Cellular

Update at 10:52 a.m. PDT: Information about monthly text messaging added

AT&T reaffirmed pricing for the iPhone 3G on Tuesday, noting that eligible customers can snag the new smartphone for a discount: $199 with an 8GB flash drive and $299 for 16GB.

AT&T will begin offering Apple's iPhone 3G at its retail stores beginning July 11 at 8 a.m. local time. AT&T is the exclusive iPhone carrier in the U.S.

Under the plan, the discounted price will be available to customers who have purchased any iPhone before July 11, … Read more

Is Sprint Nextel on the comeback trail?

That's the buzz on various Web sites like The Wall Street Journal and TheStreet.com, as rumors fly that Verizon Wireless and AT&T executives say they are seeing fewer numbers ported from the struggling Sprint to their own networks.

The rumors have been bolstered by a research note published last week by a JPMorgan Chase analyst who quoted Denny Strigl, Verizon's COO, as saying that Sprint has been doing better in the past 30 days.

Press contacts for AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon declined to comment on the … Read more

Skyhook Wireless announced Monday that it is integrating GPS into its geolocation service to get an even more accurate fix for location-based services.

Up until now, Skyhook's geolocation service, which is used on Apple's iPhone, among other services and devices, has used Wi-Fi hot spots to get a fix on location. The service works very well in densely populated areas where there are a lot of Wi-Fi radios transmitting signals. And it's great for locating places indoors or in cities with a lot of tall buildings, all places where satellite-based GPS, or Global Positioning System, technology has … Read more

Break the law, get a free headset?

It might sound a little odd, but online retailer Headsets.com has decided to make that idea the focus of a new marketing and educational campaign related to the new hands-free legislation that takes hold Tuesday in California and Washington.

In effect, if you get ticketed for talking on your cell phone without a headset while driving, pony up the $20 or $50 (depending on how many times you've been caught), then send documentation of your offense to Headsets.com.

The most surprising part? You'll be making a hefty profit by … Read more

A good number of Californians think the state's new hands-free cell phone law will bode well for public safety, if a random sampling of consumers by CNET News.com is any indication. But gadget retailers have their own reason to cheer--they're reaping the cash benefits.

While they won't quote their sales figures directly, retailers such as RadioShack, Plantronics, and Headsets.com say they've seen a jump in sales of Bluetooth and other hands-free devices in the past month. The law goes into effect Tuesday, with a similar law taking hold in Washington state the same day. … Read more

Verizon Wireless has upped the ante in its efforts to take on Apple's iTunes store in the digital music market by offering DRM-free music for all purchased music plus a new subscription service. But will it be enough to make a dent in Apple's dominance?

On Monday, Verizon Wireless will announce the revamped V Cast music store, which will be loaded with digital music that is free of the pesky digital rights management encryption on all songs that are purchased through the store. Verizon is joining Amazon as the only other digital music distributor that will be selling … Read more

After talks broke down earlier this year between Apple and China Mobile over the (non-pirated) introduction of the iPhone, Apple's concession to non-U.S. carriers that they don't need to share revenue has apparently restored progress with the world's largest carrier.

This comes as China's government reports mobile accounts are nearing the 600 million mark. China Mobile alone has more than 400 million accounts. These numbers don't mean there are that many people with cell phones, however. I and many others have multiple SIM cards. I use one for visiting friends, but others use second … Read more

Talks about how to bring the iPhone to China have moved from hard-line negotiations to the logistics phase, Reuters is reporting.

During an interview at the Worldwide Developers Conference, Jobs hinted to CNBC that Apple might soon add China to its list of countries where the iPhone will become available. But working out the details of exactly how that will happen hasn't been easy.

Now, talks with Chinese wireless carrier China Mobile have cleared their biggest hurdle, Apple's insistence on setting up a revenue-sharing agreement, according to Reuters. Apple has reportedly given up on that idea in favor … Read more

If you think AT&T's iPhone 3G service plans are expensive, just consider what Rogers is forcing on our Canadian friends.

Friday, the carrier announced its service plans for the iPhone 3G, none of which include unlimited data use. Instead, Rogers will cap data each month at a certain amount, which will range from 400MB for the cheapest service plan ($60 Canadian or $59.23 U.S.) to 2GB for the most expensive plan ($115 Canadian or $113.64 U.S.).

Though 2GB is a lot of data, we're not sure how a customer is supposed to … Read more