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Netflix jacks up the price of its premium plan to $23 a month
Netflix raised prices on two of its subscriber tiers today during its earnings report.
Intel is spending $20 billion to build a massive chip-making facility in Ohio
Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger is expecting it to become "the largest silicon manufacturing location on the planet."
Cricket brings 5G to all of its phone plans
Cricket is enabling 5G for all its phone plans, and it's doing away with the 8Mbps cap as a result.
Cricket customers will get free HBO Max, if they don't mind ads
Cricket now gives Unlimited plan customers HBO Max for 'free' — if they're willing to live with the ad-supported tier.
Comcast's Xfinity Mobile unlimited 5G plans start at $30 per month
Comcast has unveiled new unlimited Xfinity Mobile 5G plans promising "the lowest ever prices for unlimited data for new and existing customers."
AT&T adds 5G to its legacy unlimited data plans
AT&T has enabled 5G for its legacy unlimited data plans, saving you from having to switch just to get improved performance.
AT&T offers cheap wireless data to teachers and students stuck at home
AT&T is giving teachers free wireless data service to cope with the pandemic, but only if enough students sign up for discounted plans.
Verizon's $30 Unlimited Plus tablet plan offers 5G access
Verizon (Engadget’s parent company) has introduced a new plan for tablets, hotspots, smartwatches and laptops that’ll give you access to its 5G Ultra Wideband network, provided you have a device that supports it. The Unlimited Plus plan expands upon the carrier’s old Unlimited plan and includes double the LTE data allowance. While the standard Unlimited plan comes with 15GB of LTE data, the Plus version comes with 30GB — it’s also just $10 more expensive at $30 a month if you already have an existing smartphone plan with the company.
AT&T's new unlimited phone plans drop WatchTV
AT&T is shuffling up its phone plans once again, and this time the focus won't surprise anyone. It's introducing a trio of unlimited plans where the top tier, Unlimited Elite, will include HBO at first, and HBO Max when it debuts in May 2020 -- it wants to be sure you're streaming all those original shows on day one. The Elite plan will also be the only tier to allow HD streaming out of the gate, and will pack 30GB of full-speed mobile hotspot data. It'll be available in the "coming weeks" for $50 per line with four lines, or slightly more expensive than today's Unlimited&More Premium ($48 per line with four lines).
Verizon has a phone plan for kids, complete with parental controls
Like it or not, many kids have smartphones -- and Verizon (Engadget's parent company) wants to capitalize on that with a plan meant to reassure parents anxious about what their young ones might see. The carrier's newly unveiled Just Kids plan melds 5GB of LTE data, unlimited calling/talk to 20 parent-defined contacts and a subscription to Verizon Smart Family Premium's parental controls, all at prices noticeably lower than for the grown-ups ($35 to $55 per month depending on the total number of lines). Ideally, this saves you some money each month while giving you tools to limit usage, filter out unsavory content and keep track of your kids' whereabouts.
Sidewalk Labs reveals site plan for smart neighborhood in Toronto
Sidewalk Labs' smart neighborhood in Toronto is edging closer to becoming a reality after it revealed the initial draft plan for the site. It's proposing that Quayside should be focused around 12 mass-timber buildings, with a maximum height of 30 stories and a mix of residential, retail and commercial spaces in each.
Sprint's newest Unlimited plan includes Amazon, Hulu and Tidal
Virtually every major US carrier offers one or more free services (however temporary) with at least one of its plans, so how is Sprint going to compete? By including more services, naturally. The carrier has launched an Unlimited Premium plan that, for $90 per month, adds Amazon Prime and Lookout Premium Plus security on top of the Hulu and Tidal services you get with the Unlimited Plus plan. You're ostensibly saving about $480 per year versus subscribing to all those extras on your own. The wireless access itself has been upgraded, too.
AT&T's latest unlimited plans include a new live TV service
AT&T isn't wasting any time milking its nearly completed acquisition of Time Warner for all it's worth. The carrier has unveiled two new wireless plans, Unlimited &More and Unlimited &More Premium, that both include its previously hinted-at WatchTV service (plus a $15 credit for DirecTV Now) at no extra charge. The offering gives you 30-plus live TV channels as well as on-demand shows, and it won't surprise you to hear that WarnerMedia channels play a large part: CNN, TBS and TCM are in the mix alongside third-party channels like A&E, BBC World News and, in the near future, Viacom channels like Comedy Central.
AT&T's international data plans are now a little more reasonable
AT&T's international data roaming packs just became slightly more practical... slightly. The carrier has updated its Passport packages to give you 1GB of data and unlimited texting in a one-time $60 purchase, and 3GB for $120. That's a lot more headroom than before (these prices previously got you a miserly 300MB and 800MB respectively), and might make the difference between Instagramming your trip as it happens versus waiting until you return to your hotel. They can certainly be more affordable than an International Day Pass if you're staying for a couple of weeks.
Cricket adds data to its most affordable smartphone plans
AT&T's low-cost Cricket brand has historically been somewhat stingy with data unless you've bee willing to pay almost as much as you would for a regular AT&T plan, but it's loosening things up a bit on November 5th. The budget carrier is adding more data to its most affordable smartphone plans and increasing the worth of its unlimited service. To begin with, you now get 2GB of full-speed data on a $30 plan (versus just 1GB before), and 5GB of data instead of 4GB on the $40 plan. That may not sound like much if you're used to watching Netflix on your phone, but it promises to make a big difference if you're keeping your costs down -- you don't have to be quite so cautious about sharing a photo or streaming some music.
AT&T offers free HBO with its cheaper unlimited plan
AT&T's initial offer of free HBO access to wireless subscribers was tempting, but there was a catch: you had to spring for an Unlimited Plus plan, which at $90 or more per month isn't a trivial expense. Now, however, you don't have to be such a big spender. The carrier is extending bonus HBO access to Unlimited Choice customers on September 15th, giving you the same streaming TV if you pay as little as $60 per month for cellphone service. This is one of the few perks of giant mergers, it seems. There are some catches to getting a freebie like this on a low-cost tier, of courser. The Choice plan caps your cellular data at 3Mbps and limits you to a maximum resolution of 480p for video streaming, so you might want to stay on WiFi for that Game of Thrones re-watch.
Verizon's new unlimited plans throttle video all the time
Verizon's revival of the unlimited data plan was supposed to be a good thing: it was bringing back worry-free service that let you use your smartphone as much as you like. Unfortunately, the carrier is making things complicated again. In the wake of tests that capped streaming video speeds, Verizon is splitting its unlimited access into multiple plans that face new restrictions. As of August 23rd, the standard Go Unlimited plan costs $5 less than before at $75 per month (if you use AutoPay), but you're limited to streaming video at 480p on phones and 720p on tablets -- shades of T-Mobile, anyone? The $80 prepaid plan and the Business plan cap you at 480p, too.
T-Mobile's latest plan gives seniors a discount on unlimited data
You can't really sugarcoat it: senior citizens get a raw deal when it comes to cellphones. Carriers tend to either assume that you don't use data (and want a basic cellphone) or else give you a modest discount at best. T-Mobile thinks it can do better: it's launching a One Unlimited 55+ plan on August 9th that, for the most part, acknowledges that many seniors use smartphones as enthusiastically as the younger crowd. The offer gives you two lines with unlimited data, talk and texting for $60 per month, or $50 for one line. There are a few gotchas, but it still amounts to a huge deal for empty-nesters who want to post their vacation shots on Instagram.
T-Mobile's upgraded phone plan ditches the HD video day pass
Until T-Mobile improved its One plan this week, one of its biggest hassles was the HD video day pass. Even if you paid extra for unlimited HD, you had to enable a pass every time you wanted more than 480p streaming. Thankfully, that's now in the past -- T-Mobile tells Ars Technica that enabling HD will be a one-time affair from February 17th onward. So long as you remain on the same One plan, you won't have to worry about turning it on again for that upcoming Netflix session.
T-Mobile upgrades its One plan to counter Verizon
There's no mistaking it: Verizon's decision to resurrect its unlimited data plan was a shot across T-Mobile's bow. And to no one's surprise, the magenta-hued network is responding in kind. As of February 17th, T-Mobile is upgrading its standard One plan to include HD video streaming and 10GB of LTE hotspot tethering. You no longer have to spring for a pricey add-on just to watch Netflix at high quality. To sweeten the pot, the carrier is also running a promo that gives you two lines for $100.
