Wait a Second, the HTC Faraday Now Has WiFi?

[Mike Temporale]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.mobilegadgetnews.com/index.php?s=b255d03d2b9295cf8dca1e823eb6f39a&showtopic=9747' target='_blank'>http://www.mobilegadgetnews.com/index.php?s=b255d03d2b9295cf8dca1e823eb6f39a&showtopic=9747</a><br /><br /></div><i>"onto the smartphone front… It looks like many of us have been wrong the last few weeks, or that someone was confused and everyone else took it at value. Judging from the specs the HTC Faraday will have WiFi, more specifically, 2.2 QVGA Display, 1.3MPxl Camera, Edge, and WiFi. We should also be expecting to see these hit the shelf about the same time as the other aforementioned devices. It looks like October is going to be a great month for Cingular and the Windows Mobile world."</i><br /><br />The word on the street keeps changing. One minute the Faraday doesn't have WiFi and the next minute it does. I get the feeling this will never be settled until Cingular ships the Faraday. Thankfully, there are third party OEMs like i-mate who will be offering the device with WiFi. And judging by the amount of ROM updates Cingular released in comparison to i-mate, I think I would rather have an i-mate this time around. Even if the ROM updates are minor, it's still better than nothing.

[lagsun]

Let's hope Cingular learns a lesson from Sprint, which is offering the HTC Apache (PPC-6700) Pocket PC phone with EVDO and Wi-Fi. Crossing my fingers because I'm getting the new phone jones just about now :D

[Kris Kumar]

I have my doubts. I don't think Cingular has the guts to launch a Smartphone with Wi-Fi, knowing that it will hit their voice minutes.

Plus according to the Mobile-Review.com review, (http://www.mobile-review.com/pda/review/htc-tornado-en.shtml) HTC Faraday does not have Wi-Fi. :?

[nskgti]

Cingular has every reason to release a Smartphone with WiFi. With flat rate data prices in the US, Cingular doesn't gain extra revenue from higher data usage. On the other hand, by releasing a smartphone with WiFi, Cingular will be taking a load off the network by allowing people to use WiFi when available.

And my understanding is the Mobile-Review.com info is wrong. This is coming from my contacts at Cingular.

I have my doubts. I don't think Cingular has the guts to launch a Smartphone with Wi-Fi, knowing that it will hit their voice minutes.

Plus according to the Mobile-Review.com review, (http://www.mobile-review.com/pda/review/htc-tornado-en.shtml) HTC Faraday does not have Wi-Fi. :?

[Kris Kumar]

Cingular has every reason to release a Smartphone with WiFi. With flat rate data prices in the US, Cingular doesn't gain extra revenue from higher data usage. On the other hand, by releasing a smartphone with WiFi, Cingular will be taking a load off the network by allowing people to use WiFi when available.

I don't think Cingular needs to worry about the Wi-Fi usage for data needs. But I am guessing that they will be concerned about use of Skype or VoIP applications over Wi-Fi. Which will I reduce the regular voice traffice, which is not desirable.

And my understanding is the Mobile-Review.com info is wrong. This is coming from my contacts at Cingular.

Awesome. :) Personally I would want to see more Wi-Fi enabled Smartphones. So I am excited to hear that the review info is most likely incorrect.

[aristoBrat]

I don't think Cingular needs to worry about the Wi-Fi usage for data needs. But I am guessing that they will be concerned about use of Skype or VoIP applications over Wi-Fi. Which will I reduce the regular voice traffice, which is not desirable.
Maybe it's one of the first phones that will support UMA (which sounds like GSM via unlicensed spectrum, like WiFi).

By deploying UMA technology, service providers can enable subscribers to roam and handover between cellular networks and public and private unlicensed wireless networks using dual-mode mobile handsets. With UMA, subscribers receive a consistent user experience for their mobile voice and data services as they transition between networks.
http://www.umatechnology.org/overview/index.htm

Although I don't see HTC listed as a participating company, Cingular and T-Mobile (specifically US -- yay!) are both listed.

UMA Participating Companies

Alcatel
British Telecom
Cingular
Ericsson
Kineto Wireless
Motorola
Nokia
Nortel Networks
O2
Research in Motion
Rogers Wireless
Siemens
Sony Ericsson
T-Mobile US
http://www.umatechnology.org/participants/index.htm