Aug 25

LG and Nortel complete first legit LTE-CDMA handoff, Verizon swoons

Posted in: 4G, cdma, hybrid, LG, lte, Today's Chili

This’ll probably end up being important for Bell and Telus up in Canada (even though they’re taking an intermediate step from CDMA to HSPA), but Verizon must absolutely love the fact that the infrastructure guys have now figured out how to hand off data packets between CDMA and LTE networks in a standards-compliant way. LG and Nortel — what’s left of it, anyway — have collaborated to complete the handoff in Nortel’s Ottawa research labs on 700MHz spectrum between EV-DO and the Canadian firm’s LTE hardware, using LG’s so-called M13 prototype modem that roughly resembles consumer-grade equipment that LG wants to release next year. This is great news for customers who not only won’t need to choose between a fast modem with crappy coverage and a slow modem with awesome coverage — they’ll be able to have both in a single device — but they’ll also be able to continue to torrent last night’s True Blood as they move between technologies. Cheers to that.

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LG and Nortel complete first legit LTE-CDMA handoff, Verizon swoons originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Aug 2009 21:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 20

HTC Hero earns FCC approval with CDMA, Sprint launch rumors more solid than ever

Posted in: Android, cdma, hero, HTC, Sprint, Today's Chili

We know of precisely two types of radios going into Heros (or would that be Heroes?) right now: the 900 / 2100MHz 3G for global use that everyone’s using so far, and an 850 / 1900 version for North America that the FCC’s had the pleasure of using. Well, you know how FCC labs work — they get to play with all the toys before anyone else does — and now they’re checking out another version of HTC’s latest and greatest Android device with CDMA / EV-DO. This lends near-infinite credibility to the buzz that Sprint’s signed up to launch the phone this fall, presumably around the same time it drops the InstinctQ from Samsung, at which point it’ll have both the QWERTY and full-touch Android angles covered. Options are good, are they not?

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HTC Hero earns FCC approval with CDMA, Sprint launch rumors more solid than ever originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Aug 2009 11:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 28

Sprint acquires Virgin Mobile USA for a cool $483m

Posted in: breaking news, BreakingNews, business, cdma, Sprint, Today's Chili

Remember Virgin Mobile? Sure you do — not long ago the last-man-standing MVNO snapped up Helio, and seemed ready to take its place as one of the few boutique prepaid operations still… er, operating. Well that appears to be all but done and done, as Sprint has just announced a “definitive agreement” to purchase the company for $483 million worth of sweet, succulent stock (which looks to be right about what it was valued at to begin with). It looks like Sprint will pair the acquisition with its Boost Mobile brand, which till now was in direct competition with VM. It’s not quite rival city, however, Virgin Mobile USA was launched as a joint venture with Sprint, and the MVNO glides on Dan Hesse’s network as it is. Still, it does seem to be another indicator that the days of the MVNO are certainly on the wane, though Sprint now looks to own the space — what little there is.

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Sprint acquires Virgin Mobile USA for a cool $483m originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 28 Jul 2009 08:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 21

Toshiba TG01 passes FCC with some CDMA thrown in

Posted in: cdma, Today's Chili, Toshiba, Windows Mobile, WindowsMobile, winmo

The Snapdragon-powered Toshiba TG01 is a beast of a phone — as Windows Mobile-powered phones go, anyway — but for Americans, there’s one small problem: it’s not clear how, when, or if it’s getting here. We still don’t have many answers there, but we’ve got one piece of very encouraging news in the FCC approval of a CDMA flavor today, bearing all the hardware you’ll need to use the phone on a carrier like… oh, you know, Sprint or Verizon. Even better, the test documents list the device as “production” — many FCC filings use prototype hardware — suggesting that this is pretty close to being ready for market. So, as we said, Sprint or Verizon have to be ramping up for this — but which one is it? Both?

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Toshiba TG01 passes FCC with some CDMA thrown in originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Jul 2009 12:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 17

HTC Touch Pro2 calls dibs on 3.5mm audio jack for Telus and Verizon

Posted in: audio, cdma, HTC, Today's Chili, verizon

That was quick. We heard that HTC was moving to standardize around 3.5mm audio jacks but we weren’t necessarily expecting the meaty Touch Pro2 to be on that list of devices. After all, it’s already shipping in its GSM version. Nevertheless, MobileSyrup has a soon-to-be released CDMA version of the Touch Pro2 for Telus (and ultimately, Verizon) that goes straight-up 3.5mm — no goofy ExtUSB jack converter required. Oh, and they’ve got video to prove it. See it after the break.

[Via WMExperts, thanks Guill M.]

Continue reading HTC Touch Pro2 calls dibs on 3.5mm audio jack for Telus and Verizon

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HTC Touch Pro2 calls dibs on 3.5mm audio jack for Telus and Verizon originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 17 Jul 2009 04:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 12

BlackBerry Storm 2 spec’d, 3G-equipped original en route to AT&T?

Posted in: att, BlackBerry, cdma, research in motion, ResearchInMotion, RIM, rumor, rumors, Today's Chili

You haven’t forgotten about that BlackBerry Storm 2, have you? The Boy Genius Report is claiming it’s gotten device specs for RIM’s touchscreen-centric maven, also reportedly called the 9550, and while not surprising (and not confirmed), according to his source the CDMA device will be sporting 802.11b/g (which we already sort of knew), a 3.2 megapixel camera, 360 x 480 capacitive touchscreen, and BlackBerry OS 5.0. If that’s not enough, the site’s also saying a GSM version of the original, with 3G in tow, does exist as the 9520 and is possibly on track for release soon on AT&T and Rogers. All nice fodder for dreams, but we’re not getting our hopes up until something more official rears its SurePress-laden head.

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BlackBerry Storm 2 spec’d, 3G-equipped original en route to AT&T? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 12 Jul 2009 10:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 10

Palm Pre hacked and running on Verizon

Posted in: cdma, hack, Hacks, palm, pre, Sprint, Today's Chili, verizon, webos

It’s not the fabled GSM Pre, but PreCentral forum member Cleanser has apparently managed to unlock his Pre’s CDMA radio and get voice and SMS service on Verizon — data’s still a no-go, but he’s working on it. Other devices have been flashed between the networks for years, so we’ve no doubt that this is possible, but we doubt it’ll ever be super-easy — according to Cleanser, the hardest part was getting someone to add his device’s MEID to the system, and that’s always gonna be tough, regardless of VZW’s big talk about open network access. Still, it’s heartening to see a webOS device on another carrier — Palm, you want to maybe do this up official sometime? Video after the break.

[Via PreCentral]

Continue reading Palm Pre hacked and running on Verizon

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Palm Pre hacked and running on Verizon originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Jul 2009 11:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 09

Sprint mandating WiFi on future smartphones, WLAN-lovin’ BlackBerry Tour coming next year

Posted in: BlackBerry, cdma, research in motion, ResearchInMotion, RIM, Sprint, Today's Chili, verizon, Verizon Wireless, VerizonWireless, vzw, wi-fi, wifi

By the time Sprint gets around to releasing the 9630 Tour with WiFi, due out sometime early next year, we think most everyone’ll have moved on to any one of the numerous BlackBerry devices likely to hit in the interim. What’s more important in this FierceWireless report is that Sprint’s requiring WiFi “in all its major devices going forward” — which should mean pretty much every smartphone that lands in its CDMA-loving mitts. Verizon Wireless, who along with Sprint is also launching the WLAN-less Tour this Sunday, said that the company’s working with RIM to get WiFi into future BlackBerry, but didn’t oblige us with any hopeful descriptors that’d help us understand just how strong of a push was being made. Frankly, smartphones without WiFi at this point is downright criminal, and with CDMA phones trailing behind their GSM counterparts in this category, kudos to Sprint for taking the initiative.

[Via Phone Scoop]

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Sprint mandating WiFi on future smartphones, WLAN-lovin’ BlackBerry Tour coming next year originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 09 Jul 2009 20:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 03

How would you change the Palm Pre?

Posted in: cdma, Features, HowWouldYouChange, palm, palm pre, PalmPre, pre, smartphone, Sprint, Today's Chili, webos

You knew it was on deck, and at long last, here it is. Your one and only shot (okay, so maybe that’s a gentle stretch) to tell the world — and Palm, since it’s a part of the world — exactly what you think about the Pre. Since going on sale to the general public just under a month ago, some analysts have suggested that some 300,000 or so units have been moved. We’re quite confident that at least some of that bunch have their eyes peering at this here post, so we’d like to formally ask for your opinions in comments below. Is there anything you’d like to see changed on Palm’s Pre? Is the build quality up to snuff? Is webOS everything you thought it’d be (and more)? Is the QWERTY keyboard doing it for you? Do you wish it supported something that it doesn’t? Unleash your wrath below — we’ll keep your true identity a secret. Maybe.

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How would you change the Palm Pre? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Jul 2009 23:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 03

Sprint swaggers, promises to be first to release 3G Femtocell in US

Posted in: cdma, pre, Sprint, Today's Chili

While AT&T’s still claiming MicroCell will be out before the year’s up, Sprint‘s bringing out the big words by boasting to Unstrung it’ll be beating everyone to the market with its 3G femtocell solution. Company VP of device and technology development Mathew Oommen is pretty light on some of the finer details — like actual release date, hardware supplier, pricing scheme, and pretty much every other piece of information we’d want — but he did imply there’d be multiple options available for the CDMA EV-DO Rev. A extender, including a device more tailored for enterprise use. Look, you two can fight all you want over who gets first, but in the end, we just want our Pres and iPhones to live together and home in perfect-reception harmony — think we can get that in time for Christmas?

[Via Slashgear]

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Sprint swaggers, promises to be first to release 3G Femtocell in US originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Jul 2009 03:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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