Verizon

You get KitKat, you get KitKat, you get KitKat! Well, Verizon isn’t the Oprah sure but with Verizon’s announcement via Twitter this morning that Android 4.4 is on its way to the DROID Ultra, Maxx and Mini it sure feels like a Oprah giveaway episode.

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(via <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jbtaylor/5725362250/in/photolist-9HVYJf-dUa6Vv-9p5wzz-dktAoT-8zr6jL-8niyxG-ahWGGU-ahWGHh-ahWGHm-ahWGH3-8oqttH-dnDryR-8nfrfD-9HFdUX-c83Cah-7JfazN-e2xr5t-bURuKH-e1kDuL-9MSHjY-adVi2Z-aptqJu-ccdK8C-bmKsbu-bURuWi-ccdKcf-ccdKi5-e1faCa-8SdCBv-8MmowQ-dMm3Uk-dMrBxA-fmgSPT-dFmKF4-dFmqQ4-cCuqoG-ccdKb9-e1eY4P-8jshhM-e1eYeV-9GDiuc-9GGb4A-9MSF1E-dLUyCK-8niyGq-8nixJY-8nfrBp-g2sFSy-g2t57H-9Tufzo-9Trpo6/">Flickr</a>)

Almost two years to date since AT&T pulled its bid for T-Mobile USA, rival carrier Sprint is reportedly preparing its own offer to purchase the fourth largest carrier in the US.

That’s according to a The Wall Street Journal report which claims Sprint is currently looking into regulatory concerns that could be voiced if the third largest US carrier acquired the company which runs the fourth largest US carrier.

Sprint hasn’t yet decided whether to move ahead with a bid. Going forward despite regulators’ concerns would be highly risky. Any pursuit of a bid by Sprint could be aimed at testing antitrust officials’ reaction to a deal, and a bad reaction could put an end to the effort.

While Justice Department denied AT&T’s bid for T-Mobile in 2011 after a year long effort, it’s certainly possible a Sprint/T-Mobile merger could prove otherwise considering rival carriers AT&T and Verizon’s position in the market.

As the WSJ report notes, Verizon leads with 95 million postpaid subscribers and AT&T has 72 million subscribers, but such an acquisition would keep Sprint in a distant third place with just 53 million postpaid customers.

Both Sprint and Verizon have proved capable of adding competition in an an industry with so few key players. Sprint has long boasted its unlimited data offer for customers while T-Mobile famously reinvented the 2-year upgrade model with options soon adopted by the competition.

Unlike the proposed AT&T/T-Mobile acquisition bid two years ago, Sprint and T-Mobile operate with different technologies. The former company relies on CDMA technologies while the latter company is built on GSM.

AT&T’s CEO has finally, finally, finally come to his senses and admitted that the “era of big subsidies for devices is coming to an end.” Continuing the smartphone upgrade cycle has always worn on the carriers margins and is something I know I have personally wished would go away a long time ago.

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6AvIxUVQGo&w=560&h=420]

This “new” Verizon video includes Edward Norton and a whole lot of silly situations someone can get into during a 48 hour period. The video, which actually went live at the tail end of November is making the rounds this morning after a teaser earlier in November hinted at something relating to 48 hours.

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We’ve already covered the Target, Walmart and Best Buy Black Fridays earlier this month as their Black Friday ads broke cover to the world. However, there are far more Android-related deals to be had on Black Friday and here are some of the most notable across the nations largest retailers. Don’t forget to sneak a peek at what T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon and Sprint have to offer as well.

Target: 

• Galaxy S 4 on AT&T/Verizon for $39.99 Sprint for $49.99

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Keep it locked here for all the updates as new Android-related carrier deals are announced for Cyber Monday. More importantly, keep your homepage loaded with 9to5toys.com this holiday season for a look at all of the seasons best tech-related specials.

AT&T:

Thanksgiving day:

• Samsung Galaxy S® 4 – $29.995
• Samsung Galaxy S® III mini – FREE5
• Samsung Galaxy Mega™– $49.995
• Samsung Galaxy S®III – FREE5

Black Friday:

• 50 percent off JAMBOX.
• 75 percent off Grandoe touchscreen Gloves.
• 60 percent off a JBL PowerUp Wireless Charging Speaker for Nokia, JBL PlayUp. Portable Wireless Speaker for Nokia and JBL OnBeat Micro Portable Speaker Dock with Lightning Connector.
• $20 off on select XPAL cases.
• 50 percent off a ZAGGkeys FLEX keyboard.
• 25 percent off Martian Voice Command Smartwatches.
• 50 percent off a Polaroid Bluetooth printer.
• $249 for a BIG JAMBOX.
• 10 percent off all JBL and Harman speakers. (Excludes items already discounted.)
• One Black Friday deal extends through Dec. 31, online only. Customers can save and score a Samsung ATIV smart PC for FREE6 with a new two-year agreement with qualifying plans. Activation and upgrade fees apply.

Verizon:

Verizon’s full Black Friday ad has already been previewed here.

• Motorola DROID MAX for $199
• Galaxy S 4 for $99
• HTC One for $99
• DROID RAZR HD for $0
• Motorola DROID Ultra for $99
• Ellipsis 7″ tablet for $0
• $150 savings on all Samsung tablets
• Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 for $299

T-Mobile:

• LG G2 on sale for $0 down with G2Promo
• Galaxy S 4 is $48 off with GS4DEAL
• Galaxy Note 3 is $48 off with SAVENOTE3
• Nexus 5 is $30 off with 30NEXUS
• Save $40 on the Galaxy S III ($18 monthly)
• $0 down on the Sony Xperia Z ($19 monthly)
• $0 down ($23 monthly) on the HTC One plus free urBeats earbud

Sprint:

• Nov. 22-27: Customers who bring a line to Sprint from another carrier will get up to a $100 instant discount on the purchase of any phone with a new two-year service agreement. Customers who switch their number to Sprint and choose Sprint One Up to finance their smartphone with $0 down and 0 percent financing will receive a $100 Visa Prepaid Card.
• Nov. 28-Dec. 2 (Retail stores are closed Thanksgiving, but customers can start early and shop online or Telesales): Customers can visit www.sprint.com/holiday or call 1-800-SPRINT1 to purchase Samsung Galaxy S® 4 mini for FREE (after a $50 mail in rebate via reward card) – a $99.99 savings with a new line or eligible upgrade and two-year service agreement. Customers who shop online or call on Thursday can also purchase LG G2 for $49.99 – a $150 savings with a new line or eligible upgrade and two-year service agreement. These offers will continue through Monday, Dec. 2, in Sprint retail stores across the country, online and Telesales (1-800-SPRINT1).

HTC’s holiday specials on the “top-rated” HTC One are kicking into gear with special offers for Sprint and Verizon customers. That’s not to say they are the best deals around, a title Amazon current holds if the HTC One is on your radar this week.

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Verizon announced today that it is releasing new mini variants of Samsung’s flagship Galaxy devices. One is the Galaxy S4 mini, the latest mid-tier version of Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S4. However, Verizon is oddly also launching last year’s model today, the Galaxy S III mini.

Despite the fact that the S4 mini is the newer device, the S III mini might be the better option for those on a budget as it will cost customers just $50 on a two-year contract after a $50 mail-in rebate. The S4 mini will come in at $99 with the same rebate. You’ll also be able to grab a month-to-month plan if you drop $249 or $399 for the S4 mini or S III mini, and $10 and $16 a month offers are available through Verizon Edge.

You can grab the Samsung Galaxy S4 mini and the Galaxy S III mini from Verizon now. 
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HTC’s trend of Android update transparency continued yesterday with hints that Android 4.4 KitKat will arrive stateside on the HTC One before the end of January. In response to a customer inquiry, HTC’s @htcusa account responded “In North America, we plan to deliver Kit Kat (including Sense 5.5) to HTC One customers by the end of January.”

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From 9to5toys.com

We are seeing one of the best deals yet on Motorola’s Moto X, now that Amazon is offering the device for just a penny with a two year contract.

For a little while there, Verizon was offering the Moto X for just $50 along with the use of its online customization tool, which allows users to choose the color of the device and its accents along with an inscription. Even though today’s deal doesn’t allow for the use of the Moto Maker customization app, with the half off promo now over, Amazon’s offer is not one to be missed for those in the market for a Moto X. It also comes on Verizon, which means customers will be able to upgrade to KitKat right away.

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As Verizon unveiled their shiny new concept store at Mall of America today, the company “accidentally” leaked the upcoming pricing of the HTC One Max. According to Nick Gray at HTC Source who was in attendance at the event, the image was displayed on a “massive interactive touch-screen” that featured both the device and the price.

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Fresh from the Motorola Blog, it appears that Motorola will launch its first Android 4.4 KitKat update on Verizon first, with rollouts starting today. The KitKat update brings:

Verizon Moto X owners take note as feedback from Motorola’s forums confirm the newest soak test is in fact Android 4.4 KitKat. Considering that Verizon is often the last to see a major Android update, we’re pleasantly surprised that they are moving fast to squash bugs by putting this out in a soak test.

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Motorola’s world may be concentrated on the release of the Moto G this week but Big Red is working to shift some attention back to the Moto X. The carrier is offering a $50 promotion on customized orders through Moto Maker until November 18th.

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Verizon Wireless, once the gold standard for LTE, has admitted that it is struggling to keep up with demand in the big cities – with some users being dropped down to slower 3G speeds. The carrier’s Chief Financial Officer Fran Shammo said yesterday:

There are certain pockets where we’re absolutely going to experience that down tick from the LTE network down to 3G because of capacity constraints … 
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I’ll be the first to admit that I think all smartphones look better dressed in white (no fingerprints!) and this newly leaked image of the LG G2 is no exception. However, even if the white looks more decadent than the black LG G2 that doesn’t take away from those horrible, eye-gouging Verizon logos that are so prominently placed. Twitter tipster @evleaks dropped the press image late last night and oh who am I kidding, those logos, kill them with fire.

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When Motorola launched its first smartphone as a Google company with the Moto X back in August, the big stand out feature for the device was the ability to apply over 2000 customizations at the time of purchase. Motorola let users pick the front, back, and accent colors, match headphone and case colors, and more all though its MotoMaker.com online ordering tool. Unfortunately, until today the MotoMaker tool was exclusive to AT&T with other carriers only selling white and black models of the Moto X.

The good news is AT&T’s exclusivity window has now officially ended and starting today you can order a customized Moto X through Moto Maker from all major US carriers including AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon.
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If you have a Nexus 7 you’re waiting to activate on Verizon’s LTE network, there’s good news and bad news …

The good news is Verizon has acknowledged the issue that has been preventing the device registering on its network, and says that a solution is in hand. The bad new is that solution is to wait for KitKat to be installed on the tablet, and there’s as yet no word on when this may be. Google has said only that it will be “in the coming weeks” and that is for the Wifi versions … 
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T-Mobile today announced that it is launching a new un-carrier initiative for tablets next month (November). The plan will offer tablets to T-Mobile customers (new and existing) for no money down. Like with smartphones, the customers will be able to pay for the device over the life of a 24-month plan. T-Mobile is yet to provide pricing specifics for tablets other than the iPad, but those details will arrive soon. What is known now: customers on T-Mobile with tablets will be able to get 200MB of data per month for free. T-Mobile recently announced the Simple Choice international unlimited data free roaming plan, and T-Mobile will likely support this for tablets.

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