Hasta La Gadget!

AT&T says it will begin selling two new 4G products, the USBConnect Momentum 4G and Mobile Hotspot Elevate 4G, Sunday.

Finally — ATT has some 4G hotspots.

For $50, customers will be allowed up to 5 gigs of data monthly. Every extra gig will cost you 10 bucks. According to the press release, the two devices are the only ones in the United States to default to 4G/HSPA+ if you move outside of an LTE coverage area.

AT&T will begin deploying its 4G LTE network in five markets (Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Chicago, & San Antonio) this summer. Its first 4G phone, the HTC Inspire 4G, had a successful launch in early February, but it soon became clear that AT&T’s HSPA+ 4G speeds weren’t up to par. The company has continued to expand its network, going so far as to proposemerging with T-Mobile to bolster its system.

So what did I mean by AT&T “finally” getting some 4G hotspotting action?

Other 4G hotspot options on the market include Clear’s WiMax iSpot, which runs on Sprint’s network for 3Mbps to 6Mbps down, for up to four hours. iSpot costs $100 plus a data plan with Clear that runs as little as 20 bucks a month. Clear also has a USB alternative, the Clear 4G+ Mobile USB, which can be had for $115 plus the price of a data plan.

Novatel also has a 4G WiMax MiFi hotspot that’s supposed to provide 30Mbps down and 10Mbps up, as well as MiFi units for LTE and HSPA networks.

And then there’s the Samsung LTE hotspot that works with Verizon’s speedy 4G network. And T-Mobile’s 4G hotspot will run you $125 to take advantage of their HSPA+ network.

AT&T’s existing hotspot, the USBConnect Adrenaline, will get an upgrade to support LTE on Aug. 26. You’ll be able to get the USBConnect 4G for $49.99 and the Mobile Hotspot Elevate 4G for $69.99 on Sunday, both with a two-year contract.

The USBConnect Momentum 4G modem and Mobile Hotspot Elevate 4G will provide portable 4G access to AT&T subscribers.

Image: AT&T

Hav you been waiting for some more details about those BlackBerry 7-sporting handsets coming to Sprint? Well, wait no more friend — August 21st will be the day of days for WiMAX fans and BBM addicts. The Bold 9930 and Torch 9850 will arrive together for the carrier in the bumblebee suit, at $250 and $150 respectively — though the Torch price is after a $50 mail-in rebate. You’ll find a few more details in the PR after the break and, if you need a refresher on what to expect from the latest RIM devices, check out our hands on coverage.

Continue reading Sprint’s BlackBerry Bold 9930 and Torch 9850 land on August 21st for $250 and $150

Sprint’s BlackBerry Bold 9930 and Torch 9850 land on August 21st for $250 and $150 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Aug 2011 18:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The BlackBerry PlayBook is currently only available as a Wi-Fi device.

Updated 5:17 P.M. PST with comment from RIM

RIM’s BlackBerry PlayBook tablet just can’t catch a break.

Sprint announced Friday that it will not be selling a 4G version of the PlayBook on its Wi-Max network.

“We apologize for any inconvenience but the BlackBerry 4G PlayBook Tablet that was announced in January for summer availability will no longer be coming to the Sprint network,” a Sprint representative told Wired.com in a statement. “This was a mutual decision between Sprint and RIM.”

The news was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

AT&T and Verizon do not currently support the PlayBook on their networks. AT&T announced it would support the PlayBook’s “bridge” application, which is necessary for users to access e-mail and calendar functions, in July.

Without carrier support, RIM can only sell a Wi-Fi version of its product. It must be paired with a Blackberry phone in order to access a carrier’s 3G network. When the product was announced, future 3G and 4G models were promised.

RIM is coloring the announcement somewhat differently.

“RIM has decided to prioritize and focus its 4G development resources on LTE,” a RIM spokeswoman told Wired.com in a statement.

Sprint’s 4G network is based on Wi-Max technology, a competitor of AT&T’s and Verizon’s LTE-based networks.

Reception of the BlackBerry PlayBook has been less than enthusiastic generally. The tablet has struggled with displaying Flash, which delayed the device’s initial launch a month. RIM initially said it planned to release the PlayBook on the three largest U.S. carriers (Verizon, AT&T and Sprint). In May, Wired.com reported that Sprint was delayingthe BlackBerry PlayBook release.

Apple’s highly successful iPad is supported by both AT&T and Verizon, and reported sales of approximately 9.3 million units in the first quarter of 2011. The Wi-Fi-only PlayBook shipped 500,000 units over that same time period, and the Motorola Xoom saw only 440,000 tablets ship.

Mike Isaac contributed to this report.

The iPhone 5 is coming. Maybe it’ll land in September, maybe October, maybe some time after that, but sooner or later Apple is going to release a sequel to the wildly successful iPhone 4. That successor might have a larger screen, NFC, a slimmer design, or any number of other features… if the rumors are to […]

It goes without saying that updates are intended to improve our phones’ user experience, but the Gingerbread refresh on the Kyocera Echo had exactly the opposite effect. After a small but significant percentage of owners began reporting that the new software turned their devices into bricks, Sprint pulled the update “until further notice.” After nine days, Android 2.3.4 is once again available for download. Upon reaching out to the Now Network, we received the following confirmation:

Sprint will restart the Gingerbread update to Kyocera Echo users beginning today (August 10). In an effort to provide the best possible customer experience, Kyocera and Sprint have addressed a previous issue with the update raised last week. The Gingerbread update will provide Kyocera Echo users with performance enhancements including faster response, improved power management, enhancements for gaming, and more. Every Echo customer should have the update within the next few weeks.

The update will likely get pushed slowly at first, getting sent to a small number of handsets to make doubly sure the same issue doesn’t surface again, so don’t stress if it hasn’t reached your Echo today; as is the usual procedure with large-scale rollouts, it could be a little while before it actually lands on your particular unit. But when it arrives, feel free to download at will with more confidence.

Kyocera Echo resumes rollout of Gingerbread, without the bricking originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Aug 2011 16:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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