TracFone has announced that it will be offering prepaid iPhone 5s and 5c handsets, sold through the company's Net10 and Straight Talk brands. The iPhone 5c will sell for $549 with 16GB of storage and the standard range of color choices, while the 16GB iPhone 5s fetches $649 in gray, silver or gold.
From November 1st, Walmart will be selling the iPad Air starting at $479 for a 16GB Wi-Fi model, the retailer has announced. That price is $20 below Apple's list cost. Walmart has yet to say what discounts might apply to other Air models, or if it will be cutting the cost of the Retina iPad mini as well.
A supermarket chain in the United Kingdom is going to provide its customers a 3D printing service as part of a trial. Asda, a chain owned by Walmart, will start scanning objects and people at one of its stores for later printing, with a view to being the first in the country to provide in-store 3D printing nationwide, alongside its existing printing services.
(Updated with Walmart discount) Following in the wake of a similar Best Buy promotion, RadioShack has announced plans of its own to cut $50 off the price of an iPhone 5c. Beginning October 5th and running through November 2nd, retail buyers will be able to get a free $50 gift card, which can be applied immediately to the cost of the device. Prices can be lowered further by trading in an old smartphone in good condition.
Target will be price-matching Walmart for the 16GB iPhone 5c at the smartphone's launch tomorrow. Walmart's already-discounted price of $79 for the iPhone 5c, when bought with a two-year contract, will be equaled by Target. Participants of Target's REDcard scheme will be able to get an extra 5-percent off, making the iPhone 5c cost $75.05.
Walmart will be selling both the iPhone 5s and 5c at a discount from day one, the US retailer has announced. The 16GB 5c will sell for $79 on a two-year contract, whereas the 5s will be $189. Normally the phones would be $99 and $199.
Discount retailer Walmart has announced a new smartphone trade-in program. Beginning on September 21st, participants will be able to get $300 towards the purchase of a new phone. That money is only available as credit towards the new device, however, and there is no opportunity to lock in a quote, as some dedicated resale companies allow.
Beginning Saturday, retail giant Walmart will start offering Apple's iPhone 5 for roughly a third lower than its previous price point. The retailer will be offering Apple's newest handset for just $129, down from $189. The iPhone 4S will also see a discount, going from $89 to just $39.
An official Google blog post has noted the expansion of Chromebook netbook sales to additional venues in the US and in Europe. Starting today, Walmart will be selling the Acer Chromebook, and starting this weekend, Staples will be carrying an assortment of makes and models from three different manufacturers.
Huawei will be putting its first Windows Phone 8 device on sale in the United States as a prepaid device in the near future. The Huawei Ascend W1, renamed the Huawei W1 for the US market, will be made available in Walmart stores and Walmart.com later this month, and retains the same specifications and feature set that Electronista saw at Mobile World Congress in February.
Business magazine Fortune has released the 2013 edition of its list of the 500 biggest corporations in the US. One of the most significant shifts in the list is the ascendancy of Apple, which has jumped from 17th place to sixth, breaking into the top 10 for the first time. Fortune comments that while the company has "maintained more than disrupted" its product line, and even had to apologize for iOS 6 Maps and its Chinese warranty services, it "remains an innovation icon."
US retailers Best Buy and Walmart have begun new online sales on iPads. The former is selling third-generation iPads at up to 30 percent off, for instance putting a 32GB Wi-Fi model at $384, $165 off retail. A 16GB 4G iPad, meanwhile, is going for $406.
Walmart will expand its Scan & Go iPhone checkout system to over 200 stores by the end of the coming year, says Reuters. The program started near Walmart's home office in Bentonville, Arkansas, and is currently in about 70 stores so far. For the foreseeable future Scan & Go will remain iPhone-only, but Walmart spokespeople say that Android support is coming in the near future.
Apple and other online retailers aren't breaking state law by requiring people to submit their address and phone number when making credit card payments, the California Supreme Court has ruled. The decision at least temporarily ends a proposed class action brought by David Krescent, who charged that Apple should not be able to require the extra information for iTunes purchases. Reuters reports that eBay and Walmart submitted briefs in support of Apple.
Walmart will add the iPhone 5 and iPhone 4 to no-contract Straight Talk unlimited plans, with no carrier subsidy, starting on January 11, the company says. More than 2,000 Walmart stores and the online corporate site will sell the iPhone 5 for $649 (16GB model only) and the iPhone 4 for $449 (8GB model only). Qualified buyers will be able to get a Walmart Credit Card that allows for the phone cost to be billed in $25 monthly increments.
A number of retailers, including Best Buy and Toys R Us, have complained to attorney generals in several states about Walmart advertising practices, the Wall Street Journal reports. The complaints generally argue that Walmart is using inaccurate pricing or non-equivalent products to lay claim to the lowest prices. Best Buy, though, has specifically singled out problems with a Walmart iPhone 5 sale.
[Update: the sale iPad is a third-gen model, not fourth-gen] Starting today, Walmart is launching a sale on several Apple products in the US. The retailer is dropping the price of a 16GB, third-generation Wi-Fi iPad down to $399 -- the same price as the iPad 2 -- and beginning Monday, also bundling in a $30 iTunes card. The third-generation iPad was discontinued when the latest model was introduced in October, just eight months after the third-generation's debut.
Black Friday e-commerce spending by US shoppers has passed the $1 billion milestone for the first time. The amount of online retail activity for Friday, November 23rd has been called the "heaviest online spending day to date in 2012," with sales increasing 26 percent compared to Black Friday last year.
In conjunction with Microsoft's Halo 4 launch on the Xbox 360, Walmart and T-Mobile are offering fans of the game an exclusive promotional offer. Between November 6 and December 31, customers who purchase a T-Mobile pay-as-you-go unlimited talk and text plan valued at $30 per month or more will receive an exclusive in-game Halo 4 Spartan emblem. The T-Mobile Walmart portal has more information on the promotion.
The Nintendo Wii U won't become available for sale in the US until November 18, but potentially interested buyers can try the system out starting November 5. Nearly 5,000 demonstration booths will be set up across US retailers that include Best Buy, GameStop, Target, Walmart, and Toys 'R' Us. They will either let shoppers play one of the launch titles or offer a video presentation of the console's features.
As expected, the Boxee TV is now available for purchase at Walmart. The big box store chain is the only retail location to purchase the device, with online purchasing at Boxee's site the other option. The $98 piece of hardware includes a digital antenna, and word is buyers will get a three-month trial period to the No Limits DVR service.
TruConnect, which is an MVNO that piggybacks on Sprint's network, has introduced two new Internet on the Go plans on Thursday that rely on a mobile hotspot. The Go Big and Go Bigger plans will be available to purchase only through Walmart stores. Neither requires a contract but they differ mainly in when the data allotment expires.
Walmart will begin stocking the Boxee TV at 3,000 of its locations across the US starting on November 1, the two revealed. The device will sell for $98 and Walmart will set up displays just for the device along with dedicated marketing materials. Other than streaming Netflix and YouTube content, the device can also pick up free over the air content in HD.
Walmart is selling Windows 8 over the counter 11 days too early. The retailer has been spotted putting boxed copies of Windows 8 Pro on its shelves ahead of the official October 26th street date, with employees claiming the operating system was available to purchase, though the store was not promoting them.
Best Buy, Walmart, and Sam's Club are delaying sales of iPhone 5 preorders to some customers, MacRumors notes. One person says that they received an email from Best Buy warning him that he wouldn't have his phone today, and that it might take up to 28 days before it's in stock. The person claims moreover that he was the first person to preorder a black 64GB model at his location, and that all of his friends got the same email.
After exhausting its current inventory of Amazon products, Walmart will no longer carry Amazon's Kindle tablets and e-readers. This according to an internal memo obtained by Reuters, as well as confirmation from a source familiar with Walmart's operations. The decision, making Walmart the second major retail chain to stop carrying Kindle products, is said to be an attempt on Walmart's part to curb competition from Amazon's e-retail unit.
New information on Walmart's iPhone 5 preorder plans has emerged, 9to5Mac reports. Leaked documents show that while the company originally advertised preorders starting at 8AM local time today, that timing has been pushed up until whenever each store gets the necessary reservation cards delivered. Each card costs $25, which counts toward the purchase price of an iPhone.
Walmart has announced that beginning today, it's dropping the price of the 16GB iPhone 4S to $148 at some of its US stores. The cut is $40 off Walmart's normal price, and applies to contract phones for all three national carriers: AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon. Walmart hasn't produced a list of the participating stores, and is instead asking shoppers to check with local outlets.
(Updated with Walmart statement) The reported Walmart discounts on iPhones aren't in effect across the entire Walmart chain, reports observe. The Verge notes that it managed to find a Walmart in Austin with the same bargain, but four other US outlets had regular prices. 9to5Mac says it called 17 Walmarts around the US, none of which were offering discounts. Separate of these, though, one out of two Austin Walmarts was offering the deal, as well as one out of two stores in Edmond, though the Frontage Road location said the iPhone 4S was "$114 this morning, for a little while."
Apple is likely to increase its footprint outside of its existing Apple Stores, according to analysts at Piper Jaffray. The iPhone and iPad maker is looking to expand on pilot projects that have seen Apple "store-within-a-store" (SWAS) popping up in select Walmart and Target stores. Taken nationally, such a move would tremendously expand Apple's retail reach, as the two big box retailers have significantly more rural distribution than does Apple.
Streaming game service Gaikai, which teamed up with Walmart last year on browser-based game demos, is back in the news. This time around, it has partnered with electronics manufacturer Wikipad to bring its games to an Android-based tablet. The tablet has grown to include a 10.1-inch screen rather than the 8.1-inch version when it was shown off at CES.
Verizon Wireless has added new tiers to its phone and data prepaid offerings starting on May 1. A new $80 smartphone plan includes unlimited talk and text messaging while allotting 1GB of data use per month. At the same time, the carrier will ship the Jetpack 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot MiFi 4510L with prepaid mobile packages.
Regional wireless providers US Cellular and Alltel have teamed up with Walmart on an upcoming launch of a new no-contract service. Called U Prepaid, it will be available in nearly 500 Walmart stores in 18 states. The service will focus on offering simple and easy-to-understand service plans.
Vudu's streaming movie and TV service could leave the US for the first time, according to apparent leaks emerging later on Thursday. The strategy passed on to Variety from unnamed sources would have Vudu available in Mexico by June, followed by sweeping coverage in South America. Asia and Europe would be part of the expansion further into 2012, although it's unknown if Canada would join in.
Walmart is beginning to deploy a new Apple store-within-in-a-store concept in its outlets, ifoAppleStore reports. One early example is an outlet in Lowell, Arkansas, which now has an Apple section with wooden tables that have products like iPads locked in display cases underneath. More conspicuous though are large, backlit, double-sided displays above the tables, something not normally seen in other retail chains' Apple sections.
Roku on Monday kicked off its Canadian launch. The country will get two higher-end models in the lineup, the Roku 2 XD and Roku 2 XS, both of which can handle 1080p video; the XS bundles in the Wii-like motion remote and includes both Ethernet and USB for wired access and local content. Canadians get much of the same content, including Netflix, Rdio music, and major sports like the MLB and NHL, although US-specific services like Hulu Plus are out of contention.
D-Link threw itself into low-cost media hubs Tuesday with the MovieNite. Borrowing from the design cues of the Apple TV and Roku 2, the device at $60 is one of the least expensive capable of 1080p video. Its primary sources are Netflix, Vudu, and YouTube for video as well as Pandora for streaming music and Picasa for photos.
The number of Americans buying iPhones from Best Buy is just under the number buying them from Apple itself, according to a Consumer Intelligence Research Partners survey. The firm polled people in December, January, and February to learn where they picked up their devices. Retail stores accounted for 76 percent of iPhone sales, compared to 24 percent online. The ratios were 67 percent and 33 percent during the launch of the iPhone 4S in October.
Ematic has just shipped its latest portable media player, the eSport Clip. It has a capacity of 4GB and attaches onto user's belts or clothes thanks to an integrated clip. The screen is just 1.8 inches in size, and the player has a five-megapixel digital camera built-in as well that can take either photos or videos.
In an unexpected move, Walmart has announced that it will start selling iPads at 12:01AM on Friday. The retailer is promising only a "limited supply" of tablets; midnight launches are also being restricted to 24-hour locations. As with most retailers selling the new hardware, prices will start at $499 for a 16GB Wi-Fi model.
Apple in its customary pre-launch details both confirmed a launch time for the new iPad and outlined the next wave of countries after the initial March 16 date. True to recent leaks, the first 10 countries will start selling the new tablet at retail at 8AM through at least Apple stores. Best Buy, RadioShack, Sam's Club, Target, and Walmart will also have the iPad, although some of these are likely to open later.
Walmart has officially announced its UltraViolet conversion service, letting users digitize their existing DVD and Blu-ray movies. Viewers will have the ability to bring a movie into one of the more than 3,500 participating stores in the US and have their movies added to a Vudu account, after which they can stream it at any time.
Walmart is reportedly set to formally announce its UltraViolet services sometime tomorrow, after the endeavor has been detailed by several recent leaks. The retailer is said to be allowing customers to bring in their existing DVD collections and pay between $2 and $4 per disc to gain access to corresponding digital copies.
Target and Walmart have joined in the development of yet another mobile payment system, insides gave out on Thursday. The two were said by Wall Street Journal's contacts to now be part of a group with about 24 member store chains hoping to create a standard that, though not directly named, would use NFC. Consulting firm BetterBuyDesign's Steve Mott corroborated the plan by revealing its involvement in the project, with word that big chains as well as drugstores, fast food restaurants, and vending machine firms were involved.
Walmart is reportedly preparing to launch in-store UltraViolet service, in an attempt to assist customers who want to take advantage of the digital licensing system. The company is said to be involved in discussions with UltraViolet partners to work out the final details.
Barnes & Noble looks set to tackle the hot-selling Amazon Kindle Fire head-on by releasing a reduced storage capacity version of its Nook Color sequel, the Nook Tablet. According to the The Verge, it has received documentation purported to be from Walmart showing that it is set to release an 8GB model at 12:01 AM on Wednesday, February 22. Currently, the 16GB version of the Nook Tablet retails at $249, suggesting that Barnes & Noble aims to get close to, equal, or beat the pricing of the Kindle Fire at $199.
Apple now represents about a fifth of all technology sales in the US, new NPD data showed Monday. By the end of 2011, 19 percent of revenue in the US was related to an Apple product. The company was now the top company selling technology in the US, topping HP, Samsung, Sony, and Dell even when the others could include their sales from all categories.
Canadians have been hit by up to 24 known cases of iPad 2s being sold substituted with clay at major retailers in Vancouver, including Future Shop, Best Buy, Walmart, and London Drugs. According to CTV News, customers were sold boxes that looked like new. However, while perfectly sealed, they were given weight by clay, where in at least one instance, a charger was also replaced with clay.
Walmart and T-Mobile have just added unlimited data to Walmart's Family Mobile plans. They already include unlimited talk and text, and retain the same monthly price points of $45 for the first line and $35 for additional lines. Previously, the family plans included just 250MB of shared web access.
Walmart has bought out Small Society, a mobile app developer currently based in Portland, Oregon, reports say. While mostly unknown to the public, the developer is responsible for a number of high-profile apps. A partial resume includes Amazon, Starbucks, Zipcar, Live Nation, Whole Foods, and the 2008 Obama election campaign.
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