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13 May 2008

The Networks Stream To Your Cell Phone on AT&T

Filed under: entertainment, mobile network operators - 13 May 2008

I managed to play with AT&T’s Cellular Video offering today. On their site, they offer clips to a wide variety of things. On the front …

21 February 2008

Sprint May Announce Even Cheaper Unlimited Plans

Filed under: mobile network operators - 21 Feb 2008

battle_of_morgarten.jpgGiven the announcements earlier this week that Sprint rivals Verizon Wireless, AT&T, and T-Mobile just announced, we haven’t really heard from Sprint on what they plan to do. They’ve announced a $120 all-you-can-eat …

20 February 2008

Why Unlimited Mobile Voice Means Higher ARPU For Carriers

Filed under: mobile network operators - 20 Feb 2008

Mushroom CloudIf you haven’t been following the various tech blogs over the past 24 hours or so, you’ve missed out on the announcements about Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile all offering “unlimited voice …

11 February 2008

Starbucks WiFi To Become AT&T WiFi Locations

Filed under: mobile network operators, wifi - 11 Feb 2008

I can’t say I saw this coming, but the word is out that Starbucks shreds their hotspot deal with T-Mobile and goes with AT&T. The good news is that T-Mobile customers will still be able to use the Starbucks …

9 February 2008

Followup on Costco Selling Contract-Free Phones

Filed under: mobile network operators - 09 Feb 2008

CostcoI went back to the Gig Harbor Costco on Friday to grab a bite to eat and see if they sold any other phones without a contract. There is one phone they sell …

5 February 2008

AT&T Mobility Reps Provide Wrong Answer To ETF Question

Filed under: gadgets, mobile network operators - 05 Feb 2008

at&tFrom the no duh department, the folks at AT&T Mobility were “secret shopped” by the folks at the Consumers Union. They asked what the early termination fee (ETF) was for a wireless …

1 February 2008

Prepaid GSM In The U.S.

Filed under: mobile network operators, telecom - 01 Feb 2008

GSM TowerA while ago, Luca Filigheddu asked me about prepaid mobile phone options in the U.S.. I wrote up a short email explaining it to him, and I thought a more comprehensive work piece on the subject as in order.

I’m only covering the two major GSM carriers in the U.S.: AT&T and T-Mobile. There are a number of mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) that make use of GSM, but I am not going to cover them. In some cases, you might find a slightly better deal with these MVNOs, but they typically only include voice and SMS service, no data service whatsoever.

I also realize that the CDMA carriers, especially those that are MVNOs, might even have better deals. I have no experience with them, nor do I want to do anything to encourage the use of CDMA. They’re not being covered.

One thing to keep in mind here in the U.S.: you pay for both incoming calls and SMS, unlike most of the rest of the world. You will need to factor that into your calculations for how many minutes you’ll need.

Details after the jump.

22 January 2008

AT&T’s SIM-only Plan Still Requires A Contract?

Filed under: mobile network operators, phoneboy, telecom - 22 Jan 2008

12754_hand_cuffs.jpgFor some reason I thought I wrote about this, but I can’t find the post. In any case, if you haven’t read it somewhere else, you can now order just a SIM …

20 December 2007

Uncle Walt Tells Mobile Operators To Loosen Their Grip On Innovation

Filed under: business, mobile network operators, nokia - 20 Dec 2007

This video was done by Walt Mossberg of The Wall Street Journal in October, well before the recent announcements from Verizon and AT&T about “opening their networks.” Even if …