ctia

Here's the problem with Huawei's image: it doesn't have one.

While known in technology circles, it is a virtual nonentity for many consumers, some of whom are probably unaware they are using a Huawei smartphone.

Huawei, however, wants to change that, and is planning a large U.S. marketing campaign to build consumer awareness of its brand. The company has already worked with its carrier customers -- typically prepaid players such as MetroPCS or Leap Wireless -- to jointly do so. But with the planned campaign, slated for the second half of the year, the company will … Read more

NEW ORLEANS -- Verizon Wireless CEO Dan Mead defended his company's plan to buy wireless spectrum from cable operators during a keynote here Tuesday.

Mead emphasized the need for more wireless spectrum in the market to keep up with growing demand for wireless data services among consumers. He said it will take years for the Federal Communications Commission to auction off additional spectrum. And he said Verizon can't wait: his company will need additional spectrum in some markets by 2013, and it will need even more by 2015.

Verizon has been deploying new technology to get more efficient … Read more

NEW ORLEANS--What if there were an accurate way for your phone to help you time your commute on a given morning? "Take Highway 280 today instead of 101; there's an accident" for instance, or "It will take you 10 minutes longer than usual today, so you'd better leave by 7:30 in order to make that 8:30 meeting."

Unfortunately, our phones aren't quite up to being quite so helpful just yet, at least not the way I envision it in my daydreams. However, Nokia is planing an update to its Nokia Drive … Read more

NEW ORLEANS--Pandora has surpassed 150 million users, according to CEO Joe Kennedy.

The Internet radio service remains the second most downloaded app in the history of Apple's App Store, Kennedy said during a keynote address at the CTIA Wireless conference here today.

Pandora recently faced stiff competition from latecomer Spotify, which has managed to capture some buzz from recent announcements, such as its move open up the service to third-party developers. Spotify said a few months ago that it has 3 million paying customers.

But Pandora believes it is at the early stages of the growth curve.

"We … Read more

NEW ORLEANS--From a user point of view, ZTE's head of the North American business, Lixin Cheng, prefers the Windows Phone OS over Android.

"In my personal experience, the iPhone, of course, has a well-polished user interface experience," Cheng told CNET. "And then Windows, and then Android."

But for the small-time phone manufacturing company, which has been steadily trying to plant a presence in the United States, releasing Windows Phone devices hasn't been easy.

In fact, the majority of ZTE handsets run on Android. Along with the ZTE Orbit, which is available in the U.… Read more

NEW ORLEANS--It was Verizon CTO Tony Melone's turn today to talk about adopting an 1-800-like service for over-the-top media providers.

During a panel here at the CTIA trade show, Melone said that there is a more than 50-50 chance that carriers will adopt a business model that allows destination services, such as Google or Netflix, to pay for clear access for their customers.

"As we move away from flat rate pricing, there is room for an 1-800-type of service where certain destinations could offset the cost of the network to get customers to those destinations," he said. &… Read more

NEW ORLEANS--Samsung's newest flagship smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy S III, crossed the pond and landed in my hands at CTIA 2012.

Quite a few commenters on CNET's live blog expressed their disappointment, saying that the Galaxy S III is an evolution, not a revolution, that they wish it had a better camera, that it came in ceramic material, and that the design wasn't that compelling. I must respectfully disagree on all three counts, and here's why.

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy S III hands-on: Oh yes, it has wow factor.

NEW ORLEANS--ZTE is virtually unknown in the U.S. and, at least for now, that seems to be OK with the company.

The Chinese company, the fourth-largest handset vendor despite its minimal presence in the U.S., is focusing on building up its relationship with the carriers and supporting their needs, said Lixen Cheng, president of ZTE's North American business, in an interview with CNET today.

"We do plan on building our consumer brand by working more closely with our carrier partners," he said.

While relatively unknown, ZTE is an up-and-comer in the U.S. handset business. … Read more

NEW ORLEANS--Offering 4G access and hardware essentially identical to last year's Sprint HTC Evo 3D, the HTC Evo V 4G looks even better up close than it does on paper. … Read more