Hello 3G iPhone. Goodbye included SMS messages.
Just a brief note on something I was curious about yesterday but only just discovered. Yesterday’s press release from AT&T indicated that 3G iPhone data plans would rise $10 over the current EDGE data plan used by iPhones today. You’ll pay $30 monthly for data and of course, that requires a voice plan which must be $39.95 monthly or greater. So what about those 200 SMS messages that we enjoy with our iPhones today. You’ll be paying for ‘em, based on Om Malik’s interview with Ralph de la Vega, CTO of AT&T. Here’s the relevant excerpt, with my emphasis added:
OM: Has there been a change in the cost of data plans?
RDLV: The data plans are different on the 3G iPhoneversus the 2G iPhone. Consumers will pay $30 a month every month, whileenterprises will pay $45 a month. This is what you pay us on other PDAdevices such as Blackberry Curve. The SMS messages are not bundledanymore, and you pay for what you want. Again the prices are based onwhat you buy.
This tipped me over the "EDGE" and I plan to stick with the iPhone I have, at least in the short term. I really don’t want to pay an extra $10 monthly for faster wireless service, when I already use 3G with all of my computing devices already: USB EV-DO modem and Verizon service at $60 a month. On top of that $10 price jump, I’d lose the 200 SMS messages I have today. Since AT&T pays Apple for every handset and retains all revenues from voice, data and other cellular services, I can understand the change. Understanding and accepting are two different things, though. 
Wow, AT&T and Apple must have no concept of the value of a dollar. Let’s see, I’d have to pay Sprint’s ETF just so I could be in the ballpark. Then I’d have to buy the phone and sign up with AT&T. Then they want a *minimum* of $70 a month PLUS text messaging costs on top of that? What do I get out of this? Not much, apparently. In fact, I lose the one program I use more than any other on my Touch. More than any other by a WIDE margin…Slingplayer. Sorry guys, when you wake up and smell the recession, you let me know.
Oh yeah, and I know Sling Media announced a player for the iPhone. As you iPhone owners will soon find out, Sling Media announcing something and Sling Media doing something are often two different things. Ask a Blackberry owner how long ago they announced a player for that phone. It took them months to release a fix that worked correctly on the phones HTC screwed up, like the Touch. Sling Media puts out great stuff but I’d bet you could count their dev staff on one hand, including interns and part-timers. After an accident with a chainsaw. I will be shocked….SHOCKED….if there’s a Slingplayer for the iPhone this year.
Here are the 2 things I want to know:
1 – I switched to AT&T last year to get on board with the Tilt. So, the data plan doesn’t bother me as I am already paying $30/month for unlimited data plus extra for voice and SMS. However, since I appear to be in the nether region of existing non-iPhone AT&T customers, how much will I have to pay to buy the 3G iPhone at launch (I’m not eligible for an equip upgrade discount for months).
2 – This is the most important question – can I use this new iPhone Sim and associated service with my Tilt? Inevitably, even with the app store, there will be things I’d like to retain my Tilt for. If I can Sim switch between the devices as I choose, then no problem – I’d even jump through whatever hoops necessary to acquire the phone and re-up the plan, etc. I just need that device switching flexibility for the foreseeable future. My guess is that with a move away from revenue sharing, this should be possible since very specific iPhone plans aren’t necessary like the were before. My hope is that the new “iPhone” plans are just AT&T’s standard $30/month PDA Personal unlimited. The pricing is the same and the service type (3G) is the same, so you’d think it shouldn’t be a problem. But, as always, we shall see…
Jeff
The more my rational side thinks about the new 3G iPhone the less enthused I become. Apple has dazzled us with this “3G” brilliance the same way that Tide makes the colors brighter in our laundry. At the same time, they’ve given the cell phone business back to AT&T’s business as usual. No home activation, fewer bundled cell services, more $$. Though I find it hard to find the money quote on this, my impression back in January 2007 was that Apple was promising us a better cell phone buying and using experience than that. This was the phone that Apple introduced on its terms. What happened? As they roll this out in more countries with more carriers have they had to sell their Apple souls? Have they run out of enthusiasm for re-defining the cell phone experience? I can’t help but believe that retreating back to dazzling h/w and s/w is better for Apple, but maybe less good for we consumers. Am I overthinking this?
Taxman
Ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch ouch.
As if rising gas and food prices weren’t enough!
That new Samsung i900 just keeps looking better and better…
Double rip off because unless I’m mistaken Apple is not certifying any apps that “stream” (which is why I think Sling is not in the developer program).
So, we pay $30 for faster downloading of email and web browsing (most of which I do via Wi-Fi).
AT&T should have included unlimited text messages in the plan and that would have put this whole issue to bed.
Instead, as is the norm. The nickle and diming will continue until enough of us vote with our pocketbooks.
Just for the record, AT&T unbundled text messaging from their plans several months ago. It’s equal opportunity nickle and diming for all users, not an iPhone discrimination.
I am concerned that one of the cool things Apple did – not cave to AT&T – has been undone.
However…
You can SMS someone by emailing the right value. When they respond, I think it goes back to your email, but that might depend on something. I’ve seen it go either way.
That leaves people SMSing *you* as charging you. That’s still kind of ridiculous though. I liked not paying extra.
@kevin white – SMS via e-mail: send e-mail message to phone number@teleflip.com i.e. 5055555121@teleflip.com – no need to figure out which carrier the recipient is using. If they reply back from their SMS client on their phone, it will go back to your e-mail address from which you sent your message.
So, if I’m right…
There will be no unlimited messaging on the iPhone at all?
Utterly ridiculous! I WILL be keeping my 2g phone and this sealed it. NO way am I paying them more for the stupid phone, signing yet ANOTHER new 2-year contract, to pay MORE in data per month. The text messages didn’t affect me since my family has unlimited for the group. I live in an area where there is no 3G, wonder if other’s will be as pissed if they can’t even USE the 3g.
Original iPhone users will still benefit from the 2.0 software update while retaining their contract which allows 200 messages. IMHO, we get the majority of nice features (push, App Store, games, etc.) w/out having to pay more. Plus, who knows what 3rd party solutions will emerge from all of this.
I agree w/ others that 3G is not that big of a deal to justify all these cost increases. Like they say…watch out for what you ask for, you just might get it!
Wow, for once im glad i live in the UK.
Im on 3UK, the “free” phone i got with my 18 month contract i sold straight away, put the money from that plus £50 to get the HTC touch Diamond.
My price plan is £30/month and for that i get 500 mix and match voice and texts, 50 min video calling, 50mms, 300 voice mins to my wife (she is on same network) i can watch the majority of 3UKs tv channels for free, 3gig of internet browsing/month.
Sooo glad!
I’m interested to see what the pricing and plans will be when this thing comes to Norway. I’m not interested in the device – it’s useless as anything more than a toy – but I am curious as to how it will compete with the normal cheap tariffs and phone subsidies. (Did I just use Norway and cheap in the same paragraph??) However, Norwegian teenagers are just as gullible as in other countries so I’m sure it’ll do well.
any tethering options with the 3G version?
All the more reason to use programs like AOL Instant Messenger rather than SMS. AOL demo’ed a version for the iPhone last March when the iPhone 2.0 software update was announced.
@Jeff, I believe you will be likely able to use your 3G iphone SIM in your Tilt. How do I know? Since that’s what I’m doing with my 2G iphone right now. I have a few 3G phones and they all work fine with my iPhone SIM card. And you guessed right. They all run at full 3G speed. That’s one reason I don’t want to upgrade to 3G iPhone. Technically, only difference is a device, and AT&T wants to charge more for the same service just because device is changed. I’m going to keep my 2G iPhone and SIM swap with 3G phones as necessary.