Mobile Wiseguy

Archive for the ‘Cell Phone News’ Category
Blackberry updates coming this February
I just got an interesting call from Blackberry support they wanted to inform me of the new updates. I don’t use a Blackberry currently so I was a little confused why the called me and it was because I have written a few post about Blackberry in the past. I told the representative that I did buy a Blackberry Playbook recently and wanted to know about the update that is coming out and if it will bring the Android Market to the Playbook. I was told yes it will have the ability to use Android application but not all the applications at the beginning. Each application has to go through a approval with Blackberry before being allowed on the Blackberry Playbook. I ask about the camera on the Playbook because I was very upset to find out that the only video conference application was from Playbook to Playbook only. I was hoping Skype would work with the new update but it will not at the beginning until Microsoft which owns Skype and Blackberry work out the details. The Blackberry representative did tell me he uses Real Portal to Video chat with someone using a Apple iPad now.
The Blackberry Bold and the Torch will get an update that will allow Near Field Communications, Wifi calling and Mobile Hotspot capabilities. This update will first be available for Verizon Wireless and Sprint Blackberry devices.
Verizon Wireless September promotions
$100 Basic to Smartphone Trade-In Offer Upgrade eligible customers with basic* phones receive a $100 Verizon Wireless Gift Card via mail when they upgrade to any Smartphone with a 2-year agreement and corresponding data plan and trade in their basic* phone by mail. Customer must purchase and activate a new Smartphone, complete online submission at trade-in.vzw.com with promo code, and mail in basic phone within 30 days of online submission. VZW Gift Card will be mailed within 3 weeks of receipt of basic phone.
New customers free activation on tablets and aircards till Sept 30th and free activation on cellphones Sept 22nd till Sept 25th.
AT&T is scrambling to save its T-Mobile merger plans
AT&T to Woo and Fight Justice Department on Antitrust Lawsuit according to NYTimes.com. AT&T needs merger because Verizon Wireless LTE network will dominate the industry with all the new products and services. If I was developing a service or product to be used on a 4G network would I not use the largest, fastest and most reliable network and if things stay the same that will be Verizon Wireless.
The future is data service in real time and LTE is the pathway that most of the world is choosing to follow.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/03/technology/att-to-woo-and-fight-justice-department-on-antitrust-lawsuit.html
Sprint charges customers for incoming international calls
I had a client call me a few days ago asking me how to forward their home phone to their Sprint phone so they would not get charged for long distance calls. I said to them you don’t get charged for incoming calls because the person who calls you pays the international long distance charges.
I was wrong Sprint does charge for international calls incoming or outgoing. When i called customer service to clarify this the Sprint representative said yes and asked what country would be calling me. I used Trinidad as an example because that is my country of birth. The cost of calls incoming or outgoing to Trinidad would be $1.99 a minute.
Sprint must be banking on these incoming international calls, I can’t see how that would cost them anymore than any other incoming call. I receive international calls on my Verizon Wireless, AT&T and T-Mobile phones without having any extra charges so why does Sprint charge? I guess any extra revenue stream helps the bottom line.
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I had some promotional material made with my new logo from Dave Thompson with Bay Wide Specialties informed me that there was no way for anyone to contact me from this site. So I had a contact form added by my web guy and then I added a Google Voice widget that calls my phone. The widget is great because it gives me control of my calls and eliminates a lot of spam. If I put my phone number on the site I would get text and calls from spammers.
Check it out send me a message or call me.
Unlimited Data on Smartphones end on Verizon Wireless

Verizon Wireless will end the unlimited data smartphone feature on July 6th 2011. The feature is $29.99 now for unlimited data usage and after July 6th customers will be able to pick from three packages.
$30 for 2 GB of data $10 a GB for any overages
$50 for 5 GB of data $10 a GB for any overages
$80 for 10 GB of data $10 a GB for any overages
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What does that mean for Verizon Wireless current customers is if you already have the unlimited data feature you will be able to keep it (grandfather in) but after July 6th current and new customers looking to get into a smartphone will only have one of the three options above to pick from.
My recommendation is anyone that streams a lot of media like music and videos should jump on the unlimited data option now before its too late.
What I am hoping is with the new data plans families now can share data. If you had a family plan with 5 smartphones now you are paying $29.99 times 5 smartphones close to $150 a month for the data feature only on the smartphones but after July 6th you can spend $30 and share 2 Gigabytes of data between the 5 smartphones. I don’t recommend the 2 Gigabytes for 5 smartphones thats not much data to share unless the smartphones are Blackberry devices the other two higher data plan options should cover most users.
After July 6th 2011
$30 gives you a monthly allowance of 2GB/mo. For 90% of customers, it is more than sufficient for uploading pictures, browsing the web, checking in on Facebook, downloading and using apps, and everything in between.
What are the levels of data I can purchase?
- 2GB for $30/mo, 5GB for $50/mo, and 10GB for $80/mo. Adding mobile hotspot adds 2GB of allowance and $20/mo on top of your data package.
How can I check to make sure I won’t go over my monthly allowance?
- An app called My Verizon is included with your phone. You can use it as well as a widget included to monitor your useage and check on it anytime.
I’m an exisiting customer. Can I keep my $30 unlimited data plan if I upgrade to a smartphone from a smartphone?
- Yes you can. It stays on your plan unless you ask to change the data plan.
What if I’m going to a 4G smartphone from a 3G smartphone?
- You can keep your unlimited data plan even if you are upgrading to a 4G device.
I have a feature phone with a $30 unlimited data package. Can I keep that when upgrading to a smartphone?
- Yes you can. It stays on your plan unless you ask to change the data plan.
Any other questions, email me.
Microsoft to Acquire Skype and Skype just acquired Qik
What does this mean, what can this union provide. Well I have a opinion on what this means. When I saw the Skype acquired Qik I realized right away that’s how Skype was going to integrate video conferencing with computers and mobile devices.Qik’s technology worked great to stream video from mobile phones to the web live so that would be a great fit for Skype. Now Microsoft wants Windows to be the main platform used for all devices to do video conferencing so what better to buy the best company to bring that all together Skype.
Check out the link below
http://www.fiercemobilecontent.com/press-releases/microsoft-acquire-skype
New Verizon Wireless Devices launching




Samsung Charge (4/28/11) Top Customer WOW Factors 1. 1st DROID to run on America’s fastest 4G LTE network. 2. Offers the best mobile entertainment experience in the market today! 3. The super-bright touch screen provides high-quality, true-to-life color and images for pictures, videos and games. 4. It uses the AndroidTM 2.2 platform and Adobe Flash 10.2 for a rich web experience and smooth streaming video. 5. Its front-facing camera can be used for video chatting using apps available in the Android Market.
DROID Incredible 2 (4/28/11): With all of the features and apps customers enjoyed on the DROID INCREDIBLE, the DROID INCREDIBLE 2 takes the user’s experience to the next level. Here’s what you and your customers need to know about enhancements to the DROID INCREDIBLE 2 by HTC, available on the Verizon Wireless 3G network. § Larger screen for better browsing,viewing of videos and reading. § New – global capability to more than 220 voice and 200 data service countries. § Added a front facing 1.3MP camera to complement the 8MP rear camera. § More than double the memory with a pre-installed 16GB microSD™ card. § New – Sync & Connect* email will provide multiple email and address books in one place. § Wireless media sharing capability with DLNA.
CASIO G’zOne Commando (4/28/11): Top 5 things you should know: 1. Form Factor: Touch screen; Virtual QWERTY keyboard 2. Processor & Memory: Android 2.2; Processor: 800Mhz; 8 GB microSD pre-installed; MicroSD up to 32GB 3. Connectivity: 3G Mobile Hotspot capable up to 5 devices; WiFi 802.11 b/g/n; Bluetooth wireless technology 4. Camera/Video: 5-megapixel camera with LED flash, and video capture 5. Multimedia: HTML Browser Supports Adobe Flash 10.1; Audio/Music formats supported: AAC+,MP3, WMA, unprotected AAC+.
Coming SOON!! Blackberry Playbook: Top 5 things you should know: 1. Form Factor: 7” LCD display, 1024×600 screen resolution, Multi-touch capacitive screen 2. Processor & Memory: 1 GHz dual –core processor, 1GB RAM, Symmetric multi-processing 3. Connectivity: WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR, Out of the box compatibility with Blackberry Enterprise Server 4. Camera/Video: 3MP high-definition forward-facing camera, 5 MP high-definition rear facing camera, Video Calling 5. Multimedia: 1080p HD video; H.264, MPEG4, WMV HDMI video output, Micro USB and Micro HDMI ports, FullAdobe Flash 10.1 enabled, Built in support for HTML5.



