TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

IPhone Selling In China Before Official Debut

ADVERTISEMENT

The Associated Press

Published: September 5, 2007

BEIJING - The iPhone can be bought in China, even though Apple isn't selling it there and the gadget doesn't function properly, despite costing twice as much as in the United States.

Enthusiasts willing to pay $1,170 can buy the iPhone at electronics markets in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Guangzhou, the computer and electronics newspaper Dian Nao Bao reported in Monday's editions.

In the United States, the combination cell phone-iPod media player can be had for as little as $499. The Chinese version can make calls and send text messages, but it can't receive calls. The voicemail function also doesn't work.

Apple is selling the iPhone only in the United States, where it's restricted to AT&T's cellular network. Last month, hackers were successful in unlocking the device so that it could be used on other carriers.

Apple spokesman Natalie Kerris said Tuesday the company was not aware of specific reports of its phones being sold in China, but said the sales were not authorized.

'We said we would launch the iPhone in Asia in 2008,' she said. 'This is not that launch.'

China has the world's largest number of mobile phone users and the market is expected to grow rapidly as incomes rise. The government says the number of Chinese mobile phone subscribers should reach 520 million this year, up from 460 million in 2006.

The phones come from Shenzhen, a vendor told the paper. The iPhone is reportedly assembled for the U.S. market in this southern industrial boomtown.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT