Its finally official that the iPhone 3G version will be launched in India on August 22^nd. The earlier announced dates were in September but Airtel and Vodafone can wait to launch the same. They are obviously running a virtual race with each other to hit the market. My guess is that next they will be in a race to start advertising for the iphone before each other and try and gain maximum from the brand association with an iconic brand like iPhone and Apple. Given that the price of the iPhone in India is going to be in the range of Rs. 20,000 and it would probably be cheaper to buy an unlocked version from the “street” and put in your existing sim card, not sure how many people will actually buy this TOY.

Technical Specs of iPhone 3G expected to be launched in India:

Size and weight / Dimensions of iPhone 3G in India

Height       :       115.5 mm

Width         :       62.1 mm

Depth        :       12.3 mm

Weight      :       133 grams

Capacity of iPhone 3G in India

• 8GB or 16GB flash drive

Cellular and wireless compatibility of iPhone 3G in India

• GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)
• Wi-Fi (802.11b/g)
• Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR

Whats in the iPhone 3G box (could change here)

• iPhone 3G
• Stereo Headset with mic
• Dock Connector to USB Cable
• USB Power Adapter
• Documentation
• Cleaning/polishing cloth
• SIM eject tool

Screen Display of iPhone 3G

• 3.5-inch (diagonal) widescreen Multi-Touch display
• 480-by-320-pixel resolution at 163 ppi

Camera of iPhone 3G

• 2.0 megapixels

Battery Usage of iPhone 3G

• Built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery
• Charging via USB to computer system or power adapter
• Talk time.

Up to 5 hours on 3G

Up to 10 hours on 2G

• Standby time: Up to 300 hours
• Internet use:

Up to 5 hours on 3G

Up to 6 hours on Wi-Fi

• Video playback: Up to 7 hours
• Audio playback: Up to 24 hours

If you use it for Email on Iphone 3G: Mail attachment support

• Viewable document types: .jpg, .tiff, .gif (images); .doc and .docx (Microsoft Word); .htm and .html (web pages); .key (Keynote); .numbers (Numbers); .pages (Pages); .pdf (Preview and Adobe Acrobat); .ppt and .pptx (Microsoft PowerPoint); .txt (text); .vcf (contact information); .xls and .xlsx (Microsoft Excel)

Nokia in India must be also wondering what will be the impact of the iPhone in India. Will the expensive phone users move in large numbers to iPhone? Looks very unlikely as Nokia has a strong product range ready to take on the iPhone and other smart phones.

One such phone from Nokia is the Nokia E71.

Technical Specifications of the Nokia E71 in India

Dimensions of the Nokia E71: 114 x 57 x 10 mm

Weight :       127 Gms

Screen Size :       320 x 240 pixels, 2.36 inches

Memory :       110 MB internal memory with SD card slot

Wifi :       Yes

3G ready :       Yes

Camera :       3.15 megapixel

Talk Time :       10 Hours

Stand By Time:   410 hours

Just that the E71 has a QWERTY keyboard and the iPhone has a touch screen. Not sure of the touch screen is really good for SMS friendly Indians.

So we shall all wait for the 22^nd of August for the launch of the iPhone and see if there is the same frenzy we saw in the USA.

Other Interesting Blogs links:

MyBandra Home Page, Bandra Worli Sea Link, Bollywood, Proactive Citizens of Bandra.

1. How to buy an iPhone in India?

iPhones are still not available through the official channel as yet. It is expected that they will be available in India sometime around September. Airtel and Vodafone are currently doing advance booking for the iPhone.

However, you can buy an ‘unlocked’ iPhone from you friendly neighbourhood mobile seller very easily. You could try at Alpha in Irla or try locally in Bandra or Santacruz and im sure you will easily get it. Also you fond them on some popular online shops like Ebay and Rediff.

2. Will an unlocked iPhone you bought in US or UK work here?

Yes, phones that are unlocked work well in India on all GSM networks. This means that they will work on Airtel, Vodafone, BPL and MTNL in Mumbai but wont work with Tata and Reliance. I have also heard that some features may not work if the unlocking is not perfect but on the whole they work fairly well.

3. What is the price of iPhone in India?

There are 2 models in the market today. There is an 8 GB model which is available at around Rs 21,000 – 25,000 and then there is the 16 GB model that is available at around Rs 32,000.

Leena