world

Japan's NTT Docomo plans to offer 112.5Mbps LTE speeds

BARCELONA, Spain--Think Verizon Wireless or AT&T's 4G LTE network is fast? Check out Japan.

NTT Docomo's CEO, Kaoru Kato, said he plans to offer download speeds of 112.5Mbps to his company's customers. The higher speeds should come shortly, he said. NTT Docomo is Japan's largest wireless carrier by customer base.

By comparison, Verizon and AT&T boasts speeds of 20Mbps on a good day and an uncluttered network. In practice, the speeds are more in the high single or low double digits.

LTE, Kato said during a keynote address at Mobile World … Read more

Wireless carriers seek cross-border spectrum cooperation

BARCELONA, Spain--Mobile network operators traditionally use Mobile World Congress to call for lower taxes and more wireless spectrum. This year, a new word has entered the wish list: harmonization.

The mobile industry today must deal with a hodgepodge of electromagnetic frequencies that differ from carrier to carrier and country to country. Franco Bernabe, chief executive of Telecom Italia, wants to see not just more spectrum for wireless operators, but also spectrum that's not so fragmented.

"It's not just about having the right amount of spectrum. It's critical that the spectrum is harmonized on a global basis,&… Read more

What mattered as MWC begins

Mobile World Congress 2013 officially kicks off today in sunny Spain, but a whole bunch of goodies were unveiled yesterday by the likes of Samsung, Huawei, HP, and Mozilla.

Samsung got the fiesta off to a flying start by lifting the lid on the Galaxy Note 8, an Android tablet to rival Apple's iPad Mini. It'll launch with Android 4.2.1 Jelly Bean onboard and proudly packs a 1.6GHz quad-core chip with 2GB of RAM.

With an SD card slot, a home button, and S-Pen stylus support, the Note 8 offers a level of functionality the … Read more

LG overhauls Android phones from top-end to low-budget

BARCELONA, Spain--LG Electronics overhauled its Android product line today, with the flagship Optimus G Pro leading the way.

The company divides its Optimus line into four categories: its G series for deep-pocketed early adopters, the F series with the mission of "4G LTE for everyone," the lower-end L series, and the Vu tablets.

The company announced the Optimus G Pro specifications last week, and now it's showing off the "phablet"-size device with its mammoth 5.5-inch screen. Soon it and its smaller Optimus G sibling will be joined by more in the line. … Read more

Nokia takes aim at China with budget-friendly Lumias

BARCELONA, Spain--With the Lumia 720 and 520, Nokia has a shot of getting back in the China game.

The announcements at today's Mobile World Congress press conference were about Nokia filling out its portfolio with a few more budget-friendly smartphones, as well as two basic cellphones it files under the category of "first phone."

But in doing so, the company has given itself additional ammunition to re-enter the Chinese market with a bit more swagger. As with many other parts of the world, the company has struggled to offset the declines in its traditional Symbian phone business … Read more

Budget-friendly Nokia Lumia 520 headed to T-Mobile

BARCELONA, Spain--When I first heard the leaked rumors and specs surrounding the Nokia Lumia 520, I was sure I was going to be looking at a handset with a passable chassis that I'd only grudgingly like because of its stellar price. Instead, when Nokia representatives handed me a red and yellow Lumia 520, I had to admit, it looked pretty good (it'll also come in cyan, white, and black).

If you're reading this from the U.S., you should pay extra attention because, in addition to coming to other markets, it'll be available through T-Mobile as … Read more

Budget-friendly Nokia Lumia 520 headed to T-Mobile

CNET UK reviewed the Nokia Lumia 520 on April 15, 2013.

If you're reading this from the U.S., you should pay extra attention because, in addition to … Read more

Spotify finally finds an automotive home

BARCELONA, Spain--Internet music service Spotify gained more than 10 million users in Europe before its U.S. launch in July of 2011. But despite all the fanfare, no automotive integration had been announced. That all changed today as Ford welcomed Spotify integration into its Sync AppLink stable.

Spotify joins automotive standard Pandora, along with music apps Slacker, Mog, Rhapsody, TuneIn, IHeartRadio, and the Amazon Cloud Player among music apps integrated with Ford's Sync AppLink feature. AppLink gives drivers control over app on their smartphones using the car's interface, including voice command.

For Sync AppLink integration, apps must be … Read more

How MasterCard plans to transform mobile purchases

BARCELONA, Spain--The hype around mobile payments is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the coming transformation for how people purchase goods and services.

That's according to Ed McLaughlin, chief emerging payments officer for MasterCard, who spoke with CNET about his company's vision.

While at the Mobile World Congress conference, MasterCard unveiled its MasterPass system, which addresses not only mobile payments, but also all forms of digital transactions. MasterPass is designed for purchases made in stores, online, or on the phone.

"It's a foundation for moving to a world beyond plastic," McLaughlin … Read more

Intel talks new chips, partners at Mobile World Congress

A year ago, Intel's CEO took the stage at Mobile World Congress to tout new partnerships and talk up the benefits of Intel's mobile chips.

At that time, the Santa Clara, Calif., semiconductor maker's presence in the smartphone market was essentially nonexistent. Today, Intel has 10 phones shipping in 20 countries (though not the U.S.), and it keeps improving its power consumption and performance.

While that's good progress, Intel still has a long way to go, as the company readily admits. It hopes the new chips it's officially launching today at MWC 2013 will … Read more