Weekly Wireless Updates

FACEBOOK AND TWITTER

freddiebell — Wed, 25 May 2011 18:34:01 +0000

Follow me at GWEVANS1 on Twitter. My new Facebook page is Gw Evans. I hope to see you there.

BLACKBERRY EXPANDS TO INCLUDE ANDROID AND APPLE

freddiebell — Wed, 25 May 2011 18:21:12 +0000

Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq: RIMM, TSX: RIM) is announcing today plans for a multi-platform BlackBerry Enterprise Solution for managing and securing mobile devices for enterprises and government organizations. The solution will make available the market-leading management, security and controls of BlackBerry® Enterprise Server and BlackBerry® Enterprise Server Express for BlackBerry® devices plus, through RIM’s pending acquisition of ubitexx (creator of the ubi-Suite device management solution), the solution is expected to incorporate secure device management for Android and iOS based devices and tablets, all managed from a single web-based console.“The multi-platform BlackBerry Enterprise Solution is designed to address a growing market and respond to requests from enterprise customers who want a secure multi-platform device management solution from a company that already delivers the gold standard for enterprise mobility,” said Peter Devenyi, Vice President, Communications Platform Group at Research In Motion. “We recognize the opportunity to continue leading in the enterprise market by providing customers with a common platform to help simplify the management of a variety of mobile devices.”
The single web-based console is being designed to provide IT administrators with a simple and efficient way to distribute software and manage policies, inventory, security and services for BlackBerry devices, as well as other mobile devices. IT administrators will be able to manage devices over-the-air, including activating devices, distributing software and applications, locking or wiping devices, enforcing and resetting device passwords, setting IT policies, and managing optional mobile applications for end users. Certain features are expected to remain exclusive to BlackBerry devices because such capabilities are built into the design of a device’s operating system. Examples include RIM’s industry-leading push technology, network and data usage efficiency, behind-the-firewall access to enterprise applications and systems, and many of the over 550 IT policies available through BlackBerry Enterprise Server. The recently-released BlackBerry® Balance™ technology (see separate press release issued today), which supports the use of a single smartphone for both work and personal purposes without compromising the security of corporate content or the privacy of personal content, will also remain exclusive to BlackBerry devices.
Overall, as is largely understood in the enterprise market today, organizations can expect a range of security, manageability and controls depending on different device platform capabilities, with some devices further limited by the design of their operating system.

The multi-platform BlackBerry Enterprise Solution will be comprised of optional architectural components based on the configuration of an organization’s mobile deployment and their operational needs. Optional components will include BlackBerry Enterprise Server and BlackBerry Enterprise Server Express for BlackBerry devices, and a separate, secure device management server for Android and iOS devices (based on the foundation of ubi-Suite from ubitexx). It will be possible to deploy multiple components in a virtualized environment on a single server.
Note: Registration for a product preview of the ubitexx solution is open today at www.ubitexx.com/preview.
The multi-platform BlackBerry Enterprise Solution is planned for general availability later this year.
About Research In Motion
Research In Motion (RIM), a global leader in wireless innovation, revolutionized the mobile industry with the introduction of the BlackBerry® solution in 1999. Today, BlackBerry products and services are used by millions of customers around the world to stay connected to the people and content that matter most throughout their day. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, RIM operates offices in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Latin America. RIM is listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market (NASDAQ: RIMM) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: RIM). For more information, visit www.rim.com or www.blackberry.com.

SPRINT RISES TO TOPS IN CUSTOMER SERVICE

freddiebell — Tue, 17 May 2011 13:58:53 +0000

In big turnaround, Sprint matches Verizon for customer satisfaction as AT&T, T-Mobile drop
Associated Press Newswires 17 May 2011 — By PETER SVENSSON
Sprint Nextel Corp., once dead last in customer satisfaction among the Big 4 national wireless carriers, now has the happiest subscribers, along with long-time leader Verizon Wireless, according to a survey released Tuesday.

The American Customer Satisfaction Index also shows tentative declines in customer satisfaction at the other two big carriers, AT&T Inc. and T-Mobile USA. That comes as AT&T has agreed to buy T-Mobile USA for $39 billion in a deal that could close next year.

The acquisition could make AT&T and T-Mobile customers even less happy. Claes Fornell, professor of Business Administration at the University of Michigan and the designer of the ACSI survey, said it is common to find that customer satisfaction drops after a merger.

Sprint and Verizon Wireless both rate a 72 for customer satisfaction in the ACSI survey, which polled 8,000 households in the first quarter. For Sprint, that’s a big jump from a score of 56 three years ago, while Verizon’s score has been steady. Sprint CEO Dan Hesse has made improvements in customer service a centerpiece of his turnaround plan for the troubled company.

Sprint’s score includes subsidiaries Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile, which sell plans without two-year contracts.

ACSI gave AT&T a score of 66, down from 69 last year. It’s the company’s worst score since 2006, the year before it started carrying the iPhone. It’s the lowest-ranked of the four national carriers after being surpassed by Sprint last year.

T-Mobile’s score was 70, down from 73 points last year.

T-Mobile’s financial statements also hint that subscribers are unhappy, since they show an increase in “churn,” or the percentage of subscribers leaving every month. It’s the smallest of the four national carriers, and part of the reason it’s selling itself to AT&T is that it’s finding it hard to compete with the bigger ones.

The survey was developed by the University of Michigan but is now run by a private company, ACSI LLC.

SPRINT IS STRONG IN THE MARKETPLACE

freddiebell — Tue, 17 May 2011 13:58:18 +0000

Sprint Nextel, the first wireless 4G service provider in the United States has emerged as a B2B market leader in the first quarter of 2011. The business market group in the Sprint Nextel takes pride in making a strong contribution towards the quarterly performance, which has in turn led the company to succeed as a B2B market leader. The Sales Team in Sprint Nextel has won several contracts by renewing others to provide 4G and by offering M2M solutions to all its business customers. There were 2 notable sales that have been signed off by Sprint this year. The extension of contract by VHA for a 3 year period has earned the company about $1.2 billion. Also, the company is also happy with its agreement with Commonwealth of Kentucky for providing a full suite of relay products.

In an effort of expanding its products for this quarter, Sprint Nextel has improved the productivity for all its business customers. The announcement of HTC EVO View 4G tablet is one of the finest examples for the company’s efforts in product expansion. The company also takes pride in announcing a Google 4G device by name Nexus 4G, Motorola i576s, a clamshell handset for field workers and an Overdrive Pro 3G/4G Mobile Hotspot for Sierra Wireless, a Wi-Fi enabled device that can connect up to eight users to a laptop and other devices.

Sprint Nextel has made announcements about its expansion of gold standard push-to-talk capabilities using the broadband CDMA network of the company. The company has also plans to offer push-to-talk handsets for workgroups and set up a new push-to-talk brand with the name Sprint Direct Connect.

In a recent interview, Paget L. Alves, President of Sprint Nextel called out that the company will continue to compete well in the market place and earn more new contracts by offering the best line of products and solutions and an excellent customer service.

MOTOROLA SHOWCASING NEW DEVICES

freddiebell — Mon, 16 May 2011 15:51:54 +0000

Motorola XPRT Sprint and Motorola Unveil Two Android Devices for Business!•

Motorola XPRT Offers Enterprise-Grade Security and an Enhanced MOTOBLUR Experience on an Android World Phone!
• Motorola Titanium pairs best-in-class Nextel Direct Connect with Android 2.1!
Motorola Titanium

Motorola XPRTThe Motorola XPRT, loaded with FroYo 2.2, is a breakthrough first for business professionals seeking a greater enterprise maturity in an Android device. This worldphone brings together the features people love about business grade devices with all the user friendliness, hipness and fun that comes with Android. XPRT sports an optimized, integrated portrait keyboard on the front with rounded, easy to “home in on” keys, a 3.1″ touch screen display, access in 200+ countries, all with enterprise level security.

Key Features:• Android Market for access to more than 150,000 applications, widgets and games available for download to customize the experience
• Google mobile services such as Google Search, Gmail, Google Maps with Navigation, syncing with Google Calendar, Voice Actions and YouTube™
• Corporate email (Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync), personal (POP & IMAP) email and instant messaging
• Worldmode – CDMA (EVDO Rev. A), GSM/UMTS (HSPA) – international roaming service available in more than 200 countries
• 3G Mobile Hotspot capability, supporting up to five Wi-Fi enabled devices simultaneously
• 5-megapixel camera with camcorder and dual LED flash for low-light performance
• microSD slot, with 2GB memory card included, supporting up to 32GB
• Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
• Wi-Fi b/g/n
• 1860 mAh Lithium-ion battery
Pricing and Availability:

Motorola XPRT will be available on Sunday, June 5, for $129.99.( Certain rules apply).

Motorola Titanium

As the successor to the popular Motorola i1 launched by Sprint last year, Motorola Titanium is sleek and attractive, yet durable. It is the first iDEN device to combine Sprint’s best-in-class Nextel Direct Connect and Android 2.1, Éclair, for a feature rich business-class experience. It features a full QWERTY keyboard and 3.1-inch touchscreen display. Built military-grade tough, Motorola Titanium is certified to Military Specification 810G for dust, shock, vibration, low pressure, solar radiation, high temperature and low temperature. Pricing and availability for the Motorola Titanium will be announced at a later date.
Key Features:• Support for Nextel Direct Connect Services, including Direct Connect, Group Connect, International Direct Connect, DirectSend, Group Messaging and NextMail
• Android Market for access to more than 150,000 applications, widgets and games available for download to customize the experience
• Google mobile services such as Google Search, Gmail, Google Maps with Navigation, syncing with Google Calendar, Voice Actions and YouTube
• Corporate email (Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync), personal (POP & IMAP) email and instant messaging
• 5-megapixel camera with camcorder, 4x zoom and flash
• Wi-Fi b/g/n
• Stereo Bluetooth
• GPS navigation
• microSD slot, with a 2GB memory card included, supporting up to 32GB
• 1820 mAh Lithium-ion battery

JUST A REMINDER!!

freddiebell — Wed, 11 May 2011 21:41:54 +0000

SPRINT IS EVERYWHERE!

Sprint 4G is now available in 71 markets across the U.S. Including Minneapolis-St. Paul.

TWITTER and FACEBOOK

freddiebell — Wed, 11 May 2011 18:51:10 +0000

Follow me at GWEVANS1 on Twitter. My new Facebook page is Gw Evans. I hope to see you there.

CDMA DIRECT CONNECT FEATURES

freddiebell — Wed, 11 May 2011 18:44:09 +0000

These are the main “enhancements” to be enjoyed by customers using the next generation of CDMA Direct Connect coming the second half of 2011…..

In addition to core one-to-one and group push-to-talk calling, here are a few other features we expect to deliver with the new devices:

o Guaranteed talk permit – the immediate assurance that when you hear the “chirp” your call connected successfully

o Single number option – the option of having one single number for both voice and push-to-talk calls

o Availability notification – the ability of a push- to-talk user to be notified when a subscriber is “available” for a push-to-talk call

o Simultaneous data + push-to-talk – ability to use data (i.e. check email, web surfing) at the same time as a push-to-talk call

o NextMail® – the ability to send a recorded message via email or text message to up to 50 recipients via the push to talk button

o LMR interoperability – ability to bridge audio between Sprint devices and radios via integration with dispatch consoles

Sprint unveiled in Dec. 2010 its long‐term network blueprint ‐‐ Network Vision ‐‐ to completely overhaul Sprint’s network(s) to take full advantage of cutting‐edge technologies and our spectrum assets. This monumental project will support the demands of Sprint customers and the future of wireless.
With these network upgrades, Sprint’s push to talk product will also evolve and expand. Therefore, in Q4 2011 we plan to launch Sprint Direct Connect® to deliver on the promises of this new technology with dramatically better coverage.

We want to continue to reassure our customers, that regardless of network, Sprint has the gold standard push to talk product and no one can match our portfolio of features, functionality, devices, and commitment.

As we transition our network over the next few years and launch more Sprint Direct Connect push to talk devices and features, we will work closely with our iDEN base of customers to help them make a smooth transition when the time is right.

MORE JUICE, HANDSET and NETWORK UPDATES

freddiebell — Tue, 10 May 2011 02:56:31 +0000

Wish the battery on your Android lasted longer? Are you using a power management app but not getting the results you’d hoped for?…..GOOD NEWS!!!

We just learned of a new, FREE app in Android Marketplace called JuiceDefender. It provides three different general settings (Balanced / Aggressive / Extreme) to significantly extend the life of your battery. Many users opt to use “Aggressive” that automatically shuts off connectivity when the battery reaches a predetermined level but will offer reconnection in a drop down if you use a function requiring an internet connection.

SANYO ZIO GETS ANDROID 2.2 FROYO UPGRADE
BETTER, FASTER, STRONGER!!
A software update to 2.201SP will be available for the Sanyo Zio starting on 5/9/11. The software update will be pushed to existing Sprint Sanyo Zio customers over a four day period.
This is a three part Software Update.
Customers will be required to download all three portions of the update to get their Sanyo Zio device to Android 2.2 (FroYo).
Customers should use WiFi if possible to complete the update.
The Updates Provide the Following To You:
1. 2.2 Android (Froyo, The latest Android Software)

2. Swype – The Swype function will be added allowing customers to use the keyboard functionality as an option when entering text. The customer can then simply tap and hold on any Text Input field then select Input Method > Choose Swype.

3. Sprint Zone 2.5.5

4. Sprint ID – Including improvements to the activation process of Sprint ID devices.

5. Improved Battery Life

What do these changes mean to our Business Customers?

While the Zio is primarily positioned as a consumer device, the upgrade to FroYo gives this Sprint ID device some business street cred. The ability to manage work and personal emails, and calendar while having Flash 10 experience for data usage adds value to this phone. The addition of Swype allows users to enter text swiftly, allowing emails to not only be read, but answered. That’s business mobility! Plus, the Zio came with Touchdown out of the box for greater EAS integration. The addition of FroYo merely makes this device worker better and faster.

SPRINT’S NETWORK VISION MADE SIMPLE

Sprint’s multi-year Network Vision project is designed to enhance network performance, improve voice quality and coverage, provide faster data speeds, reduce network maintenance and costs, and maximize technology is under way.
Network Vision will create a single, multi-modal platform allowing us to leverage our various spectrum assets, Sprint, Nextel and WiMax. We will also gain network flexibility by moving to a software-based network vs. all hardware which will make future growth and updates easier.

1. Landline quality voice calls and faster data speeds are made possible by the new next-generation CDMA 1X Advanced technology

2. Increased coverage area due to stronger signals as our new base stations radios will have high power amplifiers located higher on the towers and closer to the antennas

3. 20-30% fewer dropped calls as a result of increased signal strength and coverage improvements

4. Improved in-building coverage when using 800 MHZ as those signals travel farther and penetrate buildings better.

SPRINT RELEASES NEW PRL

freddiebell — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 20:04:42 +0000

Sprint released a new PRL on Friday September 4, 2009.

Changes were made to the PRL to prevent and control subscriber (Tri Mode and Dual Mode) device cloning on roaming partner Analog network and to generate additional cost savings for Sprint and Affiliates.

Customers should update their PRL if:

Have a Tri-mode (1900 Mhz & 800 Mhz CDMA and 800MHz Analog) and Dual mode (1900 Mhz CDMA & 800 Mhz Analog) device, and

Live in or travel to US Virgin Islands

Customers who live or travel to the coverage areas below should update their PRL to generate additional cost savings for Sprint and its Affiliates:

Aberdeen, SD

Boone, NC

This PRL update does not resolve previously communicated roaming network outages in MS, GA & FL Markets, on 8/7/09.

See the latest PRL by dialing #4357* on your handset.