They always say save the best till last, and the last blog post for today is potentially a big’n. And it’s also proof positive that this blog is made as much by you guys reading this as it is by me. So, first off, a massive thank you to the reader who actually got in touch over our live chat feature, specifically to send a message to me. I’m not naming him here, because I’m not sure if he wants to be named… but if you’re reading this, thanks dude, because you could’ve stumbled upon a rather important story, so leave us a message in the comments section!
Like I say, it could potentially be rather big news…
The story begins on the pages of IT Pro Portal, where they’re running a piece about O2 allegedly losing exclusivity on the iPhone. If it’s true, it makes a huge amount of sense, now, why they were so keen to get an exclusive deal on the Palm Pre, since it’s the iPhone’s big new rival. After all, if you’re going to lose exclusivity on one big superphone, then you’d better be damn sure you have another big superphone lined up to take its place.
It’s here, though, that the plot thickens.
Y’see, there’s a thread on the Vodafone eForums about the Czech version of the iPhone, which appears to be a Voda-exclusive in that country, much like the HTC Magic is over here. And in it, one of the eForum team lets slip that Vodafone may very well be getting the iPhone later this year, implying that it’s due in September. In itself, that’s an intriguing statement, since it sounds like he’s saying “yes, it will be on Voda in September.”
However, what makes it even more compelling is the fact that four posts later, in the same forum, another member of the eForum team has written a message, saying they can neither confirm nor deny that the iPhone is heading their way, saying they have no idea one way or the other whether it actually will be… but he didn’t rule it out.
And you know what that says to me?
Damage control. The original post was bang on the money, and the second post was damage limitation, because they didn’t want the story leaking too early.
It may only be circumstantial evidence at the minute, but it’s pretty compelling evidence that Vodafone will indeed be getting the iPhone in September.
Watch this space…
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May 27th, 2009 at 5:11 pm
hey markus (email address included this time in case you wanted to contact)i aint worried about beeing named but i am somewhere on that vodafone blog (big clue at the end of this post)
i spoke to salli on live chat cause i couldnt find a contact for you, didnt see an email address for you on here.
like i said you never seem like iphones biggest fan and i did mention to salli (maybe because its pretty restrive about how its sold and that you aint allowed to – dont worry i agree we’d all bet a better deal if everyone did, plus i’ve bought from mobileshop before and was very impressed
!
I dont own one yet either, bad experience with O2 but really want one and at least one other network is good news.
Iphone impresses me purely because mobile phones were getting boring, most makers had been churning the same old out for a while and to some extent no matter what phone anyone is likely to get in the future in some way its probably a better phone because of the iphone.
The same reason the next gen iphone will be better thanks to android etc.
If i see out else i’ll let you know!
cheers
lee
May 27th, 2009 at 5:27 pm
also it would fit well with that portal they made for iphone users.
there is a way we could test this out ya know too
June 9th, 2009 at 3:29 pm
Thanks for commenting, Lee. As I said, this story was thanks to you, so have a plate of virtual jaffa cakes on me!
Nah, the reason I don’t like the iPhone is nothing to do with us not selling it (since we do price comprison, we HAVE got it on site, along with the new iPhone 3GS), but simply that I don’t like continually being told a phone that does less than my own is the best in the world.
Having said that, I agree with you 100%, there’s NO doubt the iPhone’s given a lot of other manufacturers a big kick up the bottom, and that’s no bad thing!
June 12th, 2009 at 6:13 am
I am just at the end of my Vodafone contract and I am on the verge of leaving Vodafone to get an iPhone with O2. I rang Vodafone and got my PAK code, and at this point I got a very interesting call from Vodafone!!
The lady basicially told me that O2 have indeed lost exclusivity and as of September other providers will be bidding to get the iPhone. She told me it was very likely that Vodafone will have the iPhone from September.
There were no guarantees and I know she trying to stop me leaving Vodafone but it has made me stop and think……should I wait until September?
James
June 29th, 2009 at 5:17 pm
Will there be advantages for existing customers over new customers with price plans & packages?
August 7th, 2009 at 3:53 pm
Markus, I already run a 3g iPhone on vodafone. other than photo pixels and video, what does any other phone do better.
August 18th, 2009 at 1:24 pm
Hanging in the window of the vodafone shop on Guernsey is a picture of an iPhone. Suggests to me its on its way soon.