at&t

AT&T sells Samsung Express, touch-screen hot spot Nov. 16

On November 16, AT&T will begin selling two new devices. The MiFi Liberate stands out as the first hot spot with a touch screen. The device, which is designed by Novatel Wireless, can connect up to 10 devices and will sell for $49.99 with a new two-year service agreement. It qualifies, of course, for AT&T's shared data plan.

AT&T will also stock shelves with the Samsung Galaxy Express, a $99.99 midrange 4G LTE smartphone. It sports Android 4.0, a 4.5-inch Super AMOLED Plus screen, and a 1.5GHz dual-core … Read more

AT&T drafts behind Microsoft's Windows 8 media blitz

AT&T hopes the third time's the charm when it comes to Windows Phone.

While the company isn't putting all of its marketing muscle behind its lineup of Windows Phone 8 devices, it expects to benefit from the massive promotional push of Windows 8 from Microsoft. The telecommunications provider believes the proliferation of Windows 8 computers and tablets in the market will drive previously unseen demand for the smartphones.

"We are coordinating together to make sure we have an effective launch," said Ralph de la Vega, head of AT&T's mobile arm, in … Read more

AT&T execs are confident about spectrum position

NEW YORK -- AT&T is in a much better place when it comes to spectrum today than it was at the end of 2011, the company said during an investor meeting today. And the company is confident is has the resources to make a big push to compete with its next generation 4G LTE market.

AT&T announced today that it plans to spend $14 billion to build out its wireless and wireline networks, an effort that includes bringing its 4G LTE network to 300 million potential U.S. customers.

John Stankey, AT&T's chief … Read more

AT&T Mobility CEO sees record customer loyalty by 2015

AT&T believes customers will stick even tighter to its wireless service over the next few years.

The company expects to hit a record-low rate of customer turnover by 2015, according to Ralph de la Vega, chief executive of AT&T's mobility arm. He was speaking today at the company's investor conference in New York.

De la Vega was his usual bullish self and threw out several stats to back up his optimism. In addition to the customer turnover rate estimate, he said he expects 90 percent of its customer base to own a smartphone by … Read more

AT&T will spend $14B to pump up wireless, wireline networks

AT&T today laid out a broad plan to upgrade both its wireline and wireless networks and keep its growth moving.

Project Velocity IP, or VIP, consists of an investment of $14 billion over the next three years -- $8 billion for wireless and $6 billion for wireline -- and is designed to expand the company's 4G LTE coverage on the wireless side and faster service, more fiber-optic lines, and expanded U-Verse availability on the landline side.

Project VIP is significant because it represents the first time in many years that AT&T has significantly ramped up … Read more

AT&T to pay feds $700,000 to settle overcharging dispute

AT&T has agreed to pay $700,000 to the federal government to resolve complaints that that the company switched certain consumers to its mandatory monthly wireless data plans even though it had promised they could retain their existing pay-as-you-go data plans, the FCC announced Tuesday.

AT&T has agreed to refund excess charges paid by these "grandfathered subscriber," which could be as much as $25 to $30 a month, depending on data use, the Federal Communications Commission said in a press release. AT&T began transferring customers to to its monthly data plans in … Read more

AT&T to sell Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 Android slate on November 9

AT&T today announced that it will soon be offering the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 tablet. Initially announced for the carrier back in late September, we've had to wait until today to learn final pricing and exact availability. That said, the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich tablet arrives on Friday with a $499.99 price tag. Subscribers can add the Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 to an existing account for as low as $10 per month on a Mobile Share plan.

Like Sprint's forthcoming version of the Samsung device, the Galaxy Tab 2 10.… Read more

Boxee set to battle Apple TV, Roku

While CNET's New York office waits for power to come back after the storm, we're bringing you the Update show from our San Francisco office. Thursday's top tech stories include:

- Boxee TV arrives at Walmart for $99 and offers perks for early adopters, including three months of free service and a discounted DVR subscription afterward.

- AT&T and T-Mobile have activated a new service that blocks smartphone thieves from using a stolen phone on GSM networks.

- AT&T launched the AT&T Locker app that offers 5GB of free cloud storage … Read more

AT&T offers free cloud storage for iOS and Android

AT&T on Thursday announced a new service it calls AT&T Locker that will allow AT&T iPhone and Android smartphone customers to store 5GB worth of videos and photos for free in AT&T's "cloud."

The service is available through a free app in the Apple App Store or the Google Play store. And it allows users to store roughly 5,000 average sized photos in the cloud. The app requires subscribers use either an iPhone 3GS or newer device. And Android users must be on version 2.1 or higher … Read more

AT&T, T-Mobile team up to curb smartphone theft

AT&T and T-Mobile, the two GSM carriers in the U.S., have turned on a database designed to cut back on smartphone theft.

The database went live yesterday and allows either AT&T or T-Mobile to block a device from being used on either network. In order to do that, the companies ban a device's IMEI number -- a unique identifier that tells networks what the device is and who owns it -- and effectively stop it from being able to place calls.

In the past, stolen smartphones were blocked by eliminating the use of a … Read more