Prices have now been released for the Apple iPhone 3G and 3GS which began sale in China this month with China Unicom. The sales model will be similar to that in Hong Kong, whereby the phone is sold cheaply with an additional prepayment for mobile service.
This is alongside updated pricing plans (linked tariff for non-iPhone users), promising greater data quota’s than previous packages and China Mobile’s current offerings. The higher the service plan used, the cheaper the iPhone is sold for. This offer requires a 24 month service commitment.
Details of pricing and service plans available on China Unicom Online Store (or in English via Google Translate). There are slight differences over the standard packages, notably increased data quota and free SMS bundles.
Note: Chinese iPhones have WiFi disabled, but are not carrier locked. For a full featured unlocked phone, consider purchasing from Apple Store Hong Kong. Or wait for a WAPI/WiFi release in China.
China Unicom (中国联通) announced new 3G tariff plans to coincide with its official 3G launch on 1st October. The new plans give additional, cheaper, post-paid monthly tariff options as well as increased data quotas. The previous add-on data plans will no longer be valid.
Existing 186RMB plan remains (510mins talk-time) but now with 650mb data allowance. The cheapest 96RMB plan includes 240mins talk-time and 300mb data. 126RMB will get you 320mins and 400mb data.
Those interested in downgrading to the new cheaper plans should contact China Unicom customer service at 10010.
Additionally, previous 2G customers on 13x numbers can now also switch to 3G service without changing number or SIM card.
Update: Plan details now available online, but in Chinese only. I include a brief overview in English below:
| Monthly fee |
Talk time |
Data |
Video call |
Free SMS |
| 66 RMB* |
50mins |
300mb |
10mins |
240 |
| 96 RMB |
240mins |
300mb |
10mins |
None |
| 126 RMB |
320mins |
400mb |
15mins |
None |
| 156 RMB |
420mins |
500mb |
20mins |
None |
| 186 RMB |
510mins |
650mb |
20mins |
None |
| 226 RMB |
700mins |
750mb |
25mins |
None |
| 286 RMB |
900mins |
950mb |
30mins |
None |
| 386 RMB |
1250mins |
1.3 Gb |
50mins |
None |
| 586 RMB |
1950mins |
2 Gb |
100mins |
None |
| 886 RMB |
3000mins |
3 Gb |
180mins |
None |
All plans include free incoming calls nationwide. Domestic roaming & long distance dialing within China now inclusive in talk time with standardised nationwide pricing.
* Student plan available for valid students in China only.
Having got my new China Unicom WCDMA 3G number, I was somewhat confused that (a) data service worked through my China Mobile settings (b) it didn’t work using the settings Unicom customer service provided, and (c) I found yet another set of settings that can be used.
Whilst I still don’t know why the above is true, I found the following:
1) Use China Mobile settings (APN: CMNET) for GPRS / 3G Data with no proxy works fine. MMS should be received using WAP profile (APN: CMWAP , MMSC: http://mmsc.monternet.com , Gateway or Proxy: 10.0.0.172. Port 80 for HTTP, port 9201 for WAP)
I don’t know if this is just compatibility, or a problem with China Mobile’s network.
2) The settings Unicom customer service now provide will only work through a proxy.
GPRS APN: 3gwap
WAP APN: 3gnet
- for both must set proxy through 10.0.0.172 . These settings provide support for web (HTTP) traffic only.
3) Older data suggests to use:
GPRS APN: uninet
WAP APN: uniwap
MMSC: mmsc.myuni.com.cn
- I use this and it works. No proxy needed for GPRS ; but use 10.0.0.172 (as above) for MMS. Works across all protocols (MSN, FTP etc…) unlike 3G settings.
Therefore if you have a China Unicom 3G card and have been given the new settings, don’t bother. It’s just more complicated, and using 3gwap non-HTTP based services will not work.
Note: I’ve subsequently discovered this site claiming that for certain applications like Mobile Television you must use the 3G settings. I haven’t tested.