cdma

Five new regional US carriers will join C Spire Wireless on April 20 and begin offering the iPhone to customers. The complete list includes nTelos in Virginia, Appalachian Wireless in Kentucky, Cellcom from Wisconsin, and two Alaskan carriers, GCI and Alaska Communications.

GCI is the only carrier with a GSM network, so they will be the only ones launching the iPhone 3GS alongside the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S. iPhone fans looking for options besides wireless giants AT&T, Verizon and Sprint will find pricing will come in below the big players, too.

Waiting to buy an iPhone 4S could have its perks. After all, if you're out of your mobile contract and you've decided to see how things pan out with the new iPhone, there will be more information out there in the coming weeks. Choosing a carrier is no different, and now that the iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S are available on three different wireless networks there are more factors involved in the decision.

For some, comparing the costs of each carrier's calling and data plans will be a primary concern. Others will jump right to the big question: who has the fastest download speeds?

The iPhone 4S is not the "highly-anticipated" iPhone Apple fans were waiting for. It's safe to assume many fanboys were disappointed by Tim Cook's announcement, but Apple is sticking to its claim that this is the "most amazing iPhone yet." It didn't deliver a new "teardrop" design, or many of the other features we were promised, but it does have the rumored 8 megapixel camera and A5 chip. Hate it, love it or just don't care, here's a list of all the specifications and features for the new iPhone 4S.

It looks a lot like the iPhone 4, but Tim Cook promised the latest Apple iPhone is "all new inside." The Apple CEO unveiled the iPhone 4S (not the iPhone 5) in Cupertino on Tuesday. The new iPhone features a dual-core A5 processor, 8-megapixel camera, and GSM and CDMA radios.

The iPhone 4S offers 8-hours of talk time (3G), and six hours of web browsing time (3G). It also features image stabilization, facial recognition, 1080p video recording capabilities and the new Siri voice control feature.

The iPhone 4S will be available in the US from AT&T, Verizon and Sprint on October 14th. Pre-orders begin this Friday, October 7th. The 16GB model will cost you $199, the 32GB version is $299 and 64GB version will retail for $399.

Tim Cook is ready to host Apple's big iPhone event tomorrow at 10am PT, 1pm ET, but will the redesigned iPhone 5 and Steve Jobs be making an appearance? Word is Jobs is too sick to attend, and recent evidence points to the iPhone 4S being Apple's next device, not the rumored iPhone 5 with "teardrop" design.

Both the iPhone 4S and iPhone 5 have been popping up in random carrier and store inventories. A 16GB Sprint Apple iPhone showed up in a questionable Radio Shack leak, and the German carrier Vodafone added an 8GB iPhone 4 and three iPhone 4S models (16GB / 32GB / 64GB) to their website.

ChangeWave Research contacted 4,068 iPhone 4 users to get a detailed comparison of Verizon Wireless vs. AT&T Mobility services. According to the survey results, AT&T customers experienced dropped calls almost three times as often in the past 90 days as those with a Verizon iPhone 4. Whereas Verizon subscribers reported a dropped call rate of 1.8 percent, AT&T clocked in at 4.8 percent for the same question.

You might think these numbers would pose a problem for the AT&T customer service department. Actually, when looking at overall customer satisfaction with their iPhone 4, both companies came out even. Very satisfied and somewhat satisfied customers together made up 98 percent of respondents from both AT&T and Verizon.

Apple has released detailed support information explaining the differences between iPhone calling features on the AT&T and Verizon networks. Because AT&T Mobility uses GSM technology and Verizon Wireless has a CDMA network, each iPhone 4 has different calling capabilities. Recently it was revealed that Verizon's network suffers from conference calling limitations, but there are other differences as well. The table below was released by Apple to illustrate the details.

Though supplies are limited, existing customers were given the opportunity to reserve a Verizon iPhone starting at 3 AM this morning. This opportunity continues, with Verizon iPhone pre-orders still open and available at this time. If you're not currently a Verizon customer, including AT&T customers wishing to switch to a Verizon iPhone, you'll have to wait until February 9th to pre-order. The Verizon iPhone will be available in full release on February 10th, both nationwide at Verizon and Apple retail stores and online.

If you're hoping to get your hands on the Verizon iPhone, we strongly recommend pre-ordering. You'll avoid long lines on release day as well as avoiding the possibility that the iPhone will sell out before you can get one. If you're an existing Verizon customer, and would like to pre-order the Verizon iPhone, here's how to get it done:

Call centers connected to Apple and cellular carrier Verizon Wireless have begun hiring in earnest, with rumors and speculation flying that the staff additions could only be in preparation for a Verizon iPhone launch. One company, Ryla is hiring 1,700 people in four states on behalf of a "major wireless cell phone service retailer."

Further evidence points to Teleperformance in Salt Lake City, who has a history of working closely with Apple and Verizon Wireless in the past. The company has advertised hundreds of positions in six states related to wireless, communications or cell phone support. One ad states that job applicants will offer technical support for personal computers and portable devices including MP3 players and smartphones.

With the exclusive iPhone deal between AT&T and Apple ending this summer, Verizon is reportedly in negotiations with Apple to offer a CDMA version of the device on its network this year. Maynard Um from UBS Investment Research wrote a note to investors that stated, "We believe a CDMA-iPhone is also in the works, though we believe Verizon Wireless and Apple may currently be apart on pricing."

Um's research points to a new iPhone release this summer, including a CDMA network compatible iPhone for Verizon or other CDMA carriers in Japan and China. Ongoing negotiations between Verizon and Apple have been rumored to be happening frequently in recent months. The release of a Qualcomm hybrid chipset that supports multiple wireless network technologies has also added to speculation.