Items tagged with Wireless data
5G technology has not yet arrived to all consumers, but it may already be a thing of the past. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently voted to grant experimental licenses to test frequencies between 95 GHz and 3 THz. The FCC hopes that these licenses will keep the United States “at the forefront of wireless innovation”. Airwaves above 95 GHz are considered the “outermost horizon of the usable spectrum range”. Scientists and business owners will be able to conduct experiments in this range for up to ten years. They will also be able to more easily sell applicable products with the blessing of the FCC. The FCC has also reserved 21.2 gigahertz of spectrum for...
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According to a recent wireless study by the Nielsen Co., the typical smartphone user consumes less than 300MB of data each month. This figure represents an increase of about 230 percent compared to last year's figure. Considering the increasing popularity of data-intensive mobile services such as video chat and Hulu streaming services, we have to expect that mobile data use will continue to rise. The Nielsen Co. sorted through about 60,000 mobile bills to discover that the average smartphone user was consuming about 298MB of data each month. As you may recall, AT&T recently unveiled new, tiered data plans. The lowest tier offers only 200MB of data for $15 per month. Although this allotment...
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Time Warner Cable Business Class announced a new service called Business Class Mobile. This 4G wireless high-speed data service will initially be available in Texas with additional markets to be added throughout the year. The Business Class Mobile service is designed to give mobile professionals high-speed Internet access when they are outside of the office. As Time Warner puts it, "Business Class Mobile allows employees who are out of the office to download large files, as well as access intranet sites, customer relationship management tools, and other company-related information. The service also eliminates the added expense and service limitations of pay-for-use, limited range Wi-Fi...
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An outrageous bill is every cell phone users' worst nightmare. Whether you're talked too many minutes, sent too many text messages, or used too much data, overage fees add up way too quickly. T-Mobile knows just how painful these overage bills can be, so the company is removing per-megabyte overage charges for 3G modems. Instead of paying overage fees, T-Mobile 3G modem users will now get a gentler reminder that their usage is greater than 5GB per month; the wireless carrier will throttle the speeds of users who have surpassed the 5GB mark. For users who are on the cheaper 200MB/month plan, you'll still pay overage fees, but at a rate that has been reduced by half from 20 cents per MB to a mere...
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When reports broke last year about how iPhone users were overwhelming AT&T's network, some people may have concluded that AT&T was carrying them most data traffic. According to ABI Research, that's not true. Based on its studies, ABI Research concluded that Verizon Wireless and Sprint carried more data last year than AT&T. Together, Verizon Wireless and Sprint customers generated 63% of the mobile network data traffic in the US. Practice director Dan Shey comments on the traffic, “Interestingly AT&T had the most activated data devices in 2009. But it is laptop mobile data connections that have the most impact on operator data traffic levels. Mobile broadband laptop connections...
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Some may view smartphones as a necessity, but that doesn’t mean users are happy about the costs associated with the phone’s monthly data plan. iPhone users are especially among this group who don’t like the pricey data plans required for the phone. As the wireless industry continues to address the downturn in customer spending by offering lower priced service plans and phones, AT&T is holding its ground with the iPhone and required data plan that accompanies the phone despite increasing pressure from the industry and from consumers. Last month, AT&T wireless chief Ralph de la Vega said the company was considering a lower tier service plan for the iPhone that could include limits on how...
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Road warriors who frequently need to set up temporary virtual offices will be happy to learn that Verizon is set to release a 3G-based mobile hotspot device, called the Verizon MiFi 2200, on May 17. The MiFi is a small, rechargeable-battery-powered CDMA (EV-DO Rev. A)-based device that permits up to five 802.11b/g wireless devices to simultaneously get online. The MiFi measures only 3.5x2.3x0.4-inches and weighs a mere 2.05 ounces. It is based on the Novatel Wireless MiFi Intelligent Mobile Hotspot design that was first announced last December. In the initial Novatel press release, Novatel stated that the MiFi "creates a personal cloud of high-speed Internet connectivity that can be easily shared...
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