14 DAY TRIAL // While Federal Communication Commission approval is a step that often goes unseen in the development of new devices, it is nevertheless an important milestone. Regulators have approved Apple's iPhone for sale in the United States, clearing the way for the product's launch (in late June) and sale by the wireless unit of AT&T.
The U.S Federal Communication Commission (FCC) has published the results of "A1203," a "GSM Cellular Telephone with Bluetooth and Wifi" from manufacturer "Apple Inc." as measured by Cetecom Inc.
"They are a brand new player in this space, so it is a big deal," said Shaw Wu, an analyst with American Technology Research. While there was little doubt that the device would not win approval, this is nevertheless good news. Despite Apple having a record of making great devices, both in terms of design and functionality, this was their first mobile phone. Several industry observers have doubted Apple's ability to make a great mobile phone simply because they have no experience in the market and inadequate knowledge of what users want from such devices.
While a fake Apple memo stirred up a swarm of rumors that the iPhone would be delayed and caused Apple's stock to plummet for a very short while, Apple is on track to ship the device as planned. "The iPhone has passed its required FCC certification milestone and is on schedule to ship in late June as planned," said Apple spokeswoman Natalie Kerris.
Not surprisingly, Apple has requested that the Commission withhold several documents from public viewing for another forty-five days after the date certification is granted. These documents are: Test Setup Photographs, External Photographs, Internal Photographs and User Manual. While the device is not expected to have any secret features that were not unveiled before, these documents could hold the answers to questions that are still open. Chief amongst these questions is whether Apple will allow third party developers to make software for the device or not.