Logan Abbott

For those using their landline home phone for long distance, one of the companies we work with just lowered their interstate long distance rate to 2.5 cents a minute, and significantly lowered some intrastate rates.

Due to a contract dispute, Dish Network has pulled Lifetime and Lifetime Movie Network from its basic programming package as of today, January 1, 2006.

A few ways to save money... perhaps $1,000 or more.... in 2006, without changing your lifestyle in any way:

Cingular recently announced new pricing and packages for those customers who need international service. If you are a Cingular customer, contact 1-866-CINGULAR to add these to your existing service. If you want to get Cingular service, start here to compare domestic rate plans.

With the arrival of the Samsung A900and the CDMA version of the Razr V3c, we thought we'd check to see who was the thinnest.

For the 13th consecutive meeting, the Federal Reserve today raised the Fed Funds rate 1/4%. This will translate into an increase in the prime rate to 7.25%, almost double the 4% rate when these increases started.

It seems almost daily that deals are being announced for TV content on iPod or on cell phones. Saw a press release today for Amp'd Mobile (a soon-to-launch new wireless reseller targeting young people). They are going to offer clips from CBS shows like CSI: NY and The King of Queens.

The Firefly cell phone is now available from Cingular. This is a simplified phone designed for children under 12. The Firefly has just a few buttons, including Mom and Dad call keys, and a 911 assistance button. It also offers a 20-number phone book. All the preceding are parent-programmed.

This year has seen a number of 'stealth' price increases by the largest wireless carriers. The stealth part comes in because the way the carriers have done this is by reducing the number of plan options. For example, Cingular & Verizon have nothing between 450 and 900 minutes.

Okay, I'm not the sharpest axe in the toolshed so maybe I'm missing something, but I'm a bit skeptical of this new music download service being announced by Sprint-Nextel today. This is conceptually a good idea --- why carry two devices (a phone and an MP3 player), when one can do both. However, as with the recently launched iTunes Phone, it is poorly executed.