Droid Life

Tag: 4G LTE

  • Verizon 4G LTE Phones Won’t Be Compatible With AT&T’s Network

    If your 4G LTE plans included buying one of Verizon’s current phones and then ditching their service for AT&T’s soon-to-be-launched LTE network (or vice versa), you may be out of luck according to word that PCMag received this week.  Big Red spokesperson Brenda Raney, confirmed that their LTE phones won’t “be compatible on other LTE networks in the U.S.” because “the phones will be on different frequencies.”

    Not that we’re surprised by any of this, but it’s slightly disappointing.  Since we’re seeing each carrier adopt a different set of impressive phones these days, it would have been nice to have more options than just the one lineup that a specific carrier is offering.  Clearly, operating their LTE networks on the same frequency would only benefit customers though and our slight hopes for some sort of openness between carriers have now been crushed.  I’m sure that shopping for the carrier with the best plan that fits your needs and then activating a phone from another is not their idea of awesome.

    Via:  PCMag

  • Straightening Out a Ridiculous Situation, Verizon is NOT Remotely Removing Apps From Your Phone

    Some clown in the tech world started pushing around a story yesterday, suggesting that Verizon is “entering user phones” to remove “apps it doesn’t like” without your permission.  He goes into some theory about how Big Red is “remotely” browsing through your phone’s app catalog and hand picking the ones it deems a problem so that it can then remove them.  He has clearly patched together 3 or 4 different stories to come up with this conclusion and is either 100% clueless or is trying to cause a stir because this story is completely false.

    Let me just reassure you, that Verizon IS NOT REMOTELY REMOVING APPS FROM YOUR PHONE.

    So what is actually going on?  Well, you all know that 4G LTE customers have been enjoying a free hotspot promotion for 2-3 months now, right?  Ok, so the newest HTC Thunderbolt update simply removed that promotion.  That’s it.  No apps have been removed, no remote accessing is going on, and they sure as hell aren’t doing anything without your permission.  The promotion came to an end on July 6, and through the latest update, they included a new service which asks users to sign up for a tethering plan.  Just. Like. Every. Other. Phone. Already. Does.

    Sure, they’ve blocked access to tethering apps from the market, but they aren’t entering your phone to remove them if you already have them installed.  Talk about highly illegal?  The only company that has the ability to do that is Google, and they only do it in the most drastic of situations that involve something like malware.

    So again, please ignore the story from the ill-informed tech writer who is trying to cause a stir.  Your privacy is safe – Verizon just wants you to pay for tethering now (which is an argument for another day).

  • Verizon Demos New Video Chat App on Thunderbolt at LTE Innovation Center, We Want it Now

    Verizon opened their brand new LTE Innovation Center yesterday as a place for people to come and, well…innovate.  The idea behind this new Big Red building is to invite tech companies to use some amazing new technologies and then turn around and create their own, that use 4G LTE.  The folks from @Laptopmag were on hand to experience some of these new innovations, and there was one we found particularly polished and what we would consider to be needed– a really sharp looking video chatting application that blows Skype or any other out of the water.   (more…)

  • DROID Bionic Makes Verizon Site Appearance, Sign Up to Be Notified of its Release

    Well, look at that.  The DROID Bionic making its first ever appearance on Verizon’s website.  Obviously it’s not the actual device, but it is showing up which is a pretty damn good sign that we’re getting close to a release.  We’ve been told some really positive things about the final device and that the it’s is ready to go, so don’t be surprised if this thing becomes official any day now.

    Sign up here.

    You all finally ready?

    Cheers Jarid and Ghery!

  • 4G LTE Upgrade for Motorola XOOM Receives FCC Approval

     

    This is our second “it’s about damn time” XOOM story today…

    As all of the owners of the Motorola XOOM 3G know, we were supposed to have received an upgrade to 4G LTE back in May – of course, that never happened.  After delays by Moto due to who-knows-what, we were told that we could finally expect it some time this summer alongside the DROID Bionic.  Today’s FCC approval has at least made it look like they may actually meet that time frame.

    Here is the “stuffer” that will accompany your XOOM after it is upgraded:

    Still no date, but as far as we know, you’ll still have to ship your XOOM back to Moto and be without it for at least a couple of weeks.  With this FCC approval, we should see an announcement from at least one of the involved parties in the very near future.

    Via:  FCC, Wireless Goodness

  • Verizon: Unlimited 3G Customers can Upgrade to 4G LTE and Receive the $30 Unlimited Hotspot Deal

    We’re still doing out best to help clarify all of the new tiered data questions that you have come up with, and we think we’ve got another situation worth mentioning.  We first reported last week that unlimited 4G LTE customers would have a separate unlimited tethering package that would cost $30 per month, but some of our 3G readers were wondering if they could eventually get into that.  The answer is “yes” according to @VZWSupport.  As long as you locked into an unlimited smartphone plan by the end of yesterday, you will also be able to keep it and grab the unlimited tethering plan when upgrading to a 4G LTE phone.

    That help?

    Cheers Vic!

  • New Motorola XOOM LTE Cruises Through FCC?

    Could a new version of the Motorola XOOM with built-in 4G LTE have cruised through the FCC this week?  It certainly appears that way, only it has slightly different dimensions than the original which means Moto may have something up their sleeves.

    The original LTE-lacking XOOM is 249.1mm by 167.8mm, yet this new one is 259mm long and 166mm wide.  So it’s slightly longer, but shorter?  Could this be the tablet that we first spotted in this Verizon commercial?  Or could it be the “XOOM 2” that popped up over at Moto’s site a couple of months ago?  Maybe it’s just the “XOOM LTE” that received it’s MAP (minimum advertised price) back on June 19 alongside the DROID3?

    Whatever it is, we’re thinking that it’s going to be here very soon.

    Via:  FCC, Wireless Goodness

    Cheers to everyone who sent this in!

  • Reminder: Free 4G LTE Hotspot for the Charge, Thunderbolt and Revolution Ends Today

    It seems like it was just yesterday that we were informing everyone of Verizon’s plans to extend out the free 4G LTE hotspot promo for the Charge, Revolution and Thunderbolt to July 6, doesn’t it?  Well, we wanted to remind everyone that today is the last day – unless of course another extension is issued, but we haven’t been told by anyone that there will be one.  And I’ll admit that it would be pretty surprising since VZW is going live with tiers tomorrow which includes new hotspot plans.

    We’re also still waiting on an official confirmation that current unlimited LTE customers will have a separate $30 unlimited tethering plan from new customers – hopefully that comes tomorrow.

    We should also remind you that Verizon’s lineup of 4G devices should all receive a minor software update to stop the free hotspot promo and replace it with a message, reminding customers that they will now need to purchase a plan.

    Cheers for the reminder Octotron!