Posts Tagged ‘rogers’
The long awaited iPhone 3G has finally arrived and goes on sale today beginning at 7:00am (9AM ET). Despite some rather terrible iPhone plans from Canada’s only GSM carrier, large crowds are expected at Rogers’ and Fido retail locations. We’re still a few hours away from finding out if the rumors of Apple reducing Canadian iPhone inventory has any truth to it, but I don’t think that will stop any iPhone fanboys from lining up bright and early for their new toy.
Rogers’ and Fido have done some damage control by announcing a $30 for 6GB of data plan (which, in their defense is pretty much unlimited for normal users). The plan is available for both new customers as well as existing customers that are willing to upgrade to the new iPhone and lock in to a 3 year contract. Owners of other smart phones are waiting eagerly to see if the wireless carriers will allow the new promotional data plan to be added to existing plans without purchase of the iPhone.
So, are you heading out there early to pick up the new iPhone 3G?
Update: Looks like if you want an iPhone, you’re better off going to a Fido store. Chinook Center Fido store has only 2 people in line whereas the Rogers store has a lineup of about 10-15 people as of 9:20am also, Wireless Wave at Eaton Center only has 5 people in line and in the same mall, the Rogers store has about 25 people.
Our sources out in the field report that scores of people are being turned away at the retail locations. Just to save everyone time, you CANNOT purchase the iPhone without the 3 year contract. If you are already on a contract with Rogers or Fido, call ahead to check your eligibility for an upgrade. If your contract is relatively new, chances are you will not be able to upgrade to the iPhone, but call customer service and find out before heading out to the stores.
It looks as though the ruinediphone.com online petition slamming Rogers pricing on the iPhone 3G has not fallen on deaf ears, or blind eyes I guess. It is rumored that Apple and Rogers has had a falling out due to the overwhelming negative publicity since the Canadian iPhone price plans were announced by the wireless carrier. Those that wanted the iPhone argued that the plans, which required a 3-year contract, had no unlimited data option, and offer minimal calling time and text messages, were simply too expensive and a result of a lack of competition for Rogers which operates the only GSM cellular network in Canada.
In response to the negative publicity, Apple is diverting shipments of the new iPhone from Canada to Europe which means each Rogers store may only get 10-20 iPhones. Some Rogers stores apparently have also let go the temporary staff that were brought on to help with the expected influx of new customers. The iPhone launch is only 4 days away, so we will see shortly if this rumor has any truth to it.
First, an employee of Apple Canada sends a text message to my source that says something to the effect of: “You guys are screwed for iPhone,” but will not respond to multiple replies asking for clarification.
Next, an employee at competing handset manufacturer RIM (Blackberry’s parent) (RIMM) sends my source a text soon after saying there are rumours of an Apple-Rogers fallout.
Then, my source receives a call notifying him that all the part-time staff who had been hired for next week’s launch have been fired without notice.
And finally, a senior Rogers rep confirms to my source that Apple has decided to divert a large percentage of their planned Canadian shipment to Europe and that each Rogers store may now be getting as few as 10-20 units. This is possibly due to Apple’s displeasure over Rogers’ high data and voice rates.”
Another possibility that has been raised is simple production problems resulting in delayed shipments for Canada. Apple may have seen that demand in Canada would naturally be lower with the long contract terms required, and sent early allocations to Europe instead while production catches up. Either way, we’ll find out by this weekend if Rogers’ grip on the market has resulted in Apple making some plays of its own.
Rogers has posted the iPhone specific plans on their website and unlimited data is nowhere to be found. The iPhone plans start at $60 per month which gives you a paltry 150 weekday minutes and 400MB of data and go up to $115 per month for 800 weekday minutes and 2GB of data. We really need some competition for Rogers to drive down rates not only for the data plans, but voice plans as well. A nice bonus however is unlimited access to all Rogers and Fido wireless hotspots (yes, they realize their data rates are ridiculous too).
Fido has not released their iPhone specific plans, but seeing as how they are owned by Rogers, I don’t expect the plans to be all to different. If anything the plans will offer a bit less to move more Fido customers over to the Rogers brand. Remember when Fido introduced the 3G Internet surfing plans that included a whopping 12MB of data?
A $60 per month plan that only offers 150 minutes? I’m willing to guess most iPhone owners will opt for the $75 plan which gives you 300 minutes and a decent 750MB of data usage. That will work out to $2700 for each new iPhone customer that Rogers will get and I’m sure there are a ton of Apple fanboys out there that wont be deterred by the crappy iPhone plans.
Rogers iPhone Price Plans: http://www.rogers.com/web/content/wireless-products/iphone_voice_data_packages
With the release of the iPhone in Canada on July 11th approaching quickly, many people are raising the issue of a lack of competition in the Canadian wireless industry once again. The iPhone will be launched in Canada under the Rogers and Fido brands, the only GSM provider in Canada. The bad news for Canadians is that in order to get the iPhone, you will have to sign a 3 year contract with Rogers–one of the longest contracts for any provider in the world.
While many are quick to point out that the contract lengths and lack of competition are the result of Canada’s market being too small, that is not the sole reason. There are smaller markets out there that have competitive markets–and cheaper monthly fees–such as Australia. A more probable reason for lack of competition in Canada for the wireless carriers is because of protection by the Canadian Government. This will change soon as the Government just completed the auction of new wireless spectrum. Initially the Government expected to raise about $1.5B with the spectrum auction, but it has already surpassed $4B. The new wireless service providers will undoubtedly offer great prices/service to lure Canadians to their services.
Knowing this, Rogers/Fido is using the highly sought after iPhone to lock customers into lengthy contracts. iPhone customers that want to switch over to the new carriers will be out of luck as their contracts will still be relatively new when they arrive. A buyout of the Rogers contract is $20 per month, up to a maximum of $400 (recently increased just for the iPhone). Many people have decided to stick with their unlocked iPhones purchased from online auctions such as eBay as the switch to a 3G version of the iPhone isn’t worth it to them. Others that were patiently waiting for the iPhone to be officially launched are going to keep waiting for new carriers to provide GSM service in Canada. Rumor has it Apple will be looking for a wide distribution for the iPhone and will offer the device to new wireless providers setting up shop in Canada.
Nobody expected anything less from Rogers. The day it was announced that the iPhone was coming to Canada, many speculated that the iPhone would either be crippled by the pathetic data packages offered by Rogers or that Rogers would use the phone to “steal” customers from Telus and Bell, both of which operate on the CDMA band which is not supported by the iPhone. The arrival of fresh competition cannot come soon enough as there are rumors spreading that Rogers will soon be utilizing IMEI filtering to block non-rogers iPhones from operating on their network.
Are you going to get an iPhone 3G from Rogers or Fido? What are your thoughts on the mandatory 3-year contract?
In this weekly segment, we cover the top discussions going on in the car forums. These threads may be the most recent hot topics, or epic threads that we just wanted to dig up and feature.
If you have a suggestion for a thread to be included on the forum weekly review, e-mail it to info@beyond.ca. If you have not joined our forums, register today its free!
Used Car Market Drying Up?
Forum member richardchan2002 is asking other members if they are noticing that the used car market is drying up? “I’ve noticed there are a lot more cars being listed for sale, not only here on beyond but in other places as well” He notes. “A lot of them have very fair asking prices close to black book and still aren’t moving. Many people I know have resorted to trading their cars in because they can’t move their car at all.”
Saskatchewan Bans Lift Kits; Sets Sights On “Monster Trucks”
Saskatchewan Government Insurance (SGI) recently implemented a new policy targetting truck owners who install lift kits to raise the height of their trucks. The new policy was introduced following studies in the US that showed that trucks with the lift kits made it more dangerous for other users of the road. I doubt SGI is going to target everyone with a lift-kit, but instead will focus those on the extreme end with danerously high ride heights. Either way, many truck owners are furious.
iPhone 3G First Look and Discussions
How could there be a weekly review during the iPhone 3G launch that didn’t include a nod to Apple’s second generation iPhone? Rumors are that Roger’s is ramping up their data plans. The data plans will apparently be starting at $30 for 300MB and will go up to $100 for 10GB. Are you switching to Rogers/Fido to get a second generation iPhone?
If you missed last week’s forum weekly review, you can see it here
Fido, Canada’s fourth largest wireless provider and number one in wireless customer satisfaction, today announced it will also offer iPhone 3G to Canadians when the device launches on July 11. Rogers had announced back in April that it would be bringing the iPhone 3G to Canada later in the year but the Fido announcement is a welcome surprise.
“Fido services and devices suit our customers’ urban lifestyles, so iPhone 3G is the perfect fit for Canadians looking to be fashionable like this amazing wireless device,” said Rob Bruce, President, Rogers Wireless, owner of the Fido brand. “As the brand voted number one in wireless customer satisfaction, we are thrilled to provide our customers with the device that ranked the highest in customer satisfaction from a wireless cellular manufacturer.”
I am surprised that Roger’s did not keep the iPhone 3G exclusive to the Rogers umbrella as it has done with other popular phones in the past. Those of you who were wondering if the Canadian MSRP would be inline with the US MSRP, theres good news. iPhone 3G will be available to Fido customers at $199 for the 8GB model and $299 for the 16GB model on a three-year price plan. Canadians will likely get hosed by the terrible data plans though.
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