Recently, it was officially announced that Rogers Communications Inc. will finally be offering Apple’s popular iPhone handset to Canada sometime in 2008. Details are still unknown as Rogers is under contract with Apple to keep all information under wraps until further notice. Many Canadians are still speculating whether or not the models will be the current first generation iPhones or the highly anticipated 3G models supposedly being announced in June.

I (like many other people) are still wondering, “What the heck is taking so long?”. Many are believing the problem stems with the pricing of the data plans. Rogers currently does not have an unlimited data plan, so that alone would make consumers shy away from being able to use the key features of the iPhone. Plus, with the current absense of business apps, many Canadian business people would rather use RIMs Blackberrys (which are also in the midst of releasing a 3G model).

I honestly think that if Rogers doesn’t receive the newer models soon, it’s going to be too little, too late. With Canadians being able to easily cross the border to pick-up the iPhone and also to “jailbreak” (unlock) their handsets, they’ve already lost many potential customers. Also, with data transfer plans ridiculously overpriced with Rogers, it will severely limit the usage of iPhones anyhow.

Though the news is definitely a step in the right direction, Canadians are definitely hoping they’ll be rewarded for patience, or else they’ll just stick with what they have already.

-Stephen