Why buys phones from the carriers anymore, anyway? Certainly not the Slashdot crowd, which is the sort of person this would affect most. This isn't 1987 when you're locked into some analog carrier's bag phone. Go on the internet or to the corner (non-carrier-owned) store and buy what you want that matches your carrier's technology.
This looks a lot like blogspam. The only form of "proof" is just a link to some guy's blog. No official T-Mobile link to the policy. Not even a supposed quote from a customer service rep on the phone. And I just tried and had no problems using OperaMobile and five other third-party apps on my phone (M600i) with T-Mobile service.
The Slashdot posting should be rescinded. It's not accurate, not backed up by any proof, and appears to be just a ploy to get page views.
You are largely correct. Unfortunately, I wasn't trying to be factual -- I was just being a jerk. However, I do remember something about American naval vessels protecting British supply convoys before America's formal entry into WWII. Some day I'll do more research. From what I know so far, it's a fascinating war. 35,000,000 people killed. It really puts the whiny complaining by some about 3,000 soldiers dead in Iraq into perspective.
the British basically said, "We wash our hands of the whole thing"
This seems to be a recurring theme and the root of much of the modern instability in the Middle East. Israel, Afghanistan, the Suez, Iraq.. It seems like the Brits like to run away from their problems and then let other countries clean it up after its festered for a few decades.
If I hadn't been through passport control between the two, I'd think that Britain and France were one in the same.
Damned straight. We shouldn't have defended England until Hitler was set up all nice and cozy at Buckingham Palace. Then we could have invited him over for tea to discuss his aggressive feelings toward the world. Maybe prescribed him a little ADHD medication and validated his feelings. Then we could have hoped he'd change his mind about killing all of the world's Jews, Catholics, etc... because no one can make a person change; the person has to want to change themselves. It's the only civilized way.
Consider it to be a similar advancement from Speedscript for the Commodore 64 to WordPerfect 5.1 for Dos.
And two decades later, still no word processor has the equivalent of SpeedScript's Commodore-Z function. I must be the only person in the world who found that useful.
Best word processor ever for the Commodore 64 was Paperback Writer. I had WordPerfect on DOS, but for years would go back and use Paperback Writer, until WordPerfect 5.0 came out. That was what made me switch.
A homeowner is limited in what he can do to protect his family and property from trespassers. The homeowner cannot shoot children who keep cutting across the lawn or set traps or deadly spring-operated guns to kill anyone who trespasses on the property. Deadly force in any manner is generally not justifiable except in self-defense while preventing a violent felony. Mere trespass is not a felony.
But go ahead make the customers into criminals and the pirates into heroes. Then when you have zero user base you'll finally realize where you went wrong.
I use DirectNIC out of New Orleans. Prices aren't the cheapest in the world ($15), but more and more people these days are learning -- you get what you pay for.
The iPhone will be a joke until:
* You can install your own apps on it
I see your point here. But I also understand the value of the controlled ecosystem which has been the hallmark of the Apple experience for years.
* It supports UMTS/HSDPA 3G
Already announced. Where have you been?
* It supports live video calls
That would be cool. Maybe with the already announced 3G version.
* It supports MMS
Do you have some kind of insider information that states that the iPhone won't support MMS? Every GSM phone I've owned back to 2000 has supported MMS. Why would the iPhone be any different? Or are you just trying to imply things that aren't true?
It does not even do 3G. I know in US it is not much of a problem but here in Europe 3G is happening right now and don't even think about Asia.
Well, Europe doesn't even get a chance to try it out until the end of 2007, and Jobs has already stated in front of thousands of people that a 3G version is coming. So.... what's your complaint again?
How exactly do you expect Jobs to convince a cell phone company to alter a fundamental feature of its network (voice mail) to support an iPhone-only killer feature (Visual Voice Mail)? In this world you have to give in order to receive. It's why he's a billionaire and you're posting lies on Slashdot.
$5 for Internet on my phone per month, plus data? 10 cents a piece for a text message that is less than 250 bytes? $3 per ringtone that I can get on iTunes(TM) for a single $? Not to mention the numbers listed as having called my phone that I have never heard of? Measuring calls in minutes instead of seconds?
Doesn't sound like you need a new country, just a new phone company.
$5/month for unlimited data? Sounds like T-Mobile USA. 10 cent text messages? Sounds like T-Mobile USA and a number of others. I can use any MP3 or open AAC file I want as my ringtone for free because I wasn't stupid enough to buy some locked-in carrier-provided phone and contract. And there are companies that measure calls in seconds instead of minutes. And ones that give free incoming calls (U.S. Cellular leaps to mind).
I think you're whining about a particular bad contract you're stuck in. Not everyone makes bad decisions.
Americans need to get with the program. I don't know how your phone systems work there
Thank you for your honesty. Most Slashdotters won't admit they're pulling crap out of their asses before spouting off. You, sir, have broken the mold.
I recommend you get off your Euro-centric high horse about cell phone lock-in because I've seen phone carriers from England to Austria to Japan who all play the same lock-in game.
in the rest of the world all you need to do to change phones is to buy the phone and put your sim card in it.
Just like in the United States (though with more limited carrier choice). Now go troll over on slashdot.eu or something.
Is there anything standing in the way of them just working with a T-Mobile sim card, like any other unlocked phone?
Possibly. It's been fairly well documented that Apple's deal with Cingular involved them modifying the Cingular system in order to support the Visual Voice Mail feature.
Whether this will happen with other carriers around the world remains to be seen. I suspect what will happen is that when you roam on another carrier (say T-Mobile or something outside the country) your phone will work OK, but that particular feature won't work unless you're roaming on a carrier that has similarly modified its network to support the Apple feature.
I guess you've never been to the Apple web site, clicked "Store" and then "Software."
iLife, FileMaker, Apperture, Apple Remote Desktop, iWork, Final Cut, Logic Pro, Appleworks, Shake, WebObjects, and probably a couple of dozen other titles would disagree with you.
I'll admit that I haven't used all of them, but of the titles I have used, NONE has the draconian registration and tracking system that comes with Microsoft software.
Like the guy who dumped Microsoft after being audited, I, too, am proud to run my company entirely Microsoft-free.
Go watch some sports, especially NASCAR, and notice that you've somehow been conned into watching a 2 hour commercial for Redbull, Oil, and Viagra
Sounds like buying a Windows machine. I see them in coffee shops every once in a while sprinkled in between the Apples. You can spot them pretty easily because they've got stickers all over them: "Made for Windows XP," "Intel Inside," "VIIV," "NVidia," "High Speed USB," "Wireless-G" and sometimes an entire sticker with the specifications of the machine or a Windows license number.
I don't know why people don't peel these things off. Digital cameras are the same way. It's the NASCARization of society.
Better hope you never get a package from UPS, FedEx, etc... I forget which one, but there was an article a few years ago stating that one of the big delivery companies was developing a signature database.
Slashdot Mirror
Just tried it (on T-Mobile US) and it works fine. You just lost $5.99. Give me your address so I can come over there and collect.
Why buys phones from the carriers anymore, anyway? Certainly not the Slashdot crowd, which is the sort of person this would affect most. This isn't 1987 when you're locked into some analog carrier's bag phone. Go on the internet or to the corner (non-carrier-owned) store and buy what you want that matches your carrier's technology.
Nope. It transposes adjacent letters. Great for people who type too quickly, or have problems with "i before e."
This looks a lot like blogspam. The only form of "proof" is just a link to some guy's blog. No official T-Mobile link to the policy. Not even a supposed quote from a customer service rep on the phone. And I just tried and had no problems using OperaMobile and five other third-party apps on my phone (M600i) with T-Mobile service.
The Slashdot posting should be rescinded. It's not accurate, not backed up by any proof, and appears to be just a ploy to get page views.
You are largely correct. Unfortunately, I wasn't trying to be factual -- I was just being a jerk. However, I do remember something about American naval vessels protecting British supply convoys before America's formal entry into WWII. Some day I'll do more research. From what I know so far, it's a fascinating war. 35,000,000 people killed. It really puts the whiny complaining by some about 3,000 soldiers dead in Iraq into perspective.
If I hadn't been through passport control between the two, I'd think that Britain and France were one in the same.
Best word processor ever for the Commodore 64 was Paperback Writer. I had WordPerfect on DOS, but for years would go back and use Paperback Writer, until WordPerfect 5.0 came out. That was what made me switch.
Gem was great. But I ended up using Ashton-Tate's "Framework" because most of my machines had MDA (monochrome text) cards instead of CGA.
Locked-in? Yes. Crippled? Well, that's just FUD.
How exactly do you expect Jobs to convince a cell phone company to alter a fundamental feature of its network (voice mail) to support an iPhone-only killer feature (Visual Voice Mail)? In this world you have to give in order to receive. It's why he's a billionaire and you're posting lies on Slashdot.
Does this mean that the Dell-heads will stop telling me that "No floppy drive" is a valid a reason not to switch to a Mac?
$5/month for unlimited data? Sounds like T-Mobile USA. 10 cent text messages? Sounds like T-Mobile USA and a number of others. I can use any MP3 or open AAC file I want as my ringtone for free because I wasn't stupid enough to buy some locked-in carrier-provided phone and contract. And there are companies that measure calls in seconds instead of minutes. And ones that give free incoming calls (U.S. Cellular leaps to mind).
I think you're whining about a particular bad contract you're stuck in. Not everyone makes bad decisions.
I recommend you get off your Euro-centric high horse about cell phone lock-in because I've seen phone carriers from England to Austria to Japan who all play the same lock-in game. Just like in the United States (though with more limited carrier choice). Now go troll over on slashdot.eu or something.
Whether this will happen with other carriers around the world remains to be seen. I suspect what will happen is that when you roam on another carrier (say T-Mobile or something outside the country) your phone will work OK, but that particular feature won't work unless you're roaming on a carrier that has similarly modified its network to support the Apple feature.
iLife, FileMaker, Apperture, Apple Remote Desktop, iWork, Final Cut, Logic Pro, Appleworks, Shake, WebObjects, and probably a couple of dozen other titles would disagree with you.
I'll admit that I haven't used all of them, but of the titles I have used, NONE has the draconian registration and tracking system that comes with Microsoft software.
Like the guy who dumped Microsoft after being audited, I, too, am proud to run my company entirely Microsoft-free.
I don't know why people don't peel these things off. Digital cameras are the same way. It's the NASCARization of society.
Better hope you never get a package from UPS, FedEx, etc... I forget which one, but there was an article a few years ago stating that one of the big delivery companies was developing a signature database.
In Soviet Russia, Beowulf cluster jokes enjoy you.