Information Week has posted an article discussing how the spectrum action is going. You remember, the wireless 700MHz spectrum action that is freed up from analog TV? Anyway, Verizon has won the largest segment of the bandwidth spending $9.6 billion to do so. Guess who’s number 2? You guessed it kids, AT&T. AT&T spent $6.6 billion for their share. What does this mean? Well for starters the FCC says that the bandwidth being auctioned off must be kept open and usable on any network; no more of this lock-down on a carrier mumbo-jumbo. Then there is Google coming with Android later this year…
So what impact does this have on the iPhone? Will Apple sell an iPhone on a segment of the open bandwidth? Could the 3G iPhone run only on AT&T’s 3G network and the EDGE iPhones run on the “open” spectrum?
I’ve learned why the iPod Touch was snuck through without any leaks to the FCC. The trick of the trade is to certify only the wi-fi chip module that went into the iPod touch. Once that module was certified by the FCC, Apple could put it into whatever device it pleases, as long as that wi-fi module is the only transmitter present. If Apple wanted to add another radio transmitter (such as a Bluetooth chip for stereo Bluetooth / A2DP), they would have to recertify the new device.
Also of note, if Apple is planning a new 3G phone like the rumors say, they will have to recertify the iPhone 3G with the FCC. It’s worth noting that when Apple started testing their iPhone International, nothing new popped up at the FCC.
The FCC has approved the iPhone for sale in the U.S.A. The article from PC Worldstates that it’s a dual-band phone, which isn’t correct (dual band would mean that it only works in the USA and wouldn’t roam internationally). Thankfully, PC World is incorrect.
I was astonished to read what their article stated, that it would only be a dual-band phone, as Apple would have to manufacture a separate phone for sale in Europe, Asia, Africa, or Australia later. So, I moseyed over to the FCC’s website, and sure enough, it has all of the European bands listed (900 and 1800). Those bands aren’t used in the US, so the FCC didn’t test them. PC World must have missed the clearly stated “quad band” in the first page of the FCC approval letter. Oops!
At any rate, I’m glad to see that it’s approved. That means the hardware is finalized, software is likely done or nearly fully done as well. Now we just have to wait for the chance to buy the thing!
