The countdown is over. See our updates below for the IPhone 5 specifications.

There are rumors already circling stating that it’s just going to be called the iPhone 5. Do you think so? We will find out shortly for sure. There have been numerous leaks ahead of Wednesday’s event, from individual components like screen size guestimates and dock plugs to full-fledged prototypes of the iPhone. Of course, all of these remain suspect until Apple makes it official. Some leaks even suggest that there will be new lineups for the Apple iPod but we don’t know for sure until about another hour and a half.

The press conference, which is expected to bring Apple’s next iPhone, takes place at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in downtown San Francisco and kicks off at 10 a.m. Pacific. CNET just so happens to be there and they have created a live blog for you to follow. Click here to see the blog updates. They will also be running live commentary from editors Molly Wood, Brian Tong and Donald Bell beginning at 9 a.m. PT. Some of you may want to see the live feed from Apple themselves but that’s not going to happen. There’s no live video of the presentation itself, which is the usual for Apple’s events so CNET is helping out by blogging it for us all to see.

To all the Apple lovers, what do you expect to see in the next iPhone? What would you like to see? Are you waiting patiently for the event to start? We sure are and we will be following CNET’s blog to get the best details. After you collect all of the information and feel like you need to share your opinion, come right back here and let’s talk about it. We want to know if you were shocked, surprised, excited etc. How does this big event today make you feel?

Source: CNET

[UPDATED]

Here’s what has gone on so far at the live event and what you can expect in the new IPhone 5:

• Name – Iphone 5
• Operating System – IOS 6
• Shipping – Possibly October 5th
• Made entirely of glass and aluminum with a metal backing
• Thinnest and lightest Iphone so far
• 7.6mm thick (18% thinner than the IPhone4)
• 20% lighter
• Retina display with a 4″ screen size
• 1136 x 640 resolution
• Old applications run letter boxed
• 44% more color saturation in the screen
• Ultra fast wireless
• LTE Support – Verizon, At&t and Sprint
• Max 100MBPS download speeds
• Single chip for voice and data
• A6 processor two times faster graphics and CPU, which is 22% smaller and more energy efficient
• Time shifted multi-player
• 8MP camera and a front facing camera (face time over cellular networks)
• Dynamic low light mode for camera
• 40% faster image capture in the camera
• Camera will have panorama mode
• Camera creates up to a 28 megapixel image
• Take photos while recording!!
• 3 microphones
• New, 80% smaller USB connector called “Lightning”
• Apple created adapters to work with the older accessories
• Turn by turn navigating from Siri
• Safari gets full screen mode

Do these specifications make you happy? Let us know how you feel in the comment section below.

According to an Inside Sprint Now blog ALL pre-orders are in a “Pick and Pack” status. So wouldn’t that mean that the pre-orders are basically ready to go and we are really just waiting to find out what is happening on the legal side of things.

I personally like thinking that they will have enough on hand to ship out the orders all at once, but I am not sure how I feel about being told the phones are at customs when the above makes it sound like they are not.

What are you thoughts on this? Do you think that all orders are really ready to go like mentioned in the Inside Sprint Now blog? Do you think they are truly still sitting at customs? Is it possible that this is just a scheme in Apple’s master plan to sue everyone into dumbing down their products so Apple can catch up? ((Ok, maybe that last question was a bit “aggressive”.))

Thanks to Inside Sprint Now for their insight on the this story here: http://insidesprintnow.wordpress.com/2012/05/16/update-htc-evo-4g-lte-delayed-launch-status/

If you have been around the various forms you will see a frenzy forming. Rumor has been that pre-orders for the Evo Lte would be shipping out tonight at 11 pm and pre-order customers are concerned. Why? Well, because Sprint hasn’t really updated any order information for their customers. Worry is setting in that the phones will be delayed and that pre-ordering really isn’t going to get the phone to the consumer any faster.

Now add rumors of delays in shipping and you have a full on mass panic. All we can say is take what you read on the internet with a grain of salt. Remember, than anyone can say anything and it will spread like wildfire. Also, remember that the official release date is the 18th. It is the 15th, we still have time for Sprint to make good on their promise that we will get it first.

It has always been my experience when dealing with Sprint that I always get the phone before I get any kind of update in their system. My personal account shows that Sprint owes me money since they have already charged my credit card for the order. I have no tracking information. Am I concerned? Sure, because I already passed on my Evo 3d to my husband and I am stuck with my daughter’s old LG at the moment. Am I’m stressing out? Not yet… but I will if this goes into the weekend. I am a phone geek after all.

I did come across this press release on 5-14-12 from Sprint and I feel that if they were concerned about stock they would not be pushing media events at a brick and mortar store.

Surely they wouldn’t stick us pre-order folks with a rain check slip and release them to the general public. Right?

Sprint was one of the first carriers to push “4G” when they announced their WiMAX network. One of their hottest selling phones was the HTC Evo 4G. Now that almost every other carrier has announced their dedication to LTE for 4G, Sprint has been making the switch to LTE as well. Today, Bob Azzi, Senior VP of Networks, announced that Sprint will no longer be launching any new WiMAX phones to the market. Previously, Sprint has said that it would release WiMAX devices through 2012.

He also said that LTE will launch on their 1900MHz spectrum, but that they will also repurpose its 800MHz spectrum as old Nextel iDEN users are transitioned to their CDMA Direct Connect service.

Earlier this year, they announced that they would be releasing LTE devices by mid-2012 and they would have 15 devices (phones, tablets, data cards) coming throughout the year.

Source: FierceWireless

US Cellular announces their plans for their 4G LTE network today. At launch, it will cover the cities of Milwaukee, Madison and Racine in Wisconsin, Des Moines, Cedar Rapids and Davenport in Iowa, Portland and Bangor, Maine, Wichita Falls, Texas, Lawton, Oklahoma and Greenville, North Carolina. The first two devices available will be a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and a Samsung Galaxy S Aviator. There’s no pricing available yet and their LTE network will be launching in March.

Source: Slashgear

The end of WiMAX, the first 4G technology in America launched by Sprint and Clearwire in 2008, looks to be two years away.

At the “Sprint Network Vision Strategy Update” in New York, Sprint executives announced the aggressive rollout of a 4G LTE network to the end of 2013, the fastest 4G standard available in the U.S. today offered by both AT&T and Verizon.

Sprint will “continue selling WiMAX devices throughout 2012,” said Steve Elfman, president of network operations and wholesale, leaving many to conclude that the WiMAX product roadmap would not go any further.

For an idea of how Sprint’s support for LTE will trump WiMAX, Sprint said that by the by end of 2012 it will cover 120 million people and 250 million by the end of 2013.

The announcement adds to a big week for Sprint. The company became the latest carrier to offer the iPhone, joining larger rivals AT&T and Verizon Wireless, when Apple unveiled its iPhone 4S on Tuesday. Elfman said he believes the network will be able to handle the increased traffic that comes with the iPhone.

Sprint plans to to launch 15 dual-mode 4G LTE/CDMA smartphone and tablets by mid 2012.

How about an early Christmas present? We have a sneak peak of the fall lineup from Verizon, and it looks sweet!!! A couple surprises, some next gen and even a couple new players in the deck for us to pick from!

There have been rumors for a while about the new Bold and Torch from Blackberry, but a 4G???? Blackberry users will be very happy with this surprise entry, the new 4G Curve should be out in September!!

Other devices in the running are the Droid Bionic (also in September), the LG Revolution 2 and the 4G Samsung Stratosphere (Verizon’s version of the Galaxy S2). Also mentioned is the LG Cosmo Touch feature phone.

If you notice, there is no mention of the iPad3 or iPhone5 which may surprise some, but personally I’m not. Apple has always been very secretive and to see it on a list like this that early would make me suspect the validity of the entire list.

Now….I know I am biased by being an Android user, but seeing the new HTC Bliss on this really has me excited. It is still in the rumor stage itself, but looks like a very good step for HTC.

What do you guys think? Is this a good selection? Anything you think should be here that isn’t (you never know who is reading)? Leave a comment and let us know what you think!!

Source: Gear News at IGN

]]> https://www.ppcgeeks.com/2011/08/04/verizon-fall-roadmap-sneak-peak-anyone/feed/ 8 https://www.ppcgeeks.com/2011/08/04/wholesale-4g-from-sprint/ https://www.ppcgeeks.com/2011/08/04/wholesale-4g-from-sprint/#comments Thu, 04 Aug 2011 15:45:44 +0000 http://www.ppcgeeks.com/?p=24072

Another industry first comes out of Overland park Kansas; where Sprint has announced that it will offer wholesale 4G sales. What does this mean exactly? Well it just means that it will allow other ISP or cable companies to use their system to offer 4G services. they will be providing the HTC Detail 3G/4G handset (same features as the HTC Evo Shift 4G) and the Sierra Wireless 250U 3G/4G data card.

In their press release Sprint goes on to say:

“Customers looking for a large and established 4G ecosystem should consider Sprint, as we offer access to more than 120 ecosystem partners, including chipset vendors, device and equipment manufacturers, applications developers, machine-to-machine solutions providers and more,” said Matt Carter, president Sprint Wholesale Solutions and New Ventures. “With Sprint 4G, the possibilities for our customers are endless. 4G is another fine example of the complete solutions we offer to help our customers harness their full potential.”

As other businesses try to compete in the wireless 4G markets (think Comcast, Cox, Time Warner Cable) they are met with challenges of how to provide service. This is one way that Sprint can stay ahead of the game (and ahead of Verizon, and AT&T) to give themselves a nice boost in revenue.

To me this is just one way that Sprint can help Clearwire in their LTE-Advanced roll out. Remember that Sprint 4G service is really just Clearwire’s WiMax…With that said I can see that companies that want to get an edge up on competition and offer 4G wireless Internet everywhere possible – can now look at Sprint for a helping hand. This should help the revenue of both Sprint and Clearwire, and possible help Clearwire expand their LTE-Advanced fantasy sooner…

What are your thoughts on this PPCGeeks? Is Sprint making the right move here? Do you see it helping out the masses? Just what does this mean for Sprint in the long run? Tell me the answers and give my your insight to what you think might happen with Sprint offering wholesale 4G service.

Source: Sprint

Special thanks goes to darren.wlsn1 for giving us the tip on this article. thanks!

Well what a shocker we have here today! We all knew that Clearwire has been struggling to keep WiMax working properly; and we also knew that they were testing LTE technology at one point in Arizona. But what we did not expect to see was this! Clearwire says that this fall they are going to be releasing LTE-Advanced!

Dan Hesse did say we would have something “spectacular” coming this fall. This could be it. Clearwire is going to stop building out WiMax and start switching to LTE- Advanced. LTE-Advanced is the next step up from LTE, and could deliver download speeds of 120Mbps! Now don’t worry Evo, Epic, Evo 3D lovers – Clearwire will be keeping WiMax around – but will soon be switching it out it sounds like. They are going to start in areas that are already deployed with WiMax but has high demand of 4G. 

Dr. John Saw, Clearwire’s Cheif Technolog Officer, confesses:

“This is the future of mobile broadband. Our extensive trial has clearly shown that our ‘LTE Advanced-ready’ network design, which leverages our deep spectrum with wide channels, can achieve far greater speeds and capacity than any other network that exists today. Clearwire is the only carrier with the unencumbered spectrum portfolio required to achieve this level of speed and capacity in the United States. In addition, the 2.5GHz spectrum band in which we operate is widely allocated worldwide for 4G deployments, enabling a potentially robust, cost effective and global ecosystem that could serve billions of devices. And, since we currently support millions of customers in the 2.5 GHz band, we know that our LTE network won’t present harmful interference issues with GPS or other sensitive spectrum bands.”

This is no doubt why we have not seen any WiMax roll outs planned for Clearwire this year (2011). They did go on to say that they have to wait for additional funding to make their LTE-Advanced fantacy come true. Then they stated that they will be using multicarrier, or multichannel, wideband radios that will be carrier aggregation capable. This sounds like they are going to market to the masses of carriers – not just Sprint.

Now you might be saying “Jason – Sprint just signed a partnership deal with Lightsquared – how is this love triangle going to work?” Well all I have to say is it will be tricky but I bet we see that this love triangle will fester and bloom into a oozing pot of LTE goodness for all of us. Remember that Lightsquared is still face with issues regarding GPS – so this gives Sprint that one way out.

You tell me PPCGeeks, what do you think of this news? Does this spell “Love” for Sprint, or does it put a nail in their casket? Tell me below!

Source: Engadget

The PPCGP, All the Mobile News You’ll Ever Need!

Season 2, Episode 25

Be sure to follow us on twitter!

Host: Laos101 AKA Joshua Sherman

Guests: Our Newsies! Hoodracer, and News Manager Jason Fieldz

Topics:
Data data data – how much data are YOU using?

Verizon claims it will expand 4G network even more – Sprint lagging behind (2.5 million sq mile rumor)

Lightsquared pushing out 4G – Sprint too?!

Sprint and AT&T bickering over T-Mobile Buyout

Verizon’s Tiered Data is here! Get your unlimited plans while they last!

“Yarr! Our ship has recently sailed upon some juicy AT&T findings… this might be delicious…”
This was posted 6 weeks ago from the recently well known LulzSec Lulz Boat and now we have some new information about it.
Who is LulzSec and what are these leaked AT&T findings you ask?
Well, let us try and give you at least a glimpse of what both of these are all about.

First, we will begin with a little information about LulzSec. LulzSec draws its name from the modern term “Lulz,” (from LOLs) which often signifies laughter, and “Sec,” which is short for “Security”. Essentially, their way of laughing at the poor security of many large companies that should be much better protected. Just after midnight on June 26th, 2011, LulzSec released a “50 days of lulz” statement, which they claimed to be their final release, confirming that LulzSec consisted of six members, and that their website was to be taken down. The release includes over 750,000 accounts gathered from several gaming forums and a major part of it from Battlefield Heroes Beta. The list of the leaked accounts was later made available at Dazzlepod.com. Well, there final crop of documents contain some interesting information about AT&T’s future data plans. More about that in a bit.

Ryan Cleary, is the person who is considered the LulzSec mastermind who recently attacked Sony, the US Central Intelligence Agency and the US Senate. He was arrested last Tuesday, June 22nd in England and could be facing up to 10 years in jail. The arrest of Cleary came within hours of the UK’s premier investigating agency’s website being taken offline as a result of a cyber attack. Detectives swooped down on Cleary’s Essex home swat style and snatched him out of his bedroom, which he had reportedly not left for almost four years.

According to Cleary’s mother he is an ultimate recluse. He left his bedroom only to use the bathroom and had never gone out of the house in the last four years. He suffers from agoraphobia, the fear or open spaces and has a confirmed Attention Deficit Disorder personality. He would have her leave his meals at his door for him, like an inmate.

Cleary is a heavy metal fan who has been thrown out of two schools for disruptive behavior, according to the Sun. “Ryan is obsessed with computers. He’s a bit of a geek. That’s all he does, he’s a recluse. He locks himself in his room every day, closes the curtains and spends hours at a time online,” Cleary’s 22-year-old half brother told the Sun.

The British police believe Cleary is a big part of the inner ring of the LulzSec and that his arrest could give vital leads to the hacker group. But LulzSec insists that he is not part of them. “Ryan Cleary is not part of LulzSec; we house one of our many legitimate chatrooms on his IRC server, but that’s it,” LulzSec tweeted. “Clearly the UK police are so desperate to catch us that they’ve gone and arrested someone who is, at best, mildly associated with us. Lame,” the group tweeted.

Under recently revised US laws, Cleary could face up to ten years in jail. He is very likely to be extradited to the US, where according to current laws, first-time hacking offenders can only receive up to a ten year sentence. With the maximum sentence for simple data theft at currently only five years. The Obama administration has urged Congress to pass new laws that would double the maximum sentence hackers could receive.

After fifty days of releasing large amounts information of confidential data, from police units to government departments, CIA, AOL, Sony, and many others, LulzSec announced on its Twitter feed Sunday evening, that it is to disband.

So it appears that the supposed six that are mentioned in their press release as being the ones behind the modern day pirate type group have called it a day.

In a statement via its official Twitter feed this evening:

The support we’ve gathered for it in such a short space of time is truly overwhelming, and not to mention humbling. Please don’t stop. Together, united, we can stomp down our common oppressors and imbue ourselves with the power and freedom we deserve.”

Ok, well what does any of this have to do with Mobile devices or AT&T you still wonder, right?

Well, in their one last and final drop of data they have retrieved (stolen sounds harsh), amongst many other files were documents posted containing technical details about the telecom giant’s rollout of its next-generation wireless technology, commonly known as LTE. Though the information could very well be outdated and obviously never meant for public consumption, it does give some insight into some of the thoughts and ideas they were at least looking at, such as speed and session-based pricing for their upcoming LTE network.

The most interesting and perhaps threatening detail for networks with data cap tiers like Verizon, is that AT&T’s proposed plan is to market LTE data with various speed tiers, which it’s calling “Speed Based Pricing.” Verizon’s about to switch to tiered pricing for its data plans (3G and 4G), but that’s based on total consumption, not speed. The basic idea would be pay more, and you get faster LTE speeds. Not exactly a new concept, cable and satellite companies have been going this route with their Internet access charges for quite some time now, but it could be an interesting change in the mobile space and possibly better then Verizon’s new approach. According to the leaked documents, you could also pay for a session, or temporary speed boost if you need it, which is also becoming more and more common in the broadband market.

Another big detail stumbled upon in the documents is a slide stating the following:

Pre-LTE scenarios: Testing will include iPad new activations HLS using the new rate plan, as well as a regression on netbooks and dongles. During validation E2E execution should ensure all functionality new and current is still functioning properly by validating account set up, provision, usage and notifications.

The LTE-ready iPad, is likely to be the iPad 3 which is expected next year with a higher resolution Retina Display, a faster processor and, according to the leaked documents, 4G LTE connectivity on board.
Another page in the documents supports the numerous rumors surrounding an iPhone 5 release in September. It clearly states that there will be three phases to LTE network deployment: with a potential LTE-ready iPhone 5 releasing in Phase 2, which is right on schedule for the rumored September launch period.

Of course, AT&T likely won’t have LTE available until it unleashes the iPhone 6 in 2012, but it’s still interesting to see where the industry could go by that time.
Any of you have an interest in speed or session based pricing, or are data caps complicated enough already?
Do you see this plan staying on track, even with the T-Mobile merger?

source: LulzSec, ZDnet, ifans

Verizon Wireless announced today that their advanced 4G LTE wireless network will be available to customers in the major areas of Sarasota and Bradenton in 2011.

Florida region president of Verizon Wireless Pam Tope stated, “Florida customers already have a lot of wireless power in their hands with 4G LTE, and this announced expansion in Sarasota-Bradenton will add to that.” “We’re proud to bring this superior technology to wireless customers in more areas across the state.”

Sarasota and Bradenton will be joining the following list of Florida markets that offer Verizon Wireless 4G LTE services:

• Miami
• Fort Lauderdale
• West Palm Beach
• Tampa Bay
• Orlando
• Jacksonville
• Tallahassee
• Gainesville
• Duval Street in Key West
• Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers

Other Florida markets scheduled to launch 4G LTE by the end of 2011 include:

• Fort Myers
• Daytona Beach
• Lakeland
• Winter Haven

As we have reported already many times, Verizon Wireless expects to complete its 4G LTE rollout throughout Florida and across the rest of the country by 2013.

If these reports seem to be coming one after another, they are.
As Verizon works hard to stay ahead, we are right behind them to bring you their latest progress.
Are you still waiting for your 4G?
Any Florida users looking forward to this expansion?

source: verizon

LightSquared has been plagued with issues as they build out their own LTE network. LightSquared will be a wholesale LTE provider (think Clearwire). In fact they just signed a $20 billion contact as reported here by Lives2Learn. Well in light of all that they have had a major GPS interference issue – one that would stop them cold in their tracks. Well they announced they have found a way to fix it.

The company, which owns spectrum in the L-band (1525 through 1559 MHz and 1626.6 to 1660.5 MHz) has found a way to push through and past the GPS issues. Basically their initial idea was to run on the lower 10 MHz block of the L-Band. This is close enough to GPS that they caused issues and in some cases cancelled each other out. Now the company [LightSquared] has come out to say that they are going to use the higher 10 MHz for deployment. They state that they were saving this resource for future expansion but given light to the issues that they will just stop development in that lower range and go to the higher range; this in return seems to resolve any GPS issues they were having. To see the full press release click here.

So PPCGeekers does this mean that you will want to trust their decision and use them for LTE? Do you think this will eventually re-pop up if they expand and need that other 10 MHz band? Tell me down below – as it has me pondering what will happen in a few years when Sprint grows their LTE network using LightSquared technology.

Source: fierceWireless

UPDATE: We have a official VZW doc detailing the stats above!

Currently, Verizon Wireless smartphone users with family plans are required to pay $29.99 per line for cellular data. Non-family-plan smartphone customers can purchase unlimited mobile data (with a 5GB allowance) for the same monthly price. That is all about to change when the free hotspot promo ends. Tiered pricing is now set to begin the day after the promotion ends , which is July 7th, for new contract holders. Yes, existing contracts will remain grand-fathered in and not incur any changes until their contract is up for renewal.

Verizon has made it very clear for quite some time now, that the future of its data network is going to be tiered. Late last year, Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg told investors that the company would eventually swap its unlimited option with several data plans somewhat similar to AT&T’s tiered plans.
When speaking at the Reuters Global Technology Summit, Shammo again mentioned the plan and stated they would start offering data tiers instead of the unlimited plan sometime this summer, but once again at this time, he failed to offer any further details on what those tiers would be or how much they will end up costing.

Still, while this is sad news for Verizon’s heavy data users, it may be a positive move for families or even individuals with multiple smartphone or data intensive devices. Verizon CFO Fran Shammo also confirmed that Verizon would try to soften the bad news by stating the company was planning to roll out “family” data plans that could be shared among several devices.

Well the days of tiered data plans is almost here and we now have those details: via droidlife

Data plans:
• 2GB – $30/month
• 5GB – $50/month
• 10GB – $80/month

If you would like to add tethering on to any of those packages, you can purchase 2GB of data at an additional cost of $20 per month.

Data plans w/ tethering:

• 4GB – $50/month
• 7GB – $70/month
• 12GB – $100/month

Overages will be $10 per 1GB.
Tablet data plans will be $30 for 2GB of data, instead of $20 for 1GB of data as it is now.

How does this match up to the competitor?

AT&T’s tiers:

• 200MB – $15/month
• 2GB – $25/month
• 4GB – $45/month

Given that many different devices are now in market and users tend to have various data usage patterns, a family plan shared among several devices might not be a bad idea. A combined data cap could prove more efficient in terms of data utilization as both a low data user and a high data user from the same family can then share the cost and the data.

How do you think family plans will work out?
Do you think the tiered plans will work to your benefit? Why or why not?
Let me know in the comments, how you feel about this move from the carrier.

source: droidlife

A recent interview with Verizon Chief Marketing Officer Marni Walden provides some information on what the future holds for BlackBerry devices at Verizon Wireless. This interview confirms the upcoming arrival of three new RIM devices with the carrier later in the year.

For a while it seemed Big Red was relying heavily on RIM for it’s Blackberry devices, especially with the beginning of the Blackberry “Touch” and “Storm” series. However, since then things have gone quiet on the Blackberry front with the carrier, as they moved their focus almost entirely toward Android and the iPhone. But with this latest news, it seems they may be rekindling their partnership a bit.

The BGR interviewed Verizon Wireless CMO Marni Walden about these new devices and what she had to say was quite interesting. Much of their discussion was focused on 4G, Android, iPhone, and Windows 7,however they did eventually make their way into discussing Blackberry devices coming this year. Marni pretty well confirmed the launch of 3 new Blackberry devices this year.

Walden said, “RIM is still very, very important in the enterprise space. It does resonate in some of the consumer space as well, particularly with BBM. We’ll have three devices this year that we will bring to market with RIM. We’ll continue our partnership and it’ll be important for now going forward.”

Will one of them be a 4G LTE PlayBook?
Is there a CDMA Torch 2 coming to VZW?
The BlackBerry Bold 9930 is likely to be one of them.
What are your thoughts on the other two?
Hit up the full interview at BGR and let us know what you think.

source: BGR

Verizon Wireless has extended the Limited Time promotion for Mobile Hotspot and Mobile Broadband Connect on 4G LTE (Long Term Evolution) Smartphones, ThunderBolt by HTC, DROID Charge by Samsung, and Revolution by LG. The following are the Unlimited Hotspot promotion details.

Limited Time promotion available through 7/6/2011 which allows customers unlimited 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot and Mobile Broadband Connect usage until July 6, 2011 with the purchase of a ThunderBolt by HTC, a DROID Charge by Samsung, or a Revolution by LG, with a voice plan and a data package $29.99 or higher.

The $20/GB (Gigabyte) plan will not be available on 4G LTE Smartphones. On July 6, 2011 a software update will remove the Mobile Hotspot offer. A message will be sent to the end user to contact their system administrator to subscribe to Mobile Hotspot.
For those of you lucky enough to be running one of their 4G handsets, soak it in while it lasts. There’s no telling what types of pricing we will be facing when this free ride ends come July.

It seems to me, this keeps getting pushed out further, possibly due to the latest Thunderbolt MR2 release not being quite ready yet. As I feel it will be through this update that they will put a distinct end to the free tethering and hotspot features. As well as adding in the data tracking features that have been non existent on the Thunderbolt and possibly the other 4G devices so far.

Is this just to get us all used to having the feature, so we are all inclined to pay for it when the ride ends?
Have you been making use of this treat from Verizon?
How has it improved your ability to stay connected?
Will you pay for the service when the gravy train stops?

source: Droid Life

Today, Verizon Wireless made an announcement that it would be adding 19 more U.S. cities to its continually growing list of locations with its’ well sought after 4G LTE data service. This increases its’ existing number of major cities up to a total of 74. Over half of their goal of 145 cities for 2011.

So it sounds as though they are moving along right on schedule or even ahead. Especially since they didn’t even begin their rollout until December of 2010. Sprint started their 4G Wimax in 2008 and still has just 77 cities covered. These additional cities are due to begin receiving the 4G service starting this Thursday.

David Small, chief technical officer of Verizon Wireless, was quoted saying:
“On Thursday when we light up 19 additional 4G LTE markets, we will offer consumers and businesses in 74 metropolitan areas the most advanced 4G wireless network on the planet while continuing to offer the nation’s most reliable 3G network coast to coast,” “We are aggressively expanding our 4G LTE network: by the end of 2013 we plan to bring 4G LTE mobile broadband to our entire 3G coverage area.”

The company will also be expanding its existing 4G coverage in San Francisco and Detroit the same day.

Newly added cities to get Verizon’s 4G LTE service on Thursday:
• Fresno and Sacramento, Calif.
• Hartford, Conn.
• Boise, Idaho
• Fort Wayne and Indianapolis, Ind.
• Flint, Grand Rapids and Lansing, Mich.
• Dayton, Ohio
• Erie, Harrisburg and State College, Pa.
• Greenville-Spartanburg, S.C.
• Sioux Falls, S.D.
• Salt Lake City-Ogden, Utah
• Spokane, Wash.
• Madison
• Milwaukee

Will all the work Big Red is doing, be enough to stay ahead of AT&T, who is due to launch 4G LTE in 5 markets this summer?
Has your area received Verizon’s 4G service yet?
Do you have a device that makes use of it?
Or do plan to get one soon?

source

UPDATE:

The Samsung Droid Charge, yes that’s the official name of the “un-named Samsung 4G smartphone” everyone was curious about since first seeing it at CES. This device is expected to carry a minimum advertised price of $299.99.

The HTC Droid Incredible 2 (ADR6350) is a going to be a world edition with a front facing camera . This device is expected to be priced at $199.99.

The LG Revolution (VS910) is definitely a 4G LTE smartphone and is said to be priced at $249.99.

Finally, the Motorola DROID X 2 (MB870) will be priced at $199.99 and yes it is taking the place of the DROID X on Verizon’s lineup currently.

END OF UPDATE:

Looking at the image above you can tell that Verizon Wireless has several 4G devices being released starting today. Their 4G Novatel USB 551L modem and the Samsung 4G SCH-LC11 Mobile Hotspot are both now available for only $99.99 online with a new two year contract. But wait, there are many more devices other than internet modems coming your way.

If you aren’t interested in the Thunderbolt which is the only 4G LTE smartphone Verizon currently offers, just be patient. They will have more rolling out soon as you can see by the dates in the image. Keep in mind though, the dates are subject to change and this is only tipped information from the source. Nothing is official unless you see it come from Verizon Wireless themselves. For now we can enjoy what’s expected though right?

Basically what the leak says is this: Verizon Wireless will release an Android powered, 4G Casio Commando and the 4G Samsung Droid Charge on April 7th, 2011. The following week they are rumored to launch the Sony Xperia PLAY and the Windows Phone 7 HTC Trophy. Continuing on to April 28th, the rumors suggest the HTC DROID Incredible 2 may also be available. In May they say we can expect several more 4G phones, including the LG Revolution, Motorola BIONIC, Motorola DROID X2, and Samsung Galaxy 2 (presumably the Galaxy S 2).

Although these aren’t Verizon documents in the image we do see some of the dates are true, hence the mobile hotspot and USB device that are available today as the image suggests. With that being said, what do you think about the upcoming devices? We wrote about a few of them here and would love to have your feedback once again now that the time is closer. Let us know your thoughts.

Source: Phandroid & PhoneArena

Most of us know today is the day! Will you or have you already gotten your hands on one? The Verizon Wireless stores are packed and that’s a good sign. Maybe the LTE launch with the Thunderbolt will be a successful one. Time will tell.

Did you patiently wait for this day to come? As we mentioned in the article previously, the phone is selling with a $249.99 price tag. The LTE data will be the same rate as the current 3G devices, $29.99 per month for unlimited usage. That’s what most of us can be even more excited about! No higher prices, well as of now. Some say that may change but Verizon Wireless hasn’t said it yet.

Let us know if you got one what you think in the comments boxes below. If you aren’t getting one, why? We want to hear your thoughts.

The rumors can finally end because Verizon Wireless has made the release date and price of the HTC ThunderBolt handset official. The release date is March 17th and the device will have a $249.99 price tag. The LTE data will be the same rate as the current 3G devices, $29.99 per month for unlimited use. Verizon will also provide mobile hotspot capabilities to all ThunderBolt owners for free until May 15th. This is something few carriers are offering at the current time.

Are you getting one? Have you been waiting to use your upgrade and last New Every Two credit? If so, now is the time to get this bad boy! Verizon Wireless has even put up a Thunderbolt Tracker found here. You simply enter your email and as soon as it’s released they will send you information. Who knows what else? Go for it!

Take a look at the press release below:

THE THUNDERBOLT BY HTC, THE FIRST 4G LTE SMARTPHONE FOR VERIZON WIRELESS ARRIVES MARCH 17

ThunderBolt by HTC Available Beginning March 17

BASKING RIDGE, N.J. – Verizon Wireless and HTC today announced that the ThunderBolt by HTC, exclusively from Verizon Wireless, is available on March 17 in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores and online at www.verizonwireless.com for $249.99 with a new two-year customer agreement.

Powered by Android 2.2, the ThunderBolt by HTC is the first smartphone to take advantage of Verizon Wireless’ 4G LTE network. The ThunderBolt by HTC features the latest version of the HTC Sense experience, which offers enhancements including new personalization options, a consolidated e-mail inbox, and unique camera effects and filters. The ThunderBolt by HTC is equipped with support for Google Mobile Services, including Gmail, YouTube and Android Market with thousands of free apps. Additionally, the ThunderBolt by HTC will feature 4G LTE optimized apps such as EA’s Rock Band, Gameloft’s Let’s Golf, Tunewiki and Bitbop.

Additional features:

• 4G LTE – customers can expect download speeds of 5 to 12 Mbps and upload speeds of 2 to 5 Mbps in 4G Mobile Broadband coverage area
• 4.3” WVGA display
• 8- megapixel rear facing camera and HD (720p) video recording
• 1.3- megapixel front facing camera with video chatting capabilities
• Newest generation of the 1GHz Snapdragon processor
• Mobile Hotspot capability – share 4G connection with up to eight Wi-Fi-enabled devices
• 8 GB of onboard memory and a pre-installed 32 GB microSD card (Actual formatted capacity will be less)
• Built-in kickstand for easy media viewing

With the ThunderBolt by HTC, customers will need to subscribe to a Verizon Wireless Nationwide Talk plan and a 4G LTE data package. Nationwide Talk plans begin at $39.99 monthly access and an unlimited 4G LTE data plan is $29.99 monthly access.

Mobile Hotspot allows users to connect up to eight Wi-Fi-enabled devices to the nation’s fastest wireless network via an application available on the ThunderBolt by HTC. Mobile Hotspot will be included through May 15 for no additional charge. After May 15, customers may choose to activate Mobile Hotspot for $20 for 2 GB of data per month. Customers can track their data usage by downloading the My Verizon app available in Android Market or by logging on to their My Verizon accounts online at www.verizonwireless.com/myverizon.

For additional information on Verizon Wireless 4G LTE visit www.verizonwireless.com/4glte. For more information about the ThunderBolt by HTC please visit www.verizonwireless.com/thunderbolt. For additional information on Verizon Wireless products and services, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or go to www.verizonwireless.com.

Source: BGR via Verizon Wireless