T-Mobile USA may soon add a WiFi calling application to certain Android phones in its lineup, according to the blog TMoNews.
According to the blog, which posted what it said were images of a training session for T-Mobile employees, the carrier is going to bring Unlicensed Mobile Access calling technology to certain smartphones running Google's mobile platform via a pre-loaded WiFi calling app. However--unlike the carrier's current WiFi calling services--there will be no handoff between WiFi and the company's cellular network, meaning that once a user leaves a WiFi hotspot, their call will drop. Additionally, the blog post said, the app will not be available on all of T-Mobile's Android phones.
A T-Mobile spokeswoman declined to comment on the report. The carrier supports UMA calling for Research In Motion's (NASDAQ:RIMM) BlackBerry devices and the Nokia (NYSE:NOK) E73. A T-Mobile spokeswoman told FierceWireless earlier this month that the carrier has not made any announcements regarding future plans for UMA.
T-Mobile first introduced unlimited WiFi calling for consumers with the launch of its Hotspot@Home service in 2007. The offering allows users to switch between WiFi and the carrier's cellular network. T-Mobile announced in April that it logs 1.6 million WiFi calls per month.
For more:
- see this TMoNews post
- see this Engadget post
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