The past six months, with three trips to Europe, have given me the opportunity not only to experience roaming on European 3G wireless services but also the strategies and alternatives that allow me to minimize roaming charges while traveling with both a BlackBerry and iPhone. A key to the achieving this goal lies in the support available for WiFi access points in hotels, restaurants, airports and at conferences that provide robust, scalable WiFi support. But the question outstanding is why would I use both devices? The answer lies in the applications and content.

While one can theorize academically about various low cost scenarios and one attempts to use WiFi wherever feasible, in actual travel, you need access to some form of wireless service wherever you may be. For instance, if lost in a city where you don’t speak the language, Google Maps can often help get you sorted out quickly. Or find the nearest restaurant district (was a big help in Paris, for instance). But you need wireless carrier access to use these services.

So what measures can I recommend?

First step: buy an International roaming package from the home wireless carrier. Over the summer Rogers introduced European roaming packages; here’s the comparison:

The good news about these packages is that the per MB and per minute charges remain the same for any overage over the minimum expenditures. The bad news is that roaming charges are still “huge” compared to the $0.03/MB or approximately $0.10 per minute paid when on my home Rogers network. U.S.-based users should check with their “home” carriers to see if similar plans are available. Rule of thumb and current reality, however: roaming charges remain the last ultra-high margin service for wireless carriers.

So, while relatively expensive, these packages are helpful when away from a WiFi access point; however, as mentioned above, the real saving comes when you set up for using WiFi wherever possible. (In addition I encountered a couple of situations where 3G coverage was weak or non-existent; in these cases access to WiFi became essential.)

Second step: ensure you have installed both Skype and Truphone on your iPhone; you can then make voice calls from WiFi access points at prevailing Skype or Truphone rates. For instance, Skype-to-Skype calls are free while SkypeOut calls are based on using either a Skype Calling Plan subscription or Skype credits.

Third step: buy, at a minimum, a Boingo Global Mobile plan; while WiFi in hotels and restaurants is usually free or has a daily charge, Boingo Global Mobile provides access in over 70 countries at airports and often at hotels where, otherwise, you would pay a daily fee that is usually more than Boingo Global Mobile’s monthly charge.

Fourth step: put the iPhone in Airplane mode but with WiFi access turned on. In this way, no voice calls are received via a wireless carrier; also the iPhone specifically requires proactive user permission to roam on data – leave this turned off. But the iPhone applications, including Skype and Truphone, can all be used when attached to a WiFi access point. (Note: I do not give out my iPhone voice number but do use it for various tests; Google Voice is not yet available in Canada to provide multi-smartphone calling.)

So here is where I use each device:

BlackBerry Bold 9000: email (both BlackBerry email and GMail), BlackBerry Messenger 5.0, Google Maps, SocialScope – still the most comprehensive Twitter application on a smartphone; SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry. Keep in mind that BlackBerry is overall more efficient for handling data due to the data compression provided by the BlackBerry Network Operations Centre architecture for managing data traffic. This ongoing wireless data compression feature is a major reason why I prefer BlackBerry for services such as Google Maps or downloading/uploading pictures in SocialScope as opposed to the iPhone when on a 3G wireless carrier network.

iPhone: main application is Skype, followed by Truphone. Very handy for making calls back to North America from hotel rooms or lobbies, restaurants as well as offices and conferences supported with WiFi access. (But you must have the relevant application open to receive calls and receive/send chat messages.) Other preferred applications include the Safari web browser (faster and more versatile than BlackBerry’s) and Facebook (which has a richer user experience than on BlackBerry) and a few applications that are unique to iPhone. Also comes in handy if the BlackBerry battery has died and I need immediate access to, say, GMail or a browser.

Bottom line: the feature that continues to dominate my preference for BlackBerry over iPhone is the keyboard; it’s a real time two-way communications device whereas the iPhone, with its superior browser capability, continues to be an information delivery device but works best for one way communication. My use of its touch screen keyboard tends to be limited to entering user names and passwords.

A few comments:

• There’s one major application missing on the BlackBerry – with its full multi-tasking capability the BlackBerry is ideally suited for Skype as a VoIP client. One can have real time chat sessions continue in background while using other applications; we experienced this with iSkoot but at this point one would expect to have seen the Skype for BlackBerry that was announced by Skype around the time of last spring’s launch of Skype for iPhone. And now that Skype for Symbian beta supports both 3G and WiFi and the FCC is supporting for “net neutrality”, the “carrier-support” argument for avoiding VoIP clients over WiFi on the BlackBerry no longer holds water. In fact, Rogers has made it clear that they have no issue with running Skype over 3G networks. Let’s hope that Skype and RIM can get the act together such that we can see a product introduction early in 2010.
• On my most recent trip I only bought the 15 minute voice package; with BlackBerry Messenger and SocialScope (for Twitter) available I found little need to make voice calls while in 3G only mode. Skype on my PC at hotel rooms and conferences as well as Skype and Truphone over iPhone addressed 95% of my voice calling needs. (Now, if I could just learn how to order a taxi in Spanish!)
• I realize most smartphone users will only have one phone. I present this post simply to provide an overview of my experience using both these devices while optimizing my roaming experience when traveling out of the home country. I need to have both devices due to not only their popularity but also the different content exchanged and user experiences for each smartphone.

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Skype launches a Canadian Skype store customized to the Canadian market.

When Skype began working with hardware vendor partners a few years ago, it also realized there was an opportunity for revenue generation by hosting a store where a Skype user could purchase Skype Certified headsets, phones and webcams. However, it also quickly became apparent that operating a multi-national retail web-based store came with the logistics challenges of delivering atoms (as opposed to bits), collecting revenue in multiple currencies and as well as inventory management, warehousing, shipping and “local” customs agencies and their rules. Not to mention that every political jurisdiction likes to collect its taxes.

Over the past year Skype has been quietly overhauling its Skype Stores on a country-by-country basis. Skype came up with a strategy that involved working with country-based shopping comparison sites who would, in turn, introduce shoppers to products as well as with In Store Solutions who have been developing their own “In Store Solutions” stores that now supports 40 currencies across 67 countries. The Skype Store for 21 countries (U.S., U.K., Australia, several western European countries and several Latin American countries) comprises both a shopping comparison site shop and an In Store Solutions shop whereas In Store Solutions is the sole Skype Store shop in 47 additional countries including Japan.

The shopping comparison sites facilitate purchase of products from vendors such as Logitech, Plantronics, Netgear, Belkin and Polycom while In Store Solutions sells their FREETALK line of headsets (FREETALK Everyman and FREETALK Wireless Stereo Headset) and the FREETALK Buddy Cam.

Prior to April this year, if, from a Canadian IP address, a Canadian visited the Skype Store at shop.skype.com, s/he would simply get a web page with a message to the effect that there was no Skype store for Canada. Since April but until last week the same situation would lead the visitor to a Skype store but with a U.S.-based shopping comparison vendor in addition to In Store Solutions. And pricing was in U.S. dollars. Neither a terribly relevant nor successful store in terms of sales generated.

As of last Thursday this situation changed completely. Canadians will now find a “Real Canadian Skype Store”¹ involving a Canadian shopping comparison site as well as In Store Solutions. And all pricing is in Canadian dollars.

Bottom line: Canadians can now order Skype Certified Hardware, including the FREETALK Everyman Headset and other FREETALK hardware, knowing what their final C$ price will be at the time of purchase. If, for some reason, you do not find C$ pricing check that you are in the Canadian store by looking for the “Canada (English)” selection in the footer of the store page. A “Canada (French)” version is under development.

Full transparency: A real Canadian Skype store has been under development long before it was announced last week that Canadians will have a “shareholder” interest in Skype.

Full disclosure: In Store Solutions has become a client of Denali InterConneXions, publisher of Voice On The Web, building on the author’s previous business development experience with establishing partnerships that can assist with the promotion of a primary vendor’s offerings. A more complete statement will follow shortly.

¹“Real Canadian Skype Store” is a parody on a Canadian grocery and housewares retailer who had a chain of stores called “Real Canadian Superstore”.

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Canadian iPhone and iPod Touch users will be able to celebrate all 9’s day (today is 09-09-09) by participating in Skype conversations from their iPhone. At 12:01 a.m. the Canadian Apple App store will be making Skype for iPhone available.

Breaking news (12:04 a.m. Sept. 9): I have just successfully downloaded Skype for iPhone from the Canadian Apple App store and sent my first chat message to the Skype 5.x Public Chat session.

When Canadians woke up on the March 31 worldwide launch date of Skype for iPhone they learned they could not be amongst the over 6 million iPhone users who have since downloaded Skype for iPhone from Apple App stores worldwide, except, of course, in Canada. A shock to the country where Alexander Graham Bell made the world’s first long distance call to Brantford, Ontario across a six kilometre wire from a nearby telegraph station back in 1876.

The Canadian launch of the Skype for iPhone was delayed while Skype and Apple Canada’s licensing teams worked out “ambiguity” issues related to Skype for iPhone’s use of the G729 codec in Canada. In an interview with Skype personnel yesterday I was advised these issues are now resolved with the Canadian launch set for 12:01 a.m. Sept. 9, 2009 when they will be able to download the recently released Skype for iPhone 1.2.

From the press release:

“We are delighted to bring the Skype for iPhone application to Canadian iPhone and iPod touch users as it opens up new ways for them to stay connected with family, friends and colleagues for free or minimal cost,” said Tom Yeung, Skype’s director of market development, Americas. “With more than 6 million downloads from the App Store so far, the Skype for iPhone application is one of our most popular mobile offerings so we’re delighted to say that Canadians can now also carry their Skype conversations with them wherever they go.”

Where can it be used: All Skype for iPhone features are available at any WiFi access point on both the iPhone and iPod Touch; however, when an iPhone is on a 3G wireless carrier the voice application is not available to be in compliance with the terms of Apple’s Software Development Kit licensing agreement. However, chat and presence activity can continue over a 3G carrier’s network.

To review Skype for iPhone’s feature set:

• What’s free:
  • Skype-to-Skype calls (only via a WiFi access point)
  • Skype IM: presence information and chat sessions between individuals or across groups
• What’s requires payments:
  • Calls to landline or mobile phones using either a Skype Calling Plan subscription or “pay-as-you-go” Skype Credits (requires WiFi access; connection fees may also apply)
  • Receiving calls at a Skype Online number (requires WiFi access)
  • Voicemail retrieval
  • Call Forwarding: (new in version 1.2) when the Skype for iPhone is not open on the iPhone, calls will be forwarded to the iPhone’s mobile number under the same terms as calls to landline or mobile phones.
  • SMS outbound messaging (new in version 1.2)

How useful is Skype for iPhone? when I was at a business meeting in Spain in early July, I found two North Americans using their Skype for iPhone as a “walkie-talkie” to communicate with each other while on the hotel property using its WiFi connection. Neat actually. With the rapid spread of WiFi access points as an alternative to using wireless carriers iPhone users should find many public and private (home, office) locations where they can use Skype for iPhone.

Rogers is ready to run Skype for iPhone’s voice calling over their 3G network whenever Apple removes their licensing restriction on VoIP applications employing 3G protocols. (But AT&T in the U.S. is probably nowhere near being able to handle the data traffic load that would result from lifting this restriction.)

Skype for iPhone suffers from one limitation of the iPhone: the lack of background processing. You must have the application open, not only to send and receive voice calls, but also to follow chat sessions. Hopefully the previously announced Skype for BlackBerry will address this issue where the BlackBerry supports background processing.

Bottom line: with Skype chat as over 80% of my Skype activity I look forward to being able to track chat sessions while riding buses and commuter trains (but not while driving a vehicle – text messaging while driving becomes illegal in Ontario this month). And making Skype voice calls from my home as well as hotels, restaurants and other myriad of locations with a WiFi access point.

P.S. – Is it coincidence that Skype for iPhone became legally available to Canadians so soon after the announcement that 17 million Canadians will have a shareholder interest in Skype? Probably not.

• Globe and Mail: Canadians, rejoice: Skype for iPhone is here
• CBC.ca: Skype finally hits iPhones in Canada includes a more detailed discussion about the licensing issue.

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Yesterday Rogers launched the first Android phones available in Canada with two devices: the HTC Magic (touch screen only) and HTC Dream (touchscreen and slide-out keyboard). Rogers is the first carrier worldwide offering both these devices and also the first North American carrier to offer the HTC Magic.

Over two years ago, in a post Precursor to GPhone? On My Blackberry?, I had predicted any Google-powered phone would include all the Google features found on the BlackBerry (or iPhone).  In this regard today’s demonstration and presentation did not disappoint. Search, Maps with Latitude, GTalk, GMail, News, Google Docs, Sync, Calendar, were all included in the demonstration with the same Google features as found on any BlackBerry or iPhone. However, there were some differentiating features:

• both phones run on Rogers recently launched 3.5G 7.2 Mbps HSPA network, which Rogers claims to approach broadband DSL speeds and to be 3x faster than any other Canadian wireless data network
• there are over 3,200 applications available in the Android Market. Currently these applications are free; however, Google is expected to add a payment system in a few months.
• both phones have a touchscreen with haptic keyboard which, on a brief trial, was definitely impressive (the Dream also has a physical slide-out keyboard)

A few comments:

• While the Skype Lite beta client was seen on the demonstration devices, it does not work at the moment on Rogers. See my upcoming post about Rogers’ position on supporting Skype for more details; suffice it to say it is a Skype issue that needs to be addressed at this point.
• They are currently targeting the consumer market. With a launch involving “Fringe” actor Joshua Jackson (a native Canadian), the entire presentation centered on drawing attention through his promotional tour of the past few days.
• Pricing for these devices are C$149 when purchased with a three year plan. The voice and data plans are the same pricing as for BlackBerry and iPhone but with an one month introductory offering of C$30 for 6GB data usage per month. Interestingly, according to a salesperson in the Rogers Retail Store at their headquarters, the same offer is being made for iPhone purchases during June.
• Rogers continues to demonstrate an ability to outperform AT&T in the U.S. when it comes to fully supporting 3G, and now 3.5G, networks.
• In Om Malik’s post today, With 2M Downloads, Where Is Right on Track, it appears that ”Where” is the most popular Android application. However, for Rogers’ customers the question would be the extent of the Canadian content in this application.
• Yesterday T-Mobile USA’s CTO reported that over 1 million G1 phones have been sold in the U.S. over the first six months in the market. According to mocoNews.net, it appears that T-Mobile USA is going ahead with new Android models and forsaking Nokia’s new N97 offering:
  

  [CTO] Brodman said they are not very interested in Nokia’s flagship N97 device, which hits the market this month. Brodman: “Some of the Nokia/Symbian devices have a lot of functionality, but they are quite expensive and Symbian does not have a lot of traction in the U.S. While Nokia (NYSE: NOK) is a strong partner, we haven’t had a lot of demand for N-series products to date.”

Bottom line: Android opens up new user choices in the Canadian consumer smartphone market. Frankly, the key attraction and differentiator will be the variety of applications available on Android Market along with the overall touchscreen user experience. As a representative application, at yesterday’s launch they mentioned Savvy Shopper that allows price comparisons, using the camera as a bar code reader, for any product in their database.

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Last Friday morning, iPhone 3G launch day, I caught the earliest commuter train into Toronto and arrived at the Rogers “designated” Toronto iPhone launch store about 30 minutes before opening at 8 a.m. A lineup of about 150 to 200 potential customers (awaiting what turned out to be 100 units with a cap of 2 per customer) who had endured a massive downpour about an hour earlier and been served a “breakfast” of a granola bar and orange juice. Ironically this store occupies the location of what was, at one time, Canada’s largest record store (Sam The Record Man) which went out of business a few years ago due to the Internet’s impact on music distribution.

During the wait I had the opportunity to interview Jordan Brown, (left) a 16-year-old high school student, who had arrived at 4 p.m. the previous afternoon to be first in line, and Robert Cowley, an auctioneer and Mac fanatic, who joined Jordan 45 minutes later once he saw that a lineup was forming. Jordan had been following the original iPhone activity for the past year but did not join the crowd who went to the U.S. to get an unlocked iPhone. This would be his first Rogers wireless account; he decided to acquire an iPhone as a result of the service plan changes announced by Rogers two days earlier. His reasons for wanting one included the browsing experience and the App store. But at a broader level he was keen to explore all the features. Robert was a long time Mac aficionado who wanted to extend his Mac experience to a mobile device. He had heard rumors about limited supply and high demand so wanted to ensure he acquired one on the launch day. In his case he was going to move the Rogers account for his Blackberry Pearl to the iPhone.

About ten minutes prior to the launch the media were allowed into the store to take up positions prior to the opening. (Blogger credentials helped here.) There were seven agents ready to take orders and Steve Krecklo had been designated to take the first order. Surrounded by at least forty video cameras, Steve patiently waited as the time approached. At the store opening, Jordan arrived and was overwhelmed by the media. He was interviewed live for Canada AM – CTV’s national morning show and CITY-TV’s Breakfast AM – a “local” station. The most popular question: “whom would he make his first call to?” “My friend who chided me for wanting to wait so long to get an iPhone.” An iPhone package appeared; Steve opened it and gave it to Jordan while he set up Jordan’s account. As shown to the right above, more media madness ensued!

Finally Jordan was able to make his call — and got voicemail! Another call got him through to a friend with whom he talked about his experience. Meanwhile Rob was completing his purchase and activation of two iPhones, one to replace his Pearl 8100 and the other for a friend. I actually witnessed the moving of his SIM to the iPhone. Another Rogers rep was taking the time to walk Rob through all the details of his service agreement. In a subsequent interview with Rob (for which a new N95 user interface for Qik.com resulted in not getting Qik.com’s video streaming working) he pointed out that (i) he viewed his iPhone as a mobile extension of his Mac and (ii) he would have acquired an iPhone even under the initially proposed Rogers service plans. It was certainly clear that Rob was a Mac fanatic who was well acquainted with its differentiating features. I hope to do a follow up interview with Rob once he has a few days’ experience with it.

During all this activity I was reporting the activity via Twitter4Skype using iSkoot on my Blackberry; I also was seeing reports of iBricks when previous iPhone users attempted to upgrade to the iPhone 2.0 software.

At that point it was time to move onto my next appointment. Outside, more media were interviewing Jordan after he left the store. There was still a lineup of about 75 being entertained by Rogers personnel handing out Rogers umbrellas (yes, it was raining again) and Rogers “I was at the launch” T-shirts. But, as later reported:

• This primary launch location only had 100 iPhones (80 8GB, 20 16GB) and was soon sold out. The following morning I visited my local Rogers Plus store which had only received 13 units that were sold out in the first hour (and left a line-up of potential customers disappointed). They had no indication of when they would be restocked (other than maybe on their normal Thursday restocking day).
• There were no reports of “rain checks” for those who had persevered under not the best weather conditions.
• Rogers had eventually encountered the worldwide activation problems reported elsewhere.

My Facebook Photo Album for this event with more details.

Tom Cross: iHate my iPhone because it’s iDead. Hat tip to Andy who also reports that Bastille Day celebrations possibly delay the iPhone launch in France.

To follow: Learnings from the Canadian iPhone 3G Launch.

Tags: iPhone 3G, Rogers, Jordan Brown, Robert Cowley

Caveat: This post is mostly for the benefit of Canadians but then again if you’re outside Canada where unlimited data plans are the norm, count your blessings. These plans do have implications for mobile Skype usage costs, such as with iSkoot. Update: maybe it is international – the story has made CNN.com.

Rogers takes major steps towards lower cost data plans for Canadians but they still don’t measure up to US and European benchmarks.

To review the Canadian wireless data scene:

• Rogers is the only GSM carrier in Canada
• the iPhone is to be launched July 11 with the introduction of the iPhone 3G.
• Blackberry Bold will be available on Rogers at some time this summer (indications point to a July launch; seems that Rogers has more HSPA experience than AT&T)
• Rogers is replacing the Blackberry 8800 with the WiFi-enabled Blackberry 8820.
• Rogers monthly data plans have been, to be kind, somewhat expensive ($60 for 25MB on Blackberry; $60 for 1GB on an Nokia N95). In one cited example, 500MB of data per month would have cost $1,600.
• These are the first popular WiFi-enabled phones to be launched by Rogers (their N95 8GB launch two months ago has not exactly been a roaring success). Canadian still don’t have much experience using WiFi access points with smartphones.

As predicted here last fall and discussed again two months ago, the forthcoming Canadian launch of the iPhone with the accompanying Rogers voice/data plans has been accompanied by new Rogers data plans for the Blackberry (at least for those using the Blackberry BIS service). While Rogers offers no unlimited plans, last week I was able to change my Blackberry data plan from $60 for 25MB to $30 for 300MB (4% of my previous per MB cost). Down from the $1600 per month mentioned above, 500MB of data now costs $50 per month. And they now offer overage protection or FlexRate in their plans with incremental costs well below those of previous data plans from $5/MB to $0.50/MB for the first 60MB and $0.03/MB thereafter. Finally to get a feel for your usage, the Rogers Blackberry plans offer unlimited email and browsing for the first one/two/three months of a contract provided you take out a 1/2/3-year contract.

Higher capacity data plans are available; however, I found I was using much less than 25MB per month but I was also cautious with my usage. A good part of the reason for this low usage was related to my heavy use of the WiFi available on my evaluation Blackberry 8820 at my home office, in hotels with accessible WiFi and even at other locations with accessible WiFi — this was especially true when traveling in the U.S.. In a couple of cases I even fired up my Linksys Travel Router to convert an wired Ethernet connection to an WiFi access point in my hotel room.

On doing a comparison of combined voice and data plans I found the Blackberry plans to be slightly (~5%) less than iPhone plans comparing 450 voice minutes, 100 Canadian long distance minutes and 1GB of data. Provided you take the $15 Value Pack (required for CallerID) they are equal on issues such as sent text messages and enhanced voice mail.

Here is the key point all the media coverage of the Rogers plans misses. The iPhone comes with WiFi in addition to GSM/EDGE/HSPA.Over the past year many Canadians who bought iPhones out of the U.S. simply limited their Internet access to WiFi access points (on an unlocked iPhone) and never used the voice service; some actually paid the AT&T monthly fee if they traveled frequently to the U.S.. But here are the consequences of the iPhone’s WiFi feature:

• Rogers iPhone plans include free access to Canadian HotSpot network sites at Starbucks, Second Cup, major airports and other public locations.
• Home and office use: In Canada some broadband Internet services end up supplying a cable modem/router with WiFi access; at worst it’s a one-time cost of $100 to buy a WiFi-enabled router to create a home or office WiFi access point.

I have now had about 8 months’ experience with the Blackberry 8820 and Nokia N95; as mentioned above I learned how to adopt to maximizing WiFi usage and using the Rogers data network only when absolutely necessary. Speculation at crackberry.com is that Rogers is in the process of launching the Blackberry 8820 to replace the 8800. Check the linked Crackberry.com post for all the activity that can be carried on through a WiFi access point on the 8820; no doubt those same features will carry over to the Blackberry Bold when it becomes available.

But there is one key feature of Blackberries that will not be available on the iPhone (aside from Copy & Paste): Blackberry 8×20′s also support the UMA/GAN protocol. This means that you can also reduce your cellular plan voice minutes by calling through a WiFi access point. T-Mobile has had this service, called T-Mobile @ Home, since their launch last September. Rogers is commencing the offering of similar but more limited service through its Home Calling Zone plan which also is rumored to include free access at Canadian HotSpot Network locations. Relative to T-Mobile’s service, Rogers Home Calling Zone only works for WiFi access points within Canada whereas several of my acquaintances have been able to access T-Mobile’s service through their hotel WiFi services in Europe and Israel.

Neighbourhood Rogers/Bell Cell Tower - Jan 08

So here are the outstanding questions:

• Why did Rogers issue a press release announcing their iPhone plans while their customers only learn about their new Blackberry plans via sites such as Crackberry.com? Is this the Apple hype machine in action or has RIM fallen down on the PR opportunity?
• Why do Rogers data plan rates for enterprises with BES servers remain unchanged at $25 per month for 25MB? One excuse is that this is what is charged by market competitors Bell and Telus (who use CDMA instead of GSM).
• Why do Rogers’ plans remain much higher than the equivalent AT&T pricing for both iPhone and Blackberry (for both of which AT&T provides unlimited data usage plans)?
• What role does installed backhaul capacity have in these rates? Is it the need to build out more backhaul capacity that is causing Rogers to only offer “limited” plans. Pictured is a new cell tower near my home; yet I understand, in spite of having a fibre optic connection, it still uses only two T1′s or two E1′s to get back to an Internet consolidation point. (It’s final connection was delayed several months awaiting municipal permits to run the fibre optic line under a major roadway.)
• When will RIM and Rogers make available the 4.5 firmware upgrade for 8xxx series Blackberries to improve the browsing and HTML email experience, amongst a multitude of other issues addressed? RIM upgraded all their BIS servers over this past weekend in preparation for this new firmware.

Going forward I recommend:

• Leverage WiFi wherever possible. Download programs, preview Map routes and perform other data intensive activities while at a home or office WiFi access point. On the Nokia N95 I only use data intensive applications such as SlingPlayer (coming soon to Blackberries upgraded to the 4.5 firmware, where available) and Qik.com when in a WiFi zone.
• For a real mobile phone, the Blackberry 8×20 series or Blackberry Bold: UMA/GAN support (8×20 Blackberries only), Copy & Paste, video services (especially with the Bold), proven battery life, true stereo Bluetooth support and MMS are some of the differentiating reasons.
• For mobile entertainment: wait for an iPod Touch with GPS and maybe a microphone and use it in WiFi-enabled zones for the iPhone browsing experience – no monthly subscription fees. Meanwhile I’ll stick with my iPod.

The Looming Canadian iPhone Launch Flop: As for the iPhone’s launch in Canada, some early “geek” adopters may rush to get them on the launch day but on reviewing the plans, especially with the incremental costs for voice overage ($0.35 per minute on the two lowest costs plans) along with the data caps, it would appear the only plan that makes any sense for a complete iPhone experience is the highest cost one at $115/month. This is especially true if you want an iPhone to be your primary phone; the overage charges will quickly drive you up a level or two, irrespective of data usage. Even then you need at least the additional $15/month iPhone Value Pack if you want to take advantage of callerID’s ability to locate your caller in your iPhone address book. When combined with the requirement for a three year contract, this is not a plan that is going to really bring the massive uptake the Apply hype machine is trying to generate and Rogers is anticipating. Ah, the iPod Touch offers such a good alternative provided you can live with only using WiFi access points!

Other posts:

• Jack Kapica, Globe and Mail: Pig in a Poke; How Rogers Stacks Up
• Great Expectations About To Be Disappointed: Facebook Petition
• CNet News: Canadian iPhone 3G Plans lack unlimited data
• Mark Evans: How Badly Do Canadians Want an iPhone?
• Mathew Ingram: Rogers iPhone: Get a Second Mortgage

Tags: Rogers, iPhone 3G, Blackberry, RIM, Blackberry Bold, Blackberry 8820, Rogers data plans, WiFi, smartphones, iPod Touch, T-Mobile @Home, Rogers Home Calling Zone, Crackberry.com, Jack Kapica, Mark Evans, Mathew Ingram

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The Canadian wireless market provides a unique situation in that Rogers is the only GSM wireless service provider. From the smartphone side there are four potential suppliers:

• Apple, with its iPhone which requires GSM
• RIM, whose WiFi -enabled 8×20 Blackberries require GSM to be able to use the UMA/GAN feature
• Nokia, who basically only builds GSM-compatible devices
• iSkoot with their Skypephone which requires GSM

Last fall I posted about the picture as Rogers was seeing it, pointing out that it was not simply a case of supporting the iPhone but rather looking at the other smartphone vendors as well when considering how Rogers would react to the availability of the iPhone. In essence providing an “unlimited” data plan would only be viable if Rogers’ other vendors also had similar opportunities for unlimited data plans. Several developments this week:

• On Tuesday, Rogers announced that they had finalized a deal with Apple re the iPhone but provided no details, especially as to a launch date or data plans. However, it does mean that Apple and Rogers have agreed on at least the high level aspects of a data plan.
• This morning I attended a Nokia N95 launch event where Rogers announced they would be launching next week the newer Nokia N95 8GB multimedia smartphone with many appealing features and an interesting service plan incorporating not only data but also North America’s first wireless video calling offering.
• Crackberry.com has rumors about a forthcoming UMA/GAN-based service called Rogers Home Calling Zone (but it won’t launch May 6) as well as a tiered Blackberry data plan.

There is another factor at play in Canada. Later this month the CRTC will be auctioning off Advanced Wireless Services spectrum where new players have the ability to participate. Any new carrier will have to be supporting GSM for a variety of reasons; Rogers is moving over the same time period to forestall any market advantage a new carrier may have.

And in a recent Wired magazine article it was pointed out that AT&T’s genius in working with Apple was recognizing that “The iPhone would result in a surge of data traffic that would more than make up for any revenue it lost on content deals”.

It will be an interesting couple of months to watch the Canadian wireless market evolve. Competitive forces, as well as new revenue opportunities, from multiple directions are coming into play.

On Tuesday’s launch date I’ll post more details about the Nokia N95 8GB offering, the real trigger point for offering more realistic GSM-based mobile Internet plans to Canadians. But there’s more to the overall offering.

And the good news for Skype: Skype calling will be accessible on any of these platforms via either iSkoot and/or IM+ for Skype.

Tags: Rogers, iPhone, Apple, Blackberry, RIM, N95 8GB, Nokia, Skypephone, GSM, Canada wireless, CRTC, AWS Auction, iSkoot, IM+ for Skype

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CES 2008 generated a few items in the blogosphere that may be of interest to our readers.

Mobivox gets Scoblized: Nitzan Shaer, COO of Mobivox, whose calling service provides access to your Skype contacts from any phone device, was interviewed for one of the last editions of the Scoble Show. Hat tip to Andy.

Don Albert, Skype’s North American General Manager, was interviewed by CBC News reporter Peter Nowak. Of particular interest to Canadians is Don’s response about SkypeIn numbers for Canada:

PN: You don’t offer SkypeIn in Canada because regulations require phone service operators to offer enhanced 911, which allows the operator to locate where a caller is. What are you doing about this situation?

DA: That is the gist of it. We are working on it and we hear from Canadian users all the time that they want to have that available, so we’ve been working with partners who we think can help us with a solution there. We’re hopeful that in the course of this year we’ll be able to offer that.

In this interview Don also addresses some misconceptions about getting access to Skype via wireless carriers.

Tags: Skype, Mobivox, Nitzan Schaer, Don Albert, CBC News, Peter Nowak, SkypeIn Canada