verizon

Apple likely sold around 35.5 million iPhones last quarter, according to Piper Jaffay analyst Gene Munster.

In an investors note out Thursday, the analyst cited the 4 million iPhones activated by Verizon last quarter, which represent a 56 percent share of the carrier's smartphone sales and are inline with Munster's expectations.

Though that number is down from the December quarter's 63 percent, Munster believes such a decline is expected since the holiday quarter was the first full quarter of iPhone 5 sales, a period when the phone's share of the market is typically at its … Read more

Verizon Wireless' decision to extend the wait time for a phone upgrade has some concerned about the potential consumer reaction.

Verizon recently said it would do away with early upgrades, forcing consumers to wait the full 24 months before they are eligible to buy a new phone with the lower subsidized price. Customers previously had to wait only 20 months before getting the early upgrade.

The move comes as T-Mobile said it would do away with contracts and subsidized pricing, providing a better financial deal to consumers. From a broader industry perspective, more consumers are starting to move away from … Read more

Verizon Wireless sold 4 million iPhones in the first quarter.

The breakdown of iPhone sales was split evenly between the iPhone 5 and older iPhones, Chief Financial Officer Fran Shammo said during a conference call Thursday.

The company sold 7.2 million smartphones in the period, with 28 percent going to customers new to Verizon. Shammo declined to provide a figure for Android sales.

In total, Verizon sold 9.7 million devices on a contract basis, with 87 percent of those being phones of some sort.

The 4G LTE push continued in the first quarter. Verizon activated 5.9 million … Read more

Verizon bounced back from a tough fourth quarter and started the year off strongly.

The telecommunications provider today posted a first-quarter profit of $1.95 billion, or 68 cents a share, compared with a year-earlier profit of $1.67 billion, or 59 cents a share. Revenue rose 4.2 percent to $29.42 billion from a year ago.

Analysts, on average, projected per-share earnings of 66 cents and revenue of $29.55 billion, according to Thomson Reuters.

Growth, as usual, was driven by the Verizon Wireless unit, which generated $19.5 billion in revenue, up 6.8 percent from a … Read more

The America Civil Liberties Union filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission today asking the agency to investigate the four major mobile carriers' security practices in regards to smartphones.

The civil liberties group claims that AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint are not doing enough to protect users' private and personal data -- specifically on Android devices. The gist of the complaint (PDF) is that these carriers aren't providing users with timely security updates, which the ACLU says is akin to "deceptive and unfair business practice."

"The major wireless carriers have sold millions of … Read more

Sneaking under the radar this week are two new feature handsets available on Verizon Wireless. Known as the LG Revere 2 and Cosmos 3, the devices are available for free under a two-year contract. Without one, however, they cost $199.99 and $189.99, respectively.

The LG Revere 2 is a sequel to 2011's Revere. In addition to its clamshell construction, it sports a 1.3-megapixel camera, a 1,000mAh battery that has a reported talk-time of about 7 hours, and Bluetooth 2.1.

Furthermore, it has an external, 0.98-inch display, as well as a 2-inch internal color … Read more

Despite its rather dull design, the LG Lucid 2 from Verizon is a reliable 4G LTE device that performs consistently well and is available for free with a contract. Aimed at first-time smartphone users, this handset includes a number of features that may just spoil any Android neophyte from here on in.

Sporting Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean, wireless charging capabilities (if you buy a separate $30 battery door and a charging pad), and a dual-core processor, the Lucid 2 offers a bit more than the original LG Lucid. Namely, a bump in battery power (from 1,700mAh to … Read more

In the latest twist on the Sprint-Clearwire saga, Verizon Wireless apparently has entered the picture as a suitor for Clearwire's spectrum.

Verizon Wireless has offered to pay as much as $1.5 billion to acquire spectrum leases from networking company Clearwire, according to the Wall Street Journal, which cites people said to be familiar with the matter. The move would give the carrier "right to use airwaves currently controlled by Clearwire in big markets in the U.S.," the Journal said.

Word of the Verizon offer came hard on the heels of the announcement this morning that … Read more

Verizon has kicked off a new prepaid plan to lure in feature phone buyers.

Launched yesterday, the new no-contract plan costs $35 a month and offers 500 anytime minutes of talk as well as unlimited text and Internet. Tipping over the 500 monthly minutes will ring up an extra 25 cents per minute.

The deal is geared strictly toward feature phones, so smartphone owners need not apply.

Verizon offers four feature phones along with the plan -- the LG Cosmos 2, the Samsung Gusto 2, the Samsung Intensity 3, and the LG Extravert. All four phones are heavily discounted when … Read more