Nope, ｎｏ　ｃａｒｒｉｅｒｓ　ｉｎ　ＵＳＡ　and CNN NEVER wrote a single word about 5800 Xpressｍｕｓｉｃ　ｌａｕｎｃｈｅｄ　ｌａｓｔ　ｙｅａｒ　ｉｎ　Ｎｏｖｅｍｂｅｒ　ａｎｄ　ａｂｏ ｕｔ　Ｎ９７，　ｂｕｔ　ＣＮＮ　ｗｒｉｔｅｓ　ｅｖｅｎ　ａｂｏｕｔ　ｒｕｍｏｒｓ　ｒｅｌａｔｅｄ　ｔ ｏ　ｉＰｈｏｎｅ．．．　



（ａｃｔｕｌｌｙ　ｔｈｅｒｅ　ａｒｅ　ｏｎｌｙ　ｔｗｏ　ｃａｒｉｅｒｓ　ｃｏｍｐａｔｉｂｌｅ　ｗｉｔ ｈ　ＧＳＭ　ｉｎ　ＵＳ：　ＡＴ＆Ｔ　ａｎｄ　Ｔ－Ｍｏｂｉｌｅ）

For someone who is stationary and does not move much sim unlocked is probably not worth it. I on the otherhand travel to different countries a lot and so switching sim's in and out is necessary. I also used to upgrade my phone probably twice a year (less now). There is also the freedom of using the wireless telco as a dumb pipe I switch my sim in and out of devices at will and don't get any changes on my monthly bill.

Finally your calculation changes slightly for me, I have $10 a month unlimited data on my ATT contract due to the fact I am on a family plan. So thats an additional $120 savings if I buy an N97 over an iphone.

Hey,

I am also on a family plan and i have the media net for 15$. how do you get it for 10$?

im tempted to blame apples long standing as a photoshop runner for that.

first time i bumped into a mac was in the photo office of a local newspaper, hooked up to a scanner by scsi...

Thanks mobiledevide! That really answered my question.

But what is the minimum "family plan" for iPhone (I am guessing it is not $10). And why would anyone pay $100 to Sprint for the unlimited plan when you get unlimited data (think VoIP and Google SMS) for $10. LOL...

Can anybody from Ｎｏｋｉａ　comment on the fact that none of Nokia touch smartphones　have ｃａｒｒｉｅｒ　ｉｎ　ＵＳＡ,　ｂｕｔ　ａｌｌ　ｏｔｈｅｒｓ　ｉＰｈｏｎｅ,　Ｓａｍｓｕｎｇ,　ＨＴ Ｃ,　ＬＧ　have carriers for their touch phones？

From other posts:
http://www.symbian-guru.com/welcome/...r-symbian.html

What Does The iPhone 3G S Mean For Symbian?
Neither of these phones from Nokia [N97 and 5800 XM) are available through any carrier, and are only really carried in Nokia’s 2 Flagship stores, one in Chicago and one in New York. Contrast that to the iPhone being offered in all of Apple’s retail stores, all of AT&T’s corporate stores, Wal-Mart, and Best Buy, well, there’s not much more to say.

However, since Symbian has a single-digit market share in the U.S., that’s not really going to impact them much.

For starters, it seems like every part of the new iPhone is available for developers, via API - how true is this of Symbian?

The new iPhone 3G S has onboard video editing. Nokia’s smartphones used to have this, but it’s since been removed on newer phones - I wonder if we’ll see it appear again on future Symbian Foundation releases?

With iPhone OS v3.0, you can rent any video from the iTunes store straight to your iPhone, via WiFi or 3G.

Do you agree that this is the end of the line for the hopes of an increased presence in the U.S.?

--------------------

I sometimes wonder if Symbian users truly realise just what the iPhone is capable of. Have they seen Firemint's, Real Racing? Do they know that the front cover The New Yorker magazine was hand painted on an iPhone? Are they aware that Wivi Band can simulate the Trombone, French Horn, Alto Saxophone plus over 10 other wind instruments with astonishing accuracy? I'm not sure that there are, or perhaps they are but consider the ability to multi-task an IM app to be more important to them...

Getting back to your question. I agree, I think that the American public will choose pocket computers over smartphones, which is why I think that Symbian's days are numbered in that market.

------

Symbian, in my humble impression, is not so sttractive for software developers (an example: tom tom is coming to iphones and not to symbian), and you can't find so many new and updates apps for symbian phones like you can find for iphone os every day.
Even if Nokia 5800 and Omnia HD are out, I did not noticed a noticeable increase in apps developing for symbian. the opposite.

-------

Brushes for iPhone produces natural looking paintings, not only that but it also has a PC/Mac counterpart application that re-draws every last brush stroke at a much higher resolution hence making it possible to produce a 5 mega pixel magazine cover on a iPhone which only has 128mb of RAM!
Add to that the fact that Brushes is around $5 and is automatically updated with new features (for free!) every couple of months and you begin to see the attraction of the iPhone. Stunning apps, for free or cheap, that keep getting better and better with every free update. Sure there is a lot of fluff in the App Store, but there is also a great deal of substance.

The whole iPhone ecosystem oozes potential.

[For Nokia] it's just difficult to see how it will fulfil that potential without the North American market on side.

==== end of other posts (http://www.symbian-guru.com/welcome/...r-symbian.html )

I don't think there are separate plans for iPhones I think you simply get the one $30 option (at least on ATT).
The all IP model has the telco's running scared, because once all traffic on their network is IP based including voice it will be impossible to squeeze people for overages on minutes.

@Sachin007
I am on a family plan with my fiancee and her brother so we have unlimited family messaging for $30 a month and then we qualify for unlimited family web at $10 a month. I end up paying around $50 a month after taxes for about 400 minutes (which I never use) and unlimited sms and data. I also tether my laptop and N810 with Joikuspot nearly everyday and have never had any charges

IIRC, this was discussed a while ago. one information i remember from that thread is that the U.S. market is by far not as relevant for an international vendor as it may seem to be for americans: it's small, it's shrinking, it's burdened by absurd carrier regulations and technical incompatibilities, in short: it's a mess.

given the choice between growing markets that have a uniform technical infrastructure an this messy, difficult market south of canada, where would you direct your marketing efforts?

If Nokia wants to play smart they have to face the iPhone and G1 and Pre on their home market. That cnnot be done with 2 stores for 400 million people and 3rd biggest country, and it cannot be done without carriers. Look at iPhone is 99 or 199 with contract, N97 is 699 with no contract.
Why Nokia need US market:
1. US is the entertainment industry of the world
2. News from US are visible worldwide
3. software development: US is 1st
4. many good universities in US - they have courses about iPhone and not symbian or maemo

Giving the above US can impose a trend, a fashion, a sale.

The question is how much effort ($$$) it would take to gain a share in that market. Would that same effort ($$$) bring you a bigger reward in another market ? The iPhone is very trendy is the US. I have seen quite a few in Europe but it's not nearly the runaway success as it seems to be in the States.