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iPad mini may not offer cellular option, relegated to Wi-Fi only?
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Handhelds, Rumors, Wireless / WiFi,
Apple's current worst-kept secret is the impending announcement and arrival of the iPad mini, a 7.85-inch version of the world's most popular tablet. What we don't know are all the details like price or specific features. The current rumor being circulated is that the iPad mini will be available in a Wi-Fi-only configuration, with no cellular option. We're on the fence on this one. On one hand, leaving out the LTE chip allows Apple to price these competitively without making the top-end model cost more than the entry-level new iPad. This keeps things more in line with the $199 price points of the Kindle Fire HD and Google Nexus 7 tablets. However, having cellular in the iPad mini seems to be the killer setup. Just slide one into your suit jacket pocket and you have portable tablet connectivity on the go. We know plenty of people who would happily pay the additional $130 above the iPad price tag for the LTE option. I guess those folks can always tether, right?
What’s your prediction? Will the iPad mini be offered with a cellular option? Apple has reportedly ordered 10 million iPad mini units from its suppliers, so it looks like the company expects this one to be huge.
Read More 
| The Guardian
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Verizon fixes iPhone 5 glitch that consumed data while connected to Wi-Fi
Posted by Jason Diaz Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Handhelds, Software, Wireless / WiFi,
It appears that iPhone 5 users on the Verizon network were using up their allotted data while connected to Wi-Fi networks. Fortunately, there is a carrier setting update that resolves this issue. As such, this is a highly recommended update for all users on Big Red, even those on unlimited data plans and, of course, those who are on the tiered or shared data plans. It appears that no other carrier is affected by this but, just in case, keep a close watch on your data usage for any funny business.
Click to continue reading Verizon fixes iPhone 5 glitch that consumed data while connected to Wi-Fi
Read More | Apple Support
iOS 6 Wi-Fi bug keeping users from connecting to their local networks
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Software, Wireless / WiFi,
We are hearing reports from users who have upgraded to iOS 6 today that are experiencing an odd Wi-Fi bug, and Gear Live has been able to replicate the issue on our iPhone 4S units. When attempting to connect to a Wi-Fi network, you get kicked over to a nonexistent Wi-Fi authentication page on Apple's website. Since the page doesn't even exist, you just end up getting a 404 error, and kicked off of the network that you tried to connect to. It remains to be seen how Apple fixes this, and if it is something that can be repaired in the back end, or if a new build of iOS 6 will need to be released. Either way, there are plenty of unhappy iPhone users right now who are having to resort to using their data connections since Wi-Fi is failing miserably.
Read More | Apple
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AT&T launches LTE in Seattle, Portland right before iPhone 5 launch
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Corporate News, Wireless / WiFi,
If there's one feature to sway AT&T iPhone customers over to Verizon, it's the fact that Big Red has launched LTE in a ton of markets while AT&T plays catch-up. Tonight, AT&T closed the gap a bit with the launch of its LTE network in both Seattle and Portland, two major metropolitan areas that may have otherwise seen a hefty exodus when the iPhone 5 launches this Friday. Being that Gear Live is based here in the Seattle area, we started getting reports from a bunch of readers that their Lumia 900 devices were all of a sudden showing LTE connectivity. Sure enough, we confirmed it with our own unit, and AT&T followed up with a press release letting everyone know that LTE was now live in both Seattle and Portland areas. Readers are seeing speeds as high as 22Mbps down and 12Mbps up.
We've reached out to AT&T for information on just how large the LTE deployment is in these two metropolitan areas, as Verizon definitely has the entire greater region in each area covered in LTE.
Read More | The Verge
Apple iPhone 5 LTE partners: AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and more
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Corporate News, Wireless / WiFi,
During this morning's iPhone 5 event, Apple announced that the iPhone 5 would support LTE, and the list of carriers is huge, spanning the globe. In the US, AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon will all support the new iPhone LTE capabilities. Over in Canada, Bell, Rogers, Fido, Virgin Mobile, Telus, and Koodo are all ready for iPhone 5 LTE action. Where Europe is concerned, T-Mobile and the new EE network in the UK are on board. Asia will see Softbank, SKT, KDDI, KT, SmarTone, and SingTei all offering iPhone 5 LTE connectivity. All that said, get ready for much, much faster LTE data if you happen to live in an LTE-supported area, and watch your data caps!
Check out our iPhone 5 event live coverage!
WSJ: The iPhone 5 will support 4G LTE in multiple areas worldwide
Posted by Jason Diaz Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Handhelds, Rumors, Wireless / WiFi,
This afternoon, the WSJ is reporting that Apple's iPhone 5 will indeed support LTE. There's additional good news for frequent travelers: it will support more LTE bands for global coverage throughout the United States, Europe, and Asian markets. Currently, Apple offers two flavors of LTE for the third generation iPad, which also runs on both Verizon and AT&T networks.
Click to continue reading WSJ: The iPhone 5 will support 4G LTE in multiple areas worldwide
Read More | WSJ
Help stop AT&T from blocking FaceTime over Cellular from the majority of its customers
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Corporate News, Wireless / WiFi,
The fine folks over at FreePress are asking the public to take action in an attempt to convince AT&T to reconsiders its position on blocking iOS 6 feature FaceTime over Cellular for all customers unless they switch to a Mobile Share plan. It's an obvious money-grab, a way to encourage its unlimited data users to leave those plans behind, and it shows preferential treatment on how users can use their own data plans. We're signing, and we encourage you to do the same. According to Public Knowledge:
“By blocking FaceTime for many of its customers, AT&T is violating the FCC’s Open Internet rules. These rules state that mobile providers shall not ‘block applications that compete with the provider’s voice or video telephony services.’ Although carriers are permitted to engage in ‘reasonable network management,’ there is no technical reason why one data plan should be able to access FaceTime, and another not. ‘Over-the-top’ communications services like FaceTime are a threat to carriers’ revenue, but they should respond by competing with these services and not by engaging in discriminatory behavior.”
Read More | FreePress
AT&T to launch Mobile Share data plans on August 23
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Smartphones, Corporate News, Wireless / WiFi,
Mobile carriers in the U.S. are finally jumping on board with shared data plans, allowing customers with multiple devices to draw from the same data bucket. Unfortunately, for most of these, it's a horrible deal financially. Still, there are some who'd appreciate this kind of thing, and as such we want to let you know that AT&T will be launching it's shared data plans beginning on August 23rd. You can set up all your devices like smartphones, tablets, gaming devices (like the Playstation Vita,) mobile hotspots, and more to all draw from one bucket of data beginning on that date. AT&T has set up a page where you can calculate what it would cost to add all your devices to a single plan.
Read More | AT&T
AT&T charging for FaceTime over Cellular is double-dipping consumer robbery
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Smartphones, Editorial, Features, Handhelds, Wireless / WiFi,
With the release of iOS 6 beta 3 yesterday, a disturbing "feature" was uncovered. Some users on with AT&T iPhones are reporting that, when they attempt to enable FaceTime over Cellular, a prompt pops up that tells the user to contact AT&T in order to enable the feature. Many are assuming that this means that AT&T will be looking to charge a premium for customers to use FaceTime over its data connection, and if that is the case, it is straight up consumer robbery.
Sprint LTE network is now live in Texas, Georgia, and Missouri
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Broadband, Smartphones, Wireless / WiFi,
Sprint has officially announced that the first 15 cities to be lit up with its LTE service are now live. Unfortunately, it's a slow start, but at least it's something. If you are in select areas of Georgia, Texas, or Missouri, then you're in luck if you've also got a Sprint LTE device. The full list of cities:
Atlanta, GA; Athens, GA; Calhoun, GA; Carrollton, GA; Newnan, GA: Rome, GA; Dallas, TX; Fort Worth, TX; Granbury-Hood County, TX; Houston, TX; Huntsville, TX; San Antonio, TX; Waco, TX; Kansas City, MO-KA; St. Joseph, MO
Let us know how it's working for you!
Read More | Sprint
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