Looking for an entry-level smartphone for, say, a text-happy teenager? Or maybe you're ready to ditch your old flip-phone for something a little more robust, but you don't want to pay those crazy monthly rates ($80 and up from most carriers).
Consider the LG Optimus V from Virgin Mobile. It's a reasonably speedy, appreciably compact Android phone that'll cost you as little as $35 per month--no contract required.… Read more
Today, Virgin Mobile announced the upcoming availability of its latest Android smartphones, the LG Optimus Slider and HTC Wildfire S.
Equipped with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, the carriers says the Optimus Slider is ideal for those who love to e-mail, message, and social network on the go. In fact, the Android 2.3 Gingerbread handset will come preloaded with Virgin Mobile's Live 2.0 social networking app that lets you access the carrier's custom music stream and allows to you check into special events.
The Android 2.3 Gingerbread handset also has a 3.2-inch touch screen, a … Read more
Just what personal information does your mobile carrier store about you, and for how long? A memo from the Department of Justice sheds some light on this question.
Obtained from the Department of Justice by the ACLU through the Freedom of Information Act, the memo entitled "Retention Periods of Major Cellular Service Providers" reveals the data retention policies of six major U.S. mobile carriers. Dated August 2010, the memo says it's directed for "Law Enforcement Use Only," so it was written specifically for police and legal authorities in cases where they need to obtain … Read more
Ever wished you could win money--big money--for playing video games?
While that dream may never come true for most of us, there is a chance for anyone with an Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 to become a gaming god. Virgin Gaming, EA, and DICE are teaming up to host a Battlefield 3 Worldwide Conquest tournament with $1.6 million in cash and prizes on the line.
Potential fraggers must be 18 years or older to register for the online tourney, which begins in 2012 and which Virgin is calling the "largest online console game tournament ever." Unfortunately, the contest is not available for PC gamers, who make up a huge portion of the fan base for the series. In some aspects, I can see why Virgin Gaming may want to avoid integrating PC gamers, as cheating has soured FPS games for many years on the platform.
Nonetheless, Virgin's official response to PC gamers being excluded was rather disappointing. "Our technology is only set up to integrate with console games at this phase in our life. We're still new and trying to create a unique service that resolves a lot of the challenges in the competitive gaming space today," a Virgin rep said. "We have much love for gamers on all platforms, and as we grow we'll try to bring everyone under the tent." … Read more
MOJAVE, Calif.--"We build spaceships."
That's the motto--perhaps the coolest ever?--of The Spaceship Company, the partnership between Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic and Scaled Composites, builder of the X-Prize-winning SpaceShip One and its younger sister ship, SpaceShip Two.
And on Monday, The Spaceship Company (TSC) formally opened what it calls FAITH, the final assembly facility for SpaceShip Two and the aircraft on which it piggybacks, WhiteKnight Two. At the celebration, Virgin Galactic showed off, for the first time at a public event, a replica of SpaceShipOne, as well as the actual WhiteKnightOne, SpaceShipTwo, and WhiteKnightTwo (… Read more
Virgin America and Gogo announced today that the carrier will be the first airline to offer Gogo's next-generation ATG-4 service. The two companies debuted the in-flight Internet access almost three years ago, and in May 2009, Virgin offered fleetwide Wi-Fi access via Gogo service.
According to Gogo, the new ATG-4 service will increase Wi-Fi capacity by about four times the current performance. This means you can download files faster and can even stream HD content without much latency, while flying. The companies say this improvement is achieved via the addition of directional antenna, dual-modem, and EV-DO Rev. B technology.… Read more
The Internet caught fire an hour before we recorded today, so our apologies if we're still reeling from the "news" for the first few minutes of the podcast. No clue what we're talking about? Enjoy the show.
In serious tech news, Google is putting more companies out of business with its new Flight Search service that went live yesterday. The tracker takes advantage of Google's other Web products, integrating with Google Calendar, Maps, and Mail to show you special deals and notify you about upcoming flights.
In a related story, Virgin America just partnered with Lufthansa Systems' new BoardConnect platform to roll out the next evolution of its Red in-flight entertainment. Air travel is getting even swankier thanks to Virgin America, and next year all of their planes (Virgin calls them Nerdbirds) will have HD television monitors on every seat back and faster Wi-Fi for connected devices.
Finally, we'll take you on the hunt for the rarest video game ever created: the gold Nintendo World Championships cartridge awarded to the winners of Nintendo Power Magazine's 1990 competition. Of the original 26, only 13 units have been found, and they're valued at around $20,000 by video game collectors. I think it's safe to assume that the other 13 games were sacrificed to the trash gods by the players' mothers.
We want to hear about the valuable junk from your childhood that your parents have carelessly thrown away. Give us a call at 1-866-404-CNET (2638) and tell us about it!
The 404 Digest for Episode 903 Google flight-search service takes off. Virgin America debuts Nerdbird airplane for 2012. The quest for the golden Nintendo game. Your daily 404 bathroom break: Chinese shoe trick. Episode 903 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more
Verizon Wireless plans to launch a cheaper contract-free plan nationally this week, allowing it to better compete for bargain-seeking consumers.
The nation's largest wireless carrier will offer the plan, which includes unlimited calling, text messages and Internet use for $50 a month and is known as "Unleashed," on Thursday, according to the Dow Jones Newswires. The offer will be available in Verizon stores, Best Buy, Wal-Mart and Target.
Verizon's move underscores the growing allure of the prepaid business as one of the last areas of growth in the wireless industry. Verizon has long held a lackluster … Read more
The LG 200 that's available from PayLo, Virgin Mobile's low-cost prepaid service, is essentially a rebranded version of the LG Saber from U.S. Cellular. The LG 200 is a basic messaging phone without a lot of features, but it is very affordable at only $69.99 without a contract.
Verizon Wireless could expand its unlimited $50 prepaid plan following a small but successful trial, according to a story in yesterday's Wall Street Journal.
Known as Unleashed, the carrier's prepaid plan offers unlimited talk, texting, and Web access for $50 per month and was introduced this past April in Southern California and Florida.
"The trial has gone very, very well for us," Verizon Chief Financial Officer Fran Shammo said during a presentation in Boston, according to the Journal. "It didn't cannibalize the base and we actually evaluated our prepaid business and took some share.&… Read more
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