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Posts Tagged “

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cellphones

Helio and Virgin Mobile to Merge?

mocoNews reports talks are going on between Helio and Virgin Mobile USA about a possible merger between the two wireless phone carriers. Helio has had some finanical issues over the past year, and its owner, SK Telecom, has been looking to make a splash in US markets. Current talks include SK Telecom buying out Virgin Mobile USA, infusing it with cash, and having Virgin Mobile buy out Helio via stock purchase. Seeing as both carriers operate on Sprint's network, technical logistics won't be a huge hurdle, which leaves financials to deal with. But this is still very much in the early stages. [mocoNews via Phone Scoop]

3:45 PM on Thu May 8 2008
By Adrian Covert
1,794 views, 11 comments

Latest by Mongoose: This to me feels like Sprint/Nextel: Bad idea. Virgin Mobile makes its money on cheapskates and the young, and has decent success being a low-end provider with some good deals on text packages. Helio, counterwise, is after the moneyed edge of more »

question of the day

Which Mobile Carrier Sucks the Most?

Even the best carriers have their fair share of critics. Whether the problem is dropped calls, poor reception, billing issues or excessive fees—chances are you have been screwed by at least one (if not several) carriers during your lifetime. That having been said, which carrier has given you the most trouble? Feel free to elaborate and vent in the comments. You will certainly feel a lot better.
More »

8:00 PM on Mon Feb 11 2008
By Sean Fallon
48,476 views, 182 comments

cellphones

Cell Boosters Will Get You Into Trouble -- Or Maybe Not

The New York Times has some options to improve the sad situation of current cell carrier coverage in some areas of the US. From passive options, like the $34.95 Freedom Antenna, to repeaters and signal boosters, like the $299 Spotwave Z1900 or the $399 Wi-Ex zBoost, which uses a 16-inch are-you-boosting-or-just-happy-to-see-me tube antenna. These boosters are FCC approved for consumer use but, apparently, you will run into problems if you ever decide to turn them on. The carriers say that they may wreak havoc in their networks, endanger lives by disrupting emergency services, kill puppies all over the world and destroy entire universes. Meanwhile, the manufacturers say that, while this may be true sometimes, their systems avoid such extremes. And finally, the FCC just seems clueless about their own conflicting regulations on the matter. Maybe the carriers should move their collective butts and either clarify their policy or extend their networks. Maybe that way we won't have to carry antennas like the one after the jump to get proper coverage. – Jesus Diaz More »

8:35 AM on Thu Mar 1 2007
By www.gizmodo.com
2,616 views, 7 comments

Latest by banlieurouge: I have a Spotwave Z1900 (Zen?) and it works great in our small web design shop. We went from zero bars to 3-5 depending on where you are in the office. Seems to do what they claim it to more »

cellphones

AT&T to Kill Cingular

Not sure why we didn't see this earlier, but everyone's favorite wireless brand, Cingular, is going to go bye-bye. AT&T is currently purchasing Cingular's parent company, BellSouth, and will remove the Cingular name, replacing it with the euphonious AT&T Wireless. Gone, too, will be the dancing orange fellow we all know and love. More »

12:38 PM on Wed May 10 2006
By johnb
1,511 views, 19 comments

cellphones

JitterBug: Cellphones for the Old


Samsung and GreatCall Inc. just announced a carrier/cellphone combo for the aged and infirm. Jitterbug costs about $10-$25 per month and includes a big fat phone with one-touch dialing, a simple interface, and a makes a dial-tone sound when opened. Now gramps will have some way to call home when he wanders into the mall while yelling about the Nazis and can't figure out his way home. More »

4:30 PM on Thu Apr 6 2006
By johnb
5,863 views, 6 comments

wireless

CDMA Dead? Carriers May Switch Standards

Siemens, makers of GSM switching hardware and, in conjunction with BenQ, GSM phones, is saying that CDMA is on its way out in North America. Ummmm... Right. According to the peeps over at Siemens, more carriers are looking to migrate to the standard GSM networks instead of using CDMA. With market share of CDMA declining more and more every year, companies are looking to GSM for an answer. Numbers may or may not lie, but Sprint and Verizon ain't going anywhere, that's for sure. In related news, Coke execs said that Pepsi causes massive cramping and Apple says that Spain is going PowerPC all the way, eschewing Intel completely. More »

10:07 AM on Thu Dec 15 2005
By gizmodo.com
1,110 views, 5 comments

Latest by skip: Sorry non-meat-stick, but the two will never converge. They will overlay and some carriers may switch from one to the other (from CDMA to WCDMA) but though the two will not unite, they are not completely dissimilar. WCDMA more »