Tag Archives: T-Mobile

AT&T Buys T-Mobile: Good For Anyone?



A few hours ago the news broke that AT&T has agreed to purchase rival mobile carrier T-Mobile for $39 billion.  As that news sinks in the big question becomes – is it good for consumers?  AT&T says that the U.S. wireless industry is “one of the most fiercely competitive in the world, and will remain so after this deal.”

I tend to feel otherwise.  After all, has anyone noticed the pricing plans seem to be a bit similar?  Has anyone noticed the ridiculous pricing of text messages?  I am not accusing them of collusion, but if forced, I could make that argument.

So now, years after breakup of Ma Bell, the telco’s have moved another step closer to regaining that old “one company to rule them all” feel.  AT&T, however, would like you to think otherwise.  In their press release they lead one to beleive this is about infrastructure and moving their network closer to 4G.  That makes sense because AT&T has gained a notoriously bad reputation in recent years due to connectivity issues, mainly with iPhone users.

So what does everyone think?  Will this be good for consumers because it will bolster the under-powered AT&T network?  Will it be bad for consumers because it takes away another option for those shopping for a wireless plan?  I tend towards the latter, but if you feel differently then let us know in the comments.


GNC-2011-02-14 #647 Simply a Monster Show!



I have no choice but to cut back a little for the next shows. I simply had more news than I could handle tonight and apologize because they came fast and furious at the end, doing no justice to all of the content. But one thing is for sure I deliver your moneys worth on all of the shows lately. Thanks for being part of the Ohana! All of the CES content is posted enjoy it all because their is about 52 hours of content their for your enjoyment.

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Listener Links:
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Todays Tech News.

Show Notes:
The New 747!
Feds Seize More domains.
Patriot Act Provisions Extended.
Amazon Threatens to leave Texas over Taxes.
Admin says it can spy on you?
Power to the Creator!
Film Studios Pirating own Material!
Username x Sites = Security Risk.
It gets worse for HBGary Federal (idiots)!
Apple and Google are Killing our Companies.
Mobile Penetration.
iPhone Secret Symbols.
Where did Kilogram Originate.
Metered Billing on Hold.
IP Address does not Equal a Person!
Plasma Bullet?
HTML5 pushed to 2014.
Twitter trends Origination Points.
3 New iPhone Styles?
Twitter to cut developers off at knees?
Can Nokia Survive?
Tablets Everywhere but no Apps!
Are Adobe Air and Flash Winning?
Facebook Sim Card!
5 Great VPN’s?
iPhone Telephoto Lense.
The 9th Planet is it out their.
86 Time Lapse Videos.
Mentos and Coke powered Car!
FIOS + Iphone = Savings
Fireworks Hawaiian Style (joking).
Apple kills the Podcast Ping.
Get Styling with Toddygear.
Vivitek 3d Projector.
Sphero Robot Ball.
Link Spam Salesmen.
Zeo Sleep Analysis.
Mini Nuke Power Reactors.
iPhone Voicemail Save Hack.
Qualcomm, Netflix and Android.
USB Crypto Device.
Concept Clock.
Lookee Tv.
Dark Side Detector.
P2P for Good Uses.
isoHunt attacked by Music Industry.
Windows Phone Apps.
Nokia + Microsoft=??
Developer Conference List.
Human versus Computer on Jeopardy.
Brilliant Extension Cable.
Auto feed Shredder.
More Cord Cutting.
Rent versus Own on DVD Front.
Mac App Store plus iTunes.
Dumb and Dumber.
Windows Tip of the day.
Chrome Plugin to block Crappy Search Results.
Facebook Page Designer.
Make a Hotspot with your iPhone.
Geek Dating Tips.
T-Mobile G-Slate hands on.
IE9 Release Candidate will Auto Update.
Windows Phone 7 to get Multitasking.
Multi-Language Foursquare App Update.
NASA spare shuttle flight still a go.
Russian Mars Mission in Moscow.
Whoops where did that tool go.
NASA Budget to get Axe.

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Dell Has Great Deals On Mobile Phones



Until I received an ad in my email today it escaped me that Dell sold mobile phones.  Sure I knew they made a couple of them and logically they would sell those, but not a whole line of phones from other manufacturers.  And they have good prices too…really good prices.

The revelation came in the form of an email ad for the HTC Droid Incredible, which they are offering right now for free.  My contract was up a couple of weeks ago and I’ve been searching around for deals.  Mostly I am looking at the Motorola Droid X and the Samsung Fascinate.  I can get the Fascinate from Amazon for $99.  It would only be $29 if I had an individual plan as opposed to our family plan.  Dell offers if for free for new accounts and is also $99 for existing accounts (individual or family).  That’s comparable to the Amazon pricing.

What blew me away, though, was their pricing on the Motorola Droid X.  The Droid X is $49.99 for me and a stunning $9.99 for new accounts!

They carry phones from all manufacturers and for all carriers.  In addition to Dell’s own phones, there are phones from Blackberry, HTC, LG, Motorola, Nokia, Palm, Samsung, Sanyo, and Sony Ericsson.  And, they are working with Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Nextel.

You will have to search around a little and make sure you are looking at the price for your situation – New Account, Renew/Upgrade, or Add a Line.  But you can find some REALLY good deals on just about any phone you could want.  Except, of course, the iPhone.


Windows Phone 7 Debuts Tomorrow



Tomorrow the first Windows Phone 7 devices will hit the US market on AT&T and T-Mobile.  And I am very curious to see the reception.  Will there be lines?  Will there be shortages of one or more of the devices?  What will the general public think of it?

Windows Phone 7 ads blanketed today’s football coverage.  They were running a couple of times per hour per game.  That was when I got my first clue as to what may happen tomorrow.  My 14 year old daughter looked at the ad and said “I want one of those.”  And honestly the ad is catchy and amusing and the shots of the phone interface are compelling.

Will enough people feel the way my daughter did?  I think they will.  I think we may see lines tomorrow for a Windows product!  When did that last happen?  Windows 95?  Okay, Xbox if you count all Microsoft products.

Will this help Zune?  The platform will get a huge boost, but I don’t think it will help the Zune device itself much.  At least not initially, but there may be a long term boost.

Which phone will be the early hit?  From everything I am seeing and hearing that seems to be an easy question to answer.  The Samsung Focus will be the big hit.  The least popular?  At the moment that seems to belong to the HTC Surround, which is a rather strange device with pop-out “surround sound” speakers that don’t entirely work as advertised.

From everything I see now I think this will be a hit, but with a few complaints along the way about some lacking capabilities.  I also think the market is big enough, and still growing enough, to accommodate another OS. The bad news isn’t for Microsoft because they are late to the show, but for RIM and Nokia.  This could put both of them into serious trouble.  Nokia still has a commanding lead worldwide, but they have been slipping for awhile and show no signs of getting things together.  Blackberry also seems lost in this new era of smartphones and Windows Phone 7 could really eat into RIM’s business market.

I tried to get a review unit, but Microsoft’s PR firm only took my name, phone number, and email address and never contacted me again so I am as anxious for tomorrow as everyone else.  And, my contract is almost up so I am in the market…


Windows Phone 7 in the UK



Windows Phone 7Windows Phone 7 handsets are going to be hitting Europe on 21st October, a full two weeks ahead of the USA, who won’t get the new phones until 8th November.  With a potential 10 phones on offer, it will be interesting to see which ones are offered at launch.  So if you want to get one up on our US cousins, here’s a run down of which phones and which carriers will be selling Microsoft’s latest.

HTC HD7O2
O2 have announced that they’ll be launching the HTC HD7, allegedly the handset with the biggest screen at 4.3″ and the most memory at 16GB.  5MP camera with HD video recording, Wi-Fi and a 1GHz processor, which is all pretty standard. O2 will be offering the phone on contract and on Pay-and-Go for £379.

Orange
Orange will be selling the two phones, the HTC Mozart and the Samsung Omnia 7.  So far they’re the only carrier to announce multiple handsets.  The Samsung’s specs are given below under Three.  The Mozart is exclusive to Orange at launch and has a 3.7” WVGA Super LCD Display, 8 MP camera, Dolby sound and a  1GHz processor. 

The Mozart will be free on a £35 per month, 24 month contract, whereas the Omnia 7 will be free on £40 per month, 24 month contract.

T-Mobile
Nothing has been announced yet.  Given their recent merger with Orange, it’s possible that the phones will only come through Orange.

Samsung Omnia 7Three
Three is going to be offering the Samsung Omnia 7 with pre-orders taken from Tuesday 12th October.  The Omnia 7 comes with a 4″ Super AMOLED screen, 5 MP camera with 720P HD video recording, upto 8GB RAM, 11n WiFi and the obligatory 1GHz processor.  Available free on contract from £35 per month.

Vodafone
Vodafone hasn’t announced anything yet formally but their press media centre is currently down.  Informally, it’s believed to be the HTC Trophy 7 and the LG Optimus 7.

All the carriers appear to be putting extra software on the phones tailored to offers and promotions, e.g. Orange have their regular 2-for-1 cinema promotion and there’s going be a film application tied in with that.

It currently looks like five out of the ten announced phones will be coming to the UK for the launch in October.  That’s not a bad selection to choose from and it will be interesting to see what the hands-on reviews reveal.  Only a few weeks to go…


GNC-2010-07-29 #597 Yes the Net is Working Here!



Close call for us in Hawaii, cut fiber do not bode well for Internet reliability but we are up and online. Lot’s of exciting things in the frying pan and boy has it been a week of firsts. The longer I work in this new media space the more my eyes are opened to the possibilities of this medium.

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To Comment on show call 1-619-342-7365 or e-mail geeknews@gmail.com

Insider / Ohana Links:
E Text Book Popularity in Texas.
Webcam Lawsuits.
Holding 1-7 Keys to Net Security.
Gel Stops Tooth Decay?

The Geek’s Show Links:
Net Speed Nightmare
Preserve your Net Freedoms.
Steerable Solar Sail.
Android + Wallpaper = Powned
Space Junk Tracking.
UK Clears Google.
Comcast Billing Glitch.
More School Webcam Lawsuits.
Old Spice Sales Up!
Real Photoshop Madness of BP Images.
Pink Slips for Shuttle Workers.
Spacewalk at ISS!
Religion of Apple?
Anybots to Spy on You.
App Genome Project.
Internet Radio for your Stereo Rack.
ProMed Network on Roku.
iPhone calling home to Mama Bell.
15 Minutes now for YouTube Videos.
Monitor your Elderly Parents.
IE9 in September.
Magic Trackpad I don’t get it.
Mozilla Tab Candy.
iOS4 for iPhone Performance.
Hacking an ATM.
Kindle for $139.00
Corporations Biggest Threat to Net Neutrality.
T-Mobile tops in Customer Service.
Home Server versus Cloud.
5 great iPad Apps.
Dragon Naturally Speaking Version 11.
More Toyota Recalls.
Your Facebook data Compiled?

Send in your stories to geeknews@gmail.com and be sure to provide a link to your websites!


GNC-2010-04-29 #571 Mophie.com Object of my Tirade



Do not ever buy any charging device from Mophie. I explain in my show tonight on how this is the worst designed after-market i Phone charger and my experience with three failed units. Listen to learn how to win a Roku. We will give another one away next week. Next show will be recorded in Albuquerque New Mexico.

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Show Comments please call 1-619-342-7365 or e-mail geeknews@gmail.com

Listener Links:
Progress Launch from ISS!
UK Technology Policy Debate
ASUS Keyboard with Speakers.
ASUS Keyboard Review.
Japanese Space Yacht.
Listener shares his Apps on his phone.
Inflatable Booster Seat.
Create your Online School.
Online Tattoo Simulator.
Digital Makeup Mirror.
Incredible ISS Pictures.
Aliens = No Contact.

Show Links:
Oil Everywhere!
Water from Space.
Progress to ISS.
Chile wins big Telescope.
Sony TV’s with Intel Inside.
HP and Palm good match or bad?
Steve Jobs Talks Down Flash.
TomTom to save itself with Apps?
T-Mobile and Bandwidth Caps.
No Tethering yet from AT&T?
Space Balloon – 1 SUV – 0
No G’s for the iPhone.
Hotel Wi-Fi Ratings.
Gov’t Request and Google.
Thats my iPhone story and i’m sticking to it.
1 Million dollars for rights to cell Mobile ads to iPhone?
Is Facebook the New Mob?
40 Uses for Floppies.
2nd Chrome Patch Available.
NASA says no Life on Mars, Yet.
Gov. Palin email trial deadlocked.
OLED used for Infrared?
I can raise my own kids thank you!
iPad 3g Pricing!
Polaroid Lives.
Spirit sets a Record!
College Students Attendance Tracked!
Windows 7 Worst Features.

Send in your stories to geeknews@gmail.com and be sure to provide a link to your websites!