4G is here. Albeit in limited quantity but it is here. Now that the good ship 4G has been launched, what happens to 3G? It keeps getting better.
You've heard me complain about the whiners (with no cheese) and Sprint's $10 "4G fee". We know it's not just for 4G but the what the device's intended use and the demand it will put on 3G and 4G networks. So let's say we ignore 4G for now and take a look at how cheap 3G is.
I'll start with Sprint as usual and note a few capable phones with usable operating systems. Microsoft Windows Mobile and Google Android. These phones have scalable O/S and have large app markets with a touch screen and some without a touch screen. Some come with a slide-out keyboard while others have an on-screen keyboard. The idea here is to see that for less than $100, you can have a fully functional smartphone with a high level connection on a new two contract.
Sprint
Google Android:
HTC Hero - $ 79.99
Samsung Moment - $99.99
MS Windows Mobile:
HTC Snap - $49.99
Other Windows phones are priced above the $100 mark.
Verizon
Google Android:
LG Ally - $99.99
Motorola Devour - $79.99
HTC DROID Eris - $49.99
MS Windows Mobile:
Samsung Omnia-II - $49,99
HTC Ozone and Touch Diamond - $29.99
Samsung Saga - $ Free
AT&T - They won't show you phone prices unless you'll buy from their site. Data below is from wirefly.com with new 2 year contract.
Google Android:
Motorola Backflip - $ Free
MS Windows Mobile:
HTX Pure Black, HTC Tilt 2 Mocha and LG eXpo Black are all Free.
It seems that AT&T is afraid you'll be turned away if you see their prices before you're ready to buy. They don't seem to have embraced Android quite so well since they have had the iPhone market exclusively so why bother?
Verizon is scrambling to get their 4G network squared away and maybe make a bigger splash in the pond with more 4G areas than Sprint initially started with. Sprint customers have been jumping ship to be sure and it appears they are hopping carriers to get the best deals with the best or the most features. Are they really saving money? Who knows with all the penalties the carriers assess on broken contracts. But I digress.
The idea here is that 3G is affordable and everywhere most people live, work and play. So does everyone looking for that latest bleeding edge tech phone need one only to whine about a $10 fee? Don't whine. Just get a 3G phone and be happy. 4G will be big enough later. After all, 3G wasn't built in a day either.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
What's in a fee?
Wow!
That's what I said to myself when I saw how many people were complaining (want some cheese with that whine?) about Sprint's $10 charge for "4G". Ok. Now I can understand that those not yet in a 4G environment wouldn't want to pay more for something they can't get access to. But to think themselves so isolated from other geographical locations so as to "wish" Sprint to take into consideration they shouldn't pay for the access rights to 4G is ludicrous!
Consider this:
Sprint is not charging for 4G.
Sprint is charging a fee because of the device's designed demand on a data network. The $10 is a pre-determined penalty for using the device as it was intended to be used. As a stand-alone data use device.
Now take a look at AT&T. They were ill-prepared to handle the data demands when iPhone came on the market. If they hadn't snapped up Cingular, they would have had capital to meet the demands of the iPhone. Instead, they carried a liability in an attempt to gain market share.
Verizon is still reeling from their purchase of Alltel with a high liability of Alltel equipment. A friend of mine was an Alltel customer and his data speeds were fast, calls were clear and didn't have any holes in service in the areas he works. When his phone died and had to replace it, Verizon told him he could keep his plan but it had to be through Verizon. So he did and ever since has had untold headaches with data access and call quality. To be fair, a new tower was installed (about four months later) so he could use his phone reliably from his home again, but only upstairs.
Sprint has had the longest time since their purchase of Nextel to get straightened out. How much so seems to some to be yet determined. When they bought Nextel, they knew Nextel's system was incompatible to their own and since it was to be Sprint's business class of communication, it didn't matter much. Sprint installed equipment to allow their regular customers to push a button and use their phone like Nextel's walkie-talkie style set up. and communicate with those Nextel phones!
Later, Their 3G service expanded. I know as up in Nebraska I noticed I still had Sprint service between Grand Island and Kearney along I-80 where I didn't before. North Platte, Nebraska still doesn't have a Sprint signal but it now is within Sprint's included roaming area so I don't get charged for the calls anymore. Even now I can get phone service most of the way between Salina, Kansas and Limon, Colorado where only two years ago it was either totally void or an non-contract roaming zone.
So where is Sprint in the process of 4G? You guessed it right if you said "Building it up." I'll just bet most of these same whiners pitched a fit when they didn't have 3G in their town yet had to pay a higher price for a new plan that included "Power Vision". So let's look at the scale of things now.
I noticed that in the last two months, my phone no longer makes or receives calls in EVDO mode. All calls now are in 1x mode. With the coming demands on the data side of Sprint's network from the EVO, HD2 and Touch Pro 2, to name a few, it seems that Sprint is putting voice calls into the lowest common denominator as voice calls use the least amount of bandwidth. This would suppose that Sprint is making a pre-emptive move to ensure EVDO and 4G (where available) is unhindered for use by Sprint TV, web browsing, web-enabled apps and texting. This also may indicate that future phones will use the 3G side for simultaneous voice and data usage like video phone calls or looking up something on the web while talking to someone. We know 4G will do this better but it would seem that by moving the voice calls to 1x mode, it frees up EVDO for more demanding usage.
So what's in a fee? Capability and future growth. Not speed.
That's what I said to myself when I saw how many people were complaining (want some cheese with that whine?) about Sprint's $10 charge for "4G". Ok. Now I can understand that those not yet in a 4G environment wouldn't want to pay more for something they can't get access to. But to think themselves so isolated from other geographical locations so as to "wish" Sprint to take into consideration they shouldn't pay for the access rights to 4G is ludicrous!
Consider this:
Sprint is not charging for 4G.
Sprint is charging a fee because of the device's designed demand on a data network. The $10 is a pre-determined penalty for using the device as it was intended to be used. As a stand-alone data use device.
Now take a look at AT&T. They were ill-prepared to handle the data demands when iPhone came on the market. If they hadn't snapped up Cingular, they would have had capital to meet the demands of the iPhone. Instead, they carried a liability in an attempt to gain market share.
Verizon is still reeling from their purchase of Alltel with a high liability of Alltel equipment. A friend of mine was an Alltel customer and his data speeds were fast, calls were clear and didn't have any holes in service in the areas he works. When his phone died and had to replace it, Verizon told him he could keep his plan but it had to be through Verizon. So he did and ever since has had untold headaches with data access and call quality. To be fair, a new tower was installed (about four months later) so he could use his phone reliably from his home again, but only upstairs.
Sprint has had the longest time since their purchase of Nextel to get straightened out. How much so seems to some to be yet determined. When they bought Nextel, they knew Nextel's system was incompatible to their own and since it was to be Sprint's business class of communication, it didn't matter much. Sprint installed equipment to allow their regular customers to push a button and use their phone like Nextel's walkie-talkie style set up. and communicate with those Nextel phones!
Later, Their 3G service expanded. I know as up in Nebraska I noticed I still had Sprint service between Grand Island and Kearney along I-80 where I didn't before. North Platte, Nebraska still doesn't have a Sprint signal but it now is within Sprint's included roaming area so I don't get charged for the calls anymore. Even now I can get phone service most of the way between Salina, Kansas and Limon, Colorado where only two years ago it was either totally void or an non-contract roaming zone.
So where is Sprint in the process of 4G? You guessed it right if you said "Building it up." I'll just bet most of these same whiners pitched a fit when they didn't have 3G in their town yet had to pay a higher price for a new plan that included "Power Vision". So let's look at the scale of things now.
I noticed that in the last two months, my phone no longer makes or receives calls in EVDO mode. All calls now are in 1x mode. With the coming demands on the data side of Sprint's network from the EVO, HD2 and Touch Pro 2, to name a few, it seems that Sprint is putting voice calls into the lowest common denominator as voice calls use the least amount of bandwidth. This would suppose that Sprint is making a pre-emptive move to ensure EVDO and 4G (where available) is unhindered for use by Sprint TV, web browsing, web-enabled apps and texting. This also may indicate that future phones will use the 3G side for simultaneous voice and data usage like video phone calls or looking up something on the web while talking to someone. We know 4G will do this better but it would seem that by moving the voice calls to 1x mode, it frees up EVDO for more demanding usage.
So what's in a fee? Capability and future growth. Not speed.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Apple Owners! Prepare to meet the nemesis of Windows user's!
Spyware and viruses have not been exclusive to Microsoft users. Apple and Linux/Unix users have always gloated and made their smugness known to everyone that "they don't have any viruses!" Well, the "iron curtain" of Apple was nothing but vaporware after all. Seems that indeed there have been virus attacks and spyware attacks on Apple computers for over a decade. So why haven't we heard about them hardly at all? When you're as successful as Microsoft, you'll make enemies because of that success. So popular is the Windows operating system (either by market bullying by MS or actual desire for the product by its user base) that it couldn't help but scream "Challenge me all ye hackers!"
Guess who else is successful and drawing the attention of those same hackers now? I won't mention any names but their initials are APPLE. cnet.com has an article regarding spyware now showing up on Macs. If you decide to search for more information about virus or spyware on Macs, stay away from Apple proponents or opinion sites. They may still be in denial.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27080_3-20006502-245.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
Guess who else is successful and drawing the attention of those same hackers now? I won't mention any names but their initials are APPLE. cnet.com has an article regarding spyware now showing up on Macs. If you decide to search for more information about virus or spyware on Macs, stay away from Apple proponents or opinion sites. They may still be in denial.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27080_3-20006502-245.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
No Injection of Thought This Time
I'd like to present you with this article on cnet.com about tablets and smart-phones. You decide if, in the end, our children will wind up thinking laptops a curiously odd piece of equipment they will be glad not to have to lug around.
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