4G - 9/12 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Oct

Bill In US Senate Wants To Force Carriers To Say Just How Fast And Expansive Their "4G" Is, Carriers Respond Predictably

Posted by David Ruddock in 4G, News

4G. The acronym is probably the most abused term in tech industry since "HD." And if you spend as much time reading up on mobile phone news as us (we hope you don't, that's what we're for!), you probably have come to the same conclusion: it's almost without meaning, constantly misrepresented, and defined on a completely subjective basis. We don't like any of this.

Neither do some of the members of congress, apparently. Today, a bill was introduced in the U.S. Senate that would require carriers to disclose the following information to consumers about their supposed "4G" services:

4G Minimum data speed
4G Network reliability
4G Coverage area maps
4G Pricing
4G Network tech used
Conditions which may affect network speed

It's kind of a lot.

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

Sprint Announces 4G Switch From WiMax To LTE By 2013

Posted by Ron Amadeo in 4G, News, Sprint

Sprint announced today it will be switching 4G technologies from WiMax to LTE. The LTE network should go live in mid 2012 and and have a "full rollout" by 2013. Sprint eventually hopes to double current amount of 4G customers with its LTE rollout.

Joining the LTE ranks puts Sprint in the same technology corner as AT&T and Verizon, with only T-Mobile still clinging to HSPA+. Sprint's slice of the LTE airways will be the 800 and 1900Mhz spectrum and, pending the FCC's blessing, 1600MHz.

The LTE device wave will start in 2012 with 15+ devices. Phones will be dual-mode CDMA/LTE and even some tri-mode CDMA/LTE/WiMax mobile hotspots.

Sep

Rogers Rolls Out LTE For Major Canadian Cities, Leaks Pricing For Device Line Up

Posted by Zak Stinson in 4G, Galaxy S II, HTC, Jetstream, News, Rogers

After just over a year of envious grumbling, the Canadians have finally gotten their first taste of LTE. Rogers Wireless announced today that true 4G speeds are available to customers in specific coverage areas in Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Vancouver.

While this is surely a cause for excitement for my fellow Canucks, the devices that are currently on this new network aren't. At the time of launch, the only LTE device available to consumers is the Sierra Wireless AirCard 313U, a mobile "LTE Rocket stick" for laptops. On October 18, the HTC Jetstream will hit the market, with an LTE version of the Galaxy S II and the Sierra AirCard 754S mobile hotspot to follow in the weeks after.

Sep

T-Mobile Follows Verizon's Lead, Tells Court Not To Allow Apple To Ban Import Of Samsung Android Devices

Posted by David Ruddock in 4G, Android OS, News, Samsung, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless

Everyone's getting on the peace train, it seems. T-Mobile, in concert with Verizon's filing last week, submitted an amicus curiae ("friend of the court") brief to the Federal Court for the Northern District of California this morning in regard to the ongoing patent and trademark suit between Samsung and Apple. Its contents? Basically the same thing Verizon's said - that denying Americans their 4G Samsung devices just for some silly little patent infringement will hurt 4G deployment in the US and decrease access to high-speed mobile broadband. T-Mobile actually refers to Verizon's brief in their own document, basically saying "Yeah, whatever he said, too."

After T-Mobile's statement regarding the fact that it still doesn't have the iPhone earlier this week (as though customers needed a reminder), this brief is a pretty logical step for the company to take.

Sep

Sprint To Keep Unlimited Data Plans (For Now), Says Chief Technology Officer Stephen Bye

Posted by Liam Spradlin in 4G, News, Sprint

With other carriers (such as Verizon and AT&T) cutting their unlimited data plans, rumblings have understandably emerged that Sprint may be planning to follow suit.

That, fortunately, is not the case according to Stephen Bye, Sprint's Chief Technology Officer. Bye addressed this topic while speaking to those attending the GigaOm Mobilize Conference in San Francisco yesterday.

Bye indicated that Sprint sees its dedication to unlimited data as a differentiator from other carriers (except when it comes to mobile hotspot, evidently), explaining that not all unlimited subscribers use the same amount of data, as well as the fact that tiered data plans carry hidden costs related to customer care and support.

Sep

[Updated x2: Root May Not Be Related After All] Epic 4G Touch Experiencing Loss Of Service Bug On Some Devices

Posted by David Ruddock in 4G, Android OS, Epic 4G Touch, News, Sprint

Update: After receiving a distraught email from Team ACS, it has been brought to our attention that their root method may not be the cause of signal loss on the Epic 4G Touch. We're currently researching the details and will update this post accordingly.

Update x2: According to new information we received, there have been reports of this same issue happening on non-rooted phones. We're not sure how things got twisted around to point the finger at rooted devices, but we do know that Sprint is looking into it.

Have you rooted your Epic Touch 4G? Apparently, some users who have tried to flash Zedomax and ACS's custom kernel have experienced a loss of signal bug.

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.

Sep

Verizon Wireless Adding 21+ New Cities To Its 4G LTE Network On October 20

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

Last Updated: October 10th, 2011

A new month, a new batch of cities all lined up to get the LTE treatment, courtesy of Big Red. This go around, we're hearing that at least 21 new cities will be getting blanketed in VZW's ultra-fast LTE network, a follow up to the 26 that were just activated. The list of cities isn't available in its entirety just yet, but here's what we have so far: