Rogers’ iPhone Upgrades for Customers

I just received this email from Rogers about the details on their upgrade program for existing iPhone owners. If you have questions please comment at the bottom and we will ask our contacts at Rogers.

“Hello Darren,
We’ve just announced the details of special Hardware Upgrade savings for our existing iPhone customers and wanted to let you know.

There has been a lot of excitement around the new iPhone 3G S and we wanted to recognize the early adopters who helped make the iPhone the hottest-selling handset in Canadian wireless history. We will be discounting the price of the iPhone 3G S by between $250 and $500 to provide savings to many of our iPhone customers.

What this means is that eligible iPhone owners can acquire the iPhone 16GB 3G S for as low as $199 or the 32GB for as low as $299 until July 31, 2009.

For Fido customers, we’re offering the Fido Rewards iPhone 3G S promotion. This enables iPhone customers to redeem FidoDollars towards a new iPhone 3G S with an additional $100 top-up from Fido.
For customers who don’t qualify for these extra savings, we are pleased to offer Rogers Wireless customers the iPhone at our cost on rogers.com. This cost - $580 for the iPhone 3G, $680 for the iPhone 3G S 16GB and $780 for the iPhone 3G S 32GB – represents the price we pay for the device plus a nominal fee for the SIM card. Customers can access these devices at retail locations for just $19 more for the three devices.

We’re also happy to announce that Rogers and Fido are extending the 6GB/$30 data promotion until July 31. This offer is valid for customers on a new or existing iPhone plan or customers buying an Android-powered HTC Magic or HTC Dream.

Five ways to save

1) For Rogers Wireless customers who bought an iPhone 3G between July 11 and Sept. 30, 2008, and with an average monthly spend of at least $100, Rogers will provide $500 off the cost of an iPhone 3G S. This special offer expires July 31, 2009 and comes with the addition of a one-year term to the customer’s existing service agreement.
· 16GB 3GS $199
· 32GB 3GS $299

2) For Rogers Wireless customers who bought an iPhone between July 11 and Dec. 31, 2008, but aren’t eligible for the above offer, Rogers will provide $250 dollars off the purchase of an iPhone 3G S. This special offer expires July 31, 2009 and comes with the addition of a one-year term to the customer’s existing service agreement.
· 16GB 3GS $449
· 32GB 3GS $549

3) All Rogers Wireless customers can upgrade to the iPhone 3GS at our cost at Rogers.com, or for a suggested retail price of just $19 more than our cost through our retail channels.
· 8GB 3G $580/$599
· 16GB 3GS $680/$699
· 32GB 3GS $780/$799

4) Fido customers can take advantage of the Fido Rewards iPhone 3G S promotion:
· Use FidoDollars towards the purchase of a new iPhone 3G S
· Fido will top up the FidoDollars amount by $100
· This promotion does not include an extension or renewal of their service agreement.

5) New and existing iPhone customers can take advantage of a limited-time promotion of 6GB of data for $30, now extended until July 31. Other Rogers and Fido data plans will remain the same, including the only national standalone data plan at $25 per month for 500 MB. We know that this is the right plan for most Canadians – 93 per cent of current iPhone customers on a data plan use less than 500 MB of data per month.

Please let me know if you have any further questions.

Simple Solution Apple Should Have Used

One of the shortcomings that many feel was not addressed with the iPhone 3.0 update was multitasking. Apple made a decision to forgo multitasking in order to ensure optimal performance and battery life. Instead they opted to add Notifications that let you know when there has been a server change to the information you were accessing. This can certainly be handy for things such as IM clients, twitter, facebook and other services but it doesn’t address more basic advantages of multitasking. The crazy thing about this lack of multitasking is that Apple could have simulated multitasking quite easily on the iPhone/iPod Touch.

With multitasking environments you can have multiple programs running at the same time. Many mobile OS’ have been doing this for a while now and it makes so much sense to have. We are continually becoming more used to multitasking ourselves; especially while on the go. Having a multitasked OS means you can be in the middle of writing an email or editing a contact and jump over to the calendar to check on an appointment. When you jump back to the email or contact you are right where you left off, mid-edit; your cursor is in the same place and ready for you to continue. It makes for a MUCH more powerful and productive use of on-the-go time.

Apple could have easily simulated this without breaking from their decision to opt out of multitasking the iPhone. They could have had applications open up to exactly the state they were in when last closed, especially if you were mid-edit. That would mean you could be editing a contact and go to a webpage to copy their address and jump back to the contact to paste it in.

By combining notifications with this little change to applications Apple would have a sort-of-multitasking environment without any of the performance hit they are worried about. With the new iPhone 3Gs being so fast this makes even more sense, as switching between apps is much faster.

I also think they should have a quick pop-up menu that shows the last 3 or 5 apps used so that you can jump to those apps quickly rather than having to go back to the application launcher every time.

Anyway, now that my idea is on the intertubes I can sue Apple if they implement it. Kthxbai

Why the iPhone Just Isn’t Me

For the longest time I have been using mainly Windows powered PDAs and phones but with all the iPhone buzz I just had to give it a go.  I got myself an iPod Touch 2G after Christmas and have really enjoyed using it.

Obviously there are a TON of reviews of the iPhone OS, so even if you haven’t used one you know about the finger-friendly interface and its tight application integration.  It really is just a great platform that is fun to use.  Combine that with the incredibly successful app store and this is just a killer experience.  So, why would I say the iPhone isn’t my cup-o-tea?

The shortcomings of the iPhone OS have been talked about almost as much as its goodness; things like the missing cut and paste and lack of video/music formats, etc.  There are a lot but many of them are going to be addressed in iPhone 3.0.

What I have not been crazy about is the control Apple has placed on the user experience.  You no doubt have heard about “Jailbreaking” the iPhone, well that is simply a way of replacing the OS image with one that does not limit you the way Apple intended.  Since this is something the casual (or the scared-to-brick-his-expensive-phone) user would do I don’t see this as a good option for most people.  So, assuming you don’t Jailbreak your iPhone you are stuck with the design of the OS and how it works.

The iPhone experience is really quite good if you are ignorant of the alternatives or are not interested in making a lot of changes to your phone.  You better also not plan on using a bunch of core app replacements; they are poo poo’d by Apple.

My current phone is an HTC Touch, which is certainly not cutting edge.  It is not as fast, doesn’t have as large a screen, nor as good a camera as the latest Windows Phones.  So, when I found myself using my HTC over my iPod I had to figure out why that is.

As a gadget nut I am always looking for change.  I like to try new things, find new ways to do current things and create a new “feel” often.  I end up playing with the HTC more than the iPod simply because there is more tinkering I can do.  I have 4 different browsers, too many soft keyboards, a ton of Today screen plug-ins, and a couple of calendar apps.  These are not the kinds of things you can do with the iPhone.  Admittedly, I have this many browsers because none of them do exactly what I want and I have to switch between them, but at least that keeps things interesting and is something I can do.

I fully realize that my experience is not necessarily going to be like others.  The iPhone OS just works out of the box; it is slick and silky smooth.  Apps work because of the tight control Apple has over the app store, I get that and like the result.  I just have found that I get just a little bored with how clinically perfect the iPhone OS is and like to tinker with Windows Mobile.

Having said all that, I won’t be parting with my iPod Touch.  There are some things it does VERY well and I plan on using it for a long time to come.  I plan on upgrading it to 3.0 and continue to using it for gaming, podcasts, reading and surfing, but my go-to device at this point will be the HTC Touch.

I am planning on getting a new phone this year but not sure what it will be.  It isn’t going to be an iPhone though.  I think they are great and are perfect for some people, it just isn’t my first choice.  The Palm Pre is looking pretty tempting but I haven’t decided if it is too new for me to jump in right away.  Most likely I will stick with Windows Phone but I really want a physical keyboard on my next device.

Windows Phones sorely need the 6.5 update and 7.0 needs to truly create a new experience, but we know Microsoft gets that and the results we are seeing so far look promising.

At the very least, there are going to be some great options…which is really what this post is all about.

It’s All About Touch, Or Is It?

Apple changed the market a couple years ago with the initial release of the iPhone. I’m not talking about releasing a revolutionary phone, because I don’t think the iPhone is that. But that’s a topic for another article. What Apple managed to do was re-energize the mobile touch screen world. Before the release of the iPhone we were seeing a steady increase in non-touch screen devices as manufacturers tried to copy RIMs approach and market share.

With the release of the iPhone, many manufacturers are now releasing touch screen devices and the non-touch screen phones releases are dropping off. Is there a different demand from the public now versus before? I’m not so sure. I think that manufacturers are worried about Apple and feel that a device with similar specs and design would be the best way to mitigate that risk. When, in reality, the best solution would be to innovate and release a unique phone with new and exciting features that takes the market in a whole new direction.

Take a look at the latest release from Nokia; The N97 is loaded with all the bells and whistles that Apple loaded on their iPhones while adding a QWERTY keyboard and of course, S60 for an operating system. Another great example is the Samsung Omnia which has a very similar form factor to the iPhone with a stylish and eye-catching face lift for the underlying Windows Mobile operating system. Don’t get me wrong, I really like the looks, design and features of these phones, but I would rather spend my money on something different and exciting. Both Nokia and Samsung have built great phones with no touch screen in the past. But the latest releases from these, and other companies, are all focused on touching the screen.

So what’s the appeal with touching your device? For me it feels so “1990’s” – back when mobile keyboards were big and bulky. Most were add-ons that you had to unfold or plug the device into. And when it comes to everyday usage of a touch screen device, typically I find it’s slower and more awkward to navigate and enter data on the device. Maybe that’s just me, but I can move around my BlackJack II much faster than the Touch. And there’s no comparison when it comes to typing emails or entering data.

The other big drawback is the one-handed factor. There’s so much more I can do and access with a non-touch screen device using just one hand, than I can on most touch screen devices. It doesn’t take long on a touch screen before you have to put down whatever you have in the other hand and pull out the stylus or lick the ketchup off your index finger so you can poke away at the screen. Who wants to do that?!

Much like the rant I posted the other day in regards to flip phones; There is a demand for non-touch screen devices, but manufacturers are so caught up in coping Apple that they are losing out on other parts of the market. Here’s hoping that the manufacturers wake up and start to offer new and innovative products once again.

Windows Mobile on an iPhone - Why?

A number of web sites recently posted about a new video that appeared to show an Apple iPhone dual booting Windows Mobile with Apple’s OS-X for the iPhone. A lot of people seemed to get excited at the thought of running both operating systems on the iPhone hardware. As it turns out, the video is a fake, but that doesn’t change the reaction of the community.  Why do so many people want to see Windows Mobile on the iPhone hardware?

First off, the licensing for this would be nothing short of a mess. Does anyone here recall the PocketPalm emulator from way back in 2002? Great idea, but licensing issues kept it from really taking off.  This won’t be much different and I can’t see Apple or Microsoft letting this happen.

Next up - do some people still think that the iPhone is somehow more stable and secure?  There’s been lots of talk about how both are not the case now that 3rd parties are available to develop for the platform. Let us not forget that the Windows Mobile has been extremely stable for those participating in the No Reboot Challenge.

User Interface? A lot of people comment about the user interface on the iPhone being significantly better than Windows Mobile. It’s no secret that Apple has always been better at the user experience. But I don’t see how that is a factor in an application that allows you to dual boot your phone.  What good is the interface if you’re going to dual boot it all the time? Besides, it’s twice the configuration as you would have to configure email and everything else on both operating systems. I would think that an emulator would be a much better choice. However, that doesn’t change the first 3 points I’ve talked about.

What’s next - Style? I guess some people would want to switch phones just to have a more stylish device.  But do these people really care what OS is running on the device? Typically, they are the kind of user who buys the latest device just to say they use whatever the current fad is. Something like this might save them a fair amount of money because they wouldn’t have to re-purchase applications every time they switched devices.

I don’t know. Perhaps I just don’t get it.  I’m all for mobility and choice in mobile operating systems. However, for me there’s no value in an applications like this.

In case you are interested, check out the video over at the Engadet Mobile web site .

More Security Issues Surface with Apple’s iPhone

It seems that Apple is having a fair amount of problems when it comes to security on their iPhone devices. At the end of September they released an update addressing 10 different security issues and now word comes out about a couple more issues that Apple has been aware of for a couple months, but neglected to address in any of the updates released since these were found.

Of course, security issues by themselves, do not relate to your device getting hack.  It does however, indicate that there is a greater risk that a exploit could be released into the wild that would leverage these vulnerabilities and put your device and the data it contains at risk.

While others have learned from Microsoft’s past mistakes when it comes to speed of addressing these issues, Apple doesn’t appear to be as concerned. What makes this even more concerning is that Apple has the means to release updates quickly and easily. While Microsoft is slowed due to their business model of selling to manufacturers and carriers.  Which means we need to wait for the manufacturer to approve the patch and then release it to their customers.

If you own an iPhone, you need to be extra vigilant about the sites you visit and the emails you read on your phone. I would hate to see a nasty cellular bill caused by a rogue application that’s ringing up excessive data and voice usage.

Examining the Stability Problems in Windows Mobile

Windows Mobile is a buggy and unstable mobile operating system that requires daily, or if you’re lucky, weekly reboots to keep it running smoothly. You should install a close button replacement tool that will actually force applications to close instead of just the smart minimize that Windows Mobile does by default because Microsoft can’t seem to figure out how to manage memory on a mobile device.

Those words are pretty strong and perhaps a little harsh. Do people actually believe that Microsoft’s mobile operating system is that bad in managing memory? I would like to think that it’s not true. Every day I deal with customers who are managing hundreds or thousands of Windows Mobile devices and on a regular basis people ask me how they can force a reboot of the device on a given schedule. Most people that ask for this are looking to force the reboot in the middle of the night, or every Tuesday / Thursday / Sunday, or some other schedule that they’ve come to believe will magically fix all of their problems.

The real question is: why do they need to do this? I don’t question that they might be having problems with stability. In fact, I’m certain that a reboot will help them out. Most feel that Windows Mobile can’t cut it and requires the reboot just to clean up leaks in memory and whatnot. Ultimately allowing them to run their applications without crashes and hangs that they were experiencing before the reboot.

Is scheduling a reboot for the device really the best approach? Perhaps trying to determine the source of the problem and correcting it would be a better. While I do get request about forcing a reboot, there are plenty of other customers that never reboot their devices and almost never run into problems. What’s the difference? Why are some able to run for days/weeks/months without ever having to reboot the device. While others can’t seem to make it a couple days without the need to reboot. Is it the device? Perhaps one hardware manufacturer has done a better job than another? Possible, but unlikely. From the talks I’ve had with customers, the reboot crowd are not all running one type or make of device. It doesn’t matter if the device is a rugged device from Motorola, Intermec, or Honeywell, or if it’s a consumer device from HTC, Samsung, or Motorola.

Could it be Microsoft? Read more