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That’s the “glass is half full” attitude we like, Verizon — always looking for a way to sign a few more of those lucrative data contracts, no matter the circumstances! Turns out Big Red is tipping off its staffers on how it can encourage customers to go with the WiFi-only version of the iPad and pair it up with a device like the MiFi rather than shelling out $130 more for integrated AT&T 3G and waiting a few extra weeks. As usual, Verizon’s keen on playing up the anti-AT&T sentiment it’s cultivated in its recent ad campaign by openly calling its biggest competitor’s 3G network “overloaded,” but we see one big hangup: 5GB of data on a Verizon MiFi is going to run you $60 a month, twice as much as AT&T will be charging for its dedicated, unlimited iPad plan. Then again, AT&T’s own boss thinks WiFi’s a bigger deal than 3G for this thing, so who knows — maybe this is a zero-sum game for both of these guys.

[Thanks, Mark]

Eternal optimist Verizon calls iPad launch ‘an opportunity’ to sell some data plans originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 18:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Cisco promised us a significant announcement this morning, one that would “forever change the Internet and its impact on consumers, businesses and governments,” so we had to tune in to the company’s webcast to find out what it was all about. We were instantly bowled over with the shocking news that video is the killer app of the future internet, before getting it drilled into our heads that we really need, like and want more bandwidth. No kidding — so what, Cisco, what is your revolutionary next step? Is it the space-based IP router? Some killer alternative 4G connectivity? Well, it turns out it was the CRS3. The what? Cisco is bringing out a new Carrier Routing System, which Pantaj Patel describes as “this is huge” in a perfect monotone. We couldn’t agree more. Apparently Cisco is keen on offering smarter pipes, and we did hear that AT&T is handling 19 petabytes of traffic each and every day, but the sum of the whole thing is that Cisco is just refreshing its backhaul hardware and regurgitating promises about 100Gbps bandwidth and whatnot. The internet remains safe and un-revolutionized for another day. Video after the break.

Continue reading Cisco promises the ‘next generation internet,’ delivers markedly less

Cisco promises the ‘next generation internet,’ delivers markedly less originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 11:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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As Windows Mobile 6.5-based handsets go, LG’s eXpo unquestionably stands near the top of the pile thanks to its WVGA display, 1GHz Snapdragon core, and optional pico projector hump for the rear — but there’s a problem: it’s really, really hard to find. Nigh impossible, actually, especially now that AT&T has pulled it off its online store altogether (it had been showing out of stock for weeks anyway). The reason for that isn’t entirely clear — LG and AT&T are happy to cite “strong demand,” naturally, but the company that supplies the eXpo’s fingerprint sensor says there are actually some outstanding antenna problems that have the production line backlogged. So when’s it coming back? “Soon,” according to LG, but in this business we’ve seen “soon” mean anything from a few minutes to a few years, so that doesn’t mean much — and in the meantime, we’re thinking T-Mobile’s HD2 stands to eat its lunch.

[Thanks, Luda]

AT&T’s LG eXpo pico projects itself right out of stock, production problems to blame? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 23:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/tech_news/AT_T_s_Motorola_Backflip_doesn_t_allow_non_Market_apps’; Let’s step into the time warp, shall we? Specifically, we’d like to go back to our interview of AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph de la Vega at MWC last year when we asked him about the carrier’s support for Android (or lack thereof):

Chris: Okay, and expanding on that a little bit, I heard you speak at CTIA last year and you mentioned that… you mentioned basically the same comments about Android at that time. You said that you thought that it was promising, you liked what you saw, but that was at a time when there were a lot of questions about why AT&T wasn’t in the OHA. I’m wondering if your thoughts, your opinions have changed since then. Has AT&T’s direction with Android changed at all?

Ralph: No, actually, I think that they have been somewhat validated in that… we like the Android as an operating system on its own, but we want to make sure that we have, and customers have the option, to put applications on that device that are not just Google applications, so when the G1 came out and T-Mobile launched it, it’s primarily a Google phone. And we want to give customers the choice of other applications on that device, not just the same Google applications.

Chris: So you’re basically waiting for Android to be de-branded, so to speak?

Ralph: Well, to be open. (Laughter.) Right? I mean, the whole idea behind Android is that it’s gonna be an open OS, and so I don’t wanna roll an open OS to market that has primarily Google apps on it, and I think that’s gonna happen. I mean, I see a lot of activity, I think it’s got a good future, and I think it makes a lot of sense that the OS is open-source, separate from Google apps that are also very good.

A year later, enter the Motorola Backflip — AT&T’s very first Android device. Does it hold true to de la Vega’s principles? Well, it depends on whose glasses you read the statements through. Yes, true, it definitely doesn’t have “primarily Google apps on it” thanks to the carrier’s questionable decision to remove Google search and replace it with Yahoo — but as for giving “customers the choice of other applications,” that’s another matter altogether. It seems that Backflips are being shipped without the ability to turn on non-Market installations, meaning that AT&T has effectively locked you into getting all of your content through the walled garden. Add in the Yahoo debacle and the egregious amount of unremovable crapware they’ve left in ROM, and we start to wonder: why did AT&T bother partnering up with Android if they weren’t going to take it seriously? Certainly doesn’t bode well for the Mini 3 and the rest of the pack, now, does it?

Motorola Backflip doesn’t allow non-Market apps, proves AT&T doesn’t get Android originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 15:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wired broadband is all well and good, but significantly more high-speed internet access is going to come via wireless over the next several years, and everyone involved — the carriers, the CTIA, and the FCC — knows that it’s going to be a technical challenge to meet that reality. Spectrum is one thing, but the bytes need somewhere to go once they hit the towers; that’s where backhaul comes into play. AT&T and T-Mobile have both recently pimped fiber upgrades that should significantly widen the tubes connecting cell sites to the backbone, but they aren’t going it alone: cable companies see the writing on the wall, too, and are looking to backhaul for a profitable new line of business. It turns out that Time Warner Cable tripled its backhaul revenue last year alone and is said to be making a heavy push to sign new deals with both AT&T and Verizon; AT&T, of course, has famously had trouble keeping its 3G network humming smoothly in Manhattan over the last 18 months as an endless barrage of iPhones slam it, so TWC probably sees this as a clutch opportunity since they basically own the cable market in New York. For its part, AT&T won’t discuss its backhaul deals — but it’s told us in recent months that it has a backhaul advantage over some of its competitors since it operates a huge DSL business, so it’s hard to gauge exactly how much benefit AT&T could reap by taking TWC up on its offer. Now, if Time Warner had some spectrum it wanted to offload, that’d be another matter altogether.

Time Warner Cable offering its tubes to AT&T, Verizon originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 14:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The growing popularity of text messaging — especially by young adults — has had a really negative impact on vehicular safety, as more and more people text while behind the wheel.

Earlier this year, it became illegal for bus drivers or truck drivers to text while driving, but the problem only continues to grow among drivers in general. AT&T is joining in the fight to educate people about the dangers of texting while operating a vehicle by launching a new texting and driving campaign with the slogan: “Txting & Driving: It Can Wait.”

The U.S.’s second largest wireless carrier has created a website that has resources and safety guides for all drivers, but it’s clear that the focus is on teens.

In addition to offering a pledge and contract for teens and parents, AT&T has a Facebook page dedicated to the cause, and even a widget you can insert into your own website to show your support.

What do you think about the campaign? How do you think wireless companies, parents and the government should attack this problem? Let us know!

Tags: att, safety, texting, texting while driving