After Sprint opened up the doors to online ordering of the Palm Pre through their webstore, Amazon have got in on the action. The webOS smartphone is now available to order there, too, priced at the same $199.99 as Sprint but with no mail-in rebate forms to deal with.
Sprint have announced their Q2 2009 financial results, and while there are glimmers of hope in the shape of ongoing prepaid customer growth and stable post-pay revenue, the take-away figures are a loss of 257,000 customers over the three month period and a net loss of $384m on revenues of $8.1bn. That revenue is down 1-percent from Q1 2009, and down 10-percent on Q2 2008, though Sprint did manage to pay off $700m of debt (although it still owes $16.4bn).
Sprint have announced that they are acquiring Virgin Mobile USA for $483m, bringing the pre-pay MVNO under the Sprint umbrella but maintaining it as a separate brand. Virgin Mobile USA uses Sprint’s CDMA network for its access, and will join Boost Mobile as Sprint’s key entry-level line-up.
The Palm Pre is now available to order via Sprint’s website, rather than requiring would-be buyers to visit their local store. Pricing for the smartphone – which we reviewed back in June – remains the same at $199.99.
Ford and Sprint have joined forces to offer F-150 truck buyers, together with other models from the manufacturer’s commercial range, an in-dash computer with integrated EVDO Rev.A connectivity. The Ford Work Solutions (FWS) system consists of a double-DIN head unit with touchscreen, 4GB of flash storage, Bluetooth and a Sprint data connection, and can be used to either work on local or remote files, browse the internet, get turn-by-turn directions via Garmin software or print via a Bluetooth-enabled printer.
Video demo after the cut
Having promised their respective versions back in June, both Sprint and Verizon have now officially released the BlackBerry Tour 9630. In effect the 3G version of the Curve, we reviewed the Tour 9630 over at PhoneMag and came away impressed by its usable QWERTY keyboard and sturdy build.
One enterprising Palm Pre owner has hacked his smartphone to run on Verizon’s network, rather than Sprint’s. “cleanser” of the PreCentral forums has managed to get both voice and text messaging to work as expected, but so far data access is presenting a problem.
The hack involved attempting to persuade a Verizon Wireless customer services’ rep to add the MEID – the electronic serial number and unique identifier of the handset – to cleanser’s account with them. Once that had been done, the network accepted the Pre as just another CDMA phone.
Video demo after the cut
Sprint and Best Buy are offering a Compaq Mini 110-series netbook for just $0.99, assuming you’re willing to sign up to 2-years of EVDO Rev.A data service from the carrier. The netbook, The Mini 110c-1040DX, can be picked with either a CDMA EVDO Rev.A module for use with Verizon or Sprint, or an HSDPA module for use with AT&T; however only the Sprint subsidy brings the price down to under a buck.
How you answer whether to buy a Verizon Tour, T-Mobile Dash 3G or Sprint Snap smartphone actually depend on which carrier you’re current on, or if you’re willing to switch. Switching carrier for any phone is a drastic move unless you’re moving to an iPhone 3GS.
Sprint have thrown down the gauntlet to AT&T over which US carrier can stage a full commercial release of a 3G femtocell first. According to Unstrung, Sprint’s VP of device and technology development Mathew Oommen has promised they will be first to launch a 3G femtocell this year, which will not only boost voice-call reception for Sprint handsets but also EVDO Rev.A coverage.
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