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AT&T’s 4G LTE goes live in Wilkes-Barre, Nashua and Grand Rapids

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 10, 2012

Carrier AT&T this morning announced an expansion of its fourth-generation Long-Term Evolution (LTE) radio technology to three new markets. Beginning today, customers in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania; Nashua, New Hampshire; and Grand Rapids, Michigan should start seeing greater download and upload speeds when using LTE-enabled smartphones, tablets and other devices on AT&T's network.

Although Consumer Reports ranks AT&T the worst of major US telcos in terms of customer satisfaction and voice/data service quality, it's also the nation's leading LTE carrier overall even though in terms of coverage AT&T trails Verizon, which claims the nation's most robust 4G network...

Google getting rid of Motorola’s set-top box biz to focus on phones and Apple

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 10, 2012

It is no secret that no one has cracked the code to the perfect TV yet. As multiple vendors fight for the living room with no clear leader in sight, the search monster's Google TV platform is floundering and Apple's $99 Apple TV hockey puck is still deemed a hobby business, despite sales in the first six months of 2012 doubling to 2.7 million units, almost equalling the 2.8 million Apple TVs moved in the entire 2011.

And as the prospect of an Apple-branded standalone HD TV set continues to occupy the brightest minds in the industry and Hollywood, rival Google is looking to sell off the cable box division of Motorola and has already received a few offers last week. But why is Google willing to drop Motorola's set-top box business in the first place?

Samsung teases ‘something new’ for CES 2013

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 10, 2012

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWoAxkMmOLk

Samsung, the world's largest maker of both cellphones and smartphones by volume, is gearing up for CES 2013, which runs January 8-11 in Las Vegas. A successor to the Galaxy S III is expected to debut at the show and the South Korean firm has put together a nice teaser suggesting "something new is coming". There are some indications that Apple may be looking to unveil a seventh-generation iPhone during the first quarter of next year, but no credible evidence of a manufacturing ramp up has surfaced yet...

Garage sale: ailing Panasonic, Sharp, Sony sell off $3B worth of property

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 10, 2012

You can put Panasonic, Sony and Sharp on your list of once mighty Japanese consumer electronics giant that are now forced to sell off billion dollars' worth of property in an embarrassing move deemed absolutely unavoidable if these dinosaurs want to survive winter. Panasonic, the maker of the Viera brand of TVs, was previously reported as wanting to exit the television business to focus on churning out displays for portable electronics, especially Apple’s iPad.

These days, the company is working to raise $1.34 billion from offloading property and shares in other Japanese companies by end of March 2013, Reuters reported Monday. We're talking land holdings, plants and even a 24-storey staff dorm in central Tokyo which has more than 47,300 square meters and houses about two thousand workers. Sony and Sharp, once the biggest names in electronics, are planning to follow suit...

Australian police issue warning regarding Apple Maps

Cody Lee ∙ Updated August 24, 2016

Apple's Maps application has had nothing but problems since it was released to the public back in September. Users have complained that the company's in-house replacement for Google Maps has inaccurate location data and other bugs.

But if you thought Maps was bad before, wait until you hear this. Police in Victoria, Australia issued a warning this weekend regarding the mapping software after several travelers became lost and stranded due to receiving poor directions...

iDB 2012 holiday gift guide: Jim’s budget saver picks

Jim Gresham ∙ Updated January 22, 2018

As we barrel into the holiday season at an alarming rate, I am assuming that you, like I, have not finished purchasing gifts. As an iDB reader, you know that tech gifts are the best gifts and we are hoping to make choosing a little easier. When I was little, I always preferred something cool and new under the Christmas tree. Thanks to iOS devices, there are many new ways to pick up a new innovative or interactive gift for the kids or kids-at-heart.

My guide is split between age groups and all suggestions fall into the stocking-stuffer category, thanks to their sub $75 price tags. Why spend huge bucks when there are decent options for less? With the bargain shopper in mind, the following might not be the best toy or accessory money can buy, but they are great deals for the dollar...

Apple’s ‘Made in USA’ Mac could be the next-gen Mac Pro

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 18, 2016

The industry was taken aback a little when Tim Cook on Friday told NBC’s Brian Williams in his first TV interview since becoming the CEO that Apple plans to bring some of the manufacturing jobs back home from China. He even went on to confirm that the company pledged to spend a hundred million bucks to make it happen, but stopped short of specifying which Macs would be assembled in the United States.

By all accounts, Apple's flagship desktop machine aimed at pros - the Mac Pro - is at the center of the company's renewed interest to bring some Mac production back to the country. First and foremost, the Mac Pro is way overdue for a hardware upgrade, having been last refreshed 427 days ago, or nearly a year and half ago...

Bose SoundDock with Lightning support coming later this month

Cody Lee ∙ Updated July 24, 2016

Not everyone is a fan of Bose audio products. They are typically more expensive and have fewer features than their counterparts, but still, they manage to sell a ton of them. And the SoundDock is the perfect example of that.

Introduced in 2004, the $200+ Bose SoundDock is one of the most recognizable lines of iPhone/iPod speakers on the market. And this month, Bose is going to release a new version of the Dock with Lightning support...

T-Mobile bets the iPhone will curb subscriber churn

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 28, 2016

As you know, T-Mobile USA, the nation's fourth-largest carrier, will finally land Apple's iPhone next year. The Deutsche Telekom-owned telco is making no excuse for its failure to land the sough-after device earlier and, unsurprisingly, is looking to tap the popularity of the Apple smartphone to win back some of its subscribers lost to rivals AT&T, Verizon Wireless and Sprint.

T-Mobile USA CEO John Legere told reporters on Friday that his company, which has 33 million customers in the United States, is hoping to steal would-be subscribers who are eyeing an iPhone on a rival network. Even more so, the German company acknowledges that having the iPhone is key to returning to growth in subscriptions by the end of 2013...

Square’s Wallet app gains gift cards with Passbook integration

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated February 19, 2018

Twitter founder Jack Dorsey's another startup, Square, has made a name for itself with a compelling and competitive mobile payment service which, in my mind, is more straightforward and powerful than Google's Wallet. The company is selling its iPhone payment dongle via the online Apple Store, having released an accompanying Wallet app on iOS and Android on November 8. It supports, among other things, receiving electronic receipts and paying with your own name.

Now, the Wallet app has been recently updated with micro-payments at Starbucks locations and now Square has added a timely new functionality, the ability to send personalized gifts that can be used at about 250,000 businesses supporting Square Wallet as a payment option.

This new feature also taps Apple's Passbook service in iOS 6 so any gift card created with the Wallet app gets automatically imported into Passbook and synced across devices via iCloud. This let you redeem a Square gift card at any of the supported points of purchase via Passbook. How's that for a hands-free checkout?

The iDownloadBlog top news stories of the week – Dec 9, 2012 edition

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated April 24, 2017

Like every Sunday, we bring you the stories that were the most popular on iDB during this past week. Whether it is a news piece, an editorial, a tutorial, a new jailbreak tweak, or an accessory review, we sum it all up in one convenient place.

If you like what you're reading, please make sure to spread the love by sharing our posts on your favorite social network. We're usually hanging out a lot on Twitter and Facebook, more rarely on Google+...

Here’s how the Apple TV’s new Bluetooth keyboard support works

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 10, 2018

Earlier today we told you about how the latest beta version of the Apple TV firmware adds Bluetooth keyboard support. Why Apple is just now getting around to adding support for keyboards is anyone's guess, but it's better late than never.

No longer will you have to tediously type in hidden WiFi SSIDs and passwords in order to setup a WiFi connection. No longer will you tear your hair out in frustration as you search YouTube for your favorite videos from iDB.

We've downloaded the beta version of the latest Apple TV firmware, and tested out the Bluetooth keyboard support for ourselves. Now we'd like to share with you the entire setup process just to show you how incredibly easy it all is. Take a look inside...