tewha.net

I’ve been putting this off, because I really don’t want to clash horns with The Macalope. Mostly because he’s got, well, a nice rack. And I don’t. But a recent tweet by the horny one meant I have to get this off my chest.¹

I live in Canada, so I only wish I had the prices and plans available that AT&T offers. But even then, I note an interesting consequence to the way the new iPhone costs you money:

Assuming the Macalope’s numbers are right, sure, the iPhone 3G is $40 more expensive. But that’s over two years! On the day you sign the contract and leave the store with a nice, shiny box on your way to your “unboxing!” photo shoot, you’ve got an extra $300 in your pocket.

All of which begs the question of what you’re going to do with that extra $300 until then. I suggest that instead of blowing it on a Wii² you consider how to turn it into $340 by the end of the contract. That’s only 13% over two years. I’m no financial whiz and I’m not even sure how to spell “whiz,”³ but I bet even I could manage that one. If you don’t think you can, maybe you should step away from the computer long enough to think of something.

Sure, it isn’t cheaper. But if you play your cards correctly⁴ it may turn out to be to your benefit anyway. For the record, I don’t give credit to Apple for that. I’m sure no one there said “Hey, let’s hike the price, but we’ll make them pay the extra over two years. Our customers will be able to invest the money they save on the initial purchase and end up ahead!” It’s just the way the numbers work. Hooray for math!

1. Wow, it would be fun to be paid to write like this. [↩]
2. Because, let’s face it, you either already own one or are mocking the people who do. [↩]
3. I guessed financial, too. [↩]
4. And odds are you won’t, but whose fault is that? [↩]

In Canada we have two GSM cellphone providers: Fido and Rogers. Well, actually, we don’t really. A few years ago, Rogers bought Fido. So these days, I’m used to Fido getting the short straw out of every cup.

I called service a few days ago for an unrelated reason was surprised to hear “If you are calling about the iPhone, press 2.”¹ After completing that call, I tried 611 again and hit 2.

I was expecting “The iPhone will not be available to Fido customers,” but I was surprised. The iPhone will be available to Fido customers. Don’t believe me? There’s actually a news story on CBC. This seems to be a big turn-around by Rogers in offering Fido customers a good phone.

I don’t know how affordable the data plan will be, though.

1. The message has since been removed; I guess the rush died down. [↩]

Gruber has a post up on the impact of the iPhone SDK on iPhone web apps. I don’t really have a comment on the main point of his article — I think he’s exactly right.

What I do have a comment on is the last point of his article: The nomenclature of the iPhone.

I think Apple did users and developers a huge injustice calling the iPhone “iPhone.” Apple had a great product name in the iPod. iPod doesn’t mean “music player” — in fact, it doesn’t really mean anything. What was the point in calling the iPod something so meaningless if the name wasn’t going to grow? The iPhone easily could have been the “iPod phone.”

We all read about the Linksys incident and now Apple’s apparently having difficulty with the iPhone trademark in Canada¹. All for a product name that in the long run is going to confuse consumers.

Anyway, I wouldn’t be surprised if Apple called it the iPhone simply because it was the name everyone expected them to use.

1. To be blunt, though, I think Rogers’ horrible service and pricing is more likely to be what grounds the iPhone in Canada. Boo, hiss, boo. [↩]