11 December 2009 | Author: D. Warburton Search Copywriter

Tesco Mobile to offer iPhone

Tesco Mobile will offer contracts for Apple's iPhone from Monday, December 14.

The BBC reports that the supermarket giant is launching its iPhone contract in the run up to Christmas. By offering UK customers a shorter 12-month contract compared to the 24-month contracts of competitors such as the Orange iPhone and O2, the Tesco iPhone will allow customers the advantage of upgrading to the latest handset and services sooner.

However, even the lowest £20 monthly tariff offered by Tesco on its 12-month contract still requires customers to purchase an iPhone handset, which can cost upwards of £222 even for the most basic 8GB 3G model. Both O2 and Orange offer free handsets to customers as part of their 24-month contracts, when the monthly price is high enough.

As with competing iPhone and smartphone offerings, the Tesco iPhone provides users with unlimited wi-fi web access, fueling the rapid expansion of the mobile web and web services designed for people on the go - such as the recent barcode addition to Google Maps.

It's little wonder that everyone is trying to ensure they have a slice of the smartphone-pie, and it was recently revealed that iPhone profits have overtaken Nokia in the United States, while rival technology giants Google and Microsoft are also working on upgrading their own smartphone offerings with the aim of providing competition to Apple - with Google ominously declaring that Android will be bigger than the iPhone.

For the time being, Apple still reigns supreme in the smartphone market. Vodafone recently revealed that it will begin offering iPhone handsets from 2010, but pricing details have yet to be announced.

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