Showing posts with label Wireless. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wireless. Show all posts
Wednesday
Microsoft Touching Up Windows 8 to Address Gripes
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Microsoft is retooling the latest version of its Windows operating system to address complaints and confusion that have been blamed for deepening a slump in personal computer sales.
The tune up announced Tuesday won't be released to consumers and businesses until later this year. The changes, part of a software package given the codename "Blue," are a tacit acknowledgment of the shortcomings in Windows 8, a radical overhaul of Microsoft Corp.'s ubiquitous operating system.
With the makeover it released last October, Microsoft hoped to play a more prominent role in the growing mobile device market while still maintaining its dominance in PCs. But Windows 8's design, which emphasizes interactive tiles and touch controls, seems to have befuddled as many people as it has impressed. One leading research firm, International Data Corp., says Windows 8 contributed to a 14 percent decline in worldwide PC sales during the first three months of the year — the biggest year-over-year drop ever.
Meanwhile, sales of smartphones and tablet computers are booming. The biggest beneficiaries have been Apple Inc., the maker of the iPhone and iPad, and Samsung Electronics Co., which sells the most devices running on Google Inc.'s Android software. Google is also benefiting from Android's popularity through increased traffic to its services, creating more opportunities for the company to display ads.
By contrast, leading PC makers such as Hewlett-Packard Co. and Dell Inc., which primarily sell Windows-powered machines, have been mired in a financial funk that has battered their stocks and raised questions about their futures.
Despite the troubling signs, Microsoft insists it's pleased with Windows 8's performance.
The company, which is based in Redmond, Wash., says more than 100 million Windows 8 licenses have been sold so far, up from about 60 million licenses in January. The licensing volume "is in the same general ballpark," as Microsoft's previous operating system — Windows 7 — at a similar juncture of its sales cycle, according to Tami Reller, who serves as the marketing and financial chief for Microsoft's Windows business.
In an interview, Reller said Microsoft still realized changes need to be made to make Windows 8 easier to navigate and capable of taking full advantage of technology improvements that have come out since October.
"Are there things that we can do to improve the experience? Absolutely," Reller said "There is a learning curve (to Windows 8) and we can work to address that."
For now, Microsoft isn't saying what kind of changes will be introduced with the release of Blue, which the company plans to anoint with a different name when the update is available. Microsoft also isn't saying whether it will charge existing owners of Windows 8 devices to get the fixes in Blue. The company plans to release Blue in time for the holiday season.
Reller said more details about Blue will be released before Microsoft holds a developers conference in San Francisco in late June. Some of Blue's features are expected to be previewed at that conference.
If Blue is meant to make people more comfortable, the changes may incorporate more of the elements from earlier versions of Windows.
A common complaint has centered on the lack of a "start" button in the Windows 8 menu.
Other critics have pined for an option that would allow the system to begin in a desktop mode suited for running applications designed for earlier versions of the operating system. Windows 8 currently starts off showing a mosaic of interactive tiles tailored for swiping through programs with a finger instead of using a computer mouse.
Blue also might make it easier to find a set of controls — known as "charms" in Windows 8's parlance — that currently must be pulled out from the right side of a display screen.
Besides responding to customer feedback, Blue also will improve Windows 8's ability to work on smaller tablets with 7- and 8-inch display screens, Reller said. She declined to say whether Microsoft intends to make smaller version of its own Surface tablets. In a conference call with analysts last month, Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Peter Klein said the company was working with other manufacturers to make smaller tablets.
One thing that Blue won't fix: the relatively small selection of mobile applications tailored for Windows 8. Reller said the Windows 8 store now has more than 60,000 apps. By contrast, there are more than 800,000 apps available for Apple's mobile's devices and nearly that many for Android devices, too. In one of the most glaring omissions on Windows 8, Facebook Inc. still hasn't designed an app to make its online social network more accessible on that system. Facebook has about 750 million mobile users.
Microsoft's decision to tweak Windows 8 so soon after it went on sale may reinforce perceptions that the product is a flop.
Reller is trying to frame the changes as evidence that Microsoft is becoming more agile and nimble as it responds to a rapidly evolving technology market. Smartphones and tablet computers have been at the epicenter of the upheaval, diminishing the demand for PCs as more people and businesses opt for the convenience of increasingly powerful mobile devices.
The mobile computing movement is the main reason that Microsoft made the most dramatic redesign of its Windows operating system since 1995. Given how different that Windows 8 is from its predecessors, Reller said Microsoft always knew it might have to make some adjustments less than a year after the software came out.
"It had to be a very big change to take advantage of the mobile opportunity," she said.
Analysts say one reason Windows 8 got off to a slow start is because there weren't enough devices designed to take advantage of the system's touch-screen features. But that is about to change as HP, Dell and other PC makers prepare to roll out a wide variety of laptops and tablets with displays that respond to touch. More than 2,400 devices have now been certified to run on Windows 8, up from 2,000 in January, Reller said.
Most of the touch-screen laptops will sell at prices $50 to $250 below the first wave of comparable machines running on Windows 8, reductions that Microsoft hopes will prod more people to check out the system.
"As we look at Windows 8, it's important to remember a lot of its full potential won't be realized until there are more touch devices on the market," Reller said.
T-Mobile Sells 500K iPhone 5s in First Month
T-Mobile released its first quarterly numbers since adding the iPhone 5 to its portfolio and sales of the device are impressive. For the first quarter of 2013, T-Mobile said it sold 500,000 iPhone 5s to “new and existing customers,” quite a feat considering the U.S.’s fourth-largest carrier just rolled out the device to customers on April 12.
With all those new LTE-enabled iPhone 5s jumping onto T-Mobile’s network, the carrier reported it was still on track to have 200 million LTE POPs covered by the end of 2013.
Credit it to the iPhone’s attractive pricing, T-Mobile’s new “Simple Choice” plans or something else, but T-Mobile also managed to add a substantial amount of customers during the quarter. The carrier brought in 579,000 net customers during the first quarter, which it attributed to improving its postpaid net customer losses by 61 percent annually due to improved branded postpaid churn.
Not all the numbers were encouraging though as total revenues fell 7.1 percent annually. T-Mobile chalked this up partially to an uptick in branded postpaid customers who were adopting the company’s “Simple Choice” and value plans, which lead to a 9.9 percent annual decrease in service revenue. Customers moving to those plans also resulted in a 6.3 percent annual decrease in branded postpaid ARPU.
All things considered, T-Mobile CEO John Legere sounded upbeat.
“Things only get more exciting from here, having brought T-Mobile USA and MetroPCS together to create the wireless industry's value leader and premier challenger,” said Legere in a statement.
T-Mobile just finalized its merger with MetroPCS and the new combined company will now operate under the T-Mobile US, Inc. moniker.—and trade under TMUS.
T-Mobile US Inc.’s stock is up more than two percent as of 8:52 a.m. CT.
Sunday
Prepaid or postpaid?: The fight for your cell phone dollars (Smartphones Unlocked)
No-contract carriers can slice your smartphone bill over the course of two years. But you may still opt for a pricier contract instead.
By definition, the no-contract carrier model is designed to save you money over a two-year contract agreement, the latter of which reigns supreme here in the U.S.
The question is: How much do you really gain by going prepaid, and what do you lose from the subscriber experience? Without a doubt, no-contract carriers like MetroPCS, Virgin Mobile, Boost Mobile, and Cricket Wireless can dramatically cut your monthly cell phone bill, but there are trade-offs.
I'm not going to dive into every carrier's pricing structure and phone offerings, so for the sake of comparison, I'm going to break down the cost of ownership over a two-year span for two carriers: Verizon, which has the most U.S. subscribers, and MetroPCS, the country's largest prepaid network.
Samsung's Galaxy S3 makes a good model device thanks to its ubiquity across seven carriers; the 16GB version has a $199.99 base price for most contract providers.
Now, that $200 charge isn't the phone's true cost; it's the price that Verizon and the rest subsidize so you pay less up-front than a MetroPCS customer, who will pay the full $500. The trade-off for a "cheaper" Verizon phone is committing to two years of data fees no matter what, and getting slapped with a multiple-hundred-dollar termination fee if you try to leave early.
In addition, Verizon and others add an activation fee for new lines of service. If you're a new cell phone customer, or switching from another carrier, chances are good that you'll be tacking a nominal fee onto the transaction, and that adds to the phone's overall cost.
Assuming you use Verizon's new pooled Share Everything data plan, you'll have to pay a monthly access fee for any device, on top of the monthly bundle for unlimited talk, text, and a portion of 4G LTE data. I chose 4GB of monthly data, but Verizon also offers plans for as low as 1GB per month to as high as 10GB per month.
Verizon charges $50 for unlimited talk, text, and Web, though you won't use much Web on a phone like the Gusto 2, and that saves Verizon money in the end. The $1,250 total for two years of ownership is pretty low.
(Credit: CNET)
| Verizon Wireless -- two-year contract | |
|---|---|
| Samsung Galaxy S3 cost | $200 |
| Activation fee (one-time) | $35 |
| Monthly access rate | $40 |
| Monthly rate (4GB data) | $70 |
| Access fee, 24 months | $960 |
| Data fee, 24 months | $1,680 |
| Two-year total, excluding taxes | $2,915 |
| MetroPCS -- No contract carrier | |
|---|---|
| Samsung Galaxy S3 cost | $500 |
| Activation fee | $0 |
| Monthly rate (Unlimited 4G LTE) | $55 |
| Data fee, 24 months | $1,320 |
| Two-year total, excluding taxes | $1,820 |
Assuming you use Verizon's new pooled Share Everything data plan, you'll have to pay a monthly access fee for any device, on top of the monthly bundle for unlimited talk, text, and a portion of 4G LTE data. I chose 4GB of monthly data, but Verizon also offers plans for as low as 1GB per month to as high as 10GB per month.
Over two years, you'll pay almost $3,000 for the Galaxy S3 on Verizon, assuming you're activating a new line of service.
With MetroPCS, however, you skip the activation fee, and the $55 unlimited monthly rate gets you all the LTE data you can eat, on top of limitless calls and texts. MetroPCS' LTE plans range from $40 to $70 per month, depending on add-on services. For instance, the $70 plan gets you on-demand video and unlimited Rhapsody Music.
A high-powered phone like the Galaxy S3 brings powerful software and hardware features to traditionally more humble networks.
(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)
In this scenario, MetroPCS saves you $1,095 over the course of two years of ownership for that high-end Galaxy S3. The math gets a little trickier when you factor in lines of service for multiple family members. Verizon and AT&T have their pooled data plans, but MetroPCS does drop rate plans by $5 a plan when you have two-to-five lines of service under a single name. This is MetroPCS' small concession for families and groups.
How low can you go?
What happens if you're trying to get the least expensive phone you can, period? Once again, a prepaid carrier may offer you the cost advantage on the lower end of the scale, too.
What happens if you're trying to get the least expensive phone you can, period? Once again, a prepaid carrier may offer you the cost advantage on the lower end of the scale, too.
Although most known as a post-paid carrier, Verizon also has a prepaid branch that gives you unlimited talk, text, and Web. (Check and you'll find that each national carrier has some sort of prepaid option. In Verizon's case, there are two choices, since you can also buy phones at full retail cost and opt for a month-to-month contract.)
For the next scenario, I wanted to compare the most rock-bottom price you can get with Verizon and MetroPCS. Verizon's least expensive handset is the $50 Samsung Gusto 2 flip phone, which, though simple, has all the basics for making calls and texts.
Verizon Wireless -- Cheapest prepaid | |
|---|---|
| Samsung Gusto 2 | $50 |
| Monthly fee (talk, text, Web) | $50 |
| Data fee, 24 months | $1,200 |
| Two-year total, excluding taxes | $1,250 |
| MetroPCS -- No contract -- Cheapest | |
|---|---|
| Huawei Verge, Kyocera Presto | $50 |
| Monthly fee (talk, text, Web) | $40 |
| Data fee, 24 months | $960 |
| Two-year total, excluding taxes | $1,010 |
Verizon charges $50 for unlimited talk, text, and Web, though you won't use much Web on a phone like the Gusto 2, and that saves Verizon money in the end. The $1,250 total for two years of ownership is pretty low.
I likewise searched MetroPCS' Web site for its least expensive offering. At the time of writing, the Kyocera Presto and Huawei Verge each cost $50.
Yet its cheapest 3G rate squeaks in at $40 per month, just south of Verizon's offering. The difference between the two isn't very vast, but there's a lot you can do with the $240 you'll have left at the end of two years with MetroPCS.
A third option: MVNOs
Carriers with storefronts aren't the only options. You can also find great deals with MVNOs, Mobile Virtual Network Operators. MVNOs are services that resell other operators' spectrum, and prices go as low as $30 per month without a contract. TracFone is the largest, and owns StraightTalk, a Wal-Mart exclusive that resells AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon.
Carriers with storefronts aren't the only options. You can also find great deals with MVNOs, Mobile Virtual Network Operators. MVNOs are services that resell other operators' spectrum, and prices go as low as $30 per month without a contract. TracFone is the largest, and owns StraightTalk, a Wal-Mart exclusive that resells AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon.
(Credit: CNET)
Ting and Credo Mobile ride Sprint's network, as do Sprint's own prepaid Virgin Mobile and Boost Mobile brands. PureTalk sells AT&T; Net 10 rides AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint; and Simple Mobile resells T-Mobile service.
Getting the phone you want
As with the handsets themselves, no carrier offers a one-size-fits-all solution. No-contract providers are simpler and less invasive: there's no service agreement and no credit check. You can often pay in cash at a retail store, so a credit card isn't required. Since there's no contract, there's also no fee for stopping service sporadically or switching providers any time you want.
As with the handsets themselves, no carrier offers a one-size-fits-all solution. No-contract providers are simpler and less invasive: there's no service agreement and no credit check. You can often pay in cash at a retail store, so a credit card isn't required. Since there's no contract, there's also no fee for stopping service sporadically or switching providers any time you want.
Selection is one big drawback; you can't always be as choosy about what you get. Verizon, T-Mobile, and AT&T's prepaid services are usually limited to flip phones and other simple devices. Quality midrange Android phones can easily cost $300 without a contract, but the features will often pale in comparison to the most coveted smartphones on the market.
The good news is that the more major prepaid carriers are snagging popular smartphones like the iPhone 5 and the Samsung Galaxy S3, but these will come at the full retail price, which is a larger sum up-front.
Cricket Wireless snagged the iPhone 5 just a week after the major carriers began selling Apple's flagship phone.
(Credit: CBS Interactive)
It's all about the network
When you're considering which carrier to pick, you should always think about the network speeds and services you can expect. MetroPCS, for instance, works best in urban centers, so if you travel a lot to the country, you may find your call quality and ability to stream data heavily compromised.
When you're considering which carrier to pick, you should always think about the network speeds and services you can expect. MetroPCS, for instance, works best in urban centers, so if you travel a lot to the country, you may find your call quality and ability to stream data heavily compromised.
Not every network is created equally, either. MetroPCS' 4G LTE data is downright slow compared with Verizon's top-notch LTE, but it's still speedier than another carrier's 3G network. Still, not everyone requires the absolute fastest downloads.
All the extras
Post-paid national carriers like AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, and Verizon can also afford to offer you greater support when it comes to in-store attention and customer service, in addition to intangibles like a more alluring brand appeal.
Post-paid national carriers like AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, and Verizon can also afford to offer you greater support when it comes to in-store attention and customer service, in addition to intangibles like a more alluring brand appeal.
Friday
Friday Poll: Will you unlock your phone when it's illegal?
Friday Poll: Will you unlock your phone when it's illegal? | Crave - CNET:
It looks like today is the last day for smartphone-unlocking freedom in this country. A new federal mandate kicks in tomorrow saying that carrier-locked phones are not allowed to be unlocked without the carrier's permission.
The feds figure there are enough unlocked-phone purchasing options out there. If you want the sweet, sweet sugar of a fat carrier-sponsored discount, you'll be stuck with a locked phone. Unless you want to go outlaw.
I could see the United States descending into a new version of the Wild West. Roaming packs of smartphone-unlocking outlaws will defend their hideouts against raids from carriers with federal backing. They'll sport nicknames like "The Android Kid," "Samsung Calamity S3," and "Unlockin' Larry."
The new rules will impact people who buy new smartphones starting tomorrow. Legacy phones already purchased or acquired are exempt. Though carriers have never been thrilled about their customers unlocking phones, this change will actually give them some enforcement teeth when they sniff out illegal unlockings.
Maybe your unlocking days are over. The next time you need a new phone and you're eyeing those carrier discounts, what will you do? Vote in our poll and talk it up in the comments. And to be clear, CNET never recommends doing anything illegal.
It looks like today is the last day for smartphone-unlocking freedom in this country. A new federal mandate kicks in tomorrow saying that carrier-locked phones are not allowed to be unlocked without the carrier's permission.
The feds figure there are enough unlocked-phone purchasing options out there. If you want the sweet, sweet sugar of a fat carrier-sponsored discount, you'll be stuck with a locked phone. Unless you want to go outlaw.
I could see the United States descending into a new version of the Wild West. Roaming packs of smartphone-unlocking outlaws will defend their hideouts against raids from carriers with federal backing. They'll sport nicknames like "The Android Kid," "Samsung Calamity S3," and "Unlockin' Larry."
The new rules will impact people who buy new smartphones starting tomorrow. Legacy phones already purchased or acquired are exempt. Though carriers have never been thrilled about their customers unlocking phones, this change will actually give them some enforcement teeth when they sniff out illegal unlockings.
Maybe your unlocking days are over. The next time you need a new phone and you're eyeing those carrier discounts, what will you do? Vote in our poll and talk it up in the comments. And to be clear, CNET never recommends doing anything illegal.
The Android rumor roundup ...
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Nokia to launch flagship smartphone on Verizon this year -- report
Nokia's Lumia 900 users on AT&T will also be the first to get the Windows Phone 7.8 update, according to internal AT&T documents.
The Lumia 900 is getting Windows Phone 7.8 soon.
(Credit: CBS Interactive)
Nokia is readying a flagship smartphone for Verizon Wireless, a new report claims.
Verizon is planning to carry the Lumia handset later this year, The Verge is reporting today, citing people who claim to have knowledge of the company's plans. That device, codenamed Laser, will "be a variant" of Nokia's Lumia 920, but it's not clear what sort of features that handset will have.
According to The Verge, Nokia's device will be put on the same playing field as Verizon's other flagship devices, including the iPhone.
The addition of a flagship Nokia device on Verizon's network will complement the Lumia 822 currently running on the service. The Lumia 822 is free with a two-year contract.
In other Nokia news, the company's Lumia 900 will be getting an upgrade to Windows Phone 7.8 next week, according to a new report.
Windows Phone fan site WP Central yesterday reported that the operating system update will be coming to AT&T Lumia 900 owners on January 30. The blog is basing its claim on an internal AT&T e-mail it claims to have obtained detailing the update.
Windows Phone 7.8 was announced last year alongside Windows Phone 8. Products running Windows Phone 7, like the Lumia 900, were unable to be updated to Windows Phone 8, leaving Microsoft to build an upgrade for customers who would have been left out in the cold.
Windows Phone 7.8 includes a host of improvements, including a new Start screen, new theme colors, and an improved lock screen. The update will be made available free of charge to Lumia 900 owners.
CNET has contacted Nokia for comment on both reports. We will update this story when we have more information.
Chrome for Android gets adventurous with WebGL, SPDY
Google has released a new beta of its Chrome browser for Android that gives people the option to try new features such as WebGL's 3D graphics and SPDY's faster page loading.
The update, the third since the inaugural version of the Chrome beta for Android, shows not only more of the browser team's ambition but also a faster pace of change.
The unbranded stock browser that shipped with Android for years moved comparatively glacially, but in particular with the new Chrome beta releases for Android, Google is pushing for a broader feature set. And the code base … Read more .. http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-57565820-94/chrome-for-android-gets-adventurous-with-webgl-spdy/
Five things to know as you get started with Vine
Get the lowdown on Vine with this hands-on video and five must-know tips for getting started with Twitter's new video app.
As a social network built on keeping things short and sweet, it's no surprised that Twitter released today a secondary app that lets users (Twitter and otherwise) shoot and upload six-second videos. Of course, no later than a few hours after its launch, Vine was already being called the "Instagram for video," as users began sharing short clips of kids, stop-motion drawings, food, and, of course, puppies. Currently, Vine is only available for iOS, but Twitter assures users that its app will be coming to other platforms "soon." The app is pretty simple to use (and get addicted to), but before you dive in, watch the getting started video above to get the lowdown on how Vine works, and read these must-know tips as you get started with the new app. 1. Your videos are public. No matter what. Let's get privacy out of the way first by saying: there really isn't any. Unlike Instagram, or even Twitter, which allow you to set your profile to "private," Vine doesn't offer a way to shut out users.
Anything you post on Vine is public, and can be shared by you (and others, should they grab the link to a Vine you tweeted or shared on Facebook.)
NBC News asked Twitter about this very issue, and, after being pointed to a help article on the Vine Web site, NBC was told that the company would be adding more ways to control who views your content in a future release.
2. Use tags to take advantage of the Explore section.
Head to the Explore section in the Vine app, and you'll see that (like Twitter and Instagram) discovery and curation are built around tags.
Select a hashtag from the tiled collection, and you'll see a feed of videos whose authors included that tag. Likewise, if you search for a tag at the top of the Explore screen, videos related to that tag appear, too.
But don't be limited to the tags Vine included in its explore section -- you can search for, and tag your videos with, whatever you want. So as you upload videos, include relevant tags so that your videos are more easily discovered. (Just don't go crazy -- there's little worse than a 20 lines of tags.)
3. Get creative with cutting and sequence.
Unlike traditional home videos, like the ones you might shoot on your smartphone, Vine videos don't necessarily need to be shot starting with "point A" and ending at "point B."
The app lets you pause the video and reposition your camera at any time, so it's easy to get creative with Vine. There are many examples, but a whole slew of stop-motion video and interesting montages have already shown up in the app. Here's just one example:
4. Vine will likely see major improvements.
Right now, the feed you see in the home screen is a little sad. Although you can like, comment, and pause videos (just tap!), there isn't much functionality beyond that.
As Vine expands, we should see improvements, like the ability to share videos from the feed, and even tag friends in comments or posts. Another key improvement will likely be the option to remove comments, a la Instagram.
5. "Vining?" "Upload a Vine?" "Vineyard?" We're not sure just yet.
As the app made it to the iPhones of the CNET newsroom, conversation quickly turned to questions about Vine's nomenclature.
Are videos "Vines?" Or, do you upload a Vine video? (We ended up settling on the latter.)
As you browse Vine, is the home feed a "Vineyeard?" Will we soon tell our friends, "You should vine that!"?
Only time will tell, but for now, all that can be said is that the hype around Vine's launch is plentiful, and for those of us who are into sharing moments of our everyday life, that's pretty Vinetastic.
As a social network built on keeping things short and sweet, it's no surprised that Twitter released today a secondary app that lets users (Twitter and otherwise) shoot and upload six-second videos. Of course, no later than a few hours after its launch, Vine was already being called the "Instagram for video," as users began sharing short clips of kids, stop-motion drawings, food, and, of course, puppies. Currently, Vine is only available for iOS, but Twitter assures users that its app will be coming to other platforms "soon." The app is pretty simple to use (and get addicted to), but before you dive in, watch the getting started video above to get the lowdown on how Vine works, and read these must-know tips as you get started with the new app. 1. Your videos are public. No matter what. Let's get privacy out of the way first by saying: there really isn't any. Unlike Instagram, or even Twitter, which allow you to set your profile to "private," Vine doesn't offer a way to shut out users.
Thursday
ITC decides to review Apple complaint against Samsung
The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) decided yesterday to review a ruling made by an administrative law judge in the ongoing patent-infringement saga between Apple and Samsung.
Judge Thomas Pender in October ruled that Samsung had violated one of Apple's iPhone design patents, as well as three software feature patents, in some of its mobile products. Two other patents brought before the judge by Apple were found to have not been violated by Samsung.
Best cell phones - These 5 best smartphones may surprise you ..
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Google asks FCC for wireless spectrum, but don't get too excited
Google has petitioned the Federal Communications Commission for permission to apparently conduct testing on, well, something. But it's not a new wireless service that some have hoped it would be, CNET has exclusively learned.
Steven Crowley, a wireless engineer, discovered the application, which was filed by Google last week. The application asks for permission to test frequencies across the 2524 to 2546 MHz range and 2567 to 2625 MHz range. According to Crowley, those ranges are reserved for Educational Broadband Service and Broadband Radio Service. But here's the catch: Clearwire, a company that Google had owned a slice in until last year, uses the ranges for its mobile broadband service.
Predictably, that has prompted speculation over whether Google is testing its own wireless network. The company currently offers free Wi-Fi service in the Chelsea neighborhood in New York City and has been dipping its toe in the service waters with Google Fiber in Kansas City.
Google, however, has not provided any details on its plans in the FCC petition. The report is heavily redacted and includes only one exhibit outlining where it will place base stations to test the service in its Mountain View headquarters.
Given the relative inability of concrete information, some circumstantial evidence is being drawn to guess at Google's plans. The filing, for example, was authorized by Google Vice President of Access Services Milo Medin. The Access Services unit handles the Google Fiber and wireless initiatives.
However, the spectrum range in question currently does not work natively with any popular consumer devices, due to past regulations put in place by the FCC and due to Clearwire's own handling of the spectrum. In addition, a source with knowledge of Google's plans, has told CNET that the testing is just that. The source added that the search giant has no plans, at this time, to deliver a consumer-facing service with the spectrum.
So, what is Google up to with this testing? At this point, according to the source, it's nothing that consumers will end up using and falls in line with Access Services' charge of regularly testing wireless technologies.
Wednesday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Verizon to ditch phone plans, go with shared plans
Verizon to ditch most phone plans, introduce plans 'shared' among family members, devices
NEW YORK (AP) -- Verizon Wireless, the nation's largest cellphone company, is dropping nearly all of its phone plans in favor of pricing schemes that allow consumers to share data usage among up to ten phones and other devices.
The new plans will let individuals add non-phone devices like tablets and laptops to their plans, as well as the phones of family members.
The change takes effect June 28.
It's the biggest revamp in wireless pricing in years, and one that's likely to be copied by other carriers. AT&T Inc. has already said that it's looking at introducing shared-data plans soon.
Verizon's new "Share Everything" plans include unlimited phone calls and texting, and will start at $90 per month for one smartphone and 1 gigabyte of data. If used only with a smartphone, "Share Everything" prices are lower than for current plans with unlimited calling and texting, but higher than plans with limited calling and texting.
Bigger savings will come for those who add more devices like tablets to their plans. In such cases, the new pricing system will be cheaper compared to getting separate data plans for each device. That gives Verizon a chance to capitalize on the growing popularity of tablets. Few consumers put tablets on data plans, probably because they dread paying an extra $30 or so per month, on top of their phone bills.
Under "Share Everything," adding a tablet to a plan will cost $10 per month. Adding a USB data stick for a laptop will cost $20.
Verizon's limited-calling and texting plans will disappear, except for one $40-per-month plan intended for "dumb" phones. Verizon is keeping its limited-data plans for single non-phone devices, like the $30 tablet plan.
Current Verizon customers will be able to switch to the new plans or keep their old ones, with one exception. Those who have unlimited-data plans for their smartphones won't be able to move those to new phones, unless they pay the full, unsubsidized price for those phones. (For example, an iPhone 4S that costs $200 with a two-year contract costs $650 unsubsidized, with no contract.)
Verizon stopped signing people up for unlimited-data plans last summer. The industry as a whole is moving away from the plans, since the data capacity of their networks is limited.
Under the new plans, subscribers can stop worrying about monitoring the number of calling minutes or text messages their families use in a month, but they'll have to keep a close eye on data consumption. Verizon will allow subscribers to adjust their data allowance from month to month, but if they go over their monthly allotment, that will cost $15 per gigabyte.
The data allowances start at $50 per month for 1 gigabyte. That's enough for prudent two-smartphone users who use Wi-Fi a lot, but Verizon recommends getting 2 gigabytes for $60. After that, each additional 2 gigabytes cost an extra $10 per month.
Under "Share Everything," Verizon will stop charging extra for letting devices act as "mobile Wi-Fi hotspots." That means subscribers who have a recent smartphone could use it to connect a tablet to the Internet, without paying the extra $10 per month for a tablet.
Verizon had telegraphed the move toward shared plans, but had not revealed the details or pricing.
Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of New York-based phone company Verizon Communications Inc. and Vodafone Group PLC, a British cellphone company with wide international interests.
NEW YORK (AP) -- Verizon Wireless, the nation's largest cellphone company, is dropping nearly all of its phone plans in favor of pricing schemes that allow consumers to share data usage among up to ten phones and other devices.
The new plans will let individuals add non-phone devices like tablets and laptops to their plans, as well as the phones of family members.
The change takes effect June 28.
It's the biggest revamp in wireless pricing in years, and one that's likely to be copied by other carriers. AT&T Inc. has already said that it's looking at introducing shared-data plans soon.
Verizon's new "Share Everything" plans include unlimited phone calls and texting, and will start at $90 per month for one smartphone and 1 gigabyte of data. If used only with a smartphone, "Share Everything" prices are lower than for current plans with unlimited calling and texting, but higher than plans with limited calling and texting.
Bigger savings will come for those who add more devices like tablets to their plans. In such cases, the new pricing system will be cheaper compared to getting separate data plans for each device. That gives Verizon a chance to capitalize on the growing popularity of tablets. Few consumers put tablets on data plans, probably because they dread paying an extra $30 or so per month, on top of their phone bills.
Under "Share Everything," adding a tablet to a plan will cost $10 per month. Adding a USB data stick for a laptop will cost $20.
Verizon's limited-calling and texting plans will disappear, except for one $40-per-month plan intended for "dumb" phones. Verizon is keeping its limited-data plans for single non-phone devices, like the $30 tablet plan.
Current Verizon customers will be able to switch to the new plans or keep their old ones, with one exception. Those who have unlimited-data plans for their smartphones won't be able to move those to new phones, unless they pay the full, unsubsidized price for those phones. (For example, an iPhone 4S that costs $200 with a two-year contract costs $650 unsubsidized, with no contract.)
Verizon stopped signing people up for unlimited-data plans last summer. The industry as a whole is moving away from the plans, since the data capacity of their networks is limited.
Under the new plans, subscribers can stop worrying about monitoring the number of calling minutes or text messages their families use in a month, but they'll have to keep a close eye on data consumption. Verizon will allow subscribers to adjust their data allowance from month to month, but if they go over their monthly allotment, that will cost $15 per gigabyte.
The data allowances start at $50 per month for 1 gigabyte. That's enough for prudent two-smartphone users who use Wi-Fi a lot, but Verizon recommends getting 2 gigabytes for $60. After that, each additional 2 gigabytes cost an extra $10 per month.
Under "Share Everything," Verizon will stop charging extra for letting devices act as "mobile Wi-Fi hotspots." That means subscribers who have a recent smartphone could use it to connect a tablet to the Internet, without paying the extra $10 per month for a tablet.
Verizon had telegraphed the move toward shared plans, but had not revealed the details or pricing.
Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of New York-based phone company Verizon Communications Inc. and Vodafone Group PLC, a British cellphone company with wide international interests.
Monday
Sprint's Clearwire Stake Dips Below 50%
Sprint's stake in Clearwire has dropped past the 50 percent mark, allowing the operator to increase its voting rights without taking on Clearwire's default risk.
Sprint sold off 77.4 million voting shares last June to reduce its liability for Clearwire's debt should the company go into bankruptcy, since its majority stake in Clearwire made it vulnerable to claims from creditors.
Recent fundraising efforts by Clearwire have reduced Sprint's economic interest in the company to below 50 percent, from 54 percent a year ago. The change allowed the company to reclaim full voting rights while avoiding cross-default risk.
"Given recent equity issuances by Clearwire, Sprint’s economic interest has declined to below 50 percent," a Sprint spokesman said today in a statement. "Now that our economic interest has fallen below 50 percent, we are reclaiming our full voting rights so that our voting rights and economic rights are once again aligned."
Sprint has bought back all the shares it gave up a year ago, according to a document Clearwire filed this morning with the Securities and Exchange Commission
Sprint sold off 77.4 million voting shares last June to reduce its liability for Clearwire's debt should the company go into bankruptcy, since its majority stake in Clearwire made it vulnerable to claims from creditors.
Recent fundraising efforts by Clearwire have reduced Sprint's economic interest in the company to below 50 percent, from 54 percent a year ago. The change allowed the company to reclaim full voting rights while avoiding cross-default risk.
"Given recent equity issuances by Clearwire, Sprint’s economic interest has declined to below 50 percent," a Sprint spokesman said today in a statement. "Now that our economic interest has fallen below 50 percent, we are reclaiming our full voting rights so that our voting rights and economic rights are once again aligned."
Sprint has bought back all the shares it gave up a year ago, according to a document Clearwire filed this morning with the Securities and Exchange Commission
AT&T, Rivals Square Off on Interoperability
AT&T and its smaller competitors faced off on whether the lower 700 MHz band should be made interoperable in statements filed with the FCC late Friday, the deadline for the first round of comments on the issue.
The FCC is considering a proposal to collapse AT&T's band class 17 - comprised of the lower 700 MHz B and C blocks - into band class 12, comprised of the lower 700 MHz A, B and C blocks. The agency has not yet taken up establishing interoperability in the upper 700 MHz band held by Verizon Wireless.
Integrating the two bands could make it easier to roll out LTE service on lower 700 MHz band 12 spectrum, as many regional operators with band 12 spectrum have struggled to find compatible LTE equipment and devices because their band lacks the scale and maturity of the ecosystem for AT&T's band 17. It could also make it easier for regional providers to get LTE roaming.
AT&T argued that the change would open its customers to "substantial" interference problems from the A block, which lacks a guard band between broadcast television transmissions in adjacent Channel 51.
“If we were forced to band 12, we would open up our customers’ LTE devices to interference challenges they don’t see today,” Joan Marsh, vice president of AT&T’s federal regulatory affairs, said in an interview. “We would move from a world where we are protected from interference to one where we would have to try to overcome significant interference issues.”
Tests conducted by Vulcan Wireless showing interference is not a major problem are "unreliable," AT&T said.
"With literally nothing on the benefit side of the scale, any risk of harm should doom the unprecedented regulatory intervention the A Block licensees propose," AT&T said in its comments.
If the FCC puts the proposed interoperability mandate into effect, AT&T says it would have to abandon its development of band 17 LTE devices, overhaul its device design plans and reconfigure its network to add in support for band 12.
AT&T also argued that establishing interoperability would not help band 12 operators with legacy CDMA networks, as AT&T's LTE phones fall back to its GSM network and would have to be redesigned to fall back to CDMA. The Rural Cellular Association, which represents many band 12 licensees, has called that argument a "red herring."
Regional providers including U.S. Cellular and C Spire Wireless, both owners of band 12 licensees, claim that AT&T is overstating the interference issues to maintain its unique band class, precluding its competitors from benefitting from its LTE ecosystem.
"The proponents of Band 17 offered various technical justifications for the creation of that subset band, but real-world testing has shown those justifications were simply a pretext for a band that serves as an anti-competitive tool to further entrench the wireless duopolists," C Spire said.
The interoperability issue goes back to the FCC’s 2008 auction of the 700 MHz band and the 3GPP’s subsequent standards-setting process. When the spectrum was auctioned, the lower 700 MHz A, B and C blocks were a single band, band 12. Smaller providers buying up lower A block and B block licenses expected the equipment and phones they bought would be compatible with the entire band.
But after the auction closed, AT&T and its vendors then asked the 3GPP to create a separate band class for its lower B block and C block holdings to protect it from Channel 51 interference in the A block. The 3GPP agreed to create band 17, and AT&T’s LTE network and devices became incompatible with band 12.
C Spire Wireless recently sued AT&T, Motorola Mobility and Qualcomm over the interoperability issue, alleging the three firms colluded to manipulate the standards-setting process and delay development of equipment and devices for band 12. The Mississippi-based provider has been unable to use the band 12 spectrum it paid $191.5 million for at the FCC's 2008 auction because it can't procure compatible smartphones. The LTE network it plans to launch in September will instead run on its AWS and PCS holdings, a strategy that gives it less headroom to handle customers' data demands.
The FCC is considering a proposal to collapse AT&T's band class 17 - comprised of the lower 700 MHz B and C blocks - into band class 12, comprised of the lower 700 MHz A, B and C blocks. The agency has not yet taken up establishing interoperability in the upper 700 MHz band held by Verizon Wireless.
Integrating the two bands could make it easier to roll out LTE service on lower 700 MHz band 12 spectrum, as many regional operators with band 12 spectrum have struggled to find compatible LTE equipment and devices because their band lacks the scale and maturity of the ecosystem for AT&T's band 17. It could also make it easier for regional providers to get LTE roaming.
AT&T argued that the change would open its customers to "substantial" interference problems from the A block, which lacks a guard band between broadcast television transmissions in adjacent Channel 51.
“If we were forced to band 12, we would open up our customers’ LTE devices to interference challenges they don’t see today,” Joan Marsh, vice president of AT&T’s federal regulatory affairs, said in an interview. “We would move from a world where we are protected from interference to one where we would have to try to overcome significant interference issues.”
Tests conducted by Vulcan Wireless showing interference is not a major problem are "unreliable," AT&T said.
"With literally nothing on the benefit side of the scale, any risk of harm should doom the unprecedented regulatory intervention the A Block licensees propose," AT&T said in its comments.
If the FCC puts the proposed interoperability mandate into effect, AT&T says it would have to abandon its development of band 17 LTE devices, overhaul its device design plans and reconfigure its network to add in support for band 12.
AT&T also argued that establishing interoperability would not help band 12 operators with legacy CDMA networks, as AT&T's LTE phones fall back to its GSM network and would have to be redesigned to fall back to CDMA. The Rural Cellular Association, which represents many band 12 licensees, has called that argument a "red herring."
Regional providers including U.S. Cellular and C Spire Wireless, both owners of band 12 licensees, claim that AT&T is overstating the interference issues to maintain its unique band class, precluding its competitors from benefitting from its LTE ecosystem.
"The proponents of Band 17 offered various technical justifications for the creation of that subset band, but real-world testing has shown those justifications were simply a pretext for a band that serves as an anti-competitive tool to further entrench the wireless duopolists," C Spire said.
The interoperability issue goes back to the FCC’s 2008 auction of the 700 MHz band and the 3GPP’s subsequent standards-setting process. When the spectrum was auctioned, the lower 700 MHz A, B and C blocks were a single band, band 12. Smaller providers buying up lower A block and B block licenses expected the equipment and phones they bought would be compatible with the entire band.
But after the auction closed, AT&T and its vendors then asked the 3GPP to create a separate band class for its lower B block and C block holdings to protect it from Channel 51 interference in the A block. The 3GPP agreed to create band 17, and AT&T’s LTE network and devices became incompatible with band 12.
C Spire Wireless recently sued AT&T, Motorola Mobility and Qualcomm over the interoperability issue, alleging the three firms colluded to manipulate the standards-setting process and delay development of equipment and devices for band 12. The Mississippi-based provider has been unable to use the band 12 spectrum it paid $191.5 million for at the FCC's 2008 auction because it can't procure compatible smartphones. The LTE network it plans to launch in September will instead run on its AWS and PCS holdings, a strategy that gives it less headroom to handle customers' data demands.
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