Carriers

Sprint launches LTE Plus network in 77 markets with speeds up to 100Mbps

Cody Lee ∙ Updated June 13, 2018

Sprint on Wednesday announced that it has flipped on the switch for its LTE Plus network in 77 major markets. The next-generation network is now available in several big cities across the United States, including Los Angeles, Dallas-Fort Worth, Orlando and Boston.

In a press release, Sprint CTO Dr. John Saw explains the benefits of LTE Plus over standard LTE, such as stronger and more reliable service, and of course faster speeds. Saw says the new technology is capable of peak speeds in excess of 100Mbps on compatible devices.

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AT&T gets FCC waiver to begin offering Wi-Fi Calling

Cody Lee ∙ October 6, 2015

The Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday gave AT&T permission to begin offering Wi-Fi Calling, reports The Verge. The Commission has granted the carrier a waiver, allowing it to offer the feature without the typically-required support for TTY, a service for those with disabilities.

AT&T announced last week that it had intended to deploy Wi-Fi Calling on September 25, the day Apple launched its new iPhone 6s, but decided to delay its release until it received word from the FCC. Now that the Commission has given the green light, the feature should be available shortly.

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Apple ‘trying to fix’ iPhone roaming charges

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 2, 2015

The wireless industry has been plagued with a bunch of illogical business practices, most of which were conceived to take advantage of consumers, really. On the other hand, carriers like T-Mobile have successfully exploited the sad state of the U.S. wireless industry to fix some of the most glaring customer pain points.

Apple, too, appears to have vested interest in wrestling power away from the carriers. According to Apple's Senior Vice President of Internet Software and Services, Eddy Cue in the British publication The Evening Standard, the Cupertino firm is now “trying to fix” one of the wireless industry's dirtiest tactics: exorbitant roaming charges.

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AT&T raises LTE throttling threshold for unlimited customers to 22GB

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

AT&T on Wednesday updated its website with a minor but noteworthy change to its throttling policy. The carrier says it will no longer throttle subscribers on grandfathered unlimited data plans in congested areas until they surpass 22GB of data in a single bill cycle.

The move represents a significant change from AT&T's previous stance on throttling, which was to start slowing down unlimited data plan customers in high-traffic areas after just 5GB of usage, and it probably has something to do with the FCC's $100 million fine.

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AT&T Wi-Fi calling rolling out to some iOS 9 beta users

Cody Lee ∙ August 11, 2015

AT&T on Tuesday began rolling out support for Wi-Fi calling to some iPhone users running iOS 9 beta 5. The feature was added when that beta was released to developers last week, but testers on the AT&T network are only just now able to activate it.

For those unfamiliar with Wi-Fi calling, it allows iPhone users to place phone calls over Wi-Fi instead of their cellular network. The feature was first activated for T-Mobile in iOS 8, and users have reported better call quality and improved battery life.

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T-Mobile overtakes Sprint to become third largest US carrier

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

It's official. T-Mobile has overtaken Sprint to become the third largest carrier in the United States. During its earnings call on Tuesday, Sprint told investors that it ended its most recent quarter, which ended in June, with 56.8 million customers.

That falls just shy of the 58.9 million subscribers T-Mobile finished with in its most recent quarter, which also ended in June, officially moving the Magenta-colored company into the third largest US carrier spot, behind AT&T and Verizon Wireless.

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AT&T fined $100 million by FCC over unlimited data throttling

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 30, 2018

The US Federal Communications Commission announced plans on Wednesday to fine AT&T $100 million for unsuitable throttling practices. The Commission issued a press release on its website this morning proclaiming the decision, charging the carrier with violating the '2010 Open Internet Transparency Rule.'

The move comes as the result of an in-depth investigation, where the FCC found that AT&T—the second largest wireless provider in the US—had not adequately informed its customers with unlimited data plans that it would be dramatically slowing down their Internet access once they crossed a particular threshold.

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Carrier Settings Update: what it is and how to check for it

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated March 22, 2017

From time to time, you might see a Carrier Settings Update message pop up on your iPhone, saying that new settings are available, and asking if you would like to update them now. Admittedly, this message is somewhat cryptic, and doesn't give you any information regarding what's included in the update or where it's coming from. Maybe even worth, I've had a friend ask me once if his iPhone got hacked as the message looked suspicious to him. In this post, we'll tell you more about carrier settings updates, what they are, and how to check for them.

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AT&T pulling back on throttling of unlimited LTE customers

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

AT&T is pulling back on its throttling efforts against unlimited LTE customers, reports ArsTechnica. The site noticed that the carrier recently changed its policy to say that it will only throttle users with unlimited LTE data plans who have both exceeded 5GB in a billing cycle and are in an area experiencing network congestion.

Previously, AT&T's policy said that unlimited LTE users could experience slower data speeds after reaching 5GB, with no mention of location. The change comes after customers complained the carrier's throttling—some reported speeds as slow as 0.5Mbps—was part of its strategy to sway them away from their unlimited plans.

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Google unveils ‘Project Fi,’ an MVNO with plans starting at $20 per month

Cody Lee ∙ April 22, 2015

After years of rumors and speculation, Google is officially getting into the wireless business. The tech giant on Wednesday announced "Project Fi," an MVNO (mobile virtual network operator) set to shake up the wireless industry with plans starting at $20 per month.

Google has teamed up with Sprint and T-Mobile for the project, and it will piggyback on their networks. The service is designed to allow devices to dynamically switch between the carriers' networks and nearby Wi-Fi networks, depending on which offers better service.

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Sprint will send someone to your house to set up your iPhone

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated July 22, 2017

Monday, U.S. wireless carrier Sprint announced Direct 2 You, an industry-first new service that sends a retail-trained Sprint expert to your home or other location who will deliver and set up your iPhone or other device, promising to change how customers buy or upgrade their phones, tablets and other mobile devices.

In addition to bringing a mobile device to your own home, office or other location of your choice, Sprint's experts will set it up on your behalf and transfer all the content, including contacts, pictures, videos and apps, from an old device to a new one, simplifying switching from one platform to another.

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