Personal communications

Sony Ericsson to launch its first Android phone

Sony Ericsson is finally stepping into the Android smartphone market.

The company announced Thursday that it will launch its first Android smartphone in April in Japan. Sold through the large Japanese carrier NTT DoCoMo, the Xperia X10--or SO-O1B as it will be known in Japan--will sport a 4-inch WVGA touchscreen and 8.1-megapixel camera. It will include both entertainment and social networking features.

The X10 is set for release in other regions, including the U.S., later this year.

Despite any hopes that the X10 might take advantage of the latest 2.0 version of Android, the phone will … Read more

Verizon ends service of alleged illegal downloaders

Months after Verizon Communications began issuing warnings to accused file sharers, the company has acknowledged that multiple offenses could result in a service interruption.

"We've cut some people off," Verizon Online spokeswoman Bobbi Henson told CNET. "We do reserve the right to discontinue service. But we don't throttle bandwidth like Comcast was doing. Verizon does not have bandwidth caps."

What this means is that Verizon, one of the country's biggest broadband providers, appears to have adopted an approach to illegal file sharing that sounds very similar to one promoted and pushed heavily by … Read more

Bing to oust Google as default iPhone search?

Apple and Microsoft may be in talks to expel Google as the iPhone's default search engine, in favor of Bing, according to BusinessWeek. The Apple-Google battle for the mobile throne is getting heated.

This is all coming from "two people familiar with the matter," so, you know, eat a bowl of salt or whatever, but it sort of makes sense in a Machiavellian kind of way. Windows Mobile 7 notwithstanding, Apple's competition in the mobile arena isn't Microsoft, but Google, and so it's not really that outlandish, especially considering that Bing isn't necessarily … Read more

Consumers to spend big on mobile apps

Mobile app stores are likely to get a lot busier this year.

Smartphone consumers will spend $6.2 billion on mobile apps in 2010, forecasts Gartner in a recent report, generating ad revenue of around $0.6 billion throughout the world. Downloads will also skyrocket, exceeding 4.5 billion this year. But good news for app users--82 percent of all apps downloaded will be free.

Last year, mobile app stores kicked up sales of more than $4.2 billion, which includes paid apps bought by consumers and ad-sponsored free apps. On the horizon, Gartner predicts mobile app downloads will shoot … Read more

AT&T fixes mobile Facebook problems

AT&T has fixed several problems that caused some AT&T customers to log into the wrong Facebook account when using their mobile phones, an AT&T spokesman said on Monday.

"In a limited number of instances, a server software connectivity error resulted in some AT&T wireless customers being logged in to the wrong Facebook account when they accessed Facebook through their mobile phones," AT&T spokesman Michael Coe in a statement.

AT&T added new security measures to prevent the problem from happening again and worked with Facebook to disable … Read more

AT&T rolls out unlimited text, voice, and data plans

AT&T on Friday joined Verizon in revamping its calling plans, announcing a series of new unlimited plans across all devices, especially high-end smartphones.

The new plans include:

Feature Phone customers now have the option of unlimited talk plans for $69.99 a month per person or $119.99 a month for a family plan with two lines included. The unlimited texting plans remain $20 a month for individuals or $30 a month for the Family Talk plan.

Quick Messaging Device customers may now choose unlimited talk for $69.99, and Family Talk customers may choose unlimited talk for $… Read more

Mobile donations to Haiti exceed all in 2009

Since tweets such as "Text HAITI to 90999 to donate $10 to @RedCross relief" went viral Wednesday, more than $8 million has been donated--about double the amount donated to all charities via text messaging throughout all of 2009, a Red Cross spokeswoman tells CNN.

The Red Cross has solicited text message-based giving campaigns in the past, but its biggest peak was when people raised $190,000 via the Text2HELP campaign in the wake of Hurricane Ike in 2008, according to the organization.

And while Red Cross reports that it has already received far more money via larger donations--about $… Read more

Verizon Wireless revamps unlimited calling, data plans

Verizon Wireless today changed prices for its monthly unlimited and prepaid calling plans. The plans will be available to new and current customers; existing subscribers can adopt a new plan without extending their current contract.

Beginning Monday, Nationwide Unlimited Talk plans for individuals (that's voice calls only) will cost $69.99 per month. If you want messaging, you'll need to pay for them individually or add a texting plan. On the other hand, you can get both voice and messaging with a Nationwide Unlimited Talk & Text plan for $89.99 per month.

Groups on a family plan … Read more

Relief money via texting surpasses $4 million

January 14 could be the biggest day for mobile giving to date, as word that texting "Haiti" to number 90999 to donate $10 to the American Red Cross went viral via Twitter, Facebook, and news reports. (Facebook reports that its users have been posting more than 1,500 status updates a minute containing the word Haiti.)

In $10 increments, more than $4 million has been raised via the MGive Foundation's Haiti campaign, according to a Verizon Wireless spokesman. The campaign was set up with with the U.S. State Department and Red Cross late Tuesday night. While … Read more

Akamai: World's Net connection speeds rising

More cities and countries are enjoying faster Internet speeds, according to the latest State of the Internet report released Wednesday by Akamai.

Looking at the third quarter of 2009, the report found that most countries in the top-10 list for Internet performance saw an average 18 percent increase in speed from the second quarter. South Korea topped the list, with a 29 percent jump in speed to 14.6 megabits per second, while Ireland came in second for most improved, with a 26 percent rise to 5.3Mbps.

The United States failed to make the top-10 list again, coming in … Read more