Skiff Reader: Largest, Thinnest eReader to date!

2010 is likely to be an even bigger year for technology than 2009.  With new product announcements from many major technology players (i.e. Apple) planned for the first part of the year, tech heads are all salivating with excitement.

Enter the Skiff Reader to get the year started with a bang!  Skiff promises to bring the eReader market the largest, yet thinnest eReader to date.  They have also partnered with Sprint, not only for wireless 3G service, but also for distribution from some +1000 Sprint stores.

All in all, the eReader world could be getting more exciting.  This kind of screen combined with 3G speeds lends itself to all kinds of newspaper and magazine deals that include live updating advertising.  Will consumers back away from their computer screens and go back to "paying" for news content?  I guess only time will tell.  For now the Skiff Reader looks to be at least one very cool device.

Check the features from Skiff:

"The Skiff Reader, the first e-reader to integrate the upcoming Skiff Service, is a state-of-the-art device that is simple and easy-to-use. Our innovations include:

Largest e-paper display › More viewing area for a richer reading experience. 

Thinnest e-reading device › Remarkably sleek. Easy to hold, use and carry. 

Most durable e-reader › First-of-its-kind metal-foil display (eliminating the fragility of glass). A magnesium housing. An incredibly sturdy device. 

Highest display resolution › Four times as many pixels as most e-book readers, for more immersive reading. 

Full touch screen › For intuitive content selection and navigation. Instant page turns with the swipe of a finger. 

Extraordinary battery life › Read for a week between charges."

Check out the device:

Sprint HTC Hero Firmware update now available via OTA.

Sprint HTC Hero users, your update is ready. For the most part, my Sprint HTC Hero has been a pretty good device. I must say the battery life and SMS complaints that I heard about didn't seem to affect me a great deal. That said, updates are generally always better and include many things that aren't specifically listed in the update list.

Here is the official quote from HTC:
Special Update!

Software Upgrade Available for HTC Hero™

A new software upgrade has started to push down to HTC Hero™ Customers. The software upgrade will continue to be done automatically over the next few days through an over-the-air update and will include several enhancements addressing some of the following issues:

- Daylight Savings Time

- Text Messaging

- Bluetooth Issues

- 3.5 MM Headset Jack

- Battery Life

Check out the Sprint Communities site for more details and user feedback.

Sprint's Dan Hesse Talk 4g and Mifi with Charlie Rose

Sprint's Dan Hesse gets his turn with Charlie Rose and does a great job of explaining some real world applications of 4g. The great news is, 4g is already being deployed in many cities around the country. So we are talking technology that is here now not later. Thanks Dan

Check it:

Sprint News: Sprint to release HTC Hero with Sense UI

"Beginning on Oct. 11, customers will be able to purchase HTC Hero through all Sprint retail channels including Web (www.sprint.com), Telesales (1-800-SPRINT1) and our national retail partner Best Buy for $179.99 (excluding taxes) after a $50 instant savings and a $100 mail-in rebate with a two-year service agreement. Pre-registration begins today at www.sprint.com/hero." - Sprint Press Release (9/3/09)



“The arrival of HTC Hero and the Android platform to Sprint’s network is an important milestone for our customers and the U.S. wireless industry,” said Kevin Packingham, senior vice president of product development for Sprint. “With the dependability and coverage of Sprint’s 3G network, HTC Hero users will appreciate a much better experience than is possible now with any other Android phone operating in the United States. They will enjoy the robust potential to personalize their wireless experience as well as the best value in wireless with a Simply Everything plan from Sprint.” - Sprint

As I have stated in the past, Android is the real future for mobile phones and applications.  Some the coolest apps are coming in the form on Android apps first and iPhone apps second.

Sprint MiFi: Making iPhone Faster?

There has been a lot of buzz, on this blog and others, about Sprint's EVDO Rev A network being faster than At&t and Verizon, and at least one At&t subscriber has taken notice. I was showing some friends my new Sprint MiFi and one avid iPhone fan decided to fix her slow speed problem. She simply tapped my MiFi to the back of her iPhone and voila, problem solved. From there she proceeded to walk around for hours surfing at "Sprint Speed" until the iPhone battery died. Oh and by the way, the MiFi still had some battery to give.

Check out the pics:

Sprint's 4g is BLAZING fast and the 3g ain't bad either

Here is a video from the folks at thestreet.com. It shows you what I have been saying all along. Sprint's 3g speed is much faster than everyone else, and its 4g is like lighting. You should be looking forward to the day it comes to your town. Remember, you can buy the 4g card now and have 3g speeds, then upgrade your service to 4g when it comes to town.

Check it:

Boy Genius Speed Test Prove Sprint is Blazing

In a recent boygenius.com article, Sprint's EVDO Rev A speed tested over 400kbps faster than AT&T and double the speed of Verizon. The folks at BG did a great job proving that Sprint deserves a little more respect than it gets. I am constantly reading bad press giving Sprint a hard time. Having used devices from every carrier and working for several, I can tell you that ALL carriers go through good times and bad times. However, Sprint has really been working hard, of late, to cement itself as a true competitor in the wireless industry. With Sprint's great speed, an ever improving product portfolio (getting even better in 4q) and the launch of 4G (coming to a market near you), I can see more and more reasons why people should give Sprint a look.

Compaq Netbook with Sprint Embedded Aircard $.99 from Best Buy

I am not sure what to think about committing to a netbook for two years, but if you are going to buy a netbook and an aircard, you might as well save $400. Just remember you are not committing to the netbook for two years, you are committing to the Sprint service for two years. So next year when you want to buy the latest and greatest, just pay regular price for the new netbook and transfer your service.

Check out the details on the Best Buy site.

Sprint Now Network: Do you know what it looks like?

Check out Sprint's page for the Now Network. Make sure you scroll your mouse around and see how much info they have on the page. Pretty Cool Stuff.

Sprint Blackberry Tour Available July 12th

Sprint and Blackberry fans, your next device is right around the corner. Sprint plans to make the Tour available on July 12th. I must say I am very happy they decided to launch the same days as Verizon. Better value, same device, same day, next question.

Sprint Launches Blackberry Tour (9630), techTIMMY rejoices

I have always said, there are two camps in wireless technology. Those who are Blackberry users and those who are not. Even the iPhone gets lumped into the "non-blackberry" category with all other devices. When it comes to a true business power user, there just isn't any other alternative to a Blackberry.

Now you can get an amazing handset, with all the features you would need, full international parody, and on the Sprint network (click, the case for Sprint article).

Here is the official press release from Sprint:

The New BlackBerry Tour Smartphone Launches on America's Most Dependable 3G Network to Create a Powerful Mobility Tool for Those on the GoThe BlackBerry Tour smartphone from Sprint offers access to America's most dependable 3G network, plus 2100 MHz UMTS/HSPA and quad-band EDGE/GPRS/GSM support for international roaming

OVERLAND PARK, Kan.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun. 16, 2009-- With the new BlackBerry^® Tour™ smartphone from Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq: RIMM; TSX: RIM) available from Sprint (NYSE: S) on America’s most dependable 3G network¹, staying connected won’t be a worry domestically, or when you travel around the world.

The BlackBerry Tour smartphone is a powerful mobility tool that operates on Sprint’s nationwide 3G (EV-DO Rev. A) network domestically. It also roams on other high-speed wireless networks around the world for reliable voice and email communication without missing a beat.

The BlackBerry Tour is a sophisticated smartphone that enables customers to be more productive and better equipped to manage both their busy personal and business lives. It is ideally suited for those who want to stay socially connected, and lets you share moments through pictures and videos via MMS and instant message on popular IM services or BlackBerry^® Messenger. It also offers easy access to your favorite social networking sites like Flickr^®, MySpace and Facebook^®, and you get smooth integration between the BlackBerry Tour smartphone and your Facebook events and friends giving you a great view of what’s happening both personally and professionally. This is the most powerful business smartphone in Sprint’s line-up with instant access to emails, calendar, contacts, robust business applications and location-based services, leveraging the best performing networks both domestically and abroad.

“The BlackBerry Tour is a sophisticated and powerful smartphone that will enable customers to be more productive and better equipped to manage their busy business and personal lives; and global travelers can rest easy knowing Sprint has a solution to keep people connected wherever their travels may take them,” said Kevin Packingham, senior vice president – Product Development, Sprint. “Particularly compelling for world travelers will be the performance enabled by combining the new feature-rich BlackBerry Tour with Sprint’s 3G network and some of the world’s other most robust voice and data networks.”

No one has a larger voice calling area than Sprint. The Nationwide Sprint Network (inclusive of roaming) reaches more than 304 million people in the United States, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, with a Sprint calling plan that includes roaming. Additionally, the Sprint 3G Network, the nation’s most dependable 3G network, is faster in more places than AT&T’s 3G network², and Sprint has more than 20 times the coverage of T-Mobile’s current 3G network, based on square miles.

The BlackBerry Tour smartphone comes with a vibrant high-resolution display (480 x 360 at 245 ppi) plus intuitive trackball navigation, a large, full-QWERTY keyboard, corporate and personal email with attachment viewing, calendar, integrated address book and up to 16 GB of expandable memory with a microSD/SDHC card.

It also includes a 3.2 MP camera with variable zoom, auto focus, flash and image stabilization able to capture crisp pictures and video. It comes pre-loaded with the Sprint Music Store, Sprint TV^®, Sprint NFL Mobile Live and NASCAR Sprint Cup Mobile, and features an advanced media player for playing video and music files, plus a 3.5 mm stereo headset jack and support for the Bluetooth® stereo headsets (A2DP/AVCRP). The BlackBerry Tour smartphone also has built-in GPS and supports location-based services.

The BlackBerry Tour will be available at Sprint stores, www.sprint.com and 1-800-Sprint1 later this summer for $199.99 with a new line of service or eligible upgrade, two-year service agreement and $50 instant rebate and $100 mail-in rebate. Additional savings may be available to business customers through their Sprint account manager.

For more information on BlackBerry Tour smartphone, visit www.sprint.com/tour or www.blackberry.com/tour.

International Travel

The BlackBerry Tour operates domestically on the Sprint 3G network, and globally on 2100 MHz UMTS/HSPA and quad-band EDGE/GSM/GPRS networks where Sprint has international roaming agreements. With this handset, Sprint customers have the power to make or receive phone calls in more than 185 countries and access BlackBerry^® data services including email and Web browsing in nearly 150 countries.

International Service Plans

Sprint offers clear value and simplicity with its Worldwide BlackBerry^® service plan. The Worldwide BlackBerry plan gives customers unlimited BlackBerry email and Web access in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and other locations using CDMA technology, and with GSM/GPRS carriers abroad where Sprint has applicable roaming agreements. The plan is available for $69.99 per month, or just $40 per month (excluding taxes and surcharges) as an attachable to Simply Everything^SM, Everything Data, Everything Data Family or Business Essentials with Messaging and Data.

Sprint international voice roaming rates range from $0.59 to $5.99 per minute, depending on where customers are calling. Customers making frequent calls while in Canada can take advantage of a specific service plan for $2.99 per month which allows calls to be made and received at $0.20 per minute. Additional pricing plans are available exclusively to enterprise customers.

Customers also have the option of using a third-party SIM for international voice and data services.

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 is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including two wireless networks serving nearly 49 million customers at the end of the first quarter of 2009; industry-leading mobile data services; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. For more information, visit www.sprint.com.

The BlackBerry and RIM families of related marks, images and symbols are the exclusive properties and trademarks of Research In Motion Limited. All other marks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.

¹ Most dependable claim based on independent, third-party drive tests for 3G data connection success, session reliability and signal strength for the top 50 most populous markets from January 2008 to February 2009. Not all services available on 3G and coverage may default to separate network when 3G unavailable.

² Speed claim based on total network size, sq. miles, multiplied by network upload/download speed capability. User’s speed experience may vary.

³ Coverage comparison based on publicly available information as of 4/1/09 inclusive of Sprint roaming partners. Based on square miles.”

Source: Sprint Nextel

Sprint Nextel
Mark Elliott, 603-621-4511
mark.j.elliott@sprint.com

Sprint Palm Pre Cheat Developer Mode: upupdowndownleftrightleftrightbastart

I couldn't believe it either, but as it turns out, from the launcher screen of your Pre, simply type in the phrase "upupdowndownleftrightleftrightbastart", which if you remember is the infamous Contra code for getting unlimited lives, and up comes a hidden app called "Developer Mode Enabler."

At his point I am not sure why you would want to do that, but I look forward to trying to break my Pre'.

A case for Sprint.

If you read very much into this blog you might say that I am very "pro" Sprint. Well, truth be told, the blog is only dominated by Palm Pre' stuff because that is the hot topic right now. I am actually a lot more "pro" Apple than anything. However, I am not really an iPhone fan and that's really because of AT&T.

I read so many blogs that talk about the Pre' being really great except its on Sprint. To often I hear people talk about the mighty Verizon and AT&T, as though there is no other alternative. So, I decided to make a case for Sprint, but before I do I must say one thing. Wireless carriers are all very similar and therefor peoples opinions of them are very personal. Where you live, where you work, and your past experiences are huge factors in your opinion of the carrier you choose.

I am going to try to put personal experiences as side and give you a few real world reasons why Sprint deserves a look.

It's pretty well know that Verizon and AT&T have great devices and awesome coverage. Additionally, T-Mobile is pretty well know as the value carrier in the U.S. They are where you wanna be if you need a low cost solution for voice and text. But with little 3g coverage, T-Mobile might not be the pick for a high-end phone user. Well, what happens if you want everything? A wise man once said, "You can't have everything." However, I think with Sprint you can get pretty close.

What Sprint has to offer:
1.) 3g speed and coverage - All U.S. carriers market themselves as having the biggest, fastest, or most dependable 3g coverage. However, other than T-Mobile, most are very similar in all three. So what you are really looking for is a combination of value, speed, coverage and the devices to take advantage of the those. Sprint definitely holds its own in this regard and because it doesn't lock down features like gps and wifi, using the network for third party application is very easy.

2.) Simply Everything - Not every plan is meant for every person. But if you are going to by a high-end phone, you are likely to want data, text messaging, navigation, oh and minutes of course. For $99 you can get pretty much everything any carrier has to offer and an unlimited fashion. This means you can enjoy your solution and not worry about racking up overages.

3.) Devices - iPhone and Storm aside, Sprint's portfolio is actually very good. With the release of the Palm Pre, they pretty much have it all. Of Course, the rumored Blackberry Tour and a bevy of Windows Mobile devices set to launch, it seems to be getting even better. Even though the Palm might not have the marketing power of Apple, the phone really is good and will be a good pick for most users(well, any non-blackberry users that is).

4.) Customer Service - Customer service is one of those things that gets worse and better all the time. It takes two years for it to get bad, two years for the carrier to notice, and two years to fix it. Sprint is definitely on the upside of the roller coaster. Finally winning JD Power awards and retaining customers left and right. In the retails store, "Ready Now" has really made a difference for those people entering the high-end phone category. It means someone is going to show them how to use and set-up their new device so they can truly enjoy its new features.

All in all, the people at Sprint are doing a pretty fantastic job of giving customers a total solution for their wireless needs and certainly deserves a look.

...as always, tell me what you think.

Still Waiting in Line for your Palm Pre'?

Here is what you will see when you first boot it up. So if you can't make it to the Sprint store today, you will have to settle for watching this video over and over again. Like me...

Check It:

Palm Pre Review. As if you haven't see enough.

Tired of seeing Palm Pre stuff? Well too bad, because I am sure it will just keep coming. The people at PreCentral.net have posted their Pre Review. They do a pretty good job and I figured I would spare you the other 500 that I have watched. Of course, until I do mine, then you must watch.

Check It:

New Palm Pre Ad: Do you have may lives?

You guys know techTIMMY is a fan of the Pre, but a phone as that can also make you feel centered in the universe is way cool.

Na mas Dei

Check it:

iPhone not good because of AT&T?

I'm glad she finally said it. It's a great device, but man AT&T isn't great. So bring on the Palm Pre. Great features in a device and a network that truly kicks butt. Nevermind about the whole GPS thing though, Airforce already working on a fix.

Breaking News: Palm Pre From Sprint Release Date Announced!

Sprint announced the Pre will be available nationwide starting on June 6 at a price of $199.99 with a two year service agreement and $100 mail in rebate.

Whooo Hooo!!!

Watch out iPhone, its coming to get ya.

...as always, tell me what you think.

Palm Pre Unboxing...Sort of

Its the moment you have all been waiting for...almost. This little snippet will at least wet your pallets a bit for the up and coming Palm Pre launch. I hope to do a full review and unboxing, but until then you will have to settle for a cut short version from these guys.

Sprint mifi: 3g'ize your ipod?

Sprint is going to start selling their new mifi broadband device. This is public knowledge and not really breaking news but you might not have thought about why you would actually buy one one of these device.

Imagine the same great speed and coverage that you can get with your Sprint laptop aircard. Only now you can give that same access to all those other devices that wifi access.

Things you might own that have wifi, and can there for be "3g'ized":
1.) iPod Touch.
2.) iPhone 2g (oh i bet Sprint would love that)
3.) Sony PSP.
4.) Your laptop before you bought an aircard.
5.) DVR.
6.) iPaq from 1999.

Now imagine having all those devices connected to the internet, all at the same time from the Sprint mifi. Try to picture an internet router with an aircard and a battery.

Going on a trip with the kiddos. Rather then yelling at them to stop fighting, turn on your Sprint mifi and all their little kiddie electronics have 3g access to the internet.

Not every device has a usb port for your aircard. However, very many devices have wifi.

...as always, tell me what you think.