Peter, what is 4.5 weeks * 87 MB?

Well you did a great job surfing the web, using the iphone like this makes sense-to someone who doesn't know what the iphone is capable of.The iphone is like a laptop computer with only itunes and safari installed but you don't have the admin rights to install any more programs. Well what happens when you jailbreak your iphone?Despite all the hype it is not illegal and certainly unlocks the iphone's capabilities. There are some useless games that you can download just for fun and all but there are some powerful programs that you can use that rely heavily on internet useage.
Example of one networking tool: Touchpad Pro (or similar VNC type program). With this program, you can completely operate any computer which is prepared for a VNC connection. AKA you can operate a drafting program while walking around work in an engineering office, showing coworkers updated drawings or asking for measurements etc.
Secondly you can transfer your videos and songs from a computer to your iphone without using itunes. This would typically be done with your usb cord, but just imagine if you were in hawaii, and a family member at home uploads their video library to your computer... you can then use touchpad pro, and convert the file format and transfer the videos to your iphone (say, 22 Gigs worth) using another downloadable file transfer utility. The iphone's audio jack can be used to output video as well, so you can use your iphone as a digital video source running to a TV.
Afile transfer utility and touchpad pro are only the tip of the iceberg as far as the programs you can download to your iphone. Although I'm not sure exactly how much data useage it would consume. Yes this might typically be done with WiFi but wifi is not everywhere.

I highly suggest you retry your test, but let someone a little more skilled in the operation of an iphone teach you how to unlock and use your phone to its full potential. I think you will be amazed with what you can do.

I'm not sure if you can actually go to a website and download the movie or music to your iphone, but if that were possible, I would drain those 400mb within a couple of hours

Also, i personally wasn't just complaining about the low data plan, I was complaining about the high cost of the low data plan
Like when text messaging first came out, it was expensive to have 75 messages to send per month, but it has evolved to the unlimited (which usually consists of 2500 texts sent)being insufficient to people like myself!

The problem with the rogers plan is what you get for the price. It's very expensive for such limited minutes with 9pm evenings, 400mb of data and 75 text messages. It also does not include callerID, which should be a basic and free feature on all phone plans by now. If you want callerID and 2500 text messages, that's another $15. Sure, they have to make money, but those prices are massively overvalued.

The new data plan of $30 for 6gigs is more than you'd ever need, but why no 2gigs for $10 or $15? And that data plan does not include visual voice mail, which is one of the big features of the phone. I think it's another $8 to add that, or $15 if you want to add the expanded text messages.

If your phone plan is less than $31, I believe they charge you an additional $50 on top of the activation fee, which is another $50(correct?). Oh and if you already have a rogers plan, you can't get the full subsidized price for the phone; That's only for new contracts. As a long-time valued customer of Rogers that entitles you to pay more for the same phone as part of an upgrade plan.

Correct me on the prices if I'm wrong. I'm sure people will buy the thing anyway and get locked into their 3 year phone plan and separate 3 year contract for data, both of which have cancellation fees. Oh, and if they ever release a cheaper data plan, I believe there is a downgrade fee charge if you wish to switch.

I'll be watching the new developments from the wireless auction and the rumours of Bell and Telus switching to GSM very closely. Unfortunately, like bank plans, I assume we'll continue to get poor offerings. I'd recommend that anyone considering a new phone plan try to hold out as long as possible to see what is on our horizon. Now would be a bad time to get locked into a 3 year deal.

4.5 weeks * 87 MB = 391 MB.

391 MB per month at the present. What will happen in 1 or 2 years when the internet continues to become more and more data intensive? What if I decide to use new iPhone applications that are data intensive?

You can be sure that that you will go over the 400MB limit very quickly. with increasingly more and more data being transferred and stored over the internet, you should think about tomorrow's needs, not today's need.

This article, if anything, proves how ridiculour the Rogers plan is.

Peter, hahaha, great analysis, even funnier number crunch.

It still begs the question... Why does Rogers fear giving users an "Unlimited" data plan? You just proved that even heavy usage is hard to consume over 400MB.

I figure it's a toss up. Sign up a bunch of users on an up-sale data plan, Vs. sign up a whole lot more people, all on a fixed Unlimited Data plan.

I bet Rogers is fearing they will completely cannibalize their business plans. They dug themselves this lucrative watering hole and it's hard to see over the edge to the vast lake of potential market that surrounds them.

The reviewer does not understand the iPhone, and the way people will increasingly use devices like it. He also fails to understand human nature.

Start with the latter. No-one wants to keep worrying "am I exceeding my plan yet". "Unlimited" does not mean "using a terabyte", but rather, it means "I won't worry; I will USE my phone".

Then the use. As soon as people start using iPhone and similar devices to stream music, to download files and movies, to connect to VPNs, and to operate work applications and computers, gigabytes are entirely possible.

Rogers is hitting Canadians with predatory prices. Personally, I hate this company, and it cannot be any good for a company long-term survival if people hate it.

I will not get an iPhone, early adopter though I am. For a start, I am locked in to Rogers for my Blackberry for two more years.

I work for rogers. You gotta sign up for like my5 35 + $30 dataplan + $15 or $20 value package.. That way your totally set up for less then $100/month...

lots of texting, lots of data and you can have 5pm evenings for an extra $9.

Not saying its cheap (I can't afford that) but if your into tech its not really that bad

One could say the converse of Peter's argument is also true: Rogers' worrying about customers using insane amounts of data is probably unfounded because, hey, if one person only used 87 mb in a week, that's what most people will use, right?

Rogers could well have provided an unlimited data plan. Most users wouldn't stress network capacity at 87mb/week, and customers would have been highly satisfied with the value proposition.

In reality, Rogers has a vested interest in making it seem like bandwidth is a very scarce commodity, when it's not. They outright lie because bandwidth is a commodity they can meter and tax with ease, and it shows in their profit figures. This kind of gouging won't go away until new competitors hit the Canadian GSM marketplace.

Also, as Darsey pointed out, there are more bandwidth-intensive applications available for the iPhone, and still more to be developed. I would never have signed up for a 3-year, 400mb, $60/mo base plan knowing that it would not scale in the future, considering my budget.

Admittedly my iPhone data counter is currently sitting at a paltry 40MB, as I've spent nearly all my time over the past week at home or at the office, where I have available Wi-Fi.

...gotta pay for the iPhone somehow.

That's one way to look at it. Let's try it the other way around.

If your use is real world typical use, then why put any limit on the plan? Statistically, most users won't even use up the 400MB basic plan. Add a rider to limit the crazy users (and even the US 'unlimited' plans have these - you have to do some digging in the EULAs to find it).

I've asked some of my iPhone owning friends in the US what their typical monthly uses are like and it's around 200MB/mo. That's half the minimum.

Where Rogers screwed up is their lack of understanding of load averaging and statistics. If they understood these things, they could have offered an 'unlimited' plan and been the heros of the Canadian cell market. Instead, they come across as miserly and disconnected from their consumers.

It's all in how you market it.

How do you propose to download 22GB worth of data to your iPhone when the largest possible model only holds 16GB? Let us for the rest of my post assume 16GB of data transfer.

3G Networks, according to my research, provide max speeds of upto 384KBPS. So assuming you are somehow lucky enough to get all 384kbps of speed while you are on in Hawaii and you decide to download them to your iPhone. 16GB of data transfer at 384KBPS is around 12 hours. Your iPhone is not going to last 12hours to be able to download all that. If you are going to keep it plugged in while it is downloading for 12 hours don't you want to be able to use your iPhone for the phone part? Then there is the question of roaming fees are you really going to be paying all that money to download 16GB of data?

You use the example of work...how hard is it to just get everyone together at your desk? Or to just do remote desktop with other members in your office? And if you want to walk around the office looking all cool with your iPhone chances are you have WiFi in your office so you wouldn't be using your cell phone network thus not using up your data allowance.

Yes the iPhone is great, you can do a crap load of stuff with it but the battery life is according to apple 8 hours of talk time...start playing music, watching videos, surfing the internet and guess what that 8 hours will drop down to 4hours. Your iPhone won't last you beyond a couple hours of usage to be able to do all of that for extended periods of time. And as Peter points out if you are going to keep it plugged in then chances are you are near a REAL computer to be able to do all the fancy stuff you want to do with your iPhone. The iPhone is a phone to talk to people with, check your email do occasional internet surfing when you are bored and thats it. To be wanting to control your computer from the iPhone is not its true purpose. Sure it is mini computer but if you really want to be doing work while you are on the go...get a laptop!

I second the call for authors to do better quality research before tapping out articles. This author could have easily found someone who actually knows something about iPhone and how to use it to the fullest. The author could have read up on jailbreak information at modmyifone.com, for instance.

Utkarsh Patel summarizes my thoughts completely

4.5 weeks * 87 MB = 391 MB.

9mb. Cutting it a bit then there aren't ya ?

I fail to see how a margin of 391mb "will come in well under Rogers' initial cap of 400MB"

This BTW completely trashes the premise of your blog post.

Using an iPhone alone, you will not break the 6GB barrier. However, if you use the device as a modem and download 1 or 2 movies on your laptop, the 6 GB will be gone in a flash.

It's also interesting to note that none of the plans in the US are "unlimited". If you read the fine print, the carriers have "soft" limits. If you're running a server over a broadband connection at home and chewing through hundreds of gigs of data per month, you can bet your cable co. will cut you off. Same likely with AT&T on the iPhone.

GS,

using the iPhone as a modem (tethering) is not allowed and is will cost you tons of $$$, even with a "unlimited" plan.

Rogers has signed the agreement with Apple Inc. and they are the only distributor for iphone in Canada. If we all don't buy it until 6 months later, I think Rogers has nothing but lower the price and service fee to attract more customers.
Let's wait and see!

To respond to some of the comments on here... first up, the 391 MB: three days after I posted this entry, I'm sitting at 103 MB, which means I've used only 15 MB since. Those first 86 MB were used in a concerted effort to see how much data I could consume without, of course, resorting to heavy-duty video watching. In fact, the past three days are probably a better indicator of how I would typically use the iPhone on a given weekday.

Secondly, for some of the nitpickers out there... if you look at a calendar, you will notice that months are typically no longer than four weeks plus one or two days. Two days are about 28 per cent of a week, therefore the calculation should be 86 MB x 4.28, which equals 368 MB, or comfortably under 400 MB. And again, keep in mind that the 86 MB was through constant, heavy use.

As for jail-breaking the iPhone to transfer your iTunes library and other such uses... well you're right, you probably would want unlimited usage for such situations but again, the iPhone's battery is not likely to co-operate.

I really don't see the price going any cheaper, it is already sold out - everywhere in the world - Canada included.

The problem was, they planned to force people to switch over to the "iPhone Plans" which are significantly worse than voice plan + data addon AND you have to pay extra for for call display text messaging and so on AND the mysterious System Access Fee and 911 Fee.

By all fairness, after owning an iPhone for 2 weeks, and being very tech savvy, I have only used 80MB of data, out of 6GB of allotment - it is plenty and IMHO will still be enough into the foreseeable future.

Current state of iPhone 3G:
- Low battery life
- Slow processor compare to a computer
- YouTube for iPhone : Not the same for PC, the file size and the video resolution is smaller than PC
- Webpages for iPhone: for example, gmail, cbc.ca have their iPhone version of website with ads and graphics stripped out - therefore uses less data.

----> Continued to next post

So this is another ad for Rogers! Peter how much do they pay you for these advertisements? And since when did CBC start publishing ads this way?

I agree with Peter. I own an iPhone too and I have only used 80MB over the course of 2 weeks. I have used GPS/App downloads (20 of free ones), e-mail, bloomberg, weather, browsing... My battery usually dies before end of the day.

On a typical month of usage, you really have to have nothing better to do than using your iphone to even go beyond the 400MB limit. But then again, iPhone battery will ensure that you don't go over the 400MB limit :)

Now I want to downgrade my 6GB plan to like $5 for 1GB/month... only if Rogers would actually offer it :P

Peter you may need to consider the fact that when it comes to iPhone owners you may be in the minority. Most people that were waiting anxiously for the iPhone to come to Canada are techy types and will most likely have many more uses of data transfer than you do. The 400mb cap may seem roomy to you, but for those of us who know what I COULD do with the iphone its positively claustrophobic. Sure, you could just do all of your data transfer over WiFi, but then why did you buy a 3G smartphone? That's like buying a sports car and saying, I don't know what the fuss is about, the engine is limited to 100 KM/H but I never go faster than the speed limit.
Personally I would be taking my iPhone to the digital drag race strip.
Read some articles online about what our neighbors to the south think of Rogers plans, they have been using the iPhone (not even 3G version) for a year and they agree the plans are way to expensive, too little data allowance, and the 3 year contract is ridiculous.
@ everyone who agrees with Peter, you've had the iPhone for less than 2 weeks, come back in a year after you've discovered all of the cool things it can do and tell us if the 400 MB limit is enough.

I used 350mb yesterday. Thats *1* day. How? I listened to Last.FM's internet radio application for part of my day at work.

Why would I listen to internet radio? Well first off, I can give it an artists name I like, and then it will play songs that are similar. From that I can find out new bands I would never have known about before.

On my 6gig plan I can't even do this every work day (20) as it would be over 7gigs.

Lets say *1* day a week I decide to listen to some new music like that while on the bus, or at work etc Thats 1.4gigs right there.

He said he was an average iphone user....well all the iphone apps aren't out, and he clearly didn't even attempt to listen to radio for an hour or two.

You don't think the average person would be interested in some personally fine tuned internet radio?

-Ben

If your noob user yes I doubt very much you will use alot of bandwidth. However if your power user and you utilize the potential of the iPhone.

Standard iPhone

- VNC (Remote control application)
- Tunes Application (Streaming Radio)
- Future video streaming applications

On a Jailbroken iPhone

- ORB Live (audio streaming, video streaming large movies a typical movie can be 1GB or more)
- MxTube downloading Youtube clips
- MMS
- VOIP Applictions like Skype

Had my phone since last Dec, use it a ton and never hit my 1GB limit, offered through a grandfathered plan of $60/month for data. You use the damn mobile versions of most sites as it loads even quicker, my kids hit YouTube a ton for damn High School Musical videos and I get graphic attachments from clients all the time. You also ALWAYS pay more for new technology stuff, so quit your whining already. $150 a month for my bill, who cares, it's a cost of doing business. I still only come in around 300MB a month. Jamies probably surfing porn so he will hit his limit sooner.

I bought a new 3G I phone yesterday and got that limited time plan for $30 that gives you 6gb of transfer each month. I am still getting used to the phone, but I must say that I am very impressed with it.

The only big issue in Canada will be for anyone that uses the U-Connect blue tooth system in any newer Dodge/Jeep/Chrysler product. I Phones 2.0 software causes major problems when trying to "pair" the phone with your car. In most cases it just doesn't work... there's no fix avail from Apple yet.... This is frustrating since my car is a 2008 and I paid $300 for the U-Connect system..I am sure this issue with infuriate a lot of Canadians who drive Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep products!

Hi, i was wondering apart from battery problem, is there any other issue that one should consider before purchasing this phone!!!

The problem here is not so much the 400mb plan, but rather the amount of money Rogers wanted for it. Looking at the iphone specific plans, the 400mb offer comes in at about $30. If AT&T can offer unlimited data (read: 5gb softcap) for $30, why can't Rogers? When you're dealing with a company that insists on charging customers for extraneous fees (911,SAF,Call display) then it becomes easy to understand why customers were so upset.

Peter, in your quest for using as much bandwidth as possible, did you try using applications such as last fm or tuner? Listening to radio broadcasts can easily eat up many MBs of data per day. A user on the macforums website has used 700MB already since the launch of the iPhone 3G.

What about when streaming quicktime movies becomes a reality, or what if google video were to switch over to a iPhone supported format? You could see 100+ MB of data used within a couple of hours.

With all the discussion about the data rates of the iPhone, I'm stunned that no BlackBerry users have chimed in. The iPhone data rates looked fantastic compared to what BlackBerry users get (starting at $25 for FOUR MB -- that's MEGAbytes).

That said, a quick re-check of the Rogers site before I hit "Post" revealed that Rogers has quietly adjusted the pricing for BB. It still starts at $25 for 4 megs, but ramps up generously from there (i.e. 300 megs for $5 more), to the point where the 4 meg plan seems almost suspicious in its stinginess.

So, a big thanks to the iPhone protesters, on behalf of everyone with a BlackBerry!

We get our high speed Internet access via Telus's EV-DO 3G cellphone network (no other option in this neighbourhood). Last month we used about 45 GB (yes forty-five gigabyte - not a typo).

400MB (or 0.4GB) for a month is a joke. That wouldn't last a heavy Internet user until noon of the first day of the month.

And what happens when you go over the monthly quota? Back to paying $38 each time you load CNN.com? Seriously - do the math at 3 or 5 cents per kilobyte.

Just playing devil's advocate.

Leaving all comparisons aside, why don't you use the WiFi connection for all your data intensive applications and use the data plan only if your home WiFi or Rogers/Fido hot spots are not readily available? Wouldn't that work?

Telus 3G EVDO offered Unlimited Data Plans last year for a limited time. I have a PocketPC UTStarcom 6700 phone with an Extended battery. Glad I have it too cause it lasts me a great long time vs the IPhone. I got GPS, running the latest Windows Mobile 6.1 (Much better than Telus' Mobile 5.0 version) using the PDA as a WifiRouter (allowing several of our employees computers on when working remotely) and some months we seen data usage of 20gb. Some months only 200mb.

For $100.00/month I got unlimited data. I strictly use the phone for Data purposes. I have a separate phone (from Fido) to handle my voice calls. I use a Nokia N95 8GB as my phone and sometimes use the N95's Internet Phone (VOIP) via Wifi over the PocketPC Phone's Wifi Router to place a call when I may be incurring long distance charges.

I don't like the IPhone cause of its closed offerings. With a PocketPC unit, there is more functional software available than for the IPhone.

The only issue I have with the 3G networks, especially the EVDO Network is the possibility that the EVDO services may be killing off the bee population. Still waiting for a government study on the matter.

I recently moved here from the UK, and I'm amazed at the costs of downloading. In the UK, you can download 3gb of data for $30 on a pay as you go plan. (That's 0, ZERO months contract). Also, a USB dongle costs $100 as opposed to $300 here.

That said, restaurants and gas are almost double the price there, so its not al bad, but there's still no excuse for these telcos to charge what they do.

GS wrote: "Using an iPhone alone, you will not break the 6GB barrier. However, if you use the device as a modem and download 1 or 2 movies on your laptop, the 6 GB will be gone in a flash."

I have news for you: YOU CAN'T USE THE IPHONE AS A MODEM! So, again, if the average user doesn't go over 400MB, and bandwidth ain't a scarce commodity, then WHAT'S ROGERS POINT FOR SETTING SUCH PREDATORY PRICING?

I will stay away fom the Rogers iPhone as long as Rogers fails do deliver VALUE for my money. And you should too. Oh wait, you're locked in a 3-year contract! Oh well, some people like to be abused.

I agree. It is the battery that will limit data consumption. I have tried to exhaust 6GB and have only hit 100 MB since July 12.

The biggest crime is roaming. $30.00 per MB for roaming data in the US renders the iPhone a plain old phone while traveling in the U.S. Exactly when you wish to use GPS, web, location services.

One song $0.99 download (2 MB) would cost $60.00!!!!! Petition that!

Well, if what Rogers says IS true AND it would be very difficult for the average iPhone user to use up 6GIG in a month... Why not say unlimited knowing that the average user will never in a million years use all that bandwidth.

No, the reason Rogers will not offer an unlimited plan is becuase they KNOW 6GIG is not enough and they want to screw the consumer. plain and simple.

I really think that we as canadains should pressure government to open up the monopoly that our canadian communication companies have in canada. If rogers REALY is offering the best possible deal, they have nothing to fear. The fact that they have been screwing the customer for years is the REAL reason they don't want competition. If I was Ted Rogers I'be be very afraid of competion. ...and they are making this man "businessman of the year". nice.

Anyone else realize that in order to transfer music or apps from your computer to your phone, it takes up data?... Something to keep in mind before you wake up to a massive phone bill. So really, you dont buy the iphone, you rent the space on it. Thanks for nothing rogers

Does anyone know how much data is used for online radio streaming. To me this is one of the most intriguing aspects of the iphone. Would I go over my limit of 6GB quicky? There is also another program called SimplyMedia that allows you to access of up to 30 peoples itunes libraries and lets you stream them to your iphone. how taxing on a 6gb plan would this be. I am saying I would probably do this and use it as my full time ipod as well as cell phone as it basically is unlimited music storage, it's just not stored locally on your iphone.

thanks for any info guys.

I have been using my IPhone non stop since getting it on Oct.4/08. I have downloaded three additional pages of phone apps from the store, have surfed countless web sites, check my fantasy football and hockey stats at least 5 times a day, watch you tube videos, shop ebay. I, like many of you, thought that the data charges would accumulate quickly, however that has not been the case. I said to myself, self, for the first month use your phone however you want, that way I have a base line cost for extreme use. I am not kidding when I say I do everything with this phone. Email,text,surf,work,download,upload you name it, and I am now at 352mb of recieved data. I am afforded 500mb per month, which under normal use I suspect will fall under this cap. However I need to learn more about this Jailbreak stuff, interesting.

i bought my iphone on Feb 23/08 and my data usadge has been up and down i am not a normal user because i have a habit of tethering to my computers because i can. now some months i will do 700+megs a month and thats just from normal use a youtube video here or there so honestly i have no clew where the hell your getting 86 ish MB a week is normal because a youtube video is about 6 megs and what u watch 1 video a week then a bit of surfing no. if you have your email pushed to your iphone and you get a high allotment of emails then you are obviously going to be using alot of data.
Mar - 476,747.00 (KB)
Apr - 329,887.00 (KB)
May - 434,872.00 (KB)
Jun - 183,171.00 (KB)
Jul - 214,857.00 (KB)
Aug - 562,829.00 (KB)
Sep - 900,000.00 (KB)+ Already and its only the 17th of september so obviously depending on the person you can use more data. the biggest thing about data usadge would be tethering. so 6 gigs is a great cap its just the price for evertyhing my averadge bill is 114.17 with taxes. and thats slightly rediculious.

@Jake

Wtf are you talking about?

Ideally, you transfer the music from your computer to your iPhone over USB which won't use your data plan.

I purchased my iphone from an independant dealer because i don't want a to be locked into a contract. Well now I find out that Rogers has no data plans for Pay as you go. The only way i can get data is to sign a contract, but hold on, now they offer me data at $2.99 per day. What a efin ripoff. I will contiue to use my WiFi untile i see a plan that is right for me. The greed level would indicate, that will not happen soon.