3G iPhone predictions
You'd have to be completely blind (or just not connected to the rest of the world) to have missed all the news about the iPhone coming down under.
First of there was the Vodafone announcement, which in the world of Apple was unusual to say the least. Young Mr Jobs is not known for taking seemingly unmanaged announcements lightly.
Then came the somewhat unexpected news that the iPhone was EOL'd by O2 in the UK, first the 8Gb version and then the 16Gb - what's happening we all asked? Well it seems neither did the people at O2 as the phone came back on stock a few days ago, well the 16Gb version did..
Then a "shortage" in the US sprang up...
Finally, today, SingTel - the parent of Optus announced that they had signed up to sell the iPhone in a bunch of countries, including Australia with the Optus network.
Of course all of this means that the "exclusive" iPhone deals seen around the world aren't happening in Australia - which was pretty much a given with the way the Australian market is. Even though they haven't made an announcement yet, it's a pretty fair bet that Telstra will also be selling the new 3G iPhone as well - I mean why would the largest 3G network, in Australia, cut themselves off from a huge revenue opportunity? Then again this is the company that suggested Apple "should stick to their knitting" so their is a slim chance their schizophrenic view of business might help them miss this boat.
Of course the industry is already quoting "unnamed sources" that have "confirmed" that it will be offering the iPhone from the end of June.
Personally I like to think this weeks Tuesday (or Monday) announcements from Apple, could bring the US a 3G iPhone. Meaning that Apple's production should have ramped up by June to allow the rest of the world to get some shipments.
Of course I'm also betting on Blu-Ray options in Mac Pro's one of these Tuesdays.
Either way the iPhone I get better have 3G & at least 32Gb of on board storage.
