Sep 23, 2006 | blog
Brighthand is reporting what I’ve talked about in the past. T-Mobile now has enough spectrum bandwidth nationwide to proceed with their 3G rollout.
What this means to consumers is cheaper 3G options compared to Cingular, Verizon, & Sprint. T-Mobile has always been priced more competitively than the competition, partially because of being the smallest nationwide operator, but also because of the ability to run more efficiently than the other carriers. They have not had to carry the baggage of extremely large and complex corporate mergers of culture and technology.
Another large factor in the pricing of T-Mobile has been its “reluctance” to be on the cutting edge of wireless technology. For example, their EDGE network has only been online for roughly a year, where Cingular’s EDGE service has been available for nearly two. Allowing the other carriers to bled on the cutting edge, learning from their triumphs and failures, in addition to allowing time for the hardware to come down in pricing has kept T-Mobile competitive.
Will that trend continue now that the company has dropped $4.2 Billion on spectrum – though I must point out that T-Mobile has been budgeting for this spectrum auction, and had estimated a similar amount aver a year ago for Auction 66.
Only time will tell, but it’s exciting, as now all four national carriers have the spectrum to roll out 3G nationwide, and plan for next-generation 4G strategies.
Link to Link to T-Mobile USA On Track for 3G Rollout at Brighthand.com
Aug 23, 2006 | blog
I have a hard time believing this – they only went into beta a week or two ago.
Still, if its true, this would be the first commercial implementation of Unlicensed Mobile Access. This service allows subscribers to use either cellular service or WiFi service to place & receive phone calls.
With T-Mobile having such an extensive WiFi Hotspot network, in addition to supporting free access points, and in conjunction with their GSM network, would allow users to make inexpensive calls many additional locations.
Via Pocket PC Thoughts
Aug 14, 2006 | blog
So it looks like TMo is getting the UMA (Universal Mobile Access) thing moving! Good to see, they seem to be the first wireless carrier to move in this direction.
Of course with their T-Mobile HotSpot service, this is a natural fit to leverage the investment in both GSM and WiFi networks. At least the information I was presented with a few months ago alluded to using the phones on the HotSpot network as well as home & unsecured wireless access points.
This is also interesting because of Sprint’s latest announcement that they will be using WiMax as their 4G platform. Its not that WiFi and WiMax are that close in technology, its that true broadband networking solutions are being used for wireless communication services on a large scale.
And it further proves that the ubiquitous Ethernet standard is exactly what the information age needed during the 80s/90s to develop cheap, quality, plentiful networking capabilities.
HooHoo! Go TMo go!
Posted using Windows Live Writer!
Link to T-Mobile Begins UMA Trials (Phone Scoop)
Aug 11, 2006 | blog
Its nice to know that T-Mobile is making huge efforts to win a large portion of the wireless spectrum that they require for 3G services. The company has had the short end of the stick when it comes to wireless spectrum licensing since it started deploying data services.
I’ve been with the T-Mobile as my wireless provider for over 5 years, and have had no issues with call quality, coverage, or customer support. The things I’ve hoped they would improve on, they have; such as handset/device selection, high-speed data services and new features.
So I’m confident that if they are able to win the wireless spectrum they need to roll out 3G services nationwide, they will help lower the cost of high-speed data offered by all the carriers here in the US. Brighthand.com’s Ed Hardy has an article talking about this very topic – good read.
Aug 2, 2006 | blog
Well, talk about pleasent surprises – T-Mobile Sunday released the AKU 2.3 firmware update for their MDA. You can find more information about my MDA here, but if you want to download the new firmware yourself, go here.
The update includes the long-awaited push-mail update and support for Bluetooth stereo audio (A2DP). Watch for more info – I’ll be upgrading tonight!
Via: Mobile Gadget News
