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Chrome's 'Lite Pages' now work with secure sites
Loading websites over a slow connection can be frustrating and expensive. That's why Google offers Data Saver, a feature that lets Chrome reduce data use by up to 90 percent and load pages two times faster. Previously, this Lite feature was only available for HTTP pages. Now, on Android, Chrome is extending the function to HTTPS pages as well, meaning you'll be able to browse faster and securely, even if your network connection sucks.
How to use your existing phone overseas
By Geoffrey Morrison This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter. When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, Wirecutter and Engadget may earn affiliate commission. Read the full blog here.
EE is upgrading its 4G network by polishing up old 2G spectrum
Ofcom's upcoming spectrum auction will help some UK carriers improve their 4G services, and allow all networks to start preparing to launch next-gen 5G. Three began legal proceedings against Ofcom just last week, as it's not happy with the regulator's rules for the auction. The combined might of BT and EE won't be too upset by further delays, since it's banned from bidding on 4G frequencies anyway (on account of it controlling nearly half of usable 4G spectrum already). EE has said today that it's going about upgrading its 4G network regardless, by taking creaky old 2G frequencies and converting them into shiny new 4G spectrum.
AT&T no longer works with your 2G phone
We hope you weren't planning to use your old-school iPhone or BlackBerry Pearl on AT&T's network for nostalgia's sake -- unfortunately, you're not going to get anywhere. As promised way back in 2012, the carrier has confirmed that it shut down 2G services on January 1st, 2017. If your phone only makes GSM calls and uses EDGE for data, you're stuck. The move won't hurt very many people (even basic phones have been using 3G and LTE for years), but it's hard not to shed a little tear for a technology that had been around for so long.
Google India debuts offline YouTube app, public WiFi expansion
At an event in New Delhi, India, Google laid out plans to better serve users in the country. These efforts broadly focus on two areas: data usage and language support.
Facebook gives staff slow internet to understand the developing world
Many have accused Silicon Valley of being out of touch, and for good reasons: among other things, it acts as if the entire planet has access to super-fast, always-on internet connections. Facebook, however, wants to give its employees a wake up call. It's starting up "2G Tuesdays," an optional initiative that slows down its office internet access to speeds you see in rural India and other developing areas. It's a blunt reminder that even an ordinary web page can take minutes to load on a basic connection, and that anything Facebook can do to save data will make a huge difference. While it only subjects people to pokey internet access for an hour, that might be enough to ground staffers in reality. [Image credit: AP Photo/Tsering Topgyal]
National roaming: why mobile operators are fighting the UK government
The concept of national roaming first appeared back in June, when Culture Secretary Sajid Javid began advocating a system that would allow UK mobiles to switch networks in places where the carrier they're supposed to be on offers no signal. The idea is to rid Britain of so-called mobile "not-spots," rural areas where populations are small and coverage is minimal, by coercing the major carriers to share their networks with each other. The government recently launched a consultation to explore ways it can achieve this goal. Operators, however, have been vociferous in their opposition to the plans. What's their excuse?
AT&T suspends 2G in Oakland after cell towers step on police frequencies
An $18 million dollar radio system purchased by the Oakland Police Department has been giving static instead of 10-30s in progress, and the interfering party has now been collared -- AT&T. Local officials and the FCC told the mobile network that its towers were blocking police communication, particularly when patrol cars were within a quarter-mile of one. However, some local pundits have said the problem is of the PD's own making, claiming it invested in an inferior system and didn't check carefully enough for interference before making the buy. As a result, AT&T has temporarily shut down 2G frequencies around the city -- giving the telecom giant an unplanned sneak preview of the upcoming phase-out.
MetroPCS lights up Voice over LTE (VoLTE) services, starts selling LG Connect 4G
MetroPCS may not be grand in scale, but it's certainly not lacking for ambition. Just over a year after announcing its eventual transition to Voice over LTE, the carrier has officially launched its VoLTE services. Moreover, it's announcing the first sale of a VoLTE-capable handset at one of the company's Dallas / Fort Worth store locations. The Android-powered LG Connect 4G is the outfit's first (and only, for now) VoLTE-capable phone, but the operator's promising more rollouts and phone options "in the coming weeks." For the consumer, those in range of LTE signals should notice clearer calls, and it's become something of a trend to see carriers (Verizon and Sprint, for instance) moving in this direction as 2G / 3G networks start to show their age. So, DFW residents -- anyone been able to try it out? Let us know in comments below.
AT&T plans to shut down entire 2G network by 2017
AT&T has only just begun the transition away from 2G services with its spectrum refarming in New York City, but it now has a target end date to mark on the calendar: January 1st, 2017. Courtesy of an SEC filing, we know that the carrier hopes that both its GSM voice and EDGE data networks will have gone to the great cell tower in the sky before we're popping the champagne corks about four and a half years from now. The Big Blue Ball expects the transition to be a smooth one, as only 12 percent of its regular subscribers are using 2G-only phones today; if it ever gets bumpy, the company promises to "proactively" steer the holdouts towards 3G and 4G. Don't get too misty-eyed. While the transition will mark the end to what's arguably one of the most definitive chapters in US cellular history, that far-flung date will likely come well after most of us have moved on -- much like the AMPS shutdown, it could be less of a bang and more of a whimper.
T-Mobile to incentivize select 2G subscribers with upgrade offers during five-city US pilot
Growing tired of that EDGE-only device on T-Mobile? The carrier wants you to upgrade just as badly as you do, and may be willing to kick some extra incentives your way to help motivate the switch. In an attempt to clear devices from its 2G network, T-Mobile reportedly launched a pilot this month, targeting 5,000 select customers each in Boston, DC, Los Angeles, Miami and New York City with discount offers that vary slightly by market, and may include a waived upgrade fee, up to $100 (Boston) or $50 (NYC, DC) off any phone, or, exclusively for folks in Miami, the option to swap their device for a Samsung t259, t359 Smile or Gravity TXT for free with no new contract to sign. According to TmoNews, customers may receive a targeted offer if they're Classic or Legacy subscribers with 1,000 or more monthly minutes on a 2G device (the iPhone is not included). If the pilot is successful, T-Mobile may roll out the offer to customers in additional cities, as part of the carrier's refarming effort to grow HSPA+ network capacity. A full offer breakdown is available at the source link below.
AT&T begins refarming 2G spectrum in New York City
As mobile operators continue to move toward the promised land known as "the future," it grows ever more important for them to make some room for it. AT&T announced today that it has started the process of refarming its 2G 1900MHz spectrum in New York City, which should alleviate some of the growing demand on the carrier's 3G and 4G networks within the city. AT&T isn't volunteering specific details on how long the transition will take, and it's only saying that the freed-up bandwidth will be used for high-speed services. There are still plenty of customers on 2G-only devices that will be affected by the transition -- they may still have service for now, but it will likely degrade as the process goes forward -- but the company is reaching out to them and offering alternative options, such as free 3G-capable phones. Let's just hope those don't come with fresh contracts attached. Drift your eyes below for the full press release.
BlackBerry Curve 9220 hands-on
We're just beginning our sojourn through this year's BlackBerry World, and we've already found a rare gem that may not get a lot of face time here in the States: the Curve 9220. This little 3G-less beaut takes advantage of BlackBerry OS 7.1, but it isn't going to attract the spec-hungry folk -- it packs a 2MP camera and features a 2.4-inch non-touch display with 320 x 240 resolution. It very well may, however, gain the favor of anyone looking for a budget-friendly BBM device. Seeing as this is the phone's major selling point, we made sure to take a few minutes to play with its keyboard. Compared to the QWERTY-laden legends that have graced BlackBerry devices for years (the Bold 9900 and Tour come to mind), the 9220's keyboard has some big shoes to fill, but unfortunately you won't be blessed with the same kind of experience that you'd have when using one of its elder brothers. Due to the phone's petite size, the individual keys -- arranged in standalone formation and without frets -- are a bit cramped and felt a little too slick for our taste. Of course, this isn't poised to be the latest and greatest that Waterloo has to offer, but for the low price of 10,990 rupees (about $210), it's still a pretty sweet deal for messaging lovers on a shoestring budget. Head below to view the phone from every angle. Joseph Volpe contributed to this report.
China Mobile claims 15 million iPhone subscribers without selling Apple's handset
China Mobile may be the world's largest telco with 655 million subscribers, but it's missing one major ingredient that any top tier carrier needs -- the iPhone. Apple's exclusivity deal with China Unicom is about to come to an end and China Telecom is going to start selling the 4S next week. Yet, China Mobile, the state owned behemoth, won't be joining the iOS fray officially until it starts shipping with an LTE radio (which we assume will happen next year). Still, according to the company, it has managed to rack up 15 million subscribers using unlocked iPhones on its 2G network. Perhaps most amazing, is that it was only in October that China Mobile announced it had 10 million subscribers using Apple's pride and joy. We can only imagine the pandemonium that will break out when the world's most popular phone comes to the planet's largest cellular carrier.
AT&T urging customers to upgrade to 3G, possibly killing off 2G
In a move that is sure to surprise no one, it appears AT&T is getting ready to send its trusty 2G GSM network riding off into the sunset. MarketWatch is reporting that some Ma Bell customers have received letters, urging them to upgrade to a 3G or (gasp) 4G device and warning that service may degrade in some areas as spectrum is repurposed. While the letter stops short of saying the 2G network is being shut down, it seems the writing is on the wall. With the collapse of the T-Mobile acquisition and Verizon's sizable lead in the race to acquire spectrum, AT&T is left with little choice but to use its GSM channels for HSPA+ and LTE service. So far the notices have only gone out to customers in the New York metro area, but it seems safe to assume other locales will follow. The only question is whether the carrier will lean on hold-outs the same way it did when the time came to kill off TDMA -- with a tax on primitive technology.
Orange offers free Wikipedia access to mobile users in Africa and the Middle East
There are more than 70 million Orange customers across Africa and the Middle East, but only about 10 million are able to access the web from their handsets. That gap may be narrowing, though, now that the provider has decided to offer free mobile access to Wikipedia for users throughout the region. Under the program, users with an Orange SIM card and a web-enabled phone will be able to access the site as many times as they want, without incurring any data charges. Heralding the partnership as the first of its kind, Orange says its new initiative should make it easier for emerging market consumers to access the online encyclopedia, which Wikimedia Foundation director Sue Gardner described as a "public good." The offer is slated to roll out across 20 countries in Africa and the Middle East, beginning early this year. Find more details in the press release, after the break.
France ISP Free builds its own cellular network, offers free service to subscribers
The fact that French ISP Free just began offering its own cellular service is pretty nice, but the realization that it did so by building its very own prepaid network -- rather than simply hopping on a dedicated cellular provider's towers -- is a noteworthy feat. Even more impressive, Free is offering the service, appropriately called Free Mobile, to subscribers at a price that matches the name of the company. Sure, you're not getting a ton of minutes with the basic free plan (60 minutes and 60 SMS / MMS messages), but you can get a load more (unlimited calls and texts, 3GB of data and unlimited access to the ISP's WiFi hotspots) for €15.99. If you're not a subscriber, fear not: you can grab the basic plan for €2 / month or the advanced option for €20. Free Mobile is still in the process of building out the network, which means that customers may find themselves occasionally roaming on Orange for a while. But hey, you can't go wrong with free, eh? Check out the source to see the selection of phones available for purchase. [Thanks, Mohamed]
European Galaxy Nexus owners complain of erratic volume issue (video)
Samsung's new flagship smartphone isn't having the smoothest of beginnings. The strange ROM that cropped up a few days ago turned out to be an isolated incident, but now the forums are abuzz with an audio issue that looks a lot more serious. Essentially, the handset's volume control appears to have a mind of its own, flitting randomly between mute, full blast and everything in between. The problem has so far only been observed on European phones using the GSM 900MHz band, and it's exacerbated by the cellular modem either boosting itself in a low reception area or switching between 2G and 3G connections. A user poll over at the XDA Developers forum suggests around 60 percent of owners have experienced the fault. There's a video after the break, complete with a disappointed kid in the background bugging his dad for answers.
UK rural areas get better coverage from older 2G phones
UK regulator Ofcom says that those in rural areas of the United Kingdom are better off sticking with older 2G feature/entry-level phones instead of newer smartphones like Apple's iPhone and Android-powered phones. The reason is that while newer smartphones offer greater features, the older 2G phones have better voice connectivity in rural areas. This is likely the result of less complex cellular radios that connect only on 2G and don't have to switch between 2G and 3G signals. Looks like those original iPhones laying around suddenly got a little more useful for those who live or travel in rural areas. [Via IT Pro Portal]
MetroPCS will begin transition to VoLTE early next year
US carriers were quick to acknowledge their allegiance to Voice over LTE (VoLTE), a 4G VoIP-related technology first demonstrated in February. Ever since that time, however, talk of deployment plans have been replaced by crickets. MetroPCS was the first to break the silence, as CEO Roger Linquist announced at this morning's quarterly earnings call that his company's "planning to begin introducing VoLTE-capable handsets early next year to move voice as well as data traffic to [its] LTE network." The outfit's wasting no time making the full transition to 4G, as it's already begun migrating its SMS and MMS services to this service. An increasing sense of urgency is likely hitting the company hard, as implementing VoLTE will ease some of the burden of its limited spectrum by devoting more bandwidth to 4G. What's better, the anticipated timeframe may even allow MetroPCS to beat Verizon to market -- which has also targeted 2012 as a launch date for its equivalent service -- as well as AT&T, currently aiming for a 2013 takeoff. No matter what, we're ecstatic to soon be flooded with more HD-clarity calls than we care to take.
