Hasta La Gadget!

What if, instead of handing over some hard to remember combination of 10 digits when it came time to exchange numbers you could just give someone your name? Sprint is actually willing to let you enjoy the luxury of having your own vanity phone number, so long as you’re willing to fork over $3 a month for the privilege. This isn’t the sort of service enjoyed by businesses, though — no one will be dialing 1-800-Joe-Schmoe. Instead the carrier is offering “StarStar” numbers from a company called Zoove. So now, friends will just punch a couple of asterisks into their handset followed by your name, Twitter handle or anything else you might desire to get in touch with you. Of course, in the age of smartphones, we’re pretty sure memorizing phone numbers isn’t a skill anyone actually uses anymore. So might be that your $3 a month and clever new number will never be recognized by anyone.

Filed under: Mobile, Sprint

Sprint lets you make your name your phone number for $3 a month originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Oct 2012 13:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MetroPCS could be the target of a bidding war, with wireless industry whispers that Deutsche Telekom’s bid to merge the carrier with T-Mobile USA may face a challenge from another US network. Although the agreement with Deutsche Telekom has already been announced as in incipient merger, a trio of sources speaking to Bloomberg claim ailing rival Sprint is weighing a counter-bid that could be submitted as early as next week.

The CDMA carrier’s board is meeting within the next two days to decide whether to chase a deal of its own, though there’s no guarantee that one will be submitted. A company spokesperson declined to comment – as did those from MetroPCS and Deutsche Telecom – though another source claims the German firm is already prepared to fire back with a new offer, and “would consider  better terms if necessary,” should Sprint weigh in.

It’s not apparently the first time Sprint has considered snatching up MatroPCS. Rumors earlier in the year suggested the acquisition had been considered, but was shelved after the board decided the price was too rich for its liking.

However, an upward change in share price has left the carrier looking more solid, and – along with the threat of T-Mobile USA swelling into a more significant challenger – a deal may now be something Sprint can’t afford to opt out of. Together, T-Mobile USA and Metro PCS would have 42.5m subscribers and sales of around $24.8bn.

A deal between the two CDMA carriers, though, might make more sense than with GSM-based T-Mobile USA. There would be significant network infrastructure to be done in order to combine the MetroPCS and T-Mobile USA’s service, though the upside is the promise of an LTE network with claimed data speeds of double what Verizon is currently offering.

T-Mobile MetroPCS deal faces Sprint counter-offer threat is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Last year, Sprint quietly stepped foot into the world of home and office phone solutions with the release of its Sprint Phone Connect service. In a nutshell, this 3G powered VOIP alternative gives would-be customers the option of transferring their existing home or office landline number to Sprint’s flat rate $20 per month service. While Sprint Phone Connect may not be among the Now Network’s best sellers, it’s done well enough to warrant a sequel. Pictured above is an internal screenshot of the unimaginatively named Sprint Phone Connect 2. Set to release on October 14th, this new and improved hardware is packed with a set of new features: dial tone creation, voicemail notification, caller ID (number only), call waiting, call forwarding and 3-way calling. If that MagicJack isn’t quite cutting the mustard and you’re looking for an affordable home or office phone solution, the Sprint Phone Connect 2 can be yours for free on a two-year commitment, or $150 outright.

Filed under: Household, Wireless, Sprint

Sprint Phone Connect 2 will try to replace your landline on October 14th originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Oct 2012 17:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LG’s last big (and I mean big) smartphone release around these parts was the Intuition, a funky phablet that many a critic panned. Thankfully, the company’s straight-laced follow-up — the nicely spec’d Optimus G — was revealed earlier this month, and now both AT&T and Sprint have signed on to sell the thing when it launches later this year.

Of course, just like nearly every phone announcement made this week, neither carrier has revealed when they plan to stock the G on their respective shelves. All LG will say is that the Optimus will see the light of day at some point in Q4, and that could mean a decent wait. Whether or not Verizon Wireless or T-Mobile (or should I say, T-Metro) will carry the thing is still up in the air too, but it wouldn’t be a shock to see the former pick up the G in time for the holidays.

The Optimus G, in case you’ve forgotten, sports a 4.7-inch HD (1280×768, to be specific) IPS display, and pairs a 1.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro processor with an LTE radio — a combination that’s only starting to pick up steam here in the States. Nestled within the G’s surprisingly sturdy plastic frame is 2GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage to boot. Sprint actually seems to have gotten the better part of the deal when it comes to snapping photos.

You see, Sprint’s version of Optimus G packs a 13-megapixel camera instead of the 8-megapixel shooter that AT&T’s variant does. Then again, the company’s LTE network still currently covers only a fraction of what AT&T’s does, so in the end both carrier’s consumers have something to get riled up over. To make things even dicier, there could be more Optimus-oriented squabbling in the works very shortly if some recent rumblings hold true — some claim that Google’s next Nexus smartphone will be based on the Optimus G hardware, which could make those holiday purchasing choices even tougher to hash out.

When it rains, it pours. As if to clear the decks, Samsung has passed three devices through the FCC’s scrutiny at the same time. Two, the SPH-P500 and SCH-i915, are LTE-equipped tablets respectively headed to Sprint and Verizon with a dash of mystery; their label images imply a pair of Galaxy Tab 2 variants, but both have previously been spotted in as yet unverified benchmarks that allude to much faster Snapdragon S4 processors instead of the Tab 2’s TI chips. The SPH-L900’s dimensions and dual-mode support make for a safer bet, pointing to what’s likely the Galaxy Note II for Sprint. We’re less concerned with the hardware details so much as when everything ships — although we may get a clearer picture of the Sprint Galaxy Note II’s fate around October 24th, the tablets aren’t linked to any kind of public schedule, official or otherwise.

Update: Not long after Sprint’s Galaxy Note sequel arrived in the FCC, US Cellular’s flavor — the SCH-R950 — also made it through the federal approval process.

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile, Samsung

Samsung P500 and i915 tablets for Sprint and Verizon, Galaxy Note II for Sprint reach the FCC (update: Note II for US Cellular as well) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 02 Oct 2012 20:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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