The cost of switching to LTE? Sprint to spend $10 billion over the next two years
October 7, 2011 No Comment
Wonder just how much it costs to phase out iDEN and WiMAX networks and put all your eggs in one, CDMA / LTE-flavored basket? Well, Joe Euteneuer, Sprint’s CFO, just offered up a frank answer here at its ” Strategy Update ” event: $10 billion over the next two years. Ultimately, he assures all the suited-up financial analysts in the room, the company should save $10 billion to $11 billion through 2017 (as that handy slide up there breaks down), with $4 billion of that resulting from not having to maintain the ‘ol ball and chain iDEN network anymore. Now it’s true, we’re a minority in this meeting of industry analysts, but you don’t need to be a banker to understand that’s one telling figure: clearly, the company’s betting its future not just on the (CDMA!) iPhone, but LTE’s brand of 4G. The cost of switching to LTE? Sprint to spend $10 billion over the next two years originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Oct 2011 12:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Comcast promises Xfinity VOD streaming on more devices, new Xcalibur guide in 2012
October 7, 2011 No Comment
Don’t expect Comcast to stop its Xfinity VOD streaming to the living room rollout with just the Xbox 360 this Christmas , as executive Sam Schwartz promised during a CTAM panel that it plans to develop apps for the PS3, Wii, Roku and other connected TV platforms. Multichannel News reports it doesn’t plan to roll out streaming to as many platforms as Netflix, so we’ll have to wait and see where this initial venture into IPTV stops. Think big cable is scared of over the top services? Maybe not yet, since Comcast claims Netflix subscribers tend to be the most voracious users of its VOD. Also in Comcast’s future is its completely revamped Xcalibur guide software with internet and social media tie-ins (check out our early sneak peek here ), which Schwartz reiterated would be available nationwide at some point next year. Comcast promises Xfinity VOD streaming on more devices, new Xcalibur guide in 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Oct 2011 11:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Pandigital Supernova available mid-October for $230, is an eReader in Android tablet disguise
October 7, 2011 No Comment
Pandigital hasn’t made much of an effort to swathe its Supernova tab in mystery. When the 8-inch LCD slate swept through the FCC earlier this summer, we were privy not only to images of the device and its internals, but also to the apps that’d be pre-loaded on purchase — GetJar and Barnes & Noble’s Nook app amongst others. So, what can you expect for $230 when it lands this month? Well, the company’s forsaken Honeycomb for the soon-to-be outclassed Gingerbread OS, tossed in a single-core 1GHz A8 processor, 4GB of storage (expandable to 32GB via microSD slot), WiFi and Bluetooth. It’s a cheap, me too Android tablet entry, for sure. And with the recent outing of a certain budget-priced, ecosystem-friendly tab , we might suggest you hold off for the higher-specced goods. Official PR after the break. Continue reading Pandigital Supernova available mid-October for $230, is an eReader in Android tablet disguise Pandigital Supernova available mid-October for $230, is an eReader in Android tablet disguise originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Oct 2011 09:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Sprint converts its CDMA network to LTE, plans ‘aggressive rollout’ to be completed by 2013
October 7, 2011 No Comment
We knew more or less that an announcement of this sort was coming. Back in July, Dan Hesse had teased us face-to-face with the promise of a “great story this fall around 4G,” and now the time to tell that tale has arrived. At its strategy event today, Sprint finally went public with plans to “simplify its network” by converting its CDMA 1900MHz holdings and LightSquared’s 1600MHZ spectrum (“pending FCC approval”) to LTE, an industry favorite . Helping the operator make that transition is the swathe of 800MHz spectrum it reclaimed from the, now defunct, iDEN push-to-talk network — which had been a drain on the company’s resources. This spectrum, acquired from Nextel, will be phased out by mid-2013 and rolled into LTE. The company plans for a rapid deployment of this new 4G, with the first LTE markets and handsets to hit in mid-2012 with the full rollout mostly completed by 2013. Current subscribers signed up for WiMAX plans won’t have to worry as their devices will continue to be supported throughout 2012. Beginning tomorrow, Sprint’s consolidating its 4G LTE (including LightSquared), 3G and Direct Connect networks into one single architecture. All the major technical milestones, such as test calls and field integration, have cleared their hurdles and work on over 22,00 cell sites are currently in process. Samsung, Alcatel Lucent and Ericsson have partnered with Sprint to install Multimode 3G and 4G base stations to handle the network’s future traffic. Prospective iPhone 4S users on the network will be able to take advantage of better signal strength and improved voice service as Sprint intends to also offload the latter onto 800MHz. …Developing Sprint converts its CDMA network to LTE, plans ‘aggressive rollout’ to be completed by 2013 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Oct 2011 09:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Zotac isn’t the biggest name in computers, but the company does do one thing particularly well — cram capable HTPC components in itty-bitty boxes for a reasonable price. VD01 series ditches more well known solutions from Intel and AMD for chips from VIA , specifically the Nano X2 U4025 CPU with its Chrome9 media processor. Inside is room for a 2.5-inch HDD and a single DDR3 slot, but you can get those pre-populated with a 320GB disk and 2GB RAM by opting for the Plus model. Outside is your usual selection of USB 3.0, 2.0, eSATA, Ethernet and HDMI ports while inside are both Bluetooth 3.0 and 802.11n radios. There’s even an IR receiver and bundled remote to make this truly living room friendly. Check out the gallery below, as well as the PR after the break. Gallery: Zotac ZBOX nano VD01 Continue reading Zotac’s ZBOX nano VD01 packs dual-core VIA CPU in a tiny, tiny box Zotac’s ZBOX nano VD01 packs dual-core VIA CPU in a tiny, tiny box originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Oct 2011 08:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Color us a disappointed shade of blue, but it appears that Samsung and Google have decided not to launch the Galaxy Nexus (or Nexus Prime, or whatever it’s called) and Ice Cream Sandwich at their October 11th Unpacked event . The two companies sent out a joint announcement reading: Samsung and Google decide to postpone the new product announcement at CTIA Fall. We agree that it is just not the right time to announce a new product. New date and venue will be shortly announced. The press event on the 11th was expected to be not only the debut for the successor to the Nexus S, but our first good look at the next version of Android. For whatever reason the companies have decided to delay that launch. But, if Eric Schmidt is true to his word, we shouldn’t have to wait too much longer… he did promise us that it would launch by November . We’ll let you know as soon as we get a new date to expect ” something big .” Samsung and Google postpone Ice Cream Sandwich and Galaxy Nexus originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Oct 2011 07:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Xoom 4G LTE upgrades boomerang back with Honeycomb update, microSD card support now a go
October 7, 2011 No Comment
Xoom owners that hastily shipped off their slates for an LTE upgrade are in for a surprise. Turns out the newly equipped 4G tablets are not only being expediently returned, but also come with an upgrade to version 3.2.2 of Honeycomb. Details of just what’s been included in the new firmware are scant, but the main takeaway from Verizon’s overhaul is the now functional microSD slot. That’s right, unless you were privy to that non-U.S. Android 3.1 update or installed the Tiamat kernel , you’ll now finally be granted read/write access to your microSD card. It seems wishes do come true in Big Red land, you just have to practice extreme patience. Xoom 4G LTE upgrades boomerang back with Honeycomb update, microSD card support now a go originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Oct 2011 03:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Charleston, South Carolina might be famous for the eponymous knee / hand dance, but this week sees it become the second location in the US to get Comcast’s MyTV Choice. Rather than buying all the channels, or paying
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Leaks are flying left and right as Samsung’s Unpacked event approaches, with the latest coming from Romania’s Mobilissimo.ro . Today, the site published new images and video of what could be the Samsung Galaxy Nexus — the long-awaited follow-up to the Nexus S . At this point, it’s difficult to say whether the device (model number “Tuna”) totally jives with the leaked specs we saw earlier this week, though its spacious display (rumored to be of 4.65-inch Super AMOLED HD stock) does look rather sharp. Other than that, the handset appears to boast a 1,750mAh battery, along with a five megapixel camera, and that rumored Ice Cream Sandwich UI, replete with onscreen buttons. Compared with the Nexus S , the front-facing camera on this device is shifted further to the right, with the proximity sensor nestled between the earpiece and the shooter, rather than all the way on the left. Its corners, meanwhile, seem less rounded than what you’ll find on the earlier version, though we noticed that it does have a micro-USB port lurking at the bottom center, much like its ancestor. Of course, we’ll have to wait until October 11th to see whether these shots are as good as advertised, but you can head past the break to see the purportedly authentic video for yourself. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Continue reading Samsung Galaxy Nexus spotted in the wild? (video) Samsung Galaxy Nexus spotted in the wild? (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Oct 2011 05:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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ASUS has a big event next week in the Big Apple, where the super slim UX21 and UX31 will be revealed. Granted, the company said it’ll be showing off “the real Ultrabook,” on October 11th, but the eagle-eyed folks at Notebook Italia spied some evidence that the laptops in question will be called Zenbooks instead. Proof of the new moniker was found in the title of the information request form on the ASUS UX countdown site, but it was gone when we looked for ourselves. Guess we’ll just have to wait and see whether the newest thin and light laptops are, indeed, PCs possessing inner peace. ASUS Ultrabooks are actually Zenbooks? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Oct 2011 04:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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