New zealand Articles on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog

iPhone 4 launch takes place in New Zealand, but confusion reigns down under

by Chris Rawson (Jul 29th, 2010)

Imagine if Apple's handset prices in the US weren't announced at WWDC, and the subsidy pricing was up to AT&T. Imagine if AT&T told potential iPhone customers that the iPhone 4 would launch on July 30, and pricing info would be released well in advance of that. Now imagine the weeks ...

iPhone 4's multiband antenna makes it a true 'world phone'

by Chris Rawson (Jun 7th, 2010)

This morning, I read liveblogs about the WWDC keynote with growing irritation. I'd been hoping for a 64 GB capacity bump for iPhone 4, even though I knew in the back of my mind that engineering practicalities made it unlikely. The news that FaceTime will not only be WiFi only, but will also work ...

NDrive Australia/NZ: A competent GPS nav app with a few flaws

by Chris Rawson (Apr 17th, 2010)

When asked if I wanted to review NDrive Australia & New Zealand (currently US$24.99, AU$29.99, and NZ$30.99), I was initially reluctant. "The problem with these nav apps is they don't really seem to offer me a compelling alternative to the free Maps app plus a co-pilot," I said. Since getting my ...

The #1 thing I want in the next iPhone: support for 900 MHz UMTS/HSDPA

by Chris Rawson (Mar 25th, 2010)

The next iPhone is widely expected to debut sometime in the next few months, most likely at WWDC, which is rumored to kick off on June 28. Even though that's only a hair over three months away, so far there's been very little revealed about the next iteration of the iPhone either in terms of its ...

iBookstore expanding internationally ... eventually

by Chris Rawson (Mar 2nd, 2010)

The announcement of the iBookstore wasn't particularly surprising -- analysts had expected such a move from Apple for months. What was somewhat surprising was that as of the initial announcement of the iPad and its tie-in with the iBookstore, there were no announced plans for international versions ...

An ode to iPhone tethering

by Chris Rawson (Feb 10th, 2010)

Sometimes I feel sorry for you poor iPhone users in the US. Sure, the telecommunications landscape in New Zealand isn't exactly perfect, but our small nation has the US beat on at least one very significant point: unlike AT&T, our wireless providers let us tether our iPhones as much as we want ...

Apple versus Woolworths: logo smackdown

by Chris Rawson (Oct 5th, 2009)

UPDATE 2: Be sure to read Engadget's analysis of what appears to be a non-event here. Apple is apparently getting hot and bothered over Australian/New Zealand supermarket chain Woolworths' new logo. Woolworths insists the logo is merely a stylized "W," but Apple's copyright lawyers aren't buying ...

New Zealand iPhone GPS ban considered, then overturned

by Chris Rawson (Sep 28th, 2009)

A few days ago, I learned of a new law coming out in Australia that's set to ban cell phone GPS usage while driving. I criticized the Aussie government's approach and noted that while New Zealand had a similar forthcoming law, at least NZ's government was sensible enough not to pursue the cell phone ...

Aussie drivers: Buy a cradle, or no iPhone GPS for you

by Chris Rawson (Sep 22nd, 2009)

Live in Australia? Have an iPhone? Do you use the iPhone's built-in Maps app, Navigon, or TomTom [iTunes links] to navigate? If you answered yes to all three of those questions, then I have some bad news for you: under the Australian Road Rule 8th Amendment, all use of the iPhone in your car is soon ...

Failure to launch: Apple bungles Snow Leopard distribution in New Zealand

by Chris Rawson (Aug 29th, 2009)

So, how's everybody enjoying Snow Leopard? Good stuff, isn't it? Gotta love those new Exposé options in the Dock, and all that saved hard drive space, and the faster if slightly quirkier performance... isn't it, um... great? Argh. I can't keep up the charade anymore. I know nothing about the ...

Why I'm not buying an iPhone 3GS in New Zealand (spoiler: it's not Apple's fault)

by Chris Rawson (Jul 16th, 2009)

When Apple announced the 3GS with all its whiz-bang new features, honestly the only thing I cared about was the increase in capacity. Everything else was just a bonus. I had my bank account all primed and ready to buy the thing as soon as it came out down here in New Zealand, but I was also keeping ...

Inside iPhone 3.0: Tethering

by Chris Rawson (Jun 17th, 2009)

While I trashed Vodafone NZ's pricing in a previous post, in at least one way it's far ahead of U.S. telco giant AT&T: internet tethering using the iPhone is already possible over Vodafone's network without resorting to lengthy, kludgy, and unsupported hacks. Who knows how long tethering will ...

Worldwide Mac: Using the iPhone in New Zealand

by Chris Rawson (Jun 14th, 2009)

In a previous post, I discussed some of the shortcomings of New Zealand's broadband infrastructure. A lot of you gave some great responses, which led me to realize that although it's certainly not world-class, NZ's broadband isn't quite as bad overall as I thought - it's just my ISP isn't the ...

Worldwide Mac: getting online in New Zealand

by Chris Rawson (Jun 13th, 2009)

Last year, after years of planning, my wife and I left the United States and moved to New Zealand. Moving to the other side of the world has meant adjusting to an entirely different geography and culture. Driving on the left, the "reversed" seasons, the completely unfamiliar constellations and ...

Movies now showing in NZ and Australian iTunes stores

by Michael Rose (Aug 14th, 2008)

They may be first to see the sun, but they've been waiting quite a while for movie rentals and purchases from the iTunes store -- now that patience has paid off, as movies have now arrived in a land down under. Aussie and Kiwi iTunes users can purchase and rent movies to their hearts' content. New ...