Skip to main content

Poor lil’ fella: T-Mobile says it wants the iPhone 4S really bad

lil-brudderIt hurts to be left out. This holiday season T-Mobile is the only major wireless carrier in the United States that doesn’t have the iPhone 4S, and it’s a bit mopey. So mopey that its marketing department issued a press release today without any real point except, well, to sound bummed out. No new products or services were revealed in the statement, which seems to exist solely to bring up the fact that T-Mobile is not getting the iPhone. 

Here’s T-Mobile’s statement:

T-Mobile thinks the iPhone is a good device and we’ve expressed our interest to Apple to offer it to our customers. Ultimately, it is Apple’s decision. The issue remains that Apple has not developed a version of the iPhone with technology that works on our fast 3G and 4G networks. We believe a capable version of the iPhone for our 3G and 4G networks would offer an additional compelling option for our customers on a fast 4G network. However, the iPhone is not the only option to experience the benefit that smartphones offer.

T-Mobile’s 4G smartphones stack up against competitive smartphones in terms of functionality, speed, features offered and overall experience – including the iPhone 4S. Reports continue of iPhones not operating well on some carrier networks, while our latest 4G smartphones offer many advantages vs. the iPhone 4S:

We firmly believe that T-Mobile’s portfolio will give any iPhone a run for its money….With our portfolio of Android, Windows, and BlackBerry smartphones, fast 4G network, and competitively priced worry-free unlimited talk, text, and data plans, we believe it’s a great time to be a T-Mobile customer.

It’s like a John Hughes movie

If you read the statement like a script to a romantic comedy, it makes for some good entertainment. Here’s the plot: T-Mobile has been obsessed with Apple’s iPhone 4S all semester. Apple flirted back for a while and the two got to know each other.  When it came time for the Fall formal, T-Mobile knew it wanted to take Apple, which is, as we all know, the prettiest girl at any dance. But when T-Mobile asked Apple to the dance, it was shut down. Rejected, T-Mobile has hatched a new plan. Now it is trying to get Apple’s attention by bragging about how much bigger, faster, and prettier its Android smartphones are than the iPhone. If this were a movie, Apple would soon get really jealous and the two would get in a huge fight, but by the end of the night Apple would jump into T-Mobile’s arms and they’d walk off into the moonlight. Sadly, life doesn’t always work that way. 

sixteen-candles-end
Image used with permission by copyright holder

T-Mobile is a fine carrier and, as we’ve said, it may have the best lineup of Android phones this holiday season, but it stings not having the iPhone, especially when the bar is so low. I mean, it’s been five years now and even Sprint got it this time. If T-Mobile is still a carrier in a year, we assume Apple may consider it for the iPhone 6, but maybe not. As long as the iPhone is the world’s most popular phone, Apple won’t be bending to please anybody. If T-Mobile’s lucky, Apple will ask it to dance next year. If not, there’s always Windows Phone…

Jeffrey Van Camp
Former Digital Trends Contributor
As DT's Deputy Editor, Jeff helps oversee editorial operations at Digital Trends. Previously, he ran the site's…
The OnePlus 13 may one-up the Galaxy S24 and iPhone 15. Here’s how
OnePlus 12 Glacial White color held in hand against its red box.

The OnePlus 13 has gotten another tantalizing set of leaks -- including one thing that may give it a significant edge against the Samsung Galaxy S24 and iPhone 15. The latest news comes from Digital Chat Station (DCS) on Weibo, which posted that the OnePlus 13 will have IP69 water- and dustproofing.

This is a notch above the IP68 you get with most flagship phones and a big step above the IP65 that came on the OnePlus 12, which meant that it wasn’t rated to survive a dunk in water. An IP69 rating means that the OnePlus 13 will be one of the most durable phones on the market, and it’s certified to survive high-pressure and high-temperature water jets.

Read more
I can’t wait to make my iPhone look like Android with iOS 18
An iPhone home screen with iOS 18.

Apple’s WWDC 2024 keynote was quite a spectacle. It showed off a ton of new features coming to iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia, with most of it being powered with Apple Intelligence -- Apple’s own brand of AI.

But there were some other non-AI features, too, including some much-needed changes to the iPhone's home screen. It’s been a while since Apple really overhauled the home screen, the last time being iOS 14 and the ability to add widgets and create custom app icons through Shortcuts. With iOS 18, users can further customize their home screen with new ways to rearrange apps and widgets, plus the ability to theme app icons like never before.

Read more
Hurry! Get the latest iPhone SE for $149 in Walmart’s Memorial Day sale
Several Apple iPhone SE 3s

Apple is known for making some of the best phones on the market, and a lot of them come with an incredibly high price, which leaves Apple fans who have a more moderate budget out in the cold. Luckily, Apple has created a more budget-friendly entry in its lineup in the form of the iPhone SE, and when the original one came out it was quite a big deal. Since then there have been three iterations, and while they have been steadily getting more expensive, they're still well-priced and are packed with features.

Luckily, there is an early Memorial Day deal that will let you get the latest iPhone SE 3 from Walmart for just $149, although that's tied to Straight Talk. The $149 price tag is significantly cheaper than it would be if you bought it at MSRP, which is a whopping $429, so you're getting well over half off.

Read more