vodafone – Steve Blum's Blog

New hope for New Zealand telecoms competition

18 February 2013 by Steve Blum
broadband, business, new zealand, planet earth, telecom nz, telstra, vodafone

Fortunately, there are better ways to spend your time in New Zealand.

New Zealand is a relatively costly place to do Internet-related business. There’s only one underseas cable linking it to the outside world, the Southern Cross, which goes from Australia to California via New Zealand.

That’s two paths in and out of the country, but one owner. It’s not a competitive market. According to Market Clarity, an Australian telecoms research company, Kiwis pay 5.8 times more than Aussies for a gigabyte .… More

New Zealand mobile broadband still easy and affordable

20 January 2013 by Steve Blum
broadband, mobile, new zealand, planet earth, vodafone

Lake Wanaka, New Zealand. Why spend time on the Internet?

I’ve been doing my annual check on New Zealand’s mobile telecoms, from a traveler’s perspective. Coverage appears to be much the same. Some prices have gone up and some down.

Vodafone and Telecom NZ both deliver 3G service pretty much everywhere I go, in both North and South Islands. I haven’t seen any change from last year in 2degrees’ coverage, which seems to focus on urban areas and not so much in the countryside, where I’ve been spending most of my time this trip.… More

Sony netbook, sorry, Lifestyle PC

7 January 2009 by Steve Blum
australia, consumer electronics, lifestyle pc, netbook, new zealand, sony, sony ericsson, t-mobile, verizon, vodafone

Here’s what it looks like…

Sony netbook, sorry, Lifestyle PC. 20 cm screen, 600 grams. WiFi, Bluetooth. Verizon 3G data in the U.S., T-Mobile and Vodafone in Europe. Nothing in New Zealand or Australia. Sorry, mate.

Sony also has a “Webbie” cam. HD video, $170 when it hits the market in March. There’s a $200 version available now, but not as cute.

Live from CES Press Day, 7 January 2009

7 January 2009 by Steve Blum
australia, CES2019, cisco, consumer electronics, ericsson, flacks, german, Intel, japanese, lg, linksys, microsoft, netgear, new zealand, sony, t-mbile, t-mobile, tagolog, toshiba, verizon, vodafone

Last to first, real time tweets from Las Vegas…

Bill Gates is the UrGeek. Love or hate him, he’s an original with historic scope. Heroic in classical sense. Ballmer…
Listening to Steve Ballmer, Microsoft CEO. Microsoft will rule the world. Honest.
Sony shows great respect for mobile telecom carriers. Has WiFi Walkman in pipeline, but no 3/4G product that would cause consternation for Sony Ericsson’s mobile carrier customers.
Sony sez not in negotiations for NZ/Australia mobile carrier deals for netbook, sorry Lifestyle PC, but GSM deals in Europe are locked.

… More