You may want to put down your cell phone if you’re planning on having kids anytime soon. According to an article in the latest Journal of Andrology, recent reports have suggested there is a “possible link between cell phone use and semen quality.” The author of the article, Dr. Sandro La Vignera from the University of Catania, refers to one 2008 report which studied 361 men in an infertility clinic, which concluded that there was a direct link to the “duration of cellular phone possession” and decreased semen quality. One study performed on rabbits found that those who were exposed to a mobile phone emitting at 800MHz for 8 hours a day over 12 weeks had a decrease in sperm concentration just six weeks into the study. Sperm motility, or how properly a sperm can swim towards can egg, began to falter in the tenth week. Similar results were found in rats and mice, too. Read on for more.

In general, clinical studies have concluded that cellular use is “associated with decreased sperm concentration, motility, morphology, and viability.” According to La Vignera, exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation (EF-EMR) “reduces testosterone biosynthesis, impairs spermatogenesis, and damages sperm DNA.” Despite the evidence, however, the author concludes that more studies are still necessary. For example, Dr. Joel Moskowitz of the Center for Family and Community Health in the School of Public Health at the University of California at Berkeley told CNET that it’s still unclear whether GSM or CDMA handsets are better for sperm health. “If more research is done, and we have more solid results, consumers could be presented with a choice,” Dr. Moskowitz said. “there might be phones or cell services that have less impact on our productive organs than others.”

[Via CNET]

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Apple has yet to release a MacBook with an integrated 3G modem, but that doesn’t mean the company hasn’t toyed with the idea. A 2007 15-inch MacBook Pro has surfaced on eBay with a built-in 3G antenna and a SIM-card slot. The seller says he or she originally purchased the 3G-capable MacBook Pro “for parts,” from a former Apple engineer and said “it was immediately clear this was no normal MacBook Pro.” The machine’s SIM card slot is still recognized by OS X 10.6.8 Leopard but the seller has been unable to get the data connection working properly, and noted that “it’s entirely possible it never worked.” The high bid for the one-of-a-kind MacBook Pro was $11,211.11 at the time of this writing. Read on for a few more images.

[Via MacRumors]

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Wireless carriers around the world are digging themselves into a deeper hole by neglecting to experiment with innovative pricing models for 4G LTE services. While consumers have exhibited concern surrounding tiered data plans and bandwidth throttling, Ovum believes such models are necessary to combat the growing capacity crunch plaguing cellular service providers. This crunch, of course, is serious enough that AT&T is hoping to soon $39 billion in order to acquire T-Mobile USA and use the carrier’s precious spectrum for its 4G LTE network build-out. Smartphone and mobile broadband users are pumping more data over wireless networks than ever before, and speedier 4G LTE service only stands to exacerbate the situation. Additionally, carriers are missing the opportunity to find new ways to squeeze more revenue out of this new premium high-speed service. “We looked at the LTE pricing strategies of operators in Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the US, and were disappointed with our findings,” Ovum analyst Nicole McCormick said in a statement. “LTE provides operators with the opportunity to experiment with new and innovative pricing models, which allows them to find the best way of deriving revenues from the premium service. However, most operators have not grasped this opportunity. Instead, LTE tariffs in the regions Ovum analysed are dominated by unlimited offerings and large data buckets, which can be problematic.” Ovum’s full press release follows below.

Lack of innovation in LTE pricing models, report finds

5 August 2011 | Published by Ovum

Operators that offer high-speed mobile broadband technology LTE are failing to deliver innovative pricing models, according to Ovum.

In a new report*, the independent telecoms analyst firm claims that there is a lack of new and innovative LTE (long term evolution) tariffs, which is a missed opportunity for operators given that LTE is a new service in the eyes of consumers.

Nicole McCormick, Ovum senior analyst and author of the report, commented: “We looked at the LTE pricing strategies of operators in Europe, Asia-Pacific, and theUS, and were disappointed with our findings.

“LTE provides operators with the opportunity to experiment with new and innovative pricing models, which allows them to find the best way of deriving revenues from the premium service.

“However, most operators have not grasped this opportunity. Instead, LTE tariffs in the regions Ovum analysed are dominated by unlimited offerings and large data buckets, which can be problematic.”

According to the report, unlimited data plans for LTE can present significant problems for operators, especially if they are accompanied by a lenient fair usage policy.

McCormick commented: “Operators should not offer unlimited LTE tariffs without some sort of deterrent as they could have an impact on the quality of the service given LTE’s data-intensive nature. However, we note that some leading operators –Verizon Wireless,SKTelecom, NTT DoCoMo and LG U+ – have steered clear of unlimited LTE offerings despite offering such packages in the 3G arena.”

The report also found that charging high premiums for LTE is unsustainable in the long-term due to competitive pressures in the industry and increased migration to 4G services. McCormick added: “Operators will need to be careful not to alienate high-end customers that have paid a premium for a fast, high-quality service by reducing LTE tariffs too quickly or drastically.”

Mobile data connections are poised grow 11% in 2011, driving global mobile data revenue to $314.7 billion. Market research firm Gartner on Thursday said mobile data connections will reach 5.6 billion this year compared to 5 billion in 2010, driving global revenue from mobile data up 22.5% from the $257 billion earned last year. “Mobile data traffic will increase significantly as more people will have access to mobile data networks, there is a migration toward smartphones and an increase in sales of media tablets,” said Gartner analyst Jessica Ekholm in a statement. “Mobile data volumes will continue to grow as mobile data networks become faster and more ubiquitous, while at the same time the number of data users and data usage per user is expected to grow.” Gartner sees global mobile data connections growing steadily over the next few years, reaching 7.4 billion in 2015 creating $552 billion in revenue. Preparing networks for this growth is something carriers need to focus on. “What carriers currently need are innovative ways to increase data revenue while finding smart solutions to manage a growing demand in data,” said Gartner research director Sylvain Fabre. “Ultimately, it will be the consumer who chooses the content he or she wants to use, and carriers need to ensure that the quality of experience is good. A substandard user experience may lead to higher churn.” Gartner’s full press release follows below.

Gartner Says Worldwide Mobile Connections Will Reach 5.6 Billion in 2011 as Mobile Data Services Revenue Totals $314.7 Billion

STAMFORD, Conn., August 4, 2011—

Worldwide mobile connections will reach 5.6 billion in 2011, up 11 percent from 5 billion connections in 2010, according to Gartner, Inc. Mobile data services revenue will total $314.7 billion in 2011, a 22.5 percent increase from 2010 revenue of $257 billion.

“Mobile data traffic will increase significantly as more people will have access to mobile data networks, there is a migration toward smartphones and an increase in sales of media tablets,” said Jessica Ekholm, principal research analyst at Gartner. “Mobile data volumes will continue to grow as mobile data networks become faster and more ubiquitous, while at the same time the number of data users and data usage per user is expected to grow.”

“Data revenue will continue to grow but at a much slower rate,” Ms. Ekholm said. “This is causing a decoupling between revenue and data traffic, and it is also creating an increase in network costs for carriers as they try to sustain growing data traffic.”

Worldwide mobile connections will experience steady growth through 2015 when mobile connections are forecast to reach 7.4 billion, and mobile data revenue will reach $552 billion.

In calculating its forecast, Gartner assumed there are four major mobile data traffic drivers: growth in the number of mobile connections, increasing availability of higher-speed data-centric mobile networks, smartphones, and data-consuming content and applications.

A growing number of mobile connections will lead to higher demands on communication service providers’ (CSPs’) data networks as more people access the networks to use mobile data and to send text messages. In addition to the total number of connections growing, Gartner also expects that mobile data usage per connection will increase throughout the forecast period and that there will be a shift in mobile users’ perception of mobile data around the world, as data plans go from being seen as a luxury, to being considered a nice-to-have service, to finally being perceived as potentially essential.

Gartner expects communications service providers (CSPs) to increasingly start moving toward offering more flexible and more personalized data plans, which should help capture a larger mobile data user base. CSPs have also upgraded their networks by offering faster download and upload speeds to consumers, which have helped improve the general perception of data quality and thus led to increased data uptake.

“What carriers currently need are innovative ways to increase data revenue while finding smart solutions to manage a growing demand in data,” said Sylvain Fabre, research director at Gartner. “Ultimately, it will be the consumer who chooses the content he or she wants to use, and carriers need to ensure that the quality of experience is good. A substandard user experience may lead to higher churn.”

Gartner analysts said carriers should investigate the pros and the cons of more customized pricing plans, such as tiered pricing, a la carte and usage-based plans, carefully weighing additional costs and future benefits. Additionally, CSPs should look to offer increased flexibility in pricing and introduce add-on pricing models, in which users are able to add data access when they want to. These add-on pricing models could include paying for additional usage and additional speed, and charging a fee for voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) or for gaming.

“Carriers should focus on increasing the level of clarity and the transparency of their mobile data contracts in order to make the majority of customers feel more at ease in using data services. This is particularly important when it comes to data roaming,” Ms. Ekholm said. “Offering clients various ways of being able to track and monitor their data usage would help carriers receive a larger amount of revenue from more profitable lower-usage, medium-pay users.”

Additional information is available in the Gartner report “Forecast: Mobile Data Traffic and Revenue, Worldwide, 2010-2015″ at http://www.gartner.com/resId=1737114.

As you can see from the above image, the destruction and slow reconstruction of AT&T is quite a story. With the T-Mobile merger currently being debated by Congress, potentially adding another chapter to the saga, we thought it might be a good idea to look at the genesis of AT&T Mobility as it stands today. It all started back in 2001 with AT&T Wireless…

AT&T got its start in wireless communications when it purchased the Washington-based company McCaw Cellular in 1994. With a subscriber base just north of 2 million users, AT&T had officially thrown its hat into the cellular arena. The company continued to grow and collect end-users, and in 1997 — with current Sprint CEO Dan Hesse as its chairman and CEO — AT&T became the U.S.’s largest cellular provider. In 2000, the company was jettisoned from the main AT&T brand and in 2001 it turned into a separately traded company on the New York Stock Exchange; known as AT&T Wireless.

In 2004, with customer subscriptions declining, the company began to accept bids for an acquisition. U.S.-based wireless provider Cingular — a venture of BellSouth and SBC Communications — agreed to purchase the company for $41 billion. Cingular, through the acquisition, ousted Verizon Wireless, a joint venture between Verizon Communications and Vodafone, as the largest cellular provider in the States.

Fast forward to late 2005 and early 2006: SBC Communications purchases AT&T Corp. and begins to market itself under the AT&T brand; the new AT&T announces that it will acquire the phone operations of BellSouth and its stake in AT&T Wireless; and a new company is born. In 2007, after a three-year hiatus, an AT&T-branded wireless company returned with the christening of AT&T Mobility.

Were the AT&T and T-Mobile merger to go through, the company would again — for the third time — become the country’s largest wireless provider through the use of its checkbook. And the vicious cycle continues.

BGR’s Throwback Thursday is a weekly series covering our (and your) favorite gadgets, games, and software of yesterday and yesteryear.

Details of Samsung’s first official Chrome OS netbook, dubbed Alex, have surfaced in Google’s code repository. According to the Chrome OS development site, the Alex netbook will be powered by a 1.5GHz Intel Atom N550 processor and sport 2GB of RAM. A SanDisk solid-state harddrive of an unknown capacity, a 1280 x 800 pixel display resolution, Wi-Fi, Ethernet port, front-facing webcam, and Bluetooth along with support for 3G cellular connectivity and a Synaptics TouchPad will also be included. Google’s I/O developer conference is in just a few short weeks… perhaps Sir Alex will make an appearance.

[Via Samsung Hub]

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Let all those questioning their open-source smartphone overlord be silent. Responding to the recent ruckus caused by an O’Reilly article and subsequent report by The Wall Street Journal, Google has let it be known that it is not tracking your location… unless you give it permission. In a statement to blog TechCrunch, Google writes:

All location sharing on Android is opt-in by the user. We provide users with notice and control over the collection, sharing and use of location in order to provide a better mobile experience on Android devices. Any location data that is sent back to Google location servers is anonymized and is not tied or traceable to a specific user.

The Wall Street Journal called in to question the notion that data sent to Google was, in fact, anonymous. Google addressed this claim, stating that when users opt-in to the service data is often linked with a phone’s unique identifier . The unique identifier is not, however, then partnered with a phone number, serial number, name, or email address — making it difficult for Google to associate the location information with a specific user. Apple has yet to issue a statement about the utility of its gathered location data.

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Several researchers at O’Reilly have discovered an extremely troubling feature of iPhones and 3G iPads running Apple’s iOS 4. In a blog post and accompanying video, the site details that Apple is storing the GPS coordinates of cellular iDevices locally, in an unencrypted and unprotected file. “Ever since iOS 4 arrived, your device has been storing a long list of locations and time stamps,” reads the post. “We’re not sure why Apple is gathering this data, but it’s clearly intentional, as the database is being restored across backups, and even device migrations.” O’Reilly goes on to note that along with a list of timestamped GPS coordinates, the file also contains a list of Wi-Fi access points that the affected device has been in range of. “Anybody with access to this file knows where you’ve been over the last year, since iOS 4 was released,” the brief continues. The file in question — named consolidated.db — is present in the backup file created when syncing a cellular iOS device with iTunes, and, obviously, on the iOS device itself. “Why this data is stored and how Apple intends to use it — or not — are important questions that need to be explored,” writes the team. Apple’s security team did not respond to O’Reilly‘s request for comment. The video made by the researchers is after the break.

Read [O'Reilly] Read [iPhone Tracker app]

The nation’s fifth largest wireless provider — MetroPCS — announced the addition of Tampa, Florida to its LTE portfolio. “As we have built-out our 4G LTE service across the nation, we continue to be dedicated to making our customers’ lives easier by providing them with feature-rich smartphones that let them do more on our network,” said the company’s president, CEO and chairman Roger D. Linquist. Tampa joins Atlanta, Boston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Detroit, Jacksonville, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Sacramento and San Francisco on the list of cities blanketed with MetroPCS’s LTE network. The full press release is after the break.

MetroPCS Launches 4G ^LTE Service in the Tampa Metropolitan Area

Experience unlimited 4G ^LTE mobile broadband with the world’s first commercially available 4G ^LTE enabled Android smartphone

DALLAS – (April 1, 2011) – MetroPCS Communications, Inc. (NYSE: PCS) today expanded its 4G^LTE service into the Tampa metropolitan area featuring the Samsung Galaxy Indulge^TM, the world’s first commercially available 4G^LTE enabled Android^TM smartphone with unlimited talk, text and 4G^LTE web browsing. The Samsung Galaxy Indulge is available on MetroPCS 4G^LTE service plans that range from $50 to $60 a month, including all applicable taxes and regulatory fees.

“As we have built-out our 4G^LTE service across the nation, we continue to be dedicated to making our customers’ lives easier by providing them with feature-rich smartphones that let them do more on our network,” said Roger D. Linquist, president, CEO and chairman of MetroPCS. “The Samsung Galaxy Indulge offers the total package, allowing consumers to manage every aspect of their lives from their mobile phone, using the latest Android technology and our MetroPCS 4G^LTE service.”

The Samsung Galaxy Indulge Experience
The Samsung Galaxy Indulge is available in-store or online for $299 after a $100 mail-in rebate, plus tax. Customers can take advantage of all MetroPCS 4G^LTE has to offer with the Samsung Galaxy Indulge, including:

• Data access to streaming audio, video and gaming content, downloads and Android applications.

• The latest Android 2.2 technology with quick access to more than 100,000 apps on the Android Market^TM.
• A three megapixel camera and camcorder with auto-focus, music player, Stereo Bluetooth® capabilities and expandable memory storage up to 32GB.
• MetroSTUDIO, powered by RealNetworks, delivers audio content over 4G^LTE and Wi-Fi, and premium video content on the $60 plan from NBC Universal, Black Entertainment Television (BET) and Univision, available on-demand from one easy-to-use application.
• A social networking and instant messaging application which harnesses notifications from friends and content from Facebook, MySpace and Twitter and AIM, MSN and Yahoo! IM clients into a single interface that’s accessible with one click.

The Samsung Galaxy Indulge is equipped with both a touchscreen and full slide-out QWERTY keyboard, making it easy to text or email in seconds. The smartphone has a 3.5″ brilliant display and seven homescreens that can be personalized to meet your news, service and entertainment needs with apps, widgets and folders.  You also get full access to Google Mobile services, such as Google Search^TM, Google Maps^TM, Gmail^TM and YouTube^TM. Additionally, the Galaxy Indulge includes a 4GB microSD^TM card, preloaded with the action film “IRONMAN 2,” produced by Paramount Pictures.

With today’s launch in the Tampa metropolitan area, MetroPCS’ 4G^LTEservices are available in all MetroPCS’s metropolitan areas, including Atlanta, Boston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Detroit, Jacksonville, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Sacramento and San Francisco.  4G^LTE service is also available on the Samsung Craft^TM, the world’s first commercially available 4G^LTE smartphone that launched in 2010.

4G. It’s everywhere. It’s on the tech sites you read. It’s on the televisions you watch. It’s plastered in advertisements all over the city streets you walk. It was probably in the sandwich you ate for lunch. Cellular carriers around the world are betting the bank on 4G — be it LTE, WiMAX or the newly knighted HSPA+ — and 4G-enabled gear is already starting to flood the market despite the lack of nationwide coverage.

Sprint was first to market with 4G here in the U.S. since HSPA+ was still just 3G at the time, and the carrier now has several 4G smartphones and 4G modems available for sale. Verizon Wireless is about to launch its first 4G phone, the highly anticipated HTC ThunderBolt, and AT&T will begin the process of replacing its HSPA+ 4G network with an LTE 4G network later this year. Even smaller carriers like MetroPCS are getting in on the action. In fact, MetroPCS became the first U.S. carrier to launch an LTE phone last year when it released the Samsung Craft.

Not long ago, 4G was a myth in terms of available technology. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) defined 4G as cellular service that provides peak download speeds of approximately 100Mbps in high-mobility environments (cell phones) and peak download speeds of approximately 1Gbps in low-mobility environments. LTE, WiMAX and HSPA+ don’t even come close to fitting that definition. This is no longer the case, however. Carriers are spending billions of dollars on these next-generation technologies and millions more advertising them. And so, not surprisingly, the ITU recently shifted its position and amended its definition of 4G to include current technologies. That worked out nicely.

Semantics aside, 4G services like LTE and WiMAX are where cellular technology is headed and eventually we’ll all embrace these new networks. We know 4G is a big deal to carriers because they’re spending bucket loads of money on these technologies, but all the hype right now surrounds speed. Speed? T-Mobile’s HSPA+ is often faster than these newer 4G technologies, as we recently saw in a recent nationwide speed test. So, does 4G really matter? Cut through all the marketing, advertising, speed tests and hype, and the answer is still yes — but perhaps not solely for the reason you think.

4G networks based on LTE and WiMAX will play an important role in empowering the future of the wireless industry. Yes, they have the potential to afford speeds that exceed the limitations of older cellular technologies like CDMA, EDGE, EV-DO and HSPA, but some might consider that a benefit of lesser importance than the capability these networks have to accommodate more traffic. Just ask AT&T, which has been taking hits in mind share ever since the mass of iPhone users began crippling its data network. Of course Apple’s inexperience with building cell phones continues to play a large role in AT&T’s current situation, but that’s another article entirely.

Without getting overly technical, new 4G networks based on LTE and WiMAX make use of technologies that will better accommodate the sharp rise in cell phone usage we’re currently seeing the the U.S. and other markets. The use of technologies like Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) and Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) antenna technology result in a more efficient use of spectrum, better signal coverage and — most importantly, perhaps — more capacity.

Think of your cellular connection as a highway. Older 3G technologies might have two or three lanes in each direction. When traffic is light, the highway is more than suitable to get you from A to B quickly, efficiently and painlessly. Problems arise as rush hour approaches, however, and it could now take hours to get to the same destination that would take just 20 minutes in light traffic.

Now, think of LTE and WiMAX as a highway that offers 10 lanes in each direction. It might have the same 65 MPH speed limit as the narrower highway, but traffic will keep moving along just fine when rush hour rolls around.

It’s far more difficult to convey this benefit in advertising, and users naturally consider speed to be of great importance — especially after being conditioned by wireline broadband services and the ISPs that provide them. As such, speed will continue to be at the forefront of all marketing messages carriers deliver to the public surrounding 4G. But rest assured, carriers need the added capacity afforded by LTE and WiMAX networks if they are to survive. Moreover, developers need the capacity so they can continue innovating, and subscribers need it so they can use all these great new services without experiencing 10 car pile-ups on a regular basis.

We’re now in the midst of rush hour and 3G highways are far too narrow to handle the congestion.

In a report titled Emerging Wireless Consumer Devices published this month by Berg Insight, the firm claims that sales of connected consumer devices will grow 77% in 2011. Berg estimates that 22 million consumer devices with embedded cellular connectivity were sold in 2010, and that number will nearly double in 2011 to 39 million. In 2015, Berg thinks over 270 million connected consumer devices will be sold globally, representing a compound annual growth rate of 65%. The category, as defined by Berg, includes devices with integrated cellular connectivity such as tablets and eReaders, and it excludes cell phones. The firm also notes that connected portable gaming consoles such as Sony’s NGP will be a new and significant entrant into the category later this year.

Today, U.S. wireless provider Sprint published a press release outlining its “Network Vision” to be implemented over the next several years. As the PR reads:

Today, Sprint uses separate equipment to deploy services on 800MHz spectrum, 1.9GHz spectrum and, through its relationship with Clearwire, 2.5GHz spectrum. Under the terms of the new contracts, Alcatel-Lucent, Ericsson and Samsung will install new network equipment and software that brings together multiple spectrum bands, or airwaves, on a single, multimode base station.

Sprint notes that the shift to multimode towers will enhance service quality, create network flexibility, reduce operating costs, and improve environmental sustainability. Network executives estimate the cost of Network Vision at between $4 billion and $5 billion, but it should save the company between $10 billion and $11 billion after 7-years.

The same announcement also contains a short note about the future of Sprint’s iDEN, push-to-talk service. “During the nationwide implementation of Network Vision, PTT customers will continue to receive a superior customer experience on the iDEN network, currently performing at best-ever levels,” the release reads. “As the Network Vision transformation unfolds, Sprint expects to launch the next-generation of PTT services in 2011 on the CDMA network, offering customers sub-second call setup time along with robust data capabilities. [...] As the shifting to more broadband-centric PTT applications on the CDMA network occurs, it is expected that iDEN cell sites will be phased out. This phase out is expected to begin in 2013.”

Hit the jump to check out the full release.

Sprint Announces Network Vision – A Cutting-Edge Network Evolution Plan With Partners Alcatel-Lucent, Ericsson and Samsung

OVERLAND PARK, Kan.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Sprint (NYSE: S) today unveiled its Network Vision blueprint to deploy a cost-effective, innovative network plan to further enhance voice quality and data speeds for customers across the United States. Sprint’s Network Vision is expected to consolidate multiple network technologies into one, seamless network.

“New Cisco Visual Networking Index Forecasts Global IP Traffic to Increase Fivefold by 2013”
Sprint has awarded contracts to Alcatel-Lucent, Ericsson and Samsung to bring Network Vision to life by implementing multimode technology to enhance service – coverage, quality and speed – create network flexibility, reduce operating costs and improve environmental sustainability. The scope of the arrangement between Sprint and these best-in-class vendors includes purchases of hardware, software and services. The awarded suppliers will deploy state-of-the-art technology expected to bring Sprint customers an overall enhanced network experience and deliver financial value to Sprint.

“Improving the customer experience – business and consumer – is the motivating force behind these network improvements,” said Dan Hesse, Sprint CEO. “We are very pleased with the results of our process which selected these three world-class partners. Each company realized the network proposal process was highly competitive, and each responded with innovative, cost-effective solutions.

“Network Vision builds on our legacy of wireless innovation and represents the next step in the evolution of our networks to best meet unprecedented growth in mobility services. We are well-positioned to take advantage of new technology, chipsets, devices and applications. Working with these three partners, we expect to deliver to our customers the most cutting-edge network capabilities available today and in the future.”

Today, Sprint uses separate equipment to deploy services on 800MHz spectrum, 1.9GHz spectrum and, through its relationship with Clearwire, 2.5GHz spectrum. Under the terms of the new contracts, Alcatel-Lucent, Ericsson and Samsung will install new network equipment and software that brings together multiple spectrum bands, or airwaves, on a single, multimode base station. (See ‘Current vs. New cell site’ at the Sprint Network Vision Information Center.)

The base stations will allow for the flexibility to offer new technologies using any of the 800MHz, 1.9GHz or 2.5GHz bands, as well as other spectrum bands. Sprint and the three companies expect to finalize the implementation schedule and begin the first stages of deployment in 2011. Completion of Network Vision across the Sprint network is expected to take from three to five years.

The implementation of multimode technology throughout the Sprint network is designed to:

Enhance service – Improve quality and data speed; improve in-building coverage and coverage within the network footprint
Create network flexibility – Ensure the most effective expansion of 4G
Reduce operating costs by delivering capital efficiency, lease reductions, roaming savings and backhaul efficiencies
Improve environmental sustainability by reducing carbon footprint and energy consumption needs
In addition to implementing multimode base stations, the Sprint Network Vision plan encompasses next-generation push-to-talk (PTT) with broadband capabilities and the integration of multimode chipsets into smartphones, tablets and other broadband devices, including machine-to-machine (M2M) capabilities.

Through spectrum efficiencies associated with Network Vision, Sprint intends to repurpose some of its 800MHz spectrum for CDMA service, thereby enhancing coverage, particularly the in-building experience for customers. Augmenting its 1.9GHz footprint with 800MHz, Sprint expects its CDMA coverage density will increase throughout the country. More density generally equates to fewer dropped calls and a more seamless network experience for customers. According to a 2010 PCWorld 13-city, 3G drive test, Sprint had the most reliable network. The Network Vision plan expects to enhance that competitive position.

“This is a very bold move,” said Berge Ayvazian, senior consultant, Heavy Reading. “Sprint was first with an all-digital wireless network; the first to upgrade to EVDO; and, more recently, the first to broadly offer 4G services. Sprint is once again first to deploy a common converged mobile network that will strengthen its 3G services; enhance its 4G technology options; and continue delivering the industry’s leading push-to-talk offering.”

Future of push-to-talk

During the nationwide implementation of Network Vision, PTT customers will continue to receive a superior customer experience on the iDEN network, currently performing at best-ever levels. As the Network Vision transformation unfolds, Sprint expects to launch the next-generation of PTT services in 2011 on the CDMA network, offering customers sub-second call setup time along with robust data capabilities.

Over time, a shift is likely to occur whereby customers demand more data-centric applications with PTT usage. According to recent industry research, U.S. wireless data traffic exceeds voice traffic for the first time in history. The industry’s mobile data revenue is up 27 percent this year*. (See ‘Wireless data growth trends’ at the Sprint Network Vision Information Center.)

As the shifting to more broadband-centric PTT applications on the CDMA network occurs, it is expected that iDEN cell sites will be phased out. This phase out is expected to begin in 2013.

“We’re seeing an increasing need from our push-to-talk customers for high-speed data capabilities, said Steve Elfman, president-Network Operations & Wholesale, Sprint. “Marrying the industry’s only sub-second PTT call setup with broadband data directly supports our customers’ needs and creates an unmatched offering in the market. Additionally, we fully expect a competitively priced lineup of rugged handsets and smartphones on the CDMA network.”

Greater efficiency benefits environmental sustainability

Across the country, as Network Vision is implemented, the size and power required to operate cell sites used by Sprint is expected to be reduced. Where an entire site can be decommissioned, Sprint intends to reduce its carbon footprint and energy costs. This network transformation will further Sprint’s lead in environmental sustainability and social responsibility. As Newsweek’s #6 ranked U.S. company in its recent “Green” rankings, Sprint will continue to aggressively identify ways to protect the environment. (See more at the Sprint Sustainability Information Center.)

Financial benefit to Sprint

Sprint expects the Network Vision plan to bring financial benefit to the company, not only by reducing operating costs, but also by avoiding future expenses as wireless data traffic continues to grow. The total estimated incremental cost of the Network Vision program during the deployment period is between $4 billion and $5 billion. Sprint estimates the total net financial benefit for a seven-year period to be between $10 billion and $11 billion. Cost savings are expected to come from capital efficiencies, reducing energy costs, lowering roaming expenses, backhaul savings and the eventual reduction in total cell sites. As Network Vision gives Sprint a more efficient network, and wireless data demand continues to increase, the per-unit cost efficiencies of serving Sprint customers should improve.

Network Vision implementation

The nation’s geography will be divided among Alcatel-Lucent, Ericsson and Samsung on a market-by-market basis. Several of the markets for each company:

Alcatel-Lucent: New York City, Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, D.C./Baltimore and Los Angeles
Ericsson: Atlanta, Miami, Houston, Kansas City and Dallas
Samsung: Chicago, Denver, Pittsburgh, San Francisco and Seattle
* Research support: “New Cisco Visual Networking Index Forecasts Global IP Traffic to Increase Fivefold by 2013” – June 9, 2009

GigaOM is reporting that T-Mobile is testing a completely solar-powered cell phone tower here in the States. The single tower — located in Chalfont, PA — generates enough power to keep the site off the grid and, at times, feed power back into the country’s aging electrical system. Pike Research estimates that 4.5% of all cellular stations worldwide will use solar or wind energy by 2014. The report indicates that although the tower does cost 2 to 3 times more than the standard, grid-powered equivalent, savings in the long run — in electricity, tax benefits, and initial setup costs — could very well make up for the difference over the life of the tower. Hit the read link for the full report.

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The Wall Street Journal is reporting that mobile location company Skyhook Wireless is suing Google, alleging that the search giant “interfered with a contract, announced in April, to put its location technology on Motorola Inc. phones.” Skyhook, for those not familiar, is a company that created a system — call XPS — that uses GPS, cellular, and Wi-Fi data to help triangulate the location of a device quickly. The company’s technologies were in previous iterations of iOS and currently are in dozens of mobile devices. The WSJ writes, “Google called Motorola several times to put “stop ship” orders on products containing Skyhook technology and insisted that its own location technology run side-by-side on devices using Skyhook. The result, the complaint states, is that Motorola shipped a device in mid-July without Skyhook technology.” Skyhook says the sour deal cost the company tens of millions of dollars; Motorola has yet to comment on the report. We’ll keep you updated as this one develops.

[Via PhoneScoop]

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AT&T may want to be the darling of the US wireless carriers, but some of its policies are seemingly designed to turn a customer into an enemy and not an ally. Such is the case with its 3G MicroCell which is promoted as being a solution for those with cellular coverage issues. For those unaware, the 3G Microcell is a hardware device that lets customers use their broadband Internet connection to make and receive phone calls and, in the case of AT&T’s 3G-enabled MicroCell, to utilize the 3G data capabilities of their phone. On the surface, this sounds like a win-win solution with customers receiving solid 3G cellular coverage and AT&T offering a solution for customers with coverage issues. Unfortunately, AT&T seems destined to shoot itself in its foot by instituting a data usage policy that counts data used through the MicroCell against your cellular data allotment. Seems a bit counter-intuitive that AT&T is charging for data used through the MicroCell when the bulk of the data transmission is carried by your broadband Internet provider, no?

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