Archive for June, 2007

US-centric iPhone doesn’t support SIMs


The fact that the iPhone doesn’t support SIM cards already excludes it from the T-Mobile network in the US, but in the UK all networks and mobile phones require SIM cards in order to function. Literally. Most won’t even turn on without one, or ask for a SIM card when you boot them and won’t go beyond until you switch them off and install one.

I just can’t see how the iPhone can be released by Apple in the UK or, for that matter, much of the EU, without making major changes under the bonnet. It might have extensive functionality in the US but in its present form it’s a very pretty brick falling way behind the competition in terms of what it offers to Europeans. How do some American mobiles—or rather, to use the local parlance, cellphones—work without SIM cards? I’ve no idea. The notion is alien to me.

I’ve written in the past about how stupid the omissions on this otherwise ground-breaking handheld device are, including a complete lack of support for 3G networks—again, prevalent across Europe and perfectly capable of transmitting music and video, two things Apple does not intend to supply—yet—although third parties could theoretically fill the gap. Still, this is a missed opportunity for Apple to increase its revenue from what we could see termed the Mobile iTunes Store, which could have offered music and video on the move that could later be transferred to your PC or Mac.

Read the full article.

Friday, June 29th, 2007