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The Samsung Galaxy Admire 4G runs a less-than-admirable OS version

At just $100, the Samsung Galaxy Admire 4G has a number of things going for it. It delivers a consistent 4G LTE experience, it has an attractive, compact build, and it's ideal for customers looking for a simple, no-contract smartphone.

Unfortunately, one huge oversight with the device is that it runs on the Android 2.3 operating system. In the smartphone world, this is ages old (after all, there have been two updates since then). And the fact that MetroPCS carries plenty of other devices with Android 4.0 for about the same price, if not cheaper, doesn't … Read more

U.S. Cellular dials up $300 rebate for new family plans

U.S. Cellular is offering a limited time "Family Switcher Bonus" for new customers who activate at least two lines on a Family Plan. The deal, which runs through April 1, provides consumers with a $300 MasterCard debit card.

The catch? At least one of the new lines must be a smartphone.

To sweeten the deal, U.S. Cellular has discounted a number of smartphones, including the Samsung Galaxy S 3 for $150 and the Huawei Ascend Y, which now sells for just a penny.

What's more, the carrier is tossing in a free 4G LTE Samsung … Read more

Dear HTC, here's how you can become popular again

commentary Dear HTC, I have been a fan of your hardware since my time with the T-Mobile MDA back in 2007. When you became the first company to produce an Android smartphone (T-Mobile G1), I upgraded my loyalty status to "die-hard" and enjoyed releases such as the T-Mobile myTouch 3G, HTC Hero, and HTC Evo 4G.

With relatively few companies competing in the Android space in the first few years, I could not see myself going with any other brand. Between 2007 and 2011, my wife and I owned nothing but HTC products. Sadly, neither of us owns … Read more

AT&T picks up Lenovo IdeaTab A2107 tablet

The Lenovo Idea Tab A2107 is now available for purchase through AT&T for $99 with a two-year contract or $199.99 without a commitment.

The 7-inch tablet runs Android 4.0, has a 1,024x600 pixel resolution, 16GB of internal storage, 1GB of RAM, and 1.0 GHz Cortex-A9 SC CPU. The Idea Tab A2107 also has a microUSB port, a VGA front-facing camera, and a 3-megapixel rear-facing camera.

The AT&T version of the tablet operates on 3G or Wi-Fi, but Lenovo also offers a Wi-Fi-only model. The Wi-Fi-only option, now available in stores, differs in … Read more

LG Optimus G Pro to debut this April

LG's Optimus G Pro smartphone will reach consumers in April, at least those in Japan.

Japanese provider NTT DoCoMo announced the news yesterday. A Google-translated version of the company's press release revealed early April as the launch date for the successor to LG's popular Optimus G.

A DoCoMo slideshow page reveals a host of details about the phone, but only for people who can read Japanese. The PDF slideshow is protected, making it impossible to copy and paste the text for translation.

Specs published by Japanese media site Impress Group point to a 5-inch display with a 1,920x1,080 pixel resolution. … Read more

LTE users to hit 1 billion by 2016, says report

The rise in worldwide subscribers on 4G LTE has far exceeded expectations. In just three years since its nascent beginnings, the mobile technology has skyrocketed -- going from 600,000 users in 2010 to nearly 100 million subscribers in 2012.

Now, in a new report, market research firm IHS iSuppli is projecting that global users will double in 2013 and that by 2016 LTE will claim more than 1 billion subscribers.

"With LTE emerging as a true global technology standard, its ecosystem now faces both challenges and opportunities," iSuppli's senior analyst for wireless communications, Wayne Lam, said … Read more

GeeksPhone reveals Firefox OS phones for developers

A small Spanish startup called GeeksPhone has started selling phones that let developers get a taste of Mozilla's new Firefox OS.

GeeksPhone announced two 3G phones for the browser-based operating system, the lower-end Keon and higher-end Peak. The phones, while geared for programmers rather than mainstream customers, make Mozilla's open-source mobile OS a lot more real, since programmers will be able to develop apps as well as to debug and advance the underlying operating system.

Firefox OS is Mozilla's ambitious attempt to build an operating system that brings more openness to the walled gardens of Apple's … Read more

Virgin kicks off Galaxy S2 4G promo with Lady Gaga tour

While it's true that Lady Gaga wants your bad romance, prepaid carrier Virgin Mobile really wants you to check out its Galaxy S2 4G instead.

That's why it has teamed up with Samsung to promote the device while sponsoring Mother Monster herself as she goes on tour across the U.S.

Hitting the Pacific Northwest first with stops in Washington and Oregon, the tour made its way to the Bay Area last night in San Jose, Calif.

Two Virgin Mobile kiosks or "activation sites" were set up so fans could take photos of themselves, many of … Read more

The next LG Optimus leaks

The next LG Optimus may have leaked!

This week Fortune debuted a list of the 100 best companies to work for. Google took the No. 1 spot while Microsoft checked in at No. 75. Wireless tech company Qualcomm took the 11 spot while chip manufacturer Intel showed up at 68.

Details of a high-powered version of LG's Optimus G have apparently leaked online. A slide sent to Engadget teases a new LG phone with a 5-inch 1080p display, a 1.7GHz quad-core processor, 13-megapixel rear camera, and 32 GB of on-board storage. There's no word yet on which … Read more