The new version of Android, Jelly Bean, was to be officially rolled by a carrier for the first time this week in Australia. Sadly, Vodafone couldn’t see it through, because the new OS failed to meet regulations related to emergency calls. More »
Earlier this week it was reported that European carriers were stockpiling new nano-SIM cards after the standard had been approved by the ETSI. Speculation followed that Apple was preparing nano-SIM usage for the next iPhone, with one source even claiming that Apple had already designed the next iPhone around its own unapproved nano-SIM standard. Now BGR claims to have heard from carrier sources confirming that the next iPhone will indeed utilize nano-SIMs.
BGR claims to have heard from multiple carriers sources saying that “Apple is supplying nano-SIM adapters” so that the companies can test the compatibility on their networks. That will give the carriers a chance to make sure everything works smoothlys before a full scale deployment with the release of the next iPhone. AT&T is said to be one of the carriers testing testing the new nano-SIMs.
The CFO of Verizon, Fran Shammo, also dropped a hint during today’s earnings conference call that the next iPhone may make an appearance sometime in the fourth quarter. That falls in line with past reports that indicate the next iPhone would make a debut in September or October, mirroring the introduction of the iPhone 4S and sticking to Apple’s one year cycle between new handsets.
Next iPhone to feature nano-SIM, Verizon hints at Q4 debut is written by Ben Kersey & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Nokia‘s next-gen Lumia handsets could see a significant departure from the design, functionality and approach of current models, CEO Stephen Elop has teased, with the company preparing strong differentiators for WP8. “As you see the next wave and the wave after that of Lumia products you’ll seen an increase in differentiations” Elop said during the Nokia Q2 2012 financial results call today. However, don’t expect to see every new Nokia available through every carrier out there.
Elop blamed a lack of time in shifting to Windows Phone 7 initially for the limited differentiation seen so far. Although the Lumia 800 and 900 use a distinctive polycabonate unibody chassis, that was borrowed from existing work on the MeeGo-powered N9. ”We’ve had more time to go beyond that as we go into future releases” Elop suggested.
What that differentiation might be is not specified, but Nokia’s chief exec had already set out his strategy for following in the footsteps of Google and Facebook. Nokia will reinvent itself as the “Where” company Elop said, pushing development of location-based services and systems that tie into the various sensors included on each smartphone. “The mobile device will become the nucleus for collecting real-time data from sensors” Elop predicted.
So far, Nokia’s differentiators have been generally limited to apps. The company includes Nokia Music, a free streaming radio service with a customizable “Mix Radio” feature, and Nokia Drive, which offers unlimited turn-by-turn navigation. There’s also Nokia Transport, which does something similar for public transportation.
As for carrier partners, Elop revealed that Nokia would be using specific carrier targeting for the next Lumias, based on the success of US sales. The broad focus across multiple carriers in Europe wasn’t, in fact, as successful as the more specific focus on AT&T with the Lumia 900 in the US, he argued, despite the fact that Nokia sold just 600,000 devices in North America last quarter.
Nokia WP8 phones will ramp up differentiation but trim down carriers is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
The O2 network outage affected millions of customers across the UK last week, and naturally users weren’t too pleased. As a result, O2 has stepped forward to offer up compensation to all the customers that were affected. On its blog, the carrier notes that 10% will be offered off of July’s bill, which will be applied in September. That’s the equivalent of three days worth of service even though the outage only lasted a day.
Pay As You Go customers will also get in on the action, with 10% additional credit being applied the first time they top-up their balance in September. Even better, you don’t have to do anything as O2 will apply the discount and credit automatically. O2 will be adding a cherry on top too, promising all customers a £10 voucher that they can use in O2 stores to pick up accessories or credit.
Anyone affected by the outage that’s eligible for the discount will receive more details on July 27th. That includes personal and business customers with less than 10 connections to O2, although we wonder what will happen for those who have more lines with the carrier. Still, it’s a nice gesture. Hit up O2’s blog for the full rundown.
[via Engadget]
O2 offering 10% discount for outage victims is written by Ben Kersey & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
O2 is sorry for last week’s service issues. Really, really sorry. Like, giving you back 10-percent of your bill sorry, if you happened to be among the affected. The UK operator noted in a blog post today that it has identified all those users who were impacted by the “unprecedented” downtime and will be offering up 10-percent off of their July subscriptions, to be applied to their bills in September, the monetary equivalent of three lost days. Pay & Go members, meanwhile, will also be getting something back in September: a 10 percent bonus on their first top-up that month. The company’s also offering up customers a £10 O2 in-store voucher, available during the month of September. More info and apologies in the source link below.
Continue reading O2 apologizes for ‘unprecedented’ outage with 10 percent refunds
Filed under: Cellphones
O2 apologizes for ‘unprecedented’ outage with 10 percent refunds originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jul 2012 10:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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AT&T has done itself no favors with its fudged response to rumors of an extra fee in order to use FaceTime over 3G connections on devices running iOS 6. Talk that the carrier would levy extra data charges if users wanted to take advantage of Apple’s increased FaceTime flexibility – so far limited to WiFi connections – prompted an uproar of pre-emptive complaints that AT&T might put a financial block in the way of iPhone and iPad functionality. But are we really on the precipice of a groundswell of video calling, or are we simply taking this opportunity to be angry at a carrier for daring to charge us money?
Apple’s handling of FaceTime has been shoddy, it has to be said. The company originally promised to open the system up to third-parties, making it a cross-platform service rather than limiting it solely to its own iOS and Mac clients. That hasn’t happened, and beyond revealing 3G support in the upcoming iOS 6 back at WWDC 2012, Apple has been quiet on where, exactly, FaceTime is going.
Leaving out carrier-specific details at the WWDC keynote is a good example of that, though Apple isn’t done any favors by AT&T’s famed reluctance to commit to anything until the last minute. Going by the error messages popping up on devices already running the iOS 6 beta, it’s looking very likely that AT&T will be demanding another tithe for those wanting to use the data they’ve already paid for to make FaceTime 3G calls – on top of mandatory data package fees and, if required, tethering add-ons.
Exactly how much that will cost – if, indeed, it happens at all – remains to be seen. AT&T could go for a pay-per-use fee, either on a per-call basis (say, $0.50 per FaceTime 3G call you make, regardless of length) or based on data consumption. Or, it could opt for a set fee each month for blanket FaceTime 3G calling; say, $10 more on top of your existing data package.
“How much is “too much”?”
Is $10 too much to ask for the convenience of not using, say, Skype and instead relying on Apple’s streamlined alternative? Would $5 be acceptable? What if AT&T said you could make as many FaceTime calls over 3G as you like, as long as you also upgrade to a tethering package? How much is “too much”?
Listen to the current crop of complaints, and you’d be forgiven for thinking that Apple gadget users have been crying out for a video calling, but that the prospect of AT&T fees is going to yank the rug out from under it. Apple hasn’t released usage figures for FaceTime – perhaps indicative that it hasn’t exactly set the world alight, given Apple loves nothing more than loudly proclaiming the numerical evidence of its successes – but is the current lack of 3G support really the blockade, or is it the fact that video calling really just doesn’t rate highly on the priority list of most?
What does rate strongly is the suspicion that fat-cat carriers are preparing to squeeze yet more fees out of us every month. Even if we don’t want to use a feature, nothing enrages us like the possibility that someone might want to charge us for it. So, don’t conflate anger over the possibility of AT&T plan changes with a real appetite for video calling services. Sometimes, subscribers just like an opportunity to blow off steam.
Do we really want FaceTime 3G or do we just resent paying for things? is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
AT&T has jumped aboard the shared data plan bandwagon, revealing a sextet of new packages that allow up to 20GB to be split between up to ten devices. AT&T Mobile Share plans start at 1GB per month, and the carrier says data costs reduce (on a per-gigabyte basis) the more devices are drinking from the same 3G/4G bucket, when things go live in August.
So, for a 1GB plan on a smartphone, you’d be paying $40 for Mobile Share with Unlimited Talk & Text, and then $45 for the data component. Adding a basic or quick-messaging phone to that would be a further $30 per month, each extra smartphone would be $45, a 3G/4G laptop or data card would be $20 more and a tablet or gaming device would be $10 more.
If you choose a bigger data package, however, the cost for each smartphone decreases. So, if you opt for 20GB of data, at $200 for the base Mobile Share plan, each smartphone is $30 instead of $45. Additional data is priced at $15 per GB out of plan.
AT&T won’t be forcing customers to switch to the Mobile Share plans, and if you do opt to jump into a communal bucket then you won’t extend your contract either. Existing individual and family plans will continue to be offered alongside the Mobile Share plans, and a version for business users is promised.
AT&T Mobile Share offers communal data buckets is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
Cellular promos come and go. Rogers, however, wants to make sure that its 6GB Super Plan is one to remember: the carrier is offering the 6GB of monthly data that has become its summer tradition, only this time as part of a bigger plan that tucks in 200 minutes, unlimited messaging and the usual evening and favorites perks for voice calls. At $60, the combo isn’t just a better deal than usual, it’s impossible to build otherwise — the closest that exists is a $73 monthly plan that tops out at 3GB. The promo’s August 8th cutoff date doesn’t afford much breathing room for would-be adopters, but it should let new Galaxy S III buyers milk that LTE for all it’s worth.
Filed under: Cellphones
Rogers offers 6GB Super Plan, guarantees that Galaxy S III will stay busy originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Jul 2012 03:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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AT&T may charge users of FaceTime over 3G, the updated version of Apple’s video calling system which, as of iOS 6, will allow for calls over 3G connections instead of solely WiFi. Screenshots of AT&T handsets running the iOS 6 beta shared in the MacRumors forums show an error message similar to that given when users without a compatible data plan try to activate tethering.
For tethering, AT&T – like many other carriers – requires that subscribers pay for an extra data plan. It’s suggested that, given FaceTime will likely increase the amount of 3G traffic users consume, the carrier will demand they cough up another fee to cover it.
Interestingly, 9to5Mac found that Verizon handsets do not give the same error message as AT&T devices running iOS 6, though it’s not conclusive proof that the carrier will not be demanding an extra tithe for FaceTime 3G calls.
Whether AT&T’s fee is in the form of a set allowance for FaceTime 3G traffic, a pay-per-call charge, or a flat fee covering “unlimited” use each month (though likely with a “fair use” policy) remains to be seen. “We’re working closely with Apple on the new developer build of iOS 6″ AT&T said in a statement, “and we’ll share more information with our customers as it becomes available.”
It’s exact form could have a significant impact on those AT&T subscribers still clinging onto their older, now-discontinued unlimited data plans. If AT&T demands an all-new data package that covers FaceTime 3G, rather than simply adding the service as an account add-on, such users may have to choose between their grandfathered plans or the ability to make video calls over cellular data connections.
[via MacRumors]
AT&T FaceTime 3G fees tipped for iOS 6 is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.
In a bid to avoid making suit-wearing execs continually eye their data use when traveling to Europe with your smartphone, T-Mobile has announced a $50 per month plan for business customers, which offers half a gig of data on both 3G and 4G (where available). Once you hit beyond that threshold, you won’t be charged for overuse, but your speeds will be throttled. The plan will connect to 28 countries, including likes of the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and will launch for that sweaty business meeting in Paris next month.
Continue reading T-Mobile US offers new Europe-wide 500MB roaming plan for $50
Filed under: Cellphones
T-Mobile US offers new Europe-wide 500MB roaming plan for $50 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Jul 2012 08:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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