AT&T’s newly revised service plans may sound like a good deal, but a closer read of the fine print reveals hidden price hikes on its most popular data plans. AT&T announced a new pricing structure Thursday that the company claimed in its press release will “make it even easier for customers to share data and …

Consumers can save a bundle and avoid big crowds by shopping online this holiday season. But can they also avoid paying sales tax? Online shopping is appealing because sites like Amazon not only offer convenience but in many cases they also offer lower prices than their brick-and-mortar competitors. And in some states, online holiday shoppers can sweeten those savings by …

Nobody loves a bargain like I do. So when a reader asked me what I thought about buying “knock-off” smartphones in China, I was intrigued. After all, I’ve bought my share of counterfeit handbags in New York’s Chinatown. But when you’re talking about electronics and cell phones, to be specific, you need to be careful about what you are buying. …

Tablets are expected to be one of the hottest gadget gift items for Holiday 2013. And Verizon Wireless has a new daily data plan that will get customers hooked up to the company’s 4G LTE network for $5 a day. Verizon Wireless On Thursday, Verizon Wireless announced the introduction of a new $5-a-day data plan for customers with tablets and …

Major mobile operators around the world say they expect to rely on Wi-Fi more than ever in the next few years to keep their data networks free from congestion. And new standards that make it easier for operators’ subscribers to use each other’s Wi-Fi networks are helping accelerate Wi-Fi offload adoption, according to a report released Wednesday by the Wireless …

As rumors heat up that Apple will likely introduce not one, but two new iPhones in September, consumers wonder what it means for the company’s traditional product discounting conventions. While Apple has generally kept tight-lipped about the launch of its new iPhones, there are a few things that most Apple fans have been able to count on each year. One …

With an Apple announcement expected in the coming weeks, iPhone season is upon us once again. And that means that anxious Apple fans are plotting their best options for selling their old devices to buy the new one. In this edition of Ask Maggie, I offer some advice to a reader about the best time to sell an old iPhone …

AT&T has been working hard to improve its customer service and purchase experience. And it looks like the hard work is paying off. On Thursday, J.D. Power announced that AT&T took the top position in its consumer purchase experience poll. And in early August, J.D. Power also named the company tops in solving customers’ problems. In the consumer purchase poll, …

Ever since the Librarian of Congress decided not to renew a provision in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act that essentially makes it illegal to unlock your phone without your carrier’s permission, there’s been intense interest in the issue. But when it comes to unlocked cell phones, there’s also been a lot of confusion. Many people have been looking for ways …

It’s official. The beleaguered BlackBerry is up for sale. On Monday, the company announced it had formed a special committee to explore “strategic alternatives” for itself. The company specifically said that it’s trying to “enhance value and increase scale in order to accelerate BlackBerry 10 deployment.” However, BlackBerry noted in the release that alternatives could range from joint ventures to …