AT&T has been exploring the possibility of heavily subsidizing the cost of netbooks by bundling 3G data contracts. The sales model has been well established amongst mobile phones, including Apple's own iPhone 3G. Consumers who agree to the two-year 3G data contract could find their netbooks discounted to $99 or less. AT&T explored this model in a deal with Radio Shack who offered an Acer netbook for only $99 over the holidays:
As president of AT&T's new Emerging Devices division, [Glenn] Lurie hopes to do a lot more of those deals. His mission is to get just about everything except phones connected to AT&T's broadband network -- laptops, GPS devices, cars, games, medical equipment, "all the way to dog collars," he quips.
AT&T's Lurie reports that they are in talks with "lots of folks" and specifically says that he "would very much like to do more business with Apple."
While AT&T presently provides exclusive service to Apple's iPhone 3G, Apple has yet to support any built-in data services with their notebooks. If Apple were to introduce a netbook (a possibility they've downplayed) with built-in 3G networking, such subsidies could bring customers' up front costs down by several hundred dollars.
Tuesday September 15, 2026 1:43 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple today announced a new subscription initiative that turns paid iCloud+ subscriptions into a broader services bundle in more than 100 countries.
In select countries, Apple says every paid iCloud+ plan, including the cheapest 50GB tier, now includes Apple TV and Apple Arcade "at no additional cost," while family sharing extends the storage, TV and Arcade access to up to five people....
Monday September 14, 2026 10:48 pm PDT by Tim Hardwick
Apple released iOS 27 this week, and despite the company's focus this year on refining its flagship operating system and nixing bugs, there are still many additional features to explore, not least of which is Apple's new context-aware Siri, re-tooled for the generative AI era.
Which iPhones Support Every iOS 27 Feature?
This year's major iPhone software update isn't all about AI, though,...
Monday September 14, 2026 9:00 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
Update — 10 a.m. Pacific Time: Apple has released iOS 27.
During its iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Duo event last week, Apple announced that iOS 27 will be released widely on Monday, September 14.
iOS 27 should be available around 10 a.m. Pacific Time / 1 p.m. Eastern Time today via the Settings app, under General → Software Update.
Below, we have highlighted eight new features and...
