posted Tue, 08 Jul 2008 23:05:57 +1200 by Jed
tagged Vodafone iPhone Hype
I know, I'm probably the last kiwi to blog about this. Hell even the mainstream news had a go at Vodafone after today's announcement. But what did people really expect? The fact that they wouldn't use their standard plans should've tipped everyone off to what was going to happen. That's not to say that Vodafone's pricing is in any way understandable or acceptable. After all, who in their right mind would need that many call minutes and that small of data allowance with a device that's obviously going to be heavily data-oriented? To quote Beverley;
Regular phone calls to the butler to get him to check on the sports car collection? ... And to call people to get them to Google stuff for you cause you blew your cap in the first hour.
That said, it doesn't bother me at all. I'm happy with my mac laptop and Windows Mobile phone, and who knows, in a few months when Telecom rolls out their GSM network (and I know for a fact they're keeping to schedule), they'll lay the smackdown on Vodafone, and all will be happy.
Back to networking... Pictures coming soon.
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You can use the standard plans, but you only get the standard subsidies with those. So if I want an 8gb iPhone (~$950), I can get a YouChoose plan with 20 minutes (I hardly call) and 200 txts (I hardly text too) for ~$27 (which is cheaper than the $40 I usually end up spending a month). Then you add a Broadband for Mobile plan, and these are subsidised too, the 1gb plan is usually $59.95 but with iPhone it's $49.95. So the plan is ~$78 with a $50-100 subsidy on a phone.
On the other hand, Telecom is starting a GSM network in November and after Vodafone's huge arrogance (and then to top it all off with rumours of $1 per helpdesk call for prepay), I'm willing to switch to them once they make the change over. I can live with the plans now, but just after watching the Vodafone v John Campbell interview, I just got the impression of a hugely arrogant and naive multi-national corporation trying to rob us blind.
But they won't care. People are still going to get their stingy plans on their iPhones. It's just that as a Tweeter said "the iPhone is no longer cool in NZ anymore, it's now a rich pricks phone."