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Recycle Your Old Phone - Donate to Sprint Project Connect

2007-10-24T17:50:00.000-05:00

Got an old phone laying around that you will never use again because it's too large or too out-dated? DON'T THROW IT AWAY! Help the environment and keep kids safe by sending your phone, wireless accessories, batteries, and connection cards to Sprint Project Connect. Send in any device regardless of carrier or condition. Devices from AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Alltel, etc. are accepted.

To donate a device, simply drop it off at any Sprint retail store. If you don't want to leave the house, just visit www.sprint.com and print a free, postage-paid mailing label.

Sprint recycles or refurbishes the devices, keeping them out of landfills. 100% of all proceeds from Sprint Project Connect are go to Sprint's 4NetSafety program, a partnership with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and the NEA Health Information Network designed to educate children, parents, and educators on Internet Safety.

iPhone is Top Seller at AT&T

2007-10-22T00:16:00.000-05:00

The iPhone, launched on June 29th, has been AT&T's best selling handset since that day. According to projections, Apple and AT&T have sold over 1.325 million handsets, representing 13% of AT&T's handset sales.

The early adopters of the iPhone have been categorized as young, affluent males. Still 25% of buyers were between the ages of 50 and 60. Sales are expected to increase, as Apple expects to gain a broader audience with its recent price drop.

The launch of the iPhone was expected to take business from its main competitors. Those most hurt by the iPhone have been Treo users along with Alltel and T-Mobile subscribers. Research in Motion (RIM), Sprint, and Verizon, although affected, have been able to limit their losses. RIM has been able to hold off the iPhone by offering media capable devices to its business customers. Sprint and Verizon have used their 3G networks and support for over-the-air (OTA) music downloads, two features the iPhone does not have, to keep subscribers.

Sprint Announces LG Rumor

2007-10-11T16:14:00.000-05:00

Sprint announced the LG Rumor will be available online later this month and in retail stores on November 4th. The LG Rumor will give Sprint a low to mid end device with a Qwerty keyboard, providing consumers with an affordable device developed for messaging. The Qwerty keyboard will make sending text and email messages easier. Every time the Qwerty keyboard slides out, the messaging menu on the phone automatically appears.

The LG Rumor measures 4.3 x 2.0 x 0.7 inches and weighs 4.13 ounces. It comes with a 1.3 megapixel camera, GPS, Bluetooth, MP3 player, and a MicroSD slot. It supports IM apps like AIM, MSN, and Yahoo Messenger and provides quick access to social networking sites like Xanga and Facebook.

Sprint will offer the device for $79.99 with a new service agreements and rebates. It will be available in two colors - black with blue interior and white with silver interior.

Sign up for notification alerts at www.sprint.com/rumor.

Sprint Announces New BlackBerry Pearl 8130

2007-10-10T09:13:00.000-05:00

Sprint is planning to launch its first multimedia BlackBerry handset with the new BlackBerry Pearl 8130, an upgraded version of the original BlackBerry Pearl announced in September of 2006. This will be the first Sprint BlackBerry device with an integrated camera.

The device is 4.2 x 2.0 x 0.6 inches and weighs 3.4 ounces. Some of the upgraded features include access to Sprint's high-speed Mobile Broadband network (EV-DO) for faster internet access, a 2.0 megapixels camera, stereo Bluetooth support, added GPS functionality, and access to Sprint's PowerVision services such as Sprint's Music Store, Sprint TV, OnDemand, and Sprint Navigation.

The phone will be available next month. You can sign up for alerts on device availability by going to www.sprint.com/pearl.

Stop Listening to Voicemail...READ IT Instead

2007-10-08T08:10:00.000-05:00

How many people out there are like me when it comes to checking voicemail? I cannot stand it! In today’s world, where we are used to instant communication, it just seems archaic to have to dial into your voicemail and listen to your messages. Don’t forget to have a pen and pad nearby just in case you have to write something down, which is kind of hard to do while driving!

Well, if you are like me, there is now a solution from Simulscribe. They’ve created a cool new service that actually takes your voicemail messages, transcribes them into text and sends it to you via email or text message. I’ve been using the service for the past month and I love it! I have not dialed into voicemail since setting it up.

It’s easy to sign up for, just visit here. Simulscribe will set aside a new voicemail box number for you. You must contact your carrier to forward all calls that you don’t answer to this new number. You then elect to receive your transcribed messages via text or email or you can do like I do, and elect to receive both. If you just like to hear someone’s voice every now and then, the service is still for you. When you elect to receive an email message, the message will come with the transcribed message along with a .wav file of the actual message.

This is a great convenience tool. You no longer have to waste time dialing into and listening to voicemail. You also don’t have to worry about writing down information like a person’s name, callback number, or directions. You’ll get it all in the transcribed message. Another feature is you have a paper trail just in case you get into one of those “Well, you said” matches.

Simulscribe is available from most carriers. SimulScribe’s basic service is $9.95 per month for 40 transcribed voicemail messages and $.25 per message thereafter. SimulScribe also offers a monthly $29.95 unlimited plan (for a limited time only).

It’s easy to sign up. Just go here. If you sign up through this site, you will receive a free 30 day trial.

Stop listening to voicemail; READ IT! Free Trial at www.SimulScribe.com

Sprint Announces the Palm Centro

2007-09-30T19:19:00.000-05:00

Sprint announced the newest product offering from Palm, the Centro. This is Palm's first device geared for the consumer versus the business user. Following in RIM's footsteps, Palm is looking to regain some of the market share it has lost over the past year by going after the consumer market. The Palm Centro will be available in mid-October at all Sprint Sales channels and Palm retail stores. It will also be available online at www.sprint.com and www.palm.com/centro. After promotions and rebates, the phone will sell for only $99.99.

The Centro is the smaller and thinner than the traditional Treo models. Its measures 2.1"x4.2"x0.7" and weighs only 4.2 ounces. It features a full QWERTY keyboard along with a five-way navigation button. Although smaller than the Treo, it still packs a 312 MHz processor, 128 MB of ROM and 64 MB RAM, EVDO, a 1.3 megapixels camera, Bluetooth, a full color touch screen, and a MicroSD slot for extra memory. The device will also feature Palm OS 5.4.9 and supports Phone as Modem, allowing users to connect to the Internet from their laptop or desktop computer by via the device. The Centro also supports Data Transfer Mode (DTM), notifying users of incoming calls even when they are in an active data session versus just sending the calls to voicemail.

The device will be available in Onyx Black and Ruby Red. It will be exclusive to Sprint for 90 days. You can sign up to receive alerts on the availability of this device at www.sprint.com/centro.

Preview the Palm Centro (w/ video) at PhoneScoop.com.

Sprint and Microsoft Offers Mobile Searches Based on GPS

2007-09-23T19:06:00.000-05:00

Sprint and Microsoft are combining to offer a first of its kind service. The first fully integrated GPS location-aware mobile search service is now available from Sprint at no additional cost to Sprint data subscribers.

Using the existing search function on Sprint GPS enabled phones, users can simply type in a keyword like "gas station" and a listing of nearby gas stations will be listed based on GPS coordinates. No address information is needed, not even a zip code. The service takes it a step further by offering driving directions by clicking on a link or calling the business directly from the search screen. Users also have the option to send directions to a friend who may need directions to the same destination, like a restaurant.

Voice search capabilities are also available allowing users to simply say the word "gas station" versus typing it in. This service requires users to download a client to their phones and is only available on certain phones.

MySpace on the T-Mobile Sidekick

2007-09-21T19:28:00.000-05:00

T-Mobile announced a new application that will give Sidekick users access to the famous social networking site, MySpace. The application called MySpace Mobile gives Sidekick users a customized interface giving it the look and feel of MySpace.com on a regular computer. Users will be able to edit their profiles, manage pictures, and stay up to date with new comments, friend requests, and blogs. T-Mobile has stated that the MySpace Mobile will be available to all Sidekick 3 and Sidekick ID users by the end of October. Users will be able to download and subscribe to MySpace Mobile by visiting the Download Catalog on the Sidekick.

Apple Cuts Price of iPhone and Announces iPod Touch

2007-09-05T17:41:00.000-05:00

For those who have been waiting for the price of the iPhone to drop, wait no longer. Apple just announced they will drop the price of the 8G iPhone by $200, bringing down its sticker price to $399. From the website now only selling the 8G version, it looks like the 4G version has reached End-of-Life.

Apple also announced the availability of the iPod Touch later this month. The iPod Touch will be the first touch screen iPod. It will resemble the iPhone with a 3.5 inch touch screen, but it will be thinner (only 8 mm). It will also have Wi-Fi to enable song downloads directly to the device and web browsing via the Safari browser. It will come in an 8G and 16G version priced at $299 and $399, respectively.

Alltel Now Selling BlackBerry 8830

2007-09-04T01:09:00.000-05:00

Alltel is now selling the BlackBerry 8830 World Edition. The phone will be available from Alltel for $249.99 with a two-year contract. It is already available from Sprint and Verizon. Sprint is selling the device for only $199.99 after rebates and service agreements, while Verizon is selling the device for $299.99 after discounts and contract.

Phonepotential.com first reviewed the device back in April. (Read Article)

AAA Provides Mobile Application to Drivers

2007-08-20T09:19:00.000-05:00

AAA is entering the Location-Based Services (LBS) arena with a new downloadable application. The appication provides turn-by-turn directions and allows users to automatically send their GPS coordinates to AAA over a wireless handset. The service makes sense to AAA as they stated that half the calls they receive each year are from mobile handsets.

The application is currently only available from Sprint for $10 per month. It is available for AAA members as well as non-members. In addition to the services listed above, users also gain access to AAA hotel ratings and info on AAA "points of interest" around the country.

For instructions on downloading the application, visit AAA Mobile.

Did You Know: Mobile Social Networking

2007-08-20T08:55:00.000-05:00

At least 12.3 million people in the United States and Western Europe use mobile social networking, according to the research firm M:Metrics, with Americans being the biggest users.

The firm says 7.5 million Americans, about 3.5% of mobile subscribers, used their cell phones to access a social networking site in June. Italians were second with 1.3 million users or 2.8% of the population. There were 1.1 million users in the U.K., about 2.5%, while Spain had 751,000 or 2.3%; Germany had 1.9%; and France, 1.7%.

MySpace and Facebook were the favorite sites for users in the United States and United Kingdom. MSN topped the sites in the other geographies.

Source: www.wirelessweek.com

Helio Has Thinnest Phone in the US

2007-08-16T11:52:00.000-05:00

Helio announced the availability of the "Fin" from Samsung, the thinnest clamshell style phone in the US at just 11mm thin. Don't let it's size fool you, this phone is packed with power. The Fin supports EV-DO high speed mobile broadband. It has a 3 MB camera that allows you to instantly upload pics and clips to YouTube and Flickr. In regards to memory, the phone comes with 100MB and can hold up to 4 GB via its MicrosSD slot. The Fin even has GPS packed into its small frame, providing support for Helio's Buddy Beacon service, Google Maps, and voice-guided navigation provided by Garmin.

The Fin measures 4.06"x2.06"x0.45" and weighs 3.35 ounces. The MSRP for the device is $365, but it is available on Helio's website for as low as $175 with discounts and rebates.

Save Time with Waitless.org

2007-08-13T08:38:00.000-05:00

You have to check out this new website from Sprint - www.waitless.org. Sprint's new marketing campaign, "Sprint Ahead", emphasizes "Sprint Speed". www.waitless.org focuses on how speed can save time in your daily lives by using shortcuts known as "Sprintcuts". For example, using a "Sprintcut" to peel an egg can add four days to your life. A Sprintcut on pouring ketchup can save you two days. And by starting your night calling at 7 PM (standard with Sprint service) instead of 9 PM, you can save 4 years of your life!

The website uses short "How To" video clips to demonstrate the Sprintcuts. Examples include how to speed tie your shoes, instantly soothe a crying baby, and chill a warm soda in two minutes. www.waitless.org allows users to submit videos with their time saving ideas and to hear about new Sprintcuts via a text message and/or email. You can view all video submissions at www.youtube.com/sprintcuts. You can also use a calculator provided on the website to estimate where your time goes by showing how much time you spend on your specific daily activities. For example, if you spend one hour a day "Reading Blogs", in your lifetime, you will spend 3 years and 4 months "Reading Blogs".

Motorola RAZR2 Gets Triple Launch in US

2007-08-12T20:16:00.000-05:00

The Motorola RAZR2 is coming to a store near you! Sprint, Verizon, and AT&T have announced the upcoming availability of the successor to Motorola's popular RAZR, the RAZR2. Sprint will be the first to make the phone available to the public. You can purchase the handset from Sprint's online store starting August 22nd. It will make it to Sprint retails stores on September 4th. Verizon and AT&T have not given specific dates, but have stated they plan to have the device available in September. Sprint has stated that their version with EVDO support will be available for $250 with service agreement and rebates at launch. Both Verizon and AT&T stated they will launch the device with a $300 price tag.

Motorola was able to make the device even slimmer, while packing in more power and features. Processing speed of the RAZR2 (225Mhz)is 10 times faster than the original RAZR. It has 2 GB of internal It sports a 2" external display, with features allowing you to view text messages and reply with pre-set text messages and listen to music with virtual music keys, all without opening the phone. Other features include stereo Bluetooth and a micro USB slot.

T-Mobile Announces Samsung Blast

2007-08-12T19:32:00.000-05:00

T-Mobile added a new slider phone from Samsung to its lineup. The Samsung T729, dubbed the Blast, is a replacement for the Samsung T719. The phone is meant for messaging with its SureType slider keyboard, a QWERTY keyboard where each key represent two letters. Messaging capabilities are enhanced with integrated support for Instant Messaging services from AOL, Yahoo, MSN, and ICQ. The phone also supports email from popular services like AOL, Yahoo Mail, and others. To help generate data traffic, T-Mobile is trying something new by charging for sent and received emails just as they do for text messaging. Other features include a 1.3 megapixels camera, stereo Bluetooth, a microSD slot, and myFaves support.

The phone is 4.2"x20"x0.5" and weighs just 2.8 ounces. It is available for $99 after discounts and rebates.

AT&T Finally Offers OTA Music Downloads

2007-08-02T22:38:00.002-05:00

AT&T is now able to offer OTA (Over the Air) music downloads to certain handsets. The service is provided via eMusic
, the world's largest retailer of independent music with over 2.7 million songs in its catalog. When a song is purchased using eMusic
, it is automatically downloaded to a users handset. eMusic
will also make a duplicate copy of the song in .mp3 format available online for download to a PC.

AT&T is charging customers $7.49 a month to be able to download 5 songs per month. Additional song downloads are available in packs of 5 for an additional $7.49. It ends up being $1.50 per song. Currently, the service is only available on four AT&T handsets - Samsung A717, Samsung A727, Samsung Sync, and the Nokia N75.

AT&T is late to the game here. OTA music downloads have been available for a while now from Sprint and Verizon. Both carriers charge only 99 cents per song and the service is available on several of their handsets.

With the limited phones available and high per track costs, it's easier to just go directly to eMusic
, where you can get downloads as low as 22 cents per track. eMusic
is currently running a trial for 25 free downloads. Click below to sign up.

Get a Free Ringtone from Sprint

2007-07-31T17:48:00.001-05:00

For all the customers who own a Sprint PowerVision or PowerSource phone, Sprint is giving away a free ringtone. Just go the the Sprint Digital Lounge website. The free offer is available for a limited time only: July 30th to August 6th, so hurry up as Monday is the last day. Just go to the website, choose the ringtone you want, and enter the special promotion code listed on the website.

The offering is not for use with Sprint Nextel handsets, Windows-based, or PDA phones. For users with Sprint Nextel handsets, look for a separate promotion coming out soon. Also, if you do not have a data plan, usage rates may apply for the download.

Back Up Your Contacts With AT&T

2007-07-30T23:46:00.000-05:00

AT&T now offers a solution for those who need to back up their contact information. The service consists of a a web accessible interface that allows users to add new contacts and edit existing contacts. The down-loadable application allows users to automatically backup the data on their handsets daily or weekly. AT&T is charging $2 per month for the service, which is comparable to the price of service already offered by other major carriers like Sprint, Alltel, and Verizon. This service will work great for keeping up to date contact information when upgrading phones or in cases where phones are lost.

A Verizon YouTube Exclusive

2007-07-26T02:29:00.000-05:00

Access to YouTube from your mobile phone is starting to become a standard feature. There are even plans for YouTube specific phones from LG and Samsung. And since YouTube launched their mobile website, m.youtube.com, you can pretty much get to Youtube from any phone on any carrier.

It's great to be able to view videos from your phone, but in the midst of all the YouTube craze, Verizon has become the first carrier to allow users to upload videos to the website directly from their phones via a text message. Verizon subscribers just need to update their YouTube accounts with their mobile numbers. After that, users can post their video clips by sending a message to YTUBE (98823). There is no charge for the service besides messaging fees.

Did You Know: Mobile Video

2007-07-24T05:28:00.000-05:00

Mobile television and video subscription revenues grew 198% year-over-year to $146 million in the first quarter of 2007, according to data from Telephia Inc. Approximately 8.4 million wireless customers now subscribe to some form of mobile video, representing nearly 4% of all U.S. mobile subscribers.

In addition, nearly half of the mobile video subscribers polled said they were willing to view ads on their cellphones in exchange for something of value, according to Telephia. At least 55% said they recalled viewing a mobile ad in the last 30 days, which is nearly three times the recall rate for mobile data consumers in general.

Meanwhile, revenues from mobile television and video services are quickly gaining on mobile music. Mobile music, which includes realtones, ringtones and full-track music, brought in $239 million for the quarter. At least 27 million subscribers downloaded some form of audio on their mobile devices, marking a growth of 8 million since the same quarter a year ago, Telephia reported.

Source: www.rcrnews.com

Locate Family and Friends on Your Sprint Phone

2007-07-21T17:17:00.000-05:00

Sprint will partner with loopt to provide a social mapping service that allows you to find friends, connect with friends, and tag places and events. The service is currently available through Boost Mobile, which is a Sprint MVNO. With this announcement, Sprint will be launching the service on its own handsets . The service will initially be available on 42 handsets.

Loopt allows you to see the location of friends and family on your mobile handset or from any web browser. Loopt allows you to set up alerts, so you can be notified when friends are in the same area. You will also be able to communicate with them through the application. For example, after being alerted that a friend is in close proximity to you, you can send them a text saying "I see you are in my area, let's meet for lunch".

As mentioned, the service is currently only available on Boost. It should be available soon from Sprint. You can still sign up early on the loopt website. The cost of the services is $3 per month.

Amp'd MVNO Closes Its Doors

2007-07-21T16:37:00.000-05:00

Amp'd Mobile is looking into selling off their assets after a failed attempt at acquiring additional investment funds to help get them out of bankruptcy, which they filed for on June 1st. Amp'd is not the first high profile MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) to shut down shop, as Mobile ESPN called it quits late last year, only to resurface as content on Verizon.

An MVNO operates just like a wireless carrier by selling their own phones and plans, however, they do not operate their own network. They pay the larger carriers like Sprint and Verizon to use their network. Normally MVNO's have a very targeted market. Amp'd Mobile is using Verizon's network and racking up a bill of $370,000 a day. This is on top of the $50 + million they haven't paid.

It's believed that Amp'd will have a cash balance of only $9,000 on July 23rd. They are working with the bankruptcy court to set up an auction for some or all of its assets.

Sprint to Give Away One Million Dollars

2007-07-20T11:27:00.001-05:00

In connection with Motorola and NASCAR, Sprint will be giving away $1 million to a lucky race fan. To enter the contest, fans choose the driver they think will win the 2007 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Championship. Entries can be made at retail stores, online at www.sprint.com/speed, by texting "million" to 7777 from any Sprint phone or at the NEXTEL Experience booths trackside. Entries will be accepted up to Sept. 3rd.

When the 12 Cup series drivers are chosen on Sept. 8th, 12 sweepstake finalists will be randomly drawn and paied with the drivers they selected. All finalists will win a trip to one of the Chase races. The finalists that choose one of the top-three drivers will be invited to the season finale at the Homestead-Miami Speedway on Nov. 18th, where the $1 million will be awarded.

Sprint Launches Katana Deluxe (DLX)

2007-07-16T09:32:00.000-05:00

Hot on the heels of the launch of the Katana II earlier this month, Sprint today announced the availability of the Sanyo Katana Deluxe (DLX). The DLX is the high end version of the Katana line. The major difference in the DLX version is the ability to operate on Sprint's High Speed Mobile Broadband network (EV-DO), a 1.3 megapixels camera, and a microSD slot that supports up to 4G cards. The Katana DLX keeps the thin clamshell form factor measuring 3.7"x1.9"x0.6" and weighing 3.5 ounces. The device comes in three new colors - Platinum Ice, Champagne, and Pink Satin.

Other features of the Katana DLX include power save mode, phone as modem, Bluetooth® wireless technology, wireless backup for easily restoring contact information if the phone is ever lost, stolen or damaged and a large QVGA main display. It is also GPS-enabled supporting Sprint Navigation, powered by TeleNav, with turn-by-turn driving directions and more than 10 million business listings. The Katana DLX is priced at $129.99 after service agreements and rebates.

See a previous review of the Katana II and Katana DLX

PayPal On Your Phone

2007-07-15T19:32:00.001-05:00

PayPal launched their latest service offering, Mobile Checkout. With PayPal Mobile Checkout, merchants of online storefronts can offer a payment method that works on the go. To use the service, merchants will need to setup a "Checkout with Paypal" link on their mobile websites. The buyer clicks on the "Checkout with Paypal" link and is securely transferred to PayPal, where payment and shipment information is collected. The user is then sent back to the merchants website to complete the transaction.

PayPal Mobile Checkout is currently available to consumers in the US, UK, and Canada. To see what is currently available for purchase, visit http://mobile.paypal.com from your mobile web browser and click on "Buy Something".

Did You Know: Consumers Not Dowloading Music

2007-07-15T18:58:00.000-05:00

According to a new report by Jupiter Research, “Only about 5 percent of US consumers transfer music from PCs to their phones (side-loading), and only 2 percent download songs over the air, according to Jupiter Research’s “Mobile Music: Target Impulse Purchases and Purchasers for Over-the-Air Downloads” report. It is estimated that 28 million US consumers will have music capable phones by the end of 2007.

With newer devices hitting the market with more and more memory capacity, i.e. the iPhone and Sprint's MUZIQ, music use on handsets is poised to continue to grow.

Source: www.moconews.net

AT&T Gets Another Music Phone - LG Trax

2007-07-11T12:16:00.000-05:00

AT&T is about to add another music phone to its lineup. But unlike the iPhone, the LG Trax supports high speed mobile broadband speeds by operating on AT&T's 3G HSDPA network. The clamshell device has external music controls and has an internal dedicated music key that will take you directly to the media player no matter what screen you are on.

The microSD slot supports up to 4 GB, giving it the same capacity as the iPhone. I also has a 1.3 megapixels camera. Since this is a 3G phone, it will also work with AT&T's Video Share service, which allows one-way live video streaming to other 3G phones. The phone is expected to be available sometime this summer.

BlackBerry Goes Wi-Fi

2007-07-10T19:34:00.000-05:00

It looks like a Wi-Fi BlackBerry may be entering the US market sometime later this year. Last week, RIM received FCC approval for the first BlackBerry device to include a Wi-Fi component. The handset was approved for GSM and EDGE frequencies, so it will most likely be available through AT&T or T-Mobile. RIM did not comment on when the phone would be available, but we're thinking it will be available sometime in the 4th quarter.

Did You Know:

2007-07-07T19:05:00.000-05:00

Women are more inclined to click on text-based mobile ads while men are more likely to be lured by video marketing messages, according to a study of U.K. users from Tickbox, a London-based market research firm.

The survey, which was commissioned by mobile media publisher MoMac, found that text ads are the most effective mobile advertising format, favored by 56% of wireless users. Sixty percent of women preferred text ads, according to the study, while only 47% of men opted for the links.

Picture or banner ads were the second-most popular format, favored by 29% of all users, while nearly one-quarter of males cited video advertising as the favorite method. Only 12% of females preferred video ads. Unsurprisingly, 16- to 24-year-olds preferred video by a nearly two-to-one ration over users older than 55.

Younger users also preferred to view ads in exchange for content, while more than half of users 45 and older opting to buy content a la carte. And 54% of females preferred the pay-per-download mode compared to 41% of men, who were more accepting of mobile ads.
Source: www.rcrnews.com

The Chocolate by LG - New and Improved

2007-07-05T12:41:00.001-05:00

The new Chocolate by LG is pretty much the same as its predecessor. It is a little thinner and lighter than the original. The phone is 3.85"x1.87"x0.67" and weighs only 3.24 oz. It still has a 1.3 megapixels camera and EV-DO support. Some of the new features include an upgraded external navigation wheel, a vibrating touch keypad, and microSD slot that supports up to a 4 GB card.

The new Chocolate will be available in three colors - Black, Black Cherry, and Blue Mint. It will be available from Verizon on July 9th. Pricing is not available at this time.

Verizon Introduces Plans Including Mobile Email

2007-07-05T09:58:00.000-05:00

Verizon just introduced several new plans that include data applications in addition to just voice minutes. The plans include unlimited messaging, the VCAST VPak, VZ Navigator, and Mobile E-mail. Unlimited messaging allows users to send text, picture, video, and IM messages to any domestic network. VZ Navigator is a location based service using GPS to give turn by turn directions as well as locate points of interest. Mobile E-mail provides access to up to 10 email accounts from services such as Yahoo, AOL, and Hotmail. VCAST VPak gives users access to entertainment options such as video clips, news, sports, games, and unlimited web access.

The new plans start at $79.99 for 450 minutes and go up to $239.99 for 6000 minutes. A compatible phone is necessary to take advantage of all the features offered.

Calling All iPhone Owners

2007-07-03T12:34:00.000-05:00

If you are one of the first 500,000+ owners of the new iPhone and you are reading this blog, please leave a comment giving feedback on the phones features, battery life, performance, ease of use, etc.

Did You Know

2007-07-02T15:51:00.000-05:00

Worldwide mobile content revenues are expected to surpass $44 billion in 2011, more than double the expected $20 billion in revenues generated this year, according to iSuppli Corp. The mobile market research firm said the growth largely will be driven by rising demand for mobile video.

Source: RCRNews.com

Two New Katana Phones from Sprint

2007-06-29T11:31:00.001-05:00

In July, Sprint will launch two new thin devices. The Katana II is the successor to the Katana launched last year. It is very similar to the original device - same camera and Bluetooth support. It will be a little thinner and available in 3 colors - black, pink, and steel. It has the same camera and still does not have EV-DO, but it will have GPS. Based on it's price of $50 with service agreements and rebates, this is meant as a mid-level device. (SRP is $249.99)

For the high end, Sprint and Sanyo are releasing the Katana DLX. It will be available in silver, pink, and champagne. It will be similar to the Katana II externally, but on the inside, it will contain an EVDO chip offering access to Sprin't high speed Mobile Broadband network and PowerVision services. It will also have a MicroSD slot and will ship with a 128 MB card included. Other features include stereo Bluetooth support and GPS. The SRP is $329.99, but the phone will be available for $129.99 with service agreement and promotions.

Look for the Katana II on July 1st and the Katana DLX on July 15th.

Verizon Ready for iPhone

2007-06-28T21:30:00.000-05:00

Verizon is looking to combat the launch of the iPhone by keeping it's retail stores open late on Friday, June 29th - the launch date of the iPhone. Verizon is also looking to lure music phone buyers by offering a free "Music Essentials Kit" to those who purchase the LG VX9400. The kit includes stereo headsets, a cable for transferring songs from a PC, and a 2 GB memory card capable of holding up to 1,000 songs.

T-Mobile's HotSpot @Home Goes Nationwide

2007-06-28T07:02:00.000-05:00

T-Mobile's new offering combines the home phone and the mobile phone into One. Their new service allows users to make unlimited domestic calls from Home or from any T-Mobile HotSpot using a Wi-Fi network. The cool thing about the service is it automatically transfers you from a Wi-Fi network to a cellular network. For example, if you are on a call at home using the Wi-Fi network and decide to leave, you are automatically transferred to the T-Mobile's cellular network without dropping the call. The transfer works both ways, so if you are on a cellular call on your way home, the call will automatically transfer to the Wi-Fi network once you reach home.

With HotSpot @Home, you are not charged for minutes while using a Wi-Fi network, but the service does have a flat monthly free. Currently, the service costs an additional $10 per month for a single line and $20 per month for a family plan. To go along with the service, T-Mobile announced two new phones that will be compatible - the Samsung t409 and Nokia 6086. Both phones are available for $49.99 with service agreement. T-Mobile is also reselling Wi-Fi routers from D-Link and Linksys to provide a total package.

Sprint's Announces Another iPhone Killer

2007-06-26T20:11:00.000-05:00

Sprint will add another device to it's music lineup on July 15th. The MUZIQ by LG will be the successor to the Fusic by LG. The MUZIQ by LG will be one of the first Sprint devices to support 4 GB microSD cards, giving it the same capacity as the iPhone 4 GB model. As is the trend with successor phones, the MUZIQ will be thinner than the Fusic and will not have the external antenna.

The phone will still support EV-DO, Sprint's high speed mobile broadband network, giving you access to Power Vision services, including over-the-air music downloads. It will also still have a 1.3 megapixels camera, FM transmitter, external music controls, and stereo Bluetooth. The MUZIQ measures 3.8"x1.94"x.61" and weighs 3.14 ounces.

The phone will be available for only $99 with service agreement and rebates, which is a lot less than the $499 price tag of the iPhone. You can register to become one of the first to purchase the MUZIQ by LG by going to www.sprint.com/music

Rate Plans for the iPhone Announced

2007-06-26T10:46:00.000-05:00

Apple and AT&T finally released the much anticipated information about rate plans available for the iPhone when it launches this Friday. All the plans will include the following features: unlimited data, Visual Voicemail, 200 text messages, roll-over minutes and unlimited mobile-to-mobile calling. Visual Voicemail is a cool application that allows users to view their voicemail messages in the same way they view email messages, allowing you to go directly to a message without having to listen to all of them.

The plans start at $59.99 for 450 minutes, and include options for 900 minutes ($79.99) and 1350 minutes ($99.99). All charges are monthly rates and do not include any discounts on the cost of the iPhone - $499 for the 4 GB model and $599 for the 8 GB model. There is also a one-time activation fee of $36.

The iPhone will be available this Friday at 6:00 PM (local time) at AT&T and Apple stores. At launch, the phone will not be available through distribution channels such as Best Buy and Radio Shack.

Did You Know: Consumer WiMax Survey

2007-06-25T17:01:00.001-05:00

According to a survey, consumers are looking forward to using WiMAX for responding to e-mail, reading and watching live online news, enjoying mobile TV and downloading music on the go. These are the four top uses customers see for WiMAX in a recent survey commissioned by Motorola. In the survey, WiMAX was defined as a new, long-range wireless broadband technology that provides secure, high-speed Internet access, which can be used in a fixed or stationary setting. Nearly half of those who responded to the survey said they would likely use WiMAX to read or respond to e-mail; 31% would read or view real-time online media; 28% would enjoy mobile entertainment, such as mobile TV; and another 28% said they would use WiMAX to download and listen to music. They survey also found that 57% of respondents think its important that wireless broadband services be available wherever they are. Other uses consumers listed in the survey for wireless broadband would be to e-mail videos and photos to friends in other cities, and watching sports replays at events they were attending live. The survey of 601 U.S. Internet-using households was conducted by Centris through a national telephone survey in May of this year.

Source: www.wirelessweek.com

Family Phone Pack from Sprint

2007-06-20T17:58:00.000-05:00

The Sanyo 3200 is now available from Sprint. This is an entry to mid level phone as it does not support access to Sprint's high speed Mobile Broadband Network (EVDO). However, it still has several other functions that make this perfect for a family pack. It comes in 3 different colors, offering personalization for different family members. The phones support GPS and are compatible with Sprint's Family Locater service allowing you to view the location of family members. There are also Parental Controls allowing parents to limit phone and web access. Other features include Bluetooth and VGA camera. The phone dimensions are 3.5"x1.8"x0.8" and weighs 3.4 ounces. The suggested retail price is $199.99, but it is available for $49.99 with service agreements and rebates.

Did You Know: Young Adults Text While Driving

2007-06-18T08:40:00.000-05:00

A large percentage of young drivers in the United States say they both talk and send text messages on their cell phone while driving. A Zogby International poll found two-thirds of drivers between the ages of 18 and 24 send text messages while driving and almost all said they talk on their phone while driving. Of the overall population, only 16% of cellphone users said they send text messages while driving and 77% said they talk while driving.

New PowerSource Phone From Sprint

2007-06-14T20:48:00.000-05:00

Sprint just launched its latest handset in the PowerSource lineup. PowerSource phones operate on the Sprint iDEN network for Push-To-Talk calls and the Sprint CDMA network for voice and data calls. Dubbed the "Motorola Deluxe", the ic902 is the first PowerSource phone to launch with EVDO Mobile Broadband support. The ic902 provides push-to-talk users access to high-tier applications such as Sprint TV and Sprint Music Store.

The phone comes with a 2 megapixels camera, bluetooth support, a microSD slot, MP3 player, speakerphone, and push-to-talk. The flip phone dimensions are 3.78"x1.97"x0.87" and it weighs 4.8 ounces. The SRP is $489.99, but the phone is available for as low as $299.99 with service agreement and rebates.

A New Way to Text Message

2007-06-13T09:07:00.000-05:00

Wouldn't it be great if text messaging worked just like email, where you have the option to reply to all recipients in a group text message? Well, 3jam.com has created a great Reply-All Text Messaging tool for this. With 3jam.com you can send a message to multiple people and they will all have the option to reply to all. This works great for making plans and keeping everyone in the loop. 3jam.com offers the option to send a group message from their website, directly from the phone, or from a Reply-All Text Messaging application you can download directly to your phone. Both the website and the application allow you to set up friend groups, such as "baseball team" so you don't have to search for every team member. The best thing about it is if you send a group text message to 10 recipients from your phone, you get charged for 10 text messages; but sending the same message using 3jam, you get charged for only 1 text message, since 3jam is doing the message replicating.

3jam.com even offers a widget you can place on a webpage or myspace allowing readers to send a text to you directly from your page. For example, send me a text.

Did You Know: Mobile Marketing

2007-06-12T09:36:00.001-05:00

Spending on mobile advertising could reach $14.4 billion by 2011, accounting for one-fifth of global spending on Internet advertising, according to a report from Strategy Analytics Inc.

PPC 6800 (HTC Mogul) Coming to Sprint June 18th

2007-06-11T09:19:00.000-05:00

The PPC 6800 (HTC Mogul) may be available from Sprint as early as June 18th via online sales. The retail launch is currently slated for July 16th. The phone will replace the currently available PPC 6700 (HTC Apache). The major differences are this device will be the first CDMA device to ship with Windows Mobile 6 and will be upgradeable to EVDO Rev A this fall. Other than that, it's 1/3 thinner, the camera increased from 1.3 mega pixels to 2 mega pixels, ROM doubled to 256 MB, battery life increased 20%, and the external antenna has been removed. The device comes with a 416 MHz processor and still supports Wi-Fi (both 802.11b and 802.11g). The suggested retail price is $549.99, but it will be available for $399.99 with service agreement and rebates.

Pros: Touch Screen, Windows Mobile 6, Wi-Fi, 2 MP camera, EVDO Rev A.
Cons: EVDO Rev A upgrade won't be available until the fall.

T-Mobile Announces HTC Wing Smartphone

2007-06-07T15:38:00.000-05:00

T-Mobile launched their latest smartphone, the HTC Wing. The phone, that is currently available exclusively through T-Mobile, has a Qwerty keyboard that slides out, a 2 megapixel camera and comes loaded with Windows Mobile 6. Thirty percent smaller than it's predecessor, the T-Mobile MDA, also comes with a large 2.8 inch touch screen, Bluetooth, and a MicroSD slot. For data traffic, users will have to rely on Edge speeds until T-Mobile gets a 3G network or use Wi-Fi. The device has a suggested retail price of $499.99, but is avialable for $299.99 with discounts and rebates.

Pros: Touch Screen with a stylus, 2 megapixel camera, large 2.8 in. display, Windows Mobile 6
Cons: Restricted to 2G (EDGE) for mobile data.

Did You Know: Where Phones are Lost

2007-06-06T13:29:00.000-05:00

SimplySwith found that most lost phones in the UK were lost in the toilet. According to the study, 855,000 phones are flushed down the toilet in the UK. For the other lost phones: 315,000 are lost in a taxi, 225,000 on the bus, 116,000 in the laundry, and 58,500 are lost to a dog.

Sprint to Launch the UpStage in Red

2007-06-04T09:47:00.000-05:00

The popular music phone from Samsung and Sprint is expected to be available in RED sometime around June 18th. The combination phone is a phone on one side and an MP3 player on the other. The current model (available in Black) is on sale for $99.99.

Even with two sides with separate displays, the UpStage is still only 0.3 inches thick. It has a 1.3 megapixels camera/camcorder, Bluetooth, and a MicroSD slot. One thing that separates this music phone from the much anticipated iPhone is the ability to download music directly to the phone over-the-air (OTA) from Sprint's music store. To put music on the iPhone, you will have to download it to your PC and then sync the phone to the computer.

Pros: OTA music downloads, thin, and EV-DO
Cons: The phone does not have much internal memory, but it does have a MicroSD slot to store music and comes with a 64 MB card.

iPhone Coming June 29th

2007-06-04T09:34:00.000-05:00

After months of speculation, the launch date for the much anticipated iPhone from Apple has finally been announced. June 29th is the date shown in new web and TV ads from Apple and AT&T.

Did You Know: Consumers Keep Phones Longer

2007-06-04T08:48:00.000-05:00

Longer contracts are pushing American consumers to keep their handsets longer, according to a new study by J.D. Power and Associates. The average length of ownership of a particular handset has increased for the first time in five years, to 17.5 months from the 16.6 months reported in November 2006. The market analysis firm said that subscribers tend to hold onto their handsets due to the now-standard two-year contract and to avoid onerous service-termination fees when switching service, which may lead to lower renewal rates.

Get Prince's New Song for FREE

2007-06-02T18:02:00.000-05:00

Prince is releasing "Guitar", his new single off of his upcoming album "Planet Earth". The single is available for download free via Verizon's Vcast Song ID offering. With the Song ID offering, Vcast subscribers can use certain Verizon phones to recognize a song by playing the song near a handset. Once Song ID recognizes the song, it will display the song for full track download along with other options such as downloading ringtones and ringback tones. You will also have the option to click to view similar music.

AT&T Now Selling BlackBerry Curve

2007-05-30T21:08:00.001-05:00

The BlackBerry Curve is now available from AT&T. The Curve has been given the distinction of being the lightest and slimmest full QWERTY BlackBerry device. It is RIM's second consumer oriented device, with the Pearl being the first, and comes with a 2 megapixels camera. It is available for $199 with contract and rebates.

Phonepotential.com first reviewed the device back in April. (Read Article)

Did You Know: Motorola a Japanese Firm??

2007-05-30T15:15:00.001-05:00

Young consumers tend to know little about the brands behind the products they use, including wireless brands, according to a study from market-research firm Anderson Analytics. Cellphones topped the list of products for which students misidentified the manufacturers' country of origin, said the company. More than half of college students surveyed by the company believed Nokia is a Japanese company, with only 4.4% correctly identifying the company as Finnish. Forty-two percent of students believed Motorola Inc. is Japanese. Motorola is based in Schaumburg, Ill.

Verizon Now Selling BlackBerry 8830

2007-05-29T01:04:00.000-05:00

The BlackBerry 8830 is now available from Verizon. This is the first global CDMA device from BlackBerry. It retails for $399, but is available for either $299 or $199 based on rebates and plans chosen. The device is expected to be available from Sprint sometime in June/July.

Phonepotential.com first reviewed the device back in April. (Read Article)

Motorola Announces RAZR Successor, the RAZR2

2007-05-19T16:41:00.000-05:00

Motorola is taking the RAZR brand to the next level with its announcement of the RAZR2, available in July 2007. Motorola was able to make the device even slimmer, while packing in more power and features. Processing speed of the RAZR2 is 10 times faster than the original RAZR. It has 2 GB of internal It sports a 2" external display, with features allowing you to view text messages and reply with pre-set text messages and listen to music with virtual music keys, all without opening the phone.

iPhone Gets Approval From FCC

2007-05-18T17:56:00.000-05:00

Apple has finally received FCC approval for the much anticipated and much hyped iPhone, stating they still plan to start selling the iPhone in late June.

For those who haven't heard about the new device, the iPhone is a combination of a smartphone and an iPod. It is expected to retail in two versions - 4G ($499) and 8G ($599).

Apple is still being secretive about the device. They've asked the FCC to keep diagrams and descriptionss of the phone confidential for 45 days, giving them plenty of time to launch the device without information being leaked.

Sprint Launches New Samsung Clamshell Phones - M300, M510

2007-05-17T12:16:00.000-05:00

The M300 (not pictured) is an entry level device. It measures 3.6" x 1.9" x 0.7" and weighs only 2.7 oz. It's best features are Bluetooth support and a VGA camera. Being an entry level phone, it works with Sprint's 1xRTT data network versus the higher speed EVDO network. The M300 is avaialable in two colors (red and silver) for $29.99 with a two-year service agreement.

The M510 (pictured in pink) is a mid-range phone. It measures 3.6" x 2.0" x 0.6" and weighs only 2.9 oz. The phone may be tiny, but it packs a lot of punch. It comes with stereo Bluetooth support, a 1.3 megapixels camera that takes pictures and videos, a web browser, a media player, GPS, and a microSD slot for extra storage. The phone also operates on Sprint's high speed Mobile Broadband (EVDO) network allowing over-the-air music downloads, Sprint TV, and PAM (Phone As a Modem). The M510 is a available in two colors (black and pink) for $129.99 with a two-year service agreement.

Get Episodes of "Lost" and "Grey's" on Your Sprint Phone

2007-05-16T09:03:00.000-05:00

Sprint and ABC just inked a deal where episodes of Grey's Anatomy, Lost, Desperate Housewives, and Ugly Betty will be available on certain Sprint handsets. Programming will also be available from ABC's other stations such as the Disney Channel's Hannah Montana and ABC News' Nightline.

Subscribers of a Sprint Power Vision TV Pack ($20) will be able to view the last four episodes of each series. The shows do not have to be downloaded and can be viewed on demand. This is seen as a benefit over the iPhone, where users will first have to download each show to their PC from iTunes and then sync their phone to their PC.

SoundID Innovative Bluetooth Headset

2007-05-15T18:51:00.000-05:00

SoundID may have topped all of the Bluetooth headsets on the market with their innovative new product, the SM100 EarModule. The headset is loaded with features.

The NoiseNavigation System™ feature automatically detects the noise around you and can adapt to cancel out and counter background noise such as a crowded restaurant and wind.

The PersonalSound feature allows the user to choose from three different configurations that increase clarity without raising volume.

The headset operates in three modes to allow you to talk to others (Phone Mode), hear out of both ears while you are not on the phone (Environmental Listening Mode), and communicate via Bluetooth with another SM100 EarModule (One2One Mode).

The Sound ID SM100 is available for a MSRP of $129.99. It is currently available at Airport Wireless locations and featured online at www.soundid.com.

Did You Know: Cellphones and Driving

2007-05-14T11:10:00.000-05:00

Cellphones and Driving: There has been driver distraction legislation—most involving cell phones—in all 50 states during the past five years. In 2006 alone, 43 states entertained distracted driver legislation. Many measures seek to outlaw driver use of hand-held phones, with other bills designed to keep cellphones out of the hands of teens and school bus drivers.

T-Mobile 1st Quarter Results

2007-05-11T13:00:00.000-05:00

T-Mobile reported their 1st quarter results. Overall, the numbers showed growth and were higher than analysts' estimates.

Net Additions = 980,000(down from 1.04 million a yr ago, but up from 901,000 in 4Q)
Total Churn = 2.6% (drop from 2.7% this quarter last year)
Post-Paid Churn = 1.9% (drop from 2.1% this quarter last year)
ARPU (Avg. Revenue Per User) = $52 (51% increase year over year)
Data ARPU = $7.50 (increase from $6.50 in 1Q06)

74% of the net additions were post-paid subscribers. Currently 84% of T-Mobile's customers are post-paid subscribers.

Sprint Launches Palm Treo 755p

2007-05-09T13:45:00.000-05:00

Sprint has announced that the Palm Treo 755p will be available this month. The price tag will be $279.99 with a new two year service agreement and a $100 mail-in rebate. The Treo 755p is the first CDMA Treo with an internal antenna, so it has a smaller form factor than the Treo 700. The phone will be available in two colors - midnight blue and burgundy.

Data Network: EV-DO Rev 0
Operating System: Palm OS 5.4.9
Memory: 128 MB
Processor: Intel XScale 312MHz Processor
Camera: 1.3 megapixels with 2x digital zoom
Expansion Slot: MiniSD

The 755p will offer the same functionality of the 700p. Some key differences are:
1. No external antenna sticking out
2. MiniSD slot on the 755p is different from the SD slot on the 700p. Another key difference here is the 755p's slot is on the side, which makes theft and accidental ejection of the card more difficult.
3. The 755p will launch with the Maintenance Release that is scheduled to be available for the 700p sometime around May 28th. The Maintenance Release is suppose to fix issues with speed to launch applications, Bluetooth, SMS send/receive performance, and MP3 playback.
4. The 755p will come in different colors

Pros of the new device are the no antenna and the miniSD slot.
Cons of the new device are no EV-DO Rev A support and the camera is still only 1.3 megapixels.

Did You Know: Google.com Most Popular Mobile Site

2007-05-07T08:41:00.000-05:00

Google.com topped the list of the most popular mobile Web sites in the both United States and the United Kingdom for the second month in a row, according to M:Metrics. Search, news and social networking sites dominated the list during March. In the U.S., Yahoo.com, MSN.com, Microsoft.com and Live.com rounded out the top five domains, while in the U.K. BBC.co.uk, Orange.co.uk, Three.co.uk and O2.co.uk garnered the most hits.

The Next Consumer BlackBerry - The Curve

2007-05-06T22:16:00.000-05:00

Research In Motion is planning to release it's newest consumer device, named "The Curve", later this quarter. The phone will be exclusive to AT&T (Cingular). It will have most of the features seen in the Pearl, but will have a full QWERTY keyboard.

Some of the features of the new device are
- speaker independent voice recognition for dialing
- a media player and manager
- HTML browser with RSS
- trackball navigation
- 2 mega-pixel camera
- stereo Bluetooth support
- MicroSD slot that supports 4 GB cards
- 3.5 mm jack for standard stereo headsets

See the device at www.blackberrycurve.com

Sprint 1st Quarter Results

2007-05-06T21:55:00.000-05:00

Sprint reported a net income loss of $211 million for the first quarter. The company saw positive subscriber growth, but still reported a loss for post-paid subscribers.

Net Additions = 600,000 (had a loss of 220,000 post-paid subscribers)
Total Churn = 2.3% (unchanged from 4th quarter, but up from 2.1% reported in 1Q06)
Post-Paid ARPU (Avg. Revenue Per User) = $59 (5% decrease year over year)
Data ARPU = $9.25(industry high - 44% increase year over year)
Wireless Revenues = $10.1 billion

Sprint ended the quarter with 53.6 million total subscribers.

Verizon 1st Quarter Results

2007-05-01T11:26:00.000-05:00

Verizon reported their 1st quarter results, again outpacing the competition in subscriber additions and keeping an industry low churn.

Net Additions = 1.7 million (1.6 million of which are direct customers)
Total Churn = 1.08% (drop from 1.2% this quarter last year)
ARPU (Avg. Revenue Per User) = $50.73 (4.2% increase year over year)
Data ARPU = $8.95 (54% increase year over year)
Wireless Revenues = $10.3 billion (increase of 17%)

Verizon ended the quarter with 60.7 million subscribers, just shy of Cingular's 62.2 million subscribers.

ATT (Cingular) 1st Quarter Results

2007-05-01T11:15:00.000-05:00

ATT reported their 1st quarter results for their wireless division Cingular. Overall, the numbers were good, but ATT did not meet analysts' estimates.

Net Additions = 1.2 million (short of analysts' estimates of 1.3 million)
Total Churn = 1.7% (drop from 1.9% this quarter last year)
Post-Paid Churn = 1.3% (drop from 1.6% this quarter last year)
ARPU (Avg. Revenue Per User) = $49.21 (1.5% increase year over year)
Data ARPU = $7.88 (51% increase year over year)
Wireless Revenues = $10 billion (increase of 11%)

Wireless revenue represented one-third of ATT's total revenue for the first quarter.

BlackBerry 8830

2007-04-30T22:47:00.000-05:00

The BlackBerry 8830 is the CDMA version of the 8800 which is currently available from GSM carriers Cingular and T-Mobile. Verizon and Sprint will both carry the 8830 starting this summer. Verizon will have it in May and Sprint is planning to have it available in June or July.

The device is a quad band device so it will be able to work overseas, making it BlackBerry's first CDMA device that will work internationally. It will also have a media player, a MicroSD slot, Bluetooth, full QWERTY keyboard, and built-in GPS.

Although Sprint will be the last carrier to launch the device, it will be worth the wait to hold off getting it from the other carriers. The reason is the phone will be unlocked from Sprint, while it is locked with other carriers. When traveling internationally with a Cingular 8800 or a Verizon 8830, you will be required to use the carrier's SIM card, meaning you will incur international roaming rates. Sprint gives you the option to use the SIM card of a local in country carrier, meaning you will be charged local per minute rates versus international roaming rates. This represents substantial cost savings for the international traveler. One caveat is that if you wish to keep the same number internationally, you will need to use the Sprint SIM card, incurring Sprint international roaming rates.

One cool feature about the MicroSD slot is it is located inside the battery cover. This makes it impossible to accidentally pop out and difficult to be stolen. The bad to this, is it won't be easily accessible, but security is key here.

Still missing from the 8830 is a camera/video recorder. Again, security is the reason for this.

Mobile Phone Searches

2007-04-30T16:29:00.000-05:00

A new study commissioned by digital marketing agency, iCrossing, found that only 30% of mobile users access the Internet on their devices. Of that portion, 75% conduct searches using their mobile phones, and over half of those who do, prefer the mobile sites of the major search engines such as Google and Yahoo to the built-in search tools offered by the carriers. Most searchers look for maps or directions, weather reports or local information. And nearly 75% of those who use their mobile devices as search tools are not willing to browse beyond the second page of the search results.

Did You Know: Mobile TV Subscribers Increase

2007-04-16T09:26:00.001-05:00

The number of mobile TV subscribers worldwide will increase steadily over the next few years, reaching 125 million in 2011, according to new figures from In-Stat.

Virgin Mobile Unveils New High-End Plan

2007-02-08T19:26:00.000-05:00

Virgin Mobile has unveiled a new calling plan option. For $99.99, users will get 1,000 minutes per month. This is considered a high-end option for Virgin Mobile, which is an MVNO (mobile virtual network operator) on Sprint. Virgin Mobile targets the youth market with pre-paid and pay-as-you go plans without any contracts. Virgin Mobile’s previous highest plan was $69.99 for 600 minutes. The two plans above include unlimited nights and weekend. Since Sprint is providing the services for Virgin Mobile, night and weekend minutes start at 7 PM for both plans.

Sprint, Cingular, and Verizon all have $100 per month plans for 2,000 minutes. The difference with Virgin Mobile is a contract is not required. Virgin Mobile still has the lowest per-text messaging plan at $0.05 per message, with costs going down to $0.01 per text message when purchasing 1,000 messages. Sprint, Cingular, and Verizon just raised their per-text messaging plans to $0.15; however, Sprint and T-Mobile are the only carriers to have an unlimited text messaging plan. Sprint’s unlimited text messaging plan is $10 for individual plans and $20 for family plans, where T-Mobile’s prices are $15 for individual plans and $20 for family plans.

Mobile ESPN Lives On Through Verizon

2007-02-08T18:55:00.000-05:00

The defunct MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) known as Mobile ESPN has found a new life with Verizon Wireless. As an MVNO, Mobile ESPN called it quits in less than a year after gaining only 30,000 subscribers in a 9 month timeframe. Mobile ESPN will no longer operate as an MVNO. Instead it will act as a content provider. Mobile ESPN content will be available to subscribers of Verizon’s Vcast service (currently $15 per month). By downloading the Mobile ESPN application, users will have access to exclusive ESPN content including fantasy team management, video clips, and video of ESPN produced shows like Sportscenter, Cold Pizza, and Pardon the Interruption. When Verizon launches live TV service, Mobile ESPN is expected to be a channel.

The agreement between ESPN and Verizon is a multi-year exclusive agreement. This is noted since the Mobile ESPN MVNO service was provided using Sprint’s network. Sprint even went as far as offering the Mobile ESPN phone through its retail channels before ESPN called it quits. Although terms of the agreement were not disclosed, based on ESPN’s ruthless dealings with the cable companies, I assume this came down to a price issue, where Verizon agreed to fork over more cash than Sprint.

25 to 34 Yr. Olds Most Likely to Subscribe to Mobile Internet

2007-01-28T21:38:00.000-05:00

comScore Inc. completed a study to determine the demographic that is most likely to access the Internet from their mobile phones. They grouped respondents into three groups. The "cellular generation" represented 18 to 24 year olds. The "transitioners" represented 25 to 34 year olds, and the "adult adopters represented those 35 years old and older.

The results showed that "transitioners", those between the ages of 24 and 35, are most likely to use their wireless phone to access the internet.

"The cellular generation is more apt to view their cellphone as an expression of their individuality and a mobile entertainment device that conveys their social status. But transitioners are close behind in their desire to purchase trendy phones. The cellular generation places the greatest value on features such as text messaging and instant messaging, while their more senior counterparts were found to take a more functional view. And that’s where transitioners outdid the cellular generation, with 29 percent subscribing to Internet services on their cellphones compared to 23 percent among younger users."

Source: www.rcrnews.com

Cingular 4th Quarter Results

2007-01-26T12:55:00.000-05:00

Cingular posted record numbers in the last quarter that it will be known by that name. In 2007, Cingular will be re-branded as AT&T.

Wall Street measures wireless carrier by the normal financial data - revenues and net income, but the other measurements that are specific to the industry are ARPU, churn, and net subscriber additions. ARPU stands for average revenue per user and measures the average expenditure of a subscriber per month. Data ARPU is becoming another measurement that wireless carriers are tracking and represents the average expenditure that a subscriber spends on data services per month. Churn represents the number of subscribers that have left a carrier, so a very low churn number is desired. Net subscriber additions measures the number of gross subscriber additions minus the number of subscribers that left, therefore, a low churn number has a positive effect on net subscriber additions. The results for Cingular in the 4th quarter of 2006 are:

Revenue: $9.8 billion - increase of 10.2% over last quarter
Net Income: $782 million - up from $204 million last quarter, a 283% increase!
ARPU: $49.29 - an increase of 1%
Data ARPU: $7.19 - an increase of 53%
Churn: 1.8% - down from 2.1% last year. Postpaid churn is 1.5%
Net Customer Additions: 2.4 million, a Cingular record and an increase over 1.8 million during the same quarter last year. Cingular ended the year with 61 million total subscribers, the most of any wireless carrier.

Agreements that will aid Cingular (now at&t) in 2007 are exclusive agreements with MySpace and Apple, the combination of at&t allowing bundling opportunities, and increased investment in their high-speed wireless network, which currently lags way behind the competition.

Businesses Spend on Wireless

2007-01-19T01:33:00.000-05:00

Businesses were open to spending a portion of their 2006 telecommunications budgets on wireless, according to a new Insight Research study that found nearly one-third of business' telecom spending budgets were earmarked for wireless services.

Last year, corporate wireline telecommunications expenditures still accounted for nearly 70% of revenue. Looking ahead, however, not much growth is expected in the wireline segment. Wireless service revenues are expected to increase at a compounded rate of 8% annually from 2006 to 2011.

As a whole, U.S. businesses spent more than $132 billion on telecommunications services last year. Insight predicts that number will increase to nearly $154 billion by 2011.

"The price wars we've seen over the past six years are over, but revenue growth in wireline services is not forecasted to bounce back," said Robert Rosenberg, president of Insight, in a prepared statement. "Wireline revenue growth will be constrained by the growth of wireless spending, though that increase is going to be uneven across the various business sectors," he added.

For its research, Insight studied 14 vertical industries categorized by the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) system, according to the research firm.

Source: www.wirelessweek.com

Cisco Sues Apple over use of iPhone Trademark

2007-01-15T22:43:00.000-05:00

Due to all of the buzz over the years, it makes sense that the launch of the Apple iPhone would not happen without some form of controversy. Cisco, who owns the iPhone trademark and already sells Voice over IP products using the iPhone name, sued Apple for trademark infringement just one day after Apple announced the iPhone. Cisco acquired the iPhone trademark when it bought Infogear in 2000. Infogear originally filed for the iPhone trademark in 1996.

Apple has been in negotiations with Cisco for several years, first approaching them in 2001 regarding use of the iPhone trademark. Negotiations broke down the night before the announcement from Apple.

"We think Cisco's trademark lawsuit is silly," Apple spokesman Alan Hely said. "There are already several companies using the name iPhone for Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) products. We are the first company to ever use the iPhone name for a cell phone, and if Cisco wants to challenge us on it we are very confident we will prevail."

Music Enable Phones Get Much Attention in 2006

2007-01-15T22:42:00.000-05:00

The music and entertainment business will be glad to hear that 23.5 million mobile- phone subscribers—one in 10 customers—in the United States now have handsets with integrated music players, up five times from the same period in 2005, according to recently published research from Telephia.

Nearly 20 percent of the new cellphones purchased in the third quarter of 2006 were music capable, and while many of those subscribers report loading music onto their handsets via computer, only 8.5 percent reported they had downloaded music over the air from a wireless carrier music store, according to the study.

Mobile phones with integrated music players have been in the U.S. market for more than two years and over-the-air music purchasing is still not available on all major carriers. Sprint and Verizon Wireless do offer such services. Of the more than $3.5 billion spent on carrier advertising in 2006, $234.3 million was spent to promote music phones and music download services, according to the report.

Sprint Keeps Track of Kids by Monitoring School Buses

2007-01-15T21:33:00.000-05:00

Global Positioning System service offered by Sprint will allow school districts to track the locations of their school bus fleets. The service will also show administrators which pupils are aboard the buses and the stops where they get off.

The iX-3 system, designed by Sprint partner Everyday Wireless, uses the carrier’s iDEN network and GPS signals to track a bus’ location. It can also track rider attendance, and can send automatic alerts if a student gets off at the wrong stop. Finally, the service can also generate automated rider reports for school districts that are required to file such reports in order to receive state and federal funding.

The technology “does not delay the boarding and disembarking process,” according to the companies. Other features include integration with Sprint Nextel’s iDEN push-to-talk service, direct dispatch, two-way text messaging and live audio monitoring and recording.

According to Bill Bair, director of transportation for the Colorado Springs School District, the Everyday Wireless system “has significantly reduced the number of complaints that we received from schools and parents.” He said the technology has “eliminated the need to make return phone calls to parents since now we have the ability to address their issues immediately be looking at up-to-date data.”

Source: www.rcrnew.com

Sprint Launches New Pricing Plans

2007-01-15T21:08:00.000-05:00

As of January 14th, Sprint will be offering new "Power Pack" individual and family plans. This is a change from the previous "Fair and Flexible" plans. The new plans emphasize Sprint's early nights-and-weekend starting time, no roaming charges, and unlimited mobile to mobile. Customers will also have the opportunity to buy blocks of 50 anytime minutes for $5.

The plans are great when looking at other carriers. For example, Sprint's unlimited nights-and-weekends starts at 7:00 PM, where the competition starts at 9:00 PM. If you add this up, that's 120 free minutes a day or 3600 free minutes over a month. With Verizon or Cingular, those 3600 minutes would be charged at $.45/minute or $540, but with Sprint they are free!! The other benefit is the option to purchase blocks of 50 anytime minutes for $5, or $.10/minute. Without purchasing the block, the minutes would be charged $.45 or $22.5.

Visit www.Sprint.com for more information.

Boost Mobile to Offer Unlimited Calling Plans

2007-01-15T20:47:00.000-05:00

Sprint is planning to launch an unlimited local calling plan through the Boost Mobile MVNO. Boost Mobile provides pre-paid service and targets the urban youth market. The unlimited local calling plan will compete with current offerings provided by MetroPCS and Leap Wireless. The pre-paid and sub-prime wireless market is experiencing significant growth.

Boost Mobile, historically, has used Sprint's iDEN network to offer service. This will change with the new local calling service, as the offering will use Sprint's CDMA network. The service will not be launched nationwide. Sprint will look to launch the service in areas where there is extra CDMA network capacity. Sprint will also look to launch the service in markets where MetroPCS and Leap Wireless do not currently operate.

There are still issues that Sprint will need to address internally, such as segmentation and cross structure, so that the new unlimited calling service does not cannibalize other Sprint product offerings. However, the company feels that the service is needed to address a gap in product offerings. Also, a lower-cost service with lower credit requirements will allow Sprint to offer an alternative to potential customers or those who may churn to other wireless carriers.

Source: www.rcrnews.com

Verizon Adds Additional EV-DO Markets

2007-01-13T09:12:00.002-05:00

Verizon has expanded it EVDO coverage to include portions of Alabama and Louisiana.
The latest service launch in Alabama covers the Greater Tuscaloosa area as well as the University of Alabama. Tuscaloosa follows other recent launches in the state. The EV-DO network also is up and running in Birmingham, Huntsville, Mobile and Montgomery, Ala.

In Louisiana, the carrier expanded its EV-DO coverage to include Hammond. Verizon Wireless launched wireless broadband coverage in New Orleans in early 2004 and expanded the wireless broadband coverage area to include most of the North Shore in June of 2005.

The service launches give subscribers access to Verizon Wireless' BroadbandAccess and V CAST services. With regard to the Hammond launch, Verizon says the upgrade will strengthen the carrier during emergencies. Earlier this week, Verizon Wireless extended the reach of its high-speed wireless network into more parts of Ohio. The latest rollout covered Allen, Auglaize and Hardin counties and Sandusky. The carrier calculates that its EV-DO network now covers about 200 million people in the United States.

Source: www.wirelessweek.com

Sprint Provide Exclusive "24" Content

2007-01-13T08:55:00.000-05:00

Great news for the fans of the hit TV show "24". Sprint will begin providing exclusive "24" content to its mobile subscribers starting in February. Sprint originally teamed with the TV show during it first season. This season, the exclusive content will give subscribers access to sneak previews, show-related quizzes and games, ringers and images, and the "24" logo. Sprint will also provide a Survival Guide manual that is updated bi-weekly with tips to overcome the direst circumstances that may arise during a "covert op." Subscribers also have the opportunity to win a trip to Spy Camp. The show also provides product placement for Sprint's wireless products.

Source: www.wirelessweek.com

AT&T to Start Re-Branding Cingular

2007-01-12T22:28:00.000-05:00

AT&T will begin a campaign to rebrand Cingular starting Monday, January 15. Cingular will eventually be known as AT&T, not AT&T Wireless. The service will be referred to as "Wireless from AT&T". Executives want to use the same brand for all of the telecom services provided by the merged company. AT&T now provides local and long distance, wireless, internet and TV. AT&T will launch national advertising to let customers know that "Cingular is now the new AT&T." That feature products will end with the Cingular "Jack" spinning or swirling to morph into the AT&T globe. Other commercials are being created simply communicate the brand change. They will feature scenes where it looks like the Cingular "bars" are being illustrated and zoom out to show that it was actually the AT&T globe. As Cingular begins to officially change their name, subscribers will be notified about changes on their bills. AT&T will also begin taking advantage of Cingular's retail presence and advertising AT&T wireline service in stores that are located in AT&T service areas.

About 2,000 company-owned retail stores and kiosks will be re-branded over the coming year, and employees will begin wearing AT&T-branded apparel in the coming months. Even sooner, Cingular customers will start hearing the AT&T name on Cingular voice greetings and begin seeing related messages in their bills. AT&T estimated that about 20 percent of the operating expense savings from its acquisition of BellSouth will come from moving the three operations to a single brand.

Source: www.phonescoop.com

Verizon Increases Cost of Text Messages

2007-01-12T22:15:00.000-05:00

Verizon has increased the cost to send and receive text messages. The new rate is $.15 per inbound/outbound message, five cents increase from the old rate of $.10. The price increase becomes effective on March 1st and will not apply to those customers who subscribe to a text messaging plan. As Sprint did, Verizon will allow subscribers who are not on a text messaging plan to opt out of their contracts without having to pay an early termination fee.

Verizon joins both Sprint and Cingular, who increased their text messaging prices at the end of last year. T-Mobile is the last of the Big 4 carriers to still charge $.10 per message.

The iPhone is Finally Unveiled

2007-01-11T12:59:00.001-05:00

After years of buzz, Apple has finally announced the iPhone, a combination of a mobile phone, a widescreen iPod with touch controls, and an Internet communication device with email, web browsing, searching and maps. The phone operates similar to an iPod and a Smartphone. One cool feature is the iPhone's Visual Voicemail, co-developed by Apple and Cingular. This feature allows users to look at a listing of their voicemails, decide which messages to listen to, then go directly to those messages without having to listening to the prior messages. The iPhone has a full QWERTY soft keyboard. The touch keyboard will appear when users need to type and uses predictive text. The phone also includes a 2.0-megapixel camera.

iPhone also features Cover Flow, Apple's way to browse the music library by album cover artwork on an iPod. When navigating the music library, consumers are automatically switched into Cover Flow by rotating iPhone into its landscape position. iPhone's stunning 3.5-inch widescreen plays the same videos purchased from the online iTunes Store that users enjoy watching on their computers and iPods. iPhone is a quad-band GSM phone which also features EDGE and Wi-Fi wireless technologies for data networking. iPhone includes support for quad-band GSM, EDGE, 802.11b/g Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.0 EDR wireless technologies.

iPhone will be available in the US in June 2007, Europe in late 2007, and Asia in 2008, in a 4GB model for $499 (US) and an 8GB model for $599 (US), and will work with either a PC or Mac. iPhone will be sold in the US through Apple's retail and online stores, and through Cingular's retail and online stores.

Source: www.mobiledia.com

Sprint's Announces WiMax Plans

2007-01-08T15:14:00.000-05:00

Chicago and Washington, D.C. will be the first WiMax markets deployed by Sprint. The WiMax network will cover at least 100 milion people by the end of 2008. The initial WiMAX markets are supposed to be online by the end of this year with additional markets selected based on market-readiness estimates. Sprint is in the midst of building out its EV-DO Rev A network, which currently covers more than 60 million pops. Sprint is the first and only carrier who has commercially announced Rev A service.

Nokia Corp. will provide the network equipment for the WiMAX network, and Motorola Inc. will be developing chip sets for devices. According to Sprint Nextel, Samsung Corp. will develop chip sets and has also committed to producing half a dozen WiMAX-capable devices, including “ultra mobile” PCs and personal media players. LG Electronics Co. Ltd. intends to develop “an infotainment device that would work on the Sprint Nextel WiMAX network.” Intel Corp. has already completed the design of a single-chip, multi-band WiMAX/Wi-Fi chipset that the company says it will “sample in card and module forms in late 2007.” The WiMAX network technology and future applications are being demonstrated this week at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Verizon Inks Deal with NHL

2007-01-08T02:49:00.000-05:00

Verizon Wireless announced a multi-year deal to become the “official wireless service provider” of the National Hockey League and the National Hockey League Players’ Association in the United States. As part of the deal, Verizon Wireless will have exclusive marketing and promotional rights to NHL events, including the All-Star Game, Stanley Cup Playoffs, Awards Show and Entry Draft.

Through the new partnership, Verizon Wireless will have a significant presence on NBC, enabling new online and in-store advertising and marketing promotions. For its part, the NHL will receive prime positioning on the Verizon Wireless main deck. The carrier will also provide its customers with NHL game video highlights and NHL wallpapers, images and ringtones.

“Verizon Wireless customers can now show their love of hockey, their team and favorite players with their phones, giving the NHL and NHLPA another way to extend their relationship with fans beyond the ice,” said John Harrobin, vice president of digital media and advertising for Verizon Wireless.

Verizon Announces Vcast TV

2007-01-08T02:48:00.000-05:00

As expected, Verizon Wireless has officially announced its mobile TV service. V Cast TV uses Qualcomm's MediaFLO technology to provide broadcast TV to US consumers for the first time. The service will launch later in the first quarter, but Verizon has already revealed some specifics.
Content partners include MTV, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, NBC News, NBC Entertainment, CBS and Fox. ESPN is currently under negotiation and showed up on the demo handsets but wasn't in the official anouncement.

Programs are carried "live" but Verizon Wireless is putting an emphasis on the "best of TV" so while the prime time line ups might sync up there might be a replay of CSI on in the morning instead of a game show. The content is long form so it's the entire show, news cast or sports game. There will be commercials in the content just like there is on conventional TV and in many cases you will see the same ads (for national runs) but Verizon is also looking at selling their own more like a cable provider. Qualcomm had previously talked about time shifting content with MediaFLO but this won't be part of the V Cast TV launch.

There will be two handsets available at launch: the Samsung u620 and the LG VX9400. Both phones feature a dedicated TV button and the ability to view video in landscape. More V Cast TV handsets are expected to be announced later in the year. While pricing has not yet been announced there will be an extra fee in addition to the regular V Cast fee. CEO Denny Strigl hinted that the price, "Will be affordable" but offered no more details. One spokesman joked that the handsets will be priced to sell and not to admire.

Cingular Launches Treo 750

2007-01-08T02:47:00.000-05:00

Cingular Wireless has officially announced the Palm Treo 750. The long awaited device is the first Treo from Cingular to have either 3G or Windows Mobile. The 750 has been shipping in Europe for quite some time but faced delays getting certified in the US. While the Treo 750 is a 3G device (in both the US and Europe) it does not yet use HSDPA, the most advanced standard. Palm noted to MobileTracker that a software update will make the Treo 750 compatible with HSDPA and that the company hopes to be able to push that update to Cingular customers at a future date.

Features of the Treo 750 include:
- Quad-band GSM/EDGE plus UMTS 850/1900/2100
- Windows Mobile 5 Pocket PC phone edition
- 240×240 pixel touch screen
- 1.3 megapixel camera
- 60MB of user-available storage plus a miniSD card slot
- Bluetooth with A2DP support

Cingular will begin selling the Palm Treo 750 tomorrow. It will retail for $399.99 after a 2-year service contract. Cingular also carries the Treo 680 which is a paired down version that is being marketed more towards consumers.

Cingular Plans Live Video Sharing

2007-01-08T02:46:00.002-05:00

Cingular plans to make video service commercially available in 2007, allowing users to send a live video stream to a recipient during a standard voice call. Beginning with a normal phone call, customers can hit one button to add a live video stream, allowing the called party to see what the caller is seeing while they're talking. The service also allows customers to switch the direction of the video stream during the same phone call.

For example, a couple in San Antonio would place a regular voice call to their parents in Miami, and once the call is connected, hit the camera button on the phone to start the video session. The parents receive an invitation asking if they want to view the live video stream, and once accepted, they begin seeing the video shot by the kids in San Antonio. The speakerphone turns on and the proud new grandparents in Miami can see a live video of their granddaughter taking her first steps or saying her first words.

Cingular is showcasing its 3G UMTS / HSDPA (Universal Mobile Telephone System / High-Speed Downlink Packet Access) network and recently deployed IMS (Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystem) platform to provide the video service. Other companies participating in the demo are Alcatel / Lucent (Las Vegas 3G network and IMS platform) and LG Electronics (LG CU500v phone).

AT&T…The New Cingular

2007-01-08T02:46:00.001-05:00

Wireless is expected to be the heart of the newly merged AT&T Inc. and BellSouth Corp., bundling multiple services with cellular and allowing advertisers to reach multiple media platforms through one company. And that wireless heart will be the nation’s largest carrier, Cingular Wireless L.L.C., under the AT&T brand.

The new AT&T eventually will mean the demise of the successful Cingular brand. The re-branding of Cingular will begin shortly, according to AT&T, and will take place over a period of months. AT&T offered few details about the transition, but indicated that it will do a co-branded campaign that is scheduled to start early this year and use the phrase “Cingular is now AT&T.” The company noted that it has already begun extensive new advertising that will transition the BellSouth brand name to AT&T.

Sprint Looking for New Advertising

2007-01-08T02:45:00.002-05:00

Citing a need for "fresh thinking," Sprint, which spends $1.6 billion in marketing, has placed the creative portion of its advertising account into review. Sprint said it is seeking an ad agency that can provide it with a 'differentiated message.' Company spokeswoman Mary Nell Westbrook said Sprint informed its long-term agencies, TBWA/Chiat/Day, New York, which handles consumer advertising, and Publicis & Hal Riney, San Francisco, its agency for business-to-business advertising, that it is "open to any options to bring us back to a competitive position" in the wireless marketplace.

After Sprint acquired Nextel in the summer of 2005, the merged company kept both incumbent shops and divided duties between them. A spokeswoman for Publicis & Hal Riney said the agency was assessing whether it would participate in the review. The agency developed the black trenchcoat-wearing "Sprint guy" (played by actor Brian Baker) who espoused the virtues of the wireless service in more than 150 ads from 1999 to 2005. He was dropped after TBWA won the consumer account following a pitch. In the fall, TBWA developed ads featuring actor Ron Livingston discussing the Sprint network in a straightfoward, plain-talking manner as part of a "Power Up" branding strategy.

Westbrook said the wireless service provider is looking for a "differentiated message" as "one element of many when we look at regaining our momentum in the marketplace." She said the company would release a shortlist within a few weeks. The goal is to have an agency by the end of the first quarter, possibly in March or April.

Sprint Releases Sanyo M1

2007-01-08T02:45:00.001-05:00

Sprint today announced the full-channel availability of the Sanyo M1, Sprint's first phone with 1GB of internal memory. Able to offer storage for up to 16 hours of music and other multimedia files including pictures, video clips and voice recording, the M1 also provides quick and easy access to Sprint-exclusive content, including Sprint Music Store, Sprint TV, NFL Mobile, Sprint Movies, and Sprint Power View.

The M1's advanced power management offers up to 18 hours of continuous music-playing time to support extended use of the multimedia capabilities. Additional key features include stereo Bluetooth wireless technology, a 2.0-megapixel camera with auto-focus, nine equalizer settings for fine-tuning the listening experience, and background music mode for listening to music while checking email, surfing the Web or sending text messages. The M1 also has external controls and large external LCD for optimal usability. The Sanyo M1 is available through all Sprint retail channels for a suggested retail price of $349.99 or $199.99 with a two-year subscriber agreement.

Sprint Announces Motorola Q

2007-01-08T02:44:00.002-05:00

Sprint announced the planned availability of the Motorola Q in mid-February. Slim and stylish, the Q operates on the Windows Mobile 5.0 Smartphone Platform with the Messaging and Security Feature Pack and gives customers easy access to mobile email, Web, calendar, music, video and phone functionality in one pocket-sized device. Exclusive features available only from Sprint include:
- Sprint Mobile Broadband Service
- Customized Sprint Powerdeck
- NFL Mobile
- On Demand Content

Sprint is enabling the Motorola Q with flexible connectivity options including phone-as-modem functionality to allow customers to use the device with a laptop for high-speed data access via the Sprint Mobile Broadband Network.

Mobile Phones without Keypads

2007-01-08T02:44:00.001-05:00

The keypad on the mobile handset is due for an extreme makeover. Between innovative keypad technologies, dedicated music player buttons and other innovations already on the market, this change is upon us. Check out Nokia Corp.’s so-called “lipstick” phone, model 7380, for a glance at the future. Ironically, according to a recent ARCchart Ltd. study that explores the topic, the technology for this extreme makeover is proven and available today. Consumer acceptance, rather than technological barriers, poses the main hurdle to adoption of a new paradigm.

Creeping incrementalism, rather than radical, rapid change, will likely be the theme of this shift, according to Bill Ray, analyst with ARCchart and lead author of the study, “Handset Input Interface Methods and Technologies: 2007-2011.” In its five-year forecast, ARCchart sees keypads—on 94 percent of devices shipped last year—dropping to 80 percent of devices by 2011. The even more ubiquitous, five-way navigation device—typically, joysticks or joypads with left, right, up, down and enter modes—will give way more rapidly, ARCchart contends, replaced by capacitance detection and fingerprint sensors. (Where current buttons react to pressure, “capacitance detection” refers to a device’s sensitivity to the conductivity of a human finger.)

Pharos Launches GPS Smartphone

2007-01-08T02:43:00.000-05:00

GPS firm Pharos launched its first hybrid GPS/cell phone, a Windows Mobile smartphone called the Pharos GPS Phone. The GPS Phone is a pull-out-all-the-stops Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PC, with a top-notch SirfStar III GPS chip and a range of high-end features. It's a quad-band GSM world phone, with high-speed Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR, 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi, and an EDGE cellular modem. You can take pictures with a 2-megapixel camera, or listen to a built-in FM radio. The device has a 2.8-inch, 320-by-240 touch screen, but no built-in QWERTY keyboard.

Pharos has made the unusual choice of selling the GPS Phone unlocked, letting users pop in an existing Cingular or T-Mobile SIM card. While this keeps the price high, at $699.95, it lets Pharos bring the phone to market without the drag of carrier approval processes—so it will be on sale next month.

There are a bunch of other GPS/PDA/phone combinations available, but the Pharos model is unusually high-spec. The HP iPAQ hw6925, sold by Cingular for $359.99 with contract, has an even smaller screen and a lower-res camera. Several Blackberry models on Sprint, Nextel and Alltel (but not Verizon Wireless), most notably the 8703e, have built-in GPS and work with the Telenav driving-directions service. You can also get Bluetooth GPS receivers for most Palm and Windows Mobile PDAs, and Sprint offers GPS and driving directions on many of their non-smartphones. None of those other options matches the Pharos' full set of features, setting the Pharos at the high end of the market right now. The Pharos GPS Phone will sell for $699.95.

RIM and Kodiak Partner for Push-to-Talk

2007-01-08T02:41:00.000-05:00

Kodiak Networks, a leading mobile solutions innovator, announced that it has signed a global licensing agreement with Research In Motion (RIM) to feature a series of integrated mobile applications including Push-to-Talk (PTT) on BlackBerry® handsets. Kodiak's applications target business and leisure users and are featured on the BlackBerry® Pearl™ available from Cingular Wireless. The licensing agreement allows RIM to integrate a Java version of the Kodiak handset client with BlackBerry handsets and enables joint development and marketing efforts. The Kodiak mobile applications capability appeals broadly to all users who need instant communications for personal and professional use.