Re: RX-51 Tablet picture released at Engadget
 

Off topic?

Re: RX-51 Tablet picture released at Engadget
 

I would have no problem at all with a device the size of my N800 or even slightly bigger with great video and sound, and also sporting full Phone capabilities.
In fact I would have preferred a bigger screen.

I wouldn't even feel embarrassed placing such device against my ear when making a call. :P

Of course it could always be used hands-free.

The N800 with the paired 3G phone is a bit annoying imo. A fully integrated single device as described above would be ideal for me.

Re: RX-51 Tablet picture released at Engadget
 

Note that since the phone version addresses a broader market, on a dual phone/tablet setup it has to come first.

Re: RX-51 Tablet picture released at Engadget
 

That's a great story, but I'll bet it's a rare one -- especially when talking about the "major" wireless carriers. A locked phone with a plan can cost pennies compared with the price of an unlocked phone. (Speaking of new phones here, since I bought an unlocked LG on eBay for $30.) If a major carrier "gives" someone a phone for $9.99 plus a plan, I highly doubt that they would be eager to unlock the phone for the customer when the locked version cost $300 w/out a plan and an unlocked version costs $700 on the free market.

Tim

Re: RX-51 Tablet picture released at Engadget
 

Lucky you! when I wanted to unlock my Orange PAYG phone, they said I'd have to have £20 of credit on, and it would happen within three months! I ended up getting it unlocked (and, as a bonus, debranded) from one of the little, independent, ever-so-dodgy phone shops you see in every town. Then Orange gave me an awesome contract when I asked for my PUK code... damn you, sod's law! :p

Re: RX-51 Tablet picture released at Engadget
 

Pretty standard practice in the UK, actually. During the lifetime of a contract you will be asked to pay a nominal fee (£10-£20 max) to unlock the contract phone, and the network operator will often unlock the phone at no charge once the contract is up (it's now your phone, your property, the operator has no legal right to restrict your usage of that phone any longer).

It's understandable that operators charge different prices for locked and unlocked phones, but once you have signed up for a 12 month+ contract it really makes little difference to the operator what you do with that phone as long as you continue paying the monthly charges. The nominal unlocking fee while in contract is probably intended to act as a disincentive to avoid widespread abuse of the unlocking system, but any operator who refuses to unlock a phone at any time during or after a contract is just taking the p.

Cadabena - not sure about the PAYG market, obviously the economics of PAYG vs. monthly contract are very different. £20 sounds about right, although 3 months is a little excessive (unless they wanted to accrue more income...)

Re: RX-51 Tablet picture released at Engadget
 

Again, I think this is a perfect example of what the General said. Everyone has different needs. For example:

I have a work phone with no data plan. I dont need or want to carry around another phone, HOWEVER, I do want to carry around a tablet that DOES have 3G for DATA only. Yeah, not eveyone is in that boat.

As far as I'm concerned, put the 3G radio in but dont force people into a plan for it (@danramos, it really doesnt cost that much extra , and if you ever sell the thing the person buying it will PROBABLY want it, so you will at least get a percentage of it back) . Allow a plan for Phone+Data, Data only, or no plan at all. I think we then cover all the bases, assuming it still has the same capabilities for bluetooth pairing that it previously had (which it will at somepoint because someone in this forum will make it happen if it doesnt.)

This model works for both the RX-51 and RX-71.

Nokia offers phones that are not tied to a carrier. Always has (Or at least the interent has, Ebay). So if you are willing to drop the money you can get it that way.

I dont see a flaw in this but I'm sure someone does! Have at me!

Re: RX-51 Tablet picture released at Engadget
 

It's not that unusual, most people just don't know about it. I've done it with Cingular and with T-Mobile in the past, just had to wait several months after getting the subsidized phone. Don't forget that even if the subsidized phone is unlocked and you can use it on another network, you still have that 2 year contract with a hefty ETF.

Re: RX-51 Tablet picture released at Engadget
 

If (and only if) it could work with a pay-as-you-go plan for phone and data, it would be my ideal, too.

Re: RX-51 Tablet picture released at Engadget
 

I'll be very interested to see if the carriers will be able to pull any of those stunts with Maemo phones, especially the useful-features-crippling.

I guess the carrier could butcher the system and then use a special SIM card that checks that you're running the butchered OS (and refusing to work unless you are), otherwise it would be as simple as downloading new firmware from Nokia and flashing your device...

But it seems to me that in an open source OS, even a trick like that will be easy to work around. The 1337 hackers here and elsewhere will quickly identify the carriers' daemon and provide a how-to for getting unlocked devices working with that carriers' SIM cards...

(If the device is a phone) This is going to be an interesting new world, I must say...