Filed under: Cell phones

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Apple to ship new iPhone 5 in September

Apple Inc.’s next-generation iPhone will have a faster processor and will begin shipping in September, three people with direct knowledge of the company’s supply chain said.

The production of the new iPhone will start in July/August and the smartphone will look largely similar to the iPhone 4, one of the people said on Wednesday. Get the full story »

AT&T growth weak without iPhone exclusive

AT&T Inc posted weak subscriber growth in the first quarter as it gave up exclusive U.S. rights to sell the Apple Inc iPhone. Get the full story »

Motorola delays launch of Droid Bionic

Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. will delay the launch of its first 4G smartphone, the Droid Bionic, to make tweaks to the device.

Motorola said the Droid Bionic will launch with Verizon Wireless in the summer. Get the full story »

Apple sues Samsung over ‘Galaxy’ phone, Tab

Samsung's Galaxy Tab, one of the company's devices drawing scrutiny from Apple. (Denis Doyle/Bloomberg)

Apple Inc. filed a lawsuit claiming Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. copied the look and feel of its popular iPhone smartphones and iPad tablet computers, the latest in a series of legal skirmishes that underscore the increasingly high stakes of the mobile computing market.

The lawsuit, filed on April 15, alleged that Samsung’s smartphones, including the “Galaxy S 4G,” “Epic 4G,” “Nexus S” and its “Galaxy Tab” touchscreen tablet, violate Apple’s intellectual property. The 38-page lawsuit was filed in the U.S. court’s northern California district. Get the full story »

Best Buys plans smaller stores, more online sales

A Best Buy store in Alexandria, Va. (Reuters)

Best Buy Co. Inc. plans to boost its Web presence and open a greater number of small stores in the United States targeting mobile customers in an effort to win back market share from the likes of Amazon.com Inc and Wal-Mart Stores Inc .

The news came after many investors had raised concerns about the retailer’s huge overhead costs and oversized stores at a time when many shoppers go online to buy gadgets. Get the full story »

Apple suppliers begin making white iPhones

Suppliers to Apple have begun production of white iPhones after a delay of almost 10 months, pointing to a launch date of within a month, two people familiar with the situation said on Thursday. Get the full story »

T-Mobile ‘unlimited’ 4G plan slows data after 2GB

T-Mobile announced on Wednesday a new “Even More” unlimited 4G data plan that will throttle down a user’s Web speeds after they use more than 2GB per month. Get the full story »

AT&T to upgrade Chicago network speed, access

AT&T will install 35 new cell sites in the Chicago area to increase network coverage as part of the company’s $19 billion nationwide investment plan. The company will dedicate $160 million in improvements in metropolitan Chicago. Get the full story »

FCC orders ‘reasonable’ data roaming rates

U.S. regulators on Thursday adopted data roaming rules that would allow smartphones to access the Internet in areas across the country not covered by their wireless carrier. The rules set by the Federal Communications Commission in a 3-2 vote would force wireless carriers like AT&T Inc. and Verizon Wireless to offer “reasonable” roaming rates. Get the full story »

Nightlife deals site Poggled gets $5.6M to grow

Poggled, a Chicago startup that provides deals on nightlife and bars, has raised $5.6 million in a round of funding that will let the company expand into new markets and build additional features for its mobile applications. Get the full story »

Consumer Reports: AT&T U-verse, Verizon FiOS tops

A new Consumer Reports survey rates AT&T U-verse and Verizon FiOS as the top choices for customers looking to buy bundled telecom services. Get the full story »

Feds probe data collection by smartphone apps

Music player Pandora's smartphone app for both iPhones (above) and Androids transmitted information about a user's age, gender, and location. (Reuters/Joe Skipper)

Federal prosecutors in New Jersey are investigating whether numerous smartphone applications illegally obtained or transmitted information about their users without proper disclosures, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The criminal investigation is examining whether the app makers fully described to users the types of data they collected and why they needed the information — such as a user’s location or a unique identifier for the phone — the person familiar with the matter said. Collecting information about a user without proper notice or authorization could violate a federal computer-fraud law. Get the full story »

T-Mobile goes 4G in Springfield, 9 other markets

T-Mobile has lit up its 4G wireless network in Springfield, making the state capital one of 10 markets across the country to get the faster speeds.

The carrier said its 4G network now covers more than 200 million people in 167 markets. Other new markets include Ames, Iowa, and Battle Creek, Mich. Get the full story »

Sprint to get jump on mobile payment crowd

Bloomberg News | Sprint Nextel Corp. has plans to start a service allowing customers to make payments with their mobile phones this year, beating rivals AT&T, Verizon and  T-Mobile to the punch.

Walk and Text look-alike targets app thieves

Symantec Corp. said Thursday that it has detected a new kind of malware that targets Android mobile phone users who download illegal applications. Get the full story »