lundi 30 avril 2012

Verizon Begins Offering Prepaid Data for Smartphones and LTE Service

Verizon Begins Offering Prepaid Data for Smartphones and LTE Service

Verizon has announced the forthcoming launch of prepaid data for smartphones and new prepaid data plansfor LTE service. This comes months after it began offering its own flat-rate prepaid offering to compete with MetroPCS and Cricket limited to select feature phones.

The smartphone plan starts at $80 a month with 1GB of data access as well as unlimited voice and messaging service and is being marketed alongside the currently available Samsung Illusion Android smartphone, which is a midrange smartphone featuring Android Gingerbread and a 1GHz processor for $169.99. The phone and plan will be available starting tomorrow, May 1st online and in-store with a future rollout to Best Buy, Target, RadioShack and Walmart locations nationwide.

This marks the first time that Verizon Wireless will actively offer data access for smartphones on a monthly prepaid plan as the carrier was loathe to make any significant moves in the rapidly competitive sector for fear of cannibalizing its more lucrative postpaid sales. It’s previous attempt to offer service on a no-contract basis relied on a hybrid monthly plan that mirrored postpaid service and still required a credit check.

In addition the carrier will also offer prepaid LTE service via the Verizon Jetpack 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot MiFi 4510L. Prepaid 4G LTE Mobile Broadband plans are as follows and mirror postpaid plans save for the weekly option:

$15 for 250 MB of weekly access
$60 for 3 GB of monthly access
$90 for 10 GB of monthly access

The Verizon Jetpack 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot MiFi 4510L prepaid package will be available in-store and online for $129.99 and will also be available at Best Buy, RadioShack and Walmart.

samedi 28 avril 2012

TTPod 4.4.1 S60v5 ^3 Anna/Belle

Free Download TTPod v4.4.1 | S60v5,S^3

One more translation by pkb for you.
New Spesial Version of powerful music player for Symbian^3 and S60v5 devices.

Key features:
● Full support for Symbian^3 and S60v5 devices
● Special interface for control using touch screen
● Supported formats: MP3, AAC, WMA and M4A
● Built-in equalizer
● Sound fade, stereo widening and bass boost effects
● Support for skins and visual effects
● Ability to download songs, album coversand lyrics
● Online access to music charts
● Sleep timer
● Mini-player in background modeand many more features...

What's new:
1, Add custom ring tones;
2, The new song search function;
3, The optimization of network music library song download service;
4, Fix some bugs, improve stability.

Free Download TTPod v4.4.1 | S60v5,S^3

الفرق بين الرضاعة الطبيعية والصناعية

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jeudi 26 avril 2012

Free Download TotalRecall v5.2.1 | S60v5,S^3

Free Download TotalRecall v5.2.1 | S60v5,S^3

Total Recall is the easiest, most user friendly Call Recorder / Mobile Dictaphone for Symbian S60 devices.

Total Recall by Killer Mobile, feature packed Call Recorder utility for Symbian S60 devices. Total Recall integrates the most cutting edge beep suppression available to deliver high quality recorded, beep free audio on most devices, and offers a rich feature set in one extremely easy to use application.Total Recall allows you to easily record all or just some of your calls.

Here are some key features of "Total Recall (S60)":

 

  • · No Beep Recording

  • · Record up to the Limits of your Memory in AMR or WAV formats
  • · AutoSend Clips via MMS, HTTP & Email
  • · Manually or AutoSend Clips via MMS, HTTP* & Email
  • · Intuitively Named Clips, rename, add notes and more!
  • · Extremely flexible recording scenarios
  • · Use as a full featured dictaphone app when not on calls, start recording using a convenient hot key
  • · Password Protection, Autostart and many more features!
  • · FREE Updates for the Life of your device!

Requirements:

» S60 3rd Edition Devices [Tested]
» S60 3rd Edition FP1 Devices [Tested]
» S60 3rd Edition FP2 Devices [Tested]
» S60 5th Edition Devices [Tested]
» Symbian^3 Devices / Anna / Belle [Tested]

What's New in This Release:

» Improved beep suppression for Belle devices


DOWNLOAD

Free Download TotalRecall v5.2.1 | S60v5,S^3

 

 

 

 

mardi 24 avril 2012

Google Now Offering Unlocked Galaxy Nexus for $399.99

Google Play Galaxy Nexus

After its first attempt to sell devices directly with the Nexus One ended without doing much to change the way phones are sold and activated in the US, Google has apparently decided to try to sell devices directly once again, as it has taken to using its Android Market Google Play storefront to sell the Galaxy Nexus directly in the US for $399.99, after months of resellers selling the same device for $600-700.

The GSM version being priced at $399.99 also reflects Google’s willingness to sell its flagship Ice Cream Sandwich device at a loss, as the unlocked GSM version launched in Europe for nearly $700 and many online dealers still sell the international version of the phone for that price.

For Google to restart direct device sales now means that the search and ad conglomerate may be ramping up to offer more than just the Galaxy Nexus, as rumors swirl around the company also developing a Nexus branded tablet to be manufactured by a new partner outside of its previous Nexus device partners in HTC and Samsung, with Taiwanese manufacturer ASUS being tipped to be the next Nexus development partner. Google continually struggles with Android on tablets in terms of marketshare and awareness among consumers compared to the juggernaut that is Apple and the iPad line, with Samsung being the most successful in context, but only commanding a marketshare of less than 5% in comparison.

Only time will tell whether this next attempt in direct device sales will prove a success for Google, as its last attempt was fraught with customer service issues that it failed to take into account, though the fact that customer support now includes an 800 number instead of the previous reliance on email means that Google may have taken the hard lessons learned from the Nexus One days into account.SpaceMobile.NET

 

Free Download UC Browser V8.4.0.150 | S60v3,S60v5

Free Download UC Browser V8.4.0.150 | S60v3,S60v5

 


Feature:

1. Speed networking, networking speed
(keythe test cmwapaccess point, the page
load images)
2. the stability test (trial process crash and
automatically exit the phenomenon)
3. the 2D code scanning
4. heat word search
Home Modification (test whether there is
cause other dysfunction)


Fixes:
* Server Problem Fixed In this Release
1. A splash screen is changed to 8.4
2. touch-screen version of the skin is not on
line, we can only use the default skin
3. Click the Page Properties link will exit.

كيف تجعلين أولادك يستمعون إليك؟

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dimanche 22 avril 2012

LCG X-plore v1.58(0) S60v3 S60v5 S^3 Anna Belle

LCG X-plore v1.58(0) S60v3 S60v5 S^3 Anna Belle

X-plore is a file manager for mobile phones,
with wide range of functions on the file system of your mobile device.

Features
*. View all drives / folders / files on phone in tree view *1
*. Integrated text and image viewer
*. View file details
*. Edit file attributes (hidden, read-only, etc)
*. Rename and delete files
*. Create or edit text files
*. Create folders
*. Multi-selection

*. Copy or move files and folders
*. Send files via Bluetooth
*. Extract files from Zip , Rar , Jar archives
*. Pack files to Zip archive
*. View Word documents
*. Hardware device info
*. View processes and tasks *2
*. Built-in program updater
*. Viewing, saving files in messaging folders *3
*. Hex viewer and editor
*. Search files
*. Folder hotkeys
*. Simple audio player
*. Simple video player *3

Changelog: Fixed compatibility with Symbian Belle FP1

LCG X-plore v1.58(0) S60v3 S60v5 S^3 Anna Belle

Boost Mobile to Offer EVO Design 4G Variant By Current Quarter’s End

Boost Mobile is set to upend the current prepaid race by offering its own variant of the HTC EVO Design 4G Android smartphone by the end of the current quarter. What makes this offering notable is that the Boost Mobile version will upstage the current Sprint version by shipping with Android Ice Cream Sandwich, which would mark a first for a prepaid carrier in the US, and offer a significant competitive advantage against larger postpaid carriers which have yet to offer Ice Cream Sandwich updates en masse for their respective flagship Android 4.0 compatible devices.

Many carriers have yet to offer updates to current models or new models with the latest Android version, taking into account that Sprint and Verizon would be the only carriers currently offering Android Ice Cream Sandwich hardware for sale with the Galaxy Nexus. The Galaxy Nexus officially launches tomorrow on Sprint after a compressed pre-order period which saw the carrier sell out of its pre-order inventory in a week.

Aside from the update to Android Ice Cream Sandwich, the Boost Mobile version of the EVO Design 4G will be identical in terms of hardware to the Sprint version, with a 1.2GHz single-core processor and 768MB of RAM with a 4.0-inch, 960×540 qHD resolution display, WiMax radio, 5.0-megapixel and 1.3-megapixel cameras. Hotspot capability is also expected to ship with the Boost Mobile variant, but specifics on pricing for either feature have yet to be confirmed.

Virgin Mobile is also expected to offer its own HTC 4G WiMax device this quarter in a variant of the older EVO 3D known as the EVO V 3D, also with 4G support included. With both phones slated to ship on each respective provider this quarter, Sprint may be looking to take the fight to prepaid services such as StraightTalk and postpaid carriers by offering 4G access on preapid, which will undoubtedly increase the competition level for every service in the country.

samedi 21 avril 2012

Free Download QQ Browser v2.07 | S60v5,S^3

Free Download QQ Browser v2.07 | S60v5,S^3

برنامج المتصفح الراااائع BROWSER V2.6(15

The browser that is optimized for touch smart, fast, compact mobile browser that allows you to easily and comfortably access the sites on the Internet. All opened pages optimizes and compresses your browser before downloading them to your phone, so the traffic data transmitted is greatly reduced, which makes your mobile browsing faster and much cheaper.


Features:
Supports work with tabs
-Download Manager
-Quick access to popular Web sites with the browser home page
The color-scheme design

Free Download QQ Browser v2.07 | S60v5,S^3

vendredi 20 avril 2012

Untitled

MetroPCS has launched its latest Android smartphone, this one being a direct replacement for the now aged and long discontinued LG Optimus M in the M+.

As denoted by the slight change in name, the Optimus M+ is all about subtle and slight updates rather than a full upgrade, with a slightly larger 3.5 inch HVGA resolution display, Android 2.3 Gingerbread, upgraded 5.0 megapixel camera with LED flash and HD video capture, increased user accessible internal memory with microSD slot and Wi-Fi N radio to round out the spec sheet.

The phone is now available from MetroPCS dealers and direct retail stores for $129.00+tax and activation on a new service plan which is now limited to the new throttled $50 and $60 service plans for new customers, while customers on the previous plans can purchase the phone and retain their old plans with no issues.

Free Download Mp3 Cut v.2.06 | S60v3,S60v5

Free Download Mp3 Cut v.2.06 | S60v3,S60v5

Platform: S60v3,S60v5

Description: Mp3 Cut app is a useful and handy tool to ensure that you can cut out your desired mp3 file fragments. After a few simple steps you can listen and save the file to your phone or memory card.
Some phones S ^ 3 memory card is available only drive E.
Use these tunes for the basic call and SMS, treat yourself and surprise your friends.

Free Download Mp3 Cut v.2.06 | S60v3,S60v5

mercredi 18 avril 2012

Free Download eBuddy Mobile Messenger v2.3.1

eBuddy Mobile Messenger v2.3.1 S60v3-v5 S^3/Anna/Belle J2ME


Chat on MSN, Facebook, Yahoo!, GTalk (Orkut), AIM, MySpace and ICQ. Get the most popular free chat app on your phone, with more than 100 million downloads to date!


With eBuddy you can also send pictures, set your display picture from your phone camera, choose colorful themes and much more!

New! The best Facebook experience! Enjoy the new and improved Facebook Chat and follow all your Facebook updates.

eBuddy Mobile Messenger v2.3.1 S60v3-v5 S^3/Anna/Belle J2ME

اهمية اللعب في الطفولة المبكرة

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lundi 16 avril 2012

Sprint Announces April 22nd Launch for Galaxy Nexus

In what is sure to be the worst kept secret for Sprint in a long time, the carrier has announced its own version of the LTE Galaxy Nexus which will be launched on the same day as the previously announced LG Viper on April 22nd for $199.99 after new 2 year agreement or qualified upgrade. The phone was teased at CES but no release details were provided and the existence of a Sprint version had been known as far back as October of last year. Pre-orders will begin today, and in a bit of change from past pre-order promotions those who pre-order today will receive the phone up to two days before the official launch date on April 22nd.

The phone is Google’s current Android flagship and features a few key changes from the heavily revised Verizon version such as the increased storage space from 16GB to 32GB as the phone lacks a microSD slot, complete Google Wallet support on account of Sprint being Google’s partner in the mobile wallet initiative and Google is even throwing in $50 worth of Google Wallet credit when activating a new Wallet account, with a $10 instant credit upon activation and an additional $40 credit three weeks after. Complete features and specifications follow below.

· Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich
· 4.65-inch HD Super AMOLED touchscreen display with 1280×720 resolution
· 1.2GHz dual-core processor (TI OMAP 4460)
· Google Play™: With more than 500,000 apps, millions of songs and books and thousands of movies, Google Play has something for everyone
· Google Voice™ makes people’s lives easier by providing one phone number to use for the rest of their life. Easily manage up to six devices with one Sprint phone number, use intelligent call routing and advanced call controls like call screening, blocking and recording and online management of SMS, voicemail and call logs at www.google.com/voice
· Google+™ Hangouts: video chat with a group of up to 10 friends using the 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera, all on the go
· Near Field Communication (NFC) technology allows the device to read information from everyday objects, like stickers and posters embedded with NFC chips
· Google Wallet™: Turn the smartphone into a wallet using NFC to make safe, secure purchases at more than 100,000 participating retailers
· Android Beam™: Share contacts, web pages, YouTube videos, directions and apps – just by touching two NFC-enabled Android phones back to back – tap to beam what’s on the phone to a friend.\
· Google Mobile™ wireless services such as Google Search™, Gmail™, Google Maps™ for Android, Google Calendar™, Voice Actions and YouTube™
· Personal and business email and text messaging, as well as IM through Google Talk™
· 3G/4G Mobile Hotspot capability supporting up to 10 Wi-Fi enabled devices simultaneously
· Wi-Fi® – 802.11 a/b/g/n
· Integrated GPS

Entertainment
· 3.5mm headset jack
· Stereo Bluetooth® 3.0
· Dual cameras – Rear-facing, zero-shutter lag 5-megapixel camera with 1080p video capture, digital zoom and LED flash; front-facing 1.3-megapixel for video chat with Google+ Hangouts
· Single-motion panoramic picture capabilities that allow the user to take beautiful panorama pictures by pointing and touching the shutter, then panning the phone from one side to another
· Full-featured photo editor with one-touch sharing and live effects, which lets the user give friends big eyes, squeezed heads and large noses while recording video
· Face Unlock: Galaxy Nexus introduces a new, fun way to unlock the phone – with a smile. State-of-the-art facial recognition technology lets the user switch on the phone and look at it to get past the lock screen – no passwords to remember, nothing to type or swipe

Specifications
· Dimensions: 2.67 x 5.33 x 0.37 inches (67.94mm x 135.5mm x 9.47mm)
· Weight: 5.1 ounces (144 grams)
· Display: 4.65-inch HD Super AMOLED contour touchscreen display with 1280×720 resolution
· Battery: 1850mAh Lithium-ion battery
· Talk Time: 7.5 hours
· Memory: 32GB internal memory (ROM); 1GB RAM

Browse: Home / RIM Re-names BBX to BlackBerry 10 in Wake of Court Loss Deal: 32GB HP TouchPad + Slipcase – $249.99 + $5 Shipping (Expired)

samedi 14 avril 2012

Deal: 16GB Samsung Galaxy Nexus – $429.99

Daily deals site 1SaleADay is currently offering the Samsung Galaxy Nexus for the lowest price ever seen for an unlocked version of the flagship Android 4.0 smartphone at $429.99. The phone features the following specifications:

Model: GT-I9250
dimensions (length x width x thickness): 136.0 — 68.0 — 8.8 fine piece – 11.5 thickest part
Weight: Approximately 135.0 (g)
OS: Google Android version 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
Chipset: Texas Instruments Omap4460 CPU: ARM Cortex-A9 MP Core SMP (Dual-Core) CPU operating frequency: 1.2 GHz
GPU: PowerVR SGX 540 Immage Technologies
Display: AMOLED HD: 4.65 inches Resolution 720 x1280) Maximum number of simultaneous colors Main Display: 16,777,216 color touch screen: capacitive (multi-touch),
Main camera: 5 megapixel CMOS camera with LED flash Video recording 1080p HD (1920 * 1080)
Front camera: 1.3 million pixels CMOS
GPS
NFC
Micro USB 2.0
Communications Bluetooth 3.0 + HS
Wireless LAN Communication: IEEE 802.11 a / ??b / g / n (2.4 GHz Dual-Band 5.xGHz)
Tethering
Wi-Fi Direct
RAM: 1GB
ROM: 16GB
Battery Capacity: 1750mAh
Notification LED

The phone’s pentaband radio means that you can use it on both AT&T’s and T-Mobile’s 3G networks with few issues, though the appropriate configuration steps need to be taken for data access and MMS to function properly, with the phone also including a 1 year warranty from Samsung.

vendredi 13 avril 2012

HTC, Sprint Issue Security Update for EVO Design 4G

While already committed to upgrading the HTC EVO Design 4G to Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich, HTC and Sprint today shipped an interim firmware update for the device.

The update, version 2.12.651.8 is the second update for the device released this year, and only notes “security updates” as the single change. It is not clear if this is related to HTC Wi-Fi Security Flaw, or if there were other security holes fixed.

HTC earlier this year confirmed a security hole in their Wi-Fi protocol, that affected a wide range of their devices. HTC committed to updating all affected devices. The company posted a Wi-Fi Security Fix web site, allowing older devices to download the update manually after entering their serial numbers. HTC had noted the EVO Design 4G had been updated for this issue, drawing into question if the EVO Design 4G had other outstanding potential security flaws.

PhoneNews.com has contacted HTC requested a list of the security updates, and will follow-up if we hear back.

The EVO Design 4G (alongside the similar EVO 3D) is HTC’s flagship smartphone on Sprint today. It launched in-between the EVO 4G and EVO 4G LTE, and was meant to compliment the EVO Shift 4G, which served as a low-end alternative to the original EVO. The EVO Design 4G trades EVO 3D’s three-dimensional camera array and screen for international GSM/UMTS/HSPA roaming capability, with a factory unlocked SIM slot.

HTC will replace both the EVO 4G and EVO Design 4G with the EVO 4G LTE, set to launch later this quarter.

HTC has stated that the EVO Design 4G will receive Android 4.0 later this year, but has not provided a more specific timeframe. HTC and Motorola have faced setbacks in upgrading their Android 2.3-era smartphones to Android 4.0, as Google chose to partner with Samsung in building Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) for its Galaxy S II-based Galaxy Nexus superphone. The move gave Samsung engineers significant lead time in engineering ICS for their smartphones and tablets.

Google routinely toggles handset favorites in emerging Android. HTC was the original device partner that launched Android 1.0, Motorola collaborated with Google to launch Android 2.0, and Android 3.0 for tablets. Rumors persist that ASUS and Huawei will likely be tapped by Google for engineering the first in a line of next-generation, lower-cost Android 4.0 and 5.0 tablet devices.

EVO Design 4G owners can update their devices over-the-air, via the HTC Software Update function inside Settings.

mercredi 11 avril 2012

Unlocking Your AT&T iPhone – What You Really Need to Know

We’re three days into AT&T unlocking your iPhone. Why not report on it until now? Simple, fools rush in. We’ll tell you what you really need to know. Unlike other Apple product launches, waiting in line didn’t pay off.

Important Item 1: You probably won’t benefit from unlocking your iPhone.

The most major reason to unlock your iPhone, is to increase its resale value. Traveling internationally is the other. Percentage-wise, most iPhone users don’t do the latter, and many don’t do the former until that iPhone is quite obsolete.

While you may dream of dumping your AT&T service for another carrier, an unlocked iPhone is probably the most covoluted way to achieve that goal. It’s not as simple as unlocking and dropping the new SIM in to get service, with Apple, it’s never a simple process, despite all of its marketing to the contrary.

On T-Mobile and iPhone – Big Changes Mean Good News

For example, if you were planning on porting to T-Mobile, an unlocked iPhone will work just fine on T-Mobile, with recently revised future plans calling for future 3G access on the network without the need for an AWS model specific to the carrier, but the caveat is that you’ll be waiting for a few months to get the most out of T-Mobile’s drastically cheaper rates as a result of it being left out of the iPhone sales party. It has yet to begin the process to reband its network for 1900MHz 3G access and the FCC has yet to approve the additional spectrum transfer that T-Mobile is owed by AT&T as a result of the rejected purchase and merger in order for the rebanding process to start.

An AT&T iPhone, when unlocked and properly configured, will only work on T-Mobile’s 2G GSM/EDGE network for now, but in the future, T-Mobile is actively working to move its HSPA+ network to the 1900MHz band it currently uses for GSM in order to support all major data services down the road, without having to discontinue GSM/EDGE service. Ironically, thanks to the popularity of the iPhone, Apple essentially forced T-Mobile to reconfigure its network in order for it to be able to fully support the iPhone, as it and MetroPCS are the only US carriers that were not able to offer the iPhone due to incompatible 3G networks.

In short, your unlocked iPhone will work very slowly for the time being, and you’ll lose modern conveniences like being able to talk and surf the web at the same time, but later this year, all iPhones will be able to function to their fullest extent on T-Mobile with full coverage in 2013. It just took a federally blocked AT&T purchase in order for it to happen.

On the AT&T iPhone 4S and CDMA

Now, if you were planning on moving that hot new iPhone 4S over to Sprint and Verizon, brace yourself. While the iPhone 4S does feature both GSM and CDMA hardware, Apple noted at the point of sale that unlocked, GSM/UMTS iPhone 4S devices can not connect to CDMA networks. Ever. They ship from the factory without the CDMA radio provisioned. Hence, it can’t ever work on Sprint or Verizon.

Why did Apple do this? They haven’t answered, and we didn’t waste the text to get a non-answer from them this time around, either. But we know the reason; Verizon and Sprint don’t want foreign devices on their 3G networks. They never have, and their deal with Apple certainly does everything it can to prohibit them with the dual-network iPhone 4S.

On Unlocked AT&T iPhones and Straight Talk’s BYOD

And, if your were planning on moving your iPhone to the new Straight Talk / TracFone BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) plans, you don’t need to unlock your iPhone! Thanks to TracFone’s contract with AT&T, you just need to order an “AT&T-compatible” SIM card, and your locked AT&T 3G GSM/UMTS/HSPA+ phone will work, sans unlocking, although you do need to perform additional steps to have full MMS support on the 3GS, 4 and 4S, but these steps thankfully no longer involve jailbreaking.

However, if you are unlocking an AT&T iPhone 4 or 4S for use on StraightTalk via their rebranded T-Mobile SIM, it should be noted that the APN menus to reset data and MMS access are locked out by default on AT&T models and can only be triggered via inserting foreign SIMs into the device, such as the aforementioned SIM. Steps to reset MMS settings are best handled via push delivery files offered by the online Unlockit service, and is the default settings file used by StraightTalk for their BYOD service for those wanting to use the iPhone.

We’ve covered each of these in the past, so frequent readers of PhoneNews.com should see all of the above as old news. However, we felt it important enough to save most folks from reading the rest of this primer. On the off chance that you do roam internationally, or if you just want to dump your iPhone on Craigslist, read on.

Important Note 2: You’ve Gotta Qualify… When AT&T Feels Like It

As a late-breaking note, AT&T tweaked their unlock policy at the last minute to give active-duty servicemen who are assigned abroad a huge break. If your line is used by someone assigned abroad, you can unlock your iPhone regardless of contract status.

If you don’t qualify for that break however, your iPhone must no longer be tied to a two-year agreement. Yes, AT&T’s unlocking policy states that you only had to be 90 days into a contract… but AT&T is breaking bending massaging rethinking their own rules when it comes to iPhone. Clearly, and plainly rethinking possible.

Previously, AT&T said they would unlock any device after your first 90 days into a contract, provided the device was not an exclusive to AT&T. Since iPhone 4S, clearly, AT&T doesn’t have an exclusive on any model of iPhone (3GS aside). Still, AT&T won’t honor their own policy when it comes to iPhone, and instead wrote a new one. Their answer if you don’t like it? Enter arbitration, and probably, go jump off a cliff. (Note, we didn’t ask them on that last part… we rarely receive a reply from AT&T media relations).

This isn’t the first time we’ve taken air to call out AT&T Mobility changing the rules mid-game, and we’re sure it won’t be the last. It’s why we don’t have contracts, iPhones, or accounts with AT&T Mobility. To be clear, you can still be in a contract with AT&T, you just cannot have a contract tied to the iPhone. For example, let’s say you bought an iPhone 3GS twenty-two months ago. Today, you upgraded to a Nokia Lumia 900, and signed a new two-year contract. AT&T will now allow you to unlock the iPhone 3GS.

Important Note 3: Know Before You Go (Call Customer Service)

We’re receiving a lot of reports that AT&T is having issues unlocking iPhones. Sources indicate this may be linked to one call center being poorly educated, though most AT&T customer service representatives are unlocking iPhones properly.

  • If you are told to go to an AT&T retail store to unlock your iPhone, politely end the call, and call AT&T customer service back. An AT&T retail store cannot unlock your iPhone. Period.

Similar to international unlocks with CDMA-carrier iPhone 4S devices, Apple is the one that actually executes the unlocking codes on their end. The request however is initiated by AT&T customer service. Once they validate that your iPhone qualifies for an unlock, they will send a request for Apple to unlock your iPhone.

This is where the AT&T iPhone unlock process starts to differ. Unlike the CDMA-carrier iPhone 4S unlock process, your device actually is unlocked during an iTunes Restore of the device’s firmware. This is because unlike the international CDMA 4S unlock, you will be able to put a SIM card into your iPhone 4S without phoning home to Apple’s servers.

This is important, actually, as the CDMA 4S international unlock has been widely criticized. It requires a customer to find a working Wi-Fi connection, in the foreign country, in order to be able to activate a foreign SIM card. Obviously, a traveler in a foreign country may have problems doing that… especially if they’ve never connected to a Wi-Fi hotspot abroad before.

The good news is the iTunes Restore process is permanent. iTunes will backup your device, restore its firmware, and issue the unlock codes to the iPhone’s baseband. From then on, your AT&T iPhone is unlocked for life. It can’t be re-locked even if used on another iTunes account, which is the biggest fear for most that have had their devices unlocked in the past couple of days since the policy went into effect on Sunday.

And, from initial reports, when AT&T does unlock an iPhone properly with Apple, the process is pretty instant. Users have reported unlocking their iPhones during the phone call with AT&T customer service while others have reported delays of at least 2-3 days, depending on the time of day when the unlocks were requested.

When AT&T customer service doesn’t work, that’s when the problems start. In addition to being told to go to an AT&T retail store, customers have been told to report to Apple iPhone technical support, various support pages, among other dead ends. Again, the solution is to politely accept that you’re talking to an untrained/mis-trained representative, and call back to try again.

Hopefully this guide will help ease your own experiences with unlocking an off-contract iPhone. Please let us know your experience with the process in the comments, we’ll be monitoring for any major changes that may be used in future articles on the subject.

Nokia Offering Additional $100 Instant Rebate to All Lumia 900 Owners Until April 21st

Nokia, Microsoft and AT&T spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the development of the Lumia 900 Windows Phone smartphone in order to effectively relaunch the middling platform in the US after a fairly unsuccessful 2011 filled with discontinued hardware, cancelled handsets and increasingly marginalized perception despite being a critical darling since launch.

The April 8th launch did little to help matters, as the majority of AT&T locations were closed for the Easter holiday and those that were opened specifically to sell the Lumia 900 as part of a larger launch event either did not have the handsets in stock, or worse, only had one or two units to fulfill customer purchases without even taking into account the launch being overshadowed by AT&T’s change in policy that now allows for iPhones to be unlocked as long as certain requirements are met.

Now, the latest problem for the flagship Windows Phone handset centers around software issues that are affecting select owners with extensive memory management and data issues that have forced Nokia and AT&T to develop a bugfix update, spending yet more money on the initiative. In order to make up for that, Nokia is spending even more money by offering all Lumia 900 owners the chance to redeem an additional $100 instant rebate for all customers that purchased the phone, effectively matching the free after rebate and 2 year agreement promotion offered to new customers that pre-ordered the phone.

Of course, the catch is that the offer is good until April 21st. Additionally, owners will be able to exchange purchased launch units for brand new versions on April 16th with proof of purchase. The update which will fix the aforementioned memory management and data connection issues is expected to be offered within the next few days, but the rebate is meant to be an honest goodwill gesture towards any and all customers that may have been affected by the bug, as well as addressing complaints from those customers that upgraded to the phone about new customers getting the better deal over those that have been with AT&T for a substantial length of time, reflecting the attitude that wireless carriers take to longstanding customers compared to new customers.

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Nokia, Microsoft and AT&T spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the development of the Lumia 900 Windows Phone smartphone in order to effectively relaunch the middling platform in the US after a fairly unsuccessful 2011 filled with discontinued hardware, cancelled handsets and increasingly marginalized perception despite being a critical darling since launch.

The April 8th launch did little to help matters, as the majority of AT&T locations were closed for the Easter holiday and those that were opened specifically to sell the Lumia 900 as part of a larger launch event either did not have the handsets in stock, or worse, only had one or two units to fulfill customer purchases without even taking into account the launch being overshadowed by AT&T’s change in policy that now allows for iPhones to be unlocked as long as certain requirements are met.

Now, the latest problem for the flagship Windows Phone handset centers around software issues that are affecting select owners with extensive memory management and data issues that have forced Nokia and AT&T to develop a bugfix update, spending yet more money on the initiative. In order to make up for that, Nokia is spending even more money by offering all Lumia 900 owners the chance to redeem an additional $100 instant rebate for all customers that purchased the phone, effectively matching the free after rebate and 2 year agreement promotion offered to new customers that pre-ordered the phone.

Of course, the catch is that the offer is good until April 21st. Additionally, owners will be able to exchange purchased launch units for brand new versions on April 16th with proof of purchase. The update which will fix the aforementioned memory management and data connection issues is expected to be offered within the next few days, but the rebate is meant to be an honest goodwill gesture towards any and all customers that may have been affected by the bug, as well as addressing complaints from those customers that upgraded to the phone about new customers getting the better deal over those that have been with AT&T for a substantial length of time, reflecting the attitude that wireless carriers take to longstanding customers compared to new customers.

jeudi 5 avril 2012

Sprint and HTC Announce EVO 4G LTE

In a press event held earlier today HTC and Sprint have announced the next model in Sprint’s HTC EVO line of flagship Android smartphones with the HTC EVO 4G LTE.

The phone will be released in the second quarter for $199.99 after new 2 year agreement and pre-orders for the phone will begin on May 7. This is Sprint’s version of HTC’s flagship One X smartphone announced earlier this year.

Starting with the phone, the following key features are updated from the 4G and EVO 3D:

· Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich, integrated with Sense™ 4.0

· 4.7-inch HD super LCD display at 720p resolution

· 1.5GHz Dual-Core Qualcomm™ Snapdragon S4 Processor

· Near Field Communication for information transfer and mobile wallet support

· Google Wallet support

· Android Beam™ support to quickly share Web pages, apps and YouTube™ videos with friends using NFC by simply tapping phones together

· 3G/4G mobile hotspot capability, supporting up to 8 Wi-Fi enabled devices simultaneously

· Wi-Fi® – 802.11 a/b/g/n

ENTERTAINMENT

· 8-megapixel camera with f/2.0 lens, super-fast auto-focus, digital zoom and smart LED flash; HTC ImageSense to take great photos, in adverse conditions; front-facing 1.3-megapixel camera with 1080p video recording.

· Beats Audio support at the operating system level

· 3.5 mm headset jack

SPECIFICATIONS

· Dimensions: 5.3 x 2.7 x 0.35 inches (LxWxT)

· Weight: 4.7 ounces

· Display: 4.7-inch HD 720p super LCD (1280 x 720), 16.7 million colors

· Battery: Imbedded 2000mAh Lithium Ion (Li-ion) battery

· Memory: 16GB internal memory* (ROM); 1GB RAM; supports up to 32GB microSD card (sold separately)

The phone will be one of the first phones to support Sprint’s forthcoming LTE network, expected to launch in mid-June in Atlanta, Baltimore, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City and San Antonio. Sprint has also confirmed that the carrier will allow all current unlimited data plans on the network with no restrictions of any sort.

The phone is also notable for being one of the first An

mardi 3 avril 2012

Sprint Restarting LG Optimus S Gingerbread Update Wednesday

After first being rolled out, then pulled in September due to unforeseen issues, Sprint has confirmed via its Buzz About Wireless forum that the LG Optimus S Android Gingerbread update will be made available in waves starting this Wednesday. This follows Sprint’s own assurances made to PhoneNews.com in November of 2011 regarding the status of the update and that it would be made available once the issues were addressed, but no one expected such a long delay.

While the update will fix issues that were present in the previous version and add additional functionality, there is still no word on such an update for the Virgin Mobile version of the phone, months after multiple reports confirmed that such an update would be made available in 2011.

The LG Optimus S and V were both Sprint’s and Virgin Mobile’s variants of the original LG Optimus One Android smartphone, which was notable for being the most well-rounded mid-range Android smartphone, spawning many carrier variants and really finding its niche on prepaid services. Sprint and Virgin Mobile rolled out their variants in early 2011 to shore up their burgeoning Android lineups to great success, with Virgin pushing the phone to an unprecedented sales success thank to the combination of unlimited data access at $25 (yet to be matched) and the lower than expected launch price of $179.99 while other prepaid versions and even the unlocked version were selling for as high as $249.99.

While Sprint eventually updated its version starting last year before suffering the setback with the bug-filled update in September, Sprint confirmed to PhoneNews.com that Virgin Mobile did not plan to offer the update to the Optimus V. While the revival of the update on Sprint does demonstrate that the carrier is indeed willing to update devices that are officially on the End of Life list, the same cannot be said for Virgin Mobile, boiling down to simple economics and a new Optimus device.

Previous attempts by Virgin Mobile to offer updates for its slate of Android devices were typically met with frustration and angst, as the provider continually missed launch targets for updates due to unexplained delays. By breaking with that effort and instead focusing on releasing updates with new hardware, it makes it harder for customers on prepaid to justify spending money on devices without the guarantee of timely updates and ensures that customers will be left behind in terms of support, with no real recourse other than relying on the Android mod and hacker community for an update which Virgin Mobile should have provided as soon as was possible. To add to the situation, LG even had the update ready for Virgin Mobile to rollout over the air, but just decided not to, preferring instead to offer a slightly updated successor to the Optimus V detailed below.

Rumors of a successor to the Optimus S and V have been circulating since the end of last year and this may explain why Virgin Mobile is actively refusing to roll out the update. The new replacement, which will be known as the Optimus Elite will feature slight upgrades from the Optimus variants with the key addition of NFC for mobile wallet support, as Sprint is supporting Google’s Wallet initiative. With Virgin Mobile getting ready to refresh its Android lineup beginning in May, the virtual operator has EOL’d the Optimus V for the Elite instead of offering extended support, which breaks with the provider’s typical effort to update devices and will only upset those that owned the previous phone.