UAE’s leading telecommunications company, Etisalat, has organised a special midnight launch of the long-awaited iPhone 5 on December 12, with stores to stay open from 11pm onwards.

In the Abu Dhabi region, the Main Business Centre and the Al Ain Business Centre, as well as the Deira and Al Wasel Business Centres in Dubai will open for the midnight sale.

In the Northern Emirates, the Musharif Business Centre in Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah Business Centres will open for the event, a statement from Etisalat said.

The iPhone 5 will also be available for purchase at Terminals 1, 2 and 3 at the Dubai Airport, the Al Samha petrol station in Abu Dhabi, Al Manakh and Al Nouf Business Centres in Sharjah and the Sharjah Airport, all of which are operational 24 hrs.

The upfront price for iPhone 5 is Dh2749 ($) for 16GB, Dh3149 for 32GB and Dh3549 for 64GB devices. Pre-paid plans offer customers 1GB data allowance for free the first 3 months. From the fourth month onward, the 1GB data will be available for Dh99.

Etisalat’s iPhone 5 bundled post-paid plan also provides customers great value with three attractive options that includes a contract-free package with 8GB data allowance; 800 local minutes or 200 international minutes of voice calls; and 200 SMS for a monthly rental of Dh225. The package offers customers double the data for half the rental as compared to post-paid packages on a 12-month contract basis.

Post-paid packages and data plans on contract basis offer customers free or discounted iPhone 5 devices along with applicable data allowance, local or international talk-time and national SMS.

Etisalat has also introduced iPhone 5 business plans featuring flexible options and value with an increased data allowance of up to 10GB, 400 local or 100 international minutes and 100 SMS per month.

All individual and business customers subscribed to iPhone 5 post-paid plans enjoy the flexibility to choose as well as switch their preference between receiving free local or international talk time, bundled with their plan, the statement said.

Etisalat’s iPhone 5 customers will enjoy an enhanced mobile data experience offered on the nation’s widest 3G HSPA+ network. Etisalat’s HSPA+ network covers more than 99 per cent of the country’s populated areas and supports internet speeds of up to 42Mbps. It allows customers to enjoy speed-demanding apps such as video-streaming, networked gaming, and browsing.

Apple’s new iPhone features a larger display, a faster chip, ultrafast wireless technology and an 8MP iSight camera that shoots 1080p HD video. The 4-inch Retina display lets you see larger, vivid and more lifelike images with an outstanding battery life.

With the all-new Apple-designed A6 chip in the iPhone 5 the CPU and graphic performance of the phone is twice as fast as the A5 chip. – TradeArabia News Service