Hasta La Gadget!

Surely you’ve heard of Qik by now, right? It’s most closely linked to Sprint’s EVO 4G, but it looks as if the video calling service is now siding with another “4G” carrier: T-Mobile USA. Shortly after T-Mob tossed off the gloves and proclaimed to be “America’s largest 4G carrier,” Qik has come forward with an interesting tidbit about the newfangled myTouch 4G. According to it, the “integrated T-Mobile Video Chat powered by Qik will be the first to offer integration into the native Android address book with the benefit of indicating live presence allowing customers to connect with friends and family through live video conversations and video messaging over T-Mobile’s network and WiFi.” We’re even assured that T-Mobile Video Chat will offer “dramatically improved video quality and frame rates compared to other video calling solutions on the marketplace through deep hardware integration,” and users can even see if folks in their contact book are able to video chat at a glance — no trial and error necessary. We’ll be testing this stuff out in our upcoming myTouch 4G review, but be sure to let us know how it’s treating you in comments below. You know, if you’re an “early adopter.”

Continue reading Qik integrates deeply into myTouch 4G’s hardware, Android contact book

Qik integrates deeply into myTouch 4G’s hardware, Android contact book originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 03 Nov 2010 10:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile is announcing this evening that it’s now got 75 live HSPA+ markets online, with coverage for roughly 200 million Americans up and running by the end of 2010. That footprint will start off at a theoretical max downlink of 21Mbps, but the carrier will be looking to scale that to 42Mbps in 2011 with the capacity to upgrade to 84 and 168Mbps down the road — all without ever worrying about LTE. The veracity of T-Mobile’s insistence that this is a “4G” network remains debatable — particularly in light of the ITU’s ruling that only LTE-Advanced and WiMAX 2 qualify — but then again, that same ruling would mean that neither Sprint, Verizon, nor T-Mobile really have 4G up and running in the strictest of terms, and it’s hard to argue that these guys are pushing speeds that meet or exceed what either LTE or WiMAX can offer today.

To that end, the carrier is kicking off a new television ad campaign today where it proudly boasts that it’s operating the nation’s largest 4G network, which is sure to ruffle some feathers and set the stage for some drama-filled mudslinging among the big boys as they ramp up their next-gen networks across the country. New markets include Chicago, Colorado Springs, Ft. Wayne, Louisville, Raleigh-Durham, and Wilmington, NC, and new devices include the myTouch 4G — officially launching tomorrow — and the Dell Mini 10 4G, which as you can probably guess is a garden-variety Mini 10 with HSPA+ compatibility on the AWS band. Follow the break for T-Mobile’s full press release.

Continue reading T-Mobile moves up to 75 live HSPA+ markets, says it’s running the largest ‘4G’ network in the US

T-Mobile moves up to 75 live HSPA+ markets, says it’s running the largest ‘4G’ network in the US originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 02 Nov 2010 21:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile said it was “working to deliver” hotspot support to T-Mobile G2 users, and now we might know the reason for the delay — an allegedly leaked document details Magenta’s scheme to offer a comprehensive data tethering plan for a $14.99 monthly fee. According to the convincingly worded internal memo, the new feature will let you tether over WiFi, Bluetooth or a physical USB cable at both 3G and HSPA+ speeds, though only on a $20 or higher unlimited data plan — so if you’ve got just 200MB, you’ll have to spend them on the small screen. The doc also says it’s subject to T-Mobile’s recent throttling efforts, so don’t expect to enjoy HSPA+ on your tethered tablet for long: “Customers who purchase a T-Mobile mobile broadband product like the upcoming Galaxy Tab should activate with a webConnect plan to ensure the best experience,” the document specifically suggests. The plan’s apparently coming November 3rd, a date which is associated with another likely rumor, too — TmoNews has a leaked email of its own suggesting the new myTouch will hit November 3rd as well. With Verizon, AT&T and Sprint all already charging for connection sharing, we suppose the writing was on the wall. The days of ambiguous wireless freedom are just about over, folks.

T-Mobile launching data tethering / wireless hotspot plan on Nov. 3rd for $14.99? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Oct 2010 17:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’ll be a little while before AT&T’s LTE rollout is in full swing — but if you’re the kind of individual that enjoys some margin of future-proofing, you’ll want to take a close look at the just-announced USBConnect Adrenaline modem for AT&T, an LG-sourced unit that becomes the carrier’s very first device to tout LTE upgradeability in 2011. In the meantime, you get HSPA, a microSD slot with support for up to 32GB, and GPS; it runs $49.99 on contract. Next up, Sierra Wireless’ USBConnect Shockwave is AT&T’s first HSPA+ modem, meaning it’ll work nicely on AT&T’s upcoming HSPA+ upgrade — an upgrade that’ll have a more immediate impact in some areas than LTE will; this one goes for a nice, fat zilch on contract. Finally, the Huawei USBConnect 900 is AT&T’s first Huawei device (notice a lot of firsts here?), and it’ll be “compatible” with AT&T’s prepaid DataConnect Pass plans of $15, $30, and $50 for 100MB, 300MB and 1GB, respectively. Look for the Adrenaline and 900 in stores on October 17; the Shockwave hasn’t been dated just yet. Follow the break for AT&T’s full press release.

Continue reading AT&T’s new USB modems include HSPA+, LTE-upgradeable, and prepaid options

AT&T’s new USB modems include HSPA+, LTE-upgradeable, and prepaid options originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 05 Oct 2010 21:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The next (and most likely last) step in extending the lifespan of 3G data is dual-carrier HSPA, a technology not unlike using two modems at the same time to effectively double the width of the pipe. Novatel’s got a new dual-carrier-capable USB stick out that it claims to be the world’s smallest — and it’s launching as a Movistar exclusive in Spain initially where the company demonstrated speeds this week topping out at a face-melting 40.5Mbps downstream. Who needs 4G when you’re getting those kinds of numbers? After its tour of Spain, the Ovation MC545 will launch with other carriers around the world, though with just 900, 1900, and 2100MHz 3G support onboard, we wouldn’t expect to see it grace North America — at least, not without a radio swap back at the factory. Follow the break for Novatel’s full press release.

Continue reading Novatel’s Ovation MC545 modem suggests extremely fast things come in small packages

Novatel’s Ovation MC545 modem suggests extremely fast things come in small packages originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Sep 2010 14:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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