AT&T: New iPhone will be hot,

According to The Boy Genius Report, the following have been confirmed:

* New iPhone (to be announced in June) will be faster and have a more seamless experience unmatched by any device.

* U-Verse iPhone application; will allow control of your home DVR (play, pause, rewind, etc.)

* AT&T is said to be working with Apple to create a unified product with an unparalleled experience across all their products and services.

* Seems like the higher speed HSDPA (7.2Mbps) is being hinted at too which should confirm the earlier rumors of the new Infineon chipset.

* The $99 3G netbook will start selling this summer, and the first one won’t be a Windows OS.

AT&T to sell iPhone without contract

From The Associated Press -

AT&T will start selling iPhones next Thursday without requiring a two-year contract, but they will cost $400 more. The 8GB will go for $599 while the 16GB model will go for $699. The two models respectively cost $199 and $299 under contract.

The new phones will still be "locked" to AT&T and won't work with any other cellular carrier unless they're modified. AT&T will only activate them on the regular iPhone plans, which include a $30 monthly charge for data access. Prepaid service will not be available.

Apple is widely expected to release a new version of the phone this summer.

Apple's iPhone 3G saves AT&T from recession

From TG Daily -

AT&T posted its fiscal Q4 2008 earnings Wednesday revealing just how important the iPhone has been for the company. While its landline business slumped further, AT&T's wireless business grew, thanks to 1.9 million new iPhone 3G activations. In addition, a significant number of new subscribers switched network just get the iPhone 3G.

Complete details here.

$99 Refurbished iPhones Now Available From AT&T

AT&T is now offering refurbished iPhones via its online store - the black, 8GB iPhone goes for $99 and the 16GB iPhone for $199 in white or black. A two year contract is still required, but it still comes with a 90-day warranty.

AT&T iPhone exclusivity extended to 2010?

From Engadget -

According to USA Today Apple has extended AT&T's US exclusive on the iPhone for an additional year, until 2010. The extension isn't officially announced, but it's being cited in the context of a long interview with AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson, who's quoted as saying things like "The iPhone has repositioned AT&T as the premier wireless brand in the world."

Source article here.

AT&T iPhone exclusivity extended to 2010?

From Engadget -

According to USA Today Apple has extended AT&T's US exclusive on the iPhone for an additional year, until 2010. The extension isn't officially announced, but it's being cited in the context of a long interview with AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson, who's quoted as saying things like "The iPhone has repositioned AT&T as the premier wireless brand in the world."

Source article here.

AT&T iPhone exclusivity extended to 2010?

From Engadget -

According to USA Today Apple has extended AT&T's US exclusive on the iPhone for an additional year, until 2010. The extension isn't officially announced, but it's being cited in the context of a long interview with AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson, who's quoted as saying things like "The iPhone has repositioned AT&T as the premier wireless brand in the world."

Source article here.

AT&T iPhone exclusivity extended to 2010?

From Engadget -

According to USA Today Apple has extended AT&T's US exclusive on the iPhone for an additional year, until 2010. The extension isn't officially announced, but it's being cited in the context of a long interview with AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson, who's quoted as saying things like "The iPhone has repositioned AT&T as the premier wireless brand in the world."

Source article here.

AT&T announces iPhone 3G pricing plans

From Engadget -

AT&T has announced its pricing plans for the 3G iPhone, which will be available starting 8 am, July 11th.

New customers and those eligible for an upgrade will be able to buy it at $199 (8GB) or $299 (16GB), while "early upgraders" will have to fork over $399 or $499, all with a two year contract and $18 upgrade fee. A no-commitment version of the phone will be available for $599 and $699, though it looks like that will come after the initial launch.

Full details are available in the source article here.

AT&T now limiting iPhone sales to one, requiring plastic

From the Apple Insider -

In an internal memo to its retail department AT&T implemented new policies regarding the increasingly hard-to-find iPhone, primarily that customers will be limited to only one unit until further notice.

"Effective May 14, 2008, customers can only purchase one iPhone at AT&T stores..." The prior limit of three iPhones is no longer in effect. In addition, "...Customers may only use credit or debit cards to purchase their iPhone."

Source article here.

The Untold Story: How the iPhone Blew Up the Wireless Industry

Wired has a very interesting and revealing story on the making of the Apple iPhone, especially regarding how Steve Jobs was able to convince ATT (Cingular at that time) to offer the iPhone on HIS terms - in return for five years of exclusivity, roughly 10% of iPhone sales in ATT stores, and a thin slice of Apple's iTunes revenue.

In addition, he succeeded in getting ATT into spending millions of dollars and thousands of man-hours to create a new feature, so-called visual voicemail, and to reinvent the time-consuming in-store sign-up process. He also got a unique revenue-sharing arrangement, garnering roughly $10 a month from every iPhone customer's ATT bill.

On top of all that, Apple retained complete control over the design, manufacturing, and marketing of the iPhone. Jobs had done the unthinkable: squeezed a good deal out of one of the largest players in the entrenched wireless industry. The deal had given Jobs, and Apple, unprecedented power and effectively rewrote the book on how phone manufacturers deal with telcos.

Complete story is available here.