Sprint PCS said Thursday it is including embedded over-the-air technology with seven of its Vision handsets, enabling the carrier to perform remote software upgrades and fix bugs on devices already held by consumers.
Sprint said its Wireless Software Upgrade provides a cost-effective way to deliver software upgrades that include the latest improvements and enhancements directly to users’ phones. A customer will receive a text message after a download has occurred directing them to press a button to approve the update.
While certain smart phones and personal digital assistants currently feature embedded OTA technology, Sprint’s announcement is among the first carrier offering involving multiple handset models.
“With advanced megapixel cameras, camcorders and exciting downloadable content, the embedded operating software on wireless devices becoming more complex and may occasionally require an update,” said John Garcia, Sprint’s senior vide president of sales and distribution.
The software upgrades are supported by seven handsets, including five Samsung models, a Sanyo device and an LG phone. Sprint said the technology will be available on nearly all new models as they are launched.
Japanese carrier NTT DoCoMo Inc. also offers OTA updates and several other Asian and European carriers are readying OTA rollouts.
