Apple has set a new records through iPhone 4S sales, which they say have exceeded 4 million over the first three days the device was on sale. The newest installment in the iPhone series went on sale for the general public on October 14.

Tavis McCourt, an analyst with Morgan, Keegan, and Co., predicted that sales would reach 27 million in sales worldwide this quarter. “This certainly puts them on a pace for a strong quarter of sales,” said McCourt. “This iPhone had some significant upgrades in terms of user experience and it had been 15 months since the last iPhone update.”

The massive increase in sales was, in part, caused by Sprint Nextel, which recently earned the rights to sell the iPhone. Sprint is the 3rd largest carrier in the nation, and and recently received the rights from Apple to join Verizon and AT&T, the largest and 2nd largest, respectively, in offering the smartphone.

The iPhone was already the most popular smartphone on the market. This remains so despite the market surge of competing devices running Google’s Android operating system. Apple hopes the 4S will be on sale in 70 countries by the end of 2011. Samsung, whose popular Galaxy S II smartphone sold 10 million units after 5 months, has waged a battle to halt iPhone sales in Japan and Australia on the grounds of patent infringement.

The launch of the iPhone 4S is the first major venture undertaken by Apple CEO Tim Cook, who took the reigns at apple following the recent demise of Steve Jobs.

The legal drama between AT&T, T Mobile, Sprint, and the Justice Department that has unfolded over the last few months has grown increasingly complex and touchy due to the multitude of actors vying for the upper hand. Now, 16 House Democrats have opted to charge headlong into the fray and are putting pressure on President Obama to let the merger through.

CNET reported that the delegation, led by Representative Heath Shuler of North Carolina, claims the merger would create thousands of jobs at a time when employment in the US is much in demand. AT&T itself has taken the improbable position that the acquisition would actually save $10 billion by “consolidating platforms, customer care centers and headquarters organization.” AT&T also pledges to avail 4G wireless technology to 97% of Americans, talking points which the delegation has echoed, says Seattle Pi.

Naturally, Sprint was not pleased with this turn of events. John Taylor, Sprint’s manager for Public Affairs, said in a statement, “Make no mistake, AT&T’s proposed takeover of T-Mobile will eliminate tens of thousands of jobs across the country. The flawed economic study embraced by AT&T and its union ignores what Wall Street investors and the Federal Government have been already been promised: that the overall investment for the combined companies will be substantially reduced if the proposed transaction closes.”

The DOJ filed suit to block the $39 billion merger last month. The deal would make AT&T and its 4G infrastructure the largest in the country and relegate Sprint to a very distant third place in the global mobile market.

The full letter that Mr. Shuler transcribed for the President can be found on ZDnet.

Telstra, one of Australia’s popular telecommunications companies, is shelling out a small number of their new 4G/LTE USB modems. The exact number being 2000, consumers who crave faster speed, will have to move even quicker to obtain one of the coveted devices. Telstra is simply giving Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane a taste of what is to come in the 4G/LTE future and is expected to have a larger launch sometime later this year.

The availability of the USB modems spreads widely across Australia’s three cities and the limited number allows for 2000 lucky users to experience optimum performance. Telstra’s modem only extends about 5km out from the GPO of the CBDs in the allocated cities but they will surely be expanding coverage and upgrading more of their network to be 4G/LTE compatible.

The modem looks similar to the DC-HSPA+ modem released by Telstra last year but is now the best one available in the Australia. Those craving lightning fast speeds promised by Telstra are enough to outnumber the actual number of devices soon to be available for this pre-launch. To be an early adopter of the 4G/LTE modem, users will have to cope with relatively steep prices of $49 monthly for a minimum of two years, with 7GB download limit per month. Overall, users should be ready to spend a minimum of $1176 for the super speedy service.

Monthly costs will probably be less for those who wait for Telstra’s launch of the modem later this year but there will certainly be many who opt for early adoption regardless of the cost. Regardless, the three big Aussie cities will be happily connected to 4G/LTE networks in the near future and almost everyone will have the service available to them.

Although several train stations and systems worldwide have moved to provide Wi-Fi for commuters, the US has been rather slow to do the same for its subway systems. With wireless connectivity available almost everywhere in New York City, the lack of communication capabilities on trains is becoming an even more irritable condition. In 2010, Mayor Bloomberg announced that the money to move forward was finally available and NYC would soon be on the same level as Berlin, Singapore, and Tokyo, all of which already offer Wi-Fi on their tube systems.

However, because the NYC subway system is winding and complex, decking it out to maximum potential comes with a handful of challenges. The one major issue that has come up has to do with the service being used to connect commuters. Should the system be Wi-Fi or 3G? Cellular networks are becoming stronger but the addition of such a project might lead to quite an overburdening. Wi-Fi connections are fairly short range and will probably only be of use in train station while ultimately failing on subway cars.

Mayor Bloomberg just recently stated that cellular service will not be promised on the trains but will be available in portions of tunnels and stations. A proposal to add free Wi-Fi on the Metro North and Long Island Rail Road trains has also been filed. By 2016, 277 underground NYC stations should have wireless capabilities. Transit Wireless, the company implementing these connections, has signed agreements with AT&T and T-Mobile covering a 10-year contract with four five-year renewals (optional) following.

Analog cell phones preceded the digital ones that we use today but most don’t really understand the difference between the two.

Being in the present and all, let’s discuss what digital cell phones actually are and how they work. When something is dubbed “digital” it really means that the product or service uses digital technology. Digital cell phones are the 2nd generation (2G) of cellular technology. Whereas analog technology uses a continuous range of values to represent information, digital technology uses discontinuous values which help fully utilize the signal between phones and cellular networks.

Digital cellular signals are characterized by their ability to be easily compressed and manipulated. A given bandwidth can hold more with digital systems. Digital systems today are also supported by the binary system. These phones convert our voices into binary information and then compress it allowing for much room. Because of the amount of conversion being done during usage, digital cell phones typically contain strong processors.

Basically, digital cell phones offer better quality of sound while increasing overall efficiency. Operators get the most out of their networks and can usually offer customers the newest services on the market as soon as possible. Because of the compressive abilities of digital cell phones, a large amount of people can use their phones within one coverage area. A greater amount of data can be sent between phones and these transmissions are usually resistant to static and signal fading.

Although 3G and 4G technologies have become wildly popular, some parts of the world still use 2G due to its positive impact on health concerns and prevention of fraud. This technology implemented within cell phones truly catalyzed the growth and advancement of better network systems and brought about data services we heavily rely on today such as SMS and email.

Alexander Smallwood,

There’s nothing more frustrating than losing Internet connection. For those surfing the net for fun, this can prove to be at most an inconvenience. However, for businesses and the self employed, a loss if connection can prove to be much more than just inconvenient, and can end up costing them inexcusable amounts of money and falling behind schedule.

There are measures you take can take however, to prevent seeing the dreaded 0 bar signal on your desktop. Some are more obvious and straightforward than others, but all can potentially help to improve connection speed and/or consistency.

The first thing to do is to check the positioning of your wireless router. Make sure it is not buried under a pile of newspapers and covered in dust in the corner of the room. Instead, leave it in an open position, as central to your house/workplace as you can get it, and free from obstruction by dense or metallic objects, such as brick walls or filing cabinets.

Other items that transmit signals can also interfere with your router service, as they congest the airwaves, causing signal scrambling. Anything from microwaves to cordless phones can potentially interfere with your router. The fewer signal emitting equipment near to your router, the better.

Changing the frequency of the router can also help to remedy your Internet connection if it often disconnects. By default in the US, wireless routers offer 11 different channels, transmitting on channel 6, at a frequency of 2.4GHz. Many other household items, such as cordless phones and garage door openers are also on this default frequency, resulting in it often being very busy, leaving your Internet connection bogged down in traffic from other items. Changing the transmission channel will offer a clear airwave for the signal to travel on. Instructions on how to change channel will be able on your router manufacturer’s webpage.

The manufacturers of your router and adapter are constantly updating and improving the service they offer. Outdated versions of your computer’s network adapter and the router firmware could be the reason why you have a painfully slow connection. Check everything is fully up to date. This can smoothen out your router’s performance and reliability, and even add new features.

Also, ensure all your equipment is from the same company. Two-way transmissions between your Internet router and the wireless adapter rely on compatibility, and may not perform at their optimum when made by different companies. A good brand of router to consider is The Top Global 3G Phoebus Wireless Router, which is one of the fastest wireless routers available, and combines the best of Wi-Fi and 3G/4G mobile communications technologies to connect to high-speed cellular data networks.

Replacing the wireless adapter could also solve your connection issues. Investing in a USB adapter with an antenna is the wisest option, as this offers the strongest signal strength. Modern laptops with built in adapters however, are normally of a very good quality, and are rarely the issue.

Homemade solutions can also boost your connection speed and reliability. By placing signal reflectors, such as aluminium foil, behind your routers antenna, you can reflect signal to transmit in a more concentrated direction, as opposed to in all directions. The foil reflects signal in the same way that a mirror reflects sunlight, increasing the volume of signal going towards your wireless adapter.

Let us know which options worked best for you!

Wireless technology encompasses everything from the latest smartphone to the wireless router that is pushing out WiFi signals throughout your home. A few centuries ago, wireless technology may have meant sending a telegram to your grandmother for her to view a few days later, but today it means having instantaneous access to anyone in just about any place. Technology is moving fast, but so are people. We have demands in business and social life that make speed and coverage matter. So, broadband service providers are constantly striving to make absolute interconnectivity possible at the fastest speeds in the largest number of areas. This continuous movement towards better standards is what defines wireless technology news. The first mobile phone was born in the late 80s, really took off in the mid-90s and by the 21st century, became an absolute necessity. Today, cell phones are updated almost every three months, and what was new then is old news now. Smartphones are capable of tasks that computers weren’t a few years ago.

What about the wireless networks that these devices are running on? Currently, most of our voice calls are made through 3G networks such as CDMA and EDGE, which cover much of the world. Now, many are shifting to adopt 4G technologies, with speeds of 100 Mbps that far surpass current market speeds. The two versions that are in competition now are the WiMax and the LTE standards. WiMax technology has been shown to meet the technical requirements of 4G and is designed as an alternative to DSL and cable. This means that video and other such large data packets can be transferred more effectively. In the US, Sprint has taken the initiative to deploy WiMax first and became the first 4G wireless service provider. LTE technology has faced many controversies about meeting “true 4G” requirements. LTE Advanced, a newer version of LTE that is now under development is supposed to meet and surpass 4G requirements. Many companies such as Verizon have taken up the technology and have launched it in a few regions.

Where did wireless technology get its start? Read about the history of wireless technology for a comprehensive overview.