Singapore

Singtel Prices for the iPhone 5s and the iPhone 5c in Singapore!

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Click on the image to view it in full size.

This year’s prices are quite a bit higher, due to the fluctuation in exchange rates.

It is however, interesting to note that the iPhone 5c is only retailing at $318 at the lite plan (the plan most Singaporeans will pick), while the iPhone 5s is retailing at $538 at the same plan, with the 5c at a full $220 cheaper.

Looks like the subsidies are higher for the 5c, and those buying on contract should do well to consider the 5c instead.

While I am most probably buying a 5s because I am already carrying a 5, truth be told, I will much rather buy a blue 5c this Friday. It’s just a bit funny to consider the phone with the same specs when you are supposed to be upgrading.

Those without the 5 though, I cannot stress this enough – the iPhone 5c is a superb phone for the price. Don’t believe me? Just touch the real thing this Friday. You won’t be disappointed.

There are units reaching Mac retail stores (NuBox, epiCentre) TODAY, 18th September 2013. While I am not sure if there will be display units out today, if you are nearby one it makes sense to go in and ask if you can try out the 5c.

There is no longer a Mac community in Singapore

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And it shows.

The grand total attendance, of the Mac User Group Singapore (MUGS) meet-up recently, is ONE. That is despite MUGS having over 200 members, and having the event details casted out on every form of social media I could think of.

This is enough reason for me to tell myself to just move on, accept that nobody has love for fellow Mac users anymore, and stop feeling sentimental.

You can follow MacRyu at @ryuworks on Twitter and @ryu on App.net.

Mac User Group Singapore Meetup 05/2013

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We are holding a MUGS (Mac User Group Singapore) meet up this coming Wednesday evening, the first in three years.

Other than myself, there might not be anyone else attending.

In the last three years, while raw numbers of Mac and iOS users have just exploded, the close-knitted Mac community some of us valued over the years have literally vanished at the same time.

The Facebook event list literally has myself as the only one listed as attending.

This event is not restricted to MUGS members, and is open to anyone who fancy themselves as die-hard Mac/iOS users. There isn’t even proper membership for MUGS in the first place (there used to be, but that was a long, long, long time ago).

If you are interested in meeting up, or if you are only interested in walking by and looking at pathetic me sitting at the meet up venue alone, the details are;

MUGS Meetup 2013

Date: 29th May 2013
Time: 7pm to 9pm
Location: Funan the I.T. Mall food court

Will anyone turn up?

M1 and Singtel Price Plans for iPhone 5 in Singapore

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Ahhhh… After a horrible day yesterday I am now sure I am switching from Singtel to M1. Why? You ask. Cause I just can’t stand Singtel’s ways anymore. Everything wrong with Singtel reflects everything that is wrong with this country.

And here are the M1 prices.

And here are the Singtel prices, sourced from Lester Chan’s site. As usual, Singtel has the HIGHEST prices with the WORSE service. Singtel’s mobile internet is completely unusable in many places in town, even if there are full signal bars being shown.

iFlexi Plans

iFlexi Lite – SGD$39.90
2GB Data
100 Mins Outgoing Voice
800 SMS
iPhone 5 16GB Price: SGD$478
iPhone 5 32GB Price: SGD$598
iPhone 5 64GB Price: SGD$758

iFlexi Value – SGD$59.90
3GB Data
200 Mins Outgoing Voice
900 SMS
iPhone 5 16GB Price: SGD$198
iPhone 5 32GB Price: SGD$308
iPhone 5 64GB Price: SGD$468

iFlexi Plus – SGD$99.90
4GB Data
500 Mins Outgoing Voice
1,000 SMS
iPhone 5 16GB Price: Free
iPhone 5 32GB Price: SGD$48
iPhone 5 64GB Price: SGD$198

iFlexi Premium – SGD$205
12GB Data
2,000 Mins Outgoing Voice
2,500 SMS
iPhone 5 16GB Price: Free
iPhone 5 32GB Price: Free
iPhone 5 64GB Price: SGD$58

Launch date for iPhone 5 in Singapore and other iPhone 5 tidbits

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Just a few hours left to the iPhone 5 introduction tomorrow early morning, so let us run through some information that we already know as fact.

What we already know as fact;

1. iPhone 5 will be released in the States on the 21st. (WSJ)

2. iPhone 5 will be released in Singapore on the 21st as well. (Hardwarezone thanks DHL for leaking the info, lolol, and some other sources)

3. iPhone 5’s screen resolution is 1136X640, features 5 rows of icons instead of the usual 4 (multiple sources)

4. iPhone 5 has a brand new, 9-pin, UNI-DIRECTIONAL (this is freaking cool, you can plug it in both ways and it will work!) dock connector that will be featured probably on the new iPods as well (iLounge, you can count it on them for such news)

5. iPhone 5 will look like these two devices in the picture;


Picture from 9to5Mac obviously.

When 9to5Mac broke the news months ago about the above being the new iPhone 5 designs, I personally checked with supply chain sources who gave me the “erm… I DIDN’T SAY ANYTHING!!!!” reply which basically means “duh…”, yet many didn’t seem to believe me or 9to5Mac’s pictures. But then, as more and more leaks appear, I guess people finally know.

What we have no idea of;

1. If SPG’s iPhone 5 screen protector is precise and accurate, since Apple doesn’t seem give device dimensions to third party manufacturers in advance

2. If Apple will be the only one selling the new dock cables/adapters, thus making cheaper low quality-controlled cables impossible to buy for the time being.

3. If M1, currently the only telco in Singapore with 12GB iPhone data plans remaining, and the telco I am going to switch to thanks to shitty service and shitty coverage from Singtel, will kill its 12GB plans the very day iPhone 5 launches on M1. Or if Starhub and Singtel will backtrack and offer 12GB just for a limited sign-up period in order not to lose hundreds of customers to M1. Edit: M1 already dropped their plans to 2GB, 3GB, 5GB and 12GB. Too late.

4. iPhone 5 has LTE that works in Singapore. may work in Singapore. (As pointed out by Ivan in the comments!) However, some sources closed to the telcos say LTE on the iPhone WILL work in Singapore, so we’ll see.

Some Apple Store (retail) related news

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The Hong Kong Apple Store at IFC

This came in recently from another source (not the same one as my previous article on the Apple Store in Singapore). Do take it with a pinch of salt though, I’m not sure how accurate this is.

In the latest report released in June on the next batches of Apple Stores to be opened around the world in the following months/year, Singapore is suspiciously absent from the list of countries. Hong Kong’s second store still is on the list though.

Strangely though, around the last one or two months, chatter about the preparations for the local Apple Store has completely stopped, with some people close to the situation commenting that plans might have been delayed due to problems of site allocation and the general reseller situation in Singapore.

However, none of them are absolutely sure that the project has been shelved.

That said, it’s already August and there still isn’t any news on recruitment for a possible Apple Store.

Will we have an Apple Store soon?

Updated: Yes, we will have an Apple Store, just slightly delayed to next year. It will become very obvious in two months’ time.

iPad 3rd Generation Singapore Launch at M1 Paragon

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Just some quick photos before I go to sleep.

And an iPad Launch won’t be an iPad Launch without scalpers, with a big bunch of them gathering at Starbucks after purchase to get paid by the big boss.

Oh and here’s my iPad.

P.S. I’m going to Singapore Polytechnic in the morning for the notebook sales. Anyone there tomorrow feel free to drop by the Apple booth (Sapura) to say hi. Not bringing my iPad though. :p

The Apple Store is Coming to Singapore

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The Mighty Apple
Image Credits: RyuWorks on Flickr

Fact: the Apple Store (physical) for Singapore is almost ready.

For many years Japan was the only country in Asia with official Apple Stores, staffed by peeps wearing real Apple T shirts and geniuses who will solve all your Mac problems. 

Then the China Apple Stores happened. And then so did the Hong Kong one. 

In recent years, particularly around 2010, rumors have been rife that both Hong Kong and Singapore will be getting their own Apple Stores. The rumors kept everyone excited for a bit, but as time goes by and nothing happened, people forget. 

Then in 2011, the Hong Kong Apple Store happened. 

What happened to the Singapore Apple Store then, you wonder?

It is happening. 

In recent months, I have heard whispers and chirpings from more than a few birdies that Apple’s business channels for the Apple Store in Singapore are under preparations, and that by now much have been done. 

While the location of the Store remains a mystery, the expected period of its grand opening apparently isn’t. With some luck, Singapore will have our first Apple Store by end 2012. 

Having an official Apple Store in Singapore is definitely exciting, but what does this mean for existing Apple resellers and consumers?

Fact: Apple do not really like their resellers much.

Resellers are a necessary evil to Apple, they ensure sales in locations and countries that Apple Retail cannot reach, and most of them, especially the APRs (Apple Premium Resellers), are even willing to have Apple dictate the design of their stores even if the APRs are the ones paying for the renovations. Selling through resellers, however, mean the Apple earns less profit compared to selling directly from its stores. 

Thus for Apple Retail to enter Singapore, Apple will have to made conditions favorable for the official Apple Store to take away most of the retail profits from the current crop of Apple resellers in Singapore. 

This usually mean putting more restrictions on what Apple resellers can or cannot do, for example the recent “no participation in IT bazaar shows” (nevertheless, nubox and Epicentre were still openly selling Macs at the recent IT Fair without being too showy about it), giving resellers even lesser stock of new products (they are already getting very little stock now, especially the non-APRs), and probably not allowing anymore new Apple resellers to happen (while trying to terminate the smaller resellers’ rights to resell). 

Singapore has the largest number of Apple resellers in the region (so much so that people actually think Epicentre is the Apple Store), and for the Apple Store to take the lion’s share of the local market some of the resellers will have to go, it seems. 

Nevertheless, I don’t expect Epicentre to be affected by this, since time and time again they have demonstrated that they have a lot of internal backing from Apple Singapore, for despite being the reseller to continuously break Apple’s very strict reseller rules with pleasure, they have rarely been punished. Seems that they are also heavily involved in Apple’s China operations. 

Like the States though, the Apple booths in electronic chains like Harvey Norman and Challenger are apparently officially sanctioned by Apple, and are managed by a company (infinite) directly appointed by Apple. So these will definitely remain, and even thrive, in a future where there are Apple Stores in Singapore. 

You might think all the above sound so terribly evil, but as a consumer, a future with a Singapore Apple Store is a much brighter future. 

There are considerable benefits to be had from an official Apple Store as compared to normal resellers. 

As far as I know, all Apple Stores in the world follow Apple’s 14-day return policy or purchases. This mean that should you be unhappy with your purchases, you can return your purchases for a full refund sans a small restocking fee. 

If a product is refreshed with 14 days of your purchase, you can exchange your old product for the updated model. For example, if you bought an iPad 2 on the 13th and the iPad (3rd generation) is released in stores on the 16th, an exchange is totally possible in an official Apple Store. 

Such exchanges and returns are just impossible at any Apple reseller. 

Also, when Apple runs an official promotion like the annual Back To School promotion, you can enjoy the promotion directly at the official Apple Store, not so at the resellers. 

When Apple announces a new product and keeps the current product while dropping its prices, like the $528 iPad 2 wifi for Singapore, an official Apple Store will update its prices immediately for existing stocks of iPad 2, while the last time I checked with certain resellers they were still selling the same model at $668 (Infinite-run booths and it’s Vivocity shop have the new prices already). 

Other obvious benefits range from the superior experience shopping in an Apple Store, to much higher stock levels for new products, to availability of Apple Store-only products like the product (RED) iPods. 

All in all, a very exciting future to look forward to. I can’t wait to go give my money to Apple at the Singapore Apple Store. 

P.S. The second Hong Kong Apple Store is coming up soon too. 

Edit on 14th Nov 2013: Chatter resurfaced recently. Apple Store Singapore is apparently being planned for Orchard Road, the area between Wheelock Place and Far East Shopping Centre/Hilton. Will update if or when I hear more.

You can follow MacRyu at @ryuworks on Twitter and @ryu on App.net.

Got questions about iOS 7 and the new iPhone 5s and 5c? Visit MacNet at sgmac.net today!

My iPad 3 Predictions

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Wednesday night (or Thursday morning) is iPad 3 day, and here are my predictions;

1. No LTE

Sorry, but LTE is really just not feasible in anywhere besides the States right now. In fact, it really isn’t even that feasible within the States, where LTE coverage is really less than ideal.

2. Retina Display, 2X of the original iPad resolution

Given.

3. iPad 2 8GB, to accompany iPad 3 16GB, 32GB, 64GB.

Which means no 128GB. It’s really just part of Apple’s recent strategy, to continue selling old stuff for cheap. It’s really not new, Apple for years have continue to sell previous generation models through the “refurbished models” page on their site, and putting it out front and centre is just a way to sell even more of the old stock (though with the 8GB they probably have to modify the old stock).

4. Naming? iPad 3

No particular reason, I just like iPad 3 more than iPad 2S or iPad HD.

5. Apps to demo the iPad 3 on? Aperture for iPad

Dan Benjamin thinks it’s Photoshop Touch, but he really is mistaken. For the past don’t-know-how-many iPhone/iPad events, new Apple apps have always accompanied the release of the devices, and this one shouldn’t be any different. And it’s finally time for Aperture for the iPad, because iPhoto on the iPad will be really weird due to the presence of the Photos app.

6. Design? Almost exactly the same as iPad 2, slightly difference in thickness.

Given. Too many pieces of evidence lately.

7. Camera? 5MP

Why? Cause it’s cheap enough by now.

8. Accessories? “Works with Smart Cover!” New colors.

If the case design is largely the same, no reason why it won’t work with the current line of Smart Covers. The design of the Smart Cover is such that it will accommodate many future iPads so long the design of the iPad itself isn’t that big of a difference in terms of shape. New colors will just give everyone a reason to buy new Smart Covers, which is what Apple really wants.

9. OS version? iOS 5.1 with Siri

Seriously though, Siri is getting pretty slow these days, so it will only hurt if they put Siri on the iPad. But Apple always put its new software features and apps on every new device that they debut, so it’s highly possible.

10. Singapore Launch Date? 23rd March 2012, Friday

Seriously it’s a tie between the 23rd and the 30th, but I won’t be able to make it on the 30th. So I’m putting all hope on the 23rd! Peeps in US, Japan, Britain get theirs this coming Friday.