Since trying the service, I’ve received a number of questions about it and the company noticed. So in order to help me answer them intelligently, Straight Talk sent me a loaner unlocked iPhone 4, two AT&T SIMs (regular sized and micro SIM) and some pre-paid monthly service cards.

Unlimited isn’t quite unlimited, except for voice and messages

So here are some follow up experiences I’ve had with both my phone and the loaner iPhone 4, which hopefully helps you decide if Straight Talk’s $45 month to month service is an option for you. First, let me point out the two key exceptions that I’ve found.

1. Apple’s Visual Voicemail isn’t supported by Straight Talk, so if you go this route, you’ll be calling in to hear your messages. I don’t think that’s a huge issue, at least not for me personally as I use Google Voice for all communications. However, some folks may not be happy with the feature loss.
2. For $45, Straight Talk advertises unlimited voice minutes, messages and HSPA+ data (There’s no LTE support, even if your phone is capable of using AT&T’s LTE service). Based on user-reported experiences, Straight Talk won’t cut you off provided you keep your monthly usage to 2 GB or about 100 MB per day. Hit either of these and you might get a message about excessive use, along with the threat of service termination. History shows that I use about 1 to 1.5 GB of mobile broadband a month on my phones (I use Wi-Fi a ton), so this works well for me. If you want truly unlimited data or use more than 2 GB per month on your phone, this isn’t the plan for you. Don’t even try it, would be my recommendation.

Note: I asked Straight Talk about the limit and was told that company is trying to “focus on trust and communication with customers.” It’s likely that TracFone has no way to throttle after any limits, since it doesn’t operate the networks. As a result, the company will warn folks for excessive use and potentially disrupt service if you don’t limit your usage.

Good value or no?

If you can live with those two caveats, I think the service is a great value. I was using a $30 data-only T-Mobile SIM in my Galaxy Nexus paired with low-cost VoIP calling but due to coverage issues with dropped or missed calls, I’m much happier with the Straight Talk SIM. My first month of service ends next week and I’ve already added 3 months to my account for $130 thanks to a $5 bundle savings. And because my kids have T-Mobile Sidekick 4G handset and share 1,000 minutes, I ordered a pair of Straight Talk SIMs for them as well. They use very little data but tons of minutes and messages. Now I’ll save on their service and not worry about voice minute overages.

Some questions people have asked me along with answers:

• How hard is it to set up a Straight Talk SIM on an iPhone? Great question since you can’t directly access the network or APN settings on an iPhone without jailbreaking it. It’s quite easy to set up the new SIM. Just pop it in your iPhone and hit this site in mobile Safari over Wi-Fi: http://unlockit.co.nz/ Here you’ll get a small file to download after choosing Straight Talk as your provider. This file will set up the phone to work with the new SIM and the process takes all of two minutes.
• Is it difficult to set up the service on an Android or other phone? Nope, this is super easy as you can access the APN settings directly on most smartphones. You simply enter the settings provided with your SIM card. It takes a minute or two at most to type the data in.
• What about MMS on the iPhone? The above setup solution doesn’t enable MMS, so there are several manual methods to enable both data and MMS. First, back up your iPhone in iTunes with its current SIM. Then swap SIM cards and restore your iPhone backup with the Straight Talk SIM in the handset. Again, this isn’t an issue for me personally as I use Google Voice for messages. There’s plenty of information on Straight Talk setup in this wiki page if you need it. If you have a cut-down T-Mobile SIM, you can follow these simple instructions as well. Or you could jailbreak your phone to get access to the settings.
• Are the network speeds the same? According to my testing: Yes. I’ve used my Galaxy Nexus with both a T-Mobile SIM and Straight Talk SIM for T-Mobile’s network and found the speeds to be equal. On T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network where I live, I routinely see between 6 and 8 Mbps down, 2 Mbps up and ping times around 120 milliseconds. The same test on my iPhone 4S with a SIM from AT&T and then from Straight Talk showed no difference either.
• How’s the coverage? Since Straight Talk is paying AT&T and T-Mobile for their networks, the coverage is the same as if you were paying those operators directly. I haven’t seen any coverage differences at all. If you get good coverage now from one of the two carriers, you should get the same with a Straight Talk SIM.
• If I can save money with this SIM, why wouldn’t I do it? First, if you’re a heavy data user, I wouldn’t recommend this option, as stated above. Second, you’re bringing your own phone. That means you either pay full price for your phone — which can be anything from $400 to $700, if not more — or you keep your current phone and close out your contract with an early termination fee. You’ll have to check with your carrier to see how much that will cost. I’ll be closing my T-Mobile contract on the two Sidekicks, for example, so my break-even point is a few months out. Lastly, if you use a CDMA phone (such one from Sprint or Verizon) or you want LTE service, this plan won’t work for you.
• What about tethering or using the phone as a mobile hotspot? That’s expressly forbidden in the terms of service. You might get away with it for a short bit here and there, but once you bump up against some heavy usage in a single day, you’re raising the red flag to Straight Talk’s systems.
• Can I port a number to Straight Talk? Yup, not a problem. You do this when you activate your SIM card online. I didn’t do this for my account. Although I now have another new phone number, nobody knows it because of Google Voice. I will, however, port my kids’ phone numbers next week.

No, this service isn’t for everyone. Heavy-duty data users, folks that want LTE, use a CDMA phone or don’t want to pay full price for their handset are unlikely candidates. But for someone like myself that buys unsubsidized hardware, doesn’t want a long term contract and can supplement mobile broadband with Wi-Fi usage, the BYOP plan at Straight Talk offers solid savings and the same level of service found from national carriers.

Disclosure: The free 30-day service provided by Straight Talk was for testing purposes, not for my personal use, and the iPhone will be returned, per our editorial policy. I pay for my own phone service and provided my own Galaxy Nexus and iPhone 4S  smartphones, which I bought out of pocket last year.

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This follows Samsung’s own statements early in the month; the company announced 9 million pre-orders from carriers at that time. Without actual numbers from Vodafone, it’s not possible to compare the Galaxy S III to Apple’s iPhone 4S, which launched late last year, but the figures show that Samsung has a potential hot seller in hand. That’s good news for the company, which recently took the top spot for global mobile phone sales, but as I previously noted, could lead to another long, slow rollout for the handset.

Samsung says it can only produce 5 million Galaxy S III phones per month, which sounds like a lot — it is — but compared to the overall global rollout plans, may not be enough for all who want one. Samsung expects the Galaxy S III to hit 290 carriers across 145 countries around the world, so it will have to maintain a high production level over the next six to 12 months in order to avoid inventory shortages or delayed release dates in some countries.

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“Rapidly converging technlogies accelerate the benefits of consumer delivery,” McQuivey said, and that benefit is digital content and entertainment. “It’s all about the software,” he said, because software services make the content easy to access across a wide number of devices, such as the 35 million e-readers also owned by consumers. “The big thing happening is a platform promise between device makers,  service providers and consumers.” That’s why the iPad is a hit: It’s a solid blend of hardware, software and ecosystem support.

This “platform promise” is bringing unprecedented use of devices for content, particularly with the iPad. Consumers are looking for a full package; not just a nice piece of hardware. And until others can offer that full, “everything” package, Apple will continue to lead. But don’t count out Microsoft, McQuivey said, given the 70 million Xbox 360 devices connected to televisions.

“The platform is the new throne where content reigns and content is king,” he notes. “And the platform promise can make or unmake a king at any time.” The iPad might be sitting on the throne now, but as competitors build up the promise of their platform, the game of thrones rages on.

Tablets: Not Just an iPad Worldhttp://www.scribd.com/embeds/94546961/content?start_page=1&view_mode=list&access_key=key-kcbm7z74vhennn7m52k

Keep up with the discussion at paidContent 2012 via livestream (registration required) and #pc2012 on Twitter.

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While the NFC support is appealing to me, I also like that you can remotely unlock the door with a mobile app or by text message. That’s handy for when you need to let someone in the house or have a package dropped off inside. Of course, I wouldn’t open the door for just anyone; that’s why I have a web-connected camera too.

Installation of the Lockitron appears to be a snap as well because the lock doesn’t require any wiring for power or connectivity. Instead, 4 easy to replace AA batteries are used in the lock and it receives wireless commands over a home Wi-Fi network. Most other wireless locks I’ve investigated require some electricity rewiring, which I’m not looking to do. After installing the Lockitron, you simply connect a small server unit to the wireless router in your home.

Obviously if the lock’s batteries run out or your home loses electricity — and therefore, the wireless network — you can’t open the door with an app or text. In that case, you’ll still need a key, but I don’t mind carrying one around in my wallet. And for all of the services to work — key issuing, revoking, access from any internet connection — the lock must be in communication with Lockitron. However, the company is working on a software option that allows homeowners total management of the lock on their home network.

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I last looked at the MetaWatch nearly a year ago and found it to be an excellent partner for an Android smartphone. The reflective display paired with a highly capable Bluetooth radio allowed me to get notifications for email, text messages, phone calls and more from my Android device; even as far as 80 feet before losing the connection. I found that triaging email on your wrist is a huge time saver.  But as the Pebble e-paper watch has recently shown: Android support alone isn’t enough for mass market success in the smartwatch market, although Motorola’s MotoActv shows much promise – I wear one all day, every day.

Pebble was the first such watch to include support for Apple’s iOS devices, and the project blew through all funding records on Kickstarter, eventually finding nearly 69,000 backers with a cumulative funding total that topped $10 million. The Pebble device also supports Android phones, but I suspect much of the project’s success was due to iOS support via Apple’s Made for iPhone program. Ironically, as MetaWatch has added the same iOS support, Pebble has opted to go with Bluetooth 4.0. That makes sense as the new Bluetooth Smart standard uses far less power for wireless connections; a key aspect for a watch if you don’t want to charge it for a week or more.

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The first plan costs less than the one it replaces, which may get some consumers to choose the service. For a $20 monthly fee, there’s a lower entry point, but a lower amount of data as well: Customers will have 2 GB of mobile broadband use to share over Wi-Fi from their phone.

Power users may need the new $50 plan, which provides 6 GB of service. That means people on the old plan who decide not to keep it will gain one gigabyte of sharable broadband but end up paying $20 more than before.

According to Sprint, it will begin to help customers monitor their mobile hotspot usage:

“Sprint now will be able to notify customers with a MHS add-on when they reach 75, 90 and 100 percent of their on-network monthly data limit. Sprint provides data usage notifications to help customers to proactively manage their MHS usage and adjust usage to avoid high overage charges. Customers must enroll to receive usage notifications. At 100 percent of their on-network monthly data allowance, customers will receive a notification with the option to suspend on-network mobile hotspot usage or continue to use it and pay the overage charges. If the customer chooses to accept overage charges, they will continue to receive notifications at 20 percent increments above the monthly data allowance.”

Good for Sprint that it’s helping users keep tabs on their limited mobile broadband as overages will add up at $0.05 per megabyte.

Still, there’s some confusion in the new plan as Sprint says when the mobile hotspot feature (MHS) is turned on “both MHS and phone data usage pull from the MHS monthly data allowance.” That means use of the unlimited data offered on the phone during hotspot usage will hit the hotspot plan cap. Mobile broadband multitaskers: You’ve been warned!

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So what happens next for the Google-owned Motorola group? According to a blog post announcing the news, Google CEO, Larry Page, says “Dennis and the team at Motorola will be creating the next generation of mobile devices that will improve lives for years to come.” There’s no mention of using Motorola’s patents to protect Google and its Android hardware partners although we’ll likely see just that in future litigation efforts. Page’s remark likely squashes one prediction I made last year about the deal when I said Google would likely spin off the Motorola hardware assets and retain the patent portfolio.

Patents are important, but so is hardware now

Why the perceived change in focus from patents to hardware production then? Because, to a varying degree, depending on your perspective, Android is still a bit of a mess (GigaOm Pro subscription required).

Folks will argue that few consumers actually care if their Android device has the latest software version, but I see more and more customer comments showing the contrary. Ironically it was just yesterday that Motorola communicated why some devices won’t see Android 4.0 and the comment stream lit up a bonfire of jeers. One such device not getting Android 4.0 is the Droid 3, which launched two months after Google said new phones would see software updates for 18 months after release.

Late to the tablet game

Another problem? Tablet sales. Depending on how you measure it, some would say there is no tablet market; there’s just an iPad market. Apple’s slate still accounts for the majority of tablet sales, even if you include the top selling Android tablet — which is less about Android and more about Amazon — from the last holiday season: The Kindle Fire.

Android was late to the tablet game by a year and even then, its first tablet (from Motorola, no less) was rushed and incomplete. Android’s open approach certainly allows for various tablet makers to sit down at the table, but nobody yet is showing a good hand in terms of sales, save maybe Asus and Samsung to a small degree. I still think Google has a chance to use Motorola to kill two birds with one stone: A phone-powered LapDock — something Motorola already makes — that uses both Android and ChromeOS.

It’s all about control

Carriers are still too involved in the overall Android process and part of the problem here. Apple turned the tables and was able to dictate terms to the carriers, giving the company the power to push its own software updates to iPhones. Google has no such power with the lone exception of its Nexus device line. So in order to help gain back control of Android, it will be opening up the Nexus program from one select partner to multiple hardware makers. That allows for total control of the software and gives Google more devices to sell directly to consumers alongside the $399 Galaxy Nexus.

Google is treading a fine line here, to be sure. It needs to rein in an open source platform by creating hardware but without upsetting its current hardware partners. If it can’t do that, Android will continue to be a meta-platform that others use to create their own branded software with skins and user interface tweaks. I think it’s telling that one of the conditions China had in order to approve the Motorola deal was that Google keep Android open for at least five more years. The mobile market surely moves fast, but if I were an Android hardware partner, I’d have a five-year transition plan in the works — think Tizen, for example — because Google’s continued success may rely on a growing amount of Android control.

Thumbnail image courtesy of AndroidPit

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The product, from Klever Logic, was born from a realistic use case:

“Daniela, wife of one of the co-founders, was an Account Manager for a hotel service company. When she visits her customers, Daniela frequently uses valet parking which means she’s waiting anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes for her car, sometimes in the rain or cold. While waiting one day, she noticed that the valet attendants all carried mobile phones and wondered why she couldn’t simply send a text message to request her car. Luckily, Daniela knew just the right people to make this great idea happen.”

I’m not one to use valet service often, but I can see the benefits when both parties have a mobile phone. Flash Valet will have to get parking services to adopt the application and have customers get the application on their phone in advance. For that reason, valet services could just opt for standard text messages to do the same. Not everyone wants to provide their phone number to strangers however — even though they’re essentially giving them a car — so an app that masks phone numbers is surely a better option. Uber does the same via a taxi service and it’s becoming fairly popular.

Valet service providers stand to benefit from this service as well: Flash Valet supports vehicle key tracking, photos to document previous vehicle damage, and improved money tracking. Instead of dealing with cash, valet attendants can process payments — and tip — directly with a phone using a customer’s credit card or PayPal account. Given that the Flash Valet locations web page is bare, I suspect that this service isn’t readily available just yet. But I’d like to see it, or a similar service, catch on to save time.

Thumbnail image courtesy of Flickr user, TheeErin

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If true, this is good news for Sprint, HTC and the customers that pre-ordered the operators new flagship phone with LTE. While the handset doesn’t yet have an LTE network to connect with, Sprint is launching its first six LTE cities within the next several weeks. HTC is facing flagging sales and hopes to revitalize its product line with the HTC One series. My looks at the AT&T and T-Mobile versions show that HTC has succeeded in making a well designed, high performing smartphone.

The HTC EVO 4G LTE devices were held up from entering the U.S. last week due to an injunction from the ITC following a ruling that HTC infringed on an Apple patent. The protected feature is one that opens up another application and takes action when a link it tapped; such as the Phone app opening when tapping a phone number. To mitigate this issue in the U.S., HTC added a menu option in the settings of its new smartphone so that customers can associate link actions with different applications.

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From a consumer perspective, FaceTime over mobile broadband networks sounds great, at least initially. But people may feel otherwise if the application doesn’t provide the same level of service as it does today over Wi-Fi networks. Apple runs the risk of negative feedback on the experience if FaceTime calls don’t look clear, if they offer broken audio or simply drop due to limited coverage.

I recently tried a similar experiment and experienced this problem firsthand. Using a data-only SIM card in my Galaxy Nexus smartphone, I signed up for a very low-cost SIP account which enabled free VoIP calls over a data network. This is a great alternative to paying for voice minutes and the service was fantastic … where I had coverage.

The problem of dropped or missed calls kept growing over several months’ time — and note that voice uses far less bandwidth than video — so I recently gave up the approach and went with a low-cost traditional voice and data SIM card from Straight Talk. And guess what happened? No more missed or dropped calls.

I suspect many consumers would find the same issue using FaceTime over 3G unless — and this is a possibility — Apple were to offer seamless Wi-Fi switching on a FaceTime call. Even then, there will still be some folks that move beyond available 3G coverage and not have a wireless hotspot nearby.

On the surface then, FaceTime over 3G or 4G sounds great; as long as you don’t move too much when you get a call. Once we have true nationwide 4G networks supplemented with Wi-Fi hotspots and vast roaming capabilities, FaceTime over mobile broadband might be a viable option that Apple considers.

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