Hasta La Gadget!

Turns out the LG Motion 4G wasn’t all that MetroPCS had up its sleeve for reveal today, as the prepaid carrier separately let its new fall lineup slip, and wouldn’t you know it, among those devices is the Samsung Galaxy S III. Joining the superphone will be a smaller Sammy smartphone, and like the LG Connect 4G, it’ll support VoLTE — curious that the carrier isn’t touting the feature for the Galaxy S III, don’t you think? ZTE will also be making another go at MetroPCS, as an Android handset with a 4.3-inch screen is now in the cards, but other relevant specs remain sorely absent. Rounding out the lineup will be an import from Coolpad, which is said to wield a 4-inch screen and will retail for $149. According to Phone Scoop, we may see this one make an official debut later this week. Naturally, none of these slabs carry the same clout as the Galaxy S III, and if you’d like to get a bit more familiar with the soon-to-be premiere smartphone at MetroPCS, be sure to check out PC Magazine below, which managed to score a hands-on with the latest version of Samsung’s finest.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless

MetroPCS reveals Samsung Galaxy S III as part of fall lineup originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Aug 2012 16:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink The Verge  |  Phone Scoop  | Email this | Comments

The UK telecoms regulator Ofcom has this week made a ruling that will allow the group Everything Everywhere to begin offering up 4G services ahead of a scheduled 4G spectrum auction next year, this against the wishes of several of their rivals. Everything Everywhere is the company that runs T-Mobile and Orange in the UK, and with this decision letting them start up their 4G services before a collection of competitors, their September 11th, 2012 start date may lead to a major change in the mobile market.

The “4G” spectrum that Everything Everywhere already owns runs along 1800MHz, and outside their own camp, Ofcom’s decision to give them the go-ahead has been met with some unsurprising dissent. An O2 spokesman made it clear this morning that they were amongst those groups that are not really happy about the decision.

“We are hugely disappointed with today’s announcement, which will mean the majority of consumers will be excluded from the first wave of digital services. This decision undermines the competitive environment for 4G in the UK” – O2

Similarly, the folks at Vodafone have been quite vocal about the situation.

“The regulator has shown a careless disregard for the best interests of consumers, businesses and the wider economy through its refusal to properly regard the competitive distortion created by allowing one operator to run services before the ground has been laid for a fully competitive 4G market” – Vodafone UK

The upcoming auction of 4G spectrum will be bringing on both 800MHz and 2.6GHz to the party, while each of the groups mentioned above already own at least two different kinds of spectrum in the 2G/3G/4G universe. Vodafone and O2 are the proud owners of 900MHz, 1800Mhz, and 2.1GHz spectrum while Everything Everywhere also owns the two higher spectrums 2.1GHz and 1800Mhz. It’s not entirely clear why the other two companies have not yet been granted the ability to offer up their own 1800MHz spectrum.

[via ZDnet]

Everything Everywhere gains early rights to 4G in the UK is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Step aside Hobo Wi-Fi, there’s a new, better way for people to get their internet on the go. Introducing Wi-Fi enabled donkeys from Israel – ancient transport now updated for the 21st century. More »

This week the #1 best selling Bluetooth speaker in the United States, the Jawbone JAMBOX, is bringing on a whole new era of customizability with JAMBOX The Remix. With this initiative comes a collection of color combinations for both the grilles and the caps for your Jawbone JAMBOX, all for the same price you’d pay for a standard single color model. You’ll be able to select from a set of 13 different grille colors and 9 different cap colors, with both user-selected combinations and “Popular Remixes” available to you right out of the gate!

As you may remember from our NVIDIA TegraZone Anniversary event, the folks at Jawbone have been creating custom color combinations for large groups for a while now. With JAMBOX The Remix, you will be able to make a custom color combination you’re own. And it’s not just colors you’re selecting, it’s grille patterns as well. Some colors come with the Dot pattern, some come with Diamond, some come with the Hex pattern, and others come with Haze.

Customers will be able to select their own color combinations via the Jawbone website through a new portal currently available only to Jawbone Insiders and Klout users from 8/21 –8/27. On the 28th – that’s a Tuesday – everyone will be able to access the ability to make their own Remix!

The selector tool is slick and entertaining in and of itself too, and combinations you make with it are able to be shared through Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, and email.

For those of you not familiar with the original JAMBOX, you’ll want to see our Jawbone JAMBOX review from all the way back in November of 2010. Since then there have been some innovations and even software updates to the hardware for enhanced audio, all of this available to you in our Jawbone portal – while you’re there, don’t forget to visit the BIG JAMBOX Review as well!

Jawbone JAMBOX The Remix delivers color-friendly custom combos is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

While Brits still languish at the back of the queue for LTE, there is at least a sliver of hope that regulator Ofcom is moving forward with plans for 4G provision. It’s announced today that carrier Everything Everywhere (the combined network of Orange and T-Mobile) will be allowed to use its 1800 MHz spectrum to push out next-generation phone services. Ofcom decided that the change to the UK network’s license would deliver “significant benefits to consumers, and that there is no material risk that those benefits will be outweighed by a distortion of competition.” Auctions for additional 800 and 2.6 GHz bands are still on track to happen later this year, aiming for a roll-out through 2013. Everything Everywhere will be allowed to use LTE and (bizarrely) WiMAX starting 11 September 2012, although this may not be the launch date for any commercial service — which could be unfortunate. The UK’s comms regulator goes into the specifics after the break.

Continue reading Ofcom approves Everything Everywhere’s early 4G plans, starting next month

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Internet

Ofcom approves Everything Everywhere’s early 4G plans, starting next month originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Aug 2012 02:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Ofcom  | Email this | Comments