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iPhones Galore in Europe AlreadyThu, 09/27/2007 - 04:07 — Cleve Nettles
Strangely though, it isn't just at Apple gatherings -we see plenty of them on the streets of Paris and on the Metro. If you come to Paris with an iPhone, don't expect anyone to be impressed. They have seen hundreds of them. Every single one we've had the opportunity to inspect has been hacked. It is a very much accepted practice most likely because of a different view of the carrier/handset relationship as opposed to that of the US. Who is doing the selling/distribution of these hacked phones?
We have to believe other affluent big cities around the world have the same thing going on. Our friends in London are already on top of it with Vodafone iPhones. We also know people in Sydney and Hong Kong sporting cracked iPhones. iPhoneDevTeam estimates that the anySIM application has been downloaded hundreds of thousands of times. A lot of those are no doubt duplicates or people wanting to learn what is going on - without having bought a handset. However, if you consider that the big exporter companies are unlocking hundreds of iPhones with one download, that makes a very significant amount of iPhones being unlocked. It's hard to imagine Apple would be extremely upset with all of these extra sales. Also, AT&T probably isn't too extremely bothered since the lion's share are heading out of their US marketplace. The companies that are probably the most upset are Apple's European carriers who have to sit on their collective thumbs and wait idly (until early November) while their customers scoop up gray market devices and jump on rival carriers - without having to buy a plan from them. A costly chunk of the prospective iPhone market will surely be saturated by November 9th. Will Apple's updates kill these gray market iPhones? Most likely not. Even if they do, consumers have been warned. As an executive from a fashion design house in Paris told us, "I don't update iTunes any more. Apple might try to mess with my iPhone!" The word is out. What percentage of iPhones sales do you think are hacked to work on other carriers? Vote here
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Comments
Hmmm. I have no doubt that
Hmmm. I have no doubt that this is being widely done. Europe is hungry for the new 'must-have' bit of kit.
I have a friend on holiday in NYC as we speak and he is picking one up for me. I am wondering tho which version of the OS it will have? Anyone know whether its 1.1.1 in US Apple stores?
Does anyone have any advice on versions of iTunes that will be best for unlocking? There is a new version of iTunes available but I have so far refused to update. (I use mac)
The 'Bricking' hype hs not put me off!
1. Congratulations you will
1. Congratulations you will love your iPhone - it is so much better hacked
2. It will most likely come with 1.0.2 software which is what you want.
3. Correct. Don't update itunes until about 2 days after it is all cleared from the iPhone hackers
4. the Bricking is just hype.
I just order a iPhone from
I just order a iPhone from US, which I will unlock, use with my existing carrier and install 3rd party software. However, it's not as much a question about choosing another carrier as being about me resenting being treated as a 2nd-rate customer by Apple.
I have been using Apple products for many years and I'm find them to be extraordinary and a great fun to use, and the first time I saw the iPhone being demonstrated by Steve I know that this was the phone for me. However, I became extremely disappointed learning that it was to be launched first in the US and not until Q4 i Europe, and now I learn that only UK, Germany and France will get it this year.
This is 2007; we have a global world and a global economy and treating e.g. Europe and US as two separate markets are should be a thing of the past. The customer will simply not stand it and will circumvent it if possible, and it's not the first time we had this problem - it took a very long time before we got iTMS and we still not able to buy video content.
So if Apple cannot / will not supply me the products that I
desire I will simply find an alternative solution. I'm looking forward to getting my iPhone :-)
Couldn't agree with your
Couldn't agree with your stance more. Good luck to you
I agree! Wouldn't it be
I agree! Wouldn't it be great if carriers such as T-Mobile, Orange etc.
stepped out and posted on their web page instructions to activate
iPhone with their SIMM cards Then it would not be considered "hacking"
but merely assisting customers with a new state-of-the-art device.'
Enough of telecom tyranny!
From a happy iPhone hacker/user (it's great).
We Europeans just have to
We Europeans just have to face it. Apple does not think of itself as a global company; no, it imagines itself an American company that offloads its surplus merchandise and seconds to non-Americans.
Examples of Apple's sub-standard European offerings:
- Late with iTMS
- Still no Video on iTunes
- Late with iTunes TV, and then only some US shows
- Restricted offerings for non-US Mac User Groups
- No Cross-border purchasing from Apple Store
- .Mac Web Gallery speeds capped for Europeans
- Wrong connectors for Europe on Apple TV
- iPhone late over here
- Inadequate iPhone contracts for Europe
- iPhone missing 3G, SMS forwarding, MMS
- Wrong information about Euro WiFi availability
- UK Ally Keyboard has tiny Enter Key (US kb normal)
- Numbers cannot cope with currencies other than USD
- Where are the European Apple Stores?
I could go on.
tha tis a bit harsh though
tha tis a bit harsh though well reasoned. I think any company has trouble coordinating global rollouts and uses their home turf as a test bed. With the Exception of Apple, Europeans typically get preferential treatment on Mobile Technology - even from American companies like Motorola.
This isn't just tech. Look at the movie industry or automobiles. Domestic always get 1st.
While it is certainly fair to complain and hope for better service from Apple, Europeans aren't getting surplus equipment. Actually with Apple, Americans are beta testing the not ready for mainstream rev 1 hardware. The 'seconds' are actually the first reliable models :P
The bricking may not be
The bricking may not be hype. I met with one of the iPhoneDev team this week, he is concerned that Apple really could make these things unhackable, and in the process potentially brick them. They do have ARM's trustzone technology inside remember.
I'm holding off for at least 6 months - the last things I need in my life right now are an expensive brick or a working phone but no ability to update iTunes and hence (I suspect) no way to access the store if I don't update.
"Bricking" the iphone will
"Bricking" the iphone will at the WORST CASE turn your iPhone into an enhanced iPod (iPod+email, calendar writes, notes, and all of the other wonderful hacks
A rather expensive ipod
A rather expensive ipod touch you think?
don't forget the camera!
don't forget the camera!
100 bux more than a new one.
100 bux more than a new one. With a better screen and longer battery life.
totally OT, but, euhm, any
totally OT, but, euhm, any further bits of info filtering through on the Macbook / Macbook Pro update? being employed again, I find the idea of being in debt via the purchase of a Mac rather appealing. xD
P.S. I was really hoping for an iPhone, but I think I'll settle for an HTC Touch for now and get an iPhone in a 16GB+ iteration. It can't be far off now.
stay tuned we are waiting on
stay tuned we are waiting on some additional info
Also with the European
Also with the European iPhone going for €399 ($563) and the US Dollar at an all time low, who wouldn't wanna ask their friends in the US to send one over and go for the hacked version.
Is it just me or does anyone else get the feeling Apple is changing for the worse? Don't get me wrong I've been in love with Apple stuff from the very beginning, but I'm not blinded...
It seems obvious that the
It seems obvious that the hacking community for the iPhone is going to be very large. Six months ago I would believe that Apple would make an attempt to rectify this by improving the iPhone to the point where people wouldn't need to hack it, but now I believe they will be completely corporate and retarded, and just keep the iPhone locked down and completely ignore the customer's requests.
No Orange DEAL? Recent
No Orange DEAL? Recent news suggests there may not be a deal with Orange France
We saw that on the Apple 2.0
We saw that on the Apple 2.0 Blog (which rulez btw). Our source has always said there is contention with Orange and Apple and that the rollout will be delayed
I personaly think the
I personaly think the bricking of hacked iphones as far as third party applications. Now unlocking it for service reasons in parts of the world where it hasen't been released yet is another thing the problem is can the technology tell the difference or is a hacked iphone a hacked iphone? I know it sounds overly controlling with apple not allowing 3rd party applications to run on the iphone is all for the internal security of the device. Lets face it but one of the the big reason apple computers are becoming so famous with consumers is the simple design and the fact that most people don't have to worry about viruses. By hacking open the ipods OS it leaves a door open for something to corrupt the device. It's just like putting illegaly downloaded music on your ipod.
I agree. But as we all know
I agree. But as we all know (and Apple should know this too) it hasn't worked with music or movies, no matter how hard the DRM is to crack or how many people try to stop it someone always finds a way around it.
Like they say if it's forbidden it's even more tempting.
I was at the Apple Store
I was at the Apple Store Fifth Avenue last night. And, there were about 30 Indians or Asians from near-Indian. And, they were buying up 5 iPhones apeice repeatedly IN-CASH! They also kept trying to buy Gift cards in the exact amount of what 5 iPhones would cost (but they were not allowed by the Apple Employees who told them to tell their 'party' that no more Gift Cards will be sold. If they wanted to buy iPhones, they'd have to pay cash or credit card.)
Now, I know these guys were definitely going to mod their iPhones and either sell them locally or export them. They were buying over 200 units in cash!
... headed to London is
... headed to London is probably a good guess. How tough is it to bring them in and sell them sans VAT?
DanUK, a word to the wise. I
DanUK, a word to the wise. I think you should take the recent 1.1.1 update seriously.
Many distinguished others have gone up against big Steve and lost.
This is a piece of hardware which you will want to use for at least a year or two. This is not an iPod, as it has a more complex relationship with a mobile carrier.
For the £70-odd you are saving by getting it in the States, you risk being subject to an intensive and annoying relationship with your phone.
You, as an Apple fanboy, might at first enjoy trawling the web for hacks and workarounds when each new Apple update arrives.
However, eventually you will wake up one morning and realise that many of the reasons you bought Apple in the first place - ease of use and fabulous interface - have disappeared, replaced by a sad hodgepodge of hacks and 'openware'.
Moreover, your slick little iPhone will have been replaced by a device which needs as much care and attention as, dare I say it, your crappy PDA phone of old.
You decide, my friend.
AdamUK- I take your point,
AdamUK- I take your point, you are right but-
I can't live the buttoned down life like you. I want it all: the dizzying highs, the terrifying lows, the creamy middles! Sure, I might offend a few of the blue-noses with my cocky stride and musky odor - oh, I'll never be the darling of the so-called 'City Fathers' who cluck their tongues, stroke their beards, and talk about what's to be done with this iPhone Unlocking brotherhood?
Also, I don't live in a big city like you probably do- there is no O2 EDGE where I come from. I'm moving to Vodafone where I can pick up an unlimited data package for £7.50 on top of whatever call tarriff I choose.
I have decided my friend, and my iPhone will be here in 8 days!
We are with you in the
We are with you in the distinguished 1.0.2hax underworld brotherhood! Compared to our 1.1.1sheep comrads we have much better phones! Let the Forking begin!
DanUK, you are a king among
DanUK, you are a king among men. I salute your bravery and by god I hope you are right.
People in Europe like to
People in Europe like to unlock their phone, because by law they are allowed to do it.
This is probably (accroding to the French newspaper) one of the reason why the iPhone has not yet been released in France.
By law, Apple will have to make the unlocking possible *or* let the operator drops the price of the iPhone with a 12 months contract (in such case, part of the phone is paid by the operator, so it is allowed to lock the phone until the contract ends).
Since Apple does not want to let the operator drops the price *and* Apple does not want to unlock his phone... there is a problem to release the iPhone in France :)
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