Refresh Roundup: week of September 17th, 2012

Posted on 24/09/2012 by Zachary Lutz

Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!

Continue reading Refresh Roundup: week of September 17th, 2012

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Software, Mobile

Refresh Roundup: week of September 17th, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 23 Sep 2012 20:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments

Refresh Roundup: week of September 10th, 2012

Posted on 17/09/2012 by Zachary Lutz

Continue reading Refresh Roundup: week of September 10th, 2012

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Software, Mobile

Refresh Roundup: week of September 10th, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 16 Sep 2012 21:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments

Mobile Miscellany: week of September 10th, 2012

Posted on 16/09/2012 by Zachary Lutz

Not all mobile news is destined for the front page, but if you're like us and really want to know what's going on, then you've come to the right place. This past week, C Spire Wireless activated its first LTE networks and we discovered strong indication that Isis will leverage the GSMA's SIM-based NFC standard for its mobile payments system. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of September 10th, 2012.

Continue reading Mobile Miscellany: week of September 10th, 2012

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Software, Mobile

Mobile Miscellany: week of September 10th, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 15 Sep 2012 21:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments

Rogers boosting its LTE coverage in Canada, will cover 10 new cities by October 1st

Posted on 13/09/2012 by Jamie Rigg

We're sure it's just coincidence, but on the same day a certain new LTE phone was revealed, Rogers announced the expansion of its 4G network in Canada. By October 1st, the carrier will have switched on its high-speed network in Kingston, Edmonton, Quebec City, Oakville, Burlington, London, Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge and Barrie. That's not quite the end of it either, as the plan is to feed 60 percent of the country's inhabitants the same 4G nourishment by the end of the year, and even more in 2013. With so many new LTE-capable devices soon finding their way into the hands of data-hungry Canadians, all that remains is the important decision of choosing your latest pocket-filler.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile

Rogers boosting its LTE coverage in Canada, will cover 10 new cities by October 1st originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 13 Sep 2012 13:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink

Android Central | source

Rogers | Email this | Comments

Mobile Miscellany: week of September 3rd, 2012

Posted on 09/09/2012 by Zachary Lutz

Not all mobile news is destined for the front page, but if you're like us and really want to know what's going on, then you've come to the right place. This past week, AT&T revealed grand plans for LTE expansion that'll continue through the end of the year and the Galaxy Reverb for Virgin Mobile officially went up for preorder. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of September 3rd, 2012.

Continue reading Mobile Miscellany: week of September 3rd, 2012

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile

Mobile Miscellany: week of September 3rd, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 08 Sep 2012 21:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments

Fido switches on LTE, gives Canadians a taste of slightly more budget-minded 4G

Posted on 30/08/2012 by Jon Fingas

Canadians have had fairly limited options for LTE-based 4G if they didn't want to turn to the three main carrier brands: they could go to a Bell-owned Virgin Mobile, and that's it. While there isn't a truly independent LTE carrier yet, Rogers' lower-cost Fido label has just taken its promised LTE access live to at least offer some competition among the smaller names in the field. Calgary, Montreal, Ottawa, St. John's, Toronto and Vancouver can immediately hop on the network at speeds of up to 100Mbps. Bring-your-own-device users don't have to pay a premium to get the faster speeds, although there's currently little choice in hardware if you want to buy straight from the source: the lone LTE device on offer is Sierra Wireless' AirCard 763S hotspot, which costs $50 on a two-year contract. The flexible rate data-only plan also isn't the greatest deal, starting at $22 for a gone-in-five-minutes 100MB per month to $92 for 9GB. All the same, light data users in the True North will be glad to know they don't have to be relegated to 3G to save a few dollars.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Networking, Mobile

Fido switches on LTE, gives Canadians a taste of slightly more budget-minded 4G originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Aug 2012 13:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | source

Fido | Email this | Comments

Refresh Roundup: week of August 20th, 2012

Posted on 27/08/2012 by Zachary Lutz

Continue reading Refresh Roundup: week of August 20th, 2012

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Software, Mobile

Refresh Roundup: week of August 20th, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 26 Aug 2012 20:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments

Motorola Defy Pro arrives in Rogers stores for $275

Posted on 21/08/2012 by Daniel Cooper

Canadians who need a handset capable of withstanding the frantic hustle of life can now avail themselves of Motorola's Defy Pro. The "lifeproof" smartphone should be able to withstand water, dust and hockey sticks, with a touchscreen and QWERTY keyboard working together in perfect harmony. While it's not yet online at Rogers, the chaps at MobileSyrup found units available in store -- setting you back $275 outright or from as low as a few pennies on the right contract.

Filed under: Cellphones

Motorola Defy Pro arrives in Rogers stores for $275 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Aug 2012 12:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | source

MobileSyrup | Email this | Comments

Editorial: Carriers, let customers choose their own phones

Posted on 15/08/2012 by Jon Fingas

Remember what the experience of shopping for a gadget was like at big-box stores years ago? Whatever your actual needs were, the store clerks would invariably steer you towards whatever they were getting a commission to sell, or whatever scratched their personal itch. Why would you even go to a store if you knew you would never get an honest answer? The problem was bad enough for Apple in the 1990s, when Macs were often relegated to a dark corner alongside the Ethernet cables, that the company started up its own retail chain. It didn't get better for most of us until outlets like Best Buy backed off and sometimes made it a point to advertise commission-free staff. Today, while it's tough to completely escape personal bias and the occasional exception to the rule, it's more likely than not that a modern general electronics store will give you a decent shot at buying what you really want.

But just try buying a cellphone at a carrier store today.

Continue reading Editorial: Carriers, let customers choose their own phones

Filed under: Cellphones

Editorial: Carriers, let customers choose their own phones originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Aug 2012 17:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments

BlackBerry PlayBook 4G LTE hands-on

Posted on 09/08/2012 by Jon Fingas

RIM's attempts to get a cellular-equipped version of the BlackBerry PlayBook have been troubled, to say the least. The company signalled its intentions around Mobile World Congress last February, only to watch as carriers backed off -- partly as RIM focused its attention on LTE, and partly after carriers grew skittish over sales of the WiFi version. A year and a half later, we finally have an LTE version, and with a faster 1.5GHz processor to boot. But do 4G data and a processor bump make all the difference? And does the upgrade stand a realistic shot in a competitive field that has moved on since the original PlayBook? We'll find out in our hands-on.

Gallery: BlackBerry PlayBook 4G LTE