China Mobile wants a slow iPhone

Tom Krazit | Sep 26, 2008

China Mobile might be asking Apple for a modified version of the iPhone to ensure its customers stay within its network.

Apple and China Mobile have been flirting for some time over the prospect of bringing the iPhone to China. Now the South China Morning Post is reporting (via Cellular-News) that China Mobile wants Apple to ship an iPhone in China with the Wi-Fi and 3G chips disabled. Why take out the fast networking chips that make the iPhone shine, you may ask?

Competition. China Mobile plans to build out a 3G network based on a homegrown Chinese standard for third-generation networks that is not compatible with the widely used W-CDMA standard that is also expected to be used by China Mobile competitor China Telecom.

The thinking, according to the report, is that China Mobile doesn't want its customers buying an iPhone 3G compatible with the W-CDMA standard before it can complete its own 3G network. Otherwise, those customers may decide to unlock the iPhone and use it on China Telecom's network rather than staying tied to the China Mobile network. Unlocked iPhones are rampant in China; over 400,000 were estimated to be in use earlier in the year, and few think that number has gotten smaller.

If all Apple has to do is knock out the 3G and Wi-Fi chips it might not be too difficult to ship the modified handset, since it wouldn't be like developing something completely different. But given how closely the iPhone is associated with Apple, the move would create the potential for Chinese iPhone users stuck on a slow data network to blame the iPhone for their poor experience.

China would be a big prize for Apple, but it might not be worth the cost of shipping a crippled iPhone.

Via CNET Blogs

Filed under: Mobile Phones
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lv208306

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lv208306 says...
China has proven to the world that they have the knowledge, expertise and technologies to manufacture their own 'Made in China' space craft and space suit which one of their astronaut's worn who stepped out of the spacecraft into space.

Notwithstanding the above, China has been manufacturing their own 'Made in China' brands of mobile phones which are exported all over the world including Singapore.

I am confident that China is able to produce their own iphone brand that would be suitable for their networks and internationally without even asking Apple for a modified version of the iPhone.

Lets not forget that many of the renowned brand of products from vehicles to handphones are made in China. The main reason is that China's labour cost is cheap.

Sep 30, 2008 20:57

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ferdiei

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ferdiei says...
going back to the subject, if this is the case then its like their govt is steering onto a "protectionist" mode. even if the huge China market is tempting to resist, a crippled iphone is not worth the products reputation & "occult" following, then China would just churn out homegrown 'copycats' to satisfy the taste of their local market..and Apple shall be on the losing end to this (would be) kind of deal.

Oct 01, 2008 00:34

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