LTE

Sprint’s new tablet-exclusive unlimited plan degrades your video, music and gaming streams

I don't trust “unlimited” wireless plans because they're all but unlimited and often come with a bunch of caveats one needs to consider carefully. The latest example: Sprint's newly announced data plan for tablets which promises unlimited 4G LTE data in exchange for $20 per month. So far so good, but the devil—as always—is in the detail.

If you take a closer look at the fine print, you soon realize that the plan limits video streaming to DVD-like 480p resolution, music streaming quality to 500kbps and your online gaming streams to up to 2Mbps.

Apple SIM partner AlwaysOnline Wireless unveils new UK plans, expands in 29 countries

Apple SIM is available in 140+ countries via GigSky, but now customers traveling abroad have additional choices when it comes to buying short-term data plans on the go, directly from their cellular-enabled iPad, thanks to a company called AlwaysOnline Wireless which today announced that its 4G LTE roaming network is now available via Apple SIM in the United States and 28 additional countries.

The company also launched new data plans in the United Kingdom via a partnership with British wireless carrier Three: an hourly plan with 100MB of 4G LTE for $0.49 (£0.37), a daily plan with 500MB of 4G LTE for $5.99 (£4.50), a 1GB plan for $10.99 (£8.26), a 3GB plan for $18.99 (£14.28) and a 5GB plan for $29.99 (£22.55).

Verizon rolls out LTE Advanced with 50% faster peak speeds in 461 U.S. cities

Verizon, the nation's leading telecommunications company, today said that mobile users in 461 cities across the United States now get fifty percent faster peak wireless data speeds thanks to LTE Advanced, the next generation of wireless technology.

A major enhancement of the Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard, LTE Advanced uses existing cell towers and a software technique called carrier aggregation which combines multiple channels to transfer data more quickly than with LTE.

Sprint reveals its own unlimited data plan

Joining a chorus of carrier updates, U.S. wireless carrier Sprint today revealed an unlimited plan of its own. Called Unlimited Freedom and available starting at $60 per month, it offers unlimited 4G LTE data, talk and text, with the ability to add a second line for an extra $40 per month, or up to eight lines for an additional $30 per month each.

Additionally, Sprint's prepaid subsidiary Boost Mobile revealed a similar plan of its own. Both plans are available for new and existing customers starting tomorrow.

T-Mobile One gives you unlimited 4G LTE data for $70 per month beginning September 6

Just as U.S. carrier AT&T announced more affordable data plans with no overage charges, Deutsche Telekom-owned T-Mobile USA today launched One, its brand new $70 per month plan with unlimited 4G LTE data, calling and text, plus no data caps. However, if you plan on streaming high-definition video on One, that'll be an extra $25 unless you're content with video streaming in standard (DVD-like) quality in 480p.

The new plan is available for new postpaid customers beginning Tuesday, September 6 at T-Mobile stores nationwide and t-mobile.com.

T-Mobile treats 2016 Summer Olympics attendees to unlimited 4G LTE data and calling

Deutsche Telekom-owned wireless carrier T-Mobile USA today announced that all Simple Choice postpaid customers traveling to Brazil for 2016 Summer Olympics will be treated to unlimited high-speed 4G LTE data within the country during August.

In unleashing Brazil this summer, T-Mobile's CEO John Legere noted that not only will Rio de Janeiro visitors enjoy the Summer Olympics without worrying about roaming charges, but also free calls within Brazil and to U.S. during the month of August.

T-Mobile offering free 4G data to US customers traveling in Europe this summer

Deutsche Telekom-owned carrier T-Mobile USA on Thursday announced a new promotion which gives postpaid customers free unlimited 4G LTE data across all of Europe, except Andora, between July 1 and August 31, 2016. Only postpaid customers who reside in the United States and primary use T-Mobile's US network are eligible for this promotion. In addition to free data, texting is free and calls are just 20 cents a minute throughout Europe and a host of other destinations.

Apple working to form ‘strategic partnerships’ with Indian carriers ahead of 4G expansion

Shortly after his pre-dawn spiritual experience at the Shree Siddhivinayak Temple at Prabhadevi in Mumbai, Apple CEO Tim Cook met the country's top wireless carriers in an effort to strike a "strategic partnership” ahead of a wide-scale LTE expansion in the country.

India, home to population of 1.25 billion people, is about to witness the advent of high-speed fourth-generation wireless networks, a move that Apple sees as the opportunity to expand the market for iPhones, as reported today by The Economic Times of India.

DigiTimes: Intel to supply at least half of iPhone 7’s faster LTE cellular modems

Rumors continue to swirl that Intel had been commissioned to build LTE modem chips for Apple's upcoming smartphone refresh, a marquee win for the semiconductor giant.

Tuesday, Taiwanese trade publication DigiTimes reported that Intel may supply up to fifty percent of LTE modems for the forthcoming iPhone 7 models.

Although Intel itself will package the modems, the chips will be mass-produced by contract manufacturers TSMC and KYEC, as per DigiTimes, indicating that the iPhone 7's 'A10' system-on-a-chip may integrate an Intel-built LTE modem. These Intel-designed LTE modems for the iPhone 7 are said to be faster than those in the iPhone 6s.

Qualcomm is “assuming” that Apple will give LTE modem orders for iPhone 7 to rival Intel

Shares of Qualcomm have dropped two percent after CEO Steve Mollenkopf told analysts on an earnings call Wednesday that it may lose some of its “biggest customers” as they are going with a “second source,” Bloomberg reported.

The fabless chip maker's been Apple's exclusive supplier of LTE modems for over three years now.

That's about to change soon: Mollenkopf is now “assuming” that a major customer will give orders to a rival, indicating a potential loss of business for the company. Analysts said they think the customer is Apple and the rival is Intel.