Verizon bonanza: Droid X2, Revolution, Trophy, and Xperia Play hit Big Red today

Verizon is seriously diversifying its portfolio today with the official in-store launch of four new smartphones. Three of them roll up in Android gear, though they all have major selling points beyond Google's software. LG's Revolution is the sole LTE-capable handset of the bunch, bringing with it a 4.3-inch screen and pre-installed Netflix for $250. The Droid X2 undercuts it on price, at $200, but doubles the core count with its Tegra 2 processor and ramps up resolution to qHD (960 x 540). Gaming aficionados can spend the same amount on the Xperia Play from Sony Ericsson, which offers a slideout gamepad and unique PlayStation Certified status. Bringing up the rear is HTC's well-traveled Trophy, a 3.7-inch Windows Phone that accepts it's a little late to the party and therefore slices $50 off its asking price, with a $150 levy before the obligatory two-year contract. What say you -- buy, try, or keep waiting?

Orange promotes Sprint and General Communications

B2B dealers gain ‘Principal Partner’ status within network’s partner programme following significant sales growth in past year

Orange has promoted indirect partners Sprint Communications systems and General Communications to ‘Principal Partner’ status within the Orange Partner Programme as the operator continues in its quest to becoming SME market leader by 2015.

Both companies, who specialise in selling to SME customers, now join Phonebox Communications, Voice Mobile, Scancom and The Phone Shop (Midlands) in the top tier of the programme, benefiting from increased marketing, sales and service support.

Orange said both companies has demonstrated “outstanding” results in sales to the SME community in their role as Orange Specialist Business Partners. Sprint has gained 6,000 connections and 15,000 upgrades in the past year on Orange and General Communications has achieved 3,000 new connections and 5,000 upgrades

Orange re-launched the Orange Partner Programme in March 2010, with a renewed focus on the indirect business channel to SMEs. Everything Everywhere said it has seen great success, with a 500 per cent increase in SME connections over the last year across Orange and T-Mobile.  T-Mobile is the primary brand for SME customers with fewer than 50 connections, while Orange focuses on those with 51-250 connections.

Sprint Communications Systems managing director Paul Leonard (pictured second left) said: “Our customers have seen the benefits of the shared network and increased choice available with both Orange and T-Mobile, and as you can see from the growth we’ve had in connections, so have we.”

General Communications managing director Andrew Comrie said: “Working our way up from being an Orange Specialist Partner to becoming a Principal Partner will change the way that General Communications can do business. Our customers will be able to benefit from even greater loyalty deals and product choice, and our trusted relationship with Orange will not only help us to grow, but by allowing us to offer what the SMEs we work with need, help them to grow too.”

Everything Everywhere head of business sales Darren Goldsmith (pictured far right) said: “It was always our aim not only to grow our SME market share through the indirect channel, but also to be able to reward those loyal and successful partners who helped us to do that. We hope now to accept many more indirect resellers into the Orange Partner Programme, so that we can help them to grow their own customer base and benefit from a true partnership approach with Everything Everywhere”

Telstra moves to reduce mobile phone bill shock

Telstra consumer mobile customers soon will be able to use their phone’s data service without the risk of an unexpectedly high bill, commonly known as “bill shock”. They will be among the first in the world to have their data speeds slowed when they exceed their mobile data allowance and not be charged for excess domestic data usage.  The changes are in development and will be launched by year’s end.

Telstra Chief Financial Officer John Stanhope, who will announce the plan in a speech to the American Chamber of Commerce in Australia today, said Australians were embracing data-hungry smartphones in record numbers and Telstra recognised it could better protect its customers from surprise bills.

 

“Our customers deserve to be able to enjoy the full capabilities of their Telstra post-paid mobiles without fear of a large, unexpected bill.  By slowing data speeds once a customer has exceeded their data allowance, and not charging for the extra data, customers stay connected  without fear of a hit to the hip pocket,” Mr Stanhope said.

 

Customers who have used their data allowance will be able to top-up directly from their handsets to resume full-speed data services such as web browsing. Telstra’s existing data alerts system –which provides data usage alerts via SMS at 80 and 100 percent of the allowance –will also be upgraded so SMS alert messages are sent to customers in near real-time.

 

“The new service will make life much easier for our customers by providing them with greater certainty and control over their data usage and their bills. Data throttling complements recent increases to the included data allowances available through Telstra’s Freedom Connect Plans,” Mr Stanhope said.

 

Mr Stanhope also announced Telstra would improve information available to customers using mobile data services while overseas.

 

“Increasingly our customers are taking their smartphones with them on overseas trips as a convenient way to access travel information, email and maps. To help them stay on top of their data usage, Telstra is introducing regular SMS alerts that provide advice on the volume and costs associated with data they are consuming.”

 

Mr Stanhope said this new service was part of a wider program to improve customer satisfaction.

 

This program has included:

New point of sale ‘My Offer’ summaries which explain on a single page what is included and excluded in a mobile plan, along with applicable fees and charges.

PDF-format bills that can be sent directly and securely to a customer’s nominated email address, allowing them to receive their bill sooner.

24/7 call centres for consumer and small business sales and enquiries so customers can now connect with Telstra at a time that suits them.

Telstra technician customer visits on the weekend.

A dedicated team to help residential customers move house.

Free calls to Telstra’s main customer support and sales lines.

More competitive bundles and pricing plans.

 

Sprint Takes the Shopping Experience to the Next Level with Roll Out of New Online Store

Sprint customers can now “add to their carts” a new, more robust shopping experience when they visit Sprint.com. Sprint’s new online store, which can be accessed at www.sprint.com/phones, has new features and functionality that make it easier for customers to pick the right phone, scan and compare service plans, and change plans and add-ons right in the online store.

“Shopping online at Sprint.com for wireless devices and plans has never been easier,” said Mike Cooley, Sprint vice president for Online Channels. “We spent months testing the new Sprint online shopping experience directly with our customers and getting their candid feedback. We wanted to ensure that what we launched includes the tools and functionality they need and to help them make the most informed purchasing decisions when shopping on our website.”

 

Because the vast majority of Sprint shoppers in a brick and mortar store first go to Sprint.com to investigate their purchase, the website is a critical initial touch point in the shopping process. Visitors to Sprint.com will experience these new and improved features while shopping online:

 

Phones: Customers wanting to learn anything and everything about a device will visit the phone section where they can use the comparison tool to compare their existing devices’ features with that of other devices. Phones can now be filtered by over 45 different features, including style, price, operating system, and special deals.

 

Wondering what things a given device can and can’t do? Icons for each phone clearly spell this out. Customers can also see a gallery of phone images, size comparisons, and descriptive videos. The site also offers customer and expert ratings and reviews, which a 2011 Forrester Research report on website user experience noted “allowed users to make the most-informed choice possible.”1

 

Plans: While researching service plans, shoppers can see a side-by-side display to compare the benefits and value of different plans. Visual cues and clean styling will also better communicate the value of Sprint’s worry-free all-inclusive plans. Sprint’s Simply Everything®, Everything Data and Any Mobile, AnytimeSM, make it easier for customers to use all of the features of their phones. Customers have no need to get out a calculator to tally up prices for each feature or guess how much data they’ll use in a month.

 

Shopping online is growing and in 2010 Sprint.com saw record-setting demand for online transactions. According to the 2011 Forrester report which evaluated the website user experience of wireless carriers, Sprint’s plan and phone content added value beyond that of other wireless carriers. Sprint also differentiated itself from the other wireless carriers with very simple plan offerings, most of which included unlimited talk time, texting, and/or data.1

 

Purchasing Tool: The purchasing tool provides a step-by-step guide of the sales process. It helps customers pick the right purchase path – whether it be upgrading or adding a new line – and keep track of where they are in the process. It qualifies a customer’s intent to purchase, confirms what the customer has done, what they are doing and what they will do next. The tool also enables customers to change their selections at anytime during the purchase process.

 

Simpler Checkout: The new streamlined checkout process will make the final steps of purchasing a snap.

 

“With tens of millions of visits per month, Sprint.com has evolved into a destination site with the integration of our popular social networking community, more than 60,000 expert and customer reviews of our products, the launch of new self-service features in My Sprint, and the inclusion of a variety of tutorials, videos and support services for customer devices,” Cooley said.

 

Verizon Confirms LG Revolution Launch May 26, $250 On-Contract

An early morning press release confirmed our previous suspicions: the LG Revolution will launch tomorrow, May 26, for Verizon. And even better, the Android 2.2 Froyo-powered smartphone will cost just $250 with a new, two-year contract. That’s a pretty sizable difference from the $700 off-contract price tag you’ll find on the Revolution at Best Buy. Nationwide Talk plans begin at $39.99, and unlimited data costs $29.99 per month, while Mobile Hotspot is offered for free for a limited time.

Verizon recently confirmed that the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play and the Motorola Droid X2 will be joining the Revolution in its Thursday launch, but the Revolution will be the only new release to support 4G connectivity. Other specs include a 4.3-inch 480 x 800 touchscreen, a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera for video chat, and a 5-megapixel rear camera capable of video capture in 720p.

Of course, no one likes to buy a brand new phone running an outdated platform, but that seems to be the trend right now with carriers. We’re seeing a lot of “Android 2.2 Froyo, but upgradeable to Android 2.3 Gingerbread,” annoying as it is, and the LG Revolution unfortunately falls into that category. In the meantime, you can always find some comfort in the Revolution’s pre-loaded Netflix app.

[via Engadget]

Introducing the Nokia Oro

In selected markets, we’re launching a new smartphone today – the Nokia Oro. It’s a premium brand product that incorporates 18-carat gold plating, a sapphire crystal and leather from one of Scotland’s finest Caledonian herds.

Inside, it reaches the same high grade as Nokia’s other recent smartphones. It’s Symbian-based, with the latest Symbian Anna update. There’s pentaband radio connectivity, up-to HSDPA 3G and WiFi.

Introducing Nokia Oro with 18-carat gold plating

In selected markets, Nokia is launching a new smartphone today – the Nokia Oro. It’s a premium brand product that incorporates 18-carat gold plating, a sapphire crystal and leather from one of Scotland’s finest Caledonian herds.  

Inside, it reaches the same high grade as Nokia’s other recent smartphones. It’s Symbian-based, with the latest Symbian Anna update. There’s pentaband radio connectivity, up-to HSDPA 3G and WiFi. There’s a 3.5-inch AMOLED display, an 8-megapixel camera with 720p video recording and all the rest. Functionally, it’s not so different from other recent smartphones from Nokia. But that’s quite a rarity in the “premium phone” business. Normally, you’d have to choose between something that looked posh or offered the latest specs: Nokia Oro offers both.

 

But clearly, someone who chooses the Nokia Oro won’t be making a hard spec vs. price comparison. They’ll be more concerned about the build quality and materials.

 

The Nokia Oro is a device that’s clearly intended for someone who doesn’t want their mobile device to look the same as other people’s. The main markets for this sort of device are the Middle East and Russia, where they have been best-sellers for some time. Nokia’s General Manager for Russia, Gabriel Speratti, told us that, “premium products like Nokia Oro have always been best sellers in Russia. We have a large number of users who are looking for products with a build quality and superior materials that attest to their success and social standing. In some areas, possession of such premium products is the passport to being taken seriously.”

 

 

Materials Designer Robert Lihou told us:

 

“Our aim was to use the best materials for the purpose. It’s coated with 18-carat gold which has been made scratch-resistant. The leather is from premium Scottish stock. That’s a real sapphire crystal in the home key, which makes it eight times sturdier than glass.”

 

Nokia Oro will start selling in selected countries across the Europe, Eastern Europe, China and the Middle East in Q3 2011. Before local taxes and operator subsidies (neither of which you’re likely to be too concerned about if you’re a customer for this device), it will cost upwards of EUR 800.

 

Xperia Play Gets Exclusive On Mobile Minecraft

Viral indie hit Minecraft has landed a mobile partner in Sony-Ericsson, whose Xperia Play (AKA the Playstation Phone) will the first device to have the game customized to a handset. Mojang, who makes the game, confirmed that they were working with S-E to fit the game to the screen and hardware.

There’s no information on pricing or other platforms, but an E3 event points to a June 7 release. I’d guess it will have a period of exclusivity on the Play or maybe a reduced, bundle price. We’ll be at E3 to find out, so stay tuned.