Ranting Kenya

It seems that Telus may be set to abandon its ‘Betamax” network and is now ogling the hundreds of millions of dollars in roaming revenue that the GSM carriers enjoy by considering a move to tap into it. Of course, this is merely speculation, but the story does seem to be gaining traction and Rogers shares actually suffered a 2.6 percent drop on this news yesterday. The Olympics are in Vancouver in 2010, we’re thinking if Telus really was going to go for it — and shell out an estimated half billion dollars — that would be a prime time to roll out a hybrid EV-DO / HSDPA network.

CDMA provider contemplating move to GSM: The Telus edition – Engadget

Rogers sales will drop a whole lot more if it’s true. Then Telus could bring the iPhone to Canada.

Tags: telus, mobility, cell, iphone, rogers, wireless

CBC has a feature section this week about the Canadian wireless industry. Basically it has got my blood flowing again.

I have some thoughts that I would like to add.

In my own experience, even though data plans and mobile plans are getting cheaper, they aren’t getting cheaper for me. They never have. If I have a plan that “seems” to work for me for the last two years, that plan isn’t offered to new clients anymore. Also, there is no plan available that is similar that I could use for cheaper.

I don’t think there’s any doubt that price is what keeps Canadian cell phone subscribers relatively low. It’s really simple economics. Price goes down, demand/adoption goes up. Even Sony’s Playstation division seems to be learning this finally. Bell, Telus, and Rogers have divided up the customers, and there happy the way it is.

Bell and Telus now offer the Blackberry Pearl, the 8130 to be specific. Now the 8130 is the version that has the GPS. RIM also has another Pearl, the 8120. Now the 8120 and the 8130 are identical in every way except the 8120 has WiFi instead of GPS. Now why wouldn’t those cell carriers want the phone with WiFi built-in? Oh yeah, to sell their insanely expensive data plans. Why should the carriers choose which phone I can get when the carry an identical phone with only one feature that’s different?

I finally got my hands on the iPod Touch at Best Buy the other day. It was a rather impressive device. I didn’t have any headphones, so I didn’t check out sound quality or anything like that.

My first impressions were that the screen was impressive. I have seen posts showing the superior screen of the iPhone, and I could see the iPod Touch’s screen limitation, but it was nevertheless a good looking screen.

The text entry was difficult for me on the narrow screen. The first time I tried to enter a url, everything that was typed from my left thumb was one letter off. I continued typing trying to “trust it” but it was way wrong. The wide keyboard was way easier. I did get better however in a few minutes. Not good, but better.

Scrolling through lists and using coverflow was surprisingly awesome. I was skeptical before, but it’s quite efficient.

But seriously, how awesome is the web browsing on that device. I personally have a Motorola Q. I’ve used Microsoft Deepfish, and the regular IE. Safari on the iPod Touch blows it out of the water so completely, I can’t even compare them. Some of the sites I visited loaded very quickly, others less so. I think the WiFi was a little sketchy in the Best Buy so I’m not convinced that the slowness was necessarily the iPod.

If I had any gripes about it, it would be that moving from some of the applications back to the home screen was sluggish at times, also switching from landscape to portrait or vice versa wasn’t as snappy as I would’ve liked.

All in all, when the iPhone comes to a carrier in Canada that is good (i.e. NOT Rogers), I will seriously consider it based on the iPod Touch. The web browsing alone is enough to sell me. The integration that I’ll be missing (potentially) with my computer and Windows Mobile 5/6 is the lesser evil when compared with the impressive web browsing.

Jack Kapica wrote in the Globe and Mail an article concerning data rates in Canada and the iPhone.

Here’s my comments on the article and the situation.

Rogers, this is directed at you, and I’m not one of your customers. Cut your data rates. Get the iPhone ASAP. Apple is making a 3G iPhone right now, if it’s not done already. They’re not stupid. They won’t let their new baby, their new industry changing device languish on your GSM network. Get it now while you still can. Nobody is going to be interested in a GSM iPhone if another version is available.

Also, consider that this is the first revision of the iPhone. Your customers of your data plans are largely business clients. Do you really think Apple isn’t going to improve the business functionality of this device? It already has Microsoft Exchange Server compatibility, which if you remember, competes with Blackberry’s push email service.

When the 3G iPhone comes, and remember that it will, do you really think that both Bell and Telus are going to pass on this device? They’re going to see your weakness, your high data rates, and they’re going to cut theirs and leave you high and dry. I’m not in marketing, but I can already see the promotion: New iPhone with new low data rate, and a first in Canada. Compare that to your counter-campaign: Same Blackberry, and we’ll lower our rates too because we don’t care about you, but Bell and Telus are forcing our hand. Seriously, your rates are anti-consumer, and because of that Telus and Bell have made a killing too. Up until now, there’s been no real reason to change the rates since you’re all sleeping on hundred dollar bills, but the iPhone is the reason. It is the change that the entire Canadian wireless industry needs, and it will come to pass, with or without you. Most people aren’t willing to unlock and have firmware updates mess things up. They need a real solution, the one only you can give.

Seriously, Apple has given you the greatest gift you could ever ask for. The un-disputed hottest electronic device in years, hotter than the iPod, and you are the only one who can really bring it to Canada (for now).

Only, you’re saying, “No thanks.”

Well, it seems that the iPhone may come to Canada sooner than anyone previously thought, according to the Ottawa Citizen.

A mobile phone unlocking company called PureMobile will be offering the iPhone to Canadians in an unlocked version. They evidently announced a partnership with the 17 year old New Jersey kid who had received a lot of press the last few days for unlocking his iPhone.

Here are a couple screenshots of PureMobile’s website.

Has anybody been following the Google phone at all? Or the Google Linux distro? Well, apparently the Linux distro is dead.

Ok, fine. That’s a little upsetting but they can always change their minds. But maybe that rumour won’t go away because perhaps they’re developing a Linux mobile OS for their phone. Linux as a mobile phone OS gets a lot of attention lately.

Anyway, Gizmodo posted some more info on the Google phone. Seriously, it looks sick. I’ll buy it, that simple. You know it’ll have WiFi, GPS for Google maps, and all sorts of other great features that make the iPhone look like an expensive piece of “aluminum and glass”. Anyway, check out Gizmodo’s post.

There’s no question that the iPhone hype is as high as any product in the last decade. Everybody knows what it is, even if they’re not Apple fanboys, gadget aficionados, and mobile phone connoisseurs. And everybody knows the product is from Apple and AT&T.

So while Apple’s reputation continues to skyrocket to the stratosphere, the universal sore spot on the product is AT&T’s Edge network necessity. It’s the one thing that is truly holding the phone back.

But Apple’s not taking any heat for that, it’s solely on AT&T’s shoulders. So in the long run, will AT&T’s reputation will be hurt by iPhone exclusivity, or will it not matter? No doubt they will make a ton of money, but everyone is going to loathe network service. Will everyone forgive and forget, or will all the subscribers bail on AT&T as soon as a real 3G version is available? I think so.

I saw the data rates for the iPhone posted today. I did a quick search of the three major wireless carriers to see what their plans are like. I took the basic, most inexpensive plan available for each. Here’s the comparison:

First, everyone goto the iPhone guided tour and watch the 20 minute video demoing the iPhone.

Now let me state that up until now, I haven’t been super jazzed about the iPhone. I felt it was a superior phone (assuming the keypad and network are good, and the battery lasts long enough, and the interface is as snappy as the video portrays), but I haven’t really gotten excited about it. That’s probably good since it won’t come to Canada for a while yet anyway.

So what’s changed about my opinion of this device? A lot. Here are my thoughts as I watched the video:

1. I hope the screen looks that bright outside.
2. The UI gestures look really really good.
3. Are there only a handful of engineers in America (perhaps worldwide) that can make these “Apple-esque” products? Why is it that the Mac and iPod haven’t really been matched yet?
4. Following my previous point, why did the Motorola Rokr fall so far short of even just the music capability of the iPhone?
5. I hope the phone actually runs the internet that quickly.
6. Now that Apple’s released Safari for Windows, basically as a developer platform for the iPhone, will Safari’s standards compliance spill into more websites? Could the iPhone be the device that finally forces every designer and every company to be standards compliant? Will that carry to Microsoft and Internet Explorer (pretty pretty please)? Or conversely, will Microsoft get caught at a standstill (it’s starting to look that way)?
7. The iPhone touchscreen looks real nice. What’s Microsoft’s counter again (no PUN intended)? It’s a whole table? It’s functionality is based on a huge device recognition system that’s doesn’t exist yet? It costs ten thousand dollars?
   
8. Windows Mobile Smartphone 5 and 6 look pretty sad now. Forget the touchscreen functionality, OS X blows it out of the water.
9. The earphones have a mic built-in. Sweetness (maybe this is the standard, I’m not sure).
10. Looks like the iPhone can stay in my pocket while listening to music and answering calls. Nice! And I don’t have to rely on vibrate or a super loud ringer to realize that someone’s calling me while I’m on the bus.
11. I hope the iPhone camera takes photos that look that good.

Now I’m kinda looking forward to ending my current cell contract. Maybe I’ll catch the second revision of the iPhone. You know, the one that will work with EVDO, in Canada.

On a total sidenote: Why is there no Canadian traffic data available in realtime? Is no company planning on doing this in Canada?

Telus Corp. has entered the auction for Bell Canada Inc., making its move on the assumption it can convince competition regulators to allow it to retain the wireless operations of both companies if its bid is successful.

…Telus would instantly become the leading contender for Bell because
of the cost savings it could achieve by combining the two phone
companies.

Industry observers have estimated the companies could
save $800 million to $1 billion in annual costs by merging their
traditional wireline businesses.

Telus has long been seen by some
at the top levels of Bell Canada (the new name of the company formerly
known as BCE Inc.) as the preferred partner in any merger or
acquisition deal given the fit between the two operating companies.

…A Telus bid would be seen to have complications, as its wireless
business together with Bell’s would have more than a 60 per cent market
share across the country and leave Canada with just two wireless
service providers, along with Rogers Communications Inc. — at least,
until the impending auction of wireless spectrum by Ottawa.

Telus joins bidding for Bell

This is the exact opposite of what I actually want to happen. If anything, I’d like it if Bell and Telus were broken up, to spur competition. Right now you basically have no choice when it comes to wireless providers. You get Bell, Telus, and Rogers. Well Bell and Telus are practically the same already. All the data plans are highway robbery.