Reports cite new date for iTunes phone unveiling
Motorola and Apple next month will unveil the much anticipated iTunes enabled cell phone at the V Festival of music in the United Kingdom, according to a couple of reports.
Both Telegraph and All Headline News today published online reports stating the two companies plan to launch the music phone at this summer's two-day music festival in Staffordshire -- one of the largest in the UK. Neither report cites a source.
The precise date and location for the iTunes phone launch has been a moving target of sorts. According to published reports, Motorola had originally hoped to introduce the phone at CeBIT in March, but a last minute fall-out with wireless providers was rumored to have hampered plans. Since then, countless reports have surfaced, each vouching a new and later date.
This latest reports puts the iTunes phone at the V Festival, which takes place the weekend of August 20th. Adding fuel to the fire are rumors that Virgin Mobile, which sponsors the event, may have decided to support the phone. However, it's now believed that there may be two separate versions of the iTunes phone: one that will debut in the UK and the other in the US.
In the US, Apple is rumored to have negotiated a deal with Cingular, the nations No. 1 wireless carrier, to sell a version of the iTunes phone dubbed by Motorola as the "ROKR." A verified authentic image this phone surfaced in recent weeks. Meanwhile, it's been reported that Motorola has developed an iTunes-capable E790 phone for the European market.
It remains unclear if the announcements in the UK will coincide with an announcement of the ROKR iTunes phone in the US.
Both Telegraph and All Headline News today published online reports stating the two companies plan to launch the music phone at this summer's two-day music festival in Staffordshire -- one of the largest in the UK. Neither report cites a source.
The precise date and location for the iTunes phone launch has been a moving target of sorts. According to published reports, Motorola had originally hoped to introduce the phone at CeBIT in March, but a last minute fall-out with wireless providers was rumored to have hampered plans. Since then, countless reports have surfaced, each vouching a new and later date.
This latest reports puts the iTunes phone at the V Festival, which takes place the weekend of August 20th. Adding fuel to the fire are rumors that Virgin Mobile, which sponsors the event, may have decided to support the phone. However, it's now believed that there may be two separate versions of the iTunes phone: one that will debut in the UK and the other in the US.
In the US, Apple is rumored to have negotiated a deal with Cingular, the nations No. 1 wireless carrier, to sell a version of the iTunes phone dubbed by Motorola as the "ROKR." A verified authentic image this phone surfaced in recent weeks. Meanwhile, it's been reported that Motorola has developed an iTunes-capable E790 phone for the European market.
It remains unclear if the announcements in the UK will coincide with an announcement of the ROKR iTunes phone in the US.
Comments
Originally posted by AppleInsider
In the US, Apple is rumored to have negotiated a deal with Cingular, the nations No. 1 wireless carrier, to sell a version of the iTunes phone dubbed by Motorola as the "ROKR." A verified authentic image this phone surfaced in recent weeks. Meanwhile, it's been reported that Motorola has developed an iTunes-capable E790 phone for the European market.
It remains unclear if the announcements in the UK will coincide with an announcement of the ROKR iTunes phone in the US.
I'm just not going to rush out and get one. I'll wait for the bugs to be worked out first. I hope it is bug free and has an easily changeable battery. BTW, Since when was the ROKR verified? The E790 is a much better design but I still would want it on a Razor phone.
Originally posted by AquaMac
I'm just not going to rush out and get one. I'll wait for the bugs to be worked out first. I hope it is bug free and has an easily changeable battery. BTW, Since when was the ROKR verified? The E790 is a much better design but I still would want it on a Razor phone.
Ed Zander -- the CEO of Motorola -- has called the US iTunes phone the ROKR...
http://www.appleinsider.com/article.php?id=1082
There has also been reliable confirmation that the black xbox looking phone we showed is a version of the ROKR... There are Motorola docks that show the same phone and identify it as the ROKR and as part of the collab. with Apple
That's what that is based on. Hope this helps.
-K
Wireless carriers add a password to their GSM phones which prevent their phones from being reused in a competitor's network. However, there are services, available via eBay, which can unlock your GSM phone, allowing you to place any active SIM card in the phone.
SIM cards carry all the specific user information for a user's GSM wireless account. No user specific information is in the phone itself. Thus, it is easy to upgrade phones by just moving the SIM card to a new phone. If the phone is UNLOCKED, you can move between different wireless services by just inserting the SIM of that wireless service - so long as you are using a GSM phone.
With an UNLOCKED Apple iTunes Phone, you can then use iTunes to download music and use bluetooth (or USB - if it is an option) to upload music into your phone.
UNLOCKED phones are often sold on eBay at full price (since the carrier is not subsidizing the price by giving you a discount with a 1-2 year service contract).
Originally posted by jameskatt
Apple and Motorola should just sell an UNLOCKED version of the iTunes Phone. THEN, you can use the SIM card from your existing GSM phone, from any wireless carrier, to use the new phone! You don't need the wireless carrier's approval.
Oh, they probably will. But you're not going to sell a lot of them if you have to charge full price. People just aren't that interested in paying $400 for a bunch of features on cell phones when you can get other phones from the carrier for $50. Most people buy their phone from the carrier because its so cheaper. I know I certainly wouldn't waste $400-$600 on a phone just because it had iTunes integration (i.e. can play AAC files, not that it could integrate with the iTMS), just as I wouldn't pay big money for one with PDA capabilities and the such. Its just not worth the money.
And, no, neither I nor most people care about the fact that if we switch cell phone companies we can't take our phone, since (a) it was so cheap, and (b) you can get one from the other company cheap as well, such that you still pay less then buying an unlocked phone.
Originally posted by AquaMac
I'm just not going to rush out and get one.
yeah im not going to get one period. sorry just because its an apple phone, and it will have an apple logo on it does not make me throw away my common sense. i use my phone for phone calls, and the cheap samsung (and the last one i had, a kyrocera) both do that perfectly... why would i spend an (undoubtedly) large sum for another piece of technology i dont need. sure its cool to put music on your phone and have custom ring tones (free of charge)... but honestly isnt the music part what i have an ipod for?
its either buy an ipod and get a cheap phone... or just get a phone that does it all. but who is to say the phone will fufill what my ipod can do.
this just seems silly to me, i wish apple had put its money, R+D and time elsewhere personally... if your a big fan of fancy featurific phones, rejoice i guess. who knows, maybe it will surprise me and be even something ill be willing to spend the extra bucks for and get (and trust me i hate palms, blueberries and uber expensive cells).
Mike
I have been waiting anxiously for an apple phone and it has nothing to do with music.
Considering how several functions have recently been rolled into iTunes, my dream is coming to light.
Imagine plugging your cellphone into your Mac just like it was an iPod. all of your contacts, calendars, email, playlists and photo albums are synced with your phone, and dot-Mac server. Sure you can do similar things on current phones but not with interface software designed by the Apple/iTunes team.
Finally useless cellphone novelty features make sense. Snap a pic of your new friend and the photo automatically updates to their address book entry and iChat buddy icon. Even better, exchange contact info via BT. The business card swap of the future. For the paranoid business types and journalists, record an MP3 of your phone conversations with a couple of clicks and they get added to your iTunes with a time stamp.
The best part for me would be the ability to read & send e-mail from my IMAP dot-Mac account. Getting email service from a cell carrier for the term of a contract sucks.
Even though I never plan to listen to music on my phone this is exciting news to me.