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EDGE posts

Sony Ericsson Satio arrives at the FCC

by Nilay Patel posted Aug 14th 2009 @ 11:21AM

Well well, it looks like the mythical Sony Ericsson Satio is soon to go from beautiful fever-dream to actual reality -- it's popped into the FCC database with test results on GSM 850 and 1900, otherwise known as EDGE. Yeah, that sort of sucks, but we're still holding out hope, since we don't know the full story -- it could be destined for a lame existence on AT&T, it could be sold unlocked, or it could be a Canadian or Latin American model. Seriously, though -- it's the Satio, and the government has one. You know what that means.

Altek crams a dozen megapixels of wishful thinking into T8680 cameraphone

by Tim Stevens posted Aug 4th 2009 @ 9:27AM

There once was a time when a 12 megapixel cameraphone would have been laughed at, and, though many are still smirking (guilty), they're now a reality -- a reality that Altek wants desperately to be a part of with its T8680 handset. Its face looks rather like a PMP with a 3-inch WQVGA LCD, but on the back is the standard sort of 3x pop-out zoom that you'd expect on a compact shooter, sitting next to a tiny xenon flash. It'll capture unnecessarily high resolution images while being crippled to VGA video, play back MP3 and AAC files, and tune into the Weekly Top 40 over FM. Yes, it'll even make calls, but with only tri-band GSM/EDGE support don't expect to e-mail those gigantic pictures directly from the phone. The T8680 is expected to hit Chinese retailers in about a month for 3000 yuan (about $440), and probably won't be making much of an appearance elsewhere.

[Via GSM Arena]

HTC Hero approved by Global Certification Forum, rocking GSM and HSPA

by Ross Miller posted Jun 21st 2009 @ 3:28PM

We're unfortunately light on details here, but The Unwired is reporting that HTC's Hero has been approved by the Global Certification Forum, listed here as "HERO100," with support for quadband GSM/GPRS/EDGE and dualband UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA at 1800/2100 MHz. With the company's touted London event just around the corner -- this Wednesday, to be exact -- we wouldn't be surprised to see the phone and its oft-rumored "Rosie" Android UI take center stage, in possibly two variations. Other than frequency bands and the associative name, the GCF isn't giving us anything else to work with, so for now just sit back and hope this uncertainty is cleared up sooner rather than later.

AT&T slowing EDGE to force customers to switch to 3G?

by Jacob Schulman posted Jan 7th 2009 @ 3:10AM

Been holding on to that now-antique EDGE device to keep from extending your contract with AT&T? Well, if you've been experiencing some sluggishness -- and not just general EDGE sluggishness, mind you -- you might have more to blame than just those recent outages. Open for Business reports that AT&T has been quietly lowering EDGE signal strength to give more 3G love to all you iPhone 3G and Bold users. To add to the shadiness of the situation, AT&T reps are all offering up the same solution -- buy a 3G device. Unsurprisingly, AT&T's Mark Siegel has denied Open for Business's claims, and says that the mega-carrier is not requiring anyone to switch to a 3G phone. We'll put on our Sherlock Holmes outfits and try to do some digging, but it's not like we actually expect these guys to admit to a move that would definitely lead to a lot of backlash.

[Via MobileBurn]

Sierra Wireless intros 'ruggedified' AirCard 501 and 502 modems

by Joseph L. Flatley posted Dec 17th 2008 @ 1:07PM

Sierra Wireless has just announced two new ExpressCard modems for HSUPA wireless users. Sporting download speeds up tp 7.2Mbps and upload speeds up to 5.76Mbps, the AirCard 501 supports 850 / 1900 / 2100 MHz bands, while the AirCard 502 covers 900 / 1900 / 2100 MHz. Both are backward compatible with UMTS, EDGE and GSM networks world 'round, and they're being touted as "durable," meaning there are no little antennas or plastic pieces to break on you. That last part should be good news to all of you post-apocalyptic Road Warriors out there (or not -- they're still just regular ExpressCards, as far as we can tell). The AirCard 501 is slated for release later this month, while those of you interested in the AirCard 502 will have to wait until the first part of 2009.

[Via Slash Phone]

EDGE looking spry in old age, completes first Downlink Dual Carrier call

by Chris Ziegler posted Dec 8th 2008 @ 1:49AM

3G's awesome, but for huge swaths of the GSM world, 2G is still -- and will continue to be -- a hugely important way to get data moved around the mobile interwebs. To help bridge the gap and keep the 2G folks from falling hopelessly behind, EDGE Evolution is the knight in shining armor, and Nokia Siemens is keeping the ball rolling by successfully testing Downlink Dual Carrier for the first time, a technology that doubles legacy EDGE speeds to a max of 592kbps on the downlink. Unlike UMTS and HSPA solutions, Downlink Dual Carrier promises to be a software-only solution, which means it should theoretically be quick, easy, and cheap for carriers to deploy en masse. And hey, as long as AT&T and T-Mobile have less than 100 percent 3G coverage -- which as far as we can tell is still years away -- we'll take whatever little boost we can get.

[Via MobileTechNews]

LG intros SH470 slider in South Korea

by Darren Murph posted Nov 11th 2008 @ 4:38AM

LG's recently introduced SH470 has a lot in common with the KF510, but the Cyon branding and dark motif may be all that's necessary for the company to unveil it under a different model name in South Korea. The ultrathin slider checks in at just 10.9-millimeters thick and boasts a metal frame, 2.2-inch display, 2-megapixel camera and an ambient light sensor to automatically adjust brightness based on surrounding light conditions. Mum's the word on a price or an exact release date, but both of those tidbits could probably be uncovered if you're fluent in Korean.

[Via UnwiredView]

AT&T Quickfire hits shelves a few days early

by Laura June posted Nov 8th 2008 @ 10:31AM

We hear that some truly lucky humans have gotten their hands on the AT&T Quickfire (also known as the Knick), which is supposed to go on sale November 10th, so that means... yup about two days early. The asking price for the device was $149.99 (with a $50 mail in rebate) with a new 2 year contract. As for details, all we know is that it was purchased in an AT&T store by an unnamed mystery customer in a "small town." Sometimes it truly pays to live in the real America.

O2's GPRS network gets a speed boost, EDGE-style

by Sean Cooper posted Sep 19th 2008 @ 10:39AM

We all can remember a time when our mobile Internet experience consisted of the painful trickling bytes that only GPRS can deliver. It would seem O2's trying to turn German's frowns upside down by broadening its EDGE footprint with 700 GPRS sites getting a speed bump from a measly 53kbps to a more pleasant 236kbps. A further 4500 sites are green lighted for upgrade and that can be expected before the end of the year. O2 has also noted that 75 percent of its UMTS network has already been upgraded to 3.6Mbit HSDPA and they are working to roll out HSUPA in 2009.

Down for everyone or just you? AT&T experiencing a major data outage on the East Coast.

by Paul Miller posted Sep 3rd 2008 @ 9:45AM

Ruh-roh. AT&T's wireless data service seems to be down in a major way, at least on the eastern half of the country. We're seeing problems with both Edge and 3G from places such as Boston, New York and St. Louis. It's primarily iPhone users pinging us on this, and in AT&T's forums, but we're guessing it's not just limited to them. How is it looking for you?

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Update: We've just spoken to AT&T and they've told us they're "aware of the reports." We'll keep our ear to the ground and update as soon as we have more.

Update 2: AT&T now tells us that it all came down to a "routing issue" in the Northeast that was patched up at 11:56AM this morning. For what it's worth, BlackBerry and text services were apparently unaffected -- but we doubt that's much consolation to iPhone users in withdrawl.

Qisda showcases dual-mode GSM / WiMAX-compatible mobile

by Darren Murph posted Jun 7th 2008 @ 10:30PM

Far from being the first dual-mode handset we've seen (heck, it's not even the first WiMAX-friendly dualie), Qsida's recently showcased slider is still quite intriguing. The currently unnamed cellphone supports both 802.16e WiMAX as well as GSM / GPRS / EDGE networks, and just in case you're hankering for another way to get connected, there's a built-in WiFi module too. Reportedly, the smartphone is a test device used in the M-Taiwan initiative to promote WiMAX, and aside from handling voice calls via (almost) any flavor of wireless protocol, you'll also find Windows Mobile 6.1 running the show. Granted, this particular unit wasn't down with 3G, but a spokesperson was adamant that such a handset would be added to its portfolio eventually.

Nokia Siemens rolling out EDGE Evolution in Q3: like EDGE with half the slow

by Paul Miller posted Mar 27th 2008 @ 11:10AM

While we first got wind of a EDGE Evolution rollout from Ericsson, Nokia Siemens isn't about to let one of those young upstart carrier equipment manufacturers steal its top-of-the-heap EDGE thunder, and has just announced the "launch" of its Dual Carrier EDGE software solution, marking the first steps of rolling out EDGE Evolution to the company's radio portfolio. The software upgrade doubles current EDGE speeds to 592kbps, and will be available from Q3 2008 onwards. Nokia Siemens won't stop there, though, EDGE is going to get another bump not too long after that to EGPRS 2, with download speeds of 1.2Mbps and uplink speeds up to 473kpbs. What's unclear at the moment is what existing phones (iPhone, we're looking at you) will be able to manage this with a firmware update, and which ones are going to be stuck in the past, but we're hoping for a good bit of the former.

[Via GigaOM]

Rogers slated to get Novatel X950D and MC950D data cards

by Sean Cooper posted Mar 20th 2008 @ 7:46PM

Rogers seems set to sponge as much cake as they can out of your overtaxed mobile pockets with the announcement of two new HSPA data devices, the Novatel X950D and MC950D. We've seen the USB-friendly MC950D pop up before, but as a refresh: it rocks 7.2 Mbps triple-band HSPA, supports most popular OSes, quad-band GPRS / EDGE, and may well still be the world's smallest HSPA USB modem. The X950D, however, will be making its worldwide debut on the friendly Canadian provider's network, and we're sure a goodly pile of Canadians will be whooping it up at this news. Sporting triple-band HSPA, Mac and Windows-friendly, quad-band GPRS / EDGE, Novatel's newest express port product also features backwards compatibility with a handy PCMCIA adapter. Pricing on both is apparently the same: $49.99 on a three-year contract. Of course, with data rates what they are, that $50 is definitely gonna get you in a whole heap of trouble if you don't mind your bits.

iPhone users can now drop data plan, save $20 per month

by Darren Murph posted Nov 16th 2007 @ 1:11PM

For those of you who keep your iPhone connected via WiFi entirely more often than through EDGE, listen up. As of now, it appears that iPhone users can login to their AT&T myAccount page, surf on over to the "Add / Manage Features" section and opt out of the (previously required) monthly data plan. Making the change will save you a whole $20 per month -- or $240 per year, if you prefer that perspective. Granted, you'll also lose visual voicemail in the process, but at least you're now being presented the option, right?

[Via TUAW]

Samsung announces the Anycall G608

by Sean Cooper posted Nov 16th 2007 @ 8:47AM

Simple and slick come to mind, don't you love it how Samsung can often get the little things right? Sure, quad-band and HSDPA some times get lost in the shuffle, but otherwise the planets generally seem to align. The G608 features quad-band GSM / EDGE, a 5 megapixel shooter, 7 hours and 320 hours talk and standby times, FM Radio, Bluetooth, plus all the quirky bits of software you could hope for. We've no idea of a target market for this straightforward slider, but we'd certainly welcome it over here.

[Via Just Another Mobile Phone Blog]