Is the iPhone Launch doomed? I think it might be so...

[red-beard]

In areas where 3G network is not available, customers will continue to receive service on the AT&T EDGE network, when coverage is available.

Using a plain audio modem technology over a digital cell phone gives you about 9600 baud or 10kbps (1G). GPRS (2G) is fully digital, always on once connected and is about like dial up, or slightly faster. EDGE is enhanded GPRS (2.5G), updated for somewhat faster speeds. EDGE is something like an older DSL line, 128kbps-384kbps. 3G is also fully digital, but allows full broadband like speeds, 0.5-3mbps.

[rrsrsr]

Originally posted by Moses
OK. Now I'm really confused. I figured out what a 3G network is. It's a mobile network that has evolved to handle high speed video and data transfer. Great. So I looked at the AT&T website and they clearly describe their EDGE network as a network that is available when you can't connect to a 3G network.

Doesn't this mean the iPhone should have at least three connectivity options? (802.11 WiFi, 3G and EDGE).

The iPhone isn't 3G capable.

Cingulars EDGE data plan is $60/month? Ouch. An unlimited EDGE data plan on Tmobile is $30.

[Moses]

Originally posted by rrsrsr
The iPhone isn't 3G capable.

Cingulars EDGE data plan is $60/month? Ouch. An unlimited EDGE data plan on Tmobile is $30.

Crazy. Maybe it would be better to stick with WiFi.

[rrsrsr]

I believe you have to sign up for a 2 year Cingular EDGE contract to enable WiFi use on the iPhone.

Maybe someone will come up with a hack to get around this.

[Halm]

“G” is a spec for carrying data over the cellular airwaves. The bigger the preceding number, the faster the spec.

EDGE = 2.5G. AT&T. Theoretically it can run at 144 Kbs, the same as an old ISDN line. However expect real world speed between 56Kbs – 100Kbs.

HSDPA (AT&T) and EVDO, Rev A = 3G. Potentially up to 1.5Mb, the same as a T-1. Real world speeds for HSDPA are 1Mb’ish and EVDO RevA is 800-900 Kbs’ish.

Now the real issue as far as I am concerned is that AT&T has slowed down their rollout of 3G equipment in favor of some upgrade to their EDGE network that will improve speeds up to the 144 Kbs max. And they are doing this to accommodate the iPhone.

So unless this is done as part of a long term agreement between Apple and AT&T, the door has been left open for Verizon with the largest EVDO network to pick up the next generation iPhone.

That means if the next iPhone rolls out within 2 years, watch out for contract cancellation fees and full price for the phone, no upgrades. And oh, btw, if you love AT&T, you will be in ecstasy with Verizon.

[Moses]

AT&T has a 3 year exclusive for the iPhone.

[Halm]

Originally posted by Moses
AT&T has a 3 year exclusive for the iPhone.

It has been a long time since I read the news release on the deal, but I remembered it as a 3 year deal on that particular phone, not any future models.

I am probably wrong on that, so please set me straight.

[Moses]

I was wrong. It's a 5 year contract.

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/wireless/2007-05-21-at&t-iphone_N.htm

[techweenie]

The iPhone will likely be 'cracked' within months to work on any Edge network. It's difficult to lock a cellphone to any system. My Treo was 'locked' to Cingular and I now use it on the T-Mobile system. Cost all of $15 to unlock.

[Halm]

"AT&T has exclusive U.S. distribution rights for five years — an eternity in the go-go cellphone world. And Apple is barred for that time from developing a version of the iPhone for CDMA wireless networks."
Okay, you were right!

That said, it still a crime that AT&T is not accelerating 3G deployment for the product rather than taking a cheap fix on the EDGE network. IMHO, that doesn't bode well for either the iPhone in particular or other products and features in general.

[Halm]

Originally posted by techweenie
The iPhone will likely be 'cracked' within months to work on any Edge network. It's difficult to lock a cellphone to any system. My Treo was 'locked' to Cingular and I now use it on the T-Mobile system. Cost all of $15 to unlock.

Agreed. But I think T-Mobile has recently had a major price increase on all their data plans and they are starting to follow AT&T's model where data costs less on a Smartphone like a Blackjack versus a Pocket PC like a 8525.

[Wickd89]

Just wait. T-Mobile will be launching a new service that will allow you to use your phone everywhere (with edge, gprs, and eventually 3G) and with wifi networks indoors (where most of us suffer from weak coverage).

If you live in a community that does not allow cell towers or cell sites, this will fix that. AWESOME. Finally one phone for everything...

Just wait for anouncements later this week!

[Moses]

I've tried to use my AT&T Razr to get sports scores from ESPN and a few very simple online tasks. You really have to be desperate to use that function on a Razr. I hope that's not the EDGE network I'm using. If it is, AT&T (and Apple) have problems.

[slakjaw]

Originally posted by Halm
So unless this is done as part of a long term agreement between Apple and AT&T, the door has been left open for Verizon with the largest EVDO network to pick up the next generation iPhone.

Verizon does not have the largest EVDO network.


I still think a WiMax + EVDO enabled iPhone would be sweet. And if they come out with one I would buy it. I am really wondering what kind of competition / new thinking this is going to drum up. It going to be interesting. I would like to see a Linux based phone.

[slakjaw]

Originally posted by Wickd89
Just wait. T-Mobile will be launching a new service that will allow you to use your phone everywhere (with edge, gprs, and eventually 3G) and with wifi networks indoors (where most of us suffer from weak coverage).

If you live in a community that does not allow cell towers or cell sites, this will fix that. AWESOME. Finally one phone for everything...

Just wait for anouncements later this week!

This is happening everywhere. Sprint just came out with an "in home repeater" it hooks up to your internet connection. When you are at home your cell phone works like a cordless phone. This one does not use 802.11 wifi like the T-Mob one though. Cool stuff IMO.

[Kraftwerk]

The Razor is the worst phone I have ever owned. Replaced it 3 times. Really crappy performance in an okay looking package. Blame the managers of Motorola for choosing the shoddyist factory in China or the mechanical designers, either way it does not work worth a damn!

[kstar]

Here's a good piece addressing Wayne's initial assertion:

http://roughlydrafted.com/RD/RDM.Tech.Q2.07/34C8BD5D-E210-4A62-BE6F-FD21E046A397.html

edit: you may have to keep hitting this link 'til you get through - it's getting 503'd.

FYI.

Best,

Kurt

[kstar]

Source: http://www.newsfactor.com/news/The-Top-Secret-Apple-iPhone-Tests/story.xhtml?story_id=111006FEF2W3

The Top Secret Apple iPhone Tests
By Leslie Cauley
June 21, 2007 8:23AM

Doing dry runs with Apple's iPhone, the world's most anticipated mobile phone due out at the end of June, has been challenging. Tests of the iPhone had to be done in places frequented by wireless users. Under strict orders to keep the phone under wraps, technicians had to hide or disguise the phone when in public.

Most people lucky enough to snag an Apple iPhone probably will be quick to show it off to friends. Not Balsu Thandu. He got an iPhone more than two months ago and has been hiding it from prying eyes ever since.
Thandu is one of about 200 field technicians who have been secretly testing the iPhone and looking for technical glitches for more than 10 weeks and counting. AT&T routinely tests new devices, but the iPhone has been different, Thandu says. The technicians have logged more than 10,000 hours on the phone, including more than 5,000 hours of voice calls and near 5 gigabytes of data usage. Most phones, he says, get about half that much test time.

AT&T's scrutiny is understandable. The iPhone is shaping up to be the must-have cellphone of the year, maybe the decade if it follows in iPod's footsteps. AT&T has exclusive U.S. distribution rights for five years and hopes to use the device to lure new customers.

To win at that, however, the iPhone must live up to its hype. That's where Thandu and his crew come into play. "My job is to make sure the devices we sell meet the high bars we set for them, in terms of technical requirements and test specifications," he says.

Doing dry runs with the world's most anticipated cellphone has been challenging. Tests had to be done in places frequented by wireless users. Under strict orders to keep the phone under wraps, technicians had to hide or disguise the phone when in public, Thandu says.

The disguises took many forms: an iPod "sock" was sometimes slipped over the iPhone. Other times, he says, testers kept the device inside a newspaper or pants pocket and used a wireless headset.

For the actual testing, technicians frequented all the places where consumers go: office buildings, subway platforms, stairwells, elevators, crowded bars, sprawling suburban malls and congested city streets. They also showed up incognito at Apple and AT&T stores.

To test iPhone's durability, Thandu says, they doused it with water, dropped it on concrete and bounced it off sidewalks.

Thandu says he took the iPhone with him on long runs, sweating all over it. "We wanted to test the limits of it."

Techs also did a lot of walking. "Many people don't realize it, but walking gives you the worst channel conditions," Thandu says. Cell signals tend to bounce off buildings, causing interference, and background noise is a constant problem in cities.

Feedback from the field was relayed to Apple, sometimes hourly, Thandu says. Early on, he says, technicians discovered that the iPhone's audio was "not loud or clear enough." Apple designers quickly fixed the problem, he says.

Though "iTesting" will continue on an ongoing basis, Thandu says he is comfortable that the device is good to go. "For the launch, I think we are there."

-----------------------------------------

Best,

Kurt

[JavaBrewer]

+1. It takes minutes for me to check headline news with my Razor. I'd rather stick needles in my eyes...

[kstar]

What browser do you guys run on your phones?

I run Opera on my over two year old Sanyo on the standard Sprint network and it is truly usable - no long waits for regular web sites with graphics and all.

I predict you guys will be surprised how well Safari on iPhone works on the T network.

We only have to wait a few more days to see.

Best,

Kurt