High-speed internet access for mobile devices and the latest innovative products and solutions, along with local phone numbers to residents and businesses, is now available for residents of four Iowa counties. Verizon Wireless has expanded wireless service in Northwest Iowa, launching network operations in Lyon, O’Brien, Osceola and Sioux counties, including, in part, the towns of Sioux Center, Orange City, Rock Rapids, Rock Valley, Sibley, Sheldon and Hartley.

With the new service, Verizon added its award-winning 4G LTE network, which has expanded rapidly across Iowa since the initial launch in Council Bluffs  (along with Omaha, NE) on Aug. 18, 2011.

The growth of the 4G LTE network has enabled innovative solutions that consumers and businesses across the country take advantage of in their daily lives, such as the Verizon 4G LTE Router.   A wide array of 4G LTE devices from smartphones, tablets, to jetpacks and more are available at new authorized retail locations in Sioux Center, Rock Valley and Sheldon, Iowa.

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The benefits of Verizon’s 4G LTE are well known: faster speeds, reduced latency and better in-building penetration. For some, this means downloading movies in minutes and songs in seconds to their smartphones or tablets. For others, it’s an essential service to power their businesses.

To Tracey Sipple, a speech and language pathologist based in rural Seymour, WI, it’s just that – her key to business success. Tracey works for a company that provides speech therapy to students in underserved areas via video streaming on the Internet. A reliable connection is crucial to her job.

For those in major cities, this is no problem. But those in more rural areas know, sometimes it’s not as easy as it sounds.

“We are at the end of our phone provider’s DSL line and don’t get the speeds needed for me to video conference,” shared Sipple. “We looked into different options and Verizon’s HomeFusion was the perfect fit.”

HomeFusion is a service from Verizon that offers a reliable alternative for residential broadband in areas with limited broadband choices. Using a small antenna on a rooftop, it harnesses the power of 4G LTE and brings it into the home.

For Sipple, HomeFusion offers the fast speeds she needs for video conferencing, and flexible data packages to best fit her needs. Most importantly, it allows her to do what she does best, help students.

“Research shows, therapy sessions that would normally take 60-minutes on-site can be accomplished in 30-minutes from a remote location,” said Sipple. “Students are naturally comfortable using technology and require a much shorter warm-up period so that therapy can begin almost immediately.”

Tracey spends six hours a day, three days a week assisting students with their speech impediments. Thanks to Verizon HomeFusion, she doesn’t spend time worrying about her Internet connection, she can focus on what really matters: her students.

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Verizon Wireless has been a strong advocate for hands-free driving practices as a manner to avoid distraction on the roadways. While it may be hard to escape the allure of a new text message or email while on the road, the reality is far too many lives are ruined by inattention caused by phone usage while driving. Our friends at GizmoFusion and WNWO in Toledo recently took up the charge on promoting safe driving with recent posts regarding the It Can Wait campaign centered on eliminating texting while driving.

Featured in the GizmoFusion post is a startling set of data from various traffic safety organizations:

(Click to see full-size)

For information about apps that can help you avoid the distraction of driving distracted, check out the GizmoFusion blog post here. To see WNWO’s coverage on the It Can Wait campaign, as well as a link to sign the pledge, click here.

For more Verizon Wireless news specific to the Midwest Area, subscribe via RSS to news by state. Or, subscribe to the entire Verizon Midwest blog via RSS, or by entering your email along the left side of the blog.

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Warm weather across the United States traditionally marks the beginning of the busy season for buying homes. Realtors and potential buyers alike see the return of the sun and begin the process of reviewing the market and neighborhoods for the best real estate available. However, in this new digitally connected world, there’s no need to jump in the car and drive the streets looking to see what’s available. Instead, there’s an assortment of apps for house hunting that can allow you, from the comfort of your couch, see the curb appeal of homes across the country.

Verizon’s own Zack George recently sat down with WNWO anchor Brittany Patterson to discuss some of these apps for house hunting that can help you prioritize your efforts and make the most of your weekend drive-around. Apps discussed include Zillow, Realtor.com and more:

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Looking back at the past 10 years, it’s pretty amazing to think about how far technology has come in such a short period of time. We live in a ‘smart society,’ where consumers and corporations, alike, are adopting mobile technology at an unprecedented rate. As wireless technology continues to evolve, it’s our responsibility as a company to educate businesses and consumers on how they can leverage it to enhance their ability to interact with the world around them.

Verizon recently hosted an Emerging Technology Tour in Plymouth, Michigan, where we invited business professionals from various industries to learn more about the broad applications of mobile technology and how machine-to-machine (M2M) solutions can help improve productivity and profitability from an operational standpoint.

“As more businesses begin to utilize mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets, it’s our goal to help them determine what platform is right for their company,” said Eric Spadafora, Verizon’s director of business sales for Michigan, Indiana and Kentucky.

To help businesses learn more about the operational opportunities mobile devices provide, Verizon brought representatives from the four major smartphone providers (Android, Apple, BlackBerry and Windows) to speak one-on-one with event attendees.

The event also showcased presentations and demonstrations of M2M technology developed by some of Verizon’s Michigan-based solution providers:

Maximus Security, based in St. Clair, showcased how its mobile IP surveillance towers, complete with two-way communication and real-time video streaming, can be remotely controlled by those in the construction, law enforcement, property management and agriculture industries to maximize security efforts.

Real Green Systems, a software and marketing company for the service industry, located in Walled Lake, demonstrated how their high-tech mobile app and tablets can be used in conjunction by service companies to schedule routes, track job statuses, improve customer service and internal communication and reduce the time it takes to process paperwork.

Farmington Hills-based Illuminating Concepts has developed Intellistreets, a wireless intelligent streetlight complete with a sound system, emergency audio and visual notification, digital signage and two-way communication capabilities. Primarily used for event management and sustainability purposes by municipalities, campuses and entertainment venues, the product can be remotely controlled through a web-based application. It significantly conserves energy and reduces carbon emissions through its control system.

Kennedy Industries, a company based in New Hudson, has experienced tremendous growth in the municipal, industrial and commercial marketplace providing customers a custom SCADA solution to remotely monitor their equipment 24/7.

Verizon is committed to ensuring our customers are equipped with the most up-to-date technology and understand how to leverage its potential. If you were unable to attend this high-tech event full of a variety of mobile M2M solutions, check out the below clip for an inside peek at some of the wireless technology that was showcased.

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DriphterX from Driphter.com took on the task of writing a Slingbox 500 review as a father of three looking to access content on the go.

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How important is your smartphone to your various routines?  If you’re like most smartphone users, your device is an essential part of your day.  In fact, 80% of us check our smartphones within 15 minutes of waking up every morning, according to a recent smartphone usage survey of more than 7,000 Android and iPhone users from IDC Research, published March 28.

The survey found some additional interesting facts. Although the majority of smartphone users spend more than two hours a day communicating on their phones, they view this as a positive way to stay connected and productive. In fact, more and more of our lives are moving to our mobile devices.  While smartphones are no longer a new phenomenon, they are still relativity new technology in the history of the world.  Previous generations viewed the radio, landline telephones, television and the Internet as revolutionary technology, and they were at one time.  But the interesting thing to me is that today the functions of all those things are available to us wherever we are by using our smartphones.

This blog has come to be a celebration of these great uses of mobile technology in our daily lives and a wonderful resource for everyone, whether they are moms trying to keep up with their family’s hectic lives or executives looking to streamline their daily duties.

Mobile apps really do make our lives easier, especially when it comes to staying organized and on schedule.  For example, this blog post Get & Stay Organized in 2013 With Organization Apps helped me fulfill some New Year’s resolutions, while the post Technology for Busy Families Featured in WZZM Segment featured some great choices for devices and smartphone accessories that could help my family and I reach our personal goals.

When it’s time for vacation planning, there are a multitude of helpful mobile apps that make it easier.  The post Travel Apps for Planning Spring Break 2013 includes helpful apps that you can use any time of the year to

If you’re focused on staying home, you can read You Don’t Have to Be a Tech Geek to Have a High-Tech Household to get some ideas for devices to make things run more smoothly at home.

Each person has a different way of using their smartphone and that individuality helps further the creativity that drives development in mobile technology. If you’ve got a story you’d like to share about how mobile technology has become essential to your daily life, leave a comment or contact me on Twitter (@VZWBrenda).

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It’s been 99 years since Mother’s Day became an institution in the United States. Today, in the U.S., there are about 85.4 million mothers, many of whom will be the recipients of flowers, candy, cards and special meals.

Consider the following apps for Mother’s Day:

With My Ringtone Maker (free on Android devices), you can record an original ringtone into Mom’s wireless phone. Record the kids singing her favorite song, and whenever her phone rings, she’ll get to enjoy hearing their angelic (or perhaps not so-angelic) voices.

By helping mom download the free app Live Wallpaper Maker on to her phone, you can make original wallpaper using a family photo or your child’s school picture.

If you’re having trouble putting your feelings into words, Mother’s Day Poems (99 cents on Apple devices) will help you develop that special message just for her.

Create a special experience for Mom and her child by downloading Mercer Mayer’s beloved story, Just Me and My Mom (free on Android devices) to Mom’s smartphone or tablet. This interactive book offers three ways to read it: “Read to Me” in which the story in narrated with words highlighted as they are read; “Read it Myself” which allows the child or Mom to read the book in its traditional form; and, “Auto Play” in which the story is played like a movie—automatically reading and turning the pages.

Lastly, consider a special evening at home for Mom with the family surrounding her,…singing karaoke! Karaoke Anywhere Lite (free on Apple and Android devices) offers more than 10,000 streaming songs to choose from. You can record your performances and play back later or share through Twitter and Facebook directly from the app.

With all these terrific options at your fingertips, you have the apps for Mother’s Day sure to create an event she will long remember. And don’t forget: Father’s Day is just around the corner!

Photo Credit: Robert Whitehead

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