Cell phones

If you're a Sprint customer in Minnesota, Washington, and Oregon, you may be experiencing a significant wireless network outage. Several reports including TechCrunch and the Seattle Times have said Sprint's data service is inoperable.

The computer system of regional Alaska Airlines looks to have been hit by the glitch, too, causing the company to list flight delays. Apparently the trouble started when a key fiber optic cable was cut earlier this morning.

Judging from Sprint's response to CNET, the problem has still not been resolved. See below to see exactly what Sprint had to say.

Perhaps to challenge Verizon's supremacy, AT&T held an exciting press event in New York. On display was everything from the new HTC One X+ to Microsoft's Windows Phone 8 flagship phone, Nokia's Lumia 920. … Read more

When I read the news this morning that Motorola had acquired facial and gesture recognition company Viewdle, the first thing that crossed my mind was, "Here comes multi-user profiles for Android."

Why? Because it's the next logical step for the platform, and one that could help differentiate it from Apple. That, and it's something for which I'm really hoping. Assuming I read the tea leaves properly, future versions of Android will introduce the capability to unlock a device with your face that leads to individual profile settings. … Read more

RIM needs a halo smartphone desperately to stem the tide of consumers drifting to Android and iOS. Apparently such a handset, the Aristo, is right around the corner. … Read more

Perhaps believing that it's not wise to put all its smartphones in an iPhone basket, AT&T has been on an Android tear lately. The last two weeks have yielded eight handset announcements with more on the way as we head full-on into the holiday buying season. Suffice it to say, AT&T is headed into the fourth quarter with its strongest Android lineup to date.… Read more

If you want fast 4G, move to Australia.

After looking over recent LTE test results from San Francisco and New York where downloads speeds topped out at 23.6Mbps, I feel an uncontrollable urge to gloat. Our 4G speeds in Australia are up to four times faster, and here's why.

Signal strengths (and weaknesses) First, there are technological differences between the 4G networks in Australia and similar networks in the United States. Significantly, they operate on higher frequencies, with both Tesltra and Optus (two of our biggest carriers) repurposing (mostly) unused 1,800MHz spectrum to deliver 4G services, while … Read more

It may sound wacky but a new accessory from Swissvoice, the ePure Bluetooth Station, will transform cell phones into virtual home handsets. The setup is designed to mimic the shape and feel of an old-school desktop ringer but is capable of much more. … Read more

AT&T said today that it would add three more HTC smartphones to its lineup, the HTC One X+, One VX, and Windows Phone 8X.

Windows Phone 8X, which was announced last month, will be available in November, while the One X+ and One VX would be available "in the coming months." No pricing information was provided on the phones.

The announcements are just the latest from AT&T, which has been bulking up its smartphone lineup for the holiday season. In addition to the iPhone 5, which launched last month, the carrier has announced phones … Read more

Previously showcased as the ZTE Orbit during this year's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, the ZTE Render is a Windows Phone 7.5 Tango handset available from U.S. Cellular.

The phone sports a 4-inch WVGA display, a 5-megapixel camera with LED flash, and 4GB of onboard memory.

It's also powered by a 1,600mAh lithium ion battery and a 1GHz processor.

In addition, as a Windows Phone device, the Render features Xbox Live, Zune music and video portals, Microsoft Office, and 7GB of SkyDrive cloud computing storage.

Interested users can nab the device for $80, after … Read more