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Oct

Samsung Galaxy Nexus Not Exclusive To Verizon After All?

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Galaxy Nexus, News, Verizon Wireless

How long have we been hearing that the Galaxy Nexus would be exclusive to Verizon? Quite a while -- probably since rumors of the "Nexus Prime" first started surfacing. It looks like those rumors have been around so long that Verizon itself started to believe it, too... until they were told it wasn't true.

Last night, Big Red threw an exclusive tag on Galaxy Nexus banners floating around on its site. Today, however, that specific tag seems to have vanished into thin air. Was it Halloween trickery? Alien abduction? Or perhaps a hint that Verizon won't be the only US carrier carrying the GN?

Oct

Verizon Expanding Its 4G LTE Network By 13 New Cities On November 17th

Posted by Cameron Summerson in 4G, News, Verizon Wireless

Last Updated: January 9th, 2012

On October 20th, VZW will be turning on LTE coverage in 20 new markets, and this morning, an announcement was sent out with details of 13 new cities that will be added to the mix on November 17th:

Little Rock, AR
Savannah, GA
Cedar Rapids and Des Moines, IA
Lexington, KY
Kansas City and Springfield, MO
Lincoln, NE
Orange County, NY
Greater Providence, Rapid City, SD
Roanoke, VA
Appleton, WS

It's clear that Big Red has no intentions of slowing down until it blankets the entire country with super-fast LTE, and at the rate it's going, that day will probably be pretty soon.

Oct

Editorial: 5 Reasons Why I Think The iPhone 4S Is The Least Competitive iPhone Yet

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, Editorials, News, Off-Topic

I’d like to start by stating I am not a rabid Android “fanboy.” In fact, I heavily considered the iPhone 3GS back in the day (er, last year), before deciding to pick up my Nexus One instead. Admittedly, I was a bit bedazzled by the concept of a “Google phone” and, as a confessed mega-geek, I found the bleeding-edge experience Android offered to be more exciting for some reason.

So I chose an Android device. When the iPhone 4 was released, I'll be the first to admit that I was jealous. Like it or not, Apple’s Retina display and buttery-smooth iOS UI remain rivaled only by Samsung’s Galaxy S II, and I still staunchly believe Apple builds superior products to anyone in the smartphone industry in terms of build quality and hardware design.

Oct

Court Accepts Verizon And T-Mobile Briefs Supporting Samsung, Denies Apple's Request To Respond

Posted by David Ruddock in Android OS, Legal, News, Samsung, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless

When Verizon and T-Mobile filed amicus curiae briefs in favor of Samsung in the company's ongoing patent litigation against Apple in the Federal Court for the Northern District of California, we cheered inside a little. It's always nice to see Android and its handset partners have friends in high places.

However, the question of how the court would respond to these briefs remained - as the decision is an entirely discretionary one. Yesterday, the judge hearing the case accepted both Verizon and T-Mobile's briefs, in full, into consideration regarding Apple's proposed preliminary injunction which would seek to ban the import of certain Samsung Android handsets.

Sep

Verizon Has A Bug List For The DROID BIONIC, First Maintenance Update Coming In November

Posted by David Ruddock in Bionic, Motorola, News, Verizon Wireless

The DROID BIONIC, it's no secret, hasn't been launched bug-free. In fact, there's a number of bugs, particularly the dreaded data connection drop, that make using the BIONIC a major annoyance at times. Verizon has apparently been keeping track, and has a very detailed list of the glitches currently afflicting the phone, given to a customer in a support e-mail (weird, we know). The good folks over at Droid-life have compiled a "Top 10" bug list along with all the reported issues (here), and we've excerpted a few that we've noticed most:

1. Issue: 4G/3G Service – Data Connectivity

Marginal 4G to 3G transition: Loss of data connectivity – The device may display 3G service indication but no data connections are possible.

Sep

HTC ThunderBolt Gingerbread Update Page Pops Up On Verizon - Same Build We Posted 3 Days Ago

Posted by David Ruddock in Gingerbread 2.3, HTC, News, Thunderbolt (Mecha), Verizon Wireless

If you're having difficulty controlling your desire to get Gingerbread on your HTC Thunderbolt right now, you're not alone. But, if you've been waiting for the official release, you've probably grown very impatient by this point. It appears the wait is nearing an end, as Verizon's support site now contains a page for the Thunderbolt's long-overdue bump to Android 2.3.4. Here are the changes they've listed:

Verizon Wireless is pleased to announce a new software update, Build Number: 2.11.605.3; Baseband: 1.48.00.0906w_1, 0.01.78.0906w_2, for your ThunderBolt by HTC. This update provides several improvements for your device, as well as upgrading to the Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) Operating System (OS).

Sep

Deal Alert: Motorola DROID X2 Now Just $0.01 With An Additional $50 Gift Card At Amazon Wireless

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Deals, Droid X2, Motorola, Verizon Wireless

Let's not beat around the bush here: the DROID X2 is hardly the star of Motorola and Verizon's DROID production, what with its PenTile display and CDMA-only radio. But then again, it's not a complete train wreck; and besides, who doesn't love a free phone? Oops, did I say free? I meant you actually get $50 back in the form of a gift card due to a promotion Amazon is currently running. Not bad, huh?

As you can see, that's precisely (or at least almost precisely) what Amazon's mobile division, Amazon Wireless, is doing: it's now selling the DROID X2 for just one cent with a new two-year VZW contract.

Sep

Motorola XOOM 2 Pictures Leak Out: Angled Corners, "HD" Camera, And... The Same Weight As The Original XOOM?

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in Motorola, News, Verizon Wireless, XYBOARD / XOOM 2

The Motorola XOOM was a truly unique device: it marked the beginning of the Android tablet era, stole a portion (admittedly a very small one) of the iPad 2's pre-announcement hype, and... weighed about as much as a tank driven by Chris Christie.

Well now its successor, the XOOM 2, has begun to hit the rumor mill - just a few minutes ago, Droid Life leaked two pictures of the slate:

We don't have a ton of information on the device as of yet, but DL's "sources" say that its weight is similar to that of the XOOM (!), and it has "big physical flush" buttons on its back, HDMI and microUSB ports on its bottom, and a SIM card slot.

Sep

[Deal Alert] Amazon Drops DROID BIONIC To $150 With A New Verizon Account, Still Includes $50 Gift Card

Posted by David Ruddock in 4G, Bionic, Deals, Motorola, Verizon Wireless

Last Updated: September 24th, 2011

Amazon has reduced the price of the Motorola DROID BIONC for new Verizon subscribers to just $150 - and you'll get a free $50 Amazon Gift Card to boot, which would probably wisely be spent on a spare battery and charger.

Verizon's first dual-core phone to feature LTE and a qHD display (with somewhat yucky PenTile subpixel rendering), the BIONIC is definitely Verizon's current powerhouse handset.

For current Verizon customers, the price remains unchanged: $250 with a renewal of your 2-year agreement. You can check out our review of the DROID BIONIC (which I think is a pretty good phone) here.

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.