New RootMetrics tests shows that AT&T’s LTE networks are on average 4.3 Mbps faster than Verizon’s when downloading data. What Verizon lacks in speed, though, it makes up for in coverage. Read more »
Globally the average mobile user consumed 201 MB a month in 2012. In North America, we binged on more than triple that amount. By 2017, Cisco says, those numbers will increase by a factor of 10. Read more »
EE has been able to roll out 4G earlier than its rivals because it’s been allowed to reuse its 2G and 3G spectrum for LTE. Now its rivals look set to get the same opportunity. Read more »
Looking for the best network nearby? Consider downloading OpenSignal 2 for Android. Using crowdsourced information and a database of Wi-Fi hotspots, it should keep your phone’s connection running fast. Read more »
T-Mobile is getting aggressive to lure new customers. The carrier is offering its 4G Unlimited Data without a contract. New laptops and tablets also come with T-Mobile service: Users get a taste with 200 MB of free monthly data and options to add more. Read more »
The analyst house certainly doesn’t want to overinflate expectations for overall telecoms revenues – growth there will be tiny at best over the next few years – but it does have high hopes for certain specific areas. Read more »
A private equity firm will pick up the optical business for an undisclosed amount, relieving NSN of one its last remaining ties to wireline networking. NSN’s focus on 4G appears to paying off. In the last year, it’s won key contracts and turned record profits. Read more »
The demand for mobile data continues to rise: Doubling in the past 12 months according to a new report for Ericsson. Smartphones are obviously part of the equation, but so too are tablets; particularly video consumption, which accounts for 40 percent of data use on tablets. Read more »
According to the WSJ, Dish Network and Google have been in talks about launching an LTE network. Google would bring cash, while Dish would bring spectrum, but neither company has the infrastructure or expertise to run a mobile carrier. Maybe that’s why Google is interested. Read more »
Smartphones are use more for Wi-Fi hotspot connections as we want information from mobile devices on demand, but not by paying more for mobile broadband. Tablets are catching up to laptops in this regard too, making strong cases for hetnets, more hotspots and small cells. Read more »
Google’s new Chromebook debuted in a Wi-Fi only model, leaving many to wonder if there would eventually be a 3G model. Turns out, there already is. Verizon’s 3G network is supported on the $329.99 device and includes 100 MB of monthly data at no extra charge. Read more »
Opera Mobile for Android gets speedy — or should I say SPDY — with version 12.1 of the browser, now available for free in the Google Play store. The popular mobile browser also gains some web fraud detection features and wider support for HTML 5 standards Read more »
U.S. carriers like working out exclusive handset deals with hardware makers – such as the Lumia 920 with AT&T — but who benefits? Consumers really don’t, hardware makers might, but it’s the network operators that benefit most. Here I thought competition in the U.S. was good! 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 »
A data plan to charge consumers extra for Skype, Google Talk or other VoIP calls has been squashed by TeliaSonera; sort of. Instead of the planned 6 Euro fee for 5 to 10 hours of VoIP calls, the operator is simply raising rates for all. Read more »
With the future of mobile quickly evolving, what do you need to know now? After a long cross-country flight home, I had plenty of time to digest the key data nuggets from our GigaOm Mobilize 2012 event held last week. Here are five worth sharing. Read more »
The FCC is moving forward with a controversial plan to entice broadcasters to give up their airwaves so they can later be auctioned off to carriers who need more spectrum to deliver mobile broadband. FCC officials expect the auction in 2014. 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 »
The growing number of tablets, smartphones and connected devices will push demand for mobile data to over 10.8 exabytes per month by 2016, an 18-fold increase over 2011 according to Cisco. That’s a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 78 percent from 2011 to 2016. Read more »
With a reported 50 percent of all smartphone owners not knowing how much mobile broadband their handsets use each month, data usage tracking tools are becoming valuable utilities. Boingo just added one to its Wi-Finder for iOS app, which can help save you money. Read more »
AT&T has stopped subsidizing tablets, recognizing that it can’t sell slates the same way it sells smartphones. Now AT&T and other carriers need to start dropping tablet data plan pricing. If we’re no longer “paying back” the device subsidy, we shouldn’t be paying subsidized plan prices. Read more »
A new “Wi-Fi Plus Cellular” feature appears in the latest beta build of iOS 6. This should allow background synchronization for certain native applications but appears to include FaceTime as well, indicating that iOS 6 will support seamless FaceTime calls moving from Wi-Fi to mobile broadband. Read more »
The FCC has come to a settlement with Verizon Wireless that will allow customers of the nation’s largest wireless network to use tethering apps from the Android market, and thus circumvent the $20 monthly fee Verizon charges for using a phone as a mobile hot spot. Read more »
Clearwire lost subscribers for the first time in the second quarter as a result of Sprint discontinuing new contract WiMAX device sales. Sprint has tied its star to LTE, and Clearwire would like to follow, but if the 4G carrier may have already reached its apex. Read more »
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 »
Relying on a wireless home network is typically far cheaper than using mobile broadband for smartphones and tablets. Even with today’s new Wi-Fi products, however, coverage can still be an issue and thus use up precious cellular data. Netgear’s $39 Wi-Fi extender aims to solve that. Read more »
When Verizon announced its new shared-data plans, it should have enjoyed a big advantage over its archrival AT&T. Consumers had been demanding the right to pool data, and Verizon was the first carrier to deliver. Instead, Verizon fumbled, and AT&T has picked up the ball. Read more »
In addition to turning up its 4G service in Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City and San Antonio, Sprint went live in 10 cities and communities in the surrounding areas of those metro markets. It also tried to set expectations for average data speeds on the network. Read more »
DeviceScape’s app for Android gains a new name and additional features: What used to be called DataBooster is now DataSaver. The free software helps users manage their 3G and 4G data usage while making it easier to connect to DeviceScape’s more than 8 million Wi-Fi hotspots. Read more »
Regulators should view Verizon planned pact with cable as a merger, not as a joint venture, argues the Consumer Federation of America. Seen in that light, the CFA said, the government will have little choice but to reject Verizon’s acquisition of the cable operators’ 4G spectrum. Read more »
On Wednesday, T-Mobile USA revamped its mobile pricing structure, introducing a new 500 MB tier, adjusting some tier prices and adding a new category of unthrottled data plans. The changes aren’t revolutionary, but they will certainly give T-Mo customers more options. Read more »
In a new twist on old pre-paid data plans, WalMart and TruConnect have partnered to offer “Internet on the Go.” The service offers pre-paid 3G data in small buckets for use with a MiFi. The data you purchase never expires, so it’s attractive for occasional use. Read more »
Verizon’s new “Share Everything” plans use one bucket of data for up to 10 devices on an account. Instead of buying a data plan for each device, one monthly charge covers voice, messages and data to be shared. And it will likely save you money. Read more »
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 »
Lenovo is taking a new approach to make its ThinkPad laptops more appealing to consumers and enterprises: Lenovo is also selling no-contract wireless data. Called Lenovo Mobile Access, the service provides an 3G connection to ThinkPads for as short as 30 minutes, costing $1.95. Read more »
It took 12 years for 3G technologies to touch half of the world’s population, but getting to 85 percent coverage will only take another five, according to wireless infrastructure vendor Ericsson. In addition, Ericsson projects LTE networks will cover half the globe’s population. Read more »
In its attempts to kill Verizon’s mega-spectrum deal with the cable operators, T-Mobile has begun challenging Verizon’s claims that it is the most efficient user of mobile spectrum in the country. But T-Mo is countering Verizon’s fuzzy math with equally fuzzy math of its own. Read more »
Looking for a little safety and mobile privacy at that public hotspot? AnchorFree’s Hotspot Shield app might be worth the look for your Android device: The new software is a multi-purpose mobile utility, combining VPN web browsing with anti-malware and broadband data compression. Read more »
Internet access is limited by service providers, who act as gatekeepers to the treasures of connectivity. But could crowdsourcing connectivity be the answer to the problem for mobile users? That’s the question startup Open Garden is looking to answer. Read more »
Apple may be planning to add 3G data support for FaceTime on iOS devices, based on some recently published screenshots. Many have wanted FaceTime on a mobile broadband instead of Wi-Fi networks. But I’m not sold that it’s a good idea. Here’s why. Read more »
