Appletell

The Times has said that the 3G iPhone being released by Apple soon could cost as little as £100 in the UK. Analysts have predicted the drop in price due to ineffective marketing strategies such as “network exclusivity deals” in Europe.

Apple had estimated that the iPhone would sell between 500,000 and 600,000 units across the UK and France, but that they have failed to meet this target with just 330,000 sold. Apple could be scrapping the exclusivity deals across Europe and introducing more tempting pricing to try and reach that “10 million iphones sold” goal. So far, the iPhone has only had incredible success in America, with Europe lagging on behind, hence the predictions.

Although analysts say that the iPhone could be sold for as little as €99 across mainland Europe, the slightly higher price for the UK iPhone is due to a two-year-long exclusivity with UK network O2, thereby lacking incentive for competitive pricing. Unlike when the 2.5G iPhone was released, the 3G version is expected to be released to 3G-iPhone-hungry “United Kingdomers” very shortly after the American version is released.

The 3G iPhone is expected to be unveiled during the World Wide Developers Conference on June the 9th, Keep your fingers crossed ... although it’s almost a given.

Yesterday, AT&T announced that it plans to release its High Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA) in six more US markets by the end of June, completing its deployment of HSPA. Once that task is completed, the company says that the 3G service will offer uplink speeds of between 500 and 800Kbps, which will complement the roughly 1.4Mbps downlink that AT&T already offers. The timing of AT&T’s upgrade doesn’t seem to be a coincidence, since Apple’s rumored 3G iPhone is expected to launch in early June.

AT&T’s numbers are most likely based on controlled testing, so real speeds may be a bit lower than estimated, depending on your location. Users of AT&T’s pre-HSUPA 3G network have experienced uplink speeds of around 200 to 300Kbps, so even an upgrade to AT&T’s lowest estimate (500Kbps) will be a welcome upgrade.

The upgrade is part of AT&T’s $20 billion effort to improve its network, which it began back in 2005. The company said that the speedier 3G network is already available in over 275 markets, and that it will be available to customers in another 75 or so markets by the end of 2008. AT&T will be the only US carrier to have fully deployed HSUPA on its 3G network, making it the largest of its kind in the United States.

Via [IntoMobile]

Apple has been granted four new patents today by the US Patent & Trademark Office. The patents cover four inventions that relate to Apple’s multipurpose dock, QuickTime’s transmission of differently formatted media, measuring network bandwidth between two computers, and a communication between media servers and media clients.

Stand invention (US Patent D567800) does not offer a detailed explanation as to why this dock is much different than other docks on the market. Apple only provided a one sentence explanation in the patent filing: “The stand, which can be utilized as a dock, is used to support an electronic device, such as a media player, media storage device, cellular phone, PDA and/or the like.”

MORE »

There may be a new competitor in the market when it comes to receiving an internet signal.  Macwireless has announced a new, extremely fast network adapter.  This technology allows up to 16 devices on your network and is transmitted over normal AC wires.

From the product page:

Powerline networking allows you to route your network through the electrical lines that are already built into your home or office. With speeds up to 200 times faster than DSL, this is a great way to get your ethernet network to other floors or rooms in your building, without the need to run wires. Powerline Network Adapters are particularly useful when concrete, metal, or other obstructions in the walls of your home or office block your wireless signals.

Sounds pretty interesting if you ask me and may be a great alternative for those in brick buildings in cities where a Wifi signal is hard to get.  If you have ever used one of these, or a technology like this, let us know.

Sprint will be “soft-launching” there new WiMax network later this week. Named mysteriously as XOHM, this network will function much like using the internet over the 3G cell network, except this network is a lot less expensive, and is open to any device. They plan to make the network available in downtown Baltimore, Chicago, and Washington, D.C at first, and expand as their popularity grows. WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) has long been rumored as the technology that would replace 3G, but never really caught on because not enough devices used the technology. Intel has backed this technology for a long time, and is planning to incorporate WiMax-enabled chips in their upcoming successor to the Santa Rosa platform, code named Montevina. Apple has not publicly stated that they support WiMax, but with their Intel ties, it would not be unlikely to find WiMax in the upcoming Mac sub-notebook.

Via [Macrumors]