Thursday May 15, 2008

SingTel to launch Apple iPhone in Singapore : likely 3G but still no GPS (yet!)

The Apple iPhone is finally coming to Singapore, and it is slated to be launched here in September 2008. Engadget first broke the news that "Singapore Telecommunications (aka SingTel) announced that it's secured agreements to distribute the iPhone in Singapore and its partly-owned subsidiaries in Australia (Optus), India (Bharti Group), and the Philippines (Globe Telecom)," while Reuters reported that this "should help the company surpass its sales goal of 10 million units by the end of 2008."

From the Hardwarezone forums and elsewhere, we learn some preliminary details :

* The iPhone Singapore launch date will be in Sep 2008
* This will likely be the 3G iPhone with Version 2.0 software
* It will be SIM-unlocked since locked phones are actually illegal here
* The price will be around SGD $690 (USD $500)
* The $690 price is after a $100-200 handset subsidy via a 2-year SingTel contract

It would be a no-brainer buy for me if this one had GPS at this price or maybe a little more, and I'm sure it's the same for most of my compatriots. Even without that, it already has the nifty triangulation feature which when combined with Google Maps and Wi-Fi, turns it into a "virtual GPS" device of sorts. If they were to add to that a real GPS chipset such as a SiRFstar III, it would be an unbeatable combination.

And for good measure, here's a graphic that shows the iPhone's dimensions (height, width, weight, etc) :

(2008-05-15 23:08:03 SGT) [Tech] Permalink

Most popular blog postings on ReviewEm :

1. SingTel to launch Apple iPhone in Singapore : likely 3G but still no GPS (yet!)
2. Logitech V320 notebook wireless optical mouse review
3. Iron Man movie review
4. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull movie review
5. Marvel plans Iron Man sequel