We’ve heard various rumors over the past year or so that T-Mobile USA parent Deutsche Telekom was looking for someone to look over its fledgling American wireless provider, either in the form of a partnership or an outright buyout. Now, many moons later, the company has felt compelled to set those rumors to rest — possibly because it couldn’t find any interested parties. Rene Obermann, Chairman of the Management Board at Deutsche Telekom, believes there’s room for four major wireless players in the US (T-Mo is number four, currently) and asks the question: “Why can’t you have penetration rates of 500 percent or 1,000 percent?” The idea here is that, as more and more devices go wireless, people are going to need more and more wireless plans to cover them. But 10 separate wireless plans per person? That sounds ’spensive.

T-Mobile USA staying single for now originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 27 Mar 2010 23:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We spotted this suit-and-tie wearing pair sneaking through the FCC’s lairs a few weeks ago, and now we know the whens and wheres of buying one… in the UK, anyway. The Dell Latitude E6410 is currently listed with a base price of

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Filed under: Etc., Legislation and Policy, Green Daily

Right now, it seems impossible to imagine a day when bicycles and pedestrians can equally share the roads with automobiles and trucks in the U.S., but Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood aims to make that day a reality. Recently, LaHood announced a “major policy revision” that will treat cyclists and walkers with policies similar to vehicles. LaHood’s goal is to refocus efforts on non-motorized transportation by adopting policies that will encourage more people to consider these alternative transportation methods.

LaHood envisions future roadways built to accommodate not only automobiles, but also cyclists and walkers. As LaHood’s policy says, “Walking and biking should not be an afterthought in roadway design.” For example, snow should be cleared from bike pathways when streets are cleared, road maintenance should coincide with pathway maintenance, where roads and automobiles can go, so to should bikes and walkers.

By treating bicyclists and pedestrians as equals to the automobile, the new policy will encourage more people to travel via their own two feet. In addition, creating new pathways and maintaining those already in use will make traveling by bike significantly easier for those that already chose to.

Like any policy, LaHood’s plan isn’t without critiques. Objections have surfaced from business owners, politicians and numerous other groups. Objections to the policy focus on jobs and job creation. Objectors have said, “you can’t have jobs without the efficient movement of freight” and “what job is going to be created by having a bike lane” and even “the policy would undermine any effort the Obama administration has made towards jobs.” These might be valid counter-arguments against the policy, but biking and walking are two of the most efficient, cleanest sources of travel known and we support LaHood’s decision to back the cyclist for a greener future ahead. Plus, last time we checked, doing more work - like creating and maintaining bike lanes - requires more workers.

[Source: New York Times | Image: Herval - C.C. License 2.0]

Transportation Secretary embraces bicycling, walking for a greener future originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Mon, 29 Mar 2010 11:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Here’s another cool app for the Apple iPhone: LiveCLIQ, an app that lets you record videos and then either upload or stream them to the LiveCLIQ website. To do that, you just need to record a video using LiveCLIQ and then sync it. You can even record a few videos and then sync them all at the same time. Once they’re synced, you can choose to upload or stream them to the LiveCLIQ website at livecliq.net. The app works with both the original iPhone and the iPhone 3G (as well as a host of other mobile phones). You can download it for free through Cydia, but you’ll have to sign up for an account on the LiveCLIQ website in order to begin using it. Related articles: vlc4iphone v0.9.5 (Formerly ZodPlay): Media streaming added

Via [apple.qj.net]

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Over the next few years we’re looking at major LTE build-outs in the US from at least two players — Verizon and AT&T — but we’ve rather unexpectedly gotten a third player coming into the fold this day led by hedge fund Harbinger Capital Partners. Basically, these guys just got regulatory approval last week to buy satellite operator SkyTerra, combining about 23MHz of spectrum through slivers of ownership in the 1.4GHz and 1.6GHz terrestrial bands with 10MHz of L-band satellite space. This isn’t the kind of network you’ll just be able to waltz into a store and sign up for, though; instead, Harbinger is looking to offer it as an end-to-end wholesale service to other providers, of which AT&T and Verizon could be a part if they need the extra capacity or they’re looking for a stopgap prior to completing their own build-outs. Interestingly, the terms of the SkyTerra deal specify that the huge guys can only account for up to 25 percent of the new network’s traffic, so there’ll still be plenty of room for other players to get in when the initial commercial launch goes live (or is scheduled to go live, anyway) some time before the third quarter of 2011 covering 9 million potential subscribers. A full-scale launch in all “major” markets is lined up by the second quarter of 2013 — and thanks to Harbinger’s holdings in TerreStar, we could see even more than 23MHz worth of LTE airspace by the time everything’s said and done. By comparison, Verizon holds 22MHz of 700MHz spectrum in many markets, so these guys are working with a decent-sized slice of the pie here.

New US LTE network borne of satellite operators, launching next year originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Mar 2010 13:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Creation Tech’s $65 UMPC is cheap and unlovable originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Mar 2010 12:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ready for a surreal way to start your day? Salt Lake City’s KSL News has a report out this morning detailing the baffling experience of AT&T subscribers trying to access emergency services in the city. Instead of being routed through to their local dispatcher, the urgent calls somehow found their way to Seattle’s 911 response center. Brought to the news team’s attention by one Tony Sams, this issue was originally thought to originate in his iPhone’s GPS system, as he was being identified as being located in the Seattle area, but then his local police also tried dialing their own number only to find themselves chatting it up with their Emerald City colleagues. Until they figure this out, we’d suggest using your landlines — if you still have one of those antiques — or just yelling at passersby for help. Hit the source for the full video report and the 10-digit direct number for Salt Lake City general dispatch.

Update: AT&T has been very nippy in getting this routing problem sorted out, and proper service has been restored. The company is now investigating the cause of this problemo.

[Thanks, Ryan]

AT&T redirecting 911 calls from Salt Lake City to Seattle, working on a fix (update: fix is in) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 26 Mar 2010 05:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Hybrid, Hyundai, New York Auto Show

Next Wednesday at the New York Auto Show, Hyundai will unveil its first U.S. market hybrid model based on the just released Sonata sedan. Unlike the Fusion and Camry hybrids which are barely distinguishable from their conventional counterparts, the Sonata Hybrid gets a totally new front fascia. The new look adds a big lower grille inspired by the Blue-Will Concept that shown at the Detroit Auto Show in January.

We believe the Sonata hybrid will retain the same 2.4-liter direct injected inline-four found in the sedans that are on sale now. However, it may be re-tuned to operate on the more efficient Atkinson cycle like other hybrids. Unlike the gas-electrics from Ford and Toyota, Hyundai’s system is expected to use a conventional six-speed automatic gearbox in conjunction with a 30 kilowatt electric motor.

The Sonata hybrid and a range-topping gasoline 2.0-liter turbo model will both be revealed during a live video webcast on HyundaiMediaLive.com at 1:35pm on Wednesday, March 31. Following the presentation, CEO John Krafcik and sales VP Dave Zuchowski will be on the web to answer questions from the audience. You can submit your questions now at the site and tune in Wednesday for answers.

[Source: Hyundai]

Hyundai releases first teaser shot of the Sonata hybrid originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Fri, 26 Mar 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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