Now this is an odd one. Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) New Zealand has reportedly pulled the HTC Magic from their website. Calls have been put in to Vodafone in the region, and the response was somewhat ominous: the Magic can be purchased for $1,099 NZD, but no more are in stock and it isn’t clear when more will be available. Very strange indeed. Blogger Ben Gracewood has also reported that not only is the device no longer available online, but all stock has been removed from stores. If you’re in the region and are hoping to pick up a Magic, looks like your best bet would be to either call Vodafone or pop down to a local store to see if you can nab the now elusive device. (Either that or catch a flight to Australia).

Something isn’t right here for sure. The Magic was launched only last week in New Zealand at a large party with many celebs in attendance. One thing is for certain, time will tell us what’s going on here.

Note: It’s interesting to note that the HTC Magic in New Zealand is a ‘Google (NSDQ: GOOG) Experience’ device. I suppose it’s possible Vodafone is having some issues with Google? Who knows. Let’s wait and see.

[Via: AndroidAuthority]

Woah, that was quick. Samsung announced their new Jet (no, not the Omnia II) handset just yesterday and already Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) UK has it up for grabs. Here’s a quick refresher if you missed the launch yesteday:

• 3.1″ WVGA, AMOLED screen
• 800 MHz processor
• 5 megapixel camera with autofocus
• Wi-Fi, aGPS, Bluetooth 2.1
• 2 or 8 GB internal memory, plus microSD card support
• Quad-band EDGE, HSDPA up to 3.6 Mbps
• 3.5mm headphone jack
• Mysterious “Dolfin” browser
• TouchWiz UI

One would presume the Jet would be able to traverse the ocean to the North American side (har-har), but we still haven’t heard a peep from carriers over here.

[via Omio]

The HTC Magic, the world’s second Android handset, will be landing down under on Vodafone and 3 Mobile. They’re branding it as “With Google (NSDQ: GOOG)”, so odds are you Aussies won’t be enjoying the Exchange support and other customized goodness that us Canadians have on our recently-launched Magic. Australia would have been home to some very early Android hardware had local manufacturer Kogan actually followed-through with their plans to launch the Agora and Agora Pro, but alas, those plans had long-since been shelved.For those in the U.S hankering for the Magic, word has it T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) will be offering it as soon as the end of the month.

[via HTC]

You’ve probably heard that Hutchison’s and Vodafone’s Australian operations want to merge to create a new operator called VHA, which stands for Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) Hutchinson Australia. Well, the government has nothing against the deal, even though they raised some concerns earlier that it could kill the competition in the market.

The new founding is that the move is unlikely to hurt competition, according to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). The reasoning behind this flip-flop is the “increasing need for mobile network operators to have sufficient scale to be able to continue to make significant investments in their network capabilities.” Hold on a sec - am I reading this correctly? Hutchinson and Vodafone don’t have the money to invest in infrastructure?

Sure, Australian market is not that large, and they need to make some money along the way, but we’re talking about two friggin’ giants here.

Anyway, now that the government doesn’t have anything against the deal, guess it’s all about the timing and operational things to complete the deal. We’ll certainly cover the official “VHA lives now” news, have no doubt about it.

Cellular News is reporting (on a story in The Independent newspaper) that Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) staff in the UK have forced the management in to a volte face (about turn) on the annual bonuses which had been cancelled - apparently they are going to be re-instated! It was March when the cancellation news came originally, but Vodafone managed to push out a £4.1bn profit…! The UK CEO sent a letter to staff (which was seen by The Independent) in which he explains the re-instatement, which will happen later this month apparently.

It’s a tricky thing right now, especially for the larger Telecoms companies - how do we shave costs whilst maintaining profit, yet STILL keep the staff happy too? These economic times can be quite demoralising for people, especially with redundancies happening how they have been - so this move by Vodafone is likely to placate some of the staff at least. The question I am sure on many people’s minds in how long this dip on the economic rollercoaster is going to last, and when we’ll get back to more prosperous time - with bigger bonuses….!

[Via: Cellular News via: The Independent]

Nokia (NYSE: NOK) announced that Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) will be the exclusive carrier to launch their Nokia 6730 classic, S60-based smartphone. The device is completely customized to sing along Vodafone services, providing users with easy access to Mobile internet, Vodafone Music, and personal and business email access along with mobile navigation capabilities.

Specs wise, the 6730 classic sports a 2.2-inch QVGA screen, 3.2 megapixel camera, GPS receiver, quad-band GSM along with dual-band HSPA, 1050 mAH battery, 50 MB of internal memory that is further expandable with microSD cards; Symbian S60 3.2 (Feature pack 2) runs the show. Size wise, the phone measures 112×46x12 mm and has a weight of 83 grams.

The Nokia 6730 classic should hit Vodafone markets during this month. Pricing was not unveiled.

iPhone 3G users in Australia can rejoice, Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) has finally launched visual voicemail service for the device. WooHoo! (about bloody time!). According to Vodafone Australia, visual voicemail service will be available by end of business on Friday May 29th. iPhone 3G customers will receive a text message alerting them to the new service… Users will then simply have to connect their iPhones to their system, sync in iTunes, download the latest firmware… and they’ll be off and running with visual voicemail.

Congrats to my mates down under… you’re going to love visual voicemail!

[Via: MacTalk AU]

Well another Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) operation should be up and running in June, that’s if things go according to plan in Qatar!

Customers should be able to sign up on the company’s website from next month, and after the launch in June, roll-out could occur in September. Right now there’s a trial ongoing to establish the effectiveness of the network. Interestingly, the CEO of the company has alluded to other opportunities to being looked at in the Middle East too - which could mean more Vodafone OpCos sooner rather than later!

[Via: itp.net]

Gomonews is reporting a story that 1000 conductors on Northern Rail trains have been given a new mobile information service, enabled by Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) UK - meaning that customer service is better as customers are kept informed of issues during their journeys.

There are apparently 2600 daily train services run by Northern Rail, so clearly anything that can alert about issues for the conductors is a big thing. The device chosen is a BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM), which give access to live departure boards, and update info also.

I have to say, having done the “London” commute on the train for 12 months (I won’t say which train company it was….!), I would have given anything to know about issues coming up on the line, so I could have had the option to get off in advance and find another route home. Of course, if a train is stopped between stations, you are a captive audience, for a variable time period “X” … 

Just think, if this system was implemented by the train company I have to use, we could know about all sorts of things like ‘leaves on the track’ - they stop trains you know

Seriously though, Northern Rail deserve a pat on the back for being forward-thinking and using the best tech - mobile tech!

[Via: Gomonews]

As the world waits for Palm (NSDQ: PALM) and Sprint (NYSE: S) to launch their highly anticipated Palm Pre, a little known outfit has been hard at work on their next-generation iPhone smartphone. Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) has been expected to bring a new iPhone hardware offering to market later this Summer, and it looks like the launch is imminent. iPhone vendors across the globe have been pushing to clear out remaining iPhone 3G inventory in preparation for a new hardware launch. Today, we’re hearing that Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) Australia has just declared the iPhone 3G as an “End of Life” handset.

The iPhone 3G’s EOL status down unda gives the iPhone community yet another sign that Apple is getting ready to release a new-generation iPhone within a couple months. Brightpoint, Vodafone’s Australian iPhone distributor indicates that there is only a few weeks left of iPhone 3G inventory, which also bodes well for a new iPhone launch in the coming months.

The iPhone 3G hasn’t even been on market for a full year and we’re already seeing the iconic touchscreen handset getting EOL’d to make way for yet another iPhone iteration. Apple sure is keeping busy these days.

[Via: MacTalk]