There’s good news and bad news in AT&T’s third quarter report. The carrier’s profit dropped to $3.6 billion for the quarter — that’s down from $12.32 billion from this time last year. That drop is due in part to the loss of iPhone exclusivity (a matter recently compounded with the addition of Sprint as a carrier for the 4S) and the fact that the company pulled in profits from the sale of assets in 2010. AT&T activated 2.7 million iPhones during Q3, a marked drop over previous quarters. On the up side of things, the sale of Android devices has more than doubled, year over year. AT&T added 2.1 million wireless subscribers, passing 100 million, which the carrier seems quite pleased with, as evidenced by the exceedingly chipper video below.

Continue reading AT&T’s profits are down, but the carrier is still smiling

AT&T’s profits are down, but the carrier is still smiling originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 10:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The fact is watching TV has always been social, which of course means it was only a matter of time before technology removed the physical proximity requirement from the mix. We’ve seen said requirement disappear from various content providers and now it’s subscribers to AT&T U-verse’s turn. The initial slew of options include Miso, TV Foundry, Wayvin and BuddyTV Guide. All four let you share what you’re watching while at the same time help you discover new content by being exposed to what your friends are watching. Of course none of them are exactly Facebook and U-verse isn’t anywhere near the most popular content provider in the country, but we’re glad to see someone pushing hard into social TV that moves beyond just sending status updates via our remote.

Continue reading U-verse TV gets social with help from Miso, TV Foundry, Wayvin and BuddyTV Guide

U-verse TV gets social with help from Miso, TV Foundry, Wayvin and BuddyTV Guide originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Oct 2011 05:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ready to play PC with your smartphone? If you aren’t picking up a Lapdock 100 from AT&T on the 17th, you won’t have to wait very long — Motorola’s faux-laptop phone dock has been outed for a October 21st launch date for Sprint via an employee rewards email. Passing the Lapdock 100 Sprint Rewards Me training quiz nets employees $10 in Sprint scratch and the opportunity to sell you a rig that lets a handful of devices play netbook. The laptop shell gives users a full Firefox browser, Quick Office, Google Docs, Adobe Flash, a PC-like File Manager and a luxurious 10.1-inch screen. Still no word yet on just how much this ultra-portable peripheral will set us back, but we’ll keep hoping that it’s cheaper than the Atrix 4G’s axed lapdock.

[Thanks, David]

Motorola Lapdock 100 hits Sprint October 21st, earns employees extra scratch originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 15 Oct 2011 09:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ready to play PC with your smartphone? If you aren’t picking up a Lapdock 100 from AT&T on the 17th, you won’t have to wait very long — Motorola’s faux-laptop phone dock has been outed for a October 21st launch date for Sprint via an employee rewards email. Passing the Lapdock 100 Sprint Rewards Me training quiz nets employees $10 in Sprint scratch and the opportunity to sell you a rig that lets a handful of devices play netbook. The laptop shell gives users a full Firefox browser, Quick Office, Google Docs, Adobe Flash, a PC-like File Manager and a luxurious 10.1-inch screen. Still no word yet on just how much this ultra-portable peripheral will set us back, but we’ll keep hoping that it’s cheaper than the Atrix 4G’s axed lapdock.

[Thanks, David]

Motorola Lapdock 100 hits Sprint October 21st, earns employees extra scratch originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 15 Oct 2011 09:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jawbone’s fitness-obsessed wristband appears to be closing in on the retail finish line. The Up pairs with what appears to be an iOS app, (no news on whether an Android version is in the pipeline), and will pile on the guilt about your disgustingly sedentary lifestyle. You can have the luxury of feeling like a weight loss reality show contestant by scheduling “get up and move” reminders when you’ve succumbed to watching back-to-back mediocre sitcoms with a Doritos family bag chaser. There’s also a sleep tracker and a challenge tab to plot your amazing weight loss journey (or descent to an early demise) against friends and family. It’ll monitor what you eat, and even tell you which foods “help you feel your best.” (We think it’s cake.) No word on price or arrival date just yet, so you’ll just have to put up with Autom until we hear more.

[Thanks, Luke]

Jawbone’s Up wristband warms up at AT&T store, wants you faster, stronger originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 13 Oct 2011 16:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola and AT&T are at it again with their Android shenanigans, this time following up the Atrix 4G with something a tad more… Atrix-y. Indeed, we’re referring to the sequel of February’s smash hit, honorably called the Motorola Atrix 2, announced at this week’s CTIA Enterprise & Applications. We had the opportunity to get some brief time with it, and it’s a fair device worthy of the family name: the 4.3-inch device feels good in the hand, and closely resembles the Photon 4G, only without the cutout corners. The sequel swaps processors, trading the 1GHz NVIDIA Tegra 2 CPU for a TI OMAP model with the same clock speed, and offers a full gigabyte of RAM to go along with it. Fortunately, the qHD 960 x 540 display looks gorgeous without its predecessor’s Pentile clothes. Also gone? The fingerprint sensor. Oh, and don’t be fooled by the missing “4G” moniker in the title; this little ditty packs a 21Mbps HSPA+ radio, up from 14Mbps in the first version. All in all, we like what we see here — we enjoyed the brief time we had with the sequel. It seems as though Motorola learned some important lessons from the original device, but we’ll reserve total judgement until our forthcoming review. Check out the full gallery and hands-on video (complete with bonus psychedelic carpet!) below.

Myriam Joire contributed to this post.

Continue reading Motorola Atrix 2 hands-on at CTIA E&A 2011 (video)

Motorola Atrix 2 hands-on at CTIA E&A 2011 (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 Oct 2011 01:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Last year’s iPhone 4 launch brought more than 600,000 pre-orders within the first 24 hours. This year, that number nearly doubled, topping one million within one day of the device’s pre-order availability through AT&T, Sprint and Verizon. Those that haven’t pre-ordered the iPhone 4S can line up at Apple stores beginning at 8 a.m. on October 14th, or you can try your luck at pre-ordering now, though you may need to wait an extra week or two to get your hands on Apple’s new iOS smartphone. Jump past the break for Apple’s PR.

Continue reading Apple iPhone 4S pre-orders exceed one million in first 24 hours

Apple iPhone 4S pre-orders exceed one million in first 24 hours originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 10 Oct 2011 08:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This week was packed with news on the mobile front, so it was easy to miss a few stories here and there. Here’s some of the other stuff that happened in the wide world of wireless for the week of October 3, 2011:

• The Pantech Hotshot featurephone (above left) launched on Verizon this week. It’s a full 3.2-inch touchscreen with a 3.2 megapixel camera and video capture. It’s offered for $100 with a two-year contract. [PhoneScoop]
• AT&T launched the Pantech Link II (above right) this week, a follow-up to the popular Quick Messaging Device. It features BREW mobile 1.0.2 and is available for $10 with a two-year commitment.
• Cincinnati Bell launched the HTC Sensation 4G for $250 with a two-year contract and after a $50 mail-in rebate.
• The HTC Amaze 4G is heading north. Canadian carrier Telus has given the device its own piece of real estate on its site, having it listed as “coming soon.” [AndroidCentral]
• According to benchmark tests, the Sony Ericsson Nozumi actually has a 1.5GHz dual-core Qualcomm CPU and uses Android 2.3.5. [LandofDroid]
• Open Range Communications, a WiMAX provider in the Denver area, is laying off more than a hundred employees, shutting down its WiMAX service to new customers and the CEO resigned. [PhoneScoop]
• Prefer the Washington Post over the New York Times? The former has its own Android app now available in the Market for free. [AndroidCentral]
• The Nokia N9 is now officially for sale in Australia, on Telstra. Vodafone and Optus haven’t put the device on sale yet, though both companies have announced intentions to do so at some point. [ComputerWorld]

Mobile Miscellany: week of October 3, 2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 08 Oct 2011 11:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple keeps coming with the news from its “Let’s talk iPhone” event, and the latest is a price drop for its diminutive PMP, the nano. From now on, you’ll be forking over $129 for an 8GB version and $149 for twice the tunage space. Additionally, Cupertino’s tossing in big icons — as opposed to the grid of 4 that was the only option previously — 16 new clocks (Mickey Mouse included!) to go with all those fabulous watch accessories, and workout tracking abilities right out of the box so you no longer need a Nike+ shoe dongle to see how many calories you’ve burned. Not bad for a little guy, eh? Full PR after the break.

Update: Thanks to the folks over at 9to5 Mac, we now know that owners of 2010 nanos will get the software update with the new features too.

Continue reading Apple’s iPod nano now $149 for 16GB and $129 for 8GB (update: 2010 nanos get the goodies too)

Apple’s iPod nano now $149 for 16GB and $129 for 8GB (update: 2010 nanos get the goodies too) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 13:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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No big surprises here, but the iPhone 4S’ older siblings are getting drastic price reductions. An 8GB 3GS is now free on contract, while the iPhone 4 is now only $99 with a carrier agreement — that one bill gets you an 8GB iPhone 4. We’ve received no indication of cuts for other flavors of the old guard, but we suppose congratulations are in order for bargain hunters with limited iTunes libraries.

Update: According to the Apple Store, the iPhone 4 is also “coming soon” to Sprint.

Apple drops iPhone prices: 8GB 3GS free, iPhone 4 now $99 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Oct 2011 14:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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