Telecom NZ have always left me unimpressed by the careful tedium of their cellphone offerings. They stayed with CDMA a decade after they should have abandoned it and were left very badly place. 


Their marketing is typically terrible. Here we are in the midst of a tidal wave of convergence they are swimming the other way. They are selling "music phones' and 'photo phones' and 'work phones' - effectively telling us we can't have it all.....we must choose from the functionally disparate offerings they put up. 


No thanks. 


Vodafone have offered the android-based, HTC Magic and good on them. I have two of the things and love'em to bits. They are my laptop-in-a-shirt-pocket with all the capabilities of a PC: file handling to / from anywhere at any time; multitasking; customisable (many different versions of the operating system available with loads of additional function). 


2degrees only have a 2G network at the mo' and with their data at 50 cents / MB, aren't really in the running. 


 But that's it. One android phone....and no noises from anyone about any more. 


Meanwhile, overseas, there are new android phones being announced every week and many more to come.  


On the one hand, I can understand the local telcos standing back and waiting to see where the dust settles. On the other, people who are paying attention may have to begin sourcing their phone upgrades from overseas or paying more attention to the  offerings from Parallel Imports. 


The other thing I found out yesterday is the Vodafone tech support guys don't know much about the HTC Magic. That matches the near total ignorance of the sales teams in the Vodafone stores. I walk there, show them what a loaded HTC Magic can do....and blow their socks off. 


"I didn't know it could do THAT!"....... Yeah. I know. 


Anyone know what's coming down the android pipe from our three telcos? Especially Telecom.