re unable to get down to your local Apple store tomorrow evening at 6pm (closes at Midnight, by the way), then you might want to take a trek down there on Saturday instead. Although you’ll be lucky to get one, the last thing you want to do is go all the way down there to find you’re definitely not going to get your hands on one, so why not use Apple’s iPhone availability website instead.

There’s a list of all the stores in each state in America that is selling the iPhone and you can check which stores have iPhones in, and which don’t. Time saved? I think so.

Yep, that’s correct. You read under-hyped, not over-hyped. We here at iPhone Matters believe that nothing can hype what is going to be the best phone ever too much. If anything this is payback from the underwhelming response the iPod achieved. No line ups for that launch, just a bunch of incredulous reviewers. This time it’s different. This time its payback for Apple. So, without further ado I present to you the 4 reasons why the iPhone is Underhyped.

Reason 1: It’s an awesome iPod
Forget the fact that this little gem makes calls better than any mobile phone ever. Forget the fact that you will be able to browse the internet on a mobile device in an entirely new and usable way. And what do you have left? The most awesome iPod. Ever. This thing has cover flow. This thing has a stunning new interface. This thing frigging rotates the movie when you turn it! Most people would spend $499 on just that.

Reason 2: Steve is never wrong
Seriously. He wasn’t wrong about the importance of the GUI interface, he wasn’t wrong about UNIX-based operating systems, he wasn’t wrong about… more...