Carriers

The fifth-largest U.S. carrier may never have had much in the way of 3G networks, but MetroPCS is continuing to close the gap by expanding its 4G LTE markets to major U.S. cities.

Today, New York, Boston, and Sacramento, Calif., join the roster. For now, that gives Samsung the edge among U.S. customers, since the Samsung Craft is currently MetroPCS' only 4G-enabled phone. Although not a smartphone, the Craft was also the first LTE-enabled phone.

MetroPCS' LTE service is also available in San Francisco, Dallas-Fort Worth, Detroit, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia. Service is also expected … Read more

Regional carrier Cricket Wireless has announced a few special sales just for the holiday season. Through December 25, you'll be able to buy a Sanyo Zio for $149.99, a Huawei Ascend for $129.99, the BlackBerry Curve 8530 for $199.99, the Samsung Messager Touch for $79.99, and more. Cricket has also developed a "One Stop Gift Guide" where customers can have someone guide them through the gift selection process.

Though much of the wireless world is gathering this week in San Francisco at D: Dive into Mobile in San Francisco, it's not the only industry gathering this week. Yesterday at the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference in New York, execs from AT&T and Verizon Wireless discussed the ever-changing topic of data plans for smartphones.

Verizon Verizon Wireless CEO Ivan Seidenberg spoke only a day after the carrier activated its LTE network for laptop customers. Though Verizon also introduced new LTE plans for its USB modem users--5GB of data for $50 per month or 10GB of … Read more

Almost six years after it acquired Nextel for $35 billion, Sprint today announced that it was finally phasing out Nextel's iDEN technology starting in 2013. The news isn't surprising in the least--indeed, Sprint has floated the idea several times since 2005--but this is the first time we have a real timeline for putting iDEN out to pasture.

The iDEN news came as part of a lengthy press release promoting a massive network upgrade called "Network Vision." Currently, the carrier uses separate base stations to handle its 800MHz and 1,900GHz CDMA bands and 2.5GHz WiMax … Read more

Welcome to The 411, my column answering all your questions about cell phones and cell phone accessories. I receive plenty of questions about these subjects via e-mail, so I figured many of you might have similar queries, too. Occasionally I solicit answers from readers if I'm stumped. Send your questions and comments to me at nicole.lee@cnet.com. If you prefer to remain anonymous, let me know in the e-mail.

With all this talk of 4G, I'm pretty interested to know what my options are. So do all the carriers have 4G? What phone choices do I have? -- Matt, via e-mail

It's true that the carriers have been bombarding our television sets with plenty of commercials touting 4G coverage, so it seems that 4G truly has arrived. But bear in mind that none of it can technically be called 4G right now, at least not according to the official standards body. When carriers like Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile say "4G," they mean speeds that are faster than current 3G networks; they tout speeds of around 3Mbps to 15Mbps download speeds, which are faster then the typical 3G speeds of 800Kbps to 2Mbps. Of course, real world speeds are sure to differ from what the carriers say in the commercials, but we have managed to get pretty good speeds out of purported 4G handsets like the T-Mobile G2 and the HTC Evo 4G. … Read more

MetroPCS plans to follow the release of the LG Optimus M handset with its first Android-based LTE smartphone in the first quarter of 2011. Due as early as February, this handset will be the first of as many as six Android phones for the carrier in the coming year.

MetroPCS CEO Roger Linquist highlighted Android at the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference today and teased handset prices that could start as low as $150 unsubsidized, up to the $400-$500 range. Currently, MetroPCS offers a feature phone, the Samsung Craft, as its only LTE-capable device.

If you had asked … Read more

Verizon Wireless may be willing to pay Apple to keep the iPhone off competitors' networks when the carrier eventually gets the device in 2011, one Wall Street analyst says.

On Monday Kaufman Bros. analyst Shaw Wu published a note to investors in which he cited unnamed sources who indicated that Verizon is willing to pay Apple to keep the iPhone partially exclusive. Since its launch in 2007, the iPhone has been exclusive to AT&T in the U.S. Rumors have floated around for months that Verizon will get a version of the device in early 2011.

According to … Read more

U.S. Cellular rings in the holiday season with three affordable prepaid plans that will make messaging fans happy. They are $29, $39, and $49 respectively, and all include unlimited messaging.

The $29 per month plan has 200 minutes, the $39 option has 400 minutes plus 5GB of mobile surfing, and the $49 plan has 1,000 minutes. Interestingly, the $29 and $49 plans don't include the mobile surfing plan. If you want an all-in-one option, U.S. Cellular does offer a $69.99 Primary Plus plan that includes unlimited voice, text, and 5GB of data.

Editors' note: This chart was originally published December 2, 2010. It has been updated with new information.

With the iPhone 5 and all top Android phones utilizing 4G LTE, network speed and robustness have become major selling points for carriers competing to win over customers. Long Term Evolution, or LTE, is the latest iteration of the so-called fourth-generation (4G) cellular wireless standards, boasting speeds that meet -- or in some cases beat -- that of Wi-Fi.

However, as carriers continually expand their 4G LTE coverage every few months, it's hard to keep track of just how wide the scope and scale of each carrier's 4G network vary. Some cover a lot of ground while others cover barely any at all. As a result, it can take a lot of effort to determine where in the country you can find high-speed data access and how the different carrier networks contrast and overlap.… Read more