Mark Evans

How Badly do Canadians Want an iPhone?

Now that the dust has settled on Rogers’ voice/data packages for the 3G iPhone, the question is how badly do Canadians really want the iPhone, and how many of them are willing to pay for the privilege?

Casting aside the entry-level $60 plan as a non-starter (150 voice minutes during the day is a joke), the iPhone will cost you at least $100 after taking into account network access charges, caller-ID, 911, 411 and taxes. If you want to use the iPhone as a Web browser to take advantage of 3G, you’re probably looking at $150 to $200/month.

That’s the bottom line.

It’s not perfect but if you’re into the iPhone and being among the first on your block to have something shiny and new, that’s what it is going to cost.

So, how badly do you want one?

For those of you pissed at Rogers for not being as user-friendly as they could be, check out RuinediPhone.com. At last count, 25,422 people had signed a petition saying “No” to Rogers. Meanwhile, the Globe & Mail has a story (July 2) about how AT&T concedes that although it’s getting some complaints about its iPhone packages, the reality is the iPhone is red-hot so consumers will climb on the bandwagon.

Update: AT&T has unveiled its pricing for the new iPhone. TechCrunch is unimpressed because the $199/$299 price-tags for the 8GB/16/GB models is only available to new subscribers. The voice/data plans ranges from $69.99 to $129.99, including unlimited data.

Technorati Tags: Apple, iPhone, Rogers

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The Digerati’s Love Affair With Friendfeed

First, I’m not a regular Friendfeed user.

In theory, I get the idea of having everything (RSS feeds, Twitter, blog posts, comments, etc.) aggregated in one, convenient place - something described as social media aggregation. It makes sense as the digital world becomes busier and more scattered.

In practice, Friendfeed is just too busy and loud. There’s so much stuff being collected and presented that it’s somewhat overwhelming. As a result, I may check Friendfeed out every couple of days to see what’s happening.

Perhaps I’m not getting it but Friendfeed strikes me yet another place to check out along with e-mail, Techmeme, GMail and Twitter. Perhaps my lack of enthusiasm for Friendfeed has to do with my goal to reduce the amount of digital noise - an approach that regularly sees me turn Twitter off until at least noon to reduce the number of distractions.

Nevertheless, Friendfeed has a growing number of disciples (Louis Gray, Robert Scoble, Steve Rubel, etc.) who swear by it. Mike Arrington even claims Friendfeed is luring Twitter users tired of the never-ending technical woes.

The big question is whether Friendfeed is the next Facebook or if it’s just the new, shiny toy for the digerati? Although Friendfeed had 45% more users last month in the U.S. compared to April, it’s still pretty small in the scheme of things.

Perhaps Friendfeed is a solid, niche service as opposed to something with mainstream potential. The chart below suggests Friendfeed is enjoying nice growth but nothing terribly spectacular.

Perhaps as Friendfeed adds more services, it will resonate with a wider audience but, for now, my sense is Friendfeed is the new cat’s meow for the always-on, always-connected digerati, which has a solid track record of happily moving from one cool service to another amid the continuous search the next new thing.

Technorati Tags: Friendfeed, Twitter

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The Week That Was

After a short absence, my weekly review of the week that was is back. Here’s some of the news, views and other stuff that caught my attention:

- Are Twitter users finally ready to abandon ship?

Michael Arrington suggests Twitter users - tired of Twitter’s technical woes - are moving their conversations to Friendfeed, which has become this year’s Facebook for the where’s-the-next-cool-service digerati.

Truth be told, Arrington is wrong in suggesting the Twitterati will abandon ship.

While there are alternatives (Pownce, etc.) available, Twitter users love Twitter so they’re more than willing to live with the service’s ups and downs, and there’s little that Twitter users are pining to go somewhere else. It’s not the perfect relationship but Twitter has more than enough to keep people happy most of the time so they stick around.

And the thing about Friendfeed is while the digerati love it, it’s a multi-faceted service that’s not for everyone - whereas Twitter is uni-dimensional, easy to use, and a quick fix for bursts of communication.

- A core part of Twitter’s appeal is the ecosystem being built around it. Twitter users may be interested in Twellow, which let you search for fellow Twitter users by name or by category. Given Twitter just raised $15-million in venture capital, perhaps it should think about buying Twellow and Summize.

- Rogers unveils its data plans for the iPhone. The initial reaction is less than enthusiastic given the plans involve a three-year contract and there’s no unlimited, all-you-can-eat data packages. A poll on my blog suggests many people are going to stay away from buying an iPhone, which is a shame given its such a great device. Personally, I’m keen on the iPod Touch.

If you do some back of the napkin math, the cost of a $75/month iPhone plan will cost about $3,500 over the three-year contract. Despite Rogers’ unattractive packages, there will no doubt be lots of people who buy an iPhone. There’s the cool factor and the reality that, for some people, $150 is a small price to play to use cutting-edge technology. Still, they will pay for the privilege.

- In a move that came as somewhat of a surprise, Google hired a Bell Canada executive, Patrick Pichette, as its new CFO. It’s an interesting move given Pichette had a relatively low profile within the Canadian telecom scene, and there are differences between U.S. and Canadian accounting rules. For the curious out there, Google filed a Form 8-K that provided details about Pichette’s compensation, which includes a sweet $500,000 signing bonus.

- With the Canadian government and the CRTC unwilling to address the growing issue of Net Neutrality, a grassroots movement has emerged - SavetheNet.ca. A meeting in Toronto earlier this week was well-attended. To support the cause, you can make a donation.

- For a long time, I’ve been a keen user of Instapaper, which lets you archive interesting stories to read later. Now, there’s a new player, LaterLoop, which does pretty much the same thing as Instapaper but with a great wrinkle: you can download stories in a .zip file to read later when you’re off-line.

- Finally, did you ever wish there was an Evite just for guys? Well, you’re prayers have been answered. Manvite is the place for guys to arrange social events. Its drop-down list of events include cougar hunting, drink beer, watch sports, golf, play Madden and poker.

Technorati Tags: Google , Net Neutrality, Twitter

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Rogers Unveils iPhone Pricing

With the iPhone finally making its official appearance in Canada in two weeks, Rogers has unveiled its underwhelming pricing packages - see the chart below.

While Rogers proclaims its iPhone voice/data packages start at a reasonably-sounding $60, its entry-level plan makes no sense given you only get 150 voice minutes/month during the day.

This means you have to step up for a $75, $100 or $115/month plan to make sure you have enough voice and data minutes to avoid hefty overage charges. You also have to sign up for a three-year plan AND you have to pay an additional $15 if you want caller-ID.

When you add in network fees, 911, taxes, etc., you’re probably looking at at least $100/month to use an iPhone, and close to $150 if you get the biggest package.

Of course, the lack of pricing sizzle is not surprising given Rogers’ adoration of ARPU and its drive to get more high-margin data revenue.

And frankly speaking, Rogers’ iPhone plans aren’t a surprise because Canada’s wireless market has never been about bang-for-the-buck packages. It may - and I stress “may” - change when new competitors emerge on the scene in the wake of the ongoing spectrum auction (which, by the way, has turned into a financial bonanza for the Canadian government.)

The early feedback from the wireless-only people in our office and the comments flowing in is that the Rogers plans are terrible, and the lack of an unlimited, all-you-can-eat data plan a la AT&T in the U.S. is a “joke”. As well, 80% of people who toll a poll (see below) wouldn’t buy an iPhone.

If this reaction is typical then it’s entirely possible the iPhone could initially be a dud in Canada until pricing becomes more attractive. It could also mean the 100,000 “grey market” iPhone users in Canada could continue to expand.

If you look at the chart below, Rogers lays out the different data scenarios in terms of how many e-mail messages you can receive, for example, with each package. One thing glaringly missing is how many online videos you could watch for each data plan. What Rogers doesn’t want to admit is you could easily burn through 2GB of data (Rogers’ biggest plan) if you watched a modest number YouTube videos a month.

One other thought: why would Rogers not offer an unlimited data plan if one of the major selling points of the new iPhone is it works on a 3G network, which is fast enough to make using the wireless Web easier and more attractive? It could be Rogers is jammed because it would have to offer unlimited plans to all of its Blackberry users.

For more coverage, check out Engadget and Crave.

So, let’s do an iPhone poll.

Technorati Tags: Apple, iPhone, Rogers

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.mark, anyone?

As much as the ongoing Yahoo-Microsoft soap opera and Microsoft’s apparent acquisition of Powerset are dominating the headlines, a particularly fascinating development is ICANN’s decision to radically liberalize the “top-level” domain structure.

Since the Web emerged as a mainstream vehicle, there’s been a lot of back and forth about who controls the domain landscape, and which domain would rule the roost. While .com became the must-have domain, demand for alternatives has been more than evident given the interest alternative domains such as in .tv and it - the domestic domains of Tuvulu and Italy respectively.

Now, there will be no lack of domains. There could be generic domains such as .football or .work or .fun; corporate domains such as .microsoft or .google; regional domains such as .asia or .sudamerica; or even vanity domains - .techcrunch or .arrington, anyone?

Who knows, maybe there will be a .mark domain. Then, I could register www.mark.mark.

Technorati Tags: ICANN, domains

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Sorry, the Mouse is Not Dead

A few weeks ago, my mouse died so I purchased a new, wireless one made by Logitech.

In browsing through the different models, which range from $10 to $100, it struck me that the mouse is the under-appreciated workhorse of the personal computing industry. It’s an essential piece of equipment that gets little or no glory.

I’ve been meaning to write an Ode to the Mouse post but just didn’t get the time until reading this link-baiting post this morning by Mike Eigan who proclaims that “The Mouse is Dead”.

With all due respect, you’re wrong Mike. Despite all the hype about touch-screen and brain-reading devices, the mouse is very much alive in well - a view that Geek News Central also advocates.

This explains why more than 500 million of them are sold every year by companies such as Logitech, which had sales of $622-million of “pointing devices” (aka mice) in 2007. For what it’s worth, Logitech has a plant in China capable of churning of 200 million mice a year.

Eiger’s suggestion is just another example of why the mouse is the Rodney Dangerfield of computing because it gets no respect.

Most people use a mouse all day long yet it’s not seen as a sexy or glamorous product. In fact, it’s one of the most important pieces of computing technology, and something that people should spend more rather than less money on.

Erik Charlton, Logitech director of product marketing for performance and gaming mice, the mouse continues to evolve as computer users look for high-quality products at a time when it is playing a bigger role in how digital content is consumed.

Among Logitech’s more innovative products is the MX-Air, which can be used as a traditional mouse but also works by making gestures in the air - sort of like the Wii.

Charlton bullishly describes the MX-Air as a “paradigm change”. I’m not sure about that but it is a major step forward for anyone tired of being stuck to the mouse pad.

A particularly interesting comment made by Charlton is that a good mouse melts into the background if it’s comfortable and reliable. This might explain why the mouse is unloved even if it’s well-used.

Check out the history of the mouse and its inventor, Douglas Engelbart, who developed the mouse in 1967. Despite his creation, the mouse didn’t really catch on for another decade when Apple started to use them.

Update: Another analyst hyping the demise of the mouse is Gartner’s Steve Prentice. Why are so many people excited about killing the poor mouse?

Technorati Tags: Logitech, Mouse

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Twitter’s Mysterious Mystique

Does it strike anyone as terribly ironic that on the day that Twitter officially raises $15-million in venture capital, the service continues to be plagued by technical problems?

Forget about Twitter surviving the Steve Jobs’ most recent love-fest, it would have been better if Twitter had been able to stay up today as a sign of faith for its investors - Union Square Ventures and Digital Garage, Jeff Bezos and Bijan Sabet.

Speaking of irony, Twitter co-founder Biz Stone said the money will be used to make Twitter “reliable and robust”. Maybe that’s something Twitter should have been working on before pulling in a cool $15-million.

“To reach our goal, Twitter must be reliable and robust. Private funding gives us the runway we need to stay focused on the infrastructure that will help our business take flight. We will continue hiring systems engineers, operators, and architects, as well as consultants, scientists, and other professionals to help us realize our vision.”

As for a business model, Stone says it’s coming…soon. Well, as soon as Twitter gets its act together (aka stops going down on a regular basis).

Meanwhile, Twitter becomes more popular as the growing number of disciples embrace micro-blogging and the ability to communicate at any time in mere seconds.

As for alternatives, Pownce is still around. In fact, MIT’s Technology Review goes out on a limb and names Pownce as one of the 10 Web startups to watch in 2008.

MIT suggests that while you can micro-blog with Pownce, “it really a file-sharing platform disguised as a micro­blogging service–and possibly the next big thing to inflict insomnia on entertainment industry lawyers.”

Hmm, that’s interesting - a P2P platform - just the thing that Canadians are going to need to circumvent the disastrous copyright legislation recently tabled.

Finally, Mashable has all kinds of good things to say about Twellow, which makes it easier to find fellow Twitter users. It’s a really cool application. Mashable suggests this is something Twitter should have built. I suggest it’s something they should buy, along with a few servers and some loading balance thing-a-ma-jigs.

More: I’m Actually Not a Geek has some straightforward insight into the investment and what Bezos brings to the table.

Technorati Tags: Pownce, Twitter

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Trying to Get the Genie Back in the Bottle

J.C. Penney is learning the hard way that once something is released on the Web, it’s nearly impossible to get it back.

A fake ad features two teenagers (a boy and a girl) timing themselves on how quickly they can get dressed. The subtle message is they are preparing themselves to do “the nasty” in the basement of the girl’s house while her mother reads upstairs.

J.C. Penney is a PR lather because the ad is based on its tag line “Every Day Matters”. As a result, it wants its ad agency, Saatchi & Saatchi, to “remove it from the Web”.

Ha!

Given how quickly content can be distributed, reformatted, etc., getting a video pulled from the Web is like trying to put the genie back in the bottle.

You can understand why J.C. Penney wants to avoid a PR nightmare but the more it screams and shouts at Saatchi to eliminate all signs of the ad, the more attention the ad will get, which is what J.C. Penney is trying to apparently avoid.

Gawker is suggesting J.C. Penney might launched a lawsuit against the ad’s creators, which would likely generate even more PR.

For those of you who want to see the ad:

Technorati Tags: J.C. Penney

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Think, Breath…Then Hit Reply

We live in a world of instant-gratification and instant communication.

We want things and we want them now. We want to communicate with people and we want to communicate instantaneously and continually.

One of the major challenges within the always-on, always accessible world is the belief that if someone is able to contact you, you’re obligated to get back to them as soon as possible. Rather than think, breathe and reflect, the default is respond ASAP.

Why is that? Why do we feel compelled to reply before really thinking through exactly what you want to say? Often, digital conversations can become complicated and convoluted because not enough thought goes into what should/needs to be said.

Think, for example, how long you take before responding to an e-mail on your Blackberry. Chances are most people probably spend, at most, a minute or two before pounding out a reply even though you could have waited another 30 minutes or even three hours to put together a better answer.

And, often, these responses are done even though you may be in the middle of a conversation or dinner or a round of golf.

What does this happen? What can’t people wait to respond?

Perhaps the best approach is walking away from the keyboard and/or resisting the urge to hit the reply button as soon as you can. It’s difficult but in many cases, a good exercise to pursue.

For the first part of my “Think, Breathe” series, click here.

More thoughts: I probably should have added Twitter as a symptom of our quick reply digital culture given it’s all the rage these days.

As well, I’ve registered www.thinkbreathe.com. Not sure exactly what I’ll do with it but playing around with the idea of making it a places for tips and tools on how to deal with digital overload. Any thoughts?

Technorati Tags: Reply

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Step Away From the Keyboard…and Breath, Think

I’ve been thinking a lot about Fred Wilson’s post a few days ago on his search for inspiration and the challenges he sometimes faces coming up with ideas for blog posts.

What was particularly interesting was Fred’s regular sources for inspiration are delicious/popular, digg, techmeme, hacker news and reddit.

The common thread is they’re all online resources. As much as there’s a tremendous amount of information on the Web, I think one of the major flaws among the digerati is they spend too much time online - be it reading, communicating, entertainment, etc.

The need to be in touch, connected, networked, online and aware of every conversation can be all-consuming. The digerati spend so much time engaged that they forget there’s a whole other world featuring all kinds of inspiration in all kinds of places.

It got me thinking that people who spend a lot of time online really need to step away from the keyboard…and breathe and think.

They need to stop looking for the next comment or conversation or blog post or intriguing start-up. It’s when you’re focused on whether to have a Chardonnay or a Pinot Grigio, or whether to take a bike ride or go for run, or whether to watch the Spain-Italy quarter-final or the Blue Jays-Pirates game that you really allow yourself to healthily disengage from the Web.

Then, your mind can start to wander and wonder about this and that. It’s then that ideas about blog posts, new adventures, desires, wants and needs start to bubble up to the surface.

If you call pull yourself away from the keyboard (and that includes your iPhone and Blackberry) for a healthy period of time, you will be pleasantly surprised about how much inspiration you’ll get from the world around you.

Coffee and conversations with friends and family can get you thinking about things in completely different ways; newspaper articles can prompt you to scribble down thoughts so you won’t lose them; and walking down the street to do an errand can get you to look at things in a new light.

Come on, give it a whirl. It’ll be good for you.

Next: Why reply right away when you can breathe, think and then click send.

More: Here’s an interesting story looking at how some employees are beginning to fight back against employers who give them Blackberries AND expect them to be available 24/7.

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