I have one of these UK iPhones in my hands right now; it's a very pretty paperweight because I'm patiently waiting for the hackers to defeat the new revision of baseband firmware.
I've indulged in a "downgrade" to 1.1.1 firmware and applied the jailbreak, played with some of the "poor quality and best kept away from consumers" third-party applications (many of which are stunning and better than the paid-for rubbish I've seen on Windows Mobile devices). What I will not do until I am sure I have no choice, is activate it on O2.
I don't condemn O2's contracts as strongly as some; I view the integrated "The Cloud" WiFi access as having some value. However, I am fully aware that in March I signed up to T-Mobile and got a £700 (unlocked) handset for £120, on a £37.50/month contract that includes unlimited 3G data and 900 minutes or 1800 texts. O2's contract is poor value.
The crime here is not the poor value contract, but Apple's failure to grasp what has driven iPod sales. We KNOW that there will be a new iPhone and it will probably be out around March to June next year in the US at least. We know it will be better. We also know that if we sign up now, we're stuck with that contract for 18 months and Apple aren't going to let us activate our Mk II iPhone on the existing contract, because they (in some bizarre situation which I cannot quite believe has happened) want their revenue from the networks.
The reason the iPod has sold so many is partly driven by the desire for the latest model - Apple often add significant increases in feature set or capacity - and no reason not to just get the newest one as soon as it launches. They're rarely heavily discounted, they're familiar and they're good players. With every iPhone user locked into 18 months with the device, they're not going to consume as many - and as such they're not going to be convinced by such a limited feature set compared to flexible, cheaper Windows Mobile devices.
The iPhone should be sold unlocked in Europe for £399 if Apple want that extra profit so badly. Then let the networks and brokers argue about subsidising the handset price from their kickbacks - if you can buy a contract with a free PS3, or Xbox, because the reseller is using their "profit" to give you a rubbish handset and a gimmick incentive, then the iPhone would fly off the shelves, whilst other people pony up the £400 to have an excellent UI and reasonably attractive handset.
As it is the iPhone is an expensive, and not particularly good, distraction. It's priced as a smartphone, but without the ability to legitimately run third-party apps it's woefully lacking as such (and the developers have shown, with limited resources, that it can do so very very well). If you don't have a phone at all, then it's worth looking at if you wanted an iPod Touch. For anyone with an existing contract, the iPhone is nowhere near compelling enough to change providers, and neither is O2's contract.
Register
Apple's "misunderstanding" of the iPod generation
I have one of these UK iPhones in my hands right now; it's a very pretty paperweight because I'm patiently waiting for the hackers to defeat the new revision of baseband firmware.
I've indulged in a "downgrade" to 1.1.1 firmware and applied the jailbreak, played with some of the "poor quality and best kept away from consumers" third-party applications (many of which are stunning and better than the paid-for rubbish I've seen on Windows Mobile devices). What I will not do until I am sure I have no choice, is activate it on O2.
I don't condemn O2's contracts as strongly as some; I view the integrated "The Cloud" WiFi access as having some value. However, I am fully aware that in March I signed up to T-Mobile and got a £700 (unlocked) handset for £120, on a £37.50/month contract that includes unlimited 3G data and 900 minutes or 1800 texts. O2's contract is poor value.
The crime here is not the poor value contract, but Apple's failure to grasp what has driven iPod sales. We KNOW that there will be a new iPhone and it will probably be out around March to June next year in the US at least. We know it will be better. We also know that if we sign up now, we're stuck with that contract for 18 months and Apple aren't going to let us activate our Mk II iPhone on the existing contract, because they (in some bizarre situation which I cannot quite believe has happened) want their revenue from the networks.
The reason the iPod has sold so many is partly driven by the desire for the latest model - Apple often add significant increases in feature set or capacity - and no reason not to just get the newest one as soon as it launches. They're rarely heavily discounted, they're familiar and they're good players. With every iPhone user locked into 18 months with the device, they're not going to consume as many - and as such they're not going to be convinced by such a limited feature set compared to flexible, cheaper Windows Mobile devices.
The iPhone should be sold unlocked in Europe for £399 if Apple want that extra profit so badly. Then let the networks and brokers argue about subsidising the handset price from their kickbacks - if you can buy a contract with a free PS3, or Xbox, because the reseller is using their "profit" to give you a rubbish handset and a gimmick incentive, then the iPhone would fly off the shelves, whilst other people pony up the £400 to have an excellent UI and reasonably attractive handset.
As it is the iPhone is an expensive, and not particularly good, distraction. It's priced as a smartphone, but without the ability to legitimately run third-party apps it's woefully lacking as such (and the developers have shown, with limited resources, that it can do so very very well). If you don't have a phone at all, then it's worth looking at if you wanted an iPod Touch. For anyone with an existing contract, the iPhone is nowhere near compelling enough to change providers, and neither is O2's contract.