chicago

You might think possession of a cell phone makes you more dynamic, more modern, more attractive to everyone around.

However, some restaurants in Chicago are now coming to believe that it merely signifies you're a robber.

As CBS Chicago communicates it, so many delivery drivers have been robbed by cell phone orderers in certain parts of Chicago that some restaurants are reportedly now only prepared to deliver to landline possessors.

Chinatown and Hyde Park are the two areas where cell phone miscreants appear to have had their pizza and eaten it.

It seems to have become such a problem … Read more

Verizon Wireless and Leap Wireless announced a spectrum swap as carriers wheel and deal for network capacity.

Under the deal, Leap Wireless will acquire 12 Mhz of 700 Mhz A-block spectrum in Chicago for $204 million. Verizon will acquire excess spectrum in various markets around the U.S. for $188 million.

A Leap venture--Savary Island Wireless--will also sell spectrum to Verizon for $172 million.

The arrangement comes just a few days after Verizon Wireless acquired wireless spectrum from cable providers to bolster its coverage. The Verizon deal with the cable companies was a nice countermove to AT&T, which … Read more

This is definitely not your average Ford Explorer rolling down the lines at the Chicago Assembly Plant. The bright red, full-size re-creation is made of 380,000 Lego bricks.

Ford today announced the unveiling of the Lego Explorer; a lifelike replica that took 2,500 hours (about three and a half months) to create.

The Legoland Florida-edition Explorer debuted in Chicago, but will soon be headed to the new 150-acre Legoland Florida theme park just outside Orlando.

According to Ford, the vehicle will be loaded onto a trailer with transparent sides so motorists can see the Lego Explorer on its … Read more

The 2011 Chrysler 200 convertible and the 2012 Acura TL are among the vehicles that will be unveiled this week at the Chicago Auto Show. Chevrolet, Dodge, Hyundai, Volkswagen, and Chrysler's Ram division also are planning world debuts.

While Toyota will not have a world debut, the automaker is touting its display, which it says will be the largest the Toyota brand has created for a U.S. auto show, covering 45,000 square feet.

As part of the display, an indoor road course will feature Toyota pickups and SUVs. The public will be able to ride in the … Read more

The debate over whether General Motors is violating the American Automobile Labeling Act (AALA), by not including window stickers that identify where the cars are made, continues.

We reported on Friday that the Made in the USA Foundation claims GM is willfully misleading consumers by leaving out labeling that identifies where the cars were made.

Joel D. Joseph, chairman of the Made in the USA Foundation, said in a release on Friday, "General Motors wants to hide the fact that, even after the government bailout, it has moved production of vehicles offshore. The Cadillac SRX is now made in … Read more

Comcast customers in Illinois and three other nearby states lost their Internet access last night, apparently due to the same problem that took down service for East Coast customers just a week ago.

Reports first began showing up on Twitter, with Comcast customers in several Midwest states tweeting that their connections were down. Comcast's own Twitter account, Comcastcares, later confirmed that the outage was affecting people in Minnesota, Illinois, and Michigan and seemed to be Domain Name System (DNS) related. The company also said at the time that it was working on a fix.

More specifically, the outage hit … Read more

Earlier this year at the Chicago Auto Show, Ford unveiled its production-ready 2011 Edge. So what's new for this year's model? The folks at Kelley Blue Book are here to give you the low down on the newest addition to the Ford family of utility vehicles.

By looking at the 2011 Ford Edge you know that something's different about it--its design and appearance have undergone an obvious transformation. Some of the updates include 22-inch premium aluminum wheels, lower hood, new fenders, vertical daytime running lights, and--perhaps most the "edgy" physical change--get a tuxedo black chrome … Read more

After all the informative video thrown your way this week, you may be wondering if there's anything about the 2011 Chevy Volt that isn't more efficient than other vehicles. Sorry, but even the stereo isn't one of them. Today's video clip is about how professional audio titan Bose got involved in the making of Chevrolet's electric hybrid car set for release later this year.

In this video, Ed Peper, Chevy's North American vice president, introduces the partnership between the American auto manufacturer and Bose in the conception and creation of an energy-efficient sound system … Read more

It became clear at this year's CES and Detroit shows that the new Ford Edge would be a big deal. At CES, Ford showed off its new MyFord interface separate from any car, and at Detroit, the new Lincoln MKX featured the MyLincoln Touch cabin tech interface. Ford told us we would have to wait for the launch of the new Edge to see the MyFord version of the interface.

Ford used the Chicago Auto Show as its venue for the 2011 Edge, putting on stage a car with revised exterior styling and a host of new technologies, not … Read more