Bharti Airtel has stated that it is not making any profits on the iPhone 3G. The mobile phone is sold at the prices fixed by Apple, while Airtel enjoys the subscription from the network users. This statement came after the controversy of the price, which is about Rs31 000 (720US$) for the 8GB version and Rs 36 100  (840US$) for the 16GB version, close to the upcoming Nokia N96.

The network’s users were upset by the hefty pricing, as they had learned that in the USA, the iPhone 3G would sell for about 199US$, far lower than the price in India, which reciprocates to Vodafone as well. Even with such a high price, over 200 000 iPhone 3Gs have already been booked, although they are unconfirmed bookings.

Sanjay Kapoor, president, mobility, Bharti Airtel explains that the reason why the iPhone 3G is so expensive in India on their network is that the “model does not work as majority of users are pre-paid and even post-paid subscribers do not sign any commitment with the carrier,” unlike US carriers.

Airtel will be bundling a 500MB data bundle every month for 12 months so that it can justify the price. The phone will be sold in Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai and Kolkata, from today, and in 65 other cities from tomorrow.

[via Cellpassion]

BlackBerry Bold users have noticed that there are 3G issues on the device, as the signal drops in certain locations and the same goes to the iPhone 3G. The Bold apparently has a software issue, while the iPhone 3G fault hasn’t been pointed out yet.

“We had a few occasional 3G signal dropping troubles at some locations especially on high-rises building streets & on our 34th floor (EDGE picked up immediately but slower internet speeds),” wrote Suva, a Citigroup analyst. He thinks RiM have delayed introducing the Bold because they want to iron out the 3G kinks with a software patch.

The Bold has been released not long ago and is set to compete against the Nokia E71 and the upcoming Palm Treo Pro. The phone is a business smartphone, also known as the BlackBerry 9000.

The iPhone 3G has had many more complaints, but it has been available for longer than the Bold. Apple’s second phone is in a market where it usually crushes the competition, but it isn’t available in many countries. 50 more countries should receive in by the end of the year.

Below is a video portraying the differences between the iPhone Safari browser, and the Bold’s browser. Download the video, or embed it.

[via The Mobile Gadgeteer via jkOnTheRun]

Next time you get an Apple iPhone right out-of-the-box, you might find the fabricators having fun with it. We can no longer expect goods from Apple that are truly brand new.

Apple might say this is a way to test the camera, or even to make the factory workers happy, so that they put more effort into the products. We don’t care, atleast format it before you hand it in to us, we want a brand new iPhone.

There is no doubt that this is intentional, and that person in the picture plus the person who took it will suffer from this, as it will eventually surface across the blogosphere to Mr Steve Jobs’ residence.

It’s not the first time that it happens, and we hope it’s the last one. I can’t remember seeing any other brand’s phones with these type of tampering.

As an added bonus, Apple’s factories will have scores of inspectors looking for evidence of child labour.

[via MacRumours via Gizmodo]

The Apple iPhone Nano is back once again, and this time, there are no leaks or any concrete information, unlike what happened with the iPhone 3G. Are you waiting for Q4 to start teasing us Jobs?

DailyMobile, who revived the the rumour, doesn’t even have any clue of what they are talking about, they are believing in “suggestions”, taken from a JP Morgan analyst, who was reportedly fired due to the allegation:

One expert suggested the nano phone would have a touch wheel on the back and display on the front so that numbers would be dialled from behind.

It is quite likely to be released a nano version of the iPhone, if Apple didn’t have it their minds, they do now thanks to all of our “suggestions”. Nothing bad I guess, as long as the quality is slightly higher than the 3G version, I mean, we haven’t gotten any sighting of the iPhone 3G, but the comments there are evident of what’s going on.

The iPhone Nano is coming, and even the iPhone 3G knows that. Well, you could already skip the iPhone Nano and wait for the iPhone Shuffle, as you can see on the picture above.

[Picture: Some minor issues]

[via MacRumours]

Brando just released the same as TurboSIM, but now for the Apple iPhone 3G. It’s a proxy SIM card, it makes the mobile phone believe that it’s in one network, while using the other, and it apparently works with the iPhone 3G.

If you remember well, the iPhone Dev Team had advised not to use these, but to wait for a software unlock. Their iPhone Pwnage Tool is taking a bit long to come, so if you can’t wait to have the iPhone 3G in your country, you might consider this option.

The Brando iPhone 3G SIM unlocking card is available online at US$20.5. It works with many other mobile phones and brands, but the highlight is the iPhone 3G.

Features:

Designed to unlock operator/SIM card locked Apple iPhone 3G phones

Simply slide the attachment under your “normal” SIM card (the one that you wish to use)

Ultra-thin film-like design minimizes the need to cut and trim SIM cards

[via Register Hardware via Unwired View]