It wouldn't be too surprising to see a networking firm and a developer of intelligent 3G femtocell access points work in harmony to crank out a dazzling all-in-one contraption, and it looks like Netgear and Ubiquisys have done just that. Aiming to simultaneously enable mobile operators to provide enhanced cellular coverage in the home and allow consumers to access and control a range of home networking services via standard 3G handsets, the two have joined forces to stuff Ubiquisys' ZoneGate into future Netgear WAPs. The currently unnamed solution will reportedly pack an integrated DSL modem, WiFi, VoIP, and 3G femtocell technology into a single box, and while it's not scheduled to go commercial until early next year at best, operator testing should go live by Q4 of 2007.

Intel's not the only chap on the block loosing long range connectivity options on the world at CTIA, as Samsung is apparently aiming for the consumer market with its forthcoming Ubicell base station. While details are scarce at the moment, we do know that this "micromini BTS" will provide CDMA 1x services in the home by "enlarging the coverage area to shadow areas by connecting with DSL / cable modems." Essentially, this unit will help folks who live on the fringe of service areas to ditch their landline and finally enjoy the full benefits of their cellphone service. And while we're not entirely inclined to believe it, Samsung also states that its new creation will actually provide voice quality that's superior to VoIP. Nevertheless, we're still not sure when the Ubicell is expected to land, but those yearning to cut the cord on their landline can start sharpening the scissors.

[Via BoyGeniusReport]

To find out that the Apple iPhone (heard of it?) would roll out locked to Cingular on a multi-year exclusivity agreement was difficult enough for some folks to swallow. Imagine, then, the pain and suffering that'll be experienced by those in areas that Cingular has forsaken. Case in point: the Burlington Free Press has noted that Cingular offers not a sliver of coverage in the quaint state of Vermont, leaving well over half a million good citizens (Ben and Jerry included, we reckon) without their fix. While our initial instinct might be to buy the phone elsewhere and just roam 'til the cows come home (literally -- this is Vermont, after all), Cingular policy states that a customer's address must lie in a directly covered area -- and even for the few that manage to skate by that one, the carrier's known for canceling accounts that roam excessively. Of course, Cingular points out that eager buyers are more than welcome to buy it contract-free without activating an account, but there's not a lot of fun in that; meanwhile, Apple's staying mum on the subject, perhaps for fear of further agitating hundreds of thousands of irate Vermonters. And the problem is by no means limited to Vermont: residents of large parts of Maine, Virginia, West Virginia, New Mexico, the Dakotas, Arizona, Montana, Utah, Nevada, Idaho, and Colorado (among other states) might find that Apple has passed them over come June, unless Cingular goes into turbo mode lighting up new service areas. Anyone out there willing to move for a cellphone?

[Thanks, Craig]

We've already seen an influx of hybrid vehicles take their places in the mammoth fleet of New York City taxis, and now that the Taxi 2.0 will reportedly sport GPS tracking an built-in televisions, what else is really left to implement? Stockholm-based Ericsson has apparently seized the opportunity in using the random, perpetual motion of NYC's yellow mainstays to better itself (read: make some coin), and has recently received permission from the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission to install small devices "about the size of a computer modem" into cabs in order to "feed information about signal strength and clarity to engineers." The research, which has already been completed in other areas of the world, is being conducted in the Big Apple on behalf of a yet-to-be-named carrier, and it purportedly hopes to more accurately map out dead zones in mobile phone networks. Currently, "at least one fleet" has signed up to participate, and others could join in considering the royalties that will be paid out for tagging along on those zany routes through the city. Of course, this whole system should be relatively invisible to cab riders, but a continual voice recording of furious (and disconnected) passengers could probably work equally well in pinpointing those dead spots.

[Via Textually]