Consumers may one day ditch their plastic credit cards, but that doesn’t mean that they’ll abandon their credit card companies. In fact, the move from a leather wallet to a digital one could be a boon for companies like Visa, Mastercard, Discover and American Express. Digital wallets, which allow users to store their credit cards, …

The Department of Justice seems to be giving the green light to T-Mobile USA in its bid to buy MetroPCS. On Tueseday, MetroPCS announced that the DOJ has allowed the waiting period to lapse on the planned merger between the two companies. The waiting period was required under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976. This indicates that the DOJ …

Waiting is never easy. And in the fast-paced smartphone market, it feels like you can wait forever before buying a new phone, because there’s always a better one around the corner. For the smartphone consumer, it’s a delicate balance in deciding when to pull the trigger on the next smartphone purchase. While the upgrade cycle of devices seems nearly constant, …

There has been a lot of talk lately about about how it’s now considered illegal to unlock your smartphone without your carrier’s permission. The change comes as part of a three-year cycle for renewing the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (PDF). And in this cycle the Library of Congress, which has the job of approving exemptions to the law, decided not …

It is finally happening. Smartphones are finally overtaking feature phones in worldwide sales, thanks to falling prices on smartphones and 4G networks, market researcher IDC said today. For years, analysts have been predicting that smartphones would one day supplant basic feature phones in terms of worldwide sales, and that day is expected to finally come in 2013. According to the …

Google has begun testing a new database that would allow unlicensed TV broadcast spectrum to be used for wireless broadband and shared among many users. The new database will keep track of the TV broadcast frequencies in use so that wireless broadband devices can take advantage of the unlicensed space on the spectrum, also called “white space.” Google is one …

Wireless operators would like to believe the pricing and terms of their services are straightforward and easy to understand. But when it comes to deciphering family plans or figuring out whether you can or cannot use your smartphone as a wireless hotspot, it’s not always so clear. In this edition of Ask Maggie, I explain to a reader who is …

Clearwire is tapping into the $800 million pool of financing Sprint has offered the company in a move that will likely make it more difficult for Dish Network to continue its bid for the carrier. Clearwire said Thursday in a statement that it will take $80 million in financing from Sprint, which already owns a 51 percent stake in Clearwire, …

It was only about nine months ago that Samsung introduced its flagship Galaxy S3 to the world. There’s no question the device set a new standard for the high-end Android smartphone. It has also been one of Samsung’s hottest selling smartphones. And now it looks like Samsung is about to do it again with the Galaxy S4, set for introduction …

As the saying goes, you can never be too rich or too skinny. And if you’re a wireless carrier, apparently, you can never have too much wireless spectrum. At least that’s AT&T’s take. The company, which is the second largest wireless provider in the U.S., is in good shape when it comes to wireless spectrum for the next five years, …