T-Mobile to court iPhone users with in-store demos, iOS app

T-Mobile claims its plans will be $50 cheaper per month compared with those from AT&T.

T-Mobile USA--the nation's only major wireless carrier that does not sell the iPhone--is stepping up its efforts to entice Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone users to bring their unlocked devices to T-Mobile's network.

According to Suzanne Lowry, T-Mobile's vice president of marketing, the company on Sept. 12 will roll out iPhone 4 demonstration units to its retail stores and train its staff to help customers switch their iPhones to the T-Mobile network. In addition, the company is developing iOS versions of its popular apps such as T-Mobile myAccount, T-Mobile Visual Voicemail and T-Mobile TV. The company already offers an iOS version of its Bobsled VoIP app.

Apple is widely expected to unveil the next version of the iPhone Sept. 12.

T-Mobile is currently embarking on a $4 billion network modernization effort, in which it will refarm its 1700 MHz AWS spectrum for LTE services and launch HSPA+ service in its 1900 MHz PCS band. The move will allow T-Mobile to offer HSPA speeds to iPhones designed to work on AT&T Mobility's (NYSE:T) network.

According to Lowry, T-Mobile is already starting to turn up its HSPA+ service in the 1900 MHz band in cities such as Seattle, Las Vegas, Washington, D.C. and the New York City metro area. Lowry added that, according to the company's tests, T-Mobile's 1900 MHz HSPA network offered iPhone 4S users 70 percent faster download speeds than AT&T's network.

T-Mobile estimates its network currently supports around 1 million iPhone users; however, those customers can only access T-Mobile's slower EDGE data network. T-Mobile is hoping to attract more iPhone users with its faster HSPA+ network coupled with its newly introduced unlimited smartphone data plan.

The actions are key for T-Mobile, which continues to bleed postpaid subscribers.

For more:
- see this T-Mobile blog post

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