Further whetting appetites for its new smartphone, Samsung tweeted an image this evening that is presumably the Galaxy S4, which is expected to be unveiled Thursday. The very dark image, depicting only the upper left corner of what appears to be a smartphone with the familiar Samsung brand at the top, appeared on the South …

The Federal Trade Commission said today it has filed complaints against 29 people accused of sending more than 180 million spam text messages falsely promising free gift cards. The FTC alleged in eight separate complaints that the accused tricked consumers into divulging sensitive personal information by promising free gifts or prizes, including $1,000 gift cards at major retailers. Consumers who …

Thanks to T-Mobile USA’s expected closure of its merger with MetroPCS, the newly combined company is going to find itself with more employees than it knows what to do with. Actually, it seems the No. 4 U.S. wireless carrier already has a pretty good idea what it will do with some of them, and it involves pink slips. T-Mobile is …

A day after the White House endorsed cell phone unlocking, several lawmakers voiced support today for legislation to legalize the process. The Obama administration threw its support behind an Internet petition yesterday that asks the Library of Congress to change its stance on the legality of smartphone unlocking. The process became illegal earlier this year when the Library of Congress, …

Verizon Wireless’ shift to voice over LTE may ultimately usher in fundamental changes in the carrier’s handsets and sales strategies. Verizon, which revealed plans late last year to launch voice over LTE services by early 2014, could begin selling LTE-only phones as early as next year, Verizon CFO Fran Shammo said today at Deutsche Bank’s Media, Internet, and Telecom conference. …

LG Electronics announced today it has sold more than 10 million LTE-capable smartphones worldwide as the company grapples with dwindling market share. The milestone comes a little more than six months after the company announced it had surpassed 5 million sales of LTE-enabled phones. “Aggressive pushing forward with 4G LTE technology allows LG [to] satisfy the needs of consumers and …

Nokia took the wraps off four cell phones today at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, that run the gamut of entry-level handsets to high-end Windows 8 devices. With the entry-level Nokia 105, the Finnish handset maker is thinking small. The durable 105 features an itty-bitty 1.5-inch screen and costs 15 euros, or about $20. Created for markets such as …

Wireless carrier T-Mobile expanded its prepaid offerings today with the nationwide launch of GoSmart Mobile, a budget wireless service targeting consumers interested in low-cost unlimited plans. The service, which has been in beta mode in nine markets since December, is geared toward consumers more interested in voice and text services than high-speed Internet access. As such, GoSmart’s target audience includes …

Sprint has quietly flipped the switch on its 4G LTE network in some areas of San Francisco, New York, and Washington, D.C., suggesting an official launch may be close at hand. While confirming a report that first appeared in The Verge, a company spokesperson did not specify which sections of the cities would have access to the speedier network. “During …

China is surpassing the U.S. as the world’s largest market for active smart devices, according to new data released today. A year after becoming the fastest-growing market for smart devices, China is expected to account for 246 million active Android and iOS smartphones and tablets at the end of February, compared with 230 million in the U.S., according to mobile …