New Yorkers can now get cellular signals in 30 more subway stations
It took two years, but New York’s MTA has expanded its subway station distributed antenna system pilot from six to 36 stops. Now there’s just 241 stations to go. Read more »
Multilevel marketing MVNO Flash Wireless uses Wi-Fi to expand data reach
photo: Flickr user Suttonhoo
ACN’s wireless arm Flash may not have the most compelling rates today, but with a new deal with Devicescape it may be setting the stage for cheaper data plans in the future. Read more »
Boingo’s global footprint expands with 55,000 Japanese hotspots
NTT DoCoMo is letting Boingo’s customers onto its 55,000-node strong hotspot network in Japan, increasing Boingo’s presence there to 60,000 hotspots. In turn DoCoMo customers get access to Boingo’s network of 600,000 hotspots. Read more »
Telkom Indonesia bets big on Wi-Fi, plans 100,000 access points
Using Cisco gear, PT Telkom will build an offload network in schools, malls, hotels and hotspot clusters to ease the mobile data burden on its cellular networks. 100,000 node is huge, but it’s the second network of its size in Asia. Read more »
Comcast binges on Wi-Fi hotspots in California
Comcast’s Wi-Fi network has pulled up stakes and is heading west to make its fortune in San Francisco and other California cities. The cable operators said it has deployed a “few thousand” hotspots around the state though the greatest concentration is in the Bay Area. Read more »
U.S. Cellular builds a virtual Wi-Fi network with Devicescape
U.S. Cellular has added Wi-Fi to its mobile data toolbox. But rather than build or lease time on expensive managed hotspot networks, the Chicago carrier is working with Devicescape to tap into its virtual network of nearly 8 million open access points. Read more »
Data hogs rejoice! T-Mobile brings back the unlimited data plan
T-Mobile is reinstating the unlimited plan for smartphones with just one restriction: you can’t use your phone as a hotspot. Anything else is fair game. T-Mobile insists that the new policy is viable business model, despite what AT&T and Verizon say to the contrary. Read more »
Connectify combines Wi-Fi, 4G into a superfast wireless pipe
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 »
Boingo gravitates toward “free” Wi-Fi with Cloud Nine purchase
As consumers begin chaffing at the prospect of paying for Wi-Fi in public spaces, Boingo is revamping its business model through a strategic acquisition. It’s acquiring sponsored Wi-Fi access firm Cloud Nine to help it set up ad-supported free access to hotspots around the country. Read more »
How O2 is using the Olympics to lay a foundation for small cells
photo: Ruckus Wireless
The U.K.’s O2 has launched a 100-hotspot Wi-Fi network just in time for the Olympics, offering up its capacity to all takers gratis. But there’s something else under the hood of these Ruckus access points: a slot waiting for a future O2 small cell. Read more »
Amazon limits monthly Kindle browsing over 3G to 50 MB
Amazon changed the game when it offered 3G access in its Kindle e-readers at no charge. That connection is great to have, but those who use it to browse the web won’t be happy: Amazon now limits that Internet on-ramp to just 50 MB per month. Read more »
Bouygues launches free Wi-Fi to challenge Free Mobile
France’s Bouygues Telecom is working with virtual hotspot network Devicescape to give its smartphone customers seamless access to 8 million open Wi-Fi access points globally, replicating – at least fractionally – one of the key differentiators Iliad’s Free Mobile has on the competition: a 4 million-node offload network. Read more »
Seamless Wi-Fi on your smartphone could quickly become reality
The Wi-Fi Alliance won’t accept its first devices for Passpoint certification until late June, but once the doors to its labs swing wide there may not be much of a lag time before our smartphones start automatically connecting to carriers’ Wi-Fi hotspots. Read more »
Is it helpful to use the homeless as a walking broadband connection?
Among the attendees of SXSW are a smattering of homeless people wearing T-shirts that proclaim “Human Hotspot,” and for a user donation one of them will stand next to you while you check your email or do whatever else you need with the connection. Outrage has ensued. Read more »
Cisco first out the door with next-gen hotspot
Last week, the Wi-Fi Alliance and the Wireless Broadband Alliance announced significant progress in their shared goal of making your phone connect seamlessly with Wi-Fi networks. Now at Mobile World Congress, Cisco is proffering up the first equipment that supports those Next Generation Hotspot and Hotspot 2.0 standards. Read more »
The next generation of Wi-Fi hotspots is coming
The Wi-Fi Alliance will begin certifying devices under its new Passport initiative, which ensures that mobile phones can log into Wi-Fi networks seamlessly. Now it’s the Wireless Broadband Alliance’s turn to take over, integrating those devices and the access points into the mobile operator’s network. Read more »
Why connecting to a Wi-Fi hotspot is about to get easier
In the near future, getting your smartphone, tablet or laptop connected to a Wi-Fi hotspot won’t be an exercise in frustration. The Wi-Fi Alliance will begin to certify wireless devices for its industry-wide Passpoint initiative this July. Goodbye to splash-screens and network-specific log-ins! Read more »
The wireless industry swallows the Wi-Fi pill
At this year’s Mobile World Congress, you would expect LTE to hog the spotlight, but LTE might find itself overshadowed by a less sexy technology: Wi-Fi. As telecom vendors prep their new porfolios for MWC in two weeks, there is a preponderance of Wi-Fi products. Read more »
Look out big telcos, Ting shares data across devices
Ting, a new reseller of Sprint’s voice, 3G and WiMax, launched with one of the most unique mobile plans to date. Families using Ting share voice minutes and messages. But there’s another twist: they also share their monthly data across all devices on the plan. Read more »
Exclusive: Ericsson is buying BelAir, betting on Wi-Fi
Telecom networking giant Ericsson is buying BelAir Networks, adding its high-performance outdoor hotspot technology to its portfolio, sources told GigaOM. The deal signals a shift in mindset for the big cellular vendors, which until now have never gotten serious about Wi-Fi. Read more »
Cufflinks double as USB drive, Wi-Fi hotspot
The next time you struggle to buy a gift for the man with everything, consider a $250 set of cufflinks he likely doesn’t have. These aren’t just any old ones; how about a pair that doubles as a 2 GB flash drive and Wi-Fi hotspot? Read more »
Free Mobile starts a wireless French Revolution
When Free.fr launched its revolutionary new wireless service last week, it put French mobile operators on notice, and they have all responded. The problem is they’ve come nowhere near close to matching the deep data and voice discounts Free is offering. Read more »
Cable is discovering the joys of Wi-Fi; why not mobile?
An alternate wireless network has been emerging in the U.S., one not built by the mobile operators but by cable providers. Cablevision, Time Warner Cable, and Comcast have all launched reams of Wi-Fi hotspots in their MSO footprints, and last week Bright House joined the club. Read more »
Who says Wi-Fi offload is just for data?
Operators may be using Wi-Fi to move data packets off of their 3G and 4G networks, but they could be shipping all kinds of mobile traffic via Wi-Fi. Kineto’s new smartphone software makes the world of Wi-Fi hotspots one big off-ramp for voice, SMS and MMS Read more »
BelAir’s GigXone: Making metro Wi-Fi communal
Mobile operators are paying hotspot aggregators for mobile offload capacity. Why not the other way around? BelAir Networks thinks operators should think big, building their own monster metro Wi-Fi networks, then turn around and sell that capacity back to aggregators and everyone else. Read more »
Everyone bullish on Wi-Fi – with a few big exceptions
Smartphones are driving a renaissance in global Wi-Fi hotspots, according to a new report. But the primary beneficiaries of these millions of new access points, the mobile operators, aren’t all convinced of the hotspot’s merits as a means of adding cheap capacity to their networks. Read more »
Hotspot feature the latest boost to Windows Phone 7
Windows Phone 7 sales have been slow, but Microsoft is steadily building up the platform with more apps and features. The latest is the ability share a mobile broadband data connection in the Mango software update, but it appears carriers will have control over its use. Read more »
Wi-Fi Hotspots, Only Going to Get Hotter
The number of Wi-Fi hotspot connections is expected to explode to 11 billion sessions by 2014, up from 2 billion this year as mobile devices proliferate. The growth will outpace the increase of hotspot venues, which has largely contributed to the rise of public Wi-Fi sessions. Read more »
A Web Worker's Vacation
My recent cross-country train trip was a lot of fun. I got to see family and some old friends, and came back relaxed, which is hard to do when flying these days. Here are some suggestions for a good vacation. Read more »
Free AT&T Hotspots Pose a Security Risk to iPhone Users
The next time you finish using that free AT&T hotspot that stands as one of the few highlights of being an iPhone users on that network of questionable dependability, you might want to make sure your phone forgets that particular Wi-Fi connection. Read more »
