The Nexus S is one of the first smartphones to have NFC, which enables mobile payments in stores. But it’s being used by Google as its flagship device for its own payment system. Josh Miller/CNET The mobile-payments joint venture between three of the national wireless carriers has gotten the support of nearly all of the …

A T-Mobile BlackBerry with full bars in the Chelsea A-C-E subway station on 14th Street in Manhattan. Roger Cheng/CNET The New York Metropolitan Transit Authority turned on wireless service in four subway stations in Manhattan Tuesday, marking the first time a straphanger could reliably use his or her cell phone while waiting for their train. As previously reported, service was …

Sprint Nextel CEO Dan Hesse speaking at an emerging-technology conference last year. Marguerite Reardon/CNET Sprint Nextel will launch its own 4G LTE network early next year. The company is already installing LTE equipment and has been field testing the network in select areas, according to people familiar with the situation. It hopes to launch commercial service by the end of …

When writing a weekly column about the apps business, it’s easy to get caught up in the new opportunities, capabilities, and trends emerging in this burgeoning area. It’s equally easy to forget they come with new threats. DRDDream was identified as the first major Trojan embedded in an app. McAfee These threats, which include rogue apps that can swipe your …

Let the BlackBerry PlayBook sale begin. RIM Best Buy’s Canadian Web site and Staples were the first retailers to offer steep discounts on Research In Motion’s PlayBook tablet. Staples is selling the low-end 16-gigabyte model for $299.99 after a $100 discount and another $100 mail-in rebate. Best Buy, meanwhile, is selling the same model for $399.99, but throwing in a …

Samsung is reportedly looking to exact a hefty price on Apple in their patent dispute. Samsung wants to charge Apple 2.4 percent of its chip price for every patent, according to Andreas Udo de Haes, an editor at Dutch publication Webwereld, who was tweeting today from one battleground: a courtroom in the Netherlands where Samsung is demanding a ban on …

T-Mobile USA today showed off what are likely to be its flagship phones for the rest of the year: Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy S II and HTC’s Amaze 4G. Both phones will be available on October 12, with the Amaze 4G selling for $259.99 and the Galaxy S II selling for $229.99, with both prices coming after a $50 rebate and …

Samsung Electronics today unveiled the Omnia W, its first smartphone running on the updated Mango version of Windows Phone. Samsung Samsung plans to launch the Omnia W in Italy starting late next month, and eventually through Europe, Latin America, Southeast, and Southwest Asia. The company didn’t provide any date for a U.S. arrival. Samsung was among the early supporters of …

LightSquared CEO Sanjiv Ahuja delivers a speech at CTIA 2011. Marguerite Reardon/CNET LightSquared CEO Sanjiv Ahuja is taking his case for building another 4G network to the public. Ahuja and LightSquared plan to publish an open letter in major newspapers tomorrow advocating the need for the company’s planned 4G LTE network, which has come under fire over concerns that it …

New Yorkers will finally be able to use their cell phones in subway stations–as long as their commute takes them through one neighborhood in Manhattan. The 6 line in New York, one of the train lines that still won’t get cellular service. MTA The New York Times reported yesterday that cellular service will come to four stations starting Tuesday. AT&T …