AT&T’s new MicroCell home basestation will be rolled out across the country this April, following months of 3G femtocell testing, reports Unstrung. AT&T’s femtocell routes wireless phone calls and data connections across a home broadband connection. It uses cellular frequencies in the home rather than WiFi.
AT&T is the first major wireless carrier in the US to offer a 3G unit that boosts both voice and data. AT&T says it will begin its national rollout in mid-April, “with new markets activating in cities across the continental US for the next several months.”
The operator has been testing the MicroCell in limited markets since September.
AT&T is selling the MicroCell for $149.99 outright. The operator is also selling a companion rate plan for the MicroCell — $19.99 a month enables subscribers to make unlimited calls through the femto. If people buy the supplementary plan, AT&T will give a $100 mail-in discount on the femtocell unit.
Cisco built the 3G femtocell for AT&T. The operator is now rumored to be mulling a larger femtocell for enterprise customers. Femtocells are also expected to play a key role in the deployment of LTE, especially since consumers and business will frequently pay for the backhaul, installation and maintenance, not AT&T.
AT&T also announced several new phone apps.
The U-Verse Mobile app will let you schedule DVR recordings and then download recorded TV from any Wi-Fi hotspot (if you are an AT&T U-Verse TV subscriber). The app will initially be available for the iPhone, but is being developed for multiple platforms, AT&T execs said.
The new AT&T Music app, which costs $6.99/month, will consolidate several existing apps to provide a single portal on AT&T phones. It will offer streaming radio, Pandora-like custom radio and music downloads. Right now it’s only available for the Samsung Solstice, Samsung Impression, or an LG Xenon. You can download it from AT&T’s MEdia Mall. The AT&T MEdia Mall is generally used for less complex downloads, such as ringtones.
