Hasta La Gadget!

We first noted it back in 2008: the possibility of using LED light bulbs for secure and directional wireless internet access. Well, the Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute is claiming that speedy data rates of up 3Gbps have proven feasible in its labs. The boost comes from its latest enhancements, allowing the 180Mhz frequency to be used over the usual 30MHz, which apparently leaves extra room for moving data. If you’ll recall, that’s a significant leap over the 800Mbps top speed it achieved back in 2011 mixing various light colors. While this IR-like take on wireless internet access gains steam, remember that it’s more likely to be used in areas where WiFi radios cause interruptions (hospitals, trade shows like CES, etc.) — rather than a strip of mini spot lights from IKEA for the casa. (We can dream, can’t we?) FHHI plans to show off the new gear at FOE ’13, but for now you’ll find the full press release after the break.

Filed under: Networking, Internet

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You may have seen the AT&T newspaper ad a few days ago that attacked T-Mobile for its slow data network and the high number of dropped and failed calls. However, T-Mobile got a kick out of it, but it looks like they’re not letting AT&T have the last word. The company is prepared to push out several advertisements to newspaper as early as today.

TmoNews got their hands on some proofs that have already been sent to T-Mobile for approval, and the site claims that we could see the ads in newspaper as early as today, but there’s no word as to what newspaper the ads will show up in. However, we’re guessing that they’ll make an appearance in the same ones that AT&T used for their ads, including The New York Times and USA Today.

TmoNews also says that the marketing team behind these new ads is the team responsible for recent T-Mobile commercials, including the helicopter promotional ad that recently aired. As for the newspaper ads themselves, there are three total from the looks of it, and each say something different, including, “If AT&T thought our network wasn’t great, why did they try to buy it?”

Other phrases that T-Mobile uses in the ads include, “What keeps AT&T up at night? Apparently us.” and “Can you see the beads of sweat in this ad?”. Then below each clever phrase, T-Mobile addresses AT&T’s recent newspaper ad against the company, and notes that “someone is obviously worried.” Obviously, things are getting feisty between the two carriers, and we’re pretty excited to grab our pale of popcorn and watch this all play out.

[via TmoNews]

T-Mobile responding to AT&T with newspaper ad campaign is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Great news if you’re a T-Mobile subscriber, as the company may just be a few short days away from launching its 4G LTE network in Las Vegas. The folks at FierceWireless recently had a talk with a representative of T-Mobile, who said that the original plan was to launch LTE in Vegas during CES 2013. That plan ultimately feel through as T-Mobile needed to make a few last-minute changes to its network, but now the launch should be coming up very soon.

How soon? The representative didn’t get into specifics, but the launch should be coming up within the next few days. If this turns out to be true, then Las Vegas could have T-Mobile LTE up and running as soon as next week, with other places like Kansas City following shortly afterward. What will be the first phones supported by T-Mobile’s LTE network? Apparently, the Galaxy S III and the Galaxy Note II are first up.

That seems to confirm a report we heard a while back that pegged T-Mobile’s Note II with dormant LTE functionality. At the time, T-Mobile said that it could potentially flip the switch on the Note II’s LTE using a simple update, so it looks like that will be just what happens when the company’s LTE network is up and running. Get excited, Galaxy owners, because it sounds like you’ll be the first to taste T-Mobile’s LTE speeds.

T-Mobile has a lot of catching up to do. Verizon should be completing its 4G LTE roll out by the middle of this year, while AT&T has been making announcements about new LTE markets left and right. T-Mobile expects to have 200 million people covered with its LTE network by the end of the year, so it should certainly get off to a good start. Keep it tuned here to SlashGear for more on T-Mobile’s LTE network.

[via FierceWireless]

T-Mobile lighting up LTE network in Las Vegas very soon is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Tired of gadgets fighting for bandwidth around your humble abode? Well, the outfit behind the Killer Wireless-N technology that we took a gander at back at E3 is looking to oblige. Qualcomm Atheros has unveiled its StreamBoost router technology with the goal of making in-home streaming experiences all the more enjoyable. By allocating optimum bandwidth to each device and app on a network, StreamBoost shapes and prioritizes the traffic stream to insure that your Netflix viewing of Sons of Anarchy gets ample attention. This also insures that intense gaming sessions won’t be interrupted by Hulu Plus or other apps jostling for a download thanks to a constantly updating bandwidth allocation. A user interface offers a hub for monitoring traffic and all of the devices / apps on a given network while a cloud-based service will increase router intelligence on the regular — automatically sorting new devices as they’re added. StreamBoost will be in action next week at CES, where Alienware and D-Link will be showing off the goods with routers built around Qualcomm’s VIVE 802.11ac WiFi technology. Until then, the full announcement resides just past the break.

Continue reading Qualcomm Atheros announces StreamBoost technology to improve home networks, router performance

Filed under: Wireless, Networking

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These past few weeks have seen various announcements from Verizon and AT&T related to the expansion of their 4G LTE networks, but today T-Mobile is reminding everyone that its own plans for 4G growth are coming along swimmingly. The company announced that it has expanded its 4G service in 10 major markets across the country, so if you live in the one of the United States’ big metropolitan hubs, there’s a chance that you’ve got increased 4G coverage from T-Mobile today. Read on to find out which locations are getting a boost to service.

With this expansion, T-Mobile is promising “enhanced voice and data coverage” along with faster mobile data speeds on unlocked devices accessing the network. T-Mobile is quick to remind us that this expansion is just in time for the holiday travel season, so if you’re off to visit family for the holidays, you might just benefit from better T-Mobile coverage. Here’s the list of locations getting better coverage today:

• Phoenix, Arizona (including Tempe, Scottsdale, Glendale, Peoria, Paradise Valley, Surprise and Ahwatukee)
• Mesa, Arizona (including Chandler and Gilbert)
• Tuscon, Arizona (including South Tucson, Marana, and Vail)
• Silicon Valley (including Cupertino, Sunnyvale, Mountain View, Santa Clara, San Jose)
• Oakland, California
• San Francisco, California
• Stockton, California
• Modesto, California
• Miami, Florida (including Coral Gables and Miami Beach)
• Fort Lauderdale, Florida (including Hollywood)

T-Mobile says that today’s roll out brings the number of metropolitan areas where the company’s 4G service is up and running to 15. T-Mobile is also continuing to expand coverage in other areas like Boston, New York, and Chicago, so the company is working across the country to bring its 4G network to the big US cities. This all part of a $4 billion plan to bolster its 4G network, so T-Mobile is spending a lot of money on this expansion.

Of course, T-Mobile has a long way to go before it catches up to the likes of Verizon and AT&T, who will both take any chance they get to talk about 4G LTE. T-Mobile’s own 4G LTE network won’t be launching until next year, though the recently announced acquisition of MetroPCS should do something to help the company with its 4G LTE plans. Check out our story timeline below for more on T-Mobile!

[via T-Mobile Issues & Insights]

T-Mobile boosts 4G network in 10 major markets is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.