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Virgin Mobile shuffles Beyond Talk pricing, saves BlackBerry owners duckets
Virgin Mobile, the contract-free subsidiary of Sprint, is giving its Beyond Talk plans a pricing overhaul -- with its cheaper choices getting a bit of a bump in the wrong direction. Sprint spokesperson Jayne Wallace confirmed to FierceWireless that this week its $25 unlimited text and data plan that comes packaged with 300 minutes will move to $35, while its 1,200 minute $40 option will become a $45 one. It's not all bad news though -- the unlimited everything $60 service tier is being cut to just $55 and the company is doing away with the $10 add-on fee for BlackBerries. So, try not think about it as a price hike, think about it as saving you $15 a month when the blessedly Blur-free Triumph hits. Update: And now it's doubly official!
AT&T revamps global data packages, gives international travelers (slightly) more for their money
Let's face it: roaming internationally, particularly when it comes to mobile data, is a terrible decision. And we've got the breakdown to prove it. Thankfully for you, said decision just became marginally less terrible thanks to a handful of plan revisions from AT&T. The new international data package tiers are slightly less galling than the ones they're replacing, but they're hardly what we'd consider a bargain. Folks looking to roam overseas in around 100 qualified nations will see $24.99 / month net them 50MB of global data (up from 20MB), while $49.99 / month gets 'em 125MB (up from 50MB). The $99.99 monthly package provides 275MB (up from 100MB), while the $199.99 / month tier offers 800MB of data (up from 200MB). Even still, the avid jetsetter can blow through 800MB in a single workday abroad, and none of these new options hold a candle to an unlimited rental from a firm like Xcom Global. Still, it's a huge relief to see a major US carrier moving international data rates in the right direction, and hopefully we'll see sensible figures published in our lifetime. The world ain't gettin' any smaller, you know? P.S. - We're still waiting to hear back on whether your existing global data plan will include a higher amount of data per-dollar.
Isis mobile payments coming to Austin in 2012
Certain to "Keep Austin Weird," Isis has selected the home of SXSW as its second market for a mobile payment tryout. The joint-venture backed by AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless (with help from MasterCard and Visa), will work with local merchants and the Chamber of Commerce to deliver what it calls a "comprehensive mobile experience" by mid-2012. Isis' latest metropolitan recruit joins Salt Lake City in this experiment that will compete with Google Wallet (which is endorsed by Sprint). Quick advice to Austinites: when out-of-towners begin gawking at you for getting "free" lattes and concert tickets by waving your phone about, be sure to explain the wonders of NFC -- it'd be a shame for them to attempt the same -- only to be taken into custody by the Austin PD. Jump the break for the PR.
PCI Express cables could take us to 32Gbps speeds by 2013
Thought Thunderbolt was the only superfast interconnect in town? Well, it is and will be for a little while yet, but the PCI Special Interest Group has just held its annual meeting and developer conference in California, where plans for a 32Gbps PCIe cable were revealed. Details are still fluid on precisely what such a connector would look like and do, but the expectation is that it'll be built out of copper wire, will be flatter and thinner than Thunderbolt's rotund construction, and will be able to channel power as well as data through to devices up to 10 feet (3m) away. Targeting consumer applications, and extra skinny tablets and laptops in particular, this cabled variety of PCI Express will start off based on the 3.0 spec in 2013, but will then move on from there to PCI Express 4.0 and, potentially, optical data conveyance. Oh yes, PCIe 4.0 also got announced by the PCI SIG, though that's at least four years away at this point -- no need to sweat about having it in your next motherboard, not yet anyway.
ASUS rumored to have 13-inch Android laptop on its mind, NVIDIA expected to provide ARM CPU
Some might argue that ASUS already has an ARM-powered Android laptop in its inventory thanks to the Eee Pad Transformer, however the company's now been identified as planning a more spacious 13-inch notebook device, whose power and pricing could well be even more attractive than the Transformer's. We should naturally be wary of the source here, DigiTimes having a record that's as patchy as the grass at Wimbledon after the first week's play, but the Taiwanese rumormonger says ASUS has already made launch plans for this 13-incher and will be using "NVIDIA's processor" inside. What's intriguing here is that in the paragraph immediately preceding that revelation, DigiTimes mentions quad-core ARM SOCs -- of which the one nearest to release is NVIDIA's Kal-El. Given the non-specificity of which NVIDIA processor we can expect, Kal-El's projected August release date, and the fact that the chip has already figured in an ultraslim Windows 8 prototype laptop, we'd say there's plenty of circumstantial evidence to stimulate dreams of quad-core Android laptop action. Additionally, DigiTimes points out that multiple vendors are gunning to offer ARM-powered notebooks with sub-$299 price points, aiming to gobble up market share with rock bottom pricing. Bring 'em on, we say.
Telus makes it simple to terminate contracts, replace your feature phone
Taking a page from its own playbook, Telus Mobility has extended its Clear and Simple Device Upgrade program to the logical conclusion of contract termination. Now, if a customer chooses to cancel their service, they must pay only a $50 administrative fee and the remaining portion of their phone's subsidy -- it could still result in a lot of loonies, but the amount decreases monthly according to a fixed schedule. Similar to Rogers, Telus offers its customers early upgrades by allowing them to pay this unrecovered subsidy and commit to a new contract. To make the process even easier (and more tempting), the carrier is now including this magical number with its monthly bills. So, as you dream of getting cozy with a new Nexus S or Optimus Black -- or ditching the Telus network -- just follow the break for the PR.
Verizon data plans leaked, unlimited users will be grandfathered in
Android Central says it's nabbed an official document laying out the brand new Verizon data plans that are scheduled to take effect next month, and there's good news for those of you currently using an iPhone on Verizon with an unlimited plan: it looks like you'll be grandfathered in. We weren't quite sure if that would happen yesterday, but if this document is real, Verizon will be going the way of AT&T and allowing those with unlimited data plans to keep them (presumably as long as they're not changed or added onto any other deals). Elsewhere on the deals, the smartphone plan will start at 2 GB for $30 a month, up to 10 GB bandwidth for $80 a month. Mobile hotspot access costs $20 a month extra for 2 GB on the hotspot. Unlimited plans will still be available up to July 7, and those unlimited plans will continue even when you upgrade your phone in the future. So if you want to get in on an unlimited plan before the caps get put in, now's the time to do it. We'll keep ears open for official confirmation on this one, and you can read all the details over here. [via Engadget]
Editorial: Dear Nokia, you cannot be serious!
At first blush, the Nokia N9 is everything I'd ever wanted from the company: a smartphone with a competitive spec sheet, exquisite industrial design, and a touch-centric UI that looks to push things forward with the introduction of its own idiosyncratic ideas. Slick in terms of both responsiveness and appearance, the Harmattan interface is Nokia's thunderous riposte to all those (myself included) that challenged the company to get with the touchscreen OS program and cast off the shackles of its Symbian legacy. The only traces of Symbian in the MeeGo 1.2-equipped N9 can be found in the iconography, which maintains the rounded look of its forebear, and support for Qt -- in all other respects, this is a whole new software proposition (distinct even from its Maemo 5 roots), which has so far elicited a range of emotions in me, including delight, desire, and... despair. You must be wondering why, aside from alliterative convenience, I'd be feeling downcast having enjoyed my brief time with the N9 so much. To learn the answer, read on.
HP seeks NFC engineer for 'smartphone and tablet products'
HP's mystery-wrapped Touch-to-share functionality already does something very similar to Near Field Communication, but it looks like the company's not satisfied with its own tech and will be jumping into the rapidly growing field of companies embracing NFC. A new job listing that has popped up online this week invites applications for the position of NFC Design Engineer on HP's tablet and smartphone team. Responsibilities include the design, testing, and debugging of NFC antennae and systems, but also expand to "support of product in field," indicating that HP is working on an aggressive roadmap here. Don't take our word for it, though, the job advert also advises prospective applicants that they'd have to work in a "high paced, schedule driven environment." Only question we have is this: since when are webOS devices being produced at a high pace?
Verizon unlimited data to end in July
Bad news, Verizon users. The rumors were true, and Verizon will be ending its unlimited data plan this July. According to AllThingsD, Verizon confirms it's moving "to a more usage based model in July," with exact details to come later on. Unfortunately, it's unclear what Verizon still plans to do -- the company has said that its unlimited plans were always only for a temporary time, though AT&T, of course, grandfathered its unlimited plans in (and I'm still using one, though I can't ever change it or add things like hotspot or tethering). It sounds like Verizon wants to shut down the plans for good, but there may still be a chance for someone on an unlimited plan currently to keep it. We'll have to see. In the meantime, yes, change is in the air for affected Verizon users. With mobile bandwidth rising as quickly as it is, these companies are pushing as quickly as possible to move towards more usage-based plans.
Nokia Windows Phones will launch in six European nations first, Finland not among them
Nokia VP Victor Saeijs has this week disclosed the six launch markets for the vanguard devices born out of the Microsoft-Nokia partnership. France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, and the UK will all count themselves as hosts to Nokia's Windows Phone debut, but the company's mother nation of Finland has strangely been left out in the cold. Knowing Nokia, there's no doubt that once the WP7 handsets are ready they'll find themselves swiftly available worldwide, but if you care to be among the very first to own one, you'll be wanting to visit Europe's western shores -- preferably some time before the year's through, as Mr. Saeijs also reaffirmed that there will indeed be a Nokia Windows Phone coming out in 2011.
Lenovo ThinkPad tablet coming in summer with Android, Windows slate later in the year
So we already know Lenovo has designs on bringing the LePad westwards in the form of the IdeaPad K1, but now the company's also revealed plans to deliver a Think-branded Android slate to the market, at some point later this summer. That 10-inch device will strive to serve professionals' needs, coming with a stylus for signature capture, and will be followed by an identically sized Windows tablet by the end of the year. Lenovo COO Rory Reid has changed his tune, having previously said there'd be no Windows 7 slates, but he does seem fully cognizant of the difficulty his company faces in breaking through in this rapidly saturating market. He notes that the experience is being tailored to a high standard and that "we only have one opportunity to make that first good impression." For more info on what this new ThinkPad pad might look like, check out the previous leaks of purported specs and a Lenovo roadmap that identified it before this official confirmation.
The 'oh sh_t' moment that Nokia decided to abandon MeeGo
Bloomberg Businessweek just published an amazingly thorough piece on Nokia, pre- and post-Elopcalypse. We've long wondered how MeeGo, an OS that Stephen Elop himself said "inspires both confidence and excitement" in October 2010, could be cast aside so quickly in favor of Windows Phone, an OS still struggling to find traction in the heated smartphone market. Well, now we know. Bloomberg recounts a January 3rd meeting between Nokia's Chief Development Officer Kai Oistämö and Nokia's freshman CEO. After Kai expressed his concern with MeeGo's ability to effectively respond to Apple's iOS and Android operating systems, the two decided to interview two dozen "influential employees" about MeeGo, ranging from execs to engineers. Here's how Bloomberg recounts the events that followed: Before the first interview, Elop drew out what he knew about the plans for MeeGo on a whiteboard, with a different color marker for the products being developed, their target date for introduction, and the current levels of bugs in each product. Soon the whiteboard was filled with color, and the news was not good: At its current pace, Nokia was on track to introduce only three MeeGo-driven models before 2014-far too slow to keep the company in the game. Elop tried to call Oistämö, but his phone battery was dead. "He must have been trying an Android phone that day," says Elop. When they finally spoke late on Jan. 4, "It was truly an oh-s--t moment-and really, really painful to realize where we were," says Oistämö. Months later, Oistämö still struggles to hold back tears. "MeeGo had been the collective hope of the company," he says, "and we'd come to the conclusion that the emperor had no clothes. It's not a nice thing." Nokia is now on track to release at least one Windows Phone handset in 2011 with a dozen more in 2012.
Intel's Ivy Bridge coming Q1 2012, growing festive moss while you wait
If you were religiously awaiting the fruition of last month's Intel leak, brace yourself: we've got another one. Although Intel's updated roadmap hasn't changed anything per se, it does offer a few specifics. Whereas the previous schedule only suggested we'd be crossing the Ivy Bridge in the first half of 2012, the new roadmap shows the 22 nanometer processor penned in at the end of the first quarter. The Sandy Bridge E series is still on schedule for Q4 however, so unless you just have to have native USB 3.0 and DirectX 11 support, you still have plenty to look forward to. Otherwise, we'll see you in April.
Nokia's Windows Phones will feature dual-core ST-Ericsson U8500, says STMicroelectronics chief
As you'll no doubt be aware, Qualcomm currently enjoys a stranglehold on processing hardware inside Windows Phone handsets. Its Snapdragon chip stars in both Microsoft's original and updated chassis spec for the platform, but its hegemony may soon be coming to an end. STMicroelectronics (the ST in ST-Ericsson) boss Carlo Bozotti is cited by Forbes as saying that Nokia will use ST-Ericsson hardware to power at least some of its Windows Phones. The dual-core U8500, a long-time Nokia favorite, is touted as the first such system-on-chip to appear, with its successors helping to populate Nokia's expansive WP lineup in 2012. The only intel we've had so far on Nokia's initial handsets for the new OS revolved around Qualcomm-based devices, so even if ST-Ericsson is indeed going to infiltrate the Windows Phone ecosystem, it doesn't look likely to be among the very first Nokias out of the gate.
Intel admits Apple 'helps shape' its roadmap, keeps foot lodged firmly in mouth
We knew Intel and Apple had a close working relationship when it came to developing Thunderbolt, but now an exec from Santa Clara has taken the declarations of mutual admiration to the next level. Tom Kilroy, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Intel's Sales and Marketing Group, told a Reuters tech summit that Apple isn't merely important to his company's plans, it actually "helps shape [Intel's] roadmap." Those are strong words coming from the world's biggest maker of processor chips, one that you wouldn't expect to be beholden to any hardware or software partner. Additionally, it marks the second time this week that Intel has indirectly slighted Microsoft, the first one being a damning analysis of Windows 8 on ARM by fellow Intel SVP Renee James. It'd be easy to conclude that we're seeing cracks developing in the old Wintel bond, but we reckon it's more likely that Chipzilla is simply finding the wrong words to express otherwise benign thoughts. Hit the source link for more from Mr. Kilroy.
Bill Gates considers Skype 'a great purchase' for Microsoft, helped make it happen
The aftermath of Microsoft's announcement that it'll buy Skype for $8.5 billion was filled with speculation about why the price was so high, who Microsoft was bidding against, and who inside Redmond was the driving force behind such a large expenditure. At least one of those queries has been demystified today, thanks to Bill Gates asserting himself as "a strong proponent at the board level for the deal being done." Microsoft's Chairman of the Board expressed his enthusiasm for gobbling up Skype in an interview with the BBC -- one which UK residents may see in full at the iPlayer link below -- and concluded that "it's a great purchase that a lot of innovation will come out of." Adding his support to Steve Ballmer's already public excitement about the Skype takeover, Bill stresses that "the importance of software is higher today than ever," while also predicting that video conferencing is set to become much better and bigger than we've yet seen. We've got our webcams at the ready, Bill!
Acer postpones Iconia Tab A100 launch to second half of the year
Looks like Acer's 7-inch Iconia Tab A100 has opted for a fashionably late entrance. We've just been informed by the company that its Honeycomb-sporting, Tegra 2-powered slate will not be arriving, as had been expected, right around now, but will in fact make its debut in the second half of 2011. No reasons have been given for the move, other than to say that the device has been postponed. The thing that prompted us to query Acer's PR team was a report out of Poland suggesting the A100 had been cancelled. Acer's UK reps are adamant that's not been the case, but anyone who was looking forward to grabbing one soon will be disappointed either way.
Smithsonian announces titles for Art of Video Games exhibit, snubs Mario Paint
GoldenEye 007 is certainly a fun way to waste your childhood...but is it art? According to the Smithsonian American Art Museum, yes. The game was one of 80 selected for an upcoming exhibit, The Art of Video Games, and the venerable museum drew on fan expertise, using online voting to winnow the field of 240 nominees. The selections span the last four decades (!) of gaming, from the days of the Atari VCS and ColecoVision all the way to today's modern time-sinks like Portal and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. The exhibit won't open until next spring, but in the meantime check out the source link to argue about who got left out.
Jaguar will actually build million-dollar C-X75 hybrid supercar in 2013
You know how we said that 780bhp electric pipe dream Jaguar had last year wasn't going to be anything more than a concept? Well, we were wrong. Sort of. You see, the British automaker has just announced its intention to produce a limited run of 250 C-X75 supercars in partnership with Formula 1 team Williams, however the retail model will eschew the craziest aspect of the original design -- the twin turbine engines at the back. Those will be replaced with a four-cylinder, turbocharged petrol engine, which will aid the four electric motors (one attached to each wheel). Don't worry, though, this tweak has actually made the C-X75 accelerate even faster, as it's now rated to go from 0 to 60mph in under three seconds. 2013 is when the earliest production of this road-faring beast is expected to commence, with prices starting at £700,000 ($1.15 million), and there's even a glimmer of hope that a version with the gas turbines will also be built at some point down the line. Crazy, just crazy. Check the C-X75 out on video after the break, where Jay Leno gives you a tour around its dramatic design.
