By Well THIS is an interesting turn of events. You know the Sprint HTC Hero? The one that adds a brushed metallic finish and removes the angled curvature in the mouthpiece? We thought this phone might be exclusive to Sprint – at least in the United States – but a relatively small carrier called Cellular South is saying not by the trackball on my chinny chin chin. They’ll be offering the HTC Hero for pre-order on October 5th:
Cellular South is only the 11th largest carrier in the United States according to *cough*cough* Wikipedia with only 700,000 subscribers. Getting the Hero is a BIG win for them and the company has been leading the charge to the FCC that hopes to remove the the various carrier exclusivity agreements from the industry. If you take a look at their coverage map you’ll see that their voice services cover almost the whole United States but they’re certainly stronger in the eastern half of the country. Their data services are a little more spotty.
Thanks to Steven who sent a us a link to the full Press Release last night!
Cellular South’s new Android(TM)-Powered Smartphone Gives Consumers Access to Company’s Superior 3G Network, Unique Apps and Discover Center Support
RIDGELAND, Miss., Sept. 21 /PRNewswire/ — Cellular South, the nation’s largest privately held wireless provider, announced plans today to launch its first Android-powered smartphone, the new HTC Hero(TM). Consumers will be able to pre-order the device as early as October 5. The company is among the first U.S. wireless carriers to announce the availability of the highly acclaimed Android device with Google(TM) mobile services. The HTC Hero is the first of a variety of Android-powered smartphones Cellular South plans to offer in the near future.
Android-powered devices are one of the fastest growing device segments in the wireless industry with worldwide sales expected to soon eclipse the most popular smartphones on the market today, including the iPhone(TM), according to a March 2009 report by Informa Telecoms and Media, a London-based research house specializing in the mobile, broadband and television industries.
With the Android open source mobile platform, an advanced web browser and stylish look and feel, Hero is a great Android-powered phone and is poised to emerge as a popular device for consumers. According to Neil Mawston, director at Strategy Analytics, “Android has fast been winning healthy support among operators, vendors and developers and is now in good position to become a top-tier player in smartphones over the next two to three years.”
The HTC Hero, featuring Android, developed by the Open Handset Alliance(TM), a partnership of more than 40 global mobile industry leaders, will allow consumers access to thousands of the latest and most relevant wireless applications. The Hero also has built-in Google mobile services with synchronization, including Google Search(TM), Google Maps(TM), Gmail(TM), and YouTube(TM).
“Cellular South is excited to be among the first carriers worldwide to offer this industry-changing platform,” said Kevin Hankins, chief operating officer for Cellular South. “With Android Market(TM) and applications built on Android, combined with Cellular South’s superior 3G high speed mobile broadband network, we will continue to offer our customers the best products and experience available in the market. When you add the full support of our industry-leading online, in-store and now on-device Discover Centers, Cellular South will provide our customers an experience unmatched in the industry.”
The Applications
Android’s open source platform, which includes Android Market, an open marketplace for applications, will give customers access to more than 9,500 of the latest applications they want and need, and is growing at a phenomenal rate.
The highly-touted Layar(TM) application by Sprxmobile will be available to download on Cellular South’s Android smartphone. This next-generation reality browser built on top of Android shows what points of interest are around the wireless user by superimposing real-time digital information on top of reality through the camera on the mobile phone.
The Features
Android is an open platform which enables manufacturers from around the world to develop unique user interfaces. HTC Hero is built with a user interface based on the HTC Sense(TM) philosophy. This user experience creates personalization through fully customizable home screens. It also integrates social networking applications into the experience with its Twitter(R) widget and seamlessly ties in Facebook(R) and other social networks into the contact and message functions.
Additionally, this Android-powered smartphone gives customers the option to flexibly upgrade its memory with a MicroSD memory card, so they can easily add more memory without having to purchase a new device.
The fully-loaded smartphone also features a 3.2 inch HVGA touch-sensitive display with Wi-Fi capability, GPS with digital compass, accelerometer, 3.5 mm stereo headset jack and a 5 Megapixel autofocus camera and camcorder with expandable microSD memory. HTC Hero features simple personal and business e-mail accessibility with instant messaging and text messaging, as well as Stereo Bluetooth(R) 2.0 Wireless technology.
The Network
Smartphones are only as good as the network on which they operate. Cellular South’s 3G technology is the most reliable and advanced high-speed mobile broadband network available and supports all of the advanced services consumers expect, such as mobile broadband connectivity, e-mail, music downloads, video streaming, internet radio and television, social networking and location-based services.
The Discover Centers
Cellular South’s Discover Centers available online, in stores and on the HTC Hero, provide customers with real-time support and relevant tools that help them get more out of their wireless devices. Cellular South Discover Center Specialists are Android experts and will be able to assist customers in learning about all of the features, applications and overall utilization of their new Android-powered device.
For more information about the HTC Hero at Cellular South, its smartphone offerings and Cellular South’s Discover Centers, visit www.Cellularsouth.com/DiscoverCenter.
Android, Google, Open Handset Alliance, Google Search, Google Maps, Gmail, YouTube, and Android Market are trademarks of Google, Inc. Apple and iPhone are trademarks of Apple, Inc. HTC Hero is the trademark of HTC Corporation.
Any of you 700,000 Cellular South customers out there jumping for joy? Be heard!
Any idea on a price for the Cellular South Hero?
are they gsm?
Cellular South is CDMA (not GSM, unfortunately for those that care).
https://www.cellularsouth.com/aboutus/Company-Facts.html
Yay! :D Haha, glad this made it on here! (I’m so glad I got to submit this!)
I actually looked at the coverage map for my area and the service looks very good…. too bad that closest store is in Missouri, otherwise I would get my hands on that Hero. :/
I really want a Hero, but I refuse to go with CDMA…And I refuse to pay $500+ on eBay for the GSM version from the UK.
I have Cellular South, they blow the doors off AT&T around here. Verizon just moved in after taking Alltel. I for one cannot wait for this device. I’ll be letting my Blackberry 8830 go.
@Evan I wouldn’t anyway. I have a feeling sometime soon a GSM HTC Hero will be coming… and it will actually have 3G, not that it’s a big deal to me. :P
whose network does cellular south use? sprint?
Guys don’t rush it there are going to be soooooo many android phones rolling out that we are going to be overwhelmed with options!
I got the my touch from T mobile because at the time sprint wasn’t offering any android phone and I couldn’t wait to get rid of my piece of crap WinMo.
So far so good and I could careless about the fancy Hero UI
Cellular South uses Verizon’s network, and i believe vice versa – Mississippi was notable for having no Verizon sales offices until they took Alltel.
The smartphone plan is just stunning – $50/mo for unlimited data and text, 400 minutes voice. I’ll be picking one up on launch day.
When is launch day?
This is gonna be the best phone out with the best service with cellularsouth. The phone will be available to pre-order oct.5 and you can get it on nov.2 which the phone will be in the price range of 150 with 50 mail in rebate.SO go pre-order yours so u can be the 1st with the best phone and serive with cellularsouth.
Cellular South uses their own tower network in MS and connecting parts of TN, FL, and AL. Outside of that they would use an existing CDMA cell network. Cellular South is also the largest privately owned cell provider in the nation.
Cellular South HTC HERO $99.99 after $50.00 dollar mail in rebate.
i pre-order mine today cnt wait til november first so i can actually feel it in person…
I am so excited to have ordered my new HTC Hero phone. I have been holding out with my KRZR for two years waiting on a phone that is similar to the iphone. Thank you Cellular South for finally getting something that will be better than teh iphone. Service has always been great withy our company and I will forever be a cellular south customer for as long as I live.
I pre-ordered mine today!! Can’t wait to get this, and show it off to all my friends who think the I-Phone is the best thing since Pop-Rocks!!! Ha, little do they know!!! U ROCK CELLULAR SOUTH!!!!
when is launch day???
Just FYI, I use Cellular South and have for years. I can personally ensure you that no one can compare to their coverage. As for them being a MS based company in my business travels their service is exceptional including 3G in Cali, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and every state I have visited. I can’t tell you how many times when myself and friends who use the big 3 are in rural areas and by rural areas I mean 2 miles from a downtown metro area that their phones have no service and mine has full service.
I love my service with Cellular south. I am just ready for my phone (HTC Hero). Hopfully we can get them sooon. I’m ReAdy!!!
Please send the phone to me today. I heard that the phone will be releasing today. I really do hope so, I need the phone so bad. I have already pre-ordered the phone. I have waited over a month now and I am ready for my phone. Please send the HTC Hero my way.
Went into a local Cellular South store yesterday after work after hearing that people were starting to be able to pickup their phones if they’d pre-ordered them.
No luck. Told the customer service representative that I’d pre-ordered mine weeks/months ago. She asked if I had stated in the pre-order to please ship the phone to my home address or to hold it for me at a specific store. Told her that there was no option ever presented to me during the online pre-ordering session I was in to specify where I’d like the phone to be held/delivered once it was available.
She basically said then that if I didn’t request specifically for the phone to be held at that store for me, I was out of luck and would just have to come back Monday.
Sucks… awful customer service and I’ve been a customer (along with my wife’s phone) for about 8 years straight. So they’re telling me I can’t get the phone early because I didn’t request that the phone be held at that store, yet there was nothing asked of me during the online pre-ordering session aside from my name / address / phone #?! You suck, Cellular South… you simply suck…
Cell South does not suck!! Sounds like a fluke on your order & u not happy cause u did not get what u wanted, spoiled brat!!!
I do sub work for Cell South & have their service &very happy!!! They blow away any other carrier local or national carrier!!!!
BE fair & admit u are jus p.o due to a fluke???
JWalls
the cell south htc hero is gr8 ,many apps free and for like 1 buck .. just hoping it gets the 2.0 ver. asap !!