3G

When Amazon first launched its latest-generation Kindle e-reader last year, it touted the fact that it could get up to a month's worth of battery life. That same figure is mentioned in a variety of print and television ads.

But after Barnes & Noble launched the new Nook yesterday and played up the Simple Touch Reader's 2 months of battery life (B&N called it the "longest battery life of any eReader"), Amazon countered by magically upping the battery life of the Kindle to two months as the company released a $164 Special Offers version … Read more

Amazon's response to Barnes & Noble launching the new Nook? Counter with a new ad-supported version of the Kindle 3G for $164.

The new model, like its $114 Wi-Fi-only counterpart, is called the Kindle 3G With Special Offers. It costs $25 less than the standard Kindle 3G.

Here's a link to Amazon's press release, but it's really just the $114 model with 3G plus Wi-Fi. … Read more

If you've ever wanted to expand your Mac's capabilities, you probably wondered what--and how much--your machine could handle. This free utility eliminates the guesswork, providing current, comprehensive, and accurate technical specifications on every Mac known to man, from Cupertino's latest right on down to the vintage Macintosh 128K, along with technical information on servers, other Apple devices, and OS software stretching back to System 2.0.1.

Mactracker maintains data on everything from maximum RAM and processor speed to performance benchmarks, expansion slots, firmware, built-in hardware, and more--all in a clean, newly redesigned interface that provides strong … Read more

In our experience, Verizon's claim about offering the fastest 4G network has been consistently correct in CNET tests. Its LG VL600 LTE USB Modem proved the fastest among its peers, and now the Samsung 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot SCH-11 is by far the fastest among 4G cellular routers CNET has reviewed. But it's far from perfect.

Measuring just 3.5 inches by 2.3 inches by half an inch, Verizon's compact and good-looking Samsung 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot SCH-11 is about the same size as Sprint's MiFi 4082 3G/4G Mobile Hotspot or T-Mobile's 4G Mobile Hotspot ZTE MF61. All three routers support 3G and 4G networks and offer Internet access for up to five Wi-Fi clients.

However, the similarity ends there. The Samsung device doesn't support most features available in the other two, such as GPS, Wi-Fi Protected Setup, an external antenna port, microSD slot for network storage, and so on. The router doesn't even allow Wi-Fi clients to communicate with one another. It's just a simple router that shares a very fast connection to the Internet. … Read more

Hewlett-Packard announced this evening that it is jumping in to the mobile data plan business with a service called DataPass.

Much like a prepaid cell phone, DataPass offers users of 3G-enabled HP laptops a 3G mobile broadband service on Sprint's EVDO network without worrying about lengthy contracts, set-up fees, or locating the closest hot spot.

The plans start at $5 for 75MB during a seven-hour period.

HP also unveiled a bevy of new laptops this evening, including a few professional-level ProBooks and Elitebooks.

Potential BlackBerry PlayBook customers apparently will have to wait a while longer before they can buy the tablet through Sprint.

In a document addressed to dealers and revealed this week by mobile-device blog BriefMobile, Sprint broke the news of another delay in offering Research In Motion's new tablet. This latest delay follows initially promised launch dates of April 19 and May 8, according to BriefMobile.

Announcing the delay, the document promises that a new launch date will be communicated as soon as it's available. It also advises dealers who've bought PlayBook display pedestals to hang onto them … Read more

The T-Mobile 4G Mobile Hotspot looks like a chocolate bar and is supposed to be enjoyed like chocolate, too: slowly. This doesn't mean the device's Internet connection is slow, however.

In fact, it's significantly faster than the recently reviewed Sprint MiFi 4082 3G/4G Mobile Hotspot; it has average 4G download speeds of around 3.5Mbps and uploads at around 1.8Mbps in the San Francisco Bay Area. So why do you have to hold your horses when it comes to enjoying it?

The answer is because of the data plans T-Mobile has for the device. There … Read more

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that despite Apple's Location Services being in the off position, iPhones are still collecting your general location data. National media outlets have been analyzing recent reports that Apple's iPhones and iPads with 3G are tracking location data and storing it in an unsecured location on the iPhone.

According to tests performed by The Wall Street journal, those location data collection practices are not disabled even if all the Location Services (which are turned on by default) are completely turned off.

If you travel alone with your laptop, a 4G modem like the Clear 4G+ Mobile or the LG VL600 LTE will more than take care of your Internet needs. But if you're in a group, or carry along with your laptop other Internet-enabled devices, such as mobile phones or tablets, you'll find those modems painfully lacking as they have no Internet-sharing capability.

What you need in this case is something that can offer Internet connections to multiple devices simultaneously. And this is when mobile cellular routers, like Sprint's MiFi 4082 3G/4G Hotspot, come into play.

The … Read more