Small Wonder- They're surprised by this?
Apple cut their deal with AT&T. Fine. Happens that in my area AT&T is the WORST carrier out of the unholy trinity of Sprint, AT&T, and T-mobile. I signed a contract to buy a piece of hardware. Where I get the service is my business. NOT APPLE's decision to make or profit from. I don't try to tell Apple where to buy their hard drives for THEIR products, do I?
When I bought my Miele Washer and Dryer (another premium priced product) I paid over $3000 for them. And Miele didn't try to tell me who to buy my electricity from! (They do recommend a particular brand or brands of detergent but that's based on a real technical consideration regarding standard detergent over-sudsing and flowing out onto your floors.)
When I bought my Sub Zero Fridge - they didn't tell me who to buy the power from to run the damned thing! Nor did Wolfe do so regarding the gas for the stove. Even BMW didnt' tell me where to buy fuel for the car!
Who does Apple think they are in the general scheme of things? Love the products but this kind of corporate arrogance and greed is intolerable even from a spoiled brat-grown-up like Mr. Steven Jobs! My Gawd - has he been so wealthy for so long that his head is so deeply imbedded in his arse that he can't pull it out and see reality! People shop for the best price and service and when you're dealing with radio waves it depends on where you live and where you use your phone. We want our pricey phones to actually work and work well. Is that too much to ask? The choice of carrier makes a huge difference by area. It's not something that he can reasonably dictate to the American Consumer!
Unlocking it makes sense for me and countless others who need the phone to actually work reliably in their area. AT&T was previously Cingular and their network isn't all that great in most of the US. Their service tends to be pricey and mediocre at best! Also, IMHO - their customer service is generally arrogant, badly trained, and bitchy - and that's if you catch them on a Good Day! Heaven help you if you call them on a "bad day!"
In Europe the cell companies share each other's towers and settle up at the end of the month in terms of who carried which number of customer minutes for whom and out of what tower. It's transparent to the user, and the end result is service that is INCREDIBLE compared to the crap cell service we're offered here in the US at premium prices - and now this damned company thinks they're going to dictate to me from whom I can buy my cell service? BULL!
The solution is simple. Open up the iPhone for all carriers. Hell, even make a model for Verizon and Sprint if you wish. More product sold means more revenue for most companies - or doesn't that work for Apple? Funny, it's worked for every company from Henry Ford forward in time. But maybe Apple is different. Or at least they think they are! Apparently Job's infamous "reality distortion field" has caught his own better judgement in it's field of influence! Pity.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
