Tag Archives: ATT
How to survive without an unlimited data plan
Mobile consumers are inching closer to a world where unlimited data doesn’t flow as freely.
The decision by Verizon Wireless to drop unlimited data plans is the latest move by carriers to get customers to pay a little extra for all those Web pages, songs and videos they’re consuming.
But with some careful planning, the impact might not be as significant as you think. Here are a couple tips for coping with life after an unlimited data plan.
Wi-Fi is your best friend. Use reliable wireless broadband networks any chance you get. All data consumption via Wi-Fi will not count against wireless plans, so surf the Web or download apps freely.
Get to know the data hogs. If you’re Tweeting, updating Facebook, checking out websites or sending e-mails, there’s usually little impact to your data plan. Heavier tasks such as watching videos, streaming music, uploading photos
Article source: http://rssfeeds.usatoday.com/~r/usatoday-TechTopStories/~3/ANWGyqJILB8/1
Wireless carriers to roll out data share plans
In a bid to sell and connect more devices to their wireless networks — and generate more money per subscriber — major carriers are preparing to introduce “data share” plans that will likely require more coordination among family members.
In such plans, customers will pay for a fixed bucket of monthly data and share it among family members. If you live alone, the data in the bucket can be shared among various devices capable of receiving over-the-air signals, such as tablets, smartphones, security monitors in the car and other connected devices. For example, a customer can choose a plan with 5 gigabytes for two devices, instead of 3 GB for one.
A typical current wireless family plan allows you to share voice minutes, but any data allotment has to be assigned to individual devices.
The changes come as the industry is trying to improve profit margins even as companies
Article source: http://rssfeeds.usatoday.com/~r/usatoday-TechTopStories/~3/iNJs_FEromc/1
Study: Phone companies even on satisfaction
AFP/Getty Images Improvements in customer satisfaction at Sprint Nextel and ATT have narrowed differences among the Big 4 wireless carriers to the point that they’re basically even in terms of pleasing their subscribers.
Article source: http://rssfeeds.usatoday.com/~r/usatoday-TechTopStories/~3/DEH-sILXDac/1
Siri likes Lumia 900 best? Depends on question
Apple’s charming iPhone personal assistant Siri is back in the news again, this time because of her supposed affection for its competitor, the Nokia Lumia 900.
As The Next Web reports, if you ask Siri “what is the best smartphone ever?” she will recommend the recently-launched Windows phone from ATT.
And according to a post from Zunited, it also works when you ask “what is the best cellphone ever?” As The Next Web explains, Microsoft and Nokia fans seem to be enjoying this thoroughly.
Siri’s love for the Lumia apparently stems from search results from Wolfram Alpha, which are based on customer reviews.
It also helps when users include the word “ever” in their question. Using an iPhone 4S, I asked Siri “what’s the best smartphone?”
Siri: “Wait … there are other phones?”
When I change it to cellphone, still dropping “ever,” here’s how Siri responds:
Article source: http://rssfeeds.usatoday.com/~r/usatoday-TechTopStories/~3/YBjzttdHFdY/1
U.S. phone subscribers hang up on contracts
NEW ORLEANS (AP) —U.S. consumers have had their fill of expensive, contract-based phone plans.
Figures from T-Mobile USA on Thursday, added to earlier reports from other companies, indicate that the U.S. wireless industry lost subscribers from contract-based plans for the first time in the first quarter. Contract-based plans are the most lucrative ones for phone companies. The industry default over the past several decades, they account for the vast majority of revenue at the big phone companies.
The seven largest U.S. phone companies, representing more than 95 percent of the market, lost a combined 52,000 subscribers from contract-based plans in the January to March period, according to a tally by the Associated Press.
Since nearly every adult, and many children and teenagers, already have phones, there’s little room for growth anymore. But subscribers are also flowing
Article source: http://rssfeeds.usatoday.com/~r/usatoday-TechTopStories/~3/6m6o0D3SNU4/1
