at&t
New Bill May Require Carriers To Clarify 4G Speeds
4G comes in many flavors and many carriers have been guilty of liberally using the term 4G in order to sell their services which is why a new bill has been proposed that may require carriers to better clarify their speeds. For example how Sprint was advertising their 4G (which was really WiMax) but in reality, T-Mobile’s 3G speeds were outclassing them, which led to T-Mobile rebranding their 3G as 4G!
The Next Generation Wireless Disclosure Act would force carriers to shine more light on exactly what they are providing customers. At the point of sale, wireless providers would have to provide specific information about speed, reliability, coverage zones, pricing, and the technology used for the service. Consumers would also be provided with a side-by-side comparison of the top 10 competing networks’ speeds and prices.
As it stands 4G can refer to to either WiMax or HSPA+ but true 4G would be known as LTE which is why when some carriers advertise that they are expanding their 4G coverage they may say HSPA+ but for regular consumers they may be wondering why is it that Verizon’s 4G LTE (true 4G) is so much faster than say T-Mobile’s 4G HSPA+.
Now here is a handset from the folks over at ZTE which intends to provide a sense of continuity, although this time around you will not be able to pick up the Zmax 2 from T-Mobile, as ZTE has decided on AT&T to be their US partner and mobile carrier for their latest phone. In fact, this device falls under the mid-range segment of things, where it will just cost $149.99 unlocked, now how about that for affordability?
That kind of pricing would see you end up with a 5.5” 720p touchscreen display, an 8MP camera with LED flash at the back, a 2MP front-facing shooter, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of expandable memory, a 1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 4G LTE connectivity, Dolby Digital Plus Audio, and a 3,000 mAh removable battery, and Android 5.1 Lollipop as the mobile operating system of choice. [Press Release]
You can be forgiven for being confused about ASUS’ Zenfone 2 range to date, and here is yet another model that will add to the brouhaha. I am referring to the ASUS Zenfone 2E, where it has just been announced to be an AT&T exclusive, where you can pick one up for just $119.99 without any contract, and it is also offered by the carrier’s GoPhone prepaid brand.
At that price point, you would get a 5” 720p IPS touchscreen display in return, an 8MP camera with LED flash at the back, a 2MP front-facing shooter, a 2,500 mAh battery, a dual-core Intel processor, 1GB RAM, 8GB of internal memory, 4G LTE connectivity, and Android 5.0 Lollipop running underneath Asus’ own ZenUI. Opt from either black or white shades.
If you have been hankering after the LG Watch Urbane for the longest time, while being an AT&T subscriber, then here is good news for you. This particular timepiece can be picked up for $349 a pop from AT&T, where it will arrive in a shade of silver to boot. This timepiece will run on Android Wear and is compatible with any smartphone that has Android 4.3 or higher as the mobile operating system of choice.
It is best to use the LG Watch Urbane within the confines of a Wi-Fi network all the time, along with your smartphone, so that you can keep track of notifications, send messages and make use of your Android Wear compatible apps at all times. Sporting a 1.3” circle P-OLED display, the Watch Urbane comes with replaceable 22mm stitched leather straps for more flexible fashion choices, while the integrated PPG Sensor (average pace, speed, heart rate, and distance) ought to keep fitness buffs happy, with a 410 mAh (non-removable) battery that has an all-day battery life. [Press Release]