Items tagged with GSM
For people without children, the concept of a smartwatch for kids might sound galling, but if you’re a parent who’s laid awake at night thinking about how to give your kiddos a way to stay in touch and available when they’re old enough to have some independence (but too young to be trusted with a real phone), it sounds amazing. FiLiP is a smartwatch designed for children ages 4-11 that gives them a way to call a parent with one touch. One touch also lets parents call them or locate them, too. The device uses an iOS or Android app to let parents connect to the watch, and if you have more than one child, you can simply create multiple profiles. For voice calls, FiLiP uses 2-way...
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As the weekend approaches and the itch to tinker with something crawls up the spine of nerds everywhere, open source hardware projects like this one scratch it like nothing else: There’s a card called an Arduino GSM Shield available now, which essentially lets you add GPRS/GSM connections to your projects. In other words, you can build your own unlocked phone with it. The device can be shipped along with Arduino’s Uno, MEGA, and Leonardo boards, and the GSM Shield itself comes with a SIM card. (You can, however, use whatever SIM card you like.) With the shield, you can implement features such as making and receiving phone calls and sending and receiving SMS messages. The shield is...
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Sprint announced its first CDMA /GSM international mobile hotspot. The new hotspot by ZTE enables up to five Wi-Fi enabled devices to connect simultaneously while on a CDMA network. The hotspot also supports international mobile broadband access via GSM networks. When connected to a GSM network, the hotspot can only be connected to a single Wi-Fi device. The hotspot comes with multiple country adapters to make it easy to charge the device while you're traveling overseas. The International Mobile Hotspot measures 3.92 x 2.11 x .55 inches and weighs 2.8 ounces. Sprint claims you'll get up to four hours of active use from a single charge. Sprint International Mobile Hotspot fact sheet Sprint’s...
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It may be a holiday weekend, but Americans should be celebrating more than the 4th this weekend. They should also be celebrating the technology that helps them make every single mobile call this weekend. Recently, GSM technology turned 20 years old, which is wild. 20 years! GSM is a constantly evolving technology that has turned into the basis of what T-Mobile and AT&T use today in the States, and it's obviously helped change the future of telecommunications. We owe a lot to a single phone call on July 1, 1991, with Finnish Prime Minister Harri Holkeri made the world’s first GSM call, using Nokia equipment. So, now that we have you thinking back... when was your first mobile call? And...
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In the U.S., the majority of Android devices have been on the Verizon network, and although there have been plenty on Sprint's CDMA and T-Mobile and AT&T's GSM networks, they've been dwarfed by the swarm of devices on Verizon's network. Yet there's been one thing missing: a dual-mode CDMA/GSM Android device. Now we see there's one coming, and to Verizon. It's not as though dual-mode CDMA/GSM devices are that common, but among smartphones, there have been a few Windows Mobile devices on Verizon and Sprint's networks. A dual-mode device makes it far easier for those sporting a CDMA phone to travel. This unnamed HTC phone has a slide-out keyboard, EV-DO Rev. A, 802.11n wi-fi,...
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Are you ready for an iPhone on Verizon Wireless? Who isn't, right? At this point, the rumor has gone on so long that it feels like it'll never come true. But it simply has to at some point, doesn't it? The original contract between Apple and AT&T ensured that no other carrier in America would get their phone for a long, long time, but it has been rather unclear as to exactly how long we would have to wait for that contract to expire. And things couldn't be lining up any nicer if Verizon wanted it to. Verizon is gearing up to launch a nationwide LTE (4G) network in the U.S. next year. And the iPhone will be in the clear to be on Verizon next year. Well, we think. Here's the thing: AT&T...
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If you have been paying attention to the mobile news flow this week, you're probably aware that AT&T has been dealt another beating. Yes, another one. The company already takes a lot of flack for reportedly dropping calls in congested cities and the like, and now consumers are claiming that AT&T is throttling their 3G upload speeds, particularly noticeable on the iPhone 4 which has a SpeedTest app to prove it. The numbers started out small, generally in New York City. Most people assumed that it was just a typical "clogged NYC" problem that would fix itself in time. But then more and more users from more and more cities began to chime in, and it looked like AT&T had yet another real...
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Samsung recently introduced the latest addition to its Omnia smartphone series: the Samsung Omnia Pro B7330. During the announcement, the company also revealed that all of its Omnia models will run Windows Mobile 6.5. Samsung also plans to release upgrades to current products that are on the market now. The new Omnia Pro B7330 features a candybar design with a QWERTY keyboard and a 2.62-inch, 320x320 resolution nontouch display. This is a quad-band (GSM 850/900/1800/1900) phone with Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and assisted GPS. You'll also find a 3 megapixel camera on the phone along with 270MB of internal memory and a microSD expansion slot. The Omnia series also includes the Omnia Pro B7610, the Omnia...
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Well that certainly didn’t take long. Just days after Sprint got the hot new HTC Touch Pro2, Verizon Wireless is announcing that it too will carry the phone. Like the Sprint version, Verizon’s variant will feature a 3.6-inch WVGA variable-angle tilting touch screen and a slide-out keyboard that is larger than its Touch Pro predecessor. In terms of connectivity, the Touch Pro2 supports EVDO Rev. A and Wi-Fi. The phone also offers global connectivity. As you may recall, the Touch Pro2 runs on Windows Mobile 6.1 and the TouchFLO user interface. Other key specifications and features include: High-speed connectivity over Verizon Wireless’ Mobile Broadband network (1x/EV-DO Revision A 800/1900 MHz)...
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Sprint customers who’ve been waiting for the HTC Touch Pro2 won’t have to wait much longer. This hot new phone will be available on Sprint’s network beginning September 8 for $349.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate and a two-year agreement. The Touch Pro2 runs on Windows Mobile 6.1 and the TouchFLO user interface. The latest version of HTC’s TouchFLO 3D user interface makes it easy to switch from email to a call with a single touch. The phone also supports many of Sprint’s entertainment applications including Sprint TV with live and on-demand programming, NFL Mobile Live, and NASCAR Sprint Cup Mobile. The phone features a 3.6-inch WVGA variable-angle tilting touch screen and a slide-out keyboard...
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These may not be the second-coming of the XPERIA smartphone, but an 8.1MP cellphone isn't anything to scoff at. Sony Ericsson has just produced two new phones for AT&T's network, and the first of the two is the 905a Cyber-shot, which packs a mighty sweet camera, detection, autofocus, xenon flash and GPS tagging, not to mention 3G data support. There's also a 2.4"scratch-resistant mineral glass scree, a Memory Stick Micro (M2) slot, USB port and PictBridge printing support. The second handset is the W518a, a more simplistic device that falls squarely in the company's "Walkman" range. This one also packs a few unique features, namely an easy portal to Facebook and a 'Shake Control' feature...
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Remember the satellite phone? You know, those oftentimes huge cellphones that are seen occasionally in sci-fi flicks and every other episode of 24? Believe it or not, there's still quite the market for those things, despite the surge in network expansion from mobile operators across the globe.To serve said niche, TerreStar Corporation has this week launched what amounts to the world's largest commercial satellite, with the goal of "providing first-of-its-kind high-speed Internet and wireless voice service from space." The launch really couldn't come at a better time, given that the US government just unleashed $4 billion for use in rural broadband expansion. Without a doubt, satellite Internet...
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If a new research report from Pyramid Research is correct, the number of Long Term Evolution (LTE) subscriptions worldwide will grow 404% from 2010 to 2014. This pace is faster than any previous mobile standard to date. The report identifies the main technical and business drivers as well as many of the challenges LTE is likely to encounter. For the first time, the majority of the major wireless players, operators, and vendors are all supporting the same mobile standard. This will help spur the rollout of LTE considerably. To date, 27 mobile operators throughout the world have committed to deploying LTE. Twelve of those operators are expected to launch commercial services sometime next year....
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While satellite phones were last hot during the original Jurassic Park, there's apparently still a market out there for folks who find themselves in some of the world's most remote locales. TerreStar Corporation and SkyTerra are attempting to do what rivals Iridium and Globalstar haven't been able to: launch a serious sat phone service without having to resort to bankruptcy just years after the initial investment. In two months, TerreStar is expected to shoot a massive commercial satellite into space, some 22,000 miles above Planet Earth. Once there, the device will lay out an "umbrella of gold mesh" that measures 60 feet across and aims directly at the United States. This antenna net will provide...
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It wasn't the first cellular phone technology, but it was the development which led to a global expansion of cellular networks. In 1987 GSM, or the Global System for Mobile Communications got underway. On 7 September 1987, 15 phone firms signed an agreement to build mobile networks based on the Global System for Mobile (GSM) Communications. Robert Conway, head of the GSM Association, said the memorandum of understanding signed in 1987 is widely seen as the moment when the global mobile industry got under way. Some would say that 1987 was also the beginning of the lack of an ability to travel on subways, trains, and buses without constant chatter, but that's another argument....
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The 3GSM World Congress 2006 is around, showcasing everything mobile, and Hardware Zone is ready with the first part of their event coverage. How bout them cell phones? "It's that time of year again where we pay a visit to the mobile mecca, the 3GSM World Congress. This is where deals are made and technologies are shown off, but more interestingly are the new mobile phones that were showcased. In our first part, we take a look at Nokia, Motorola & Sony Ericsson pavilions."...
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