SAN FRANCISCO—T-Mobile has been the only national network which couldn't run iPhones at 3G speeds - until now. The carrier is "refarming" 1900-MHz airwaves to 3G, making itself finally iPhone-compatible.
Whether it's a total coincidence (as T-Mobile insists) or a publicity stunt, the carrier turned on a single 1900-MHz 3G cell site in San Francisco's Moscone West this week – the exact location where Apple will announce its new iOS 6. I took an unlocked iPhone 4S down and tested it out against AT&T and Verizon iPhones. (Sadly, I don't have a Sprint iPhone at the moment.)
The default state for an iPhone on T-Mobile is EDGE, and EDGE is really slow. I ran several tests on an iPhone on T-Mobile's EDGE network today and generally got speeds between 30-50kbps. Ouch.
But as soon as I walked alongside Moscone West, a "3G" indicator appeared in my iPhone 4S's status bar.
It's definitely a test network, using only one in-building cell site. The signal was much stronger at the front of Moscone West than at the back, and it vanished altogether half a block north of the convention center.
I ran 10 tests using the Speedtest.net app on the T-Mobile iPhone and got very erratic results; some numbers were clearly impossible, so I had to exclude them. Of the valid results, I saw download speeds from 500kbps to 6.5Mbps, but mostly in the 1-2Mbps range.
That's much less than what T-Mobile's HSPA+ 42 network can produce. On an HTC One S in the same location, I got 9.9Mbps down and 1Mbps up. And I got consistently faster speeds on AT&T, which has a slower HSPA network.
There are two factors at work here.
First, the iPhone 4S isn't capable of T-Mobile's full speeds. It's an HSPA 14.4 device like the HTC Sensation, which reached speeds of 4.3-6.5Mbps down during testing last year.
So why wasn't I getting the same 4-6Mbps on the iPhone? This was definitely a test network, and probably one designed not to emanate far outside the Moscone Center itself. Who knows what they're using for backhaul, or how much spectrum is devoted to the 1900 3G network. I wouldn't draw conclusions about future speeds from this test network.
I will draw conclusions about price, though. As I said last week, T-Mobile's no-contract plans are competitive with Virgin Mobile and much cheaper than AT&T and Verizon, with potentially faster data speeds than any of them on 3G devices. For more on that, see Virgin Mobile's $30 iPhone Plan Gamble.
So when will the wonders of refarming come to you? T-Mobile is remaining vague except to say that it'll arrive in a "large" number of markets this year.
Samsung Galaxy S3: Next Galaxy is Worthy iPhone Rival, Say Analysts - ibtimes.co.uk
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"Considering the current market atmosphere, the company can expect to sell 30 million Galaxy S3s this year alone. The new release will keep Samsung atop in the global market until its next product. The sales number will be very high until then," said Kim Uoon-ho, an analyst at Hanwha Securities, according to an IBTimes UK report.
The Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS), meanwhile, suggests five to six million units of the Galaxy S3 will be shipped during the second quarter of this year and 10 - 12 million per quarter in the third and fourth of this year. BNP Paribas, stated shipments of the Galaxy S3 were expected to reach 15 million units in the third quarter; this is double the average sales of the Galaxy S2.
"The Galaxy S3 is being rolled out to all operators supporting all communication standards, including the TD-SCDMA and LTE. And given its large volume, Android application developers are focusing their resources on the Galaxy as the reference phone," said Peter Yu, an analyst at BNP Paribas.
The Galaxy S3 ranks as the UK's most popular smartphone and has replaced Apple's iPhone 4S, based on live searches and sales, according to uSwitch Tech's Mobile Tracker. uSwitch is a phone comparison and switching service in the UK and according to them the Galaxy S2 was on top of the list for 11 consecutive months before being replaced by the iPhone 4S in May. However, soon after the Galaxy S3 released in the UK, Samsung's new phone pushed the iPhone 4S to second, the Telegraph reports.
"Feeling surprisingly light to carry due to its brushed polycarbonate casing, especially considering the vast 4.8 Super AMOLED screen, the Samsung Galaxy S3 looks set to five the iPhone a serious run for its money," said Ernest Doku, technology expert at uSwitch.
Top ten handsets by web search in March, according to uSwitch:
FaceTime over 3G? A bargain vs. carrier voice plans - Gigaom.com
When FaceTime first emerged, 9to5Mac performed some 3G tests on jailbroken iPhones to determine just how much bandwidth the app would consume. It’s findings: 3 MB per minute. So if you had a $30/2 GB plan from Verizon you could feasibly support 666 minutes of FaceTime calling, while a 3 GB plan at the same price from AT&T would give you an even 1000 minutes of video talk time.
Now look what those same carriers charge for voice minutes: For base level voice plans both AT&T and Verizon charge you me $40 for 450 minutes and $60 for 900 minutes. Making a FaceTime video call winds up being a heck of lot cheaper than a straight up phone call.
Before you get the bright idea of replacing your voice service entirely with FaceTime and a data SIM card, know there are some limitations, the biggest of which is FaceTime only works between Apple products. 3G network coverage, even over Verizon’s extensive CDMA network, can be spotty, and just because there is a 3G signal available to you doesn’t guarantee you’ll get enough of bandwidth to support a video call. Carriers’ circuit-switched voice services may be expensive, but for the most part they work — a claim we can’t yet make for 3G.
Of course, supplementing your voice service with FaceTime might not be a bad idea especially if a lot of your contacts own iPhones, iPads and Macs. Knocking $20 to $30 off your minute plans (AT&T and Verizon both sell unlimited voice for $70 a month) and replacing it with the next higher tier of data could wind up saving you a lot of money. Many consumers might not even need to bother with a data plan upgrade. According to a recent report from Ericsson, iPhone users only consume on average 350 MB of month of data over global HSPA networks, which puts them well out of reach of most data caps.
As for the operators — who already claim their 3G networks are overtaxed — this is probably not an ideal development. Not only would a sudden deluge of FaceTime calls load up their networks even more, the service could start impacting their voice revenues. Since they make far more for on a minute of voice than they would on a minute of FaceTime data, they have far more to lose.
Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
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Samsung Says Speculation It Will Buy Nokia Is Groundless - Bloomberg
Samsung Electronics Co., the world’s largest mobile-phone maker, said market speculation that it is interested in acquiring competitor Nokia Oyj (NOK1V) is groundless.
Samsung, based in Suwon, South Korea, made the comment today in an e-mailed statement. Shares of Espoo, Finland-based Nokia fell 0.7 percent to 2.35 euros at 11:27 a.m. Helsinki time, after jumping 6 percent on June 8 amid speculation Samsung is preparing an offer.
Nokia, struggling to recover lost market share, has declined 46 percent in the past year as consumers snapped up Apple Inc. (AAPL) iPhones and Samsung smartphones running on Google Inc.’s Android software. Samsung overtook Nokia in the first quarter as the world’s largest handset maker, according to Gartner Inc.
Samsung also denied it’s interested in Nokia a year ago, responding to reports that it was getting ready to make a bid.
To contact the reporters on this story: Saeromi Shin in Seoul at sshin15@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Kenneth Wong at kwong11@bloomberg.net
Qualcomm and Medical Platform Asia Provide 200 Wireless Home Blood Pressure Systems to Help Japanese Disaster Victims - Newswiretoday.com
Qualcomm Incorporated, through its Wireless Reach initiative, working with Medical Platform Asia, today announced the provision of 200 sets of 3G-enabled home blood pressure management systems to patients living in disaster areas of Iwate Prefecture. These devices allow doctors to remotely monitor isolated patients living in temporary housing, provide them with timely treatment and prevent illnesses from becoming more serious.
This project is part of a larger effort led by Iwate Medical University to provide medical care for Japans earthquake and tsunami victims. Patients living in outlying areas face distinct challenges when it comes to seeing specialists or receiving daily home visits from a doctor or nurse. The chronic health problems these patients face are most often exacerbated by their living environment and stress related to the natural disaster. Iwate Medical University is continuing efforts to provide disaster victims with stable medical care by building a new remote care system for affected areas, such as Otsuchi-cho and Rikuzentakata-shi.
We are fortunate to contribute to aid in the adoption and advancement of wireless medical and wellness services in the Japanese home market, said Masanori Nishiyama, M.D., Chairman of the Board of Directors at Medical Platform Asia. This project will provide close monitoring of a patients condition and, by utilizing 3G wireless technologies, a doctor can remotely provide feedback and make treatment recommendations on a regular basis.
Research by Qualcomms Wireless Reach and Medical Platform Asia reveals that previous deployments of the in-home monitoring technology increased patient awareness of the importance of blood pressure management by 50 percent and increased patients proactive engagement in treatment by 30 percent. Advanced care for patients facing chronic disease is particularly lacking in rural regions of Japan and gaining access to health care facilities can prove difficult. In response, the Japanese government has taken measures to narrow the gap in availability of medical resources between urban and rural areas with information and communications technology (ICT). This collaboration is an example of how both academic institutions and private companies are exploring the use of ICT to improve medical care.
Qualcomm is proud to contribute assistance to victims of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, said Clifford Ficke, vice president and president of Qualcomm Japan. The ability to receive timely care outside of a hospital extends the reach of physicians and has the potential to greatly improve the quality of care for patients.
About Medical Platform Asia
Medical Platform Asia (medpa.or.jp) is a public corporation, funded by individual and corporate membership fees, which was established in December 2009 to promote human and material exchange between Japan and Asia in the medical field. Medical Platform Asia believes that the collaborative efforts of a large number of health care professionals in Asia, who stand on a single platform to promote the prevention and treatment of hypertension, diabetes, cancer and infectious diseases, would greatly contribute to achieving better health for the people in Asia. The 1st Asia Medical Forum was held in Tokyo in June 2010, with discussions taking place on the current state of health care and related issues in China, South Korea, Indonesia and Japan.
About Qualcomm and its Wireless Reach initiative
Qualcomm believes access to 3G and next-generation mobile technologies can improve peoples lives. Qualcomms Wireless Reach initiative is a strategic program that brings wireless technology to underserved communities globally. By working with partners, Wireless Reach invests in projects that foster entrepreneurship, aid in public safety, enhance the delivery of healthcare, enrich teaching and learning and improve environmental sustainability. For more information please visit qualcomm.com/wirelessreach. Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ: QCOM) is the world leader in 3G and next-generation mobile technologies. For more than 25 years, Qualcomm ideas and inventions have driven the evolution of digital communications, linking people everywhere more closely to information, entertainment and each other. For more information, visit Qualcomms website, OnQ blog, Twitter and Facebook pages.
Qualcomm is a registered trademark of Qualcomm Incorporated. Wireless Reach is a trademark of Qualcomm Incorporated. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Qualcomm Contacts
Takayuki Nozaki
P: 81-3-5412-8912 - E: tnozaki[.]qualcomm.com.
Warren Kneeshaw, Investor Relations
P: 1-858-658-4813 - E: ir[.]qualcomm.com.
Medical Platform Asia Contacts
Kiyomi Ono
P: 81-3-6809-6708 - E: ono[.]chealcomm.jp.
Lenovo launches no-contract mobile broadband for select ThinkPad laptops - PC Advisor
Select ThinkPad notebooks built with a 3G module inside now have access to a new no-contract mobile broadband service offered by Lenovo that will provide on-demand access to the Internet, the company announced on Monday.
The pay-as-you-go service, Lenovo Mobile Access, is available in the U.S. and nine European countries, including the U.K., France and Germany.
In offering the service, Lenovo said in a statement the company wanted to offer users more flexible options to buy access to mobile broadband. For example, users can pay US$1.95 for 30 minutes of time, allowing access up to 30MB of data, or pay $8.95 for a full-day pass to access up to 200 MB of data.
Users can also choose to buy monthly plans with access to 2GB or 6GB of data. Pricing will vary depending on the country.
The Lenovo service is being provided by Macheen, a company that helps manufacturers of embedded devices to connect them to the Internet via mobile networks. Last year, Macheen and Dell launched NetReady, another no-contract mobile broadband service similar to Lenovo's.
Macheen partners with telecommunication operators in the U.S. and Europe to provide access to 3G mobile broadband.
Lenovo Mobile Access is available on ThinkPad Classic and ThinkPad Edge laptops containing a 3G module, and users can sign up for the service online. The PC maker is also shipping Lenovo Mobile Access on new ThinkPad laptops built with 3G modules.
Europe crams ultra-fast 4G into tight spectrum crack - The Register
Europe crams ultra-fast 4G into tight spectrum crack
Outta the way 3G, the new kid is here
Posted in Wireless, 11th June 2012 08:02 GMT
Free whitepaper – Enabling Datacenter and Cloud Service Management for Mid-Tier Enterprises
Euro telecoms regulator CEPT has released 120MHz of shiny new radio spectrum for "ultra-fast mobile broadband", which would be more impressive if the bands weren't full of reasonably fast data already.
The frequencies concerned are around 2.1GHz and are already full of 3G networking everywhere - but a handful of operators are considering deploying faster 4G in those bands and can now do so with the official backing of Europe even if they'll have to wait for permission from national regulators too.
This is important to the UK as it relates to Everything Everywhere's rush to deploy 4G (LTE) before everyone else in the country at 1800MHz, a move that rivals say will create a monopoly.
This frequency is far below the new gap opened up by CEPT at 2.1GHz - but Everything Everywhere argues that if the UK authorities grant it permission to deploy 4G in 1800MHz, a legal monopoly will be avoided because its rivals now have another possible slot to deploy 4G if they wanted to - if they're willing to drop their 3G customers. An alternative slot would involve them shoving aside 2G punters.
The bands concerned are allocated to frequency division duplex (FDD), which uses separate radio frequencies for sending and receiving to ensure a symmetrical connection. The industry is still obsessed with FDD having failed to notice that most of us download more than upload these days, but that's a subject for another day.
In the UK the 2.1GHz ownership starts with Three, which owns the first 15MHz of each band, Telefonica (aka O2) owns the next 10MHz and Vodafone another 15MHz chunk. The rest belongs to Everything Everywhere: 10MHz was inherited from each of Orange and T-Mobile following their merger, making a pattern 60MHz wide which is repeated at 1.92GHz and 2.11GHz with the lower band being used for uplink (to the base station) and the upper for transmissions to the handset.
This pattern is repeated again at 1.92GHz
3G (UMTS) mandates 5MHz-wide channels, each of which carries multiple phones identified by a transmitted code (Code Division Multiple Access). 4G (LTE) also uses CDMS but can scale its channel width, though to achieve headline speeds it needs to spread out to its maximum 20MHz.
The only UK operator, therefore, capable of achieving proper LTE speeds in these bands is Everything Everywhere, the same operator that owns contiguous blocks of 60MHz at 1800MHz which is where it wants to deploy 4G this year, Ofcom's green light permitting.
Everything Everywhere argues that the other operators could trade spectrum to create contiguous blocks, at 2.1GHz or 900MHz where the pattern is even more prescriptive, but that's unlikely when spectrum remains such a scarce resource (and Everything Everywhere owns almost half of it in the UK).
Elsewhere in Europe the pattern is different, and operators may well decide to deploy 4G in this band (which is generally known as 2.1GHz as that's where the downlink lies) if only so they can boast support for the new iPad's brand of 4G connectivity. ®
Free whitepaper – Enabling Datacenter and Cloud Service Management for Mid-Tier Enterprises
Mini-ITX Embedded Board includes redundant 3G capability. - ThomasNet Industrial News Room
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - Habey USA, a leading manufacturer of embedded computer and an Associate member of the Intel Embedded Alliance, today announces the MITX-6930, the new mini-ITX embedded board based on the Intel NM10 Chipset and equipped with the next generation dual core Intel Atom N2800 or D2700 processor. Delivering enhanced performance, clearer graphics, responsiveness, embedded life cycle, and enabling connectivity, the MITX-6930 is a designed solution targeted at digital signage, POS, kiosks, enterprise security, digital surveillance, medicine, and factory automation.
"Everyday devices are seeking to be more connected while staying afloat with faster speeds to respond relevantly." says Alan Sung from Habey's Marketing Department. "For technology to be applicable in this growth, the need for low power reliable embedded system with redundant connectivity is critical."
Compact Design Made Connective
Utilizing the small carbon footprint of 170mmx170mm, the MITX-6930 offers greater connectivity with dual Intel 82574L Gigabit Ethernet with options of expansion via PCI slot on board, two serial ports for factory automation, and two mini-PCIe slots on board for WiFi and 3G/4G cellular connection. On board the MITX-6930 are also one SIM socket and multiple USBs for WiFi and 3G flexibility.
Extended Life Cycle Solution
Offering greater leverage for longer life solutions, the MITX-6930 runs up to 2.13GHz (Atom D2700) with I/O interfaces: 4 USBs, 2 COM ports, 2 LAN, 1 VGA up to 2048x1536, 1 DVI up to 1920x1200, and 7.1 HD Audio I/Os. On board are 2 mini-PCIe slots; 1 Mini-PCIe with SSD support, 1 Mini-PCIe with SIM card socket for 3G/4G connectivity, 1 PCI slot, 2 USB2.0, 4 COM ports, 1 LPT, 1 LPC, 1 DDR3 support up to 4GB memory, 2 SATA, HDMI pin, and LVDS display output up to 1366x768. The MITX-6930 operates in extended temperatures of -20C to70C with the processors having a 7 year extended lifecycle support to protect development investment. On-board features for scalability also include 3-pin CPU fan on board, Watchdog Timer, 8-bit GPIO, and ATX 20-pin standard power connector. In addition, the system architecture is designed with more custom design options for OEM/ODM solution development.
Improved Realism with Intel Technologies
Complementing rich I/Os are various Intel Technologies with integrated graphics on chip, GMA 3650, bringing 4 times the 3D performance than previous generations while operating in the same power envelop - displays dual HD 1080 videos at average 12W. The improved realism with improved image quality is completed in the fanless thermal design of the MITX-6930 embedded board with operation on battery up to 10 hours of use.
Features:
o Adopt Intel NM10 chipset, onboard Intel Atom N2800/D2700 processor
o 1 x SO-DIMM slot supports DDRIII 1066MHz memory up to 4GB
o DVI-I, LVDS display output, DVI/VGA dual independent display supported
o 2 x Mini-PCIE; 1 x Mini-PCIe onboard SIM card socket for 3G module, 1 x Mini-PCIe supports SSD
o 2x Intel 82574L Gigabit Ethernet
o 6 x serial ports, 6 x USB 2.0, 7.1 HD AUDIO
o 1 x PCI, 1x LPC, 1x PLC, 8-bit GPIO, 2 x SATA
o Operating extended temperatures of -20C to70C
System: MITX-6930
Motherboard Type: Mini-ITX
Processor: Onboard Intel Intel Atom N2800/D2700 Processor
System Memory: 1xDDRIII 1066MHz SO-DIMM SLOT , up to 4GB
Chipset: IntelNM10
I/O Chip: ITE IT8783F
Ethernet: Intel 82574L, 10/100/1000Mbps,2x RJ-45
BIOS: AMI EFI BIOS
Wake-on-LAN: Support
Watchdog Timer: Generates a time-out system reset
H/W State Monitoring: Monitor the state of voltage, temperature and rotational speed of the fan
Expansion: 2xMini-PCIe ; Mini-PCIe2 supports SIM Bus interface, Mini-PCIe1 supports SSD ; Onboard SIM card socket for 3G module
Battery: Lithium Battery
Power Supply: ATX
Dimension: 170mm170mm
Operating Temperature: -20~70 Celsius Degree
Storage Temperature: -40~80 Celsius Degree
Operating Humidity: 0%~90% relative humidity, no condensation
Display Controller: IntelN2800/D2700 integrated
Video Memory: Resolution
VGA : max. resolution 2048x1536@60MHz
LVDS : max. resolution 1366x768@60MHz
DVI : max resolution 1920x1200@60Hz
Display Interface: 1x VGA,1xLVDS,1x DVI,
I/O
Storage: 2x SATA
Serial Port: 5x RS-232, 1x RS-232/422/485
Parallel Port: 1xLPT supports SPP/EPP/ECP mode
USB: 6x USB2.0
KB&MS: 1x KB/MS
GPIO: 8 bit programmable digital I/O
LPC: 1x LPC
Audio: Realtek ALC888/655, HD Audio,Speak-out, MIC-IN,LINE-IN
Is the iPhone Overcrowding the World’s 3G Networks? - Businessweek
Regardless of which platform is winning today’s smartphone race, the installed base of active iPhones remains huge, and according to a new report from mobile infrastructure maker Ericsson, those iOS devices are having an outsize impact on the world’s 3G networks.
Traffic originating from the iPhone is nearing 50 percent of all data traversing carriers’ HSPA networks. Those numbers could have a chilling effect on emerging LTE operators, which are trying to migrate to 4G but are finding themselves contending with the iPhone’s enormous 3G demands.
For its Traffic and Market Report, Ericsson sampled data from GSM carriers in the Americas, Europe, and Asia, discovering that, on average, the iPhone accounts for a little more than 20 percent of their total subscribers but a whopping 45 percent of their total 3G/HSPA traffic. In comparison, Android penetration levels among those same operators are around 15 percent, while those devices account for about 30 percent of their 3G traffic loads.
Ericsson found that, on average, iPhone and Android ran neck and neck when it came to average consumption per subscriber: around 350 MB per month. But there was huge variation in those usage levels among different carriers, especially on Android. At the high end of Ericsson’s measurements, Android users consume 1,400 MB per month, compared with 1,200 MB for the iPhone, while on some networks Android phone usage averaged a mere 50 MB per month. Network monthly averages for the iPhone never drop much lower than 200 MB.
The overall variation can be explained by carriers’ widely differing pricing policies. For instance, T-Mobile USA not only offers fairly liberal data buckets in its data tiers but also allows customers to use mobile hotspot capabilities at no extra charge, driving up monthly consumption. Ericsson explained the even bigger variation among Google OS phones, however, by the fact that Android devices run the entire gamut of the market, while Apple targets the middle to high end. So in networks where Android plays second fiddle to the iPhone—which for a long while was the case at AT&T—Android devices often gravitate toward the low end, while Apple devices wind up in the hands of power users.
That helps explain how the iPhone can have such an enormous impact on operators’ 3G networks. IPhones are not only a plurality of all devices on the network but are also often wielded by the carriers’ most-aggressive data users.
Ericsson’s data take only HSPA networks into account. CDMA operators such as Sprint and Verizon only recently landed the iPhone, so they have spent the past several years loading up their 3G networks with Android devices. Android also is the only smartphone OS, besides Windows Phone, supported on an LTE network. Compared with 3G, the installed LTE phone base is miniscule, but it’s growing rapidly.
If Apple doesn’t include LTE in this year’s iPhone, the gap between Android and iOS on 3G traffic levels may only grow bigger. Android power users will start migrating to new LTE networks, while iPhone users will remain on much more inefficient 3G networks.
How would moving to LTE affect you? As I have written before, a 3G-only iPhone scenario could play havoc with the wireless industry, particular in North America. If operators must keep investing in their 3G networks in order to meet mounting iPhone traffic, they won’t be able to focus on their future LTE networks, which will ultimately allow them to deliver a lot more data a lot more cheaply.
Apple has signaled it’s ready to embrace LTE with the launch of the new iPad, hopefully securing 4G’s place in at least some versions of the new iPhone. LTE may sound like a carrier conceit—promising little to consumers except higher speeds and crappier battery life—but consumers stand to lose out as well if the transition to LTE is delayed. LTE is the first stepping stone to much-higher-capacity LTE Advanced systems.
By dramatically lowering the cost to deliver data, carriers will start lowering the data prices they offer consumers. They won’t do it out of the goodness of their hearts, but that’s where competition comes into play.
Also from GigaOM:
LTE Advanced: What It Is and Isn’t, and Why That Matters (subscription required)
CloudLock Aims to Bring PCI Compliance to Google Drive
Crazy: Orange Censors All Blogs, Not Just GigaOM
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