Mobility Watch

We all may have at some time or another received forwarded emails about mobile phones. Lately, I have been receiving quite a number of them and so I would like to share them with you. I’ll leave a question at the end of each one.

So here’s the first one.

EMERGENCY

The Emergency Number worldwide for mobile phones is 112.

If you find yourself out of coverage area of your mobile network and there is an emergency, dial 112 and the mobile will search any existing network to establish the emergency number for you, and interestingly this number 112 can be dialed even if the keypad is locked.

Try it out.

Well, I haven’t got the chance to try this one out just yet. After all, I am currently in a place where there is a mobile phone signal most of the time. I have yet to discover just how dialing 112 makes a mobile phone look for signal in case of emergencies.

Do you think this is true?

[Image from Hannes Tschoefenig]

We wrote about Sprint discontinuing its Fair & Flexible calling plans for new customers around the first of the year.  The move became official Thursday with the announcement of Sprint’s new Power Pack pricing plans.  Other than the 7PM night & weekend rate start time, there’s no gimmick for Sprint to woo new customers - nothing like Cingular’s rollover minutes or T-Mobile’s My Faves.

Sprint also announced brutal news this week for its workforce.  That workforce will be shrinking by 5,000 this year.  It’s part of the hangover from Sprint’s merger with Nextel, which has been drawn out and painful.  The biggest challenge has been hanging onto Nextel customers.  They’ve been leaving for other carriers because Nextel hasn’t been able to improve service and coverage as quickly as those customers would like. 

Nextel has been fighting to keep those customers by introducing “hybrid” phones that allow Nextel customers to access Sprint’s voice network when Nextel’s own network is unavailable.  Sprint Nextel will also invest $8.5 billion in 2007 to add more cell sites and build out its WiMax wireless broadband network.  Chicago and Washington will be the first cities to get that new technology. 

But Wall Street doesn’t like Sprint Nextel’s overall outlook.  The problem for any wireless carrier is, once you lose a customer to another carrier, it takes two years for that customer’s contract to expire before you can hope to woo that customer back.  It’ll take Sprint $1.1 billion just to cover marketing and handset subsidies this year, to try to do it.  The fact that Sprint doesn’t usually get first crack at the flashy phones like BlackBerry’s Pearl or Apple’s iPhone doesn’t help.

Sprint Nextel and its employees are going through some difficult times.  We’d hate to see them cash it in and be merged with some other wireless company.  Even those of us who aren’t Sprint customers benefit from increased competition.  If 4 major carriers in the U.S. (Cingular, Verizon, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile) were to become 3 carriers, the loss of competition would almost certainly lead to higher rates for us all.

Sprint, Nextel, Verizon Wireless, Cingular Wireless, AT&T, T-Mobile, Fair & Flexible, Power Packs, WiMax, Apple iPhone, BlackBerry Pearl 

[via CBR]

The Wall Street Journal helped generate buzz about a possible buyout of Alltel, the fifth largest cellular carrier in the U.S.  It seems that its stock is a relative bargain and the company has very little debt.  And private equity takeovers of public companies are all the rage right now.

A private equity takeover of Alltel would probably mean practically nothing to its 11 million-or-so mostly-rural subscribers. 

So why are we talking about it here?

Because when a buyout this big is talked about, competing companies start thinking about whether they should offer their own bids.  In this case, both Sprint and Verizon Wireless would be candidates, since they are the bigger service providers, and use the same CDMA technology as Alltel uses to route their calls. 

So Alltel customers might wind up as customers of Sprint or Verizon, whether they like it or not.

For Verizon Wireless, the biggest obstacle to acquiring Alltel might be the Federal Trade Commission, which might object to already-big Verizon getting much bigger.  Verizon would probably have to dump subscribers in some areas where it currently competes with Alltel.

For Sprint, the biggest obstacle to acquiring Alltel is the fact that the company has struggled after it acquired Nextel. 

For wireless customers generally, there’s a delicate balance between having enough competition to keep prices low, and having your provider be big enough to give you decent nationwide (or worldwide) coverage.  Alltel’s existing service and roaming agreements with Verizon Wireless seem to make its subscribers happy. 

So there are lots of good reasons why Alltel could and should remain independent - even if it does get swallowed up by private equity money. 

Alltel, Wall Street Journal, Verizon Wireless, Sprint, Nextel

[via Wall Street Journal]

 

With a lineup of some 20 different handsets Nextel offers, we’re not sure that 2 out of 20 equals a trend.

But a few eyebrows were raised last month when Nextel introduced its first combination iDen/CDMA phone, the Motorola ic502.  Now Nextel is out with its second combo handset, the ic402.

The new handset is just a minor variation on the ic502 - leaving off the 502’s snazzy external screen, tweaking the phone’s appearance and finishes, and cutting the price by $20 (to $39.99 with 2 year deal instead of $59.99).

As we noted before, these combo handsets use Sprint’s more robust (better coverage) CDMA network for dialup voice calls, and Nextel’s iDen network for walkie talkie and GPS functionality. 

We think these combo handsets are a new weapon for Nextel to prevent its customers who are unhappy with the coverage area from going to some other carrier.  These handsets are cheap enough that Nextel’s retentions department (the department in charge of retaining unhappy customers) can offer them practically free to keep these disgruntled clients from switching.

Nextel is still offering these handsets in limited areas, and there’s no indication yet that customers from their sister outfit Sprint will be allowed to buy and use these handsets too.  But for clients that love Nextel’s walkie talkie and GPS capabilities, and hate their problems with coverage, these phones provide a quick fix.

Sprint, Nextel, ic402, ic502, walkie talkie, iDen, CDMA

[via Nextel, Phone Arena]

Here’s a feature that the cell phone manufacturers didn’t tell us about - remote activation of a cell phone’s microphone by federal authorities, to listen in on conversations.  It can be done - in fact, it has apparently been done by the FBI, to listen in on conversations by two alleged mobsters. 

And a federal judge says it’s quite legal under federal wiretap laws.

The phones involved were two Nextel phones, owned by John Ardito and his attorney Peter Peluso, alleged to be tied to the Genovese crime family in New York.  The surveillance was revealed in an opinion written by federal district judge Lewis Kaplan.  In Kaplan’s view, federal wiretap law is broad enough to allow this.

And get this - the opinion seems to indicate that this surveillance technique works even if the phone is powered off!  It turns out that unless the battery is removed, many phones maintain power to some functions - including, apparently, operation of its microphone for surveillance.

Nextel handsets, as well as handsets by Samsung and the Motorola RAZR are said to be especially vulnerable to software downloads that make this surveillance possible.

Presented with the written opinion, different experts say they’re not totally sure how the surveillance took place - whether it was a software download or an old fashioned electronic bug that was physically placed in the handsets.  For its part, a Nextel spokesman says it was not involved in the investigation.

electronic surveillance, cell phones, listening devices, Nextel, Samsung, Motorola, FBI

[via ZDNet, The Liberty Papers]

I sure am not talking about dingy and dirty tunnels here. I’m talking about the Big Dig tunnels situated right within the Boston area.

Well, it looks like four of the largest and most trusted wireless carries in the United States have struck a gold mine in these tunnels. It took them years of haggling with the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority but they sure did make it. Now, they would be the ones to provide mobile phone service in these tunnel areas.

All of the four big ones would be sharing the load of the technology that would be used by mobile phone owners underground. As per a report, each would have to give $1.57 million in cold cash for the underground wireless technology that would be used. That is not the end of that. You see, annually, they would also be giving $140,000 for the technology’s maintenance. But I guess all of these wireless carriers have the capacity to spare such an amount of cash.

Goodluck Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile USA, Sprint Nextel, and Cingular Wireless!

[Via Telecommunications Industry News]
[Image from boston.com news]

When Sprint swallowed up Nextel a lot of wireless wonks figured one of two things would happen.  Either Sprint would shut down the Nextel network and move all its customers to Sprint, or Sprint would come up with dual-system handsets that work on both networks.

So, here’s a dual-system handset, sort of.  Nextel’s new Motorola ic502 actually uses Sprint’s CDMA network for voice calls and data - and Nextel’s iDen network for push-to-talk capability.  This way, Nextel customers keep their walkie-talkie feature but get access to Sprint’s more robust voice/data network.

On the downside, this handset doesn’t use Sprint’s faster EV-DO data service, and its user interface is likely to be too Sprint-like for Nextel fans. 

But if Nextel’s network isn’t cutting it for you, this may be the answer.  $59.99 on a 2-year deal.  Available at first in limited markets, including Washington D.C., New York City, Boston and Miami.

[via Phone Scoop]

 

While its big-sister Sprint gets an infusion of stylish Motorola KRAZRs and SLVRs, Nextel is offering its version of a high-end high-style (kind of) handset in Motorola’s i880.

A 2 megapixel camera and MP3 player, stereo speakers and external music controls are hardly revolutionary features from other carriers’ high end phones.  At almost an inch thick it’s no slim, stylish fashion phone, even in its burgundy color.  But in the walkie talkie world of Nextel, this is about as good as it gets when it comes to upscale looks and capabilities.

About $300 with contract after incentives.

[via Engadget Mobile]

 

 

 

Ever since Sprint and Nextel became Sprint Nextel, wireless wonks have wondered when the two systems used by these companies (CDMA and iDen) would somehow be merged or consolidated, or when there would be handsets that could access both systems.

The next step in that direction is reportedly taking place November 5th.  A page on Sprint’s website is “introducing the Sprint Nextel Hybrid phone - the only phone that combines the best of two networks”.  Says it will be available “in select markets” November 5. 

Exactly which markets, which handset manufacturer and what pricing for this hybrid handset are to be announced.  But Sprint Nextel’s taking one more giant step on pulling its two networks together:  it’s adopting Qualcomm’s QChat push to talk system for its Sprint CDMA service.  It promises to be better than Sprint’s current Ready Link PTT system, and - more importantly - it will allow Sprint subscribers push-to-talk communications with Nextel subscribers. 

[via MRT, Engadget Mobile]

Don’t ask anyone working at Nokia, “What’s new?”.  They’re liable to talk your ear off.

 To start with, Nokia’s gone to court to try to resolve a long-standing dispute with Qualcomm over royalty payments for CDMA cellular technology.  Nokia says it can’t make money building CDMA handsets and it accuses Qualcomm of not negotiating royalties in good faith.

At the same time, Nokia is laying off 550 employees at its San Diego plant as it prepares to stop making those CDMA handsets.

And while all that is going on, Nokia has made a deal to acquire Loudeye, a digital music provider/platform service, for $60 million.  Nokia says it has tens of millions of devices out there (particularly its N series handsets) that play music, and it wants to be able to download songs to all of those devices.  This would include either wireless downloads, or downloads through a PC.  Nokia’s music service would be ready to roll out next year, if all goes according to plan.

Since Loudeye already provides the technological backbone for 60 different music services in 20 countries, Nokia can make a credible attempt to compete with Apple’s iTunes.

And if that’s not enough, Nokia also sent out a congratulatory note to Sprint Nextel on that provider’s announcement that it will develop a WiMax wireless broadband system.  Nokia figures to get a substantial chunk of the business, since it’s one of the founding partners in WiMax.

[via Nokia, Phone Scoop]

Sprint Nextel would like to turn your world into a gigantic Internet hotspot.  But it won’t be cheap and it won’t be ready overnight.

But maybe by 2008, Sprint will be ready to roll out its new WiMax wireless broadband alternative on a nationwide basis.  The technology promises to offer service not only in homes and businesses, but in moving cars or walking down the street.

Sprint’s not the only one.  Craig McCaw’s Clearwire company is holding licenses to provide WiMax service too.  And the parent companies of DirecTV and Dish Network are interested in pairing wireless broadband with their satellite TV packages, to compete more effectively with cable.

But hold the phone (or the VoIp?).. this technology may not be ready for prime time just yet.  Business Week quotes one expert saying WiMax technology is years away from being ready to go to market.  So while the graphic designers in the marketing department come up with these cute little drawings of how it’s all supposed to work, the technology geeks are still figuring it out.

 

 

Expect an injection of coolness into Sprint’s handset lineup by the fourth quarter of this year. Motorola’s RAZR, SLVR, and the Q will soon be offered by Sprint, according to Sprint’s chief operating officer. (The fact that Sprint’s sister company Nextel gets all its handsets from Motorola probably helped clinch the new deal.)

Sprint has had an up and down history with Motorola - there have been times when Sprint’s available handsets included many Motorola models. Lately, though, aside from one entry-level Moto phone there was nothing. Nada. Zilch. And not having phones like the RAZR available has hurt Sprint’s ability to appeal to the young and/or style-conscious among us.

It’ll be fairly simple for Motorola to re-purpose the CDMA-system phones it already makes for Verizon Wireless.  (And it’ll be interesting to see how Sprint positions its rate plans for phones like the “Q” against VZW’s.)

[via Reuters]

It’s been one of the biggest gripes of wireless customers - the traditional 24-month deal with a $175 termination fee.  The fee is the price you pay for incentives at the front end of the deal, which is why you pay so little (or nothing) for a new handset.  The unfair part of it is, you pay the same termination penalty if you back out in month #23 as you do in month #1.

Now Verizon Wireless says beginning this fall new customers, and customers who re-up with Verizon Wireless, will face a prorated termination penalty, based on how many months are left on the contract.  There will also be other “loyalty benefits” such as notification by email when more favorable rate plans come out, and free storage of phone contact lists on Verizon’s network, making it easier to migrate to a new handset if your old one is lost, stolen or worn out. 

There’s more than just goodwill behind Verizon Wireless’ termination fee decision; a class action lawsuit in California backed by AARP has been given the green light by a judge - that lawsuit targets termination fees from Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel.  Lawyers have set up websites looking for termination fee victims. 

Verizon Wireless is the first, but probably not the only carrier to go this direction.  Expect competitors to play one upsmanship games as they restructure their own termination penalties.

[via Verizon Wireless] 

Wrigley Field is the second-oldest Major League baseball park (the oldest is Fenway in Boston).  Flat-earth traditionalists in Chicago campaigned against lighting for night games at Wrigley until they lost the fight in 1988. 

So it’s ironic that, tonight at Wrigley, Cubs coast Dusty Baker will be using the first wireless dugout to bullpen phone system.  A special closed circuit system using Motorola i580 wireless phones will allow managers and pitching coaches to connect to bullpens with the touch of one button.  The phones can be clipped onto uniform belts and they’ll vibrate as well as ring.  (This is the same model being offered by Sprint Nextel for outdoor use; designed to withstand wind, rain and dust.)

The original landline phones to the dugout will still work; a wise idea in case someone forgets to charge their battery.

[via USA Today]

What I like about Nextel phones are their GPS features. It allows you to locate a friend or family member’s phone location anytime from your computer. Great for finding where your teenagers hangout.

Seriously, this GPS solutions can be a lifesaver. If you need to make a 911 emergency call, the GPS feature can help emergency personnel locate you. On the lighter side, you can enjoy audible and visual turn-by-turn directions to any address, anywhere on Nextel’s Nationwide Network.

Standard FeaturesStandard features included with all Nextel Phones:
■ Walkie-Talkie Service: Walkie-Talkie service that instantly connects you to all other Nextel users - across town, across the country, and now even across borders to Latin America and Canada.
■ GPS Enabled: Lets you view your approximate location and when making 911 calls helps emergency personnel to locate you if your phone has adequate access to GPS satellite signal and the emergency response center is equipped to process such signals. Supports non-Java location-enhanced services such as Mobile LocatorTM.
■ Time/Date: Current date and time information anywhere on the Nextel National Network.
■ VibraCall® Alert: Notifies you of incoming phone calls, Walkie-Talkie calls, messages and Voicemail without a sound.
■ Recent Calls List: Access the last twenty sent and received calls for quick call return or number storage.
■ Accessory Connector Cover: Protect the bottom accessory connector from dust and debris with the attached cover.
[ via nextel ]