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Rest easy, iPad roamers: O2 and Orange have micro SIM orders, too

Steve mentioned in his iPad preso yesterday that he was pretty confident the company would have international data deals locked up by June or July of this year — but since the thing uses some wacky new micro SIM standard, carriers that intend to support it are going to need to get the new chips in stock after having used traditional SIMs for nearly twenty years. That makes moving your iPad around between carriers and your SIM between devices that much harder, but we’ve got a sliver of good news here: we’re hearing from a tipster with connections at supplier Gemalto that O2 and Orange both have micro SIM orders in the pipeline. That doesn’t necessarily mean that Apple is going to be trumpeting them as iPad partners with special data plans, of course — but even if they aren’t, at least they’ll have the necessary equipment ready for you if you want to use your unlocked tablet on their airwaves. Gemalto also has outstanding orders with T-Mobile and AT&T (of course), so yeah — it might be a long road, but we’re hopeful that these will start to become commonplace over the next few years.

[Thanks, anonymous tipster]

Rest easy, iPad roamers: O2 and Orange have micro SIM orders, too originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jan 2010 20:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile launches early upgrade program for post-paid smartphone customers

If you’re like us, keeping a smart phone for two years really isn’t an option. After about 6 months of ownership the honeymoon is over; after 9 months you begin to obsess over a few battle scars your phone has…

FCC expands ETF inquiry, fires off letters to AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Google

Verizon might be getting picked on for introducing its whopper $350 “advanced device” ETF, but the FCC has decided that it wants answers from everyone on concerns that “there is no standard framework for structuring and applying ETFs throughout the wireless industry.” The commission has sent letters (via fancy certified mail, in case you’re wondering) to all of the other biggies — AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile — along with Google, asking a series of questions probing how each carrier’s ETFs are determined and applied. Google gets roped in for its nasty equipment recovery fee, but all of the recipients share a common dubious distinction: the frickin’ FCC — a bureaucracy filled to the brim with lawyers and… well, bureaucrats — can’t figure out terms that everyday customers are expected to understand. Of course, most customers don’t have the distinction of being able to send a certified letter to their carrier probing fees and require a prompt and complete response, so we’re happy to see the feds get to the bottom of this. Sure, ETFs may ultimately prove to be completely justified in their current form considering the expense that carriers put up to subsidize hot hardware, it’s true — but regardless, it’s in everyone’s best interest to make sure they’re spelled out in ways even FCC commissioners (and Engadget editors) can appreciate.

FCC expands ETF inquiry, fires off letters to AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Google originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jan 2010 15:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google offers 3G fix for Nexus One, puts a little blame on T-Mobile coverage

Nothing upsets geeks more than grabbing a gadget the moment it becomes available only to find issues with it. Google feels your pain when it comes to your 3G connectivity woes on the Nexus One. Currently, Google is in the…

Google: Nexus One 3G issues result of poor coverage, bugs; patch possibly within a week

Looks like Google’s investigation into the crappy 3G claims on the Nexus One are winding down, and it’s a one-two combo of good news and bad news. First, the bad: preliminary findings suggest that poor 3G coverage factors into it, at least in part — a believable story considering that T-Mobile has the smallest 3G footprint of the four US nationals. Now, the good: there’s a software component to the problem, too, and the company says that it’s already testing a fix. So far, testing is looking good — so good, in fact, that an over-the-air update could be available “in the next week or so.” It sucks that this partly boils down to crappy coverage, but we’ll have to see where things stand after the patch gets rolled out — and hopefully this’ll serve as a high-profile reminder to T-Mobile that it needs to step on the gas (and to Google that it might want to expand its horizons).

[Thanks, Wesley]

Google: Nexus One 3G issues result of poor coverage, bugs; patch possibly within a week originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DoubleTwist to partner with T-Mobile for Android music management?

As the late, great Rodney Dangerfield would attest, DoubleTwist has been jonesing for some respect for quite some time. For those unaware, said software essentially acts as an iTunes for everything else, giving users of all those non-Apple devices a somewhat familiar interface and portal to sync media, playlists, etc. Up until now, Android users have been forced to figure out content management on their own, and while geeks have obviously had no issue, those expecting iTunes to take the wheel have found themselves in an uncomfortable position. Reportedly, T-Mobile USA has decided to partner with the company and pre-load the software onto a number of new Android devices — the Fender myTouch 3G included. The only real pitfall here is that Amazon’s MP3 Store integration is missing (or so we’re hearing), but we should learn more as T-Mob goes official with the details later today. Is this the big break DoubleTwist has been waiting for? Time shall tell.

DoubleTwist to partner with T-Mobile for Android music management? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Jan 2010 08:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DoubleTwist partnering with T-Mobile for Android music management

As the late, great Rodney Dangerfield would attest, DoubleTwist has been jonesing for some respect for quite some time. For those unaware, said software essentially acts as an iTunes for everything else, giving users of all those non-Apple devices a somewhat familiar interface and portal to sync media, playlists, etc (video demonstration is after the break). Up until now, Android users have been forced to figure out content management on their own, and while geeks have obviously had no issue, those expecting iTunes to take the wheel have found themselves in an uncomfortable position. Reportedly, T-Mobile USA has decided to partner with the company and pre-load the software onto a number of new Android devices — not just the Fender myTouch 3G. The only real pitfall here is that Amazon’s MP3 Store integration is missing, but we should learn more as T-Mob goes official with the details later today. Is this the big break DoubleTwist has been waiting for? Time shall tell.

Continue reading DoubleTwist partnering with T-Mobile for Android music management

DoubleTwist partnering with T-Mobile for Android music management originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Jan 2010 08:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC HD2 gets a spec boost for the US

Looks like the HTC HD2 is getting a little spec bump on its way to our fair shores: the official spec page lists the version bound for T-Mobile US with 1GB of ROM and 576 of RAM, a boost over the international edition’s 512 and 448MB. What’s more, it looks like a bigger 16GB microSD card will come in the box, a big jump over the 2GB stick currently bundled overseas. Not a bad little upgrade — dare we hope that it presages a much bigger bump to Windows Mobile 7 before the scheduled spring launch?

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

HTC HD2 gets a spec boost for the US originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 24 Jan 2010 14:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola MOTOROI almost certainly bound for T-Mobile (thanks, FCC!)

We needed to independently connect and verify a few dots before sounding the alarm here, but sure enough, it looks like Cell Phone Signal has unearthed the best smoking gun yet suggesting Motorola’s MOTOROI — the phone formerly known as the Sholes Tablet — is destined for T-Mobile USA. The evidence comes in the form of an FCC filing, a Motorola device with ID IHDP56KC6, that’s certified for quadband EDGE plus T-Mobile-friendly 1700 / 2100MHz HSPA humming at a peak of 10.2Mbps down and 5.6Mbps up (not too shabby) with Bluetooth, WiFi, GPS, and magnetic compass. By and large, Moto managed to paint over revealing portions of spectrum analyzer screen shots that contained the product’s codename, but there are a couple they forgot to touch — and sure enough, the part they didn’t want you to see reads in part “SHOLES.”

So why are we so sure this is the keyboardless MOTOROI as opposed to an AWS-compliant form of the Droid / Milestone, which shared the Sholes name internally? The answer lies in the SAR report, which didn’t test the phone’s radiated power in both “slider up” and “slider down” configurations like we saw in the Droid’s documentation — there’s just one set of figures here. That, of course, means no slider, which in turn means no QWERTY, which ultimately means MOTOROI. Now if you’ll excuse us, we need to close fourteen sets of FCC filings, restart our computer, and grab a quick drink — but in the meantime, T-Mobile folks, take comfort in knowing that your Moto rollercoaster doesn’t start and end with the CLIQ. Don’t suppose this would be a March release, would it?

Motorola MOTOROI almost certainly bound for T-Mobile (thanks, FCC!) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 24 Jan 2010 11:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile myTouch Slide to end all Sidekick sales?

We’ve been briefed on what appears to be T-Mobile’s game plan regarding Sidekick devices.
The information comes from a new tipster so we haven’t independently confirmed it. With that said, we have been told that with the rumored T-Mobile myTouch Slide coming…