While we’ve no clue how widespread AT&T’s generosity is, or how you might get one, it appears that the company’s “most valuable customers” are now receiving free range-boosting femtocells. Today, loyal reader Jason got a old-fashioned paper letter in the mail, offering his iPhone-wielding family a 3G MicroCell with no strings attached. Driving down to the local AT&T store, he got the product, but the dumbfounded reps offered no explanation why. Though his calls do frequently drop at home, Jason says he wasn’t terribly vocal about the issue and only pays around $180 per month for his family plan — the only thing that might possibly qualify him, in his opinion, is that his contract was set to expire. We’ve reached out to AT&T for more information; in the meanwhile, see Jason’s letter after the break.

[Thanks, Jason]

Continue reading AT&T handing out free 3G MicroCells to loyal customers?

AT&T handing out free 3G MicroCells to loyal customers? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 10 Jul 2010 20:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Completing a phased roll-out that kicked off back in April, AT&T has finally gotten around to launching its 3G MicroCell in all of its markets, giving the entire customer base some flexibility when “more bars in more places” doesn’t happen to include your place. Interestingly, the announcement was made in passing during comments by AT&T director Gordon Mansfield at the Femtocells World Summit in London this week, where he spent much of his time trying to quell a minor furor over the carrier’s continued application of data caps when using the MicroCell. He makes some pretty strong arguments: even though all MicroCell voice and data traffic starts off traveling over your own internet connection, it ultimately ends up within AT&T’s core infrastructure — and a legal requirement that the carrier be able to intercept traffic for law enforcement use prevents it from diverting that traffic elsewhere. More importantly, though, if you’re within range of a MicroCell, odds are very good that you’re also within range of a WiFi connection — and since all of AT&T’s data-heavy handsets offer WiFi, the whole complaint is kinda moot. So just get one if you need one and don’t worry about it, okay?

AT&T 3G MicroCell now available in all markets originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Jun 2010 14:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In case you haven’t noticed, all the cool kids are using Micro SIMs nowadays. But help is at hand if you’re stuck with an old and busted Module, thanks to this stainless steel SIM trimmer. Painfully simple to use, it accepts old school chips, smashes down on them with the full force of modernity, and spits out an appropriately streamlined Micro SIM. But wait, you can reverse the modification too — just use the included “back to normal” kit to turn back time and restore compatibility with your dated gear. The first batch of 500 has already sold out, but the next is expected to ship by the end of this month at a price of $25 or just under €20, depending on where you reside. What else do you need, a written invitation?

Cut My SIM does as its name commands originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Jun 2010 15:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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I’ve personally been following the launch of AT&T’s 3G MicroCell very, very closely; I moved last year into a box surrounded on three sides by foot-thick cement (not much of an exaggeration) in which only Verizon’s and T-Mobile’s signals were able to penetrate without assistance — and in my position, it’s a non-negotiable requirement that I be able to use devices from all four US nationals. Since the announcement a few weeks back that the MicroCell would be going national, I’ve been practically bombarding my Chicago-area stores with calls, looking for a hint of detail on when they might be available here; they’ve already launched in New York City, so AT&T clearly isn’t concerned about using them in densely-packed urban areas. This weekend I called four stores, and here’s what I got:

Store 1: “We’re supposed to have them in a couple of weeks.”
Store 2: “We’ll have them on May 6.”
Store 3: “We have them in stock. Oh, hold on a minute. (long pause) I’m sorry, we’re not allowed to sell them until the 10th.”
Store 4: “Yes, we have them in stock.”

In other words, there was no shortage of variety in sales reps’ stories. I don’t know how this happens — it’s conceivable that AT&T really is telling each store something entirely different, but it seems far more likely that these guys simply haven’t been effectively educated on what’s going on here. At any rate, I was able to march down to the fourth store I called and pick up the MicroCell with no hassles, therefore ending a many month-long personal nightmare of mine (and by the way, the device works just wonderfully).

The lesson learned? Even if the MicroCell hasn’t launched in your market — that is, you go to AT&T’s MicroCell site and it tells you it’s not yet available in your zip code — be persistent and keep calling around. You’ve just got to find that one sales guy who’s willing to flip it.

AT&T 3G MicroCell available in some unlaunched markets, if you try hard enough originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Mon, 03 May 2010 10:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Unless you’ve been in one of a few key test markets, you’ve been pretty much out of luck boosting your AT&T signal in the comfortable confines of your home since the 3G MicroCell first launched — until now. Starting in the middle of next month in a deployment that spans “several” months, customers across the country should expect to see MicroCells pop up in their local regions. The device itself will run a one-time fee of $149.99 before a $100 mail-in rebate (when purchased with a “3G MicroCell calling plan,” though we don’t yet know what that constitutes). Separately, there’ll be a $19.99 plan bolt-on that offers unlimited calling when connected to the device — and anyone tacking on a new U-verse or DSL line of 1.5Mbps or higher will get another $50 rebate. It’s not the end of AT&T’s spectrum or backhaul concerns, we’re sure, but it’s a start.

AT&T 3G MicroCell starting nationwide roll-out in mid-April originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Mar 2010 15:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So we’re in the middle of testing our Sony Ericsson X10 here — stay tuned for that review, by the way — and in the course of flipping through the settings, we noticed something strange: it’s reporting two 3G MicroCells nearby. Now, to the best of our knowledge, you can’t buy a MicroCell in these parts — sales are still strictly limited to a small handful of test markets — but it makes you wonder. For what it’s worth, SE shipped the phone with a GoPhone SIM, but we’re not sure whether that makes a difference. We’re looking into the situation and we’ll report more as soon as we have it.

AT&T 3G MicroCell service spotted in Chicago? originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Fri, 19 Mar 2010 13:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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