Mobile Miscellany: week of February 18th, 2013
If you didn't get enough mobile news during the week, not to worry, because we've opened the firehose for the truly hardcore. This week brought confirmation of Pantech's next phone for Verizon, legal battles over the airwaves in India and a new smartphone to Virgin Mobile. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of February 18th, 2013.
Kyocera Event comes to Virgin Mobile
The Kyocera Event landed as a new option on Virgin Mobile this week, and if you've only $80 to spend on a new smartphone, it could be a worthwhile option. With specs such as a 3.5-inch HVGA (480 x 320) display, a 1GHz CPU and a 3.2-megapixel primary camera, the device is highly reminiscent of the Hydro, albeit without the waterproof aspect. The Event includes Android 4.0, 512MB of RAM, 4GB of expandable storage, Bluetooth 2.1 and a 1,500mAh battery. [Virgin Mobile]
Pantech Perception confirmed for Verizon at FCC
It wasn't long ago that a leaked press photo tipped the Pantech Perception for arrival at Verizon Wireless, but the speculation is now certain as the handset was revealed in photos this week by the FCC. The device is expected to be Verizon's counterpart to the Discover on AT&T, which currently stands as our favorite budget smartphone on the carrier. [Unwired View]
Airtel and Vodafone contest next month's spectrum auction in India
If the Indian government gets its way, rights to the 900MHz band within the cities of Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata will go up for auction next month. Only thing is, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone -- the country's two largest carriers, and current license holders of the spectrum -- have taken to the nation's courts to challenge the legality of the auction. The carriers argue that the current license agreement, which is set for expiration in November 2014, brings the right to renew the agreement for an additional 10 years. As it stands, licenses to the 800MHz, 900MHz and 1800MHz bands are each scheduled to go up for auction on March 11th. [Phys.org, Reuters]
Other random tidbits
Samsung revealed that the pink Galaxy Note II will be released on the three major carriers within South Korea. [Samsung (Flickr)]
O2 will bring the Nokia Lumia 920 to its shelves next month. [WPCentral]
AT&T has activated its LTE service in Gainesville, Fla. [PR Newswire]
The BlackBerry Z10 is now available in both South Africa and Italy. [CrackBerry]
Apple had distributed iOS 6.1.3 Beta 2 to developers, which contains a fix for the recently reported lock screen bypass bug. [9to5Mac]
The dual-SIM version of the Sony Xperia E is now available for pre-order at $200. The smartphone is offered directly from Sony and is said to ship on March 1st. [Sony]
