Two Seven

Apple have announced the release of the 3G iPhone, scheduled for the 11^th of July.

It will be supported in Switzerland by both Swisscom and Orange, and in New Zealand by Vodafone, as we already knew.

It has GPS, 3G, support for Microsoft Exchange and a few other goodies.

I couldn’t find any pricing for Switzerland, but the Macrumors forum has some speculation.

I see in this morning’s NZ Herald that Vodafone NZ have announced their unbundled high-speed broadband service.

Marketing head Mark Rushworth explained that the network would not be hobbled, and that customers could expect the best possible performance for available.

“All of the plans on the Red Network are unrestricted on upload and download,” he said.

I’m not sure that speed is not really the issue for the average user. By that, I mean the theoretical cable speed of ADSL (not ADSL2+) is sufficient.

There are two issues: a) Data caps. I had a quick look around at Swiss providers, and I couldn’t find a plan that had a data cap. Most NZ plans do, and b) most people are only getting 2.5 to 3Mbps down, which is less than half the theoretical cable speed of standard ADSL.

Rushworth goes on to say:

Should the network growth outstrip projected capacity, Rushworth said it was a simple case of adding more high speed gear.

“If we run out of high speed capacity, we’ll have some more high speed equipment there the next day,” he said.

…which is great, so why don’t providers just do that with standard ADSL? I’m sure that would satisfy nearly all current customers who complain about speed.

If you’re running a business, using VoIP, or streaming quality, real-time video, then of course more bandwidth is always going to help, but if all you’re doing is using email, hanging out on Facebook, downloading the odd track from iTunes, or playing games online, then open-speed standard ADSL with no data cap would be fine.

ADSL2+? It’s just marketing.

Sorry – twoseven.co.nz has been off the air for a bit.

I finished up at Vodafone NZ on the 7^th of May; flew to Hong Kong on the 9^th; on to Zürich on the 11^th; job interview on the 12^th, and job offer on the 13^th. It’s been a busy week.
With a final contract yet to be received and signed, it looks like I will become an employee of Liip AG, starting the beginning of June.

So, I’m settling down in Switzerland.
I have a sunrise prepaid mobile connection for my shiny new Nokia E90: +41 076 701 9638 , I bought a Linksys wireless access point with which to share the internet connection where I am staying.

In enjoying the E90, here are some awesome mobile applications that I’ve discovered:

• Gmail, of course
• Google Maps
• fring
• wwigo, for using your mobile as a Bluetooth webcam
• PuTTY for Symbian

So, it’s been a hectic time. I’ve now got a couple of weeks to get out and about in Switzerland, to go see some sights, and do touristy stuff before I start work.

So I’ve been reading through applications for the role of Webmaster at Vodafone.

If I might offer some advice:

Write a cover-letter

You won’t even get a first interview unless a) you have a basic understanding of the role, and b) you can show us that you really really want the job.
We need to know you have a passion for the web.

Tailor your CV

…especially if you’re not going to write a cover-letter! We need to see evidence from your current skills and experience that this role as Webmaster at Vodafone is a suitable and natural progression for your career.

After all, this is could be your next job. Show us some enthusiasm!