Hasta La Gadget!

EE has revealed its first line-up of devices, including Samsung’s Galaxy S III, as well as hinting at a possible iPhone 5 LTE reveal imminently. The heavy Apple hint was dropped during the new 4G carrier’s launch in London, with chief exec Olaf Swantee teasing that there was a new device “very soon.” However, the new iPhone isn’t the only device EE subscribers will be able to use: there’s a range from Nokia, HTC, Huawei and more.

As you’d expect, there’s a combination of high-profile smartphones, USB data modems, and mobile hotspots to choose from. Samsung’s Galaxy Note II is joined by a small number of other Android phones, including the Huawei Ascend P1 LTE and HTC One XL, along with Nokia’s new Lumia 920 and Lumia 820.

Huawei, meanwhile, will be providing at least one 4G LTE USB modem, the E392, and a mobile hotspot, the E589,for sharing the LTE connection among up to five WiFi-tethered devices. They’ll also support HSPA for areas outside of 4G coverage.

What we don’t know, today, is pricing or specific availability. The carrier has also not announced actual speeds we can expect in the first wave – it only quoted up to 5x faster than 3G – but if the devices and data plans aren’t affordable then adoption may stumble.

Update: One correction: the carrier showed us photos of the Galaxy Note II as part of its initial line-up, but says that it’s actually the Galaxy S III LTE that will be launching.

EE reveals first 4G LTE line-up: Galaxy S III, iPhone 5 teaser is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

O2 hasn’t exactly given many options to those looking for an internet-sharing mobile device, but today the Euro telco’s announcing a miniature Pocket Hotspot that should solve some of those troubles. The company’s promising max download speeds of around 22Mbps and 6Mbps up — though, needless to say, that’s going to depend heavily on the 3G coverage area. Still, at £60 (one-off cost), this Pocket Hotspot could be a good choice for folks interested in MiFi-like features. Just don’t try and sneak one in to any event at London 2012, you know they’re not allowed.

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Wireless

O2 announces Pocket Hotspot device, wants to keep you connected at all times originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Aug 2012 11:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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4G iPhone sleeve company FreedomPop has returned with a new model, this time turning the iPod touch into a pseudo-iPhone complete with free mobile broadband access every month. The new Freedom Sleeve for iPod touch, up for pre-order now, clips onto the back of the media player like a speedy data barnacle and gives it a WiFi connection to play with, allowing for streaming music services like Spotify, FaceTime video calls on the move, and voice calls over VoIP services like Skype.

Usually, that would demand a WiFi hotspot of some sort, but the Freedom Sleeve basically creates that itself. Streaming video and music are supported, along with internet access and just about anything else that you could hope to use data for, and in fact you can also share it with other WiFi-enabled gadgets such as tablets and notebooks with hotspot access for up to eight.

As for the “free” part, that’s based on a combination of things. FreedomPop says all buyers will get 500MB of free data each month, on top of which they can earn up to 500MB more by adding friends to the service. If 1GB free isn’t enough, $10 gets you a further gigabyte, and there’s no contract to sign or minimum commitment.

FreedomPop uses Clearwire’s WiMAX network, with coverage in forty markets for around 130m people in total. However, the company is also readying an LTE service, though hasn’t said exactly when it will launch (or, indeed, if the current hardware will support it).

The Freedom Sleeve for iPod touch is up for pre-order now, and is priced at $99. It’s expected to begin shipping in two months.

FreedomPop gives iPod touch 4G with free data sleeve is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Looking to snag a mobile hotspot with your pending Ultrabook purchase? If so, Sprint is looking to be the first US carrier to oblige with a package deal. The wireless provider will bundle the Lenovo IdeaPad U310 with a 3G / 4G mobile hotspot for $849 $799 — plus a monthly bill of either $34.99 for 3GB of data or $49.99 for 6GB of the added connectivity. If that wasn’t enough to get you to pull the trigger, the outfit has also thrown in three months of service for free once you commit to two years of Sprint’s mobile broadband. You’ll be strapped with the Core i5 CPU version of the Ultrabook, but you’ll be able to decide between either a MiFi or an Overdrive Pro for the hotspot option. Itchin’ to take the plunge? Hit that second source link below to sign up and part with your funds.

Update: Although the Sprint website reads $849, we’ve been told by the company that the price will show up as $799 once the bundle has been added to your cart and that the product page should be updated soon.

Filed under: Laptops, Wireless

Sprint bundles Lenovo IdeaPad U310 and a mobile hotspot: $850 plus a monthly bill (update: $799) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Jul 2012 14:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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