3g - 4/8 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Sep

Dear Verizon: Your 4G Phones Have Data Connectivity Problems, And It’s Really Pissing Everyone Off

Posted by David Ruddock in 4G, Bionic, Charge (i510), Editorials, HTC, LG, Motorola, News, Revolution, Samsung, Thunderbolt (Mecha), Verizon Wireless

When I switched from AT&T from Verizon and swapped my aging, battered, and bruised Nexus One for a DROID BIONIC, the possibility of buyer’s remorse was not on my mind. I was coming from AT&T - America’s single least reliable network in terms of dropped calls. So, I thought the last thing I’d end up doing was wishing I was back there. And now, at least part of me does.

If you own a Verizon 4G LTE handset, you’ve probably experienced an issue exactly or approximately like this one: You put your phone in your pocket or let it sit overnight, take it out some time later or the next morning, and there’s no data connection.

Sep

[Weekend Poll] Tablet Fight: 3G/4G Vs. Wi-Fi Only?

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in Devices By Manufacturer, Polls

This is the latest in our Weekend Poll series. For last week's, see What Is Your Maximum Screen Size For A Phone?

Tablets come in two flavors: either Wi-Fi only, or packing 3G/4G from a carrier. In the former, it can be purchased without a contract and usually for a lower price. The 3G/4G model typically costs more (although it may be cheaper thanks to a carrier subsidy, which is offset by the cost of the plan), and comes on contract. The benefit of that added radio and contract is fairly obvious - you have access to data nearly anywhere you go.

Sep

Latest EVO 3D PRL Forces Users To Use 2G - But You Can Fix It

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Development, EVO 3D (Shooter), HTC, Sprint

HTC has an above-average track record with software updates, but they appear to have misstepped with the most recent PRL version for the EVO 3D. For some unfathomable reason, said PRL (version number 50580) seems to be blocking Sprint's 3G network for a lot of users; as a result, they are left with no choice but to rely on the considerably slower 1xRTT technology (2G) for data.

Fortunately, there's still hope for those who unknowingly applied PRL 50580 - simply revert to the previous PRL (21081) using the instructions at Good and EVO. Note, however, that your device will need to be rooted, and an official fix probably isn't too far down the road.

Aug

How-To: Manually Update Your Verizon 3G XOOM To Android 3.2 HTJ85B (Rooted Or Unrooted, With Locked Or Unlocked Bootloaders)

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Development, Honeycomb 3.0/3.1/3.2, Motorola, News, Tablets, XOOM

The Android 3.2 update for the Verizon 3G (soon-to-be 4G) XOOM can be flashed right now, before it hits your device over-the-air.

Custom Recovery

If you've flashed a custom recovery (and gave up the warranty), you can find update instructions over at MDW - in this case, you don't need our instructions below. This option is good for those with unlocked bootloaders (though if you're rooted, it seems the only update option right now is to install a pre-rooted update which will wipe your device).

Stock Recovery - Unrooted, Locked Bootloader

However, if you decided that unlocking the bootloader is not worth voiding your warranty or simply don't feel comfortable unlocking, you can still install the update before Verizon decides to push it to you, using the stock recovery.

Aug

Verizon XOOM Android 3.2 Update Rolling Out Soon - SD Card Support Is Finally Here

Posted by David Ruddock in Honeycomb 3.0/3.1/3.2, News, Tips & Tutorials, Verizon Wireless, XOOM

Well, it's only taken about five months, but Verizon XOOM owners will finally be able to make use of that lovely microSD slot on the side of their tablet. Of course, the OTA update in question does a fair bit more than allow you to up your XOOM's already robust storage. Take a look at this list:

While Verizon (they're the ones publishing the update) doesn't explicitly state that the update, dubbed HTJ85 (has a nice ring to it, right?), brings Android 3.2 to the XOOM, it's clearly implied by the addition of "Screen Scaling Compatibility Mode" - a feature of Android 3.2 that we talked about a while ago.

Jul

Sprint To Start Throttling Virgin Mobile Smartphone Data - A Sign Of Things To Come?

Posted by David Ruddock in News, Sprint, Virgin Mobile

In what can only be described as a real sphincter-clencher for Sprint customers, the nation's last true unlimited smartphone data provider has made a move that may signal the eventual end of that philosophy.

Yesterday, Sprint announced that customers on its Virgin-branded pre-paid arm, Virgin Mobile, will now be subjected to data throttling after 2.5GB of usage in a month. Sprint claims this will only affect 3% of all Virgin mobile data subscribers. The throttling will limit data hogs to a paltry 256Kbits/s once they've capped out at the 2.5GB mark in a single month - which is actually a little better than what T-Mobile does (dropping people to EDGE speeds).

Jun

T-Mobile Appears To Be No Longer Blocking gTalk Calls Over 3G - Is It Working For You?

Posted by Artem Russakovskii in Google, News, Nexus S (Crespo/Soju), T-Mobile

When the new Google Talk with voice and video calling was launched, those of you on T-Mobile who wanted to place calls on 3G quickly found out that it wasn't at all possible. Rather than connecting you to your dog for an afternoon chat, the application stubbornly insisted on only operating through a Wi-Fi connection. At Google I/O 2011, I was able to dig up some more technical details surrounding this limitation, even further upsetting hopeful customers. Bummer.

The light at the end of the tunnel appeared out of nowhere today, when reddit user ep311 was suddenly able to call a friend from his Nexus S running Android 2.3.4, all on 3G while driving home from work.

Jun

Nielsen: Android Data Usage Only Averages 0.6GB A Month - Do Tiered Data Plans Make Sense?

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, Editorials, News

Nielsenwire released new smartphone figures this morning, with a focus on data consumption. Topping the list of the data consumers amongst the smartphone OS's was, of course, Android.

The average Android user utilizes 582MB (or roughly .6GB) of data per month - far less than what is allocated by any of the major carrier's plans. We often hear about consumers becoming feisty over data plan tier-ification or throttling, but how many people do these caps and throttles actually affect? According to Nielsen, less than 3% of smartphone users average data consumption exceeding 2GB per month. Now, this is combining all platforms - though Android obviously makes up the majority.

May

Casio G'zOne Commando Review: Built Like A Tank, And About As Fast As One, Too

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Casio, G'zOne Commando, Phone Reviews, Reviews, Verizon Wireless

Last Updated: July 24th, 2011

The Casio G'zOne Commando is a phone that knows what it is and what it isn't. It is not, for example, Casio's answer to the Galaxy S II or the EVO 3D - it simply doesn't have that much power under its rough, tough hood. But that rough, tough hood is precisely what makes the Commando stand out from the rest of the Android smartphone crowd - unlike your average piece of plastic, it is ready to take on the challenges of an outdoorsman's life (including but not limited to being submerged in water, thrown onto cement, or given the inevitable drop kick from time to time).

May

Fly To Europe Today And Pick Up An HTC Flyer With 3G For £599.99 Or WiFi For £479.99

Posted by Abhiroop Basu in Flyer, News

The HTC Dream, launched in 2008 by a then little-known Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer, took the world by storm as the first "Google-phone".

Now HTC is back delivering its tablet which is available today from the HTC Flyer Store in Europe. The 32GB 3G + WiFi version costs £599.99 ($975.88) and the 16GB WiFi-only version costs £479.99 ($781.38). These prices seem to be a lot higher than Best Buy's $499, but this is hardly surprising considering almost all electronics (notably Apple products) are much steeper in Europe.

The 7" tablet will also be available in-store in the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Greece, Portugal, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Romania.