Category: Networks / Carriers

Live today – Orange 3G

Orange have today turned on their 3G network here in the UK, and their data card is available here. If you need speedy internet on your laptop when you're out and about, it's worth a look. The data card is available for £129.99 and adds to their ra...

Orange go 3G

We likes Orange we does. They're bloody good. They brought us the Smartphone (with a bit of help from Microsoft) and we like the lady on the answer phone. She's nice. So, you know that there's only one 3G network here in the UK ? They call themselves...

Smartphone to hit Spain

It looks like the Amena and Microsoft have joined together to launch a Smartphone in Spain. It appears that the MPx200 will be launched first, along with the Pocket PC XDA II. Details are sketchy at present as I only have Babelfish (Altavista) transl...

Upgrade to MPx200 for nowt!

Orange are now offering the fantastic MPx200 handset on UPGRADE for absolutely nothing. So, if you haven't got a Windows-Powered Smartphone, now is your chance to get one for nothing. Just give Orange a buzz or click here to upgrade for nothing.

Brits say "no" to MMS

It seems that MMS just isn't tickling the fancy of us brits. In a recent survey by NOP it appears that 80% of those surveyed want absolutely nothing to do with it. Orange are currently pushing hard with free trials for new products and services - th...

Happy Buffday Orange!

Today marks the tenth birthday of network operator Orange. Ten years ago today Orange set up the UK's fourth mobile network in competition with BT's Cellnet (now o2), Mercury One-2-One (now T-Mobile) and Vodafone. At the time observers predicted that...

E200 UK Update ! E200 UK Update ! E200 UK Update !

Wow ! I'm gonna use my bouncey girl picture again.. Have you got an UK Orange SPV E200 ? You have ? Wanna improve battery life? Wanna improve Bluetooth support ? GET THIS NOW! It will update your SPV E200 to ROM version 2.6.1.3 Download the update, a...

New TLD for mobiles!

A new TLD ? What is it ? Well, you've heard of .com, .net, .org .. well, you might well hear of another soon ! Read on !!! Mobile Industry Leaders Announce an InitiativeTo Create a Mobile Top-Level Domain New Joint Venture to Be Created Upon Applicat...

Mobile on the tube

It may be commonplace elsewhere, but the London Underground, with its large network of lines and tunnels, has never had mobile phone access. Why? Well, customers didn't want it previously - especially when you've got your face rammed up someones' arm...

Voda say no to AT&T

Sky News report on the auction for AT&T Wireless in the States. Vodaphone has pulled out of the running, leaving Cingular Wireless as the remaining favourite.

Orange Talk Now

ORANGE LAUNCHES TALK NOW SERVICE·    first operator globally to launch international service of its kind·    group instant voice and messaging communication·    an easy way to see who is available in rea...

SIM Unlocking

I find myself in a tricky situation here. As you will no doubt have seen on MoDaCo.com and MSMobileNews.com plus several other sites, a new apparently fully working SIM Unlocking utility for the 1.6 OS is available at SmartEase.net (English translatio...

Backup for 1.6 Update

The recent update for Orange SPV and Orange SPV E100 handsets meant that a lot of data would be wiped from your phone. Although this was OK, we were all waiting for the backup utility to restore this info. Well, thanks to Patrice at huge French site ...

Am I paid by Smart ?!

I like the Smart network, they've put the MS Smartphone well and truely on the map in the Philippines ... however.. I've had several emails from customers of Smart saying that they should come here for support. This is excellent ! Wooo!!! :) Thanks gu...

Voda says no to MS

So, Vodaphone has said that the MS Windows Mobile operating system is "not quite ready for prime time". In an interview with the FT, Vodafone CEO Arun Sarin said, "Hopefully they're working to solve some of the issues that we have and, in time, when...

Orange go tunnelling

Here in the UK, there aren't many places where you CAN'T get a mobile signal. Pretty much everywhere is covered - you can even cross the channel on a ferry and still get a signal. What about tunnels though ? Ahhh!!! You've had it... No network could ...

Orange network blip

As I can't make calls at the moment - although to some people I can, others I can't, and the Orange UK Customer Service line appears to be broken too... I guessed there was a bit of a problem with something. Apparently this is due to a HLR …

Good god! It’s here!

The much anticipated OS update to the Orange SPV / SPV E100 handset is now finally available. At present this will kill everything held in your IPSM directory though, so you may want to wait until Orange roll out their Backup and Restore tool next wee...

Orange GPRS changes

Ohhhh .. well, I've had quite a few emails about this - and I had a letter about it myself yesterday. It seems that Orange are to change their GPRS packages. On the good side, (depending on package) you will now get 3MB for £4 each month, however …

Orange gets busy!

Orange is gearing up for a hectic November. With a massive worldwide advertising campaign, which begins here in the UK and France next week. Plus the launch of the SPV E200 and Motorola MPx200 handsets hopefully next week to co-incide with this, Orang...

Orange leaps forward

Orange has pushed it's ARPU (Average Revenue Per User) up to achieve revenues ahead of expectations. This is thanks, in part, to devices like the MS Smartphone. Orange said revenues in the three months to September 30 had risen 8.1% to 4.7 billion eu...

Orange on the buses

Our friends at Orange (we like them, they give SPV E200s and E100s away in massive competitions) are now tackling the public transport problem in the UK. Is there nothing they can't do?! Orange are already helping the UK's public services with crime-...

Orange CEO – Drive! Drive!

Orange CEO Sol Trujillo today urged the industry to fully exploit the potential of mobile telephony. To do this, he raised 4 key points - let's call them the four "I's"... Interoperability, Intuition, Interests and Intimacy. Trujillo said: “I am a...

Petition for flat rate GPRS

Paul over at MoDaCo.com has started a petition which he'd like you all to participate in. He is campaigning for proper-sized McDonalds burgers. Not those stupid flat ones you get. Have you tried them? The advert makes them look massive, then when you...

Orange 3G launch dates

I had a few too many boozy-woozies yesterday, so I missed this bit earlier, but anyhooo.. Orange have announced plans for their 3G launch and are working with Alcatel, Nokia and Nortel Networks to provide the 3G infrastructure across the Orange footpr...

£1.7bn Text Bill

As the mobile industry grows, so does the "seedier" side. Flirt, Date and chat-text services are growing daily, but this cannot be blamed totally for amazing £1.7BILLION a year which is now spent on text messages. This is a massive increase from Â...

Orange Announces the launch of the Treo 600

Orange are on a launch frenzie at the moment. Today they're announcing the launch of the Handspring Treo 600, with the new re-branded name of the "Orange Treo 600". The Treo will sit in the Orange Signature device range, to add to the SPV and the...

Win an E100!

Yes, you can win yourself a shiny new Orange E100 Smartphone just by filling in this survey at realbusiness.co.uk. Real Business is a leading magazine for growing UK companies. After being launched in early 1997, it has now become one of the most resp...

France Telecom buys all

France Telecom is set to buy out all minority shareholders of Orange. This may seem like a strange tactic for the debt-riddled company, who currently owes € 49.3bn. However, by getting control of Orange completely, France Telecom also gains access t...

Stop the SMS spam!

Vodaphone is about to trial a new project to reduce the number of spam SMS messages that their customers receive. Text spam, especially in the UK, is becoming a huge problem. Now Vodaphone is asking anyone who receives such messages to forward it to ...

Confusing tariffs

Analyst house Quocirca recently looked into the confusing world of tariffs. It appears that, although voice tariffs are pretty simple to understand - the advent of mobile data tariffs, MMS, GPRS, WAP and SMS "bundles" is confusing the hell out of Joe ...

3G Sales Drop

Despite intense media advertising, incredibly cheap price plans and attempting to reduce the cost of handsets, Hutchinson is stuggling to shift their 3G handsets on their "3" network. City analysts estimate the company has probably signed up less tha...

Networks announce results

Verizon, Telefónica and France Telecom (owner of Orange) have announced good profits. Verizon, who are Americas largest phone company, announced a net profit of $338m - up from the $2.1bn LOSS last year. France Telecom also announced profits, after...

BT Comes back to mobile

After leaving mmO2 in 2001, BT appears to be getting back into mobile, with a little help from T-Mobile. BT is the UK's largest telco and will team up with T-Mobile to offer mobile services to businesses and consumers, which will see BT attempting t...

Sendo drops lawsuit

I've been away, so I'm a little behind - you may have heard of this already, but hey.. Sendo have decided to drop their much talked-about lawsuit regarding the Smartphone. More details can be found here (ZDNet) and over here (cnet.com) This is, of c...

What’s in a name?

Launching Q4 this year is the MS Smartphone from o2. At present though, they have no name for it. However, you can help, simnply by clicking onto the Myo2Smartphone.com website and giving them your suggestion. They are looking for a name with a "Zing...

E100 Comes to France

The E100 has now been launched in France too. Smartphony.org reports on this, stating that it will sell for 299 €. This price, however, can be reduced by mailing back a voucher for a 40 € reduction, bring the final price to 259 €. This is about ...

SPV Going Going Gone?

To those interested, the original SPV is to be phased out owing to a upward spiral of returns. Problematic phones have recently been causing a serious problem for tech support. Top problems for SPV returns have been to date : Constant crashes, SMS pro...

Orange and EDS get in bed together

Orange and EDS are to make integrating mobile devices easier for enterprise telecoms and IT departments in a new project. They're planning on providing an ECO system (Extended Connected Office) to organisations who have doubts about mobile business. ...