Rumor: T-Mobile To Get The iPhone 3Gs Later This Year

Wired Mag Editor Chris Anderson has posted a tasty rumor on Twitter: he claims that a T-Mobile manager revealed to him that they would be getting the iPhone 3GS by the end of the year. Granted, we shouldn’t put too much stock on the word-of-mouth hearsay of an anonymous store manager… but in actuality, other networks getting the iPhone 3GS, but not the iPhone 4, would make a lot of sense.

Here in Germany, for example, the rumored end of T-Mobile’s iPhone exclusivity was heralded with other networks suddenly being allowed to stock the 3GS. In other words, T-Mobile’s “iPhone exclusivity” was shifted to the exclusive sale of the iPhone 4… and even that exclusivity seems likely to end soon.

If Anderson’s nameless manager is right, then, we might see something similar happen in the States: AT&T becomes the exclusive carrier of the iPhone 4 for a time, while other carriers are allowed to sell the 3GS. If this coincides with a rumor of a January CDMA iPhone 4 for Verizon, we might conceivably start next year with an iPhone on every network.

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[via 9to5Mac]

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About the author

John Brownlee is news editor here at Cult of Mac, and has also written about a lot of things for a lot of different places, including Wired, Playboy, Boing Boing, Popular Mechanics, Gizmodo, Kotaku, Lifehacker, AMC, Geek and the Consumerist. He lives in Cambridge with his charming inamorata and a tiny budgerigar punningly christened after Nabokov's most famous pervert. You can follow him here on Twitter.

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Posted in iPhone, News, Top stories | Tagged: chris anderson, iPhone, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, t-mobile, Wired |

JIm
This continued type of “journalism” would fit well on the front page of the enquirer with Devil Boy and Elvis partying with Hitler.
Darwin
That really doesn’t make sense. Selling the 3GS instead of the iPhone 4?
seif
“Journalism?” is this where you come for your “journalism?” i come here for news AND rumors. i love this shit. keep it coming! i want EVERY piece of news AND every rumor relating to apple. thanks.
Matthias
Call it “journalism”, call it “rumours” – I don’t care either way, but show me *some* kind of evidence – *any* kind of evidence, really – that those “other carriers” in Germany have actually been “allowed” to stock the 3GS. Since you present that part as fact while I’m actually pretty sure it’s not.
From what I know (being German and passing by said carriers advertisements pretty much daily), they don’t *stock* anything – all they do is facilitate customers getting an iPhone 3GS for use on their networks, via third-party imports.
Now, if you actually have some evidence that this has changed, I’m all ears, but I very much doubt it.
eebiooie
I like how the article is about how t-mobile could get the iphone 3gs but the main picture is of the white iphone 4. Kind of misleading…
Tom
Hasn’t Apple discontinued Iphone 3GS? If so where would the supply and inventory for TMO come from?
Matt
Is the article about T-mobile USA? I bought an iPhone4 from T-mobile UK a couple of weeks ago and they also offered me a 3GS. Still do: https://www.t-mobile.co.uk/shop/iphone/buy-now/
4phun
With all these solid iPhone rumors, wouldn’t one be stupid to buy a second tier Android with a two year contract when they probably could have had a genuine iPhone on the network of their choice if they only had the patience to wait a few more months?
Jason
bull! Theres no point in selling 3gs
angryshortguy
What’s the percentage of this happening now?
Oh, wait. It’s coming to Verizon now.
No, it’s coming to Sprint.
Hold on, 75% chance that it’s going to be available to every carrier on the market. Free. With unlimited talk/text/web for $15 a month!
Is ATT paying you to report this tripe to keep people from switching?
Look, if you can’t stand ATT’s network, stop waiting for another iPhone carrier.
Just switch.