3G

AT&T introduces new data plans for tablets: 250MB for $5/day, 1GB for $25 per 3 months

Today, at GigaOM’s Mobilize conference and ahead of Apple’s iPad event next Tuesday, AT&T cunningly announced a pair of new data-only cellular plans beginning with the basic tier that will set you back five bucks per day, which buys you 250MB of 3G or high-speed 4G LTE cellular data. It’s a nice option for those who only occasionally use their iPad while out and about, without Wi-Fi nearby.

Charlie Penrose, AT&T’s Senior Vice President of Emerging Devices, said at the conference that his company hopes the new tablet-only data offering will give customers yet another reason to consider cellular devices instead of overwhelmingly opting for Wi-Fi-only tablets. Jump past the fold to read about AT&T’s other tier…

Apple to pay AT&T iPad 3G owners $40 in unlimited data lawsuit

In a ruling issued last week in San Jose, California, US District Judge Ronald Whyte green-lighted a plan for Apple to pay $40 to everyone in the US who purchased an iPad 3G before June 2010.

The decision comes in response to several class action suits waged against Apple and AT&T, accusing them of advertising an unlimited data plan, and then taking it away after they purchased their iPad…

China Telecom thanks iPhone for second-straight quarterly profit gain

It’s believed that with strong competition from Samsung and other handset makers, the iPhone isn’t as big of a draw for consumers as it once was. Some carriers have even stopped offering the phone, figuring it’s no longer worth the hassle.

But ask providers like T-Mobile or China Telecom, and it’s a completely different story. T-Mobile just posted its strongest consumer growth in 4 years last quarter on the back of its iPhone launch, and China Telecom is seeing similar results…

Verizon asks Obama to prevent upcoming iPhone sales ban

In April, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) ordered an import ban on the iPhone 3G/3GS/4 after determining Apple had violated Samsung’s 3G cellular technology patent. Apple was hoping the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) would overturn ITC’s decision on the basis that Samsung was asserting a standards-essential patent.

Needles to say, Apple asked ITC to stay an order while the court considered the appeal, arguing the sales ban would “sweep away an entire segment of Apple’s product offerings.” And in an interesting twist earlier this week, the nation’s top carrier Verizon Wireless pressured President Obama to intervene in the Apple v. Samsung case and veto the impending ban…

Samsung wants to settle EU antitrust case over Apple to sidestep $17.5B fine

The European Union six months ago launched a formal investigation into a potential breach of EU antitrust rules by Samsung. The antitrust investigation focused on the South Korean conglomerate’s handling of industry-essential patents that EU regulators insist should be licensed to others on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms (FRAND).

The investigation determined that Samsung was abusing its patent portfolio by seeking high royalties it knew didn’t make business sense, just so it could later assert those patents against rivals such as Apple. ”Samsung has been involved in settlement discussions for several months now,” an unnamed source told Reuters on Tuesday. “Samsung wants to settle”…

Apple devices top Android on 3G networks

We’ve always contended that while Android has a numerical advantage over Apple’s iOS, the iPhone and iPad see much greater usage.

More evidence of that belief: more than half of all 3G cellular traffic comes from Apple devices.

When combined, the iPhone 4, 4S and 5 account for about 53 percent of all 3G cellular traffic. Adding the iPad boosts the number to nearly 60 percent, according to a firm that analyzes cell network traffic. Where is Android? Samsung’s Galaxy S, S2 and S3 combined make up a bit over eighteen percent of 3G traffic…

Apple prevails in UK’s Samsung 3G suit

Apple scored another legal victory against rival Samsung. In a UK court, a judge Wednesday ruled that the iPhone maker does not infringe patents held by the South Korean-based Android smartphone manufacturer. The court’s decision marks more than two-dozen failed attempts by Samsung to claim it is owed royalties on standard-essential patents.

The company had alleged Apple did not pay royalties to use its 3G wireless technology patents in the iPhone…

Apple posts iOS 6.1.1 firmware fixing iPhone 4S reliability, 3G issues

Right on cue, Apple has rushed out the new iOS 6.1.1 firmware update to the iPhone 4S owners to fix 3G connectivity issues, enterprise problems and quite possibly squash a few reliability related bugs. iPhone 4S owners can apply an over-the-air update by going to Settings > General > Software Update. Of course, if you’re already jailbroken, do not update to iOS 6.1.1 until it becomes clear whether or not it breaks the jailbreak…

Poll: 3G, battery and overheating issues on iOS 6.1?

Like any software release, the January 28 iOS 6.1 firmware update did fix some known bugs, but also has introduced a new set of issues. Specifically, the update is said to contain a bug that affects your iPhone’s battery life and 3G performance.

The battery inefficiencies could be related to an Exchange bug, clever people at AOL have learnt). Quick searches on the Apple Support Communities forum for iOS 6.1 battery and iOS 6.1 3G clearly prove these issues are more widespread than originally thought. While some people are seeing their iPhone 5 battery life dropping after updating to iOS 6.1, others are bitching about overheating issues.

To make matters worse, Vodafone advised its UK customers against upgrading to iOS 6.1 until Apple fixes 3G hiccups, which include the occasional difficulty in connecting to the network to make or receive calls or texts or connecting to the mobile Internet.

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German court finds Apple to infringe Samsung’s 3G patent

A court in Germany has ruled that Apple’s iPhone infringes upon Samsung’s patents related to 3G wireless technology and has issued an order to stay a German Samsung v. Apple lawsuit. Patent blogger Florian Müeller who follows tech litigation explains that the case will be adjudicated only after the validity of this patent. Apple, of course, is challenging the validity of Samsung’s patent, but that will likely take years to resolve…