Apple, At&t | featured news

AT&T, Verizon and Sprint announced Friday the arrival of the 4G LTE models of Apple's iPad mini and fourth generation iPad. Apple's iPad mini is a smaller, cheaper version of the iPad. The mini tablet features at 7.9-inch screen with 1,024 x 768 display resolution, front- and rear-facing cameras and 1080p HD video recording.

T-Mobile USA, the only "Big 4" phone company that doesn't sell the iPhone, now wants to snag used ones from AT&T. Starting Wednesday, when Apple is expected to reveal a new iPhone model, T-Mobile will start advertising that AT&T iPhone owners who are out of contract can switch to T-Mobile.

AT&T Inc pulled back its outlook for business services this year, sending its shares down 3 percent despite its better than expected quarterly profit as it reduced costs from customer upgrades to smartphones such as the Apple Inc iPhone.

When Verizon Wireless started selling the iPhone, AT&T sounded a defiant note, saying that its customers would remain loyal. A year later, it's clear that the Verizon iPhone has crimped AT&T's stride. Verizon had little problem attracting new customers before it started selling the iPhone. In fact, it was the only wireless carrier that managed to keep up with AT&T's iPhone-fueled growth.

Apple Inc is betting a 4G-equipped iPad will tempt more U.S. consumers to pay extra to watch high-quality video on the go, and in turn, give Verizon Wireless and AT&T Inc a revenue boost.

Verizon and AT&T will sell a version of the upcoming iPad that runs on their newest fourth-generation wireless networks, as the battle to cash in on big investments in mobile broadband heats up.

As far as years in technology go, 2011 was one for the record books. It wasn’t just about big battles like Apple vs. Samsung, Microsoft vs. Google, AT&T vs. the world, or Hewlett-Packard vs. itself. It wasn’t just about the growth of apps and the ever-increasing pervasiveness of the Web in our daily lives, though there were plenty of amazing developments both these realms. It wasn’t just about hardware or software. And it wasn’t just about towing the line or trying to hold onto it.

Addicted to Netflix on your mobile phone? Good news, then. Sprint will not only get Apple's next iPhone handset, it has a plan to use it to peel users away from larger rivals AT&T and Verizon: unlimited data for $99.99 a month, Bloomberg reported Friday. Sprint's rivals now charge extra for data service.

The iPad 2 went on sale in the U.S. on March 11, and already the device is selling out at Apple, AT&T, Verizon and various retail stores around the country.

AT&T is adding a postpaid billing option for tablet customers, though its pricing is largely unchanged: $15 or $25 a month based on data usage.