smartphone

AT&T's rivals could start seeing red over the carrier's exclusive lock on the Samsung Galaxy S4's latest hue.

The Aurora Red shade of the 16GB Galaxy S4 goes on sale to AT&T customers starting June 14, though pre-orders begin May 24.

AT&T seems to have a special affinity for red shades; just about a year ago it also scored exclusive U.S. rights to sell the GS4 predecessor, the Samsung Galaxy S3, in a shade of red. Later, that color and others became available globally.

While AT&T may have … Read more

Lenovo seems to be the only top PC vendor bucking the trend of sour sales.

The Hong Kong-based company today reported record results for its fiscal year that ended March 31. For the year, Lenovo captured sales of $34 billion, a 15 percent increase from the prior year. Earnings hit $635 million, up 34 percent. And its PC shipments grew by 10.2 percent, compared with an overall industry drop of 8.1 percent.

Lenovo's 15.5 percent market share for the year put it in within reach of stealing the top spot from Hewlett-Packard. A recent report from … Read more

HTC's flagship smartphone, the One, has inched towards 5 million units sold since its launch about a month ago, an unidentified HTC executive has told the Wall Street Journal.

Speaking to the Journal on Wednesday, the unidentified executive said that "orders are pretty good so far and are still more than what we can supply." He blamed the shortage on issues with component availability, and nothing his own company is doing.

HTC has been in a world of trouble over the last couple of years as demand for its devices has fallen. Although 5 million units sold … Read more

There she was, greeting the Las Vegas audience at the CTIA Wireless show on Wednesday with that trademark million-dollar smile. Meet Jennifer Lopez, actress, singer, and product pitchwoman extraordinaire, and now co-founder and creative director for Viva Movil, a self-styled "premium retailer" for Verizon Wireless products and services targeting Latino consumers.

"As an entrepreneur, empowering the Latino community is at the core of what I choose to have my businesses stand for and exemplify," Lopez said during her presentation to the CTIA audience. She added that Latino smartphone customers don't have any "specific place,&… Read more

LAS VEGAS -- Although already available through other carriers like Net10 and Straight Talk, the Samsung Galaxy Discover will be available on Cricket Wireless starting this summer.

The news was made official during a press conference today during CTIA. The carrier also announced that it will release the Samsung Admire 2 in the summer, as well as the Galaxy S4 on June 7.

Though Cricket did not release final pricing, the Galaxy Discover currently retails for about $100.

Design Compact and sturdy at 4.4 ounces, the 3.5-inch Galaxy Discover is a small entry-level device that measures 4.59 … Read more

LAS VEGAS--Cricket Wireless has big plans for this year. In addition to announcing that it will be offering the Galaxy S4 in June, and its new "Half is More" ad campaign, the prepaid carrier also reported that it will sell the Samsung Admire 2.

Though no specific availability date and pricing information was given, the Admire 2 is scheduled to come out this summer. Its predecessor, which was originally offered on MetroPCS, launched with an initial price point of $129.

Design During the press conference, Cricket did not release any specs. But what I could gather from handling … Read more

A pair of yet-to-be-announced HTC smartphones surfaced this week, tipping the hardware maker's future plans.

An HTC 102e currently getting its certification (translate) in Taiwan may prove to be a variation of the rumored G2.

Details show the handset as having a 3.5-inch 320x480-pixel display, a 1GHz single-core processor, 512MB RAM, 4GB internal storage, and a 5-megapixel rear camera. Powered by Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, the entry-level device should feature a microSD expansion card and a 1400mAh battery. The 102e reportedly will debut as the Desire 200 and could be exclusive to the Asian market.

An … Read more

LAS VEGAS -- In an aggressive move for Cricket Wireless, the prepaid carrier has launched an advertising campaign urging Verizon and AT&T customers to switch over from their costly on-contract plans to Cricket's more affordable rates.

Named "Half Is More," the initiative will fan out online, in print media, on TV, and through social-media campaigns. In fact, Cricket has already dedicated a portion of its Web site to this new competitive effort.

It's no coincidence that television ads in support of Cricket's cost savings begin June 3; the company will begin selling Samsung's Galaxy S4 smartphone … Read more

Samsung has inked a deal with fellow Korean phone maker Pantech for an equity stake in the company.

In a statement on Wednesday, Samsung confirmed an earlier report from Yonhap News, saying that it has acquired a 10 percent stake in Pantech for $48 million. The company said that the investment is designed solely to enhance the relationship between the firms.

As expected, the move has raised some eyebrows in Korea, where Samsung and Pantech are competing most heavily in the mobile device market. Elsewhere around the world, Pantech's devices are decidedly second- or third-tier and don't amount … Read more