“Apple Inc. is one step closer to beginning sales of iPad 2 tablet computers with cellular network compatibility for the first time in China, where the consumer-electronics giant is in the midst of an aggressive expansion,” Loretta Chao and Yun-Hee Kim report for The Wall Street Journal.
“According to China’s Telecommunication Equipment Certification Center, a device by Apple with third-generation high-speed wireless data capabilities was issued the network access license needed for the company to begin official sales in China,” Chao and Kim report. “The device, listed under model number ‘A1396,’ is compatible with the 3G standard WCDMA, and would work with the cellular network operated by Apple’s local iPhone partner, China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd.”
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Chao and Kim report, “Apple already offers the 3G iPad 2 in Hong Kong through its partners, but currently only offers Wi-Fi versions of the device in mainland China. Still, consumers in China, which according to research firm IDC surpassed the U.S. as the world’s largest PC market in the second quarter, have been purchasing 3G tablets through unofficial channels.”
Read more in the full article here.
iPad 3G seems to work well around the east coast, but what will happen when everybody gets the 3G version? I wonder if that’s the real reason.
The local gov often holds back progress by making something either illegal or limiting its availability, but doesn’t care when people do it anyway. It’s just a way to test the system and if the experiment fails they can call it illegal activity and crack it down.
What will happen when everyone gets the 3G version?
You answered your own question with a question that does little to answer what will happen when everyone gets 3G.
Are you talking about the East coast of China? And are you concerned that if 3G proves to be an especially useful communications device, the local govenment will shut down, or limit your 3G network?
East coast of China is full of export businesses and factories, and where everybody wants to be a millionaire. When the iCloud arrives and iOS5 will use 3G to sync everything, it will overload the network, and then what? Just have to live with it. Meanwhile the other networks have hardly any data traffic.
Also, if you have one iCloud device in US, one in China, all the pics or data you input in the Chinese iPad/iPhone will show up immediately in the US device. I’m not sure if the gov thinks that’s a good idea.
So far the 3G iPads have been OK, I went to China Unicom couple of weeks ago and got myself a 3 month prepaid 3G.