Tag: AT&T

New Nokia Lumia 900 from AT&T: an Enlightened Way to Do Business

by admin

I know, I know, “enlightened” sounds like hyperbole. But occasionally a device comes along that can actually speed up-and smooth out-the daily grind, and the Lumia 900 smartphone appears to be one of them.

Consider: If you work your inbox and video chat with clients on the go, you want a crisp screen you don’t have to squint at to see. You want to jump from email attachments to your biz’s Facebook page to incoming texts as fast as you can tap and swipe. You don’t want to wait for a sluggish browser or ignore a colleague’s call because the info you know they want is still downloading.

Enter Lumia 900, a deserved “best of” winner at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show. Its pocket-friendly 4.3-inch ClearBlack AMOLED touchscreen shines even in direct sunlight. Its Windows(r) Phone interface seems to “think” like we do, grouping things logically and making whatever you want to do incredibly easy. And its AT&T 4G LTE connectivity keeps data flowing at top speeds. Even the battery is impressive, keeping a charge longer than most smartphones have us trained to expect.

The Lumia 900 looks great, too. Nokia has a reputation for precision craftsmanship and stylish design for good reason; this latest effort is slick and solid, an attractive body that complements the Windows Phone interface nicely.

Can the Nokia Lumia 900, available exclusively from AT&T, really enlighten your mobile business? If you make it your next phone, let me know.

NFC Action is Heating Up—Who Wins? Consumers!

by David Egger

David Egger is Lead Marketing Manager for AT&T’s IRU (Individual Responsibility User) Mobility Programs. You can find more blog content from David and other experts on emerging technologies and mobile application on the AT&T Networking Exchange Blog. AT&T has sponsored the following blog post.

When I last wrote about NFC (Near Field Communication) the technology was in its absolute infancy and was little more than a dream for a boy holding his wallet and phone, wishing they could merge.  Fast forward less than a year and we have two functioning NFC systems live in the United States, and devices arriving with the capability to take full advantage.

Google Wallet was the first out of the gate with a limited solution.  Google Wallet works with Citi Mastercard PayPass only at this time.  It is also only available on the Nexus S device.  It integrates with the Google Offers deals platform.

Right now the other big player is ISIS, a platform collaborated on between AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile to bring NFC to the mainstream.  This Summer we can expect to see a wide range of devices supporting ISIS, and the pilot that is currently ongoing in Austin and Salt Lake City already has support for multiple credit cards.  ISIS also integrates a wide range of loyalty programs, enabling you to combine the functionality of a mobile wallet app and an app like CardStar. Read More

The iPhone 4, still the device of my life

by Justin Alcon

There are tons of great new devices out there, and there are even more rumors of greater devices to come.  Despite the revolutionary form and function of the iPad 2 and the siren-like draw of Siri’s voice, something about the “all in the palm of my hand” functionality of my iPhone 4 and the dreams of greater things to come has kept me using the same device for over a year and kept my upgrade money, so far, in my wallet.

Although I think that it is totally fun to tell Siri that you love her, or to ask her silly questions and  laugh at the answers, I don’t actually see a lot of utility in talking to my phone as an interface, especially since I don’t do much driving.  Outside of Siri, I feel like my iPhone 4 can do everything that the 4S can do, and for that matter everything that I need a mobile device to do.  I get my business and personal email all in one place, while the handy grouping of apps puts all of my social media into one small corner of my screen.  I can read all types of documents, handle all my faxing business, and can even hop on the command line of a web server.  And if you don’t have one yet, I believe you can get one for a lot less cash then the S model. Read More

Is 4G LTE just a marketing buzzword? Or should you get excited about it?

by Shy Mukerjee

For AT&T Premier business and education customers, right now you you can get a great deal on one of three Android-powered 4G LTE smartphones. But what does 4G LTE really mean? Is it just another marketing buzzword like the original “4G” designation was last year, or does it actually mean something this time?

4G LTE promises speeds up to “10x faster” than 3G according to AT&T. In my testing, I’d say that’s pretty much accurate. I typically experienced download speeds around 3mbps and upload speeds around 1mbps on my 3G AT&T devices.

Now, LTE was only just turned on in New York City last month, so chances are that the network is nowhere near as saturated as the 3G network as only a limited number of devices (like the Samsung Galaxy Note I’m testing this week) work on 4G LTE. That said, it’s not just fast, it’s really, really fast:

One of these images shows the download speed on AT&T’s 4G LTE network. The other shows the cable internet I pay almost $80 a month for. Can you tell which is which? (Hint: LTE is faster).

If you’re a business professional and finding yourself often sending huge documents, videos, pictures and more to colleagues and clients while on-the-go, you know how frustrating 3G speeds can be. With AT&T rolling out 4G coverage to an increasingly large part of the country, maybe it’s finally time for you to upgrade.

Is bigger better? Samsung’s betting on it with the Galaxy Note 5.3″ Phone

by Shy Mukerjee

I got my hands on the Samsung Galaxy Note (available for preorder now from AT&T, arrives this Friday, Feb. 17th) a couple of days ago, and while I haven’t completely made up my mind about the device, there are a few things I’d like to share ahead of my full review coming next week. First and foremost, this is a big phone (a Samsung rep I talked to called it a “Super Phone”). As you can see below, it fits right in between the 3.5″ iPhone 4 and the smallest of Samsung’s Galaxy Tabs, the 7″ model:

While some reports as to it’s size are exaggerated, there’s no denying that this is a big device. The best example of it’s size I could think of was that it’s roughly the same size/shape as a “pocket” sized Moleskine notebook. Granted, the Galaxy Note is thinner, but if you think about where you’d store a Moleskine (blazer pocket for me, or maybe messenger bag) then you probably have a sense as to whether or not you’d feel comfortable keeping this device in, say, the front pocket of your jeans.

However, for some this larger size is going to be a huge advantage. For one, it means the phone packs a massive 2500mAh battery, which should be enough to power it’s 4G LTE chipset all day long. This means you’ll be able to enjoy lightning fast LTE speeds (I personally witnessed over 33mbit download, 11mbit upload speeds) without having to search for a power outlet every few hours. The huge screen means you’re unlikely to miss-click a button, or click on the wrong link. It also means that for users with impaired sight or who need high magnification reading glasses, the device should prove popular.

This Is the Way You Do Stylus

The second thing I noticed was how quickly and easily I was able to annotate images on the device, like the size comparison pic above. In a clear nod to both the Palm Pilots of the past, as well as the Nintendo 3DS, the Galaxy Note includes a hard plastic tipped stylus. With it, you’re able to quickly and easily take screenshots (a shockingly rare feature on Android devices), mark them up, take notes, highlight text, and more.

The stylus experience on the Galaxy Note is, frankly, remarkable. I’m a huge fan of using a stylus on my iPad 2 to take notes and draw, and it’s not an ideal experience. With the fat-tipped, capacitive styluses you have to use on the iPad (essentially, a fake thumb on a stick!), it’s hard to get accurate lines. Handwriting is often too-big to be useful. In contrast, on the Galaxy note I’m able to write small, and legibly, in the included S Memo app. In contrast to the iPad, where there’s something of an input lag (the lines you draw trail behind the location of the pen), input lag on the Galaxy Note is virtually non-existent. You can even input text with the stylus and ditch the on-screen keyboard, and in my brief tests the handwriting recognition software is shockingly accurate. Read More

AT&T’s Cloud Architect Is A Bold Step Into Public IaaS

by Ed Lucente

Ed Lucente is a Sr. Product Marketing Manager at AT&T. You can find more blog content from Ed and other experts on emerging technologies on the AT&T Networking Exchange Blog. AT&T has sponsored the following blog post.

IT professionals like selecting computer or storage resources in the cloud using an intuitive, self-service portal and convenient configuration aids. AT&T’s Cloud Architect is a good example that appears to have addressed these two primary features.

This wide array of configuration options is what I think IT professionals and others will find most striking about Cloud Architect. It is important to have the structure to support all major hypervisors, including VMware, Citrix and Microsoft. A multitude of operating systems are supported, like CentOS, Debian, Fedora, Microsoft Windows Server 2008 and 2003, Red Hat Enterprise Linux, and Ubuntu Linux. Deployment models cover public, private, dedicated and “bare metal” servers.

Perhaps most intriguing is how rapidly applications can be deployed. Within five minutes, deployment for public or private instances and bare metal servers can occur. Dedicated servers deploy within two-to-four hours. Read More

Free Galaxy S II Phone with Tablet Purchase from AT&T

by Shy Mukerjee

Astute readers of this blog have probably noticed this great deal from AT&T in the banner on our site. Basically, with the purchase of of a Samsung Galaxy Tab 8.9″ Android Tablet you get a FREE Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket Android smartphone. We like the Galaxy Tab 8.9 because it’s got a fast dual-core processor to easily handle your web browsing, Adobe flash, business document and even gaming needs, while maintaining a small size and form factor. It’s bigger than your basic Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet, but more portable than a full-sized Galaxy Tab or iPad.

As well, the Galaxy S II Skyrocket is a great Android smartphone. It’s got a huge screen, 4G connectivity, massive 1GB of RAM, 8 megapixel camera, and a gorgeous Super AMOLED Plus display. Basically, everything you’d expect from a high-end smartphone.

The best part? In a few months, BOTH of these devices will be getting the upgrade to Android’s latest operating system, Ice Cream Sandwich. Samsung confirmed this in a blog post last month, with both devices making the list of product they’ll be upgrading to Android 4.0 in the first quarter of 2012.

This is a limited time offer and applies to AT&T Premier members only, so check it out today and see if you qualify.

Want to Save on Wireless This Year?

by admin

We all vow to make our dollars go farther at the start of every year, but it isn’t always easy-and we don’t always succeed. AT&T Premier makes it easier to do both.

If you qualify for Premier benefits-and many business and government employees, military personnel, students, and teachers do-you can enjoy discounts on qualified wireless service, exclusive Web-only savings on smartphones and other devices, and more. You can always choose a free phone, too, like the Pantech Breeze III(tm), Pantech Link(tm) II, or Samsung a777.*

Take a second to see if you qualify. It’s quick, easy, and painless. Like your wireless bills could be, going forward.

*2-year agreement on qualified voice plan required. Additional restrictions apply.

3 Big Data Predictions for Small Business in 2012: Why predictive analytics will empower businesses of all sizes in 2012

by Ed Lucente

 

Ed Lucente is a Sr. Product Marketing Manager at AT&T. You can find more blog content from Ed and other experts on emerging technologies on the AT&T Networking Exchange Blog. AT&T has sponsored the following blog post.

Introduction

There’s plenty of talk about the benefits of business analytics — the analysis of “Big Data” to spot insightful trends, patterns, or correlations — for large enterprises in industry sectors like financial services, healthcare, and retail (see examples of analytics applications below). I’m surprised, though, that little attention has been given to the potential value that big data analytics can unleash for small businesses as well. Read More

Finding the perfect 4G Tablet for my Dad

by Justin Alcon

My mother called me a few days ago with a simple question:

“What kind of tablet should I buy for your father’s Christmas present?”

Should be easy to answer, right?  But, she had a few requirements:

– Must be 4G
– Large, bright screen
– Easy to use
– less than $400

And with that list, the pool of qualified applicants dwindled significantly.  However, this list of “must-haves” might also need some examination.  First off, we’ve explored previously in this blog that 4G doesn’t always mean “faster”.  I explained to my mother that, while dad may want the fanciest new technology, it might not actually provide a tangible benefit.  Unfortunately, I could hear her shrug through the phone; “Well, you know your father!” Read More