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4g

Apple confirms death of iPhone worker in China

Update at 10:15 a.m. PDT: Comment from Apple added.

Apple confirmed on Tuesday the death of a man who worked at an iPhone plant in China.

According to various Chinese media reports, the worker at Chinese manufacturer Foxconn committed suicide last week after a fourth-generation iPhone prototype for which he was responsible went missing.

"We are saddened by the tragic loss of this young employee, and we are awaiting results of the investigations into his death," Apple spokeswoman Kristin Huguet told CNET on Tuesday. "We require our suppliers to treat all workers with dignity and … Read more

Comcast to offer 4G wireless broadband service

Comcast is getting into the wireless broadband business by bundling Clearwire's 4G wireless service with its existing broadband products.

The largest cable operator in the U.S. will launch the new service in Portland, Ore. And it will expand the service to other Comcast cities later in the year, including Atlanta, Chicago, and Philadelphia.

Comcast invested in the new Clearwire in 2008, along with Google, Intel, Time Warner Cable, and Sprint Nextel, which gave Clearwire its 2.5GHz spectrum. Clearwire's plan has been to roll out its service nationwide. The service is now up and running in a … Read more

364 days and counting to iPhone 4G

Now that the iPhone 3G S is officially behind us, let me be the first--or at least one of the first--to announce the countdown to the next new iPhone. If history is any indication, it should show up right around this time next year.

Interestingly, even though the 3G S is technically Apple's third-generation iPhone, some tech pundits were expecting the iPhone 3G S to be called the iPhone 4G. But you could also argue that the iPhone 3G S is more like the iPhone 3.5G, which doesn't have the greatest ring.

There's also a chance … Read more

Motorola turns to consumer electronics

Motorola is turning to the consumer electronics market as it looks to expand its troubled wireless business in new directions.

On Tuesday morning, the company will announce plans to sell wireless broadband modules that device makers can use to put into consumer electronics products or monitoring devices to provide broadband wireless connectivity. Specifically, Motorola is putting its homegrown wireless technology into embedded modules so that laptops, Netbooks, digital cameras, and other devices can connect to the Internet using 3G HSPA networks, as well as 4G wireless networks using WiMax and LTE technologies.

Motorola's entree into this market is significant … Read more

AT&T plans to double wireless broadband speeds by 2011

AT&T announced Wednesday plans to double the speed of its wireless broadband network by 2011. The move to HSPA technology, and eventually LTE networks, will begin later this year.

AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson outlined the carrier's plans at the D: All Things Digital conference in Carlsbad, Calif. "We are going to go ahead and deploy some rather aggressive wireless broadband," Stephenson said.

HSPA, which stand for High Speed Packet Access, is the next evolution in the carrier's 3G wireless broadband network. Though it promises peak data speeds of 7.2Mbps, slower speeds … Read more

First commercial 4G base station being tested in Sweden

The world's first radio base station in a commercial 4G network has been deployed in Stockholm, Sweden. Or at least that's what the Swedish national incumbent telecommunications operator Telia has announced.

Telia is among a handful of mobile operators worldwide building next-generation networks for mobile broadband with 4G or LTE (Long Term Evolution) technology. The largest is Verizon, identified as a world leader by Ericsson CEO Carl-Henric Svanberg.

"The U.S. is back in the driver's seat and Verizon has taken the lead in rolling out LTE," Svanberg said in an interview recently.

Though Telia … Read more

Color-matching earphones for iPod Nano 4G

Looks matter. If you don't think so, maybe the new fourth-generation iPod Nano isn't for you.

Radius Products unveiled its new TruTune earbuds Wednesday. The 'buds are designed specifically to match the fourth-generation iPod Nano and its nine different colors.

The earphones have Y-style cables and no extensions, giving them a lightweight feel. They also come with different sizes of silicone caps to fit any ear, big or small.

According to Radius, these earphones deliver the highest level of sound quality, great durability, and unparalleled style. I don't know about the quality, but judging from the look, … Read more

Which smartphone maker isn't Verizon talking to?

In the past 36 hours, rumors have been flying around that Verizon Wireless is in talks with Apple, Microsoft, and a Google Android phone maker. So who's next?

Just in case you are having trouble keeping up, here's a summary to get you up to speed:

Late Sunday, USA Today reported that Verizon was planning to offer an iPhone on Verizon's current CDMA-based wireless network. Business Week followed on Monday with its own story that Verizon is talking to Apple about a new "iPhone-lite" phone and a tablet-Netbook-type device. On Tuesday, The Wall Street JournalRead more

AT&T tests speedier 3G network

AT&T's 3G wireless network will soon be twice as fast.

An executive at the company told Telephony Online this week that the company is running trials of its upgraded 3G network in two markets. And the company plans to expand the upgrades across its nationwide network once the trials are completed.

The upgrade to the company's HSPA network will provide peak download speeds of about 3.6Mbps. The company's current generation of technology offers peak download links speeds of 1.7 Mbps. Of course, real world data speeds are much lower. Most wireless subscribers get … Read more

Will the iPhone ever come to Verizon?

Rumors have circulated since Apple's iPhone was first launched that Verizon Wireless might get its own version of the popular device. But will the elusive iPhone ever come to Verizon's network?

Maybe. Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg hinted that Verizon might offer the iPhone on its 4G wireless network, which the company plans to start building next year, in an interview with Dow Jones and The Wall Street Journal. Specifically, Seidenberg said that if Verizon were to offer the iPhone, it would most likely be available on its 4G wireless network rather than on the current CDMA-based cell phone … Read more