Watch For T-Mobile Moves To See if iPhone Is Coming

It's late April and there is still no iOS demo from Apple.  However, Boy Genius Report is showing off some pictures with a demo or engineering white iPhone unit working on T-Mobile's network.  Yes, this is kinda of like a rumor.  No one knows what this truly means and it opens the door for fun speculation.  

So, does this mean that the iPhone is coming to T-Mobile?  Well, let's just say that it will.  What we are not sure about is whether by the time the iPhone makes it over to T-Mobile, T-Mobile will still be called T-Mobile or it'll be called AT&T.  

But there is a way to find out.  Just before Verizon got the iPhone back in February, there were signs.  AT&T made moves to try to lock in iPhone users deep into their contract, 12 months in, by enticing them with early upgrades.  Then also, Verizon made some moves with its cancellation penalties.  

Right now, I would look to see if T-Mobile makes similar moves that mirror what AT&T and Verizon did.  It is probably a stronger indication that it is getting the iPhone than some ambiguous pictures from Asia.

Note:  T-Mobile doesn't just operate in the US.  So I wonder if the photos in BGR's report are from other T-Mobile territories.

More at BGR.

Verizon Sold 2.2M iPhones - So Who Did Apple Take Sales From?

Apple sold almost 19 million iPhones.  3 Million of them went to AT&T while 2.2 million CDMA versions were sold on Verizon's network.  Two point two million of a 9 month old, albeit fantastic, mobile device.  Who's buy them and which company had the most to lose from the Apple-Verizon partnership?

Three Distinct Groups:

Let's examine who's buy these iPhones on Verizon's aging CDMA network that does not allow the user to talk and access the data through the 3G network at the same time.  My guess is that its a mixture rather than greater subset of anyone particular group.  With over three million iPhones activated with AT&T, it is suffice to say that plenty of people stuck with Ma Bell despite its reputation of spotty network.  I am sure a large segment of the market went with Verizon that defected from AT&T.  After all, more than a few stuck with them because of the iPhone.  The demand was bad enough that Verizon struck a deal with Apple despite its popular Droid line.

Also, iPhone is a whole new device in and of itself as far as current Verizon customers are concerned.  While Android has done very well on Verizon, it largely cannibalized many Windows Mobile and Blackberry users who wanted a modern mobile device with a modern mobile OS but were not willing to switch to AT&T to get the iPhone.  Let's just say as a T-Mobile customer who wants the iPhone but wasn't willing to suffer on AT&T, I know what I'm talking about.  It's why I went with the G1, the very first Android device, and haven't upgraded since.  These Verizon customers fell into the second group.

The third group is what's interesting.  No love but AT&T but subscribers who will tolerate Verizon.  I may count myself among this group in the near future.  As a T-Mobile customer, I might consider switch to Verizon later this summer should a new magical iPhone becomes available.  T-Mobile has been bleeding customers and a large portion of those 2.2 million iPhone users with Verizon were former T-Mobile customers.  And I reckon that if T-Mobile doesn't get the iPhone in 2011, more users will defect to Verizon.  Sprint's core number of subscribers should be pretty loyal but there are likely a few million users who, won't do this business with AT&T, are going to be fine with Verizon as their iPhone carrier.  

Who Had The Most To Lose:

Android has the most to lose and had had its momentum slowed.  Believe me when I tell you that Android Proper, not variants that have been commandeered by some carriers around the world, continues to grow beyond expectation.  While the Android platform probably saw a slowdown, Google does not necessarily have a lot to lose.  After all, it continues to deliver search and mobile ads to Verizon iPhone users.  In fact, Google may benefit more from iPhone users who are more likely to spend money than Android users.  

Motorola is probably a bit loser in all this.  First off, Xoom doesn't seem to be doing the level of business for Motorola as the iPad was, and the iPad 2 is now, for Apple.  2.2 Million iPhones potentially means quite a lot of Motorola-based Droids that were not sold.  This is especially harsh for Motorola given Apple's relationship with Motorola that dated back to when Apple used to make Macs based on PowerPC chips designed and manufactured by it.  Then there was that Rokr debacle that everything that was the iPod phone that didn't quite go anywhere.  Motorola had really turned things around with the Droid devices and it was the top dog until the iPhone came along on Verizon.  Things might get better with the new Droid but that is probably going to be short-lived after the next iPhone upgrade happens to come along.

What about others?  Samsung's Galaxy S probably has not sold well since news of Galaxy S II is just weeks away but the iPhone 4 probably did not help matters.  RIM has done well with the Blackberries and global growth has been good.  However, it's position with Verizon has been diminished greatly since Verizon turned its attention to Android devices after the Blackberry Storm failed to live to up expectation.  The iPhone likely ate into a lot of sales.  iOS devices will continue to erode RIM's place in the enterprise.  

Competition is great.  We are watching an epic tech war that was a lot like the one fought and won between Apple and IBM in the early 80s and then Apple and Microsoft in the late 80s through the mid-90s.  Apple is still involved as is Microsoft but there are more elements and players involved.  Google, Adobe, RIM, Samsung, HP, and RIM just to mention a few.  A lot is at stake.  And the winner has already been determined as far as mobile device tech is concerned.  

I look forward to seeing how the rest of 2011 plays out as the mobile war becomes more interesting with tablets getting into the mix.

Again, competition is great and we mobile warriors are winning so far.

GPS Tracking Information That Our Phones Store - Apple And Google Are Both Guilt

It's one of those things that I think companies know about and do but doesn't want to talk about it.  Keep tabs on their users is a gold mine for companies.  Companies like Google and Facebook want to be able to know what we're up to and how to best monetize that information.  Others like carriers might want to know how to best optimize their networks.  

So why does Apple want that information?  

It's too soon to tell.  Supposedly, this information isn't something new and have been covered in the past without fanfare until a couple of security "experts" decided to bring it to our attention.  

Personally, I'm not worried - not yet.  And it's not like this information is something that Facebook, which is a lot more dangerous to privacy, will ever get it.  

Still, I want to know why Apple is gather this information.  Supposedly, it could be a bug where information were not purged as it was supposed to.  And yes, Apple can ("is" to some) be evil so we'll need to watch this closely.  At least we know that they're not selling out info to the highest bidder like others who make their living off selling advertisements.

According to WSJ, Google is doing it as well.  So it doesn't make any better.

Tablets: Post PC Computing? Is iPad Growth Too Fast?

Given how fast the iPad 2 is selling compared to the original iPad a year ago and the growth of the whole ecosystem that supports it, I wonder if the tablet market, specially one that is dominated by one player, is growth too fast.  And why is it growth so fast?   

This year, it's been estimated that Apple will sell about 30 million iPads, quite possibly 45 million with a few really high-end predictions putting it at 60 million.  Let's just take the 60 million iPads for 2011 and say Apple manages to sell 60 million by 2013.  Sit back and take a look at those numbers.  That's a big big jump from 2010 to 2011, about 2x.  Then from 2011 to 2013, another 2x.  

By 2013, the tablet market as a whole may reach 100 million tablets.  Then where would it go from there?  200 million in another 24 months?  Here's where post-PC comes into play.  Something has to give.  That means laptop sales, with the netbook segment of the market having already collapsed, could suffer a cripple blow that it might not recover from.  Laptops, and some desktops, will still continue to have a place in society, in business for sure.  However, PC in homes will likely diminish greatly.  

In the early 2000s, Microsoft pushed the Windows Media Center, basically a customized Windows with added media software, as the center of a home entertainment system.  Obviously, even Microsoft's dominance in the PC operating system has not helped its push into the living room.  Instead, it has found greater success selling the Xbox. Now, Google is trying it hand with Google TV, so far, met with muted reception at best.  Even, Apple has largely failed to light things up with Apple TV.

And this is also one market that the iPad could potentially find success.  With the introduction of Airplay, the user can stream video and music wirelessly to accessories like stereo systems and HDTVs.  Yes, HDTV becomes just another accessory in the home.  Of course, to stream to the television today, you still need the Apple TV.  This is why there's rumblings that Apple may be looking to license Airplay to manufacturers.  (One factor that hardware makers do not have control over is the content.  Apple, Samsung, Sony, and Microsoft might be able to provide the architecture but without the content, it would be useless.  This is why an ecosystem like iTunes and what Microsoft and Sony has built out on the consoles will be very critical to their continued successes.)

And we come back to growth.  How much more growth can the tablet market, with Apple retaining a large piece of the pie, sustain?  If the tablet can take the place of game consoles and media centers, I would say it can continue to grow at its current pace for at least another decade.  

It also depends the evolution of apps and the nature of productivity on the tablets.  It is possible in ten years, a majority of mobile warriors from the corporate work carry around tablets instead of laptops.  

And to continue growing, tablets will need to a lot of help in the education market.  Yesterday, Tim Cook, Apple's COO, said iPad adoption in the education market has already reach a 1 to 1 parity with Macs. That is quite an impressive feat for a device that did not exist 13 months ago.  The iPad was just built for the k-12 market.  We'll see an explosion of iPads in schools in 2011-12 owing largely to the ease of use and plethora of educational apps.  The only folks who will be hurt by this are laptop makers and printers that print textbooks.  Maybe the early go getters in the backpack market can benefit from this shift in mobile computing in schools.

Still, a lot of moving pieces have to go the tablet's way for it to continue growing at the pace its at now.  Continued innovation followed by revolutionary thinkings about traditional computing and content distribution.  Amazon has gotten into the music locker business without the blessing of the studios and looks like HP might try to do the same.  We'll see how all this play out this summer.  If the stars align just right, perhaps we just might see 60 million iPads sold through 2011 instead of "just" 30 million.

Foursquare Execs On Apple Campus

It's late April and still no iOS 5 intro. Still, something is cooking over at Apple. And this is an example of what might be in store. Foursquare execs were found on Apple campus.

Would anyone just visit Apple for the heck of it? Maybe. However, there is a strong possibility that they had a meeting there. After all, checking into Apple campus is a pretty exciting thing considering all the wild speculations, even from myself, about Apple can transform MobileMe into.

Would you want a free MobileMe account with check-ins that might have special deals only for iOS users?

You bet I would!

Here is where things are interesting and it isn't just some random check-ins that some people do when they drive by randomly.

Erin Gleason, the public relations manager, checked in and mentioned she was moving into the next meeting.

Then the next location of the check-in was was at Apple. The check-in was done by Dennis Crowley, with Gleason present as well as Foursquare's business dev and partnership organizer.

Interesting, eh?

More at MacNN.

Note: Who is Dennis Crowley? How about the co-founder of Foursquare.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPod touch

Competitors Make It Easy On Apple - Maybe Through 2013 or More

This was suppose to be the year that competitors put a stop to the iPad assault on the tablet.  Rather than anything that has taken the consumers by storm, the Xoom and Playbook are filled with reviews about the great potentials these tablet platforms possess.  Howeer, in the wrap-up sections, it's all been "when the updates come...".

I'm sure Apple's first mover position has advantages but it can't be all that.  Forget about the lack of lines at Best Buy or anywhere else in Canada where RIM has home-court advantage, what's disconcerting is that the executives at these companies are clueless or in denial.  

I'm generally upbeat about things but for the rest of 2011, I'm not about the tablet market.  

Here's one platform I'm holding out for that I think can still give Apple some competition.  HP's Web OS Touchpad. As long as they don't rush it out like Google and RIM did with theirs, they ought to have some awesome features that can light a fire on the tablet market.  

Apple will announce their earnings today and I do not anticipate great numbers for the iPad sales because of the issues of parts constraints.  I think this is an opportunity for Apple's competitors to reboot of sort.  

For Apple fans, let's be honest.  Competition would be good for us.  If not for the rushed jobs from Google, the Xoom should have a lot more compelling (100K rumored to have been sold isn't a bad number...just don't compare it to the iPad).  

External Keyboards for the iPad - Not Necessary At All

I've been typing on my iPad for more than a year now. And I don't think I'm alone in saying that I like the virtual keyboard very much. Light touches and generally accurate if you learn to trust it. However, I think I am in the minority on this issue. It's not because there are most people who don't like typing on the iPad. Rather, it's because most people don't type on the iPad.

Either way, is there a need for those cases outfitted with physical keyboards that turns the iPad into a netbook?

First of all, I don't think I've seen one that I like. I don't like the Kensington rubber keyboard. It's, well, rubbery. And it's not the only maker of keyboard-combo-cases that use a silicone or rubber cover. There are also ones with hard cases but they are still far from perfect. The Zaggmate case has these side walls that, from the pictures, feel weird to me.

Besides the fact that I haven't found the perfect keyboard with a case, I don't think I really need one. And I think more and more people are realizing that as well.

Once I get into a rhythm (and inspired), I can hack out a good page or two relatively quickly on the iPad. In coffee shops that I've seen, people using their iPads they type are increasing little by little.

For the rest, they seem to be using their iPads to consume media than actually doing work on there. For instance, while I was waiting for my car to be ready at the dealership today, there were quite a few iPads. Six that I could see. And everyone of them seemed to be reading or watching videos on them. No typing. They've got cases but they appear to be the standard Apple cases. No keyboards.

I'm not saying that there is no need for these keyboard cases at all. I'm just not sure they will have mainstream appeal for a major of the iPad market.