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Will people pony up for a prepaid iPhone?

The iPhone is hitting the prepaid market in a big way with Cricket and Virgin Mobile offering Apple's marquee device. But can anyone afford it?

The key dilemma for a prepaid iPhone is exactly what makes the market so strong: the lack of a service contract. Consumers love the ability to jump in and out of a service, but that freedom comes at a price in the form of a higher upfront cost for the phone.

For the iPhone, that's a particularly tough pill to swallow. Cricket, owned by Leap Wireless, is charging $500 and $400 for the iPhone 4S and iPhone 4, … Read more

Sprint confirms iPhone heading to Virgin Mobile

Virgin Mobile will be the next prepaid service to get the iPhone, Sprint Nextel confirmed today.

Virgin Mobile follows Leap Wireless, which last week said it was getting the iPhone for its Cricket prepaid service. Like Cricket, the Virgin Mobile version of the iPhone won't be cheap; the 16-gigabyte iPhone 4S will cost $649, while the 8GB iPhone 4 will cost $549.

The appeal of a prepaid iPhone is the lack of a contract and lower monthly plan. Virgin Mobile will offer a $30 plan with 300 voice minutes, a $40 plan with 1,200 minutes, and a $50 … Read more

Wii U, Halo 4, and the expectations of E3

In today's show, we're stretching our thumbs, looking to Venus and pondering iPhone popularity:

It's time to gear up for the year's big video game conference, E3, the Electronic Entertainment Expo. The coverage begins around 9 a.m. Pacific, noon Eastern when Microsoft holds its press event. Expect talk of Halo 4 and new entertainment features tied to Xbox Live.

Sony will be holding a press event late Monday evening, and Nintendo will be having one Tuesday to reveal more on the Wii U, right as the show floor opens.

Google will be holding an event … Read more

iPhone makes the 'Leap' into the prepaid zone

We're dropping down from space, getting touchy with Windows 8 and leaping over a new iPhone carrier:

The iPhone has taken a leap into the prepaid, no-contract world. Beginning in late June, the prepaid carrier Leap Wireless will sell Apple's iPhone under the Cricket service. This makes it the first carrier to sell the iPhone without a contract. But don't expect the iPhone to come cheap. The 16 GB iPhone 4s will be priced at $500 dollars.

So that leaves T-Mobile in the corner, just tapping its foot waiting for its turn to dance with Apple. With … Read more

Has the iPhone lost its cool factor?

commentary Let's face it: the iPhone just isn't cool anymore.

It's sad, but true that there's a reverse correlation between availability and coolness. The harder it is to obtain something, the more highly coveted it is.

Apple's decision to offer the iPhone 4S and iPhone 4 to prepaid wireless provider Cricket may have tipped the scales away from the cool end. With Cricket in the fold, the iPhone is virtually everywhere (T-Mobile, sadly, is still left outside looking in), hitting a critical mass of availability. The iPhone has gone from a gadget of the tech … Read more

Apple iPhone enters prepaid world with Cricket

Apple's iPhone will make the leap to the prepaid world through Leap Wireless's Cricket wireless service.

The regional prepaid carrier plans to sell the iPhone on June 22, although its no-contract plans means a higher upfront cost. The 16GB iPhone 4S will cost $499.99, while the 8GB iPhone 4 will cost $399.99.

The iPhone moving to Cricket marks the continued expansion of the availability of Apple's blockbuster device, highlighting the company's push to get the device in as many hands as possible. The iPhone is an unusual device to hit the prepaid world, since … Read more

For Silicon Valley VC, a Leap from great advice to big rewards

SAN FRANCISCO--Sitting in the windowless basement level of a nondescript building in the shadow of the Bay Bridge, Andy Miller is doing one of his most essential -- and rewarding -- jobs: helping smart and talented, but young and inexperienced, entrepreneurs navigate the crucial steps needed to move their new company forward. After all, great technology can only get you so far. It takes great business strategy and decisions to build a truly successful company.

Miller, a general partner at Highland Capital Partners who once reported directly to Steve Jobs as Apple's vice president of mobile advertising, is seated … Read more

Leap Motion: 3D hands-free motion control, unbound

Hands-free motion control, a technology pioneered by Nintendo's Wii and later improved upon by Microsoft's Kinect, just took a very big leap forward. Industries from gaming to surgery to architecture, engineering, and design may never be the same.

With the unveiling today of its Leap 3D motion control system, a San Francisco startup called Leap Motion has, well, leapfrogged the state of the art in this young field, giving users the ability to control what's on their computers with hundredth of a millimeter accuracy and introducing touch-free gestures like pinch-to-zoom.

Leap, which comprises both a small USB … Read more

AT&T considered buying Leap, Reuters says

AT&T buying Leap Wireless? It could happen.

The latest acquisition rumor comes courtesy of Reuters, which reported yesterday that AT&T and Leap have been in talks over the past few months regarding a potential deal.

Such a deal would give AT&T more spectrum -- an asset it has been actively looking for since its deal with T-Mobile collapsed, as well as a decent base of prepaid customers. The report comes just days after Bloomberg reported that T-Mobile had considered buying MetroPCS. The speculation frenzy underscores the acquisitive posture of most of the wireless carriers, … Read more