nextel

HTC is hoping a little horsepower will spark some interest in its tablet offering.

The Taiwanese mobile device manufacturer is expected to unveil a quad-core-powered tablet in February at Mobile World Congress, Digitimes reports, citing a Chinese-language Commercial Times report.

HTC declined to comment.

In the same boat as just about everybody else in the mobile industry, HTC hasn't been able to crack the tablet market, with Apple and its iPad being the only real success story. Much like the Xoom, PlayBook, and other tablets, HTC's two offerings so far have failed to draw in consumers. The company … Read more

It's shaping up to be a rough holiday for T-Mobile USA.

The carrier, a unit of Germany's Deutsche Telekom, earlier today reported a slight improvement in its results for the third quarter. That modest uptick was largely due to its uber-aggressive pricing promotions on the prepaid end, as well as an improving lineup of smartphones.

That's the good news. The bad news is that T-Mobile's most valuable customers--the ones willing to sign long-term contracts and pay more each month--are still leaving in droves. And there's no sign that the outmigration will stop in the fourth … Read more

The merger between AT&T and T-Mobile USA would create more than 100,000 jobs in the United States, a major telecommunications union said today, again putting its weight behind the deal.

The Communications Workers of America said a new analysis has found that the deal, which would combine the second- and fourth-largest U.S. wireless carriers, would create an additional 96,000 jobs, alongside the 5,000 outsourced jobs AT&T has pledged to bring back.

The CWA also lashed out at opponents of the deal, noting that their concerns over lost jobs stemmed from "sloppy … Read more

AT&T recorded a minor victory after Sprint Nextel was ordered to hand over internal documents to its rival.

The two companies continue to be bitterly locked over AT&T's proposed acquisition of Mobile USA, which Sprint has fiercely fought against. U.S. Special Master Richard Levie ruled yesterday that Sprint would have to hand over additional critical documents to AT&T that it hadn't already given to the U.S. Justice Department, Bloomberg BusinessWeek reported yesterday.

AT&T had originally sought even more documents, which give insight into Sprint's game plan and … Read more

Nowadays, everybody has to work with developers.

Just ask HTC. Not content to build Android and Windows Phone smartphones, the company in June launched a developer-outreach program, HTC Dev. The goal: to give developers access to some of its products' niftier features while drumming up support for the company.

"Android and mobile in general is so competitive, developing mindshare is important," said Leigh Momii, a developer evangelist for HTC. "For developers, it offers them a way to stand out."

Prior to HTC Dev, the company had a developer following its long history of smartphones. But HTC … Read more

Sprint Nextel inched closer to potentially providing funding to cash-strapped Clearwire in its latest debt offering.

The company said today that it plans to offer a private placement of debt due in 2018 and 2021. The uses include general expenses, network upgrades, and the repayment of existing debt. The most interesting, of course, is the potential funding of 4G WiMax provider Clearwire, which Sprint has so far been mum on.

"Securing the capital to fund those items while maintaining a solid cash balance in the case that Clearwire needs funding is important for Sprint's future," said Walter … Read more

The regulatory scrutiny is starting to get to AT&T and its bid to acquire T-Mobile USA.

AT&T disclosed in its quarterly regulatory filing that it now expects the deal to close in the first half of 2012, compared with its previous target of the first quarter. The Dow Jones Newswires was the first to report the change.

The regulatory scrutiny has also caused it to push back the target date for its acquisition of spectrum from Qualcomm. AT&T now expects that deal to close in the first quarter of 2012, rather than the end … Read more

Sprint Nextel is working with Apple to figure out the connection issue affecting some iPhone 4S devices on its network, but doesn't yet have an answer for the problem.

"We're taking the reports of problems from a small number of customers seriously," Fared Adib, head of product development for Sprint, said in an interview with CNET today. "There's nothing of significance to report yet."

Some Sprint iPhone 4S users have reported suffering dramatically slow connection speeds--an issue that sprung up almost immediately after the device hit stores. The problem remains a top topic … Read more

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--Sprint Nextel is working to take its flagship smartphones and eventually sell them to its prepaid and wholesale partners, according to product chief Fared Adib.

Sprint could eventually take a high-end handset such as the Samsung Electronics Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch and re-brand and sell it to different providers, Adib said during the company's developer conference here today.

The approach would mark a radical departure from conventional thinking in the wireless industry. The national carriers typically guard their flagship handsets with exclusive agreements, and consider them the "crown jewels" that allow them … Read more