Taiwanese telco major Chungwa Telecom will make Apple Iphone third generation (3G) services available to its subscribers from 13 December. The company is aiming to sell 50,000 connections by the first quarter of next year.

Chungwa’s 8GB version of Iphone 3G will come in at NT$26,600 ($799), while the 16GB version will be priced at NT$29,900.

More packages are available, like a monthly data plan of NT$2,549 ($76), which will offer the 8GB version for free on a two-year contract. Prices of other plans in the 8GB segment range between NT$4,900 and NT$11,900 ($146-$355). Prices for the 16GB version will range between NT$2,990 and NT$15,200 ($89-$453).

 With the great fanfar, the company has opened up for pre-launch bookings, which are believed to continue till 10 December. The present trend of bookings suggests that the number received may cross 10,000 mark.

In India, two major players - Airtel and Vodafone - have got there first. Vodafone says its 8GB Iphone model will come at a price of $712 (Rs 31,000). The decision suggests Apple will now have to think again. Vodafone released the pricing information to users who pre-registered with the telco a few weeks back. The operator has also announced the price of its 16GB model as $829 (Rs 36,100).

Bharti Airtel has fixed the cost for the iconic device at the same as Vodafone's. An Iphone with an 8GB flash drive will cost $711 (Rs 31,000) and for 16GB, you'll have to shell out $828 (Rs 36,100). X

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