GigaOM

[...] AT&T Mobility Chief: New 3G iPhone Game Changer Om Malik: What are your thoughts on this new iPhone? Ralph De La Vega (RDLV): This device is a true game changer. Why? The immediacy of the data at your fingertips is huge. Imagine, looking up anything, anywhere. It (3G iPhone) allows you to leave your computer at home. It totally and completely mobilizes your data. Before this device you weren’t really un-tethered, but with this you are. I think people have tried to build a $100 laptop, and here is a $200 phone that can do all that over 3G. It will have a big impact, and will be ubiquitous. [...]

[...] Om Malik’s interview with Ralph de la Vega, President & Chief Executive Officer of AT&… (emphasis mine): OM: Has there been a change in the cost of data [...]

[...] but now those included text messages are getting the boot too! This is confirmed in an interview Om Malik had with AT&T Mobility chief Ralph de la Vega. OM: Has there been a change in the cost of data plans? RDLV: The data plans are different on the [...]

[...] take an 11% earnings dilution this year. Why would they do this? As AT&T has said previously and reiterated yesterday, iPhone is a game changing device that causes users to use more data. iPhone users are [...]

[...] Check out this interview that Om Malik had with AT&T’s Mobility Chief and you will see that your monthly fees will [...]

[...] Mainly, the cost of the plans from AT&T. At first I was wowed with the new, lower, prices - $299 for a 16GB compared to the $499 I paid just a few months ago. But, AT&T has released some details, I refer specifically to this interview with AT&T mobility chief: [...]

[...] (link) [...]

[...] I forgot to mention that Exchange support (ActiveSync) will be an additional $15/month and that unlimited text messaging (SMS) is no longer included in the plan (that’s extra as well). Sphere: Related [...]

[...] 2008 at 9:27 AM PT Comments (0) A lot has been written about the new 3G iPhone, its price and its impact. Now it’s time to shift attention to the most important question about this device: How much [...]

[...] Well this bit of information from Om Malik’s interview with AT&T Mobility Chief, Ralph de la Vega, is the straw that broke my back. SMS is not included as part of the data plan [...]

[...] Once again Apple has scammed people into thinking they invented 3G or GPS.  It’s not that Apple is so bad, it’s that all the other mobile carriers and handset vendors are just so dam clueless.  It takes Apple to come in and do it right.   This is exactly what happened with the iPod and iTunes.  And with the original GUI and the Mac. They don’t invent technologies, they just figure out how to deploy them correctly; combining hardware, software and services. [...]

[...] AT&T Mobility Chief: New 3G iPhone Is a Game-changer - GigaOM - [...]

[...] 2008 (2:00pm) Mike Gunderloy No Comments When I see folks like AT&T Mobility’s CEO say the iPhone “totally and completely mobilizes your data” now that it’s 3G-capable, [...]

[...] to an article from GigaOM the CEO of AT&T Mobility snuck into an interview with Om Malik, that there would no longer be [...]

[...] It looks like SMS messages are not going to be included in the iPhone 3G plans, so that is another additional [...]

[...] division of San …The iPhone is grand, but is AT&ampT reaping the benefits of a new … CrunchGearhttp://gigaom.com/2008/06/09/att-mobility-ceo-new-3g-iphone-game-changer/AT& Announces Voice and Data Plan for the New Apple 3G iPhone PDA Buyer’s GuideATT today announced [...]

[...] following the 3G iPhone announcement (see our full coverage), GigaOm had a chance to interview Ralph de la Vega, president and CEO of AT&T Mobility, iPhone’s [...]

[...] :Source [...]

[...] :Source [...]

[...] la operadora que tiene la exclusiva del iPhone, ha subido las tarifas asociadas al móvil. Ahora el plan básico cuesta 10$ más y no incluye mensajes SMS (otros 5$), lo que hace que para tener las mismas condiciones que con el iPhone de primera [...]

[...] I see folks like AT&T Mobility’s CEO say the iPhone “totally and completely mobilizes your data” now that it’s 3G-capable, I know [...]

[...] Tom announce a GPS application for the iPhone. For a lot of reasons the iPhone and mobile me has changed the game in Australia and the rest of the [...]

[...] of being a popular post especially since it would suitably rile up the Apple contingent still in their orgasmic afterglow of His Jobness’ pronouncement from the mount of a $199.00 iPhone for the [...]

[...] pay $20; now I will be paying $30 for a network 2x as fast. Net $120/yr. • Text messages are not included in the new plan. Net $60/yr. • Mobileme ($99/yr) will be a “nice to have”, but [...]

[...] a week of all 3G iPhone all the time, it’s pretty clear that the performance hurdle is being set for the [...]

[...] While everyone throws a fit over Apple and AT&T’s tricky pricing for the iPhone 3G (yes, it will be more expensive over the life of the device, but it’s also a more advanced phone and that is also assuming you keep it for two years and don’t upgrade with the inevitable new version next year), the real travesty in pricing is slipping by largely unnoticed: AT&T is including no text messages in its iPhone 3G monthly plans. [...]

[...] connects cell sites to the actual telecom infrastructure). While everyone at AT&T, from the top down, is adamant that AT&T is “comfortable” with their ability to meet the huge [...]

[...] Om Malik at GigaOM digs into this in Q&A fashion. Also, Om interviews AT&T’s mobility chief about the iPhone being a “game-changer.” [...]

[...] the two-year contract. There goes the $200 savings. Plus, SMS messaging used to be included but now it’s $5 a month extra, or another $120 over the two [...]

[...] “I think people have tried to build a $100 laptop, and here is a $200 phone that can do all that over 3G.” - Ralph de la Vega, CEO of AT&T Mobility (from gigaom.com) [...]

[...] connects cell sites to the actual telecom infrastructure). While everyone at AT&T, from the top down, is adamant that AT&T is “comfortable” with their ability to meet the huge [...]

[...] since Om Malik’s interview with AT&T’s Ralph de la Vega, people have been noticing and commenting on the fact that this ignores the mandatory 2-year [...]

[...] lot has been written about the new 3G iPhone, its price and its impact. Now it’s time to shift attention to the most important question about this device: How much [...]

[...] will come included in the iPhone plan, but AT&T Mobility CEO and president Ralph de la Vega previously said in an interview with GigOM that SMS messages are no longer bundled with iPhone voice plans. You could end up paying around $5 [...]

[...] connects cell sites to the actual telecom infrastructure). While everyone at AT&T, from the top down, is adamant that AT&T is “comfortable” with their ability to meet the huge [...]

[...] connects cell sites to the actual telecom infrastructure). While everyone at AT&T, from the top down, is adamant that AT&T is “comfortable” with their ability to meet the huge [...]

[...] portal — out to mobile consumers and showed them how compelling such access could be. That made clear to carriers that data usage, which was already on the rise, could become a huge revenue booster if consumers were given the [...]

[...] up anything, anywhere,” is how AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega told me in a chat earlier this year. In the US, especially iPhone is going to have a major impact, mostly because are a PC-centric [...]

[...] connects cell sites to the actual telecom infrastructure). While everyone at AT&T, from the top down, is adamant that AT&T is “comfortable” with their ability to meet the huge [...]

[...] connects cell sites to the actual telecom infrastructure). While everyone at AT&T, from the top down, is adamant that AT&T is “comfortable” with their ability to meet the huge [...]

[...] will remain CEO of the diversified businesses unit; and Ronald Spears will head the business unit. Ralph de la Vega, currently the CEO of AT&T’s wireless business, will head up the consumer business, which will contain wireless, broadband and video services. [...]

I love the device, but until it has a keyboard for I/O, the laptop still has to come with me.

I have perfected my typing on my iPhone, so I don’t need a laptop/Keyboard.

Ralph - Like your straight talk. I hope you are the next CEO of AT&T.

I’ll have to just disagree on a particular point, that of 3G for the iPhone having speeds similar to WiFi. The iPhone 3G has HSDPA, which gives a maximum 14.4Mbps is way off what’s now standard wifi speed (54mbps) unless he’s talking about 802.1b which is 11Mbps. But then again, I’m hailing from Europe, I don’t know how the US market looks like.

Even then what I’ve witnessed, through using an actual 3G phone and living in a country at which 3G and it’s iterations have been rolled out over the past 7 years or so, is that mobile phones usually have a 384Kbps connection, some may even go to slightly over 1Mbps. If I were you I really, really wouldn’t count on having “wifi speed”. But mind you, 384Kbps is great for the mobile web and ~1Mbps is also great when you turn on bluetooth on the phone and use an internet tablet to access the “real” web. Usually 3.6 and 7.2 speeds are achieved by plugging a 3G dongle onto a laptop.

As a side note, I remember the ads when 3G was rolled out and on the tellie everything looked snappy, video calls had high resolution and didn’t suffer from any lag. It was being pitched as something “as fast as your cable connection” (remember that this was way back in 2001). Then it hit the market, the market was utterly disappointed with the result. The lesson to learn here is that you shouldn’t pitch 3G, whichever version of it, against faster, fixed alternatives but instead pitch it as a big boost against what’s currently out there in the mobile market. Vodafone has, in my opinion, been doing this successfully, ATT Mobile should borrow a page from their book.

“This device is a true game changer. Why? The immediacy of the data at your fingertips is huge. Imagine, looking up anything, anywhere. It (3G iPhone) allows you to leave your computer at home. It totally and completely mobilizes your data. Before this device you weren’t really un-tethered, but with this you are.”

Not hard to imagine since other devices have been doing it for years. My AT&T 8525 (with that guy’s company logo stamped right on it) has been doing everything that he claims the iphone will do and more for years. When will people wake up and realize the iphone brings absolutely NOTHING new to the table.

No video recording? No focus or zoom camera? No voice recording? No MMS messaging? $15 extra a month for the same plan on the 2G phone? $100 for a Me.com account? No Flash player? A 320×480 screen resolution? No QWERTY keyboard?

But the biggest drawback of all is the closed system of the iPhone. Good luck waiting for Apple to approve the killer application that you want.

Fortunately, the browser will enable us to use web apps like Gmail, Gcal, Google apps, etc.

Beware the hype though. Nokia sells more phones in a week than Apple has ever sold iPhones.

I love the phone, but I really think at this point it’s just too expensive for most consumers.
$40 for 450 minutes
$30 for unlimited data
$15 for 1500 text messages (or $5 for 200 text messages)
————-
$85 for a heavy texter or $75 for a lite texter

I think they charge way too much for data on a phone.
If they are going to charge $30 for unlimited data, then it should include unlimited texting as well.

If you have a family of iphone lovers, each person pays $30 for data.

@cpinto

54Mbps Wifi is not realistic. 54Mpbs is the maximum possible. I’ve never seen speeds anywhere near that.

So the price of the phone goes way down but the data plan goes up and you have to pay for texting. Someone needs to do the math and figure out if that’s a fair trade off. Personally, I may have wanted to pay more for the phone and keep my monthly costs down.

hype … wolf in sheep’s clothing … money-sucker ….

No freakin way, this guy is saying that Texting is NOT included anymore?

So my $60/m iPhone is gonna cost new 3G people $85/m for the same thing? Screw AT&T I’ll stick with this they can goto hell

My current iPhone is $20/month unlimited. Now they are saying $30/month for data ONLY? Add another $10/month for texting and you really have an $80/month phone + taxes people’s sell phone bills will be pushing $100/month!! That is out of control. I’ll never buy this thing I’ll keep my jailbroken original until Verizon or something comes out with a reasonable deal.

SMS is no longer bundled, and the price of the data plan has gone up, hmm? No new iPhone for me.

slt pour tout monde sava bien

@djacobs well, so are the faster HSDPA speeds, specially on a mobile phone, aren’t they mate? what exactly was your point?

Did I read that right? SMS is not covered in the pricing? That’s crazy! AT&T is really trying to gouge the iPhone faithful.

I agree with Mr. Atkins on everything, but I would say the main disadvantage of the iphone is called AT&T.

I hope ATT will allow FAN codes onto their plans now, since apple is not running the show. I want my 19% off

I don’t know about the average person but this is very expensive. My family was hoping to drop our land line and move exclusively to ATT but not anymore.

Wonder if there’s a family plan?

ATT is being a pig here, period, end of story.

This could be a deal if you’ve got a family plan. If my wife and I could both share unlimited 3G internet and share 200 text messages for $35 on top of our current plan, that would be a deal.

@Robert
AT&T knows they can charge insane amounts of money, since it’s the iPhone, and people will be inclined to buy it anyway. AT&T is making it seem as if a 3G network is new technology, which, sadly, some people will believe.

So basically the AT&T service plans for the iPhone are broken up, and more expensive? That’s great. Now my bill will be in the triple digits.

I actually reposted this comment many times before. FYI
————————
Recently I browsed around about the location-based services (LBS). Most people believe it would be the next big thing or killer app. Quite a few others have different opinion. e.g.,

(link)
(link)

Here I can possibly present one opinion from the consumer/end-user perspective, which I have posted in some other places too.

Do we need LBS so badly?

Before I really go to the details. Let me give a review of one simple concept and theory here, which are called “Home Range Concept” and “Traffic Pattern Theory”.

Home Range Concept. It is a concept that can be traced back to a publication in 1943 by W. H. Burt, who constructed maps delineating the spatial extent or outside boundary of an animal’s movement during the course of its everyday activities.

Traffic Pattern Theory. A people’s daily activity pattern is pretty regular, which comprises of several major events, such as school, work, home, shopping.

As I remember, a technical explanation of traffic pattern theory can be found in a report by Stefan Schonfelder, STRC 2001.

(link)

What happened here is if you are looking at the traffic pattern of a person, saying a full-time employed, 45 years, car, 3-person-household, one child, the regular activity route is so LIMITED. So, does this mean …

A more detailed explanation of LBS for mobiles can be found by
(link)
(link)

Great post Om, and some EVEN BETTER comments!

I recently blogged about the INSANE amount of coverage the BBC gave to the launch of the new iPhone (they gave it BREAKING NEWS status on their new site!) and got more visitors than ever before!

You REALLY stir some geek-passion when you blog about either Apple, Linux or Microsoft.

Jim Connolly

The 3G iPhone will be the best and most capable phone on the planet. Discuss it more at (link)

Now text messages are not included??!! AND no stereo bluetooth and no support for a bluetooth keyboard. Wow, no wonder Steve Jobs had to play the commercial 2x during his keynote. He had run out of new features to talk about. I live in Maine where 3G is a non-issue. AT&T is in no hurry to bring 3G to this state or any area away from a big metro concentration so what did we get with this new iPhone? Not much except for more expense.

Does anyone realize how much more consumers are going to pay for the ATT Plans. ATT voice and data plan cost for the 3G iphone is a deal breaker for many people that I know. Sure, the phone starts at $200, but I don’t think people will go for it till ATT offers better service plans.

Its interesting to read this interview and then hear about the present problems in reference to the 3g iphone.