Vodafone is already trialing 1000 small cells in the UK, and starting next year it plans to expand its use of tiny base station technology into its other global networks. Vodafone is still cautious though about small cells’ immediate impact. Read more »
Live in Washington, DC; Baltimore or Houston? If so, you have something common with folks in Kansas City and Las Vegas: Your unlocked iPhone or other AT&T smartphone can now run on T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network instead of the carriers old 2G network. Read more »
The EU already allows 2G spectrum to be reused for 3G and 4G services, but now member states will also have to allow 3G spectrum to be ‘refarmed’ in the same way. The effects will take years to manifest themselves, though. Read more »
Following an investor call where it reported another loss on $8.7 billion in revenues, Sprint announced a special-offer on smaller tablet plans to help retain customers. New 100 MB and 1 GB tablet plan start next month for $10 and $15 respectively, with no activation fee. Read more »
The compromise plan turns a worthless hunk of airwaves into prime cellular real estate, while protecting neighboring satellite radio from interference. AT&T now just needs to consolidate the remaining 2.3 GHz licenses out there so it can build its new LTE network. Read more »
AT&T is launching a new smartphone powerhouse on Nov. 2: The Optimus G pairs a quad-core chip with 2 GB of memory and a high-resolution IPS display sized a 4.7-inches. Of course, the new Optimus supports AT&T’s LTE network as well. Pre-orders start tomorrow. Read more »
T-Mobile Austria, Huawei and Qualcomm have announced a relatively smooth handover of a voice calls between LTE and 3G network technologies. This should clear the way for manufacturers to start building Voice over LTE into more phones. Read more »
T-Mobile CTO Neville Ray says MetroPCS voice-over-LTE services will definitely be supported post merger as long as customers own VoLTE phones. But, whether the new T-Metro expands VoLTE beyond the Metro footprint, however, remains an open question dictated by demand and logistics. Read more »
4G isn’t the future anymore. A consortium of companies is to set up a ’5G Innovation Centre’ at the University of Surrey, with the aim of making mobile broadband communications faster and more efficient. Read more »
The demand for mobile data is increasing at an amazing rate. A challenge of this magnitude needs more resources and, more importantly, radically new ways of acquiring, deploying, managing and optimizing these resources. Qualcomm’s Prakash Sangam looks at what’s needed to keep up. Read more »
T-Mobile’s aims for merging with MetroPCS are pretty clear: to harvest the regional carrier’s spectrum to bulk up its LTE network in key cities. But T-Mo wants to hold onto as many of Metro’s 9.3 million customers as possible. Can it have it both ways? Read more »
A deal between T-Mobile and MetroPCS combines 42.5 million customers, which keeps T-Mobile behind Sprint in terms of subscribers, but it creates two opportunities: A wider, faster rollout of LTE services with more spectrum and a chance for Deutsche Telekom to eventually leave the U.S. Read more »
Mobile data will grow 18 times over the next five years. To successfully address the shift from voice-to data-centric usage models, operators need to act on multiple fronts, because no single solution will be sufficient in isolation. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
The next generation MiFi device from Novatel Wireless doesn’t just create a 4G hotspot for 10 devices for a few hours; it provides 11 hours of continuous use, has a touchscreen for configuration and doubles as a media server for smart televisions and other DLNA devices. Read more »
Yes, 4G and LTE networks are huge improvements over previous-generation mobile networks, but they’re not about to cure mobile-data woes without some smart development to help them. Speaking at GigaOM Mobilize on Thursday, Aspera’s Serban Simu and Akamai’s Kris Alexander espoused the value of both intelligent […] Read more »
Clearwire is starting its LTE build in the next two weeks and will ramp up its network in the fourth quarter. Once complete next year, Clearwire will sell capacity to other 4G carriers in city-centered hot zones. First, however, Clearwire needs to get compatible devices. Read more »
Whether it’s the iPhone 5, the importance of LTE, or BYOD trends disrupting the enterprise, there are always technologies, trends, and companies changing the way we define mobile. Here are some noteworthy segments to watch in the coming months, from location-based shopping to apps to wireless networks. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Here’s our daily pick of stories about Apple from around the web that you shouldn’t miss. Today’s installment: the best use case for major U.S. 4G operators selling the iPhone 5, Sprint won’t have “wideband audio,” crunching the iPhone 5 rollout numbers, and more. Read more »
Apple has designed different versions of the iPhone 5 in order to capture all of world’s different LTE networks. It’s a huge break from Apple’s single-device strategy and could have major ramifications for carriers Apple has eschewed in the past like China Mobile and NTT DoCoMo. Read more »
The JV of T-Mobile UK and Orange UK will go live with the UK’s first 4G network within weeks. “EE” will also offer land line fibre broadband, but T-Mobile and Orange customers will need to upgrade to join the fast lane. Read more »
Sprint’s timetable is vague, but Monday it listed the 100 cities that will soon have LTE service. The carrier had an early 4G advantage if you count WiMAX in 2008, but has been lapped since then. Unlimited data is nice, but customers want more speed. Read more »
As unlimited data plans disappear, consumers need new data-savings solutions. Snappli is the latest to out a mobile service that cuts down on data use through compression techniques; the free software, available today, works on iOS and saves data for the web, apps and even videos. Read more »
Having passed on the popular 5.3-inch Samsung Galaxy Note, Verizon Wireless will sell the Intuition by LG later this week: A 5-inch Android 4.0 handset that blurs the lines between smartphone and tablet. Will consumers like the 4:3 aspect ratio or will it be a turn-off? Read more »
Sprint has come full circle on 4G. Four years ago, the country’s first 4G service, Xohm, went live in Baltimore using the technology Sprint championed at the time WiAMX. On Wednesday, Sprint turned up a new 4G network, using WiMAX’s competitor LTE, in the same city. Read more »
You have probably never heard of Yulong or its Coolpad brand, but in China it’s a top 3 smartphone maker beating out even the iPhone in device sales. On Tuesday Coolpad arrived in the US on the MetroPCS LTE network with its first budget smartphone. Read more »
Samsung just won its first European infrastructure contract, opening up a region its never competed in before. The Korean vendor still has a long way to go to reach its goal of being a top 3 mobile equipment maker, but establishing itself in Europe can’t hurt. Read more »
Qualcomm has made another buy. This time in the emerging small cell market by purchasing Israeli chip company DesignArt. Qualcomm is clearly serious about expanding its chip prowess beyond devices — goring ever deeper into the cell network and the home. Read more »
The Federal Communications Commission green-lights Verizon’s $3.9 billion acquisition of the cable operators’ 4G spectrum. Verizon is baby steps away from being able to build the country’s most high-capacity LTE network as well as enter into a wireline-wireless pact with its new cable partners. Read more »
After selling 500,000 units of its Optimus Vu, LG is reportedly partnering with Verizon to bring the 5-inch smartphone to the U.S. The timing is odd, as is the phone’s 4 : 3 aspect ratio, given the success of the Galaxy Note and its coming soon successor. Read more »
A shortcut offered to Britain’s biggest mobile operator could allow some UK users to get their hands on 4G services well ahead of next year’s expected rollout. But the decision has drawn a splenetic reaction from rivals who say the deal could massively distort competition. Read more »
Network operators selling tablets in the past faced a significant hurdle: the monthly cost of data. With the Galaxy Tab 2 7.0, Verizon is ready to take advantage of its new Share Everything plans that let you use the tablet on 4G for $10 per month. Read more »
Motorola’s newest Android 4.0 smartphone, the Photon Q 4G LTE could help Sprint limit subscriber losses thanks to some innovative software and the five-row hardware keyboard. SmartActions make the smartphone smarter thanks to both customized and canned phone options that are triggered by specific events. Read more »
Philadelphia startup Connectify has turned to Kickstarter to raise funds for its latest PC connection management project. It’s developing software that will allow a PC to aggregate multiple broadband connections, ranging from Wi-Fi to 4G, into a single a high-bandwidth link. Read more »
Thinking of dumping your phone for an iPod touch with the FreedomPop WiMAX sleeve? Sounds like a good plan unless you happen to encounter something unplanned: An emergency. The device doesn’t support 911 calling and the company hasn’t yet figured out an alternative solution. Read more »
AT&T’s current 4G spectrum holdings are all over the place, but if it can execute its grand plan for the Wireless Communications Services airwaves it will have a consistent nationwide 20 MHz band designated solely for LTE. It just has to pull it off. Read more »
With the Nexus 7 receiving good reviews, people are starting to enjoy the portability and immersive experience that small tablets offer over smartphones. Looking at the mobile trends, I can see how the tablet will replace the smartphone. And it may happen sooner than you think. Read more »
Britain’s 4G rollout is woefully delayed, and the announcement that a spectrum auction won’t take place until next year is hardly speeding things up. But is there a chance that this unconnected cloud could have a silver lining? Read more »
Research In Motion is reportedly prepping an LTE PlayBook tablet for at least one Canadian network but it’s unlikely to boost tablet sales. Instead, the company should be focused on getting its new OS on phones sooner or improving the tablet in other ways. Read more »
Britain’s severely delayed 4G auction came a step closer with confirmation that the bidding for mobile spectrum will finally open up. But with regulators suggesting it won’t happen until early next year, UK consumers won’t see any real LTE service until well into 2013. Read more »
I’ve been testing FaceTime over cellular data for a few weeks using the iOS 6 beta software. It works OK, but not as good as on Wi-Fi. Now, a new pop-up message indicates that carriers may charge for the service over their networks. Will you pay? Read more »
