TELECOMS & MOBILE
iPhone 3G makes worldwide debut
11-07-2008
by Deirdre McArdle
The iPhone 3G hits shelves all over the world on Friday, with Apple hoping that the faster speeds and lower price will boost take-up of the already popular device.
The upgraded iPhone will be available to Irish consumers, along with consumers in over 20 countries worldwide, from Friday. The device is causing quite a stir in Japan, where Apple fans began queuing on Wednesday to get their hands on it. In Tokyo one such queue stretched half a mile outside the flagship store of Japan's third largest mobile operator, Softbank, which won the rights to sell the much-anticipated handset.
In the UK, demand for the iPhone 3G is high, with online orders reportedly topping 13,000 per second on Monday, causing mobile operator O2's website to crash. For the launch of the original iPhone in Ireland just four months ago, hype was perhaps slightly muted due to the fact that it was already available in other countries like the US and the UK. This time around the device is debuting simultaneously in over 20 countries around the world and so interest is likely to be higher, according to an O2 spokesperson.
Initial stocks of the iPhone 3G are going to be limited in Ireland, however, and will be sold on a first come, first served basis. But the O2 spokesperson told ENN that over the coming weeks the mobile operator will have a continuous supply of the device.
In Ireland customers will be able to buy an 8GB or 16GB version of the device from O2 on three different tariffs. The 8GB iPhone 3G will cost EUR49 on the EUR100 monthly iPhone tariff, EUR99 on the EUR65 tariff and EUR169 on the EUR45 tariff.
The 16GB iPhone 3G will cost EUR129 on the EUR100 monthly tariff option, EUR169 on the EUR65 tariff and EUR229 on the EUR45 tariff. These tariffs also include anytime minutes, texts and a 1GB data bundle.
Existing iPhone customers can upgrade to the new device at the same prices, as can non-iPhone O2 customers eligible for an upgrade. Original iPhone users can also give the free iPhone 2.0 software a try and decide if it is sufficient before they decided whether they want to upgrade. Though the software won't enable users to upgrade to 3G or get the GPS functionality, it does allow the user to get access to third party software.
The main criticisms of the original iPhone were the high price of the device, the lack of 3G connectivity and the fact that consumers would be locked in to a two-year contract with the selected mobile operator. Apple has taken action with the 3G element and also significantly lowered the price of the handset, making it a more viable option for many consumers.
Initial reviews of the iPhone 3G have tended toward the positive with one or two mixed comments from the likes of Walt Mossburg of the Wall Street Journal. While overall Mossburg has given the handset a thumbs up, he does point out that the battery tends to drain quite quickly due to the higher power demands of 3G.
Apple has added GPS to the second-generation iPhone and added full compatibility with Microsoft Exchange, which will let business users send and receive Microsoft Exchange e-mail. This move is widely seen as a direct shot at smartphone rival BlackBerry and could help the iPhone capture a wider chunk of the smartphone market. According to Gartner, the iPhone currently has 5.3 percent of the market, with Nokia far ahead with 42.5 percent while the BlackBerry has 13.4 percent.
Meanwhile, one smartphone player that's looking to take a chunk out of Apple's market share is Palm. The device maker announced on its official blog on Wednesday that it plans to start selling a new electric blue version of the Palm Centro at AT&T stores in the US starting Friday.
One of the ways Apple is hoping the iPhone 3G will stand out is the availability of third party software through its App Store. At the moment Apple says there are about 600 web apps to choose from, with this number growing all the time. The applications incorporate the iPhone's multi-touch technology. Some of the programs Apple has publicly mentioned include Salesforce's CRM applications and a bidding program from eBay. Meanwhile, PopCap Games, which has an office in Dublin, has announced that its Bejewelled 2 game is available for the iPhone 3G through the App Store.
Apple has sold more than 6 million iPhones worldwide since the device first went on sale in the US in July 2007. Apple said it hopes to sell more than 10 million by the end of this year.
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