Orange, Apple make iPhone 3G available globally

BANGALORE, INDIA: Orange and Apple today announced that the iPhone 3G will be available in Austria, Portugal and Switzerland on July 11 and in France on July 17.

A press release said that it will launch in additional markets across Europe, the Middle East and Africa later this year. Orange will begin taking pre-orders for iPhone 3G later this month.

iPhone combines three products into one small, lightweight device. It is a widescreen iPod, and it puts the Internet with the email, web browsing, search and Maps applications on a mobile phone.

"At Orange we believe in making the Internet more personal-giving our customers fast access to the information and entertainment that they want, wherever they are," said Olaf Swantee, head of Orange's Global Mobile Operations.

"iPhone takes advantage of our widespread 3G networks and together we are making the mobile experience for our customers even better."

"We're excited to extend our relationship with Orange to bring iPhone to more than 12 markets across the globe," said Tim Cook, Apple's COO.

Orange's mobile networks use the fastest available technologies with speeds of up to 7.2 Mbps. The combination of widespread EDGE, Wi-Fi, 3G and HSDPA networks mean customers can fully enjoy the mobile Internet almost wherever they go.