A representative for Clearwire confirmed to PhoneNews.com today that inactive CLEAR iSpot 4G modems are, as of now, glorified bricks. They cannot be reactivated on any Clearwire service, nor can they be converted to standard Clear Spot devices.

This follows on our reporting, early this morning, that Clear iSpot devices on suspended monthly service plans have until February 10 to reactivate service, or face their devices being similarly bricked.

In Clearwire’s defense, the company does rightly note that the iSpot is an antiquated WiMAX modem. More modern devices like the Clear Spot Apollo provide superior reception, and faster connection speeds.

Clearwire also affirmed that users who maintain active service accounts can continue to use their groundbreaking, $25 per month unlimited WiMAX data plans. However, as Clearwire has cautioned previously, they cannot support future iOS devices (or even current models) due to Apple’s attempts to thwart the iOS-device-only plans. As we covered in our previous report, Clear iSpot faced several market issues, largely interference from Apple, that prevented iSpot from working with current and newer Apple iOS devices, without forcing Clearwire to offer Internet to unplanned devices such as MacBooks and iMacs.

However, it is rare for a wireless provider to completely deactivate devices, rendering them useless, before a network technology becomes obsolete. Clear iSpots, as the Clear Spot models they are based off of, are Mobile WiMAX Wave 1-compliant devices. Despite being inferior to newer WiMAX modems, the devices are fully-functional, and capable of providing Internet service with Clearwire’s network today.

It appears, though Clearwire did not elaborate, that they are simply trying to close the door on the failed iSpot devices. With rooting and other exploits readily available, Clear iSpots have been sold for hefty premiums on sites like eBay. PhoneNews.com has seen iSpot units sell for between two and four times the original no-contract price-point of the device. The reason is simple; a rooted iSpot can access Clearwire’s WiMAX network at half the standard price-point for unlimited mobile 4G data.

The iSpot wind-down also points to another failure of WiMAX as a technology, to usher in a future of unlocked device compatibility. Both Sprint and Clearwire, the two major WiMAX providers in the United States today, touted that their WiMAX networks would support activation of foreign WiMAX devices. However, neither Sprint nor Clearwire permit activation of each-other’s devices, despite running on compatible networks.

It appears that Clearwire Corporation is giving iSpot customers less than 72 hours to sign up for new service.

The carrier quietly let customers who have iSpot accounts in suspended animation (or inactive status) know that they have until February 10th to reactivate their service, otherwise their accounts will be terminated. The more shocking news in the email to customers is that after the 10th, any lapse in service will make it impossible to reactivate the iSpot in the future.

The Clear iSpot was Clearwire’s attempt to draw in Apple iOS customers, many of whom were facing metered data on carriers such as AT&T. The device was a firmware-modified version of the original Clear Spot, which featured an unlimited $25 per month 4G WiMAX plan, running at 6 mbps down, and 1 mbps up.

However, Clearwire faced several challenges that ultimately forced them to pull the product from the market. Apple, not having certified the device, began randomizing the MAC (network serial number) address ranges of iOS devices, and used ranges previously reserved for Macintosh computers. This left Clearwire in a bind, many iOS customers could not use iSpot.

For Clearwire to have allowed all iOS devices under the new MAC addresses, would have also required Clearwire to let Mac users have unlimited data for $25/month. Worse, some Mac models were already able to access the iSpot’s data plans, having MAC addresses close enough to the original iOS range, and were hampering the Clearwire network excessively.

To add to Clearwire’s woes, hackers quickly rooted the Linux-based iSpot, and removed the MAC address restrictions. Web sites even rolled out one-click rooting processes. Even if Clearwire were able to patch these firmware loopholes, it would not fully fix the problem. Jailbreakers had figured out how to use an $80 first-generation iPod touch as a relay router, feeding iSpot’s Internet to any computer, which could in-turn power a whole household with Internet for $25 per month.

The company did make clear though that anyone who keeps a Clear iSpot active going forward will be grandfathered into the $25/month plan, provided they maintain continuous service going forward. This will likely remain until Clearwire shuts down the Clear WiMAX network, expected by outsiders sometime within the next 12 to 72 months. Clearwire has not yet given any timeframe for when they plan to roll out their LTE network fully, and when they plan to dismantle their WiMAX network.

Clearwire is clearly trying to close the door on iSpot. We have emergency calls into Clearwire as to if fully-deactivated iSpots can be reactivated at this late time, or if only those on hibernation plans can reactivate. We’ll update this report when we hear back from Clear.

Update: Clearwire has confirmed our initial report, which we have expanded on in a follow-up article.

According to the latest internal Sprint employee documentation, the carrier will begin the second phase of its Network Vision initiative by “retuning” iDEN cellsites in order to repurpose spectrum for CDMA and future LTE service beginning next month, with a wider retuning in April.

The newsletter breaks down what Sprint will do for customers that will be affected by the gradual phase out of iDEN, which includes migration offers to CDMA service, but does not mention any such process for Boost Mobile users that still rely on iDEN for domestic and International DirectConnect service.

Courtesy of BriefMobile

It should be stressed that the phaseout occurring next month will not shutdown iDEN, but it will reconfigure the service to the point where indoor service may be adversely affected, as the cell sites will not be broadcasting at full power and will be gradually moved to CDMA until the planned complete shutdown of the iDEN network in 2013. Customers near and in New Orleans are the most affected by this part of the phase out, with ETF Out currently open to the end of March for those customers in that market that don’t wish to migrate and the rest of the nationwide iDEN customer base can begin exercising ETF Out options from next month to the end of July.

Sprint is actively seeking to push those affected by the phase out to CDMA with Sprint Direct Connect, but is making an exception for those that rely on International Direct Connect and will not actively target those customers for migration until April, when International Direct Connect support via Sprint Direct Connect will be deployed and will speed up the migration/iDEN phase out process.

Sprint has taken great strides to de-emphasize iDEN since the last major upgrades to the network in 2008 which allowed it to offer unlimited flat-rate service and proved unexpectedly popular, so much so that it was able to increase ARPU on the network and draw in more customers than expected.

The offering also led for a new lease on life for iDEN, with new phones and devices being offered while Sprint worked out development of the first iteration of Direct Connect on CDMA, which did not fare well and was shelved while more development work was conducted. With iDEN now being phased out after years of maintenance and QChat finally working as hoped, the days of maintaining the iDEN network are now numbered.

Of course, this will also leave Boost Mobile customers that use iDEN in the lurch, since they will have to buy new phones and it is not known whether Sprint will extend Direct Connect service to Boost Mobile with new compatible CDMA models. Should Sprint decide to expand Sprint DirectConnect service to Boost Mobile, it would give that virtual operator a reason to exist aside from its Shrinkage service plan as it was originally a Nextel MVNO that offered pay per use unlimited push to talk for a daily flat rate.

It’s been a busy week for T-Mobile. After refusing to comment to PhoneNews.com on T-Mobile testing 1900 MHz UMTS service in select markets, a direct effort to support unlocked iPhones, the carrier has made more depressing internal moves.

It appears that the carrier has aborted plans to offer 3G on 1900 MHz, as the carrier earlier this month began instructing customer service to suggest iPhone users on the network upgrade to a 4G Android smartphone, compatible with their network frequencies. T-Mobile offered customer support representatives a series of talking points on why iPhone is limited to 2G, or EDGE speeds on the T-Mobile network.

While it is possible that these are simply two different hands of a company not talking to one another, the timeline does indicate that T-Mobile wants iPhone off its network, rather than embrace the 1900 MHz band for UMTS. With no possibility of an AT&T merger, the carrier has to decide to use 1900 MHz for UMTS, or save it for LTE.

The carrier also has to decide when to wind down its GSM/EDGE services, which would leave iPhone customers in the dark. Other handsets that are GSM-only could be upgraded for free with UMTS handsets at marginal cost to T-Mobile. AT&T had to undergo the same effort when it wound down its TDMA and AMPS networks, and will likely have to do the same with GSM in order to re-use the spectrum.

Following criticism from many, T-Mobile does now appear to be pulling at least a temporary about-face with the public. The carrier has published memos internally, confirmed by PhoneNews.com, that they will begin to provide basic technical support for iPhone on the T-Mobile network.

Support will be limited to basic compatibility configuration, the T-Mobile APN (needed to enable data services), as well as T-Mobile’s email and MMS gateways.

In addition, T-Mobile will also provide support for iPhone usage and navigation, but only at a basic level. Services like the App Store and iTunes or iPod will not be supported, T-Mobile representatives are directed to tell customers to contact Apple for further technical support.

T-Mobile is the only of the major four carriers to not carry an iPhone currently. This partially stemmed from AT&T’s intention to purchase/merge with T-Mobile, and T-Mobile refusing to pay Apple’s higher device subsidies. T-Mobile executives have commented that the next iPhone will support T-Mobile’s network, prompting T-Mobile public relations to perform damage control, having announced an Apple product prior to Apple confirming it.

Clearwire confirmed to PhoneNews.com today that they have stopped activating new service for customers in pre-WiMAX markets. This does not affect markets that are selling CLEAR 4G WiMAX coverage, nor does it affect any customers who have already enrolled in Clearwire pre-WiMAX service.

The legacy, pre-WiMAX technology dates back to Clearwire founder Craig McCaw’s vision of delivering broadband Internet wirelessly, with a focus on delivering broadband to rural markets that do not have easy access or multiple choices for broadband Internet service.

Originally, Clearwire told PhoneNews.com that it expected all pre-WiMAX markets to get a quick upgrade to WiMAX. It’s a story, and timetable that we followed closely, being that this article is being written from one of the Clearwire markets that is still stuck in pre-WiMAX coverage. That coverage provides speeds up to 3.0 mbps, but lacks modern interfaces… like USB… or even ExpressCard. The only devices that work with the service, are bulky modems designed for fixed wireless, or a PCMCIA/CardBus card (we don’t even have a laptop that has that slot anymore).

Rural customers though persisted, we met multiple customers lined up at iPhone launches that ran their Clearwire pre-WiMAX gear in their car, powered into routers… all being driven by a DC power inverter. Unfortunately, the lack of a simplistic, consumer-friendly solution ensured that only the tech-savvy, and desperate, really took full advantage of these pre-WiMAX offerings.

The technology gap underscores Clearwire’s painful migration from pre-WiMAX, to WiMAX, and now to LTE. The changes in network hardware have prevented Clearwire from having one consistent technology to market to rural and urban customers alike. Clearwire’s majority owner, Sprint, pushed Clearwire to abandon its rural transition goals, in order to focus on rolling out WiMAX in coveted urban markets as quickly as possible.

Now, customers in these rural markets will have to wait until late this year, when Clearwire will unveil its LTE network. It is not even assured that these markets will be upgraded at that point. After missing its 2010 timetable for rural market upgrades, pre-WiMAX customers have been given no guidance from the company, other than to stay tuned to press releases and email updates.

Clearwire continues to struggle. While receiving a cash infusion of a billion dollars from Sprint, largely under pressure-and-observations that Sprint was betting on Clearwire to fail, the company now is working hard to develop an LTE wholesale network, as well as prepare to upgrade CLEAR 4G customers to an LTE Advanced-ready network platform.

Following a December filled with changes to its business model in the wake of its forthcoming transition to LTE while continuing to support WiMax until its planned switchover, Clearwire has posted its preliminary fourth quarter 2011 financial results, which see slight improvements in terms of year to year revenue, immediate cashflow and operating profit but still have a long way to go before reaching a self sustaining level without relying on further debt sales, of which a new round of secured notes will be offered that will total $300 million. Read more for the breakdown.

Starting with quarterly revenues of approximately $362 million are estimated for fourth quarter 2011, representing a more than doubling of revenues from the fourth quarter of 2010. Retail revenues are estimated to be approximately $198 million and wholesale revenues are estimated to be approximately $164 million for the period, representing 1% and 20% sequential growth, respectively, over third quarter 2011 retail and wholesale revenues which were a marked change from the losses of the third quarter triggered by the continuing economic slowdown and then active expedition for outside funding to continue operations before the Fall 2011 debt sale.

Fourth quarter 2011 net wholesale subscriber additions are expected to total approximately 900,000 customers, resulting in approximately 9.1 million total wholesale subscribers, or 11% growth over third quarter 2011 wholesale subscriber numbers. Added to the approximately 1.3 million retail subscribers at the end of the year, the company expects total subscribers as of December 31, 2011 to be approximately 10.4 million, representing approximately 140% year over year growth in new subscribers.

Network usage by wholesale customers increased approximately 22% compared to third quarter 2011, driven primarily by growth in smartphone usage, which increased approximately 30% over the same period. Total 4G network usage by wholesale and retail customers increased 165% during 2011 compared to the same period in 2010. Clearwire has also estimated that cash on hand and cash equivalents and investments as of December 31, 2011 were approximately $1.11 billion compared to $711 million at September 30, 2011, an extensive increase from its previous holdings which were at risk of being depleted at the beginning of 2011.

Excluding net proceeds from the issuance of additional shares of $716 million and payment of $237 million interest on debt in December, cash utilized during fourth quarter 2011 was approximately $82 million, which is a marked improvement from the ~$100 million plus used in the third quarter before the aforementioned debt sale in the wake of being unable to find outside investment since the fourth quarter of 2010, when it was soliciting offers and seeking outside investment to continue day to day operations before former partner Sprint stepped up with lifelines to keep Clearwire running in the Fall.

With Clearwire’s August 2011 transition to a flat-rate model with no agreements, Clear WiMax service is helping to fund the company’s transition to LTE along with a new wholesale agreement reached with MVNO infrastructure provider Simplexity announced yesterday in order for Clearwire to make the process of reselling services to new wholesale customers easier, though the company will still handle direct wholesale transactions for those that prefer to have a direct connection to the company.

Clearwire is currently providing wholesale services to sprint for its lineup of WiMax devices, with Sprint transitioning to LTE beginning in the middle of the year and no new WiMax devices planned for release after the forthcoming launch of the Sierra Wireless Tri-Network Hotspot later this year ahead of Sprint’s LTE network launch. Clearwire will post complete results in the following weeks.

Prepaid virtual operator Straight Talk has announced its first high-end Android smartphone in the LG Optimus 2X. The key differentiator between this version of the phone and the T-Mobile version in the G2X will be the inclusion of an LTE radio, which will make this the first high-end prepaid Android smartphone on Straight Talk and the first to function on AT&T’s nascent LTE network.

It also marks the first time that AT&T will allow prepaid access to its LTE network, as its own GoPhone lineup is limited to 3G devices and its smartphone lineup on GoPhone does not feature access to either unlimited 3G data or LTE access.

The LG Optimus 2X is underpinned by a dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2 at 1GHz, an 800×480 resolution touch display, front-facing 1.3 megapixel VGA camera and 8.0 megapixel rear camera with 1080p video capture along with a Wi-Fi N radio, Bluetooth, microSDHC slot with pre-installed 4GB card, 3.5mm jack and mini HDMI out.

This marks a potentially disruptive development for the prepaid brand, as it simultaneously competes against its Master Service Provider in AT&T in terms of services offered for the monthly rate, since the $45 monthly rate for service includes unlimited access to voice, data and messaging while the service also undercuts its competitors in Boost Mobile, Cricket and MetroPCS in terms of value for money.

The lowest priced service plans for Android on MetroPCS with LTE access start at $50 per month and do not include unlimited data access, while Boost Mobile’s Android data plan is $5 higher per month for the first six months and is unlimited in terms of data access, but is limited to much slower EV-DO Rev. A access. For Straight Talk to offer 4G LTE data access as a part of its current $45 monthly rate is not only potentially game changing, but it opens access to even more people that normally wouldn’t be able to take advantage of such service, as LTE access is currently being limited by carriers to capped postpaid and prepaid tablet access to generate the revenue necessary to cover costs associated to network buildouts.

It’s also important to note that such service additions and newly included support for faster data access on prepaid providers are usually followed by significant increases to the monthly rate to cover the additional costs incurred by the provider.  For Straight Talk to maintain the $45 smartphone rate while offering its first high-end smartphone with LTE is a sure way to drive not only frugal customers looking to jump into its low cost and inclusive flat-rate service as well as those that will undoubtedly upgrade from older smartphones, but the hardcore Android enthusiasts will no doubt take a second look at the service as it now supports LTE, which will doubtlessly drive even more activations on the service.

However, as Straight Talk is notoriously tight-lipped about its limits on data access per month dating back to the release of the E71, what is currently not known is how LTE access will be treated in terms of any monthly caps or throttling. AT&T is especially notorious for its current monthly data caps, but at least those are clearly defined.

With Straight Talk, reports vary on exactly how much is “too much” data use for a given user, as experiences range from ~6GB of data use a month with no issues or warnings, to situations where using more than 200MB in one day has led some customers to have their service suspended until the next renewal period without being able to restore it, or worse, having service completely terminated and having to reactivate completely.

With this latest development, Straight Talk is well on its way to being the disruptive provider that so many have tried and failed to be. The phone will be launched by the end of the month as an online exclusive with pricing to match, as the phone will be priced between $249-299.99 and slot at the top of the current Android lineup, which currently features the Sprint-powered and sourced Samsung Precedent and LG Optimus Q.

What remains to be seen is just how many people will be led to the service of flat-rate service with LTE access for half of the cost of the typical postpaid monthly rate on AT&T. Will it drive new customers that normally wouldn’t have considered prepaid service, or does the allure of the $45 rate leave it open for abuse by the same people that would take full advantage of such service if given the opportunity to pay such a low rate for it?

Update: After extensive research, it has been confirmed that the model offered is not an LTE enabled version of the Optimus 2X as is being advertised by Straight Talk, rather it is in fact an unbranded version of the US G2X that will be sold by the provider with Android Gingerbread 2.3.4 pre-loaded along with a new series of T-Mobile SIM card that will allow access to the carrier’s HSPA+ network for the phone, with no possibility of swapping current SIMs used on other GSM smartphones such as the E71 and E5 since they only work with AT&T.

Update 2: Straight Talk has pulled its reservation page for the Optimus 2X and replaced it with the page for the Optimus Q. The service provider has also pulled its Google Doubleclick ad campaign for the phone and replaced it with the previous campaign for the Optimus Q. Below, a screen cap of the Optimus 2X ad.

Update 3: Straight Talk has re-opened the reservation page for the LG Optimus 2X and has removed all references to 4G LTE support and is instead referring to T-Mobile’s HSPA+ data network as “4G”.

Update 4: Sibling provider Net10 has opened its own page for the phone, with a screencap of its Google DoubleClick ad below detailing the removal of 4G LTE references:

Polaroid has introduced its first Android powered smartphone with a full point and shoot assembly in the SC1630. While the SC1630 resembles a typical Android smartphone, a closer look reveals that it is actually a rebranded and re-engineered version of the Chinese Aigo A8 sold by China Unicom in that country.

The SC1630 as developed by Polaroid features a 16 megapixel camera with a 3x optical zoom, LED flash, a 3.2 inch touchscreen display on the back of the device at WVGA resolution and dedicated control buttons on the top for the camera shutter and volume rockers as well as a microSD slot and Bluetooth.

The device also features Android Gingerbread with full Google Apps and Android Market support along with AT&T/international 3G support for cellular data along with Wi-Fi and FM radio. The device does feature a mic for phone calls, suggesting that the device may be sold via  as well as unlocked directly by Polaroid depending on interest along with the possibility of an LTE version.

The SC1630 also features built-in dedicated camera apps for photo and video capture with cropping, red-eye removal, resizing and color correction. The device is being touted as a hybrid between a smartphone, media player and digital camera. The actual camera assembly consists of an F3.1 – F5.6 aperture lens assembly, 3X optical zoom, 5X digital zoom, a max shutter speed of 1/1400 and ISO max of 3200 with geotagging, anti-shake support and 720p video capture.

Representatives from Polaroid have also confirmed during CES that the company intends to sell the phone for $299.99 beginning in April and the release window hinges upon completion of final development work before then.

Read more to see the first live shots of Sprint’s tiny LTE portable hotspot.

Keeping true to Sprint’s promise, the LTE hotspot will be a tri-mode device with CDMA, LTE and WiMax. As such, it will be immediately useful in all WiMAX markets as Sprint rolls out Network Vision.

Sprint has contacted us and corrected the specifications for the hotspot and it will feature LTE, WiMax and EVDO Rev. A, but it will be the only tri-mode device released on the carrier, with future smartphones staying dual-mode and focused on LTE.

Similar to other LTE portable hotspots, the device will come with a desktop cradle that provides for improved reception. The desktop charging cradle will provide >5dbm reception improvement, crucial for using the device as a home Internet connection backup or replacement. The 1.7 inch LCD display will provide for persistent status, similar to Sierra’s other hotspots.

Also check out our Galaxy Nexus LTE live shots, and LG Viper LTE live shots from Sprint’s media event tonight.

Sprint is using CES this week to confirm the first details on its forthcoming LTE network launch later this year starting with the first three devices and confirming additional details on what bands the devices will run on this year.

Staring with the Galaxy Nexus on Sprint, the phone will launch with Google Wallet support and will launch in the 32GB version first announced last year.

Sprint has also confirmed that LTE on the Galaxy Nexus will run on 1900MHz, along with the LG Viper 4G LTE, which features a 1.2GHz dual core processor and two cameras in a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera and a VGA front-facing camera for video calls, a 4-inch WVGA resolution NOVA display, mobile hotspot support and a microSD slot with DLNA support for streaming with NFC support compatible with Google Wallet.

Lastly, Sprint will also launch its first LTE capable hotspot in the Sierra Wireless Tri-Network Hotspot. It will be the first tri-mode (3G, 4G WiMax and 4G LTE) mobile hotspot with support for to up to eight Wi-Fi enabled devices with a microSD slot.

Sprint has also confirmed during CES that it will not continue to manufacture tri-mode devices outside of the initial Sierra Wireless mobile hotspot due to the expense with the focus on new 4G devices shifting to dual-mode CDMA/LTE and CDMA/WiMax for smartphones and other devices during the rollout until 2013, when the rollout is expected to be completed. Aside from confirming LTE on the 1900MHz band for the initial launch, the carrier also confirmed that it wanted to launch the Galaxy Nexus and LG Viper at the same time, but would not offer a specific date.