#wireless-family-plans

#wireless-family-plans

Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal expressed strong support for Verizon and T-Mobile to bring their services to select subway stations, emphasizing the need for immediate activation of cell service.

AT&T is framing the launch as a broader overhaul of its digital customer experience, not just a visual refresh. In its announcement, the company said the app was built around customer demand for "simplicity, speed, and control," and introduced a GenAI assistant for shopping and support.

Beyond traditional connectivity, 6G wireless networks will become the fabric for physical AI, enabling billions of autonomous machines, vehicles, sensors and robots and significantly increasing demands for security and trust. Yet legacy wireless architectures were not designed to meet these requirements, creating challenges as networks increase in complexity.

Consumers are not passively renewing mobile plans. They are actively evaluating them, comparing value, scrutinizing pricing, and reassessing providers more frequently. Mobile is evolving from a static utility into a dynamic service relationship, and the next era will belong to those who reduce complexity, communicate transparently, and activate seamlessly.

A Verizon outage started a few hours ago and has led to customers seeing nothing but an SOS option if they are trying to use the cellular service. In response, a post by T-Mobile went viral because it doesn't mince words: "T-Mobile's network is keeping our customers connected, and we've confirmed that our network is operating normally and as expected. However, due to Verizon's reported outage, our customers may not be able to reach someone with Verizon service at this time."

Ookla said the growing use of ChatGPT and other AI tools places much more demand on mobile networks than the typical activities of browsing social media and the web, watching videos, texting, and making the occasional phone call. As a result, more speed and expanded capabilities will be necessary. The report said advanced AI capabilities like AI-enabled glasses will put a particular strain on upload connections in the future.

"Despite generational differences in the types of problems experienced, one thing is clear: wireless network quality is strong," Carl Lepper, J.D. Power senior director of technology, media and telecom, said in a prepared statement about the mobile study.

A new rumor from a Chinese leaker suggests that Apple's C2 modem which is expected to be featured inside the iPhone 18 Pro series will support 5G satellite connectivity. The rumor claims the C2 modem will offer support for New Radio Non-Terrestrial Networks (NR-NTN) connectivity. This means devices with the new modem will be able to connect to low-Earth orbit satellites for direct internet access in areas without traditional cellular coverage.

SIM cards, the small slips of plastic that have held your mobile subscriber information since time immemorial, are on the verge of extinction. In an effort to save space for other components, device makers are finally dropping the SIM slot, and Google is the latest to move to embedded SIMs with the Pixel 10 series. After long avoiding eSIM, I had no choice but to take the plunge when the time came to review Google's new phones. And boy, do I regret it.