Tag Archives: mobile

SK Telecom to offer customers NFC enabled SIM cards for $40 [Cheaper than buying a new phone]

South Korean operator SK Telecom wants people to use near field enabled mobile services, especially their own, but how are they going to convince folks that they should buy a new phone that has NFC hardware inside? Actually … they don’t. According to NFC World , beginning next month SK Telecom will offer their customers a special SIM card that has also features NFC functionality for between $30 and $40. That’s surprisingly affordable for those folks who want to see what all the hype around NFC is about, but don’t want to ditch the phone they currently have. We have serious doubts that American operators are willing to do the same thing. Chances are they’ll offer you a handset with some additional subsidies, but you’ll be required to extend your contract. Folks will likely sign the dotted line, and then every time they use their mobile phone to make a purchase the operator will get a cut of the transaction. Speaking about NFC, where the hell are the NFC enabled smartphones? Samsung showed off the Galaxy S II in February and said it would feature NFC, and it does … but only on the South Korean variant. The only NFC enabled smartphone being sold in America right now is the Google Nexus S . We’ll likly see NFC in the Nexus Prime, but what about the next iPhone? Will Apple make us wait until the iPhone 6? If Nokia can manage to announce 3 Symbian smartphones that stretch across a wide set of price points, yet still have each feature NFC, then why hasn’t anyone else done the same thing? Mobile World Congress, the mother of all mobile industry trade shows, kicks off in 5 months. If we don’t see NFC device there, then there’s a likely chance we’re not going to see any until the second half of 2012. That would break out hearts. SK Telecom to offer customers NFC enabled SIM cards for $40 [Cheaper than buying a new phone] originally appeared on IntoMobile.com on 2011-09-15T13:49:00Z. FV1gMYsz9b5j

LG Marquee brings a little style and fashion to Sprint

Sprint announced the LG Marquee , a $99 Android smartphone, with plans to launch the device in partnership with MADE, formally known as M·A·C & Milk, during MADE Fashion Week in New York City. But if you think that Sprint and LG skimped on the goods because it’s a phone associated with fashion, think again. The LG Marquee will feature the latest version of Android, 2.3 Gingerbread, and it’s powered by a 1GHz processor. The Marquee also has a 5MP rear camera capable of capturing HD video, and a front-facing camera for self-portraits and video calling. For better or worse, the LG Marquee also comes with Sprint ID, which allows you to choose preset customizations for your smartphone, along with app bundles to get you started with Android. For more details, see below. LG Marquee from Sprint Celebrates the Perfect Combination of Signature Style and Cutting-Edge Technology During New York Fashion Week   As Sprint’s first device available for advance pre-sale, customers can buy  LG Marquee beginning on Sept. 20 at  www.sprint.com/marquee   for $99.99   TLC’s Stacy London and up-and-coming designers team up to invite consumers to make “The Bright Choice” with a MADE Fashion Week Campaign promoting the thin, light and bright LG Marquee New York City  –  Sept. 14, 2011  –  Sprint  (NYSE: S) and LG Mobile today announced the upcoming arrival of an Android device that perfectly pairs fashion with technology – LG Marquee Android™, exclusively from Sprint. The device will be launched in partnership with non-profit design collective MADE, formally known as M·A·C & Milk, at this year’s MADE FASHION WEEK in New York City. Keeping with the smartphone’s innovative convergence of technology and fashion, LG enlisted Stacy London of TLC’s “What Not To Wear ”  to act as resident style mentor to five up-and-coming MADE designers as they craft chic carrying cases for LG Marquee. LG Marquee arrives on the Sprint Network on Sunday, Oct. 2 for just $99.99 (excludes taxes) with eligible upgrade or new two-year contract and after a $50 mail-in rebate via reward card 1  (pricing excludes taxes). It will be the first Sprint device to be sold in advance online. Pre-sale orders begin on Tuesday, Sept. 20, and end on Tuesday, Sept. 27, at  www.sprint.com/marquee . Customers who pre-order LG Marquee will begin receiving their devices on Thursday, Sept. 29 – three days before the device goes on sale. “These days, a wireless phone is much more than just a communication device – it also echoes one’s personal style and taste,” said David Owens, vice president – Product Development, Sprint. “Design has become a key factor in the purchase decision and the LG Marquee is sure to turn heads.” “LG believes fashion and technology go hand-in-hand among today’s growing contingent of style-conscious and tech-savvy consumers,” said Tim O’Brien, vice president of marketing for LG Mobile. “By partnering with Sprint, MADE and Stacy London, LG effectively showcases three prominent phone features important to consumers: a sleek, thin profile, ultra light weight design and bright display.” LG Marquee is an ideal mobile device for anyone who wants superior performance without sacrificing personal style. The sleek, ultra-thin smartphone features a 4-inch NOVA display and a virtual QWERTY keyboard. Encouraging consumers to make “the bright choice,” LG Marquee boasts a remarkably vivid and visible screen, even in direct sunlight. LG Marquee ships with Android 2.3 and Mobile Hotspot capability supporting up to five Wi-Fi enabled devices simultaneously. It also offers a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera for maximum versatility in creating and sharing media and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera making your face-to-face video chatting experience even more memorable. Equipped with a 1GHz processor and Adobe Flash technology, LG Marquee makes downloading, posting, commenting, watching and playing faster and easier than ever. The device features Sprint ID, allowing users to customize up to five screens on the device with a couple simple clicks. Sprint ID allows users to cut through the clutter of Android Market’s more than 250,000 apps by simply selecting from a variety of mobile ID packs featuring apps, ringers, wallpapers, widgets and more. Available Sprint ID packs include: Fashion and Beauty, E!, MTV Music, Green, and NASCAR Sprint Cup. LG Marquee requires activation on a Sprint Everything Data plan for smartphones 2 . Sprint’s Everything Data plan with Any Mobile, Anytime SM  includes unlimited web, texting and calling to and from any mobile in America while on the Sprint Network, starting at just $69.99 per month plus required $10 Premium Data add-on charge. The Mobile Hotspot option is available for an additional $29.99 per month supporting up to five Wi-Fi enabled devices simultaneously 3  (pricing excludes taxes and surcharges). Celebrating Technology and Fashion The LG Fashion Week campaign pairs Stacy London’s impeccable style with the innovative, futuristic eye of MADE. London brings years of fashion-industry experience to her LG style mentor role and will provide each of the MADE designers with creative consulting sessions as they design fashion-forward carrying cases to showcase the clean, modern, minimalist styling of LG Marquee. Participating MADE designers include Kevork Kiledjian, Katie Gallagher, The Lake and Stars, Erickson Beamon and Christian Cota. “Being able to give our designers yet another platform for growth and exposure is part of the DNA of MADE; and allowing our designers to interact with major brands like LG is a great learning tool for future partnerships,” said Jenne Lombardo, Co-Director of MADE. Celebrating a partnership of Sprint and LG’s rich style heritage, the campaign highlights the increasing influence of technology on today’s design community and includes a Fashion Week panel discussion and product launch reception hosted by London at Milk Studios on Thursday, Sept. 15. The MADE panel discussion, entitled “How Fashion Communicates,” will be moderated by Simon Collins, dean of fashion at Parsons The New School for Design, and will take an in-depth look at five key areas where technology has altered fashion design. As part of the esteemed panel, London will provide industry insights to discussion categories including designer communication, the rise of the blogger, public access to real-time happenings, retail and the shift from print to digital media. The chic and functional LG Marquee carrying cases created by the participating designers will debut on Sept. 15 during LG’s launch event at MADE FASHION WEEK. The event will feature individual designer stations that will display the inspiration behind each case. In addition, at the end of the evening, London will announce her top designer pick for the overall campaign.         About Sprint Nextel Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 52 million customers at the end of 2Q 2011 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone.  Newsweek  ranked Sprint No. 6 in its 2010 Green Rankings, listing it as one of the nation’s greenest companies, the highest of any telecommunications company. You can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com  or  www.facebook.com/sprint  and  www.twitter.com/sprint . LG Marquee brings a little style and fashion to Sprint originally appeared on IntoMobile.com on 2011-09-14T18:00:03Z. FV1gMYsz9b5j

Sprint Officially Announces the LG Marquee for October 2nd, Angles it as a Choice for the Style Conscious Citizen

That didn’t take long, did it? After the LG Optimus Black for Sprint was outed at a recent Radio Shack event as the LG Marquee Sprint’s gone ahead and made it official with a nice looking press release. While the Marquee will draw people in due to it’s extremely bright screen, Sprint’s going with the fashion angle, collaborating with design collective MADE to launch the device in style. Aside from its good, sleek looks, you can expect decent internals that fits this one right into that mid-range crowd. We’ve got the oft-discussed 4 inch NOVA display which LG claims is the brightest mobile phone display on the market, a 1GHz processor, Android 2.3, a 5 megapixel rear camera with a 2 megapixel front camera and more. Availability? You can begin preordering on September 20th through September 27th. Presale customers will begin receiving their devices on the 29th, but the “official” launch isn’t slated for three days later. All of this comes to you at just $100. Read on for full press details. LG Marquee from Sprint Celebrates the Perfect Combination of Signature Style and Cutting-Edge Technology During New York Fashion Week As Sprint’s first device available for advance pre-sale, customers can buy LG Marquee beginning on Sept. 20 at www.sprint.com/marquee for $99.99 TLC’s Stacy London and up-and-coming designers team up to invite consumers to make “The Bright Choice” with a MADE Fashion Week Campaign promoting the thin, light and bright LG Marquee New York City – Sept. 14, 2011 – Sprint (NYSE: S) and LG Mobile today announced the upcoming arrival of an Android device that perfectly pairs fashion with technology – LG Marquee Android™, exclusively from Sprint. The device will be launched in partnership with non-profit design collective MADE, formally known as MAC & Milk, at this year’s MADE FASHION WEEK in New York City. Keeping with the smartphone’s innovative convergence of technology and fashion, LG enlisted Stacy London of TLC’s “What Not To Wear ” to act as resident style mentor to five up-and-coming MADE designers as they craft chic carrying cases for LG Marquee. LG Marquee arrives on the Sprint Network on Sunday, Oct. 2 for just $99.99 (excludes taxes) with eligible upgrade or new two-year contract and after a $50 mail-in rebate via reward card 1 (pricing excludes taxes). It will be the first Sprint device to be sold in advance online. Pre-sale orders begin on Tuesday, Sept. 20, and end on Tuesday, Sept. 27, at www.sprint.com/marquee . Customers who pre-order LG Marquee will begin receiving their devices on Thursday, Sept. 29 – three days before the device goes on sale. “These days, a wireless phone is much more than just a communication device – it also echoes one’s personal style and taste,” said David Owens, vice president – Product Development, Sprint. “Design has become a key factor in the purchase decision and the LG Marquee is sure to turn heads.” “LG believes fashion and technology go hand-in-hand among today’s growing contingent of style-conscious and tech-savvy consumers,” said Tim O’Brien, vice president of marketing for LG Mobile. “By partnering with Sprint, MADE and Stacy London, LG effectively showcases three prominent phone features important to consumers: a sleek, thin profile, ultra light weight design and bright display.” LG Marquee is an ideal mobile device for anyone who wants superior performance without sacrificing personal style. The sleek, ultra-thin smartphone features a 4-inch NOVA display and a virtual QWERTY keyboard. Encouraging consumers to make “the bright choice,” LG Marquee boasts a remarkably vivid and visible screen, even in direct sunlight. LG Marquee ships with Android 2.3 and Mobile Hotspot capability supporting up to five Wi-Fi enabled devices simultaneously. It also offers a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera for maximum versatility in creating and sharing media and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera making your face-to-face video chatting experience even more memorable. Equipped with a 1GHz processor and Adobe Flash technology, LG Marquee makes downloading, posting, commenting, watching and playing faster and easier than ever. The device features Sprint ID, allowing users to customize up to five screens on the device with a couple simple clicks.Sprint ID allows users to cut through the clutter of Android Market’s more than 250,000 apps by simply selecting from a variety of mobile ID packs featuring apps, ringers, wallpapers, widgets and more. Available Sprint ID packs include: Fashion and Beauty, E!, MTV Music, Green, and NASCAR Sprint Cup. LG Marquee requires activation on a Sprint Everything Data plan for smartphones 2 . Sprint’s Everything Data plan with Any Mobile, Anytime SM includes unlimited web, texting and calling to and from any mobile in America while on the Sprint Network, starting at just $69.99 per month plus required $10 Premium Data add-on charge. The Mobile Hotspot option is available for an additional $29.99 per month supporting up to five Wi-Fi enabled devices simultaneously 3 (pricing excludes taxes and surcharges). Celebrating Technology and Fashion The LG Fashion Week campaign pairs Stacy London’s impeccable style with the innovative, futuristic eye of MADE. London brings years of fashion-industry experience to her LG style mentor role and will provide each of the MADE designers with creative consulting sessions as they design fashion-forward carrying cases to showcase the clean, modern, minimalist styling of LG Marquee. Participating MADE designers include Kevork Kiledjian, Katie Gallagher, The Lake and Stars, Erickson Beamon and Christian Cota. “Being able to give our designers yet another platform for growth and exposure is part of the DNA of MADE; and allowing our designers to interact with major brands like LG is a great learning tool for future partnerships,” said Jenne Lombardo, Co-Director of MADE. Celebrating a partnership of Sprint and LG’s rich style heritage, the campaign highlights the increasing influence of technology on today’s design community and includes a Fashion Week panel discussion and product launch reception hosted by London at Milk Studios on Thursday, Sept. 15. The MADE panel discussion, entitled “How Fashion Communicates,” will be moderated by Simon Collins, dean of fashion at Parsons The New School for Design, and will take an in-depth look at five key areas where technology has altered fashion design. As part of the esteemed panel, London will provide industry insights to discussion categories including designer communication, the rise of the blogger, public access to real-time happenings, retail and the shift from print to digital media. The chic and functional LG Marquee carrying cases created by the participating designers will debut on Sept. 15 during LG’s launch event at MADE FASHION WEEK. The event will feature individual designer stations that will display the inspiration behind each case. In addition, at the end of the evening, London will announce her top designer pick for the overall campaign. About Sprint Nextel Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 52 million customers at the end of 2Q 2011 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. Newsweek ranked Sprint No. 6 in its 2010 Green Rankings, listing it as one of the nation’s greenest companies, the highest of any telecommunications company. You can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint . About LG Electronics, Inc. LG Electronics, Inc. (KSE: 066570.KS) is a global leader and technology innovator in consumer electronics, mobile communications and home appliances, employing more than 93,000 people working in over 120 operations around the world. With 2010 global sales of 55.8 trillion Korean won (USD 48.2 billion), LG comprises four business units – Home Entertainment, Mobile Communications, Home Appliance, and Air Conditioning & Energy Solutions. LG is one of the world’s leading producers of flat panel TVs, mobile devices, air conditioners, washing machines, and refrigerators. LG has signed a long-term agreement to become both a Global Partner and a Technology Partner of Formula 1™. As part of this top-level association, LG acquires exclusive designations and marketing rights as the official consumer electronics, mobile phone and data processor of this global sporting event. For more information, please visit www.lg.com . About LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company The LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company is a leading global mobile communications and information company. With its cutting-edge technology and innovative design capabilities, LG creates handsets that provide an optimized mobile experience to customers around the world. LG is pursuing convergence technology and mobile computing products, while continuing its leadership role in mobile communication with stylish designs and smart technology. For more information, please visit http://www.lgmobilephones.com . MADE , formerly known as M.A.C. and Milk, was born from the successful Fashion Week collaboration that started in 2008. Now in its fifth season, MADE FASHION WEEK continues to showcase outstanding design and harness the energy of New York’s creative communities. The compelling program of events – over 35 fashion shows and presentations each season, exhibitions, parties, concerts, panel discussions and an unrivaled online presence on milkmade.com – has translated to success at a retail level and in the press, as well as in the highly coveted digital arena. MADE has expanded as a year-round, dynamic platform for emerging design talent and other innovators and visionaries. MADE provides support to New York’s fashion community in a vibrant atmosphere that encourages creativity, fosters growth and challenges convention. These innovators and visionaries are now a powerful voice in the international fashion dialogue and have initiated a general shift in the industry.

DoCoMo and Samsung to partner in an attempt to compete with Qualcomm on basebands

Japanese operator NTT DoCoMo and South Korean handset maker and component supplier Samsung, as well as Fujitsu, NEC, and Panasonic, are partnering up in an attempt to take on Qualcomm , who according to Japanese publication Nikkei has 80% of the baseband market. What’s a baseband you might ask? If you know what a modem is, then you already know what a baseband does. It’s a chip that makes sure your mobile phone connects to a wireless network and delivers you your email, Twitter, Facebook, and whatever else you happen to do on the internet. The project will kick off immediately and will have 30 billion yen ($390 million) pumped into it, with over half coming from NTT DoCoMo. When all is said and done, the products this joint venture will create will end up being used in a majority of Japanese mobile phones and likely in Samsung products as well. This move is significant because Samsung currently manufacturers their own processors for smartphones and tablets, but they still rely on an external partner for providing cellular connectivity. If they can bring that in-house, then they could start selling complete platforms, just like Qualcomm does, and both NVIDIA and Intel hope to some day do as well. This is also good news for DoCoMo, because they’re an incredibly advanced operator who wants to be the first to adopt the next big wireless standard. In this case, LTE-Advanced. Instead of relying on Qualcomm’s time table for delivering innovation, which looks at the global market as a whole, this joint venture can run circles around everyone, making chips that are several generations ahead of everything else on the market. Should Qualcomm be scared? Not really, they’ll likely maintain their lead in the baseband space because they’re just so damn good at what they do. These companies teaming up are simply looking to introduce some competition to Qualcomm’s near total monopoly in order to bargain some lower prices. [Photo of the Gundam statue Japan built] DoCoMo and Samsung to partner in an attempt to compete with Qualcomm on basebands originally appeared on IntoMobile.com on 2011-09-14T09:10:59Z. FV1gMYsz9b5j

Verizon will start offering a $50 unlimited plan tomorrow, sadly they’ll only offer dumbphones

With the current economic situation causing many Americans to take a hard look at their monthly spending, more and more folks are switching to prepaid since the plans are not only cheaper, but also provide the comfort of knowing that you can leave at any point in time and not face an absurdly high termination fee. Over the course of one year, prepaid subscriptions with Sprint and MetroPCS increased by 23% and 29% respectively. According to The Wall Street Journal , Verizon Wireless is going to start offering a $50 per month unlimited everything starting tomorrow to capture some of that prepaid growth. When we say everything, we mean everything. Talk, text, and data is included. There’s a slight snag though. Only four devices will be able to take advantage of this plan, and said devices are feature phones, or more appropriately called “dumbphones” since they don’t run applications or have a decent web browser. The exact models haven’t been specified yet, but they’ll be devices from LG, Pantech, and Samsung. If you’re thinking of signing up for this, then you should be aware of what the competition offers. Both Virgin Mobile and Boost Mobile offer a similar unlimited everything plan, the former charges $55 per month for unlimited, but unlike Verizon they actually offer smartphones. Virgin Mobile has the Motorola Triumph , which has a great 4.1 inch screen with a resolution of 800 x 480 pixels and a 1 GHz processor, and it’ll run you just $300. Boost Mobile has the Samsung Prevail, which honestly is a device we wouldn’t recommend since it’s so … basic, but then there’s the SIM only option. Two MVNOs (mobile virtual network operators) exist that offer unlimited everything for $60 per month. One is Simple Mobile, which uses T-Mobile’s network, and H2O Wireless, which uses AT&T’s network. The catch with those guys is you have to supply your own smartphone, which isn’t a bad thing since you can buy an unlocked iPhone straight from Apple, cut your SIM card down to size, and boom, you’re escaping AT&T’s ridiculous fees. Verizon will start offering a $50 unlimited plan tomorrow, sadly they’ll only offer dumbphones originally appeared on IntoMobile.com on 2011-09-14T08:41:04Z. FV1gMYsz9b5j

US Airways now accepts mobile boarding passes in 14 U.S. airports

US Airways now accepts mobile boarding passes in 14 U.S. airports with additional airports to be added later in the year. The airline first started testing the technology at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas and at Charlotte Douglas International Airport in Charlotte, N.C. starting in December 2010 and since that was a success, they decided to expand to other airports, including LaGuardia International Airport in New York and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Washington, D.C. The process of boarding is super easy – instead of showing a piece of paper at the gate, you’ll scan a 2D barcode right from your mobile phone. What’s more, you’ll be able to scan the mobile boarding pass at the kiosk if necessary or bypass check-in lines and head straight to the security checkpoint where the electronic bar code is scanned and validated. For this endeavor, US Airways teamed-up with NCR Corporation, which issued more than 1.2 million mobile boarding passes in July, 2011… Now we hope that all airlines around the world will implement this technology and finally put the end of the paper use at airports. US Airways now accepts mobile boarding passes in 14 U.S. airports originally appeared on IntoMobile.com on 2011-09-13T09:01:43Z. FV1gMYsz9b5j

HTC Considers Purchase of its Own Smartphone OS

Despite HTC’s strong ties to Google’s Android and Microsoft’s Windows Phone platforms, talk of the Taiwanese mobile manufacturer moving on with its own smartphone OS crops up from time to time. Last year we heard the company had considered developing its own platform , but the consideration hasn’t gone very far to this point. Now, HTC chairwoman Cher Wong says the company would be open to purchasing an existing OS. ”We have given it thought and we have discussed it internally,” said Wang, “but we will not do it on impulse.” If HTC is indeed on the market, there is not a whole lot out there to be had. The biggest candidate would be webOS, a platform asking to be purchased from current owner HP after the computer manufacturer effectively shutdown all operations related to the mobile OS. But likely nothing will come of whatever “thought” HTC has given the idea. Their Android business is simply too strong at the current time to drop Google in favor of attempting to grow the market share of an alternative OS from scratch. While HTC is known for its stellar hardware, they can’t deny that Android is a large part of their recent popularity. [via BGR ]

MocoSpace: Mobile virtual goods purchasing of different U.S. ethnicities

MocoSpace released results from a new study on virtual goods purchases of Americans by ethnicity. Collected during June 2011 by looking at anonymous data of 40,000 mobile social gamers on the MocoSpace platform, the data and findings demonstrate that consumer markets vary in their spending habits within mobile social games. Here’s what they’ve found: Caucasians, which made up 18% of surveyed users, made 26% of virtual goods purchases. African Americans, which comprised 36% of surveyed respondents, made up 38% of purchases. Hispanics, which comprised 31% of respondents, were responsible for 21% of virtual goods purchases. Asian Americans, Native Americans and Pacific Islanders spent their fair share too with each group accounting for roughly 4% of virtual goods purchases and each made up 4% of the respondent base. So what do we make out of it – errr nothing. People love free games and since they (can) monetize using virtual goods, some money is made for the developers along the way. You can check what MocoSpace is all about from their website. MocoSpace: Mobile virtual goods purchasing of different U.S. ethnicities originally appeared on IntoMobile.com on 2011-09-12T08:32:32Z. FV1gMYsz9b5j

Smozzy Android app offers web surfing without a data plan

Imagine if you had the ability to browse the web on your smartphone without a data plan, sounds like a fantasy right? Well,  Smozzy , a new Android application, plans to turn fantasy into reality by letting users search the Web on their mobile phone without a data plan. But here’s the caveat: The app works only on T-Mobile phones (in the United States) and requires that you have a messaging plan to avoid being charged. Once you get beyond the red tape, you find out that the app smartly uses SMS and MMS to send requests and receive the content. Users will also find the app to work just like their own Android phone’s browser, but with the lack of a data plan it’ll be a tad bit slower. The concept behind the app’s functionality is a little tricky, as end user requests are sent to Smozzy’s servers by SMS and the responses are sent back via MMS. Smozzy then downloads the requested page and all its resources (stylesheets, images, etc.) and puts everything into a Zip file, to be encoded as a PNG. When done, the PNG is sent out via MMS completing the perfect hack recipe. This app showed its face first on  Hacker News , and we found it thanks to TechCrunch. Smozzy has impressed so much that its even been getting offers from company’s willing to help with hosting. The fact that this app was created by some UT Austin grad, now Berkeley graduate student is impressive to say the least. But we still have to see whether T-Mobile will turn the lights off on the app, especially when Smozzy sort of threatens the way T-Mo makes its money with data plans. [via 1 , 2 ] Smozzy Android app offers web surfing without a data plan originally appeared on IntoMobile.com on 2011-09-09T19:00:35Z. FV1gMYsz9b5j

Sprint intros global mobile hotspot

If you travel abroad even once or twice per year, staying connected can be an issue – it’s either way too expensive or you’re scrambling to find Internet cafes or WiFi hotspots. Sprint is hoping to allay some of those concerns with the introduction of a mobile global hotspot made by ZTE. The Sprint International Mobile Hotspot has CDMA capabilities for when you’re in the United States and GSM capabilities when you’re abroad. The features include: Universal Wi-Fi compatibility · Provides mobile broadband access to 5 Wi-Fi enabled devices while on CDMA and 1 Wi-Fi enabled device while in GSM · Easy to use: compact, portable device requires no connector or software installation · Compatible with Windows® 7, Vista ®, XP®, Macintosh® Linux · Wi-Fi 802.11b/g · Web UI for customized settings and security · External display indicating data transfer and battery condition · World Mode – device comes with a pre-installed, unlocked SIM card that is both WCDMA and GSM capable · Multiple country adapters for easy charging in international outlets included in box · Wi-Fi range up to 131 feet The Sprint International Mobile Hotspot has EVDO Rev.A and WCDMA/HSDPA/HSUPA for when you’re roaming. The pricing isn’t cheap but it’s a solid way to stay online when you’re traveling. Sprint intros global mobile hotspot originally appeared on IntoMobile.com on 2011-09-09T16:02:19Z. FV1gMYsz9b5j