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Earlier this year, lawmakers in San Francisco and New York joined forces in an initiative called “Secure our Smartphones” that would encourage manufacturers to include a so-called “kill switch” in future phones to address the growing problem of handset theft. According to George Gascon, San Francisco’s district attorney, carriers are determined to kill the kill switch initiative. The New York Times reports that Gascon was in talks with Samsung to pre-load software that would allow customers to deactivate stolen handsets, similar to iOS 7’s Activation Lock. However, inclusion of the software would require approval from US carriers, and the likes of AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile and Sprint weren’t having it.

According to Gascon, it appeared that the companies in question rejected the idea because it could cut into the revenue they make from cellphone insurance. In response, the CTIA, which represents the carriers, says it already has a solution in the stolen phone database that went live last year. However, some say that solution falls short, as it doesn’t address those devices that end up overseas, out of the reach of the database. A Samsung spokeswoman had this to say in a statement to The New York Times:

“We are working with the leaders of the Secure Our Smartphones (S.O.S.) Initiative to incorporate the perspective of law enforcement agencies. We will continue to work with them and our wireless carrier partners towards our common goal of stopping smartphone theft.”

Filed under: Mobile, Samsung, Verizon, Sprint, AT&T, T-Mobile

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Source: The New York Times

Sprint and Best Buy have teamed up to offer a rather enticing promotion for students in the U.S. Called the Unlimited, My Way Student Promotion, students who purchase a new smartphone from Best Buy are eligible for one free year of talk, text and 1GB of data, though they must sign a conventional service contract and also verify that they’re enrolled at a college, high, middle or even elementary school within 14 days of the purchase. All smartphones that Sprint offers are part and parcel of the promotion, students may opt for feature phones as well. Those who need more than 1GB of data can pay $10 per month for unlimited data.

Students are also given an incentive to get their friends on the service as well. For every referred friend who signs up during the promotion period, the referring party gets an additional year of unlimited talk, text and 1GB of data, though both phone lines are required to be on the same account. The Unlimited, My Way is a limited time promotion which runs through till 1/4/2014. For students who are younger than 13, parental consent will be required at the time of validation. Sprint won’t wait the activation fee though, students will still need to pay $36 per line.

Sprint And Best Buy Entice Students With One Free Year Of Unlimted Talk And Text original content from Ubergizmo.

Just the other day Verizon officially announced the Ellipsis 7 tablet, a tablet designed for the budget-conscious shopper in mind. Well it looks like Sprint might have a budget tablet of their own that could compete with Verizon’s own offering, although at this point not much is known save for the fact that it recently made its way past the FCC. According to the FCC filing, the device in question is made by ZTE and sports the model number, V72C. It has been speculated that the processor will be a MediaTek processor and the tablet will feature a 7” display.

While the tablet appears to support 3G connectivity, it does not appear that it will have 4G LTE, so if you’re in the market for a cheap LTE tablet, this device might not be the one for you. It is possible that this ZTE tablet could be the successor to last year’s low-budget ZTE Optik that was released on Sprint’s network. Either way we’ll keep our eyes and ears peeled for more information, so if you’re in the market for a budget Android device, be sure to check back with us at a later date to see if there are any more details that can be had!

Mysterious ZTE For Sprint Spotted At The FCC original content from Ubergizmo.

So we know that Sprint will be offering the Google Nexus 5 come 8^th of November where the phone will be priced at a rather affordable $149.99 with a new two-year contract. However what if you wanted to get your phone somewhere else? What if a third-party retailer’s outlet would be more convenient that heading to your local Sprint store? While Sprint did not mention the possibility of their Nexus 5 being available for purchase via third-party retailers, the folks at Phone Arena have managed to get their hands on a leaked document that has suggested that Best Buy will offer the Sprint Nexus 5 on the 8^th of November as well.

Unfortunately if you were hoping that Best Buy would offer a discount to its customers, you’d be out of luck as it appears that the handset will be keeping its price tag of $149.99, similar to what Sprint is offering, and will require customers to sign a new two-year contract with the carrier. Since Best Buy has not confirmed this themselves, we suggest that maybe you not get your hopes up just yet, but do check back with us on the 8^th of November for the details! So, who else is looking forward to getting their hands on the brand new Nexus 5?

Sprint’s Nexus 5 Will Also Be Available Via Best Buy On 8th November original content from Ubergizmo.

A few days back we picked up on a leaked press render of the Sprint Nexus 5. It was rumored that Google’s next Nexus smartphone will be coming over to Sprint, something that would definitely be welcomed by the carrier’s subscribers as they didn’t get the Nexus 4 last year. Earlier today Google officially announced the Nexus 5 and confirmed that it would be available from the carrier. Sprint Nexus 5 will launch on November 8th, priced at $149.99 with a two year contract. That’s the 16GB variant after a $50 mail-in rebate, for new customers or existing ones eligible for an upgrade.

Nexus 5 is actually the first smartphone announced that is going to be compatible with Sprint Spark, the new wireless technology that the carrier announced yesterday. The smartphone will be able to tap into Sprint’s tri-band 4G LTE network, which promises peak wireless data speeds of up to 50-60Mbps. Sprint is taking pre-orders from November 1st, the device will be available online and through its retail stores. Customers who opt for this smartphone from the carrier will receive Sprint Unlimited Data Guarantee for Life, which basically means unlimited talk, text and data for the life of the line of service. Off contract, from the Play Store, the 16GB Nexus 5 costs $349.99.

Sprint Nexus 5 Launches November 8th For $149.99 original content from Ubergizmo.