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- Average user rating: 3.5 stars out of 775 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
- 48 replies to this review
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Why on earth would APPLE choose AT&T? WHY!! I hate their plans, their expensive and just plain bad. I don't know what to say but UURRGGHHH!
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They must have paid Apple an obscene amount of money to get this IPhone contract.
However this is not the way it's supposed to be for the consumers. To hell with the consumers. It seems as if what the consumer wants is continually getting shoved to the back of the "bus" I like my Verizon contract and service, thank you.
Now let me get this straight, Even after the 2 year contract, this phone can only use ATT/Cingular? Has anyone noticed how ATT is buying up all the phone companies again? Why is Congress allowing this? -
They must have paid Apple an obscene amount of money to get this IPhone contract.
However this is not the way it's supposed to be for the consumers. To hell with the consumers. It seems as if what the consumer wants is continually getting shoved to the back of the "bus" I like my Verizon contract and service, thank you.
Now let me get this straight, Even after the 2 year contract, this phone can only use ATT/Cingular? Has anyone noticed how ATT is buying up all the phone companies again? Why is Congress allowing this? -
I have been through 3 carriers in my area and only Verizon was acceptable, with Sprint in 2nd. I love the iPhone concept but the AT&T deal rules me out.
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I helped my boss buy and set up his new iPhone. I knew before we walked in the door of the local AT&T Wireless store that AT&T was going to stick it to us. What I did not expect was that we would be forced to open a new personal account. They will not let you keep a business plan for the iPhone. Give me a break! This is a business class phone. Why can't you tie it to a business account? Apple has got into bed with AT&T on this deal, and will tarnish Apple's fine reputation by limiting availability to AT&T exclusively. I have been a Cingular customer for years, not because I like them, but because they are the carrier that has the best service in the area I travel. I dropped AT&T years ago because of their unethical business tactics, but now am forced to do business with them again. I think Mr. Jobs will regret selling AT&T exclusive rights to this wonderful product. I wish it were possible for other carriers to go after AT&T and Apple legally for being excluded. AT&T needs competition to keep them from abusing iPhone customers.
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Fist of all, it's AT&T, not Cingular. Second, the reason it's just AT&T is because no other companies saw the business opportunities that AT&T did, so you shouldn't be blaming Apple OR AT&T. My guess is that you have T-Mobile or some other half-baked junk carrier. If you want the iPhone that bad, quit whining and go switch to AT&T.
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Even if Apple had the iPhone sold unlock Verizon, Sprint and other non gsm networks couldn't have used it. It would have only worked for At&t T-Mobile and others. Unlocked means gsm but not locked to an specific carrier. Wait 5 years and the iphone will be better. Now it does not include 3g or HSDPA for fast internet browsing. When and even if the iPhone is included in the Verizon line-up you better wish it includes ev-do support.
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How can you rate it?
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Having been chase by Cingular for 3 years now for their early termination fee that I only agreed to with AT&T Wireless, I absolutely agree with you. I had just gotten a new phone from the former AT&T Wireless a few months before the Cingular takeover, and when I found that I could not change my plan to a family plan without BUYING another new phone (and re-entering all my data because the sim cards were incompatible) I went to Verizon. I never agreed to a plan with Cingular, and yet I have recently had the so-called "New AT&T" take me to a collection agency. I have refused to pay it, and have documented the case with the FCC and the BBB, who of course end up siding with Big Business. I would rather pay a lawyer than them at this point, and all my other bills with AT&T were paid. They lost a good customer and I would never ever go with them. Apple made a very bad choice, and I am a loyal Mac user. There needs to be a consumer "bill of rights" for the cell phone industry.
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we cant take phones to another service.frankly this is NOT a free market. there is no reason why a phone has to be tied to a service.in the end we pay more because of it.
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According to many press release, the iPhone was originally for Verizon. After all the crap Apple wanted for it, Verizon said no. Then they went to Cingular who has no spine. Im glad Verizon stuck to their guns and said no but I would have liked to see it on Verizon. Cingular has poor call quality and not the largest network. Well Apple may have to break the 5 year exclusive for AT&T
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Wow Andy, giving a rating of 3 before you've even seen and used the device. (I'm shaking my head)
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First off the iPhone is a quad band phone. That means it has GSM service that can be used all over the world. Verizon has the CDMA service which as far as I know (I may be wrong) can only be used in the USA.
Therefore by going with a GSM phone they can introduce the phone to the world market which will make them much more money than just introducing the phone to the Verizon market. Cingular just stepped up to the plate early hoping to get as many new customers that are gadget fans as they can.
If Verizon would switch to GSM service they would have many more phones available but they are pig headed about switching because the cost is prohibitive to play catch up with the rest of the world. I had Verizon service before but I get much better service everywhere I drive with my Cingular service at a lower rate than I ever did with my Verizon service and my batteries last a lot longer to boot. -
i have verizon too but the reason they are doing that is that cingular (or att,or whatever the hell are they calling it now) is the biggest network in the U.S and what i know that they are going to do is what they did with the razr. they are going to wait until buisness is down then sell it to other carriers like verizon. i agree with you in why the hell cant they also sell it to verizon but whatever.
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Is this an actual review?
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it is natural for someone who has a fondness for one company to decry the success of a competitor.
I see no "doom and gloom" for either Apple or AT&T in their five year deal. Only those on the outside, with their noses pressed to the glass, looking in, predict failure in this arraignment.
AT&T has the horses to pull this wagon for a long time. The infrastructure is there, the branding is there, the expertise is there and the success of the mobile service is impossible to dispute.
Steven Speilberg went to Mars Candy when making E.T. He asked for a product placement deal that would have E.T. following and eating a trail of M&M's. The CEO turned him down. Reece's picked up the ball and ran for a touchdown. Oh well. -
...boy oh boy... the worst provider out there gets this one. Jobs must be making a mint on this deal... Too bad it won't be available on Verizon, at least not initially... I'd sure plunk down $100 under my new every two for this thing!!!
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That's a truly unique gift you have there. To be able to look at a picture of something on a computer screen and tell how sturdy it is? Amazing.
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You complain so much about it not coming to any other service providers like verizon, yet you also say that it is going to get scratched and you doubt its durability in backpacks, cupholders etc... Why do you want it then if it was unlocked?
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Well Andy, I work at Verizon and I found out that we(Verizon Wireless) first declined the offer because Apple was asking way too much, so Cingular to the big step and accepted the deal. Which I am not surprised.
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They got to be nuts.
Sprint is the best carrier ever. -
I think it's actually a smart move. If they want to make a big impact globally- there is no other choice but GSM, and there aren't many CDMA carriers left outside of the US. It's always been a hassle for mobile phone companies to make these CDMA phones (unless of course it's their only market, like how sanyo used to be), that is why sprint/verizon always have "exclusive" versions of phones, and why brands that thrive outside the US (Nokia) only provide vanilla options for CDMA carriers.
"CDMA has a 13 percent share of the cellphone market, compared with 16 percent in 2004, according to Wireless Intelligence, which is a research group based in London and is a joint venture between Ovum and the GSM Association.?
Wireless Intelligence has forecast that nearly 500 million people will use CDMA technologies by 2010, up from 340 million, competing with 3.5 billion people using GSM technologies in 2010, up from 2.1 billion today. It also forecasts that WCDMA (the GSM 3G technology) will pass CDMA2000 sometime in 2009 as the most widely used 3G technology."
Long live GSM- -
It seems that Verizon is actually to blame for the iPhone's service being provided by Cingular; Verizon passed on making a deal with Apple. Check out this story from USAToday: http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2007-01-28-verizon-iphone_x.htm
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I think a 5 year exclusivity deal with Cingular was just a hair shy of moronic. I love Apple products, but I don't love Apple enough to ditch Verizon. And I certainly don't think iPhone is a good enough product to buy into it, for any price. I'm not only concerned about the possibility of scratches and cracks (and other real-world, real-use damage it can sustain), but I'm also turned off by the fact that it's just a great big touch screen. I like having buttons, they're important.
Anyway, I'm sure iPhone will have a lot of early adopters, but I think it's going to bomb. The bugs will surface, the design flaws will surface, people who buy into it will be stuck with it (and with Cingular) for two years....it just doesn't look good. I'll stick to my Treo, thanks!
(and I too have blogged more about the iPhone than I have about anything else before) -
First of all, according to USA today, Apple actually offered the iPhone to Verizon and they turned it down because the deal was not lucrative enough for them.
You say Apple chose the bucks over the consumer, but your comment is in defense of a company that is terrible for consumers.
Verizon wants to charge $1.99 for 30 second ring tones, $1.99 for wallpapers, $4.99 to $5.99 for Java based games like solitaire and finally over $20.00 a month for their VCast service.
Of course, if you have the iPhone you have no need for any of that stuff. No wonder Verizon didn't want it. -
Verizon has all of the late adopters fooled into thinking that tech doesnt matter and that flashy light up phones that make a screaming noise look at me, "I think I know gadgets but I really have no clue" are high tech. If you are a verizon fanboy the time has come to make the switch over to GSM. Not because Cingular has the hip new Iphone, or the flashy jessica simpson type black jack. (if you dont understand the metaphor please refrain from posting a comment) But because in 10 years or less there wont be a verizon wireless. International traveling is becomeing more of an everyday thing. Businesses(which make up almost 36% of verizon subscribers) aren't going to have phones that you cant use on business trips. Also the fact that there is no sim card means that without extreme measures you can only have one phone! WOW that sucks so much! Verizon people open your eyes! If you love gadgets and high tech goodies how can you possibly still have your feet drying in the cement with a CDMA service? Come to the other side, I wake up everyday pumped to know that helicopters arent following me to make sure Im not traveling out of the country. If you are going to switch make sure it's not just because of a phone that you can get a discount on. Do it because your saying;"I dont want verizon putting limits on my lifestyle, I dont want someone telling me that I can only own one TV,computer, or one car. If I want multiple items Im going to have them. And if I want to see the world I should be able to make a call on a phone! Isn't it 2007!
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Andy thank you for also bing a Verizon person. Whta is Apple thinking. Cingular sucks as a phone service in CT. I will have to just wait for the compition to creat there own answers to the iPhone. I'm not a techno geek that I must have a product but (still oner of a (V60 moto) I recall when I got it it was $500. I am glad Apple has raised the bar on the multi-funtional product but will what for second or third generation of Verizon phone products ot till Cingular phone service gets better.
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Why in the world would they tie the phone to one carrier. I have verizon and will not change to cingular. I can't even get a signal in my house. I love the theme behind the phone and hate the carrier. If they allow other carriers in on it, good if not I a lot of users will not bite.
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Apple makes an awesome product. But I can tell you after 5 years of service, everyone in my family has switched to Verizon! After dealing with unhelpful phone calls and 5 bad phones with no reception, I don't know why Apple would want to do business with them, or sell a product with them.
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If you have access to the 01/2007 Consumer Reports report on cell service, please read it. Cingular placed at or near the bottom of every city surveyed. Sounds to me that with at&t's acquisition of Cingular will help improve Cingular's standing but will leave even more customers dissatisfied. Like my mama always said, "You can't polish a turd." However, the new iPhone looks awesome and am compelled to "try" it when it comes out. Maybe they should try the digital market ... Oh yeah, that product name already has a place in VoIP ... ain't that right Cisco. Good luck with the lawsuit Apple, Inc.
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The following blurb is from ConsumerReports.org (http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/electronics-computers/cell-phones-service/cell-phone-service-1-07/fewest-dropped-calls-claim/0107_serve_drop_1.htm).
Unless you?re unusually adept at tuning out TV commercials, skipping over newspaper ads, and averting your eyes from billboards, you?ve probably seen Cingular?s recent claim about being the carrier with ?the fewest dropped calls.? You may also have noticed that Cingular attributed its claim to ?the leading independent research company?--which had even people who work here at Consumer Reports wondering whether Cingular might have meant us. For the record, it was not us. In fact, our own surveys have found Cingular to be only about average when it comes to dropped calls and one of the poorer performers in terms of overall satisfaction. That probably wouldn?t make much of an ad claim, though, would it? -
I don't agree verizon has gotten some of the coolest looking phones lately so why shouldn't cingular get some. and Cingular is a good service
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There are far more people in verizon who would be interested in buying this and willing to spend money...
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iphone is the best all those other phone with keypads can't come test its runs mac os x operating system wwhich is better than windows xp keypad is to complicated for using so the only solution is touch screen with multi-touch gesture
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There is a distinct reason why Apple and Cingular joined forces. First off I hate to tell all of you die hard verizon/CDMA fans but, GSM is the better of the two technologies, their is a big reason why CDMA is only on dual band (800/1900 MHZ) it's because it's a technology that's going really no where. GSM is used in about 85% of the world while CDMA is limited to basically the US and parts of Asia. So based on that Apple is yes going to want the phone to work on a global scale and only GSM can provide that. Then the final exclamation on this whole "Why Cingular/AT&T" well maybe because AT&T serves the most customers in the US as of right now and controls about 65% of the market share in the US. I've had Cingular/AT&T for years never had a problem with them, verizon on the other hand is followed by a dark cloud of limited applications on the phones (IE V-CAST)and terrible customer service, I recently got my fiance' to switch carriers to AT&T from Verizon and she's 100% satisfied. If you are going to hold a grudge against Cingular for getting the exclusive deal with apple stick to using the Verizon VX8500 (Chocolate) for music, I "hear" that works well and the Q for internet (A great exclusive there).
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The reason why apple had to make this phone a cingular exclusive is due to verison's v-cast service. Verison wants to control is media service that would limit the applications of the apple phone. If you really want the phone switch service instead of giving a poor review because your mad its not available.
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Ladies & Gentlemen, I present to you the next betamax!!
First off, they infringe on CISCO SYSTEMS copyright of the name IPHONE; then they tied it to the WORST cellular company around.
And of course as with all things APPLE, it is OVERPRICED for what it is. -
A cingular phone won't even work where I live. Thats why every single one of my friends uses Verizon. Lame news.
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These format and contract wars that companies play with each other is really annoying to the consumer
We should be able to choose which cell phone carrier we want and formats should be compatable. -
and if the iphone was verizon that 3 of 10 would be 10 of 10, and then id have to rate it a 3 of 10 instead of buying it
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I see that Andy and others who have agreed with him are Sprint customers, but us T-Mobile users have very little to complain about in terms of exclusivity of the iPhone.
Its not like its a secret that you can get any phone released by Cingular or T-Mobile to work with each others' networks by unlocking the phone and swapping the SIM cards.
You _might_ not get some of the nifty voicemail features of the iPhone if said features are implemented on Cingulars' end; but Im pretty sure that the phone just downloads all the messages when you call your voicemail so it shouldnt be a problem.
I give the internet community 2 days at most after the official release of the iPhone before I see tutorials on how to unlock them for use on all GSM/EDGE networks. And I only say that because Apple products have been more notoriously difficult to "hack."
That all said, a smartphone that isn't 3G at this point is pretty lame. I'm going to wait for the European release to see if its a 3G phone, and then purchase it on Ebay for use with my T-Mobile service.
But if it's not 3G, I can wait another year.
^_^ -
I'm a die-hard Apple guy and this required 2 year deal to use F*&^^%G Cingular is a deal breaker for me. What the hell was Steve Jobs thinking? Sounds like a George W. Bush moment of 'Clarity' to me.
There are a lot of loyal Verizon customers who are not going to opt-out of our contracts for a Device that has no track record of durability or reliability or may not even be the same product three or four generations down the road.
If Steve relents and sells the device untethered to a 2 year deal and ups the storage to at least 40gb, He may be the hero instead of the horned goat I see standing in front of me wearing a ******** turtleneck.
Screw you, Steve! Come back when the ink is dry on that contract you made with Devil! -
Why would they pick Cingular for the exclusive carrier. Why have an EXCLUSIVE carrier. The word sharing does not exist in the world off cell phones and it always p***** me off. Think of how many of these bad boys they would cell if they made it available to the big 3 (Verizon, Sprint, Cingular). I am a huge Apple fan but this was a BAD move.
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Why would they pick Cingular for the exclusive carrier. Why have an EXCLUSIVE carrier. The word sharing does not exist in the world off cell phones and it always p***** me off. Think of how many of these bad boys they would cell if they made it available to the big 3 (Verizon, Sprint, Cingular). I am a huge Apple fan but this was a BAD move.
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This was my exact first impression too. I've been holding out buying a new phone and an ipod even though I've invested a lot of money in itunes music. Apple does some really good things but they sure miss the boat on some things. I can't and won't switch from Verizon which I'm happy with so I guess Apple has cut me and many other potential buyers out of the picture from the start. Very disappointed with Apple.
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I used to work for the Cell Phone Industry and Andy's comments are made out of ignorance. In order to get into the US cell phone market, you can either do 3 things: sell an unlocked phone and have no support from the existing telecom companies like Verizon, Sprint, Cingular (AT&T), Alltell, and T-Mobile, create an MVNO network like Amp'd Mobile, or do what most cell phone manufacturers do, partner with one of the cell phone companies.
If one goes through the unlocked route, a customer is free to use whatever network he or she chooses BUT TO SOME EXTENT. if the phone is GSM, then that US customer is limited to Cingular, T-Mobile and whatevet other GSM network is available in the US, if its CDMA then they can use Sprint Verizon etc. However the cell phone manufacturer will not get any support from the telecom companies. That means services for those companies won't be preloaded on the phone. Also, in exhange for an exclusivity contract (especially on highly anticipated phones like the RAZR was) the phone company will be the sole provider of that phone and offer it for a discounted price to the consumer (in exchange for a service contract). So the iPhone is going to be priced at $499 and $599 but you better believe that that's not the price that Cingular paid for those phones. They probably paid a lot more per unit.
Now if Apple decided to start its own MVNO network then you're probably going to complain that its only limited to the MVNO network and blah blah blah here we go again. Also starting their own network just isnt smart since Apple is trying to focus on developing into a consumer electronics company. That's like asking Sony or Samsung to create a cell phone network. That's why Sony doesn't have a cell phone network even in Japan and leaves it up to companies like DoCoMo. There's only so much money to go around even in big business and starting an MVNO network is too risky and just doesnt make sense for the direction of the company.
So Apple did the traditional route. And the SMART ROUTE. It already had a preexisting relationship with Cingular which has the largest network in terms of coverage and the most users. Now if you're still going to cry about how the cell phone industry works, then be assured that the exclusivity contract will end eventually and then the other companies will be able to get their hands on it. By that time, Apple will have more experience and that's probably when we'll see the 3G phone for CDMA networks like Sprint and Verizon. Also, the iPhone is going to be out in Europe and Asia late this year/early next year and they've been 3G for a while so (I'm only speculating here) they'll probably have the 3G phone ready by then. -
Remember when the Razr was exclusive only to Cingular. Now it's like out and about, I'm sure seeing that this phone hit the market for the first time, that companies will create a deal with Mac and get a OS X phone out to other service providers. I agree that it's only one service, but that's only a time exclusive. And over time things get bigger and better!
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This is just one comment showing how ridiculous rating an unreleased product is. I'm not deriding Andy. I simply am complaining about C|NET providing a review forum for a product not due to be released until June.
| Apple tied it's anchor to Cingular and
| that's gonna be the downfall of this thing
| for their 5 year deal.
Are you sure it can't be unlocked? Are you certain you won't be able to find it on the gray market like so many other phones? I, like you I'm sure, don't know.
| Too expensive even after a 2 year
| commitment to Cingular.
Have you bothered to look into other smart phones? Take a look at the N series from Nokia (N73, N80, N90-3). Running Symbian, you can't get most of them in the States from the big service providers and even if you could they cost at least the same if not more. The iPhone is running OS X of some kind and thus comparable.
| It looks like it's gonna scratch and crack.
| Will this survive a couple tosses into a
| backpack and cupholders in the car?
Pure speculation and opinion. No facts. No hint of research. Nothing but gut reaction.
| I love my Verizon service and I've always
| loved Apple products but I'm really
| disheartened they made this a Cingular
| exclusive.
This has nothing whatsoever to do with the phone itself. If this was a place to review Apple's decision to go with Cingular or if this was the place to compare service providers opinion might carry some weight but it's supposed to be a REview about a PHONE.
| Everyone was talking about how this was
| gonna come unlocked but Apple chose the
| bucks over the buyers. I think they've
| really dropped the ball on this one.
Once again (or perhaps still) griping about the service and corporate decision making rather than saying anything cogent about the phone itself. Only RUMOR sites said anything at all about the phone and only they would have helped form the opinion that the phone would come unlocked. Additionally, Steve Jobs made it known that a CDMA phone would be forthcoming.
| I've NEVER blogged so much about anything.
| That's how much I'm tweaked about this
| iPhone.
Egregious misuse of the term "blog". Unless you're running your own site with a weblog you have done nothing more here than leave a comment which has been going on much longer than blogging. -
I know that a lot of people may be upset that the new iPhone will only be available through Cingular, but from a business standpoint it makes a lot of sense. Also, I have had a cell phone for 15 years and have had almost every service out there (verizon, sprint, t-mobile, kricket, alltel, voicestream (before it was verizon), cell one, AND CINGULAR) I am telling you that this is actually a good choice for the consumer. I know that it may be annoying for some, but forcing people to go to Cingular is a good thing. It is hands down the best cell provider across the board, service everywhere in the country and the world. Customer service is also really good. Unlike with Verizon, Cingular really does "not every stop working for you". I have traveled all over the country and the world and my cingular phone is by far the only one that I would ever consider using.
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