You may have heard a thing or two about Google’s music service, likely to be dubbed Google Music.  The idea was discussed at I/O back in May, which expectations we would see something around September.  Well, September is here, and we’ve really heard nothing new about Google Music, until now.

Reports are now coming in that sources are revealing that Google Music may be landing sometime around Christmas.  Sources are also revealing that Google is planning to launch the service along with Android 3.0.  There’s only one catch, it seems that Google Music, being spearheaded by Andy Rubin himself, is having zero luck in signing deals with any major record labels.

Music is not the only area where Google is reportedly having difficulty getting content providers to come on board.  There have been numerous reports that they are having an equally difficult time swaying studios and networks to partner with them over Google TV.  One thing is for certain, though, and that is Google had better hurry up and get some record labels on board, or they will be launching a shiny new music service with no music to be found.

Google may be gearing up to launch their music service along with Android 3.0

View full post on Google Android News Android Forums

Google Music — or a version of what Google plans for Music to be — was shown off way back at I/O along with the debut of Android 2.2. It has since then been assumed that the launch of Music would most likely coincide with the launch of Android 3.0 (Gingerbread). From what has been revealed so far, the service will offer cloud-based functionality such as streaming from a desktop system to your Android handset as well as the ability to push song and album downloads directly to your phone. But when, exactly, does Google plan to unleash their counterattack on Apple’s iTunes?

The word is Andy Rubin has been hard at work in an attempt to get the service up and running by the holiday season, which does go hand-in-hand with the rumored release timeframe for Gingerbread. The problem is, so far Rubin and Google have failed to get any record labels to sign on to their music store. It isn’t that they don’t want to. One exec speaking on conditions of anonymity said, “finally here’s an entity with the reach, resources and wherewithal to take on iTunes as a formidable competitor by tying it into search and Android mobile platform. What you’ll have is a very powerful player in the market that’s good for the music business.”

See, music execs would love to have someone come along and take the power out of iTunes’ hands, or at least alleviate some of the hold Apple has on the digital music distribution industry. But for the same reason negotiations with Google may take a while. Record labels are very protective of their intellectual property, if you hadn’t noticed, and are pretty hung up on big profits at the same time. We expect most if not all major distributors to hop on board, though whether or not negotiations will delay the debut of Google Music remains to be seen.

[via BGR]

View full post on Android Phone Fans

As much as I love Nokia devices and services, I also get extremely frustrated with them from time-to-time. A couple of years ago it seemed like they were buying up as many services as they could with the hope that a global Ovi services offering would provide you with all you need. We have seen several of these services come and go (N-Gage, Mosh, Nokia Backup, etc.) to the point where I am now very leery of jumping onto any service they launch. I hope Ovi Maps never goes away, but you never know. Today we here that Ovi Files is shutting down on 1 October 2010.

I used the free 10GB Ovi Files cloud solution a few times, but never embraced it since I needed something that was more cross platform. Thankfully, we now have SugarSync on S60 so that I can share across multiple platforms and there really is little need for Ovi Files. I know that some people loved Ovi Files though and am sure they are not happy about this news today. It was a decision that was probably made after evaluating the cost and the benefit, but Nokia needs to now do things to prop up their name and not frustrate smartphone buyers.

View full post on Nokia Experts

Clearwire has officially launched their “Rover”, an offering of unlimited 4G services for:

• $5 / day
• $20 / week
• $50 / month

The Rover comes in one of two choices: either a usb dongle that allows one device access at a time, or a small, puck-shaped device that allows connectivity for up to 8 devices simultaneously. The dongle is $99, while the rover puck will set you back $149. The company claims speed bursts of up to 10MBPS, and the device can be picked up at Clearwire’s Rover website. Full presser after the break.

Read More…

Clearwire now offering pay as you go 4G internet service

View full post on Google Android News Android Forums

The forums are filling up. The CrackBerry support email is getting lots of folks stating issues and we’re led to believe we may have an outage on our hands. Some folks are reporting slow web browsing, email delays and general connectivity issues. Thus far, seems limited to North America but, if you’re in another area and experiencing issues then please, let us know in the comments. I’m on Rogers and not seeing this yet, how about you all?

CrackBerry.com‘s feed sponsored by ShopCrackBerry.com. BlackBerry Alert: BlackBerry Internet Service outage?

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On Friday, OWC announced a turnkey upgrade program for the 27-inch iMac, which includes an eSATA upgrade.

View full post on Macworld

Are we surprised anymore? Quarter after quarter, J.D. Power and Associates surveys a number of cell phone users in America (9,690 to be exact this volume) on how satisfied they are with their carrier’s customer service (they had to have come in contact with retail sales associates in stores and over the phone in the past 6 months). T-Mobile’s long been at the top of that list, and they’re enjoying the honor again this morning so we can enjoy another three months of ads highlighting that.

Here are some of the accolades they continued to rack up in more detail:

• T-Mobile is the sole highest-ranked among all wireless providers in Overall Customer Care Performance, and significantly above the industry average.
• In direct interactions with customer service representatives, T-Mobile scores higher than any other wireless provider.
• On calls that began with the ARS and transferred to a customer service representative, T-Mobile leads all wireless providers.
• For customers walking into a retail store for service, T-Mobile scores above industry average.

If my personal experiences are anything to go by when I was with T-Mobile ever since I was a young teen (I left for Sprint this past June), then they definitely deserve it. They’re efficient, polite, and – if you’re a “loyalty” customer of theirs – they nearly treat you like royalty. I’m not just saying that, either, because their customer service made it very hard for me to leave them. They were one of the first supporters of Android, and while I was more advanced than your average T-Mobile G1/Android customer, I can tell they really cared about the platform and made a strong effort to train employees on the OS to make sure other users weren’t left in the dark. All that said, we wish them the best as they continue to please millions of their customers at the point of sale and support.

Customers Rank T-Mobile USA Highest
In Wireless Customer Service
Independent Study by J.D. Power and Associates Gives T-Mobile
Top Honors for Superior Customer Service

BELLEVUE, Wash. —July 29, 2010 — T-Mobile USA, Inc. continues to earn accolades for its dedication to providing customers with superior service. J.D. Power and Associates today announced that T-Mobile was the sole wireless carrier to earn the highest ranking in their 2010 Wireless Customer Care Performance StudySM — Volume 2.

“We are honored to be recognized as the wireless industry’s highest ranked customer service provider,” says Brian Brueckman, group vice president, customer service, T-Mobile USA. “This award is a reflection of our frontline employees’ commitment to customer delight as well as our entire organization’s focus on helping customers realize the full potential of our great products and services.”

Today’s honor continues to demonstrate T-Mobile’s commitment to providing an outstanding customer experience. The study provides a detailed report card based on consumer experiences on the phone with T-Mobile customer service representatives, through an automated response system (ARS), in person at T-Mobile retail stores and online at http://www.t-mobile.com. The study shows the following:
T-Mobile is the sole highest-ranked among all wireless providers in Overall Customer Care Performance, and significantly above the industry average.
In direct interactions with customer service representatives, T-Mobile scores higher than any other wireless provider.
On calls that began with the ARS and transferred to a customer service representative, T-Mobile leads all wireless providers.
For customers walking into a retail store for service, T-Mobile scores above industry average.

The 2010 Wireless Customer Care Performance Study – Volume 2 is based on responses from 9,690 wireless customers who had a customer care experience within the past six months. Online interviews were conducted between January and June of 2010.

Recent recognition of T-Mobile’s customer service excellence also extends to its retail customer experience. Earlier this year, T-Mobile received the highest ranking for retail customer satisfaction in the J.D. Power and Associates 2010 Wireless Retail Sales Satisfaction StudySM — Volume 1.

More information about J.D. Power and Associates studies can be found at http://www.jdpower.com.

About T-Mobile USA, Inc.
Based in Bellevue, Wash., T-Mobile USA, Inc. is the U.S. wireless operation of Deutsche Telekom AG. By the end of the first quarter of 2010, approximately 150 million mobile customers were served by the mobile communication segments of the Deutsche Telekom group — 33.7 million by T-Mobile USA — all via a common technology platform based on GSM and UMTS, the world’s most widely used digital wireless standards. T-Mobile USA’s innovative wireless products and services help empower people to connect to those who matter most. Multiple independent research studies continue to rank T-Mobile among the highest in numerous regions throughout the U.S. in wireless customer care and call quality. For more information, please visit http://www.T-Mobile.com. T-Mobile is a federally registered trademark of Deutsche Telekom AG.

# # #

View full post on Android Phone Fans

Think you’re pretty slick by just finding the stand-alone APK’s for apps that you should’ve paid for? Obviously the developers of those apps are sick of their hardwork being distributed for free, but Google has just implemented a service to help them out.

Android’s new licensing service allows the individual app to call Google’s server to check the app against purchase records vs the credentials of the purchase. So if the credentials don’t match, the app won’t have full (if any) functionality on your device.

This will be great for dev’s and consumers alike as long as it verifies the credentials on a per-Google account basis and not on a per-phone basis, which would make getting a new phone quite the frustrating process.

[via android dev blog]

For more information on Android and the current Android mobile phones, check out our Android Guides

Licensing service for Android apps should cut down piracy

View full post on Google Android News Android Forums

When you are a BlackBerry user and you travel; be it often or just simply on random occassions, I have never come across a better application then Worldmate. Personally, I use it on my BlackBerry and when I had an iPhone I also had it installed there as well. The latest news from Worldmate is that they have updated to version 4.0. This update, brings a lot to the table in terms of how exactly Worldmate function and how it can better assist you in your travels. A new service addition has been added to Worldmate:

WorldMate introduces TripCatch to their BlackBerry application, an opt-in service that monitors a user’s BlackBerry inbox for travel confirmation emails and then automatically imports them into their WorldMate account. Skipping the manual step for users, TripCatch grabs confirmation for flights, hotels, rental cars and more, generating detailed trip itineraries. Ensuring privacy, TripCatch is certified with the Privacy Seal from TRUSTe so the only information accessed is explicitly allowed by the user.

With TripCatch automation, confirmation emails for flights, hotels, rental cars and more generate detailed trip itineraries. The WorldMate service also includes flight alerts, calendar synchronization, and itinerary integration with mapping, navigation and LinkedIn contacts. Using TripCatch bypasses the old method of adding items to you itinerary wherein you had to forward all conformation emails to a specific email address before they would be added. TripCatch is an opt in service as well, so if you try it out and do not like you you may opt out at any time.

• Click Here To Visit The Worldmate Website To Learn More>>

CrackBerry.com‘s feed sponsored by ShopCrackBerry.com. WorldMate Mobile Travel Service keeps making travel easier

View full post on CrackBerry.com blogs

It looks like Google are going to enter the online music game, with the roll out of a music download service, linked into its search engine later this year, with the possibility of online subscription service in 2011.

The details around the service are still a bit sketchy but Google have been stepping up conversations about offering new music services tied to Android devices. At Google I/O, Google showed off technology that would allow Android users stream music to their phone from their desktop. While you can get over-the-air music with the Amazon MP3 app, there is still no complete integrated music solution such as iTunes on the iPhone.

A cloud based music service for Android would be really cool as it would allow you to stream whatever music you want to you device without worrying about storing it locally on a memory card.

[source: WSJ]

For more information on Android and the current Android mobile phones, check out our Android Guides

Google Music Service

View full post on Google Android News Android Forums

On Thursday, the cloud-based gaming service launched for the Mac and Windows, thereby enabling thousands of players to stream high-end games to their computers like never before.

View full post on Macworld

Just this week RIM released maintenance releases for BES 5.0 SP1 for both the Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Domino platforms. Both release have a laundry list of 5 pages of notes detailing the fixed issues. Now we have a news from BBNews.pl of details of the upcoming Service Pack (SP2) that many BES admins have been waiting for.  Originally the expeted release target was July, and it now may be pushed back to September. 

Not that BES 5.0 has been unstable or plagued by problems however it like all software is not immune from problems. Many of the advancements in SP2 will offer a nicer user experience for both the BES Admin and the end BlackBerry user. One of these enhancements will be additional supported web browsers for the BES Console and the Web Desktop Manger.

The Web Desktop Manager is a very cool feature that was included with BES 5.0 allowing end users to backup, restore, change sync settings etc. without needing to install a desktop software on the PC. If you are as tired as I am of those annoying popups on your PC informing you that there is an updated version of desktop manager, than not having any software loaded on the PC is a godsend.

Currently the web console is only compatible with IE 6 & 7, I don’t even have to get into why this is unacceptable so I will just say that IE 8, Firefox 3.6, Chrome 4.0 and Safari 4.0 for Mac are all now supported. Ya!!! Running IE 8 in compatibility mode has not been the most ideal of situations. In fact BES is one of the only reasons I need IE as 99% of all my web work is now done in Chrome. For full details on what BBNews.pl have uncovered pop on over to their site.

Source: BBNews.pl

CrackBerry.com‘s feed sponsored by ShopCrackBerry.com. Service pack 2 for BES 5.0 specs leak out

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In an unsurprising move, it appears that Google will be using the straightforward ‘Google Music’ brand for its upcoming cloud music streaming and push-to-phone music service announced at Google I/O, or so an uncovered logo hosted on Google’s servers seems to indicate (the same URL can be modified to access other Google logos). It isn’t clear when Google plans to make its music service live, but if rumors of an upcoming cloud-based iTunes are to be believed than Google won’t want to sit on this one too long.

Google Music will most likely be a two-tiered operation. On one end you will be able to search for songs, purchase them, and send them from the cloud directly to your Android device. The other end sees a desktop client that syncs your music to the cloud for streaming on your phone wherever you go, with technology coming from the acquisition of Simplify Media. If Google gets this one right, they may just have solved one of the biggest gripes with the Android platform.

[via TechCrunch]

View full post on Android Phone Fans

We’ve been getting reports from users letting us know that BIS email services are not working right at the moment. This was verified by the folks over at @BlackBerryHelp as well, as you can see in the tweet above. Other than that we don’t have much other information to go on. Personally, I’m not having any issues at all on Rogers but I have spoken to others that are. How about you? Any issues with your BIS?

CrackBerry.com‘s feed sponsored by ShopCrackBerry.com. Having Issues With Your BlackBerry Data Service Today?

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Consumers flood cyber forums with bad service woes
Service providers, handset vendors add millions of consumers every month, but don’t tackle consumer complaints at the same pace.

Read more on rediff.com

Google plans to go head to head with Amazon’s popular S3 cloud storage service with the new Google Storage for Developers. Like S3, Google’s new service offers developers a cheap, scalable way to store data online.

While it isn’t exactly the fabled “GDrive,” Google Storage for Developers certainly lays the groundwork for Google to create a user-friendly online storage service.

Google Storage for Developers offers a RESTful API, backups across multiple data centers and even has support for storing large files up to hundreds of gigabytes in size.

Google Storage for Developers is currently an experimental Google Labs project. For now the service is available by invitation only and limited to U.S. developers. You can head over to the sign up page to request an invite which will give you access to 100GB of data storage and 300GB per month of data-transfer bandwidth.

After your application hits those limits a pay-as-you-go scheme kicks in. The pricing is roughly analogous to Amazon’s S3 service. Google’s version will run you 17 cents per GB per month for simple storage, 10 cents per GB for uploading data and 15 to 30 cents per GB for downloads. There’s also a fee for the number of requests — $.01 per 1000 PUT, POST or LIST requests and $0.01 per 10,000 requests using GET or HEAD.

Unfortunately that’s just different enough from Amazon’s pricing structure (which decreases the per GB price as your usage goes up) that it’s hard to say which is cheaper. At first glance Amazon’s S3 service looks marginally cheaper for storage, but in the end the total cost — and which is cheaper — will vary depending on the nature of your web app and how you use either storage service.

Hopefully, now that there’s some competition in the cloud storage space, both services will eventually become even cheaper.

Google does offer some extra tools that Amazon doesn’t have — the BigQuery API and the Prediction API.

According the Google Code announcement, BigQuery is designed to explore the history of your data, and the more interesting Prediction API gives you access to Google’s machine learning algorithms which are designed to “make your apps more intelligent.”

The Prediction API can help make real-time decisions “such as recommending products, assessing user sentiment from blogs and tweets, routing messages or assessing suspicious activities,” says the Google Code blog.

For now there is no charge for using the extra APIs, though noting that in the announcement seems to indicate that, when Google Storage for Developers moves out of Labs, there will be an additional charge.

Because Google Storage for Developers is a beta Labs project, you won’t want to switch from Amazon’s services just yet, but if you’d like to take Google Storage for Developers for spin, head over to the sign up page and request an invite.

See Also:

• Google Cuts Online Storage Pricing, Fuels Anticipation for Cheap Cloud-Based OS
• Dropbox API Lets You Add Cloud Storage to Your Apps
• The Fabled GDrive May Soon See the Light of Day

View full post on Webmonkey

The FCC granted 21 conditional waivers to regional and local entities to begin building wireless broadband networks for first responders in the 700 MHz band (pdf).

The networks must have nationwide interoperability, use LTE as their over-the-air interface, and grant access to certain applications, including access to the Internet, to an incident command system, and to field-based server applications. The FCC stated that it was not endorsing LTE technology, but noted that requiring a single air interface standard for 700 MHz waiver applicants was reasonable to ensure interoperability.

In approving the petitions for waivers, the FCC placed several conditions on the networks, chief of which is that the networks be deployed in a common interoperability framework in coordination with the FCC’s Emergency Response Interoperability Center.

The FCC’s recommendation to leverage a commercial network build-out at the same time the public safety network is created would cost approximately $6.5 billion over 10 years, less than the projected $15.7 billion in capital costs associated with building a stand-alone public safety network.

Federal lawmakers aren’t expressing much support for dedicating the proceeds of a proposed 700 MHz D Block auction next year to help fund the deployment of a nationwide public-safety broadband network in the band, reports Urgent Communications.

Yucel Ors, director of legislative affairs for the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO), said he is not optimistic that Congress will appropriate the $6.5 billion in grant money that the FCC requested to help fund the buildout of an LTE network for first responders.

With the D Block and the 10 MHz of public-safety broadband spectrum licensed to the Public Safety Spectrum Trust (PSST), public safety would have 20 MHz for its network. Without the D Block, public safety would have 10 MHz of spectrum for its network, which likely would limit the network to purely public-safety use.

LTE public safety networks were approved for construction in 21 markets. The States include: Alabama, Mississippi, Iowa, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Hawaii, Oregon, and the District of Columbia. Counties include: Adams County, CO; Los Angeles County, CA Cities: Boston, MA; Charlotte, NC; Chesapeake, VA; New York, NY; Pembroke Pines, FL; San Antonio, TX; Seattle, WA; Mesa, AZ. Regions include: Northern California Consortium (Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose,) Wisconsin Consortium (Calumet, Outagamie and Winnebago Counties,) and TOPAZ Regional Wireless Cooperative (Arizona.)

Using LTE in their 10 MHz of broadband spectrum would enable first responders to have nationwide interoperability.

APCO also wants D Block for their own. FCC officials are not convinced that public safety needs more than 10 MHz for its network. Instead, according to the Broadband Plan, D-Block would be auctioned off to cellular operators. That, says the FCC, would lower costs and increase penetration, enabling broadband wireless access to everyone, nationwide.

James Barnett Jr., chief of the FCC’s public safety and homeland security bureau said now is the time to implement the FCC proposal, which calls for building an interoperable public safety network in the so-called D block of the 700 MHz radio spectrum network. It would be shared with commercial interests.

“There’s broad recognition that we have one shot to solve the 9/11 problem, because if we miss the commercial network build-out [shared with public safety] then the public safety network price doubles,” Barnett said. “We want everybody to catch up with that recognition.”

Related Dailywireless articles include; FCC: Stop Complaining about Interoperability, Police & Fire: No Broadband for You, The 700MHz Network: Who Pays?, The National Broadband Plan, National Broadband Plan Previewed, D-Block: It’s Done; Congress Pays, AT&T/TerreStar Ready Satphone Service, TerreStar Phones Home, Motorola + SkyTerra Team for 700 MHz/Sat Radios, Alvarion, Open Range To Build 17 State Net, San Diego State: Wildfire GIS to Go, Emergency Mapping, Cascadia Peril, Commentary: Future of Public Safety Communications, New York Cancels Statewide Wireless Network, New York’s $2B Statewide Network Close to Canceling, M/A-COM to NY: We’re Good, NY Gives Tyco 45 days to Fix Network, Battle for Oregon’s State-wide Radio Net, Oregon’s $500 Million Statewide Wireless Network.

View full post on dailywireless.org

Product: 3G MicroCell by Cisco

Manufacturer: AT&T

Wired Rating: 7

As Ah-nuld would say, “Stop whining!”

AT&T, long the punch line of numerous jokes about poor cell service, is offering a $150 band-aid for wireless customers to mend their shoddy 3G reception. That help comes in the form of a plastic, orange-and-white hub called the 3G MicroCell.

Manufactured by Cisco, the MicroCell creates a tiny 3G data and voice bubble in your home. It sets up in a snap: Plug it in to your existing broadband network by Ethernet, log in to your AT&T wireless account, and follow the web instructions to activate the device. You can authorize up to 10 AT&T phone numbers (3G only, not EDGE) to work with the product.

After you set it up, try to macramé yourself a set of shorts or some other time-consuming task. The MicroCell takes roughly one hour to fully come online.

So what’s the anecdotal verdict? I tested the MicroCell in my San Francisco apartment located in the notoriously reception-deficient Mission district. Prior to installing the MicroCell, I had to stand by the front window just to make a phone call and was only able to chat for a few minutes before losing the connection.

The MicroCell remedied that problem: I can now traipse around my apartment placing or receiving calls and enjoy lengthy conversations without drops. Voice quality has also improved — no longer are conversations distorted by a cruddy connection.

The MicroCell also amplifies your data connection, but consider that benefit moot, because you need to have a broadband connection to use the product. That means you’ll be doing your data-heavy tasks (web browsing, downloading phone apps and games, etc.) over Wi-Fi from your base station instead, since that’s faster anyway.

The only reason you’d want an amplified 3G connection is if, say, you send a ton of MMS messages, because AT&T won’t let you do that over Wi-Fi. And even then, I can tell you the time it takes to send an MMS with the help of a MicroCell is hardly impressive. It still takes roughly 45 seconds for me to send an MMS of a photo snapped with my iPhone 3GS. (I would give you a comparison number with the MicroCell turned off, but I can’t, because I can’t send an MMS at all when the device is not turned on in my home.)

If you skew towards the loquacious end of the spectrum, there’s the option of paying a companion rate of $20 a month for unlimited phone calls, which gives you $100 off the MicroCell. This arrangement also enables folk on your family plan to make unlimited calls without sucking minutes from your monthly wireless voice pool.

With all that said, the part that will bug people the most is the price tag: AT&T service should work in your home without a $150 accessory, right? Fortunately this is a one-time price — no contract is required to use the MicroCell.

Money issues aside, let’s face it: Having a reliable cell phone connection is a big deal. Dropping calls or flat-out missing them can really make life suck. If you can’t stand waiting for AT&T to improve its 3G service, or for Verizon to deliver an iPhone, then it’s worth paying the price for the MicroCell.

That, or you could try giving hell to a customer-service rep until AT&T sends you one for free.

WIRED Urge to kill AT&T fading: Major signal boost in cell dead spots. Simple “set it and forget it” setup. Does not require contract commitment. No monthly fees. Design is so not garish.

TIRED Urge to kill AT&T rising: Costs about the same as an iPhone. Compatible only with 3G phones provided by AT&T (EDGE customers have issues too, y’know). Seriously, AT&T should offer this gratis.

View full post on Wired Product Reviews

According to one survey, AT&T’s customers are only about half as likely to be happy with their service as Verizon’s.

View full post on Macworld

Product: 3G MicroCell by Cisco

Manufacturer: AT&T

Wired Rating: 7

As Ah-nuld would say, “Stop whining!”

AT&T, long the punch line of numerous jokes about poor cell service is offering a $150 band-aid for wireless customers to mend their shoddy 3G reception. That help comes in the form of a plastic, orange-and-white hub called the 3G MicroCell.

Manufactured by Cisco, the MicroCell creates a tiny 3G data and voice bubble in your home. It sets up in a snap: Plug it in to your existing broadband network via Ethernet, log in to your AT&T wireless account and follow the web instructions to activate the device. You can authorize up to 10 AT&T (3G only, not EDGE) phone numbers to work with the product. After you set it up try to macramé yourself a set of shorts or some other time consuming task — the MicroCell takes roughly one hour to fully come online.

So what’s the anecdotal verdict? I tested the MicroCell in my San Francisco apartment located in the notoriously reception-deficient Mission district. Prior to installing the MicroCell, I had to stand by the front window just to make a phone call and was only able to chat for a few minutes before losing the connection. The MicroCell remedied that problem: I can now traipse around my apartment placing or receiving calls and enjoy lengthy conversations without drops. Voice quality has also improved — no longer are conversations distorted by a cruddy connection.

The MicroCell also amplifies your data connection, but consider that benefit moot since you need to have a broadband connection to use the product. That means you’ll be doing your data-heavy tasks (web browsing, downloading phone apps and games, etc.) over Wi-Fi from your base station instead, since that’s faster anyway. The only reason you’d want an amplified 3G connection is if, say, you send a ton of MMS messages, because AT&T won’t let you do that over Wi-Fi. And even then, I can tell you the time it takes to send an MMS with the help of a MicroCell is hardly impressive. It still roughly takes about 45 seconds for me to send an MMS of a photo snapped with my iPhone 3GS. (I would give you a comparison number with the MicroCell turned off, but I can’t, because I can’t send an MMS at all when the device is not turned on in my home.)

If you skew towards the loquacious end of the spectrum, there’s the option of paying a companion rate of $20 a month for unlimited phone calls, which gives you $100 off the MicroCell. This arrangement also enables folk on your family plan to make unlimited calls without sucking minutes from your monthly wireless voice pool.

With all that said, the part that will bug people the most is the pricetag: AT&T service should work in your home without a $150 accessory, right? Fortunately this is a one-time price — no contract is required to use the MicroCell.

Money issues aside, let’s face it: having a reliable cell phone connection is a big deal. Dropping calls or flat out missing them can really make life suck. If you can’t stand waiting for AT&T to improve its 3G service, or for Verizon to deliver an iPhone, then it’s worth paying the price for the MicroCell.

That or you could try giving hell to a customer service rep until AT&T sends you one for free.

WIRED Urge to kill AT&T fading: Major signal boost in cell dead spots. Simple “set it and forget it” setup. Does not require contract commitment. No monthly fees. Design is so not garish.

TIRED Urge to kill AT&T rising: Costs about the same as an iPhone. Only compatible with 3G phones provided by AT&T (EDGE customers have issues too, y¿know). Seriously, AT&T should offer this gratis.

View full post on Wired Product Reviews

Acquired by Apple in December 2009, streaming “music locker in the cloud” service Lala announced that it will shut down next month, but it leaves its users with a lovely parting gift.

View full post on Macworld

Nokia eyes China boost for struggling music service
Nokia will offer free music with its mobile phones in China, as it looks to emerging markets to boost the download service that is struggling to compete with Apple Inc’s popular iTunes.

Read more on Reuters via Yahoo! News

Nokia Offers Free Music Service
To remain competitive in the high-end smartphone market, Nokia Corp. has decided to offer free music downloading services in several emerging markets.

Read more on Zacks.com via Yahoo! Finance