Muve

ZTE Engage: Don't put a ring on it

With a name that evokes images of Jean-Luc Picard aboard the USS Enterprise, the ZTE Engage is actually just an Earthling-created, contract-free phone from Cricket Wireless.

But even if I could get engaged (ha, multiple definitions!) to this handset, I wouldn't want to. Yes, it sports higher specs than what you would usually see from a midlevel ZTE handset, but its poor call and camera performance would tempt any user, not just me, to break things off.

Design With its all-black design and flatly rectangular construction, the ZTE Engage doesn't break any design boundaries. At 5.4 ounces, … Read more

No jiving here with the ZTE Groove

Nothing about the ZTE Groove screams "modern." Maybe it's the outdated name (seriously, the only appropriate times to say "groove" is when ironically referring to the 1970s, or discussing jazz music), but mostly because it runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread and has a very unappealing plastic construction.

Don't misunderstand me -- I have no qualms with entry-level handsets. They're great for users looking for something simple and easy to use. But the Groove is different. On top of being dated, it's plagued with mediocre call and audio quality, and a poor … Read more

Cricket's Muve Music rate plan hits 1M milestone

LAS VEGAS--Cricket's Muve Music service has surpassed the 1 million subscriber mark, the company announced today.

This year's CES marks the second anniversary of the Android rate plan, which bundles unlimited music downloads, ringtones, and ringback tones to text, talk, and Web plans, starting at $50 per month.

Although 1 million may not sound like a large number for wireless giants like Verizon and AT&T, the milestone is significant for Cricket's much smaller prepaid subscriber base of about 6 million, and a demographic that typically shies away from purchasing expensive plans.

Deals with national retailers … Read more

Get committed with ZTE's Engage

Cricket Wireless's music subscription service, Muve Music, has added another device under its umbrella: the ZTE Engage.

In addition to offering users numerous albums and songs to stream, this midlevel handset is 3G enabled and sports a 4.3-inch WVGA display with a 800x480-pixel resolution.

It also runs on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and has a 1.4GHz processor.

Furthermore, the Engage sports an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera, a VGA front-facing camera, and Bluetooth capabilities.

RadioShack kicks off latest contract-free mobile plans

Mobile phone customers can choose from even more contract-free plans from RadioShack as of today.

Four new plans are available altogether through Cricket Wireless -- two for feature phones and two for smartphones.

The $25-per-month feature phone plan offers 300 voice minutes, while the $35 plan raises that to 1,000 minutes. Both plans up the ante with unlimited data access, unlimited texting, call waiting, and three-way calling.

The $50-per-month smartphone plan adds unlimited voice minutes and promises that the first gigabyte of data will run at full 3G speeds. The $60 plan offers the first 2.5GB of data … Read more

Muve Music makes leap to all Cricket Android phones

After a year and a half of offering an unlimited smartphone rate with a built-in music download feature, Cricket Wireless will make its Muve Music plan standard on all Android phones, beginning September 2.

This is excellent news if you're a fan of the music rate, which wraps music software for downloading songs and ringtones into the monthly package alongside text, talk, and Web use.

In the year and a half since the plan launched in January 2011, a growing number of Android phones has featured the plan, then a $65 premium on no-contract handsets like the Samsung Vitality … Read more

Cricket's Muve Music and phones land in Kmart stores

Spotify may be all the rage with the hipster set but many postpaid customers on Cricket already enjoy the carrier's Muve music service. Now retailer Kmart plans to offer Muve along with other Cricket products and handsets in its stores. … Read more

Cricket shifts full throttle with high-end Android phones, LTE

NEW ORLEANS--Cricket subscribers have spoken -- they want more premium phones -- and now the prepaid carrier is ready to deliver.

Cricket customers are beginning to care much more about technical specifications like larger screens, faster processors, and better cameras. Significant sales of the Huawei Mercury, which leaped to an more than10 percent adoption rate in the course of two weeks, proves it.… Read more

Cricket targets Target with Muve Music phones

What's that sound you hear? It's the tune of Cricket Wireless selling smartphones with all-you-can download music plans from yet another retail giant.

Starting today, nearly 1,600 Target stores will carry the Samsung Vitality and ZTE Score on Cricket's network. Both Android smartphones feature Muve Music, the unlimited music and ringtone download plan that Cricket pioneered in January 2011.… Read more

Huawei Mercury tunes into Cricket's Muve Music service

If you're a Cricket customer who skipped over the Huawei Mercury smartphone because it lacked Muve Music, you'll be happy to know you can hop back to it.

Cricket will soon supply an over-the-air download to upgrade the phone and let in the unlimited music downloads and ringtones on top of the usual unlimited calling, data, and text and multimedia messaging.

The Muve Music plan costs $65 per month, making it the priciest of Cricket's unlimited plans, but also its most comprehensive.