Updated 2: Full details of iPhone in Ireland
Updated: “You are cordially invited to attend a media briefing with O2 Ireland Chief Executive, Danuta Gray, to launch the Apple iPhone in Ireland”. iPhone launching.
Just speculating. Two things.
First this press invite:
You are cordially invited to attend a media briefing with O2 Ireland Chief Executive, Danuta Gray, for the presentation of the company’s Q4 Financial Results, at 11.15am on Thursday 28th February, 2008, in O2 Ireland Headquarters, Sir John Rogersons Quay, Dublin 2.
Second. Via the Daithster:
Macworld reports that the most recent iPhone software update includes code for an Irish network (it is, of course, O2).
It’s going to be announced. It’s all about the when now.
Photo owned by Mountain/\Ash (cc)
it will be interesting to see what tarrifs they offer
Ditto what Aido said.
I also hope that they’ve upgraded their Edge network while they waited around for this.
No doubt it’ll be expensive as hell and we’ll buy it anyway!
This was sent to me the other day and apparently they are ‘usually’ accurate
http://www.thoughtdifferent.com/?http://thoughtdifferent.blogspot.com/
If Mark’s link is accurate, then there could be a chance it will be a 3G version released in time for a May Irish release!
Well I can live in hope.
Nicely spotted… o2 was always the most likely carrier in Ireland, though.
Now it’s just a question of handset cost and tariffs. I doubt it’ll be in my meagre price range!
@ Sinead – I can’t find it now but a few months ago I came across a news piece from O2 stating that they were putting a lot into upgrading their edge network – so they ‘supposedly’ have. We’ll see.
I really can’t see it being a 3G phone – I wish, we all wish! Given the time frame it would mean that Ireland would be one of the first or the first to receive a second generation iPhone – I know Paddy’s day is near but the luck of the Irish would never stretch that far. Rumours are the 2nd gen iPhone won’t be around until June / July at the earliest. And if the option is to buy a 1st gen ‘official’ iPhone in Ireland in May or get a 2nd gen 2 months later from the States I know what I’ll be doing.
Oh, dear, I may have to buy this…
Mark: 3G still uses too much energy, I hear.
There won’t be 3g iPhones available here for a while. They’ve upgraded their Edge network to support the eccentricities of the iPhone and Apple still needs to unload a whole lotta generation 1 to recoup their investment.
The handset will be priced higher than anywhere else in the world, I presume…
adam
I very much doubt it would be 3G – maybe that’ll be available here by the end of 2008.
As for price, I wonder if they’ll be cheaper than the UK iPhone (and keeping in mind the dropping value of sterling to the euro). On that note, could one go to Newry and buy an iPhone there, but activate it on the Irish O2 network once they got home?
@Damien: Please don’t say that v2 is distant.. Make my impulse to buy a v1 even stronger. Belfast is looking much more attractive. It’ll probably be insanely expensive when it goes on sale here too. Ugh..
More fuel for the fire:
http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/08/02/27/rd_travel_expenses_suggest_apple_plans_big_2008_report.html
“The sheer amount of money spent by Apple on research — as well as maintaining chief executive Steve Jobs’ private jet — suggests that the company is working feverishly on international iPhone releases and new products, according to a new research note from Morgan Stanley”
Now will they make an affordable data plan?
Probably not. €35/mo (€20 + €15) still is too expensive for 1GB of Edge
But here’s hoping anyway
I’m going to wait for a third generation iPhone.
Imagine the stigma of having a really ancient-looking iPhone, like those triassic iPods without the scroll wheel.
Well considering they don’t even HAVE 3G in the states, I can’t imagine Apple will bother for a long time.
Well, they do, just not so you’d notice.
I’d imagine when the 3G iPhone is launched it’ll be launched worldwide.
Sure, the US will get priority but it will theoretically be rolled out across the other networks too – it’s how they work with everything else.
Word from the recent mobile world conference in Barcelona is that a 3G iPhone is being held up because of battery problems. As my correspondant reported:
“The phone is 2.5G and is going to be quite difficult to shift to 3G as the battery would run down way too quickly. At 3G the no. of battery recycles would wear out battery a lot quicker – some estimate 7months like ipod has sealed battery so cannot change without sending back. Plus that would be 3times in life of ur contract. Only way around is to get a bigger battery and bulkier phone.”
It was to be expected that the iPhone would appear in Ireland on O2’s network once it became clear that the UK launch was much less successful than expected.
3g chips are getting more efficient, so it’;; happen eventually. May be a while tho.
The rule of thumb for battery and power consumption performance improvements (analogous to Moores Law) is you can expect about 10% better performance per year.
I’d imagine likewise you’ll see improvements in the level on energy consumption on a 3G chip too – so both battery power improves and power requirements decline making the whole process even faster.
More fuel to the fire. O2’s hardware distributor, BPI Telecom, have just become an Apple distributor. hmmmm…..
@ Gary, to the best of my knowledge they have been for some time
Have to wait and see how long the contract will be and how much the data tariff will be. I’d begun to think O2 were getting out of the handset business and switching to be a broadband provider it had been so long since they did anything decent, technology wise, for their mobile phone clients.
I’ve seen the campaign billboards “Say Dia Dhuit……..”
It will be announced tomorrow, but launched in May.
http://www.davidcochrane.com/meeja/dciphone.jpg
That’s a camera pic from this site, that’s not a poster: http://www.thoughtdifferent.com/?http://thoughtdifferent.blogspot.com/
After seeing it today, I will be sorely tempted, expensive or not!
May? Jesus.. I need a new phone now damnit!
Suppose the chances are that it’ll still be cheaper to buy in the north or UK and unlock rather than buy it on O2 Ireland when it finally appears..
Hey… if it is a May launch what are the chances of it being a 3G model by then?
Isn’t May-July the timeframe expected for a US 3G model?
I know, I’m being a bit fanciful, but what the heck!
Hey guys Pocket-Lint are confirming a March 14th date for the iphone in ireland with a HEAFTY price of €399 ($593) for 8gb and €499 ($741) for the 16gb, Tarrifs havn’t been annonced yet.
http://www.pocket-lint.co.uk/news/news.phtml/13103/14127/iphone-irish-launch-o2-exclusive.phtml
http://www.markwebster.eu/apple/iphone-no-carrier-for-ireland-on-sale-in-3-months#comment-2846
Jaysus, when I’m right I’m right.
On March 14th 2009 lets take a poll among Irish iPhone owners (that have a clue, not folks with too much money and bought it because it looks cool, which it does BTW) that bought and paid full whack on O2. It’ll be a 1 question poll – ‘is your iphone jailbroken now?’ Not that I can guarantee an outcome but I will guess that 50%+ will answer ‘yes’ – you know who you are already, don’t fight it. Now, with the Dollar the way it is against the Euro, if you’re not planning a trip/shopping trip to the States in the near future then you don’t deserve an iPhone in the first place, if you are then go, buy an iPhone for the princely sum of €270 (approx) and stick the €120 you’ve saved in the g-string of the best looking dancer at the titty bar you’ll invariably visit, ladies – head off to Ambercrombie & Fitch and get a couple of pairs of those denims that Lauren’s been wearing on The Hills that you so badly want.
Surely the phrase “with a clue” doesn’t apply to someone stupid enough to buy a mobile for such an extortianate price?
Very fair point.
O2 Ireland wins the iPhone contract…
According to Marie Boran
John Collins said: a lot of speculation at the moment about an irish iphone release. i have the story but am sworn to secrecy.
It is O2 in my opinion. I’ve been meaning to write a post about the iPhone to explain why you…
Good God, the packages on offer from O2 are crap! Far too little for far too much. What’s worse is that they look ractically selfish compared to the O2 iPhone packages in the UK.
See here: http://trefusismadding.blogspot.com/2008/02/iphone-coming-to-ireland.html