Internet provider Earthlink announced today that it has agreed to buy regional telecommunications carrier ITC Deltacom. To complete the merger, Earthlink will pay $516 million in cash, but that includes $325 million in Deltacom debt. As a competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC), Deltacom provides voice and data telecommunications services to the Southeast. The company owns …

The screen on the iPhone 4 is better than that on the Samsung Galaxy S, according to a detailed review. The iPhone 4’s 3.5-inch retina display won out as the best all-round screen in a comparison test by pro screen calibrators DisplayMate. As well as the Galaxy S, the iPhone 4 was up against the Google Nexus One, the iPhone …

Catan, iPad: what could go wrong? screenshot: Scott Stein/CNET Like chocolate and peanut butter, The Settlers of Catan and the iPad are two great tastes I love, coming together to make something that should be even better. Board games and the iPad are a perfect fit, and Catan is arguably the very best board game. How could this combination go …

AT&T announced new payment plans for GoPhone today that drastically cut costs to the wireless carrier’s prepaid phone service. The revised plans go into effect on October 3, and lower the price of using the Unlimited Daily Talk and Text and Simple Rate plans. Unlimited Daily Talk and Text users will now pay $2 per day for days they use …

U.S. Cellular announced yesterday that it is launching a new customer loyalty program called the Belief Project. The program, which is one of the first of its kind in the wireless industry, puts an end to many common carrier practices like forcing customers to sign a new contract if they buy a discounted phone. Many of the Belief Project’s benefits …

Over the years I’ve seen various hacks and apps that let you add speed-dial icons to your iPhone’s Home screen. But not many of them let you customize those icons to include photos. Custom Dial 6 does exactly that, giving you six quick-dial icons with the photos of your choice. Unfortunately, the end result is disappointing. It’s easy enough to …

Nokia’s Ovi Store hits 2.3 million daily downloads. Nokia After almost a year and a half, Nokia’s Ovi Store has built up enough momentum to hit 2.3 million daily downloads, the company announced today. With the number of active Nokia phone customers at 140 million around the world, 200,000 users are now signing up at the Ovi Store on a …

Samsung isn’t making any more Symbian phones, the Korean supermanufacturer has announced, following Sony Ericsson in concentrating its efforts on other platforms like Android and Windows Phone 7. The world’s second-biggest phone maker announced it won’t be supporting Symbian any more, in a note sent to registered developers. Samsung closed its Symbian lab two days ago and will close its …

The Federal Communications Commission has removed guidance from its Web site that advised consumers shopping for a cell phone to consider the amount of radiation a handset emits. The revisions, which first appeared last week, were not formally announced nor do they appear to be the result of an official change in policy. On its revised consumer fact sheet the …

A federal case which alleged wireless carrier T-Mobile had blocked text messages from a service that claimed a medical marijuana dispensary as one of its clients, was settled outside of the court this week according to a report in Wired.com. The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleged that T-Mobile had blocked …