contracts

T-Mobile faces war of words after killing subsidies, contracts

T-Mobile's seismic shift in how it sells phones and service may be too much for some consumers to process.

In moving away from the old -- and arguably more comfortable -- business model of subsidized phones and two-year contracts, T-Mobile is hoping to shake up the industry and grab a bit of the limelight in the process.

But oftentimes, different is scary. T-Mobile faces the daunting challenge of explaining to consumers how its newly unveiled no-contract plans offer a benefit over the old model, and why it's actually beneficial for them to pay the full price for a … Read more

T-Mobile's 'Uncarrier' event: Join us at 8 a.m. PT today (live blog)

T-Mobile USA is expected to spill the details on how it will shake up the wireless industry, and you can get all the live updates right here.

The carrier is slated to hold a press conference at 8 a.m. PT/11 a.m. ET today in New York. CNET's Brian Bennett, Sarah Tew, and I will be bringing you all the all the latest news, commentary, and photos starting about 15 minutes before the event.

You can tune into the live blog here:

Join CNET starting at 7:45 a.m. PT/10:45 a.m. ET for live coverage of T-Mobile's press conference … Read more

T-Mobile will talk iPhone at tomorrow's event

Yep, T-Mobile will finally get the iPhone.

Apple's flagship device, long a gap in T-Mobile's smartphone lineup, will play a prominent role in tomorrow's "Uncarrier" event, according to a person familiar with the launch plans.

A T-Mobile representative declined to comment to CNET.

The iPhone is critical to T-Mobile's plans to remake itself as the "different" carrier. It will be the marquee product illustrating its new no-contract, no-subsidy rules, where a customer pays a small fee upfront and pays a monthly charge on top of the service plan to cover the phone … Read more

Prepaid or postpaid?: The fight for your cell phone dollars (Smartphones Unlocked)

This article originally published 11/11/2012 and was updated most recently on 3/25/2013.

Now that T-Mobile has smashed into the center of the no-contract wireless game, the tussle for your business between the contract and no-contract carrier model is even more urgent.

There's no question that the prepaid model is designed to save you money over a two-year contract agreement, but how much do you really gain by going prepaid, and what might you lose from the subscriber experience?

For the sake of comparison, I'm going to break down the cost of ownership over a … Read more

Will the iPhone pop up at tomorrow's T-Mobile event?

A T-Mobile iPhone would make the perfect "one more thing" to the carrier's "Uncarrier" event tomorrow.

T-Mobile plans to detail how it will shake up the industry. The invitation reads: "We're still a wireless company. We're just not going to act like one anymore," suggesting an event that is heavily focused on its recent move to kill off the contract and subsidy, and focus primarily on the no-contract option. Tomorrow will also likely mark the official launch of its 4G LTE network, finally bringing it into the LTE game with three … Read more

T-Mobile kills off the wireless contract

T-Mobile continues to rev up the changes it's got in store for customers.

The wireless carrier today seems to have finally done away entirely with contracts for wireless customers. This follows earlier moves that had allowed options including either a traditional two-year contract or no contract at all.

The shift is part of a broader transformation that CEO John Legere hinted at during his Consumer Electronics Show press conference in January, changes that are intended to make the carrier more competitive in the industry. As a distant fourth-place carrier among the national players, the company has been willing to … Read more

Huawei Premia 4G now available at MetroPCS

Today, MetroPCS and Huawei announced their latest collaboration, the Huawei Premia 4G.

Powered by Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, the Huawei Premia 4G is the carrier's second smartphone to feature 4G LTE connectivity.

Hardware details include a 4-inch display, a 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 1GB RAM, and a 5-megapixel camera. Falling somewhere between the ZTE Avid 4G and the LG Spirit 4G, the Premia 4G should appeal to first-time smartphone buyers.

While the handset does run an older version of Android, Ice Cream Sandwich is still modern enough to hold its appeal. As an affordable smartphone capable of … Read more

T-Mobile's possible no-contract pricing details divulged

T-Mobile announced in December that it would eliminate subsidies on cell phones this year, hinting that it would also switch up its mobile plans and go no-contract. Now, it's expected that the carrier will debut its new plans at an event scheduled for March 26.

However, TMoNews seems to have gotten its hands on at least some of the pricing information a week in advance.

According to a TMoNews, T-Mobile will be offering two types of plans: the "Uncarrier classic," which will be offered by national retailers like Target and Best Buy, and "Value" plans … Read more

T-Mobile changing the contract game

CNET Update will pay you Tuesday for a smartphone today:

Google Reader is shutting down in July, and its demise can impact citizens who have Internet access restricted by their government. The Change.org petition to keep Google Reader has about 12 percent of its signatures from people living in countries that have Internet censorship. People in Kazakhstan and China have left comments urging Google to keep the Reader tool because it's the best way to access banned websites and uncensored news.

Also featured in Tuesday's news roundup:

- Next week, T-Mobile is expected to announce a new way to pay for smartphones … Read more