I read in the metro on Friday that Apple sold 600,000 pre orders of its new iPhone 4 in one day which crashed their website. And now they say if you have not pre ordered the iPhone 4, you will not get it before July 14th.
iPhone 4
I wonder did Apple do this on purpose? They knew there was going to be a huge number of people signing up for the iPhone 4, they could have made more ready. Lets see how the other mobile phone operators are reacting to the news.
O2 are ranking number 4 for the term “iphone 4″ and it immediately takes you to the page which clearly describes O2′s response to a shortage of handsets. They are saying that only those O2 customers can get the iPhone 4 and then after July 4th, it will be available for non customers. I registered my interest for the new handset and I have been receiving emails with a count down of when I can go and buy the iPhone. This was a nice touch as it lets customers stay excited about the launch.
There was no place to register my interest on the Vodafone site. They also do not mention anything regarding an iPhone shortage, does this mean they will have enough when they become available in their stores? Their site has no new content about the iPhone 4, simply an overlay which appears to be from Apple and sits on the old Vodafone iphone URL.
I registered my interest on the Orange site who sent me an email a week ago letting me know when the iPhone 4 would be available. On their website, like Vodafone, there was no mention of an iPhone shortage, simply a detailed breakdown of their price plan. Orange are the only UK network to reveal their prices for the handset and the tariffs. Prices range from £169 for the 16GB handset on the cheapest £30 per month two year contract, to free for the 16GB model on a £75 per month two year deal.
I am sure demand will only increase once Vodafone and O2 announce their deals. Lets just hope not too many customers switch from O2 since their capped data usage was announced.
There used to be just one smartphone everyone wanted – the iPhone.
Now that Google launched the Android in 2008 which is gaining popularity, customers coming to the end of their contracts are torn between the iPhone and Android. Here are some facts about each handset:
Apple vs Android
iPhone
If you love apple products, then this is great. You can play your itunes on the mobile phone, access all your music in one place.
When the iPhone launched in 2007, it was the first of its kind. It revolutionised smartphones and will always be recognised as changing the mobile phone landscape forever.
There have been now been four versions with the latest iPhone announced June 7th at WWDC by Steve Jobbs.
However, in the UK it was just on one network for two years when last November it opened to Orange and Vodafone. This meant a lot of people switching to O2 just for the handset.
The iPhone’s operating system is closed like Blackberry. The Blackberry operating system only runs on its smartphones and Apple is copying this. It is very hard for developers outside of Apple to build software or games for the iPhone.
Android
The first Android (called the G1) was released in the UK October 30, 2008 on the T Mobile network, just five weeks after it was launched in the US and since then there has been released on Orange, Vodafone, O2 and 3.
The Android like the iPhone also has cool and slick features, with touch screen, easy to access email and a wide range of apps
According to Nielsen, the growth of Android and iPhone market share increased by 2% from q4 09 to q1 10
If something goes wrong with your Android, there is no genius bar to take it to. But then it does take a long time to get your Apple products fixed with the huge waiting lists in the stores.
The main difference between Apple and Android is that Android is open source. This means anyone can have a look at the source code which is developed mainly by Google with a few other companies from the Open Handset Alliance.
It also means that companies who want to make a smartphone with the Android OS can do so without paying the licensing fee that you have to do with Apple. They can also modify the software the way they need to when building. This is the opposite of Apple which makes it very difficult for developers to build products for the iPhone. They must also pay a fee to Apple.
When I go into the mobile shops and ask which handset is better the sales assistants always seem perplexed. You are either an Apple fan or an Android fan. For me, I love both, but I have to say I have been disappointed with Apple recently. My sister had a problem with her iPhone and it has taken forever to sort out. Someone basically hacked into her itunes account (in China) and purchased music which they didn’t pay for. My sister now cannot buy anything from iTunes until this is resolved.
The market share for Android is growing. It offers just as much as the iPhone does to its customers but as it is open source it allows for further developments to be made without customers having to wait for the big releases as we have seen with the iPhone.
Today, January 14th was the day the third UK mobile operator, Vodafone launched the iPhone.
I went to London Bloggers last night and Dan Bowsher from Vodafone was there to promote the iPhone. One lucky winner won one of the first Vodafone iPhones. Congratulations.
According to Dan Bowsher, there have been more than 50,000 iPhones sent to customers today.
There are a range of deals available at the Vodafone store.
iPhone on Vodafone
Images from the Vodafone store.
12 months is a long time in the mobile phone world.
This year has seen quite a few “firsts” in mobile land, here I have just highlighted the major phones for the year, if you think of anymore, please contact me.
May – Android HTC Magic on Vodafone
Follow up to the T-Mobile G1 ‘Googlephone,’
The second Android-based phone, the Magic no longer has the slide out QWERTY keyboard of its predecessor, and is a slimmer, sleeker package from Vodafone
October 2009
Motorola’s first handset in several years and first Android phone – Motorola DEXT. This was available only on Orange but as the iPhone was coming out the following month, people did not sign up to the DEXT.
November 2009
Saw Orange get the iPhone – O2′s exclusitivity on the iPhone came to an end.
The first ever 12 mega pixel camera – the sony ericsson satio released onto the market.
December 2009 – Tesco launched the iPhone
Students are at the forefront of the mobile phone revolution. Despite having no money, they tend to have the latest and best mobile phones.
Blackberry 8520
Blackberry once popular for business users has found a new user group – students. The Blackberry Curve is one of the top selling handsets in Phones4U.
http://www.knowyourmobile.com/smartphones/rim-blackberry/301855/blackberry_curve_8520_review.html
Blackberry Storm 8520
It has a touchscreen, newly designed multimedia player and a 3.2-megapixel camera. This mobile phone has been one of the most successfully Blackberrys.
The popularity of this phone increased and is increasing due to the QWERTY keyboards and instant access to Social Networking, Among Nokia handsets, the E-series phones is also very popular, especially the E71.
The iPhone has also been a hit amongst students. It is one of the best handsets for facebook and email. Once you download the facebook app, you will never be off it.
iPhone
If you are a student and know of any other popular mobile phones amongst you and your friends, then please leave a comment.
Tesco, Britain’s biggest retailer just increased their product offering to include the iPhone.
It will be available, in time for Christmas on the shelves from this Monday. They are offering just a one year contract for the iPhone 3G, which is six months less than with O2 and Orange.
Those looking for the shorter term contract can get the iPhone 8GB 3G for a one off cost of £222 plus £60 a month. This also includes £60 of flexible credit to spend as they choose.
Those who want a free iPhone 3GS 16GB can get one when they sign a 24-month contract for £60 a month and will receive unlimited calls, texts and browsing.
Tesco Mobile is a joint venture between O2 and Tesco and they also offer iPhone 3G and 3GS on its Triple Credit Pay As You Go price plan. All Tesco Mobile iPhone customers will have at least 12 months free unlimited data and access to the BT OpenZone Wi-Fi (UK).
Customers can sign up to these new phone deals in the Tesco Phone Shops and Tesco Direct website.
Tesco already well known for its price wars, has certainly opened up another one with the iPhone. I wonder what Vodafone will launch with in the New Year. They are keeping everything under wraps.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1234790/Tesco-sparks-iPhone-price-war-20-month-contract.html
http://www.mediaweek.co.uk/News/MostEmailed/973298/Tesco-Mobile-woos-consumers-new-iPhone-deal/
The day has come…. O2 no longer has exclusivity on the iPhone.
Orange iPhone
As you have probably read in the news, Orange launched the iPhone on Tuesday this week and what a record day it was. By 4pm on November 10th, Orange announced that they had sold more than 300,000 handsets. Orange stores sold more iPhones than at Carphone and Phones 4U. (the company who leaked out the launch date). Staff at Phones4U were motivated and still are to upsell the iPhone. They receive £7 commission for selling an iPhone 3G S on a £45 tariff or above and £5 for the 3G version for tariffs £40 and above.
People have been flocking to the Orange iPhone, following on from all the advertising including Orange’s £4millon campaign “You’re covered” which started last week. They are promoting how widespread the Orange 3G’s network is. Orange last month won “WHAT mobile” award for Best network coverage so they have certainly been spending a lot of time and money into improving their service. That was one of the areas that was letting them down.
Unfortunately for those who were waiting for a cheaper contract will be disappointed. Orange have avoided a price war with Apple and the tariffs are roughly the same as with O2. Customers can pick up the latest version of the phone which is the iPhone 3GS for free when they sign up for a contract for £45 a month over 24 months. If you are feeling rich and you don’t want to be tied in, you can always get the iPhone on pay as you go from £343.
http://www.mobilenewscwp.co.uk/News/361070/orange_outruns_indies_for_iphone.html
The big wait is over….
iPhone on Orange will be available on November 10th.
Unfortunately for those who were waiting for a cheaper contract will be disappointed. Orange have avoided a price war with Apple and the tariffs are roughly the same.
Orange customers can choose between an 18 and 24 month contract, or if you are feeling rich, you can always get the iPhone on pay as you go from 343 pounds.
When O2 signed the exclusive deal to have the iPhone on just their network, little did they know how popular it would become. It has led to more than triple number of customers coming into the O2 shops, within the first two months of the launch of the first iPhone. However, this exclusitivity will end in October this year and Orange and T Mobile as well as Vodafone are set to have their own iPhone deals. Elsewhere around the world, the iPhone is and has always been available on other networks.
I am interested to see what deals these network providers will give us customers. I think the iPhone is still expensive, the cheapest package has to be with the 8GB iPhone and still costs just under 45 pounds a month for 1200 minutes and 500 texts.The 8GB iphone comes free, but everyone is now raving about the iPhone 3GS which some say will not be available on other networks.
The iPhone should be available in Orange shops from at the earliest end of next month. So, there is another reason to join the Orange network. Not only will you get your 2 4 1 on cinema tickets and great deals at pizza express you can get your new iPhone. Ofcourse nothing has been finalised with the mobile operators and therefore they do not know exactly when or how much their new iPhone deals will be. But one thing is for sure…. O2 no longer have the exclusitivity and will therefore need to work even harder to keep their customers.
O2… see what they can do.
I have decided to add more to the mobile technology section of this blog. With the increasing number of smart phones with accessing the internet, this is not an area to ignore.
This data is over a year old, but then if I want data for this year, I have to buy the report and I thought… well this is good enough for the time being. It is important to share what has been happening in the mobile market. If you all have any more recent up to date reports, please let me know.
http://www.telecomsmarketresearch.com/resources/UK_Mobile_Operator_Subscriber_Statistics.shtml
As you can see Vodafone and O2 are the leaders in the market place in the UK. O2 has been very successful since it got its hands on the exclusitivity of the iPhone. The first generation iPhone came out November 9th 2007, 5 months after it was launched in the USA. The second generation iPhone hit the market in July 2008 and the third generation came out June this year.
O2 UK sold 1 million iPhones during 2008 which has boosted revenues for Telefonica (parent company of O2) for Q4 2008. Revenues rose 10.4 percent in the fourth quarter, based on stable local exchange rates, climbing to €1.755 billion (£1.6 billion). So O2 has a lot to be thankful for. However, they are set to lose this exclusitivity October 9th this year and O2 are already starting to get their hands on other smartphone manufacturers such as the Palm Pre to make up for any exodus in customers when the exclusitivity runs out.
Source: http://paidcontent.co.uk/article/419-earnings-iphone-boosts-o2-uk-q4-revenues-grow-10.4-percent/
Exclusivity can have a dramatic effect on the mobile operator’s sales. According to ZDNet news, as of March this year, the G1 Android handset accounted for 20%of T-Mobile’s contract sales. The G1 was at the time, the only handset on the market to use Google’s Android software stack, which was launched exclusively on T-Mobile at the end of October 2008. And according to T-Mobile, the G1 produced the operator’s “best-selling launch of 2008″.
According to Strategy Analytics, they forecast 900% Android phone sales growth during 2009 and shipments of Apple’s iPhone will grow 79%.
The reason for the big forecast is due to Android’s low-cost licensing model, its semi-open source structure and Google’s support for cloud services. Vodafone recently launched the world’s second Android phone – the Magic May 30th this year. Smasung and Orange are also jumping on the Android bandwagon and will launch their phones by then end of the year.
Mobile technology | Jo Turnbull | 
June 22, 2010 2:56 pm | 
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