Opinionated comments on mobile phone industry news
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All entries are written by Anders Borg, CEO and Consultant of Abiro, that has a long experience in strategic planning, developing embedded and Java software, usability aspects, and the mobile phone industry in general. You can also read the latest Mobile News entries on your phone via wap.abiro.com, and we provide many News Feeds from popular news services. For advertising and contribution queries, please use the feedback form. News feed (local) FeedBurner Feed
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Thursday, March 31, 2005
Church organ repair funded by ringtones
Considering part of the revenue goes to the operator they need to sell around 250,000 ringtones before they have enough money.
Smart Mobs: Church sells its own ringtones
Smart Mobs: Church sells its own ringtones
Mobile blogging
Intercasting's site doesn't say much about how it's done, but I'm guessing a downloaded Java MIDlet and a backoffice system taking care of all the "databasing".
"The Rabble software works with other popular blogging applications, such as Blogger and Live Journal."
"All the content published with Rabble has a location associated with it"
Yahoo! News - Mobile phones as blog tools
"The Rabble software works with other popular blogging applications, such as Blogger and Live Journal."
"All the content published with Rabble has a location associated with it"
Yahoo! News - Mobile phones as blog tools
Samsung offers file viewing and remote control
Supports viewing of MS Word, Excel, PDF, and text files, which comes in handy for email attachments and documents uploaded from a PC.
The remote control function works like any normal programmable remote control.
The phones are also anti-bacterial...
Digital Media Europe: News - Samsung launches phones with file viewing, remote control functions
The remote control function works like any normal programmable remote control.
The phones are also anti-bacterial...
Digital Media Europe: News - Samsung launches phones with file viewing, remote control functions
300M phones with DRM expected to ship in 2009
"...either OMA DRM or Windows Media DRM"
Hmm. So what about Apple Fairplay that's used in iTunes?
"DTC expects nearly 40 percent of all new mobile units shipped worldwide will contain DRM. According to DTC estimates, this implies some 300 million units will ship annually by 2009, a leap of more than 100 times over a five-year period"
300M Mobile DRM Phones to Ship in '09 - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
Hmm. So what about Apple Fairplay that's used in iTunes?
"DTC expects nearly 40 percent of all new mobile units shipped worldwide will contain DRM. According to DTC estimates, this implies some 300 million units will ship annually by 2009, a leap of more than 100 times over a five-year period"
300M Mobile DRM Phones to Ship in '09 - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
Monday, March 28, 2005
Ugly concept car with ticker tape display
The ticker tape display is supposed to show up-to-date information downloaded from the Internet. Considering one of the key things done with a car is driving it, there's likely not much time to read a ticker tape, unless crashing is an acceptable daily habit. Why not speak news, SMS's etc instead? Even if the voice might sound synthetic, it's a lot safer than peeling the eyes from the surrounding traffic whenever something new is shown on the display. Why not watch a movie while we're at it?
Having a ticker tape display at home showing new emails and news would be nifty though.
R2-D2 versus the Scion t2B - Autoblog - www.autoblog.com
Having a ticker tape display at home showing new emails and news would be nifty though.
R2-D2 versus the Scion t2B - Autoblog - www.autoblog.com
Where are the iTunes phones?
This article speculates that the ones to blame for holding back Motorola's iTunes phone were neither Motorola nor Apple, but rather carriers and media companies. Sounds like a conspiracy, doesn't it?
It goes in detail to describe the general scare among media companies to let its intellectual property on the loose, by users sharing media via Bluetooth and similar local connectivity.
Part of what media companies say is OK, but not that purchased music should only be possible to play on one specific and individual device. Obviously a CD can be played on any CD player, and it's OK to "rip" CDs for private use, so why doesn't that apply to downloaded music as well? Again, the risk of copying? Probably, as it's so darn easy once the media is digital.
A good method for DRM would solve this, but only if it allows moving e.g. music between ones own different equipment.
Yahoo! News - Cell Phone Songs Prompt Control Questions
It goes in detail to describe the general scare among media companies to let its intellectual property on the loose, by users sharing media via Bluetooth and similar local connectivity.
Part of what media companies say is OK, but not that purchased music should only be possible to play on one specific and individual device. Obviously a CD can be played on any CD player, and it's OK to "rip" CDs for private use, so why doesn't that apply to downloaded music as well? Again, the risk of copying? Probably, as it's so darn easy once the media is digital.
A good method for DRM would solve this, but only if it allows moving e.g. music between ones own different equipment.
Yahoo! News - Cell Phone Songs Prompt Control Questions
Saturday, March 26, 2005
Testing of push-to-talk completed
Tests have been done with Siemens phones and Ericsson IMS system. Standard GPRS is used, indicating not much bandwidth is needed to carry PoC.
Digital Media Europe: News - Ericsson, Siemens complete push-to-talk interoperability tests
Digital Media Europe: News - Ericsson, Siemens complete push-to-talk interoperability tests
e-ID - enables secure banking, voting etc via the phone
Based on the identification provided by the SIM card and international standards there's already considerable backing from numerous Swedish financial institutes. Expected to start tests the second half of 2005.
Digital Media Europe: News - Swedish banks, mobile operators agree on standard for e-ID in mobile phones
Digital Media Europe: News - Swedish banks, mobile operators agree on standard for e-ID in mobile phones
Thursday, March 24, 2005
TI chip technology cutting cost of phones
"OMAP-Vox combines a modem and a processor on one chipset and could drive the prices of video-ready handsets down sharply. OMAP-Vox–equipped phones should be out this summer, possibly for under $100."
Yahoo! News - Rethinking Cell Phones
Yahoo! News - Rethinking Cell Phones
Review of BlackBerry 7290
Noteable features: Java-based, quad-band GSM, document viewers (PDF, WordPerfect, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, text). By now Blackberrys are far from just corporate email devices, but rather complete smart phones. A big drawback is lack of connector for external memory.
Yahoo! News - Product Review: BlackBerry 7290
Yahoo! News - Product Review: BlackBerry 7290
3 new phones from Motorola
E680i and E725 focus on music. E680i is aimed for Asia and also has support for handwriting. E725 also has EV-DO. E685 is a styled phone.
Motorola Debuts New Phones At M3 Summit - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
Motorola Debuts New Phones At M3 Summit - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
RFID implants - not for wimps
When will we all need to have RFID implants? Hopefully not soon.
One that is commenting on the note points out he's inserted an RFID tag under a friend's shoulderblade. Another comment mentions Anti-Christ, so take it all with a big grain of salt.
The voluntary RFID implant - Wireless - wireless.engadget.com
One that is commenting on the note points out he's inserted an RFID tag under a friend's shoulderblade. Another comment mentions Anti-Christ, so take it all with a big grain of salt.
The voluntary RFID implant - Wireless - wireless.engadget.com
Motorola E725 - music phone
Key features: external memory card up to 1 GB, standard earphone connector, scroll wheel and slide design.
Interesting thought: "Our first take is that because the Motorola E725 comes with a standard 3.5mm mini jack, this will be one of the first usable music phones."
MobileTracker - Motorola E725 announced, music phone
Interesting thought: "Our first take is that because the Motorola E725 comes with a standard 3.5mm mini jack, this will be one of the first usable music phones."
MobileTracker - Motorola E725 announced, music phone
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
VoIP - real threat to telecoms
It would be simple to create a Java MIDlet that would provide VoIP to any Java phone, and using GPRS (or better) or Wi-Fi as the bearer, provided that there's full access to audio in and out of the phone.
"VoIP may look more attractive to those seeking to bypass mobile operators' voice tariffs, particularly if an opportunity to undercut those tariffs using VoIP arises due to significant falls in 3G data pricing. A number of mobile operators have launched unlimited-use data tariffs that could make them vulnerable to customers using VoIP to cut their spend."
Yahoo! News - Wireless VoIP Threatens Cell Carriers
"VoIP may look more attractive to those seeking to bypass mobile operators' voice tariffs, particularly if an opportunity to undercut those tariffs using VoIP arises due to significant falls in 3G data pricing. A number of mobile operators have launched unlimited-use data tariffs that could make them vulnerable to customers using VoIP to cut their spend."
Yahoo! News - Wireless VoIP Threatens Cell Carriers
China - the world's biggest consumer product provider
"China has become the world's largest maker of consumer electronics, pumping out more TVs, DVD players, and cell phones than any other country... [and is] moving quickly and expertly into biotech and computer manufacturing. It is building cars (there are more than 120 automakers in China), making parts for Boeing 757s, and exploring space with its own domestically built rockets."
This has gone incredibly fast, and it's very likely some major mobile phone providers will be outcompeted by Chinese ditto.
Yahoo! News - Beware of China
This has gone incredibly fast, and it's very likely some major mobile phone providers will be outcompeted by Chinese ditto.
Yahoo! News - Beware of China
Symbian + Microsoft = Mobile E-mail
"The agreement will enable users of Symbian-based phones to automatically send and receive e-mail from accounts running on Microsoft's Exchange Server, a network platform popularly used by corporations to manage Microsoft's ubiquitous Outlook e-mail and calendar applications."
Yahoo! News - Symbian to license e-mail technology for cellphones from rival Microsoft
Yahoo! News - Symbian to license e-mail technology for cellphones from rival Microsoft
Tuesday, March 22, 2005
N-Gage 2 specs
The spec (if it's now a proper spec) indicates it will be very good at rendering 3D, but compared to dedicated gaming consoles the screen is pretty small.
Dubiously delivered N-Gage 2 specs - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
Dubiously delivered N-Gage 2 specs - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
Siemens SP65 - business phone
Interesting spin on the fact that it doesn't support a camera: "The handset is a premium phone with synchronisation features but without a camera function. The absence of the camera supports corporate security policies that prohibit employees to use handsets with cameras."
Digital Media Europe: News - Siemens launches enterprise handset
Digital Media Europe: News - Siemens launches enterprise handset
Sunday, March 20, 2005
Phones for young kids - pros and cons
Health risks must be taken seriously. The risk for damage is much likely considerably higher for a smaller (and developing) child, than for a full-grown person.
Keeping in touch with friends and family are though given as benefits with giving phones to kids.
The article refers to the previously released Firefly phone, that has just a few buttons for simple use by youngsters.
"If you have a phone, "some people view it as you're lucky," Alex says. "But I don't just use it for calling friends and stuff like that," he adds. "It gives me a sense of security or safety.""
Yahoo! News - Hot-Ticket Item for Kids: Cell Phones
Keeping in touch with friends and family are though given as benefits with giving phones to kids.
The article refers to the previously released Firefly phone, that has just a few buttons for simple use by youngsters.
"If you have a phone, "some people view it as you're lucky," Alex says. "But I don't just use it for calling friends and stuff like that," he adds. "It gives me a sense of security or safety.""
Yahoo! News - Hot-Ticket Item for Kids: Cell Phones
Pantech/Curitel PH-L4000V - phone or camera?
This is one of the most extreme designs I've seen of a phone, that is focusing more on a big screen and a camcorder-like camera swivel. The key rows beside the screen emphasize the video focus. Keying in numbers looks a bit awkward.
Pantech & Curitel's PH-L4000V camcorder phone - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
Pantech & Curitel's PH-L4000V camcorder phone - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
Saturday, March 19, 2005
WiFi "sled" for Treo 650
I was appalled by the knapsack of the iPaq, and by today WiFi should simply be integrated from the beginning or provided as a small adapter. The available solution is ridiculous, and I hope it will bomb like an oliphant.
Enfora�s Wi-Fi Sled for the Treo 650 - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
Enfora�s Wi-Fi Sled for the Treo 650 - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
Gizmondo is released
Hopefully it will succeed better than Nokia N-Gage. From demos I've seen the 3D support is powerful (chip from nVidia), but all other portable gaming consoles have 3D acceleration as well.
"It can be used to play games, music tracks and movies. It can take and store digital photos and be used like a mobile phone to send text, multimedia and e-mail messages."
"The GPRS and Bluetooth wireless data systems onboard mean that it can be used for multi-player gaming."
BBC NEWS | Technology | Gizmondo gadget hits the shelves
"It can be used to play games, music tracks and movies. It can take and store digital photos and be used like a mobile phone to send text, multimedia and e-mail messages."
"The GPRS and Bluetooth wireless data systems onboard mean that it can be used for multi-player gaming."
BBC NEWS | Technology | Gizmondo gadget hits the shelves
Friday, March 18, 2005
Read books on your phone - at least in Japan
Interesting aspects of books in digital format (or ebooks) accessible via the Internet or via phones is that the book itself can be complemented by other content, like pictures, notes etc, and changes can be made to the book based on reader feedback, as described at the end of this article.
"Several mobile Web sites offer hundreds of novels — classics, best sellers and some works written especially for the medium. It takes some getting used to. Only a few lines pop up at a time because the phone screen is about half the size of a business card."
"A recent marketing study by Bandai found that more than half the readers are female, and many are reading cell-phone books in their homes."
Yahoo! News - Japan Cell-Phone Users Turn to Literature
Feel free to visit my ebook pages, that list a lot of sites with free and commercial ebooks, provide hints about reading ebooks etc.
If you are interested in the Jewish and Christian Bibles, such are available in several languages for reading via WAP/WML or mobile-optimized HTML. I translated the Swedish menus for this project.
"Several mobile Web sites offer hundreds of novels — classics, best sellers and some works written especially for the medium. It takes some getting used to. Only a few lines pop up at a time because the phone screen is about half the size of a business card."
"A recent marketing study by Bandai found that more than half the readers are female, and many are reading cell-phone books in their homes."
Yahoo! News - Japan Cell-Phone Users Turn to Literature
Feel free to visit my ebook pages, that list a lot of sites with free and commercial ebooks, provide hints about reading ebooks etc.
If you are interested in the Jewish and Christian Bibles, such are available in several languages for reading via WAP/WML or mobile-optimized HTML. I translated the Swedish menus for this project.
Review of Nokia 6822 - optimized for messaging
I tried it out a couple of weeks ago, and it's remarkable small despite the flip-out keypad and hefty feature set.
Summary of the review at Yahoo:
"adds a Bluetooth radio, VGA camera, and EDGE capabilities to a platform that already incorporates short text, multimedia and instant messaging capabilities"
"The device features an integrated speakerphone, the ability to respond to voice commands, and wireless connectivity with a Bluetooth-enabled"
"onboard e-mail client that offers support for SMTP, POP3 and carrier-hosted IMAP4 e-mail accounts, as well as BlackBerry-style "push" connectivity to e-mail behind the corporate firewall"
"On a scale of 1 to 5, I give Nokia's latest handheld-messaging platform a 3.8 rating."
Yahoo! News - Product Review: Nokia 6822 Messaging Phone
Summary of the review at Yahoo:
"adds a Bluetooth radio, VGA camera, and EDGE capabilities to a platform that already incorporates short text, multimedia and instant messaging capabilities"
"The device features an integrated speakerphone, the ability to respond to voice commands, and wireless connectivity with a Bluetooth-enabled"
"onboard e-mail client that offers support for SMTP, POP3 and carrier-hosted IMAP4 e-mail accounts, as well as BlackBerry-style "push" connectivity to e-mail behind the corporate firewall"
"On a scale of 1 to 5, I give Nokia's latest handheld-messaging platform a 3.8 rating."
Yahoo! News - Product Review: Nokia 6822 Messaging Phone
Mobile messaging still in its infancy in US
Age correlation: 18-27 63%, 28-39 31%, 60+ 7%.
"Also known as SMS, for Short Message Service, 'texting' is highly popular in Europe and Asia but only starting to catch on in the United States."
Yahoo! News - Quarter of Cell Customers Use Messaging
"Also known as SMS, for Short Message Service, 'texting' is highly popular in Europe and Asia but only starting to catch on in the United States."
Yahoo! News - Quarter of Cell Customers Use Messaging
MP3 Market to quadruple by 2009
This is in my opinion nonsense for two reasons:
- All phones will be able to play music in max 1 year's time, hence the actual "MP3" player volume will be much higher by 2009. Counting only dedicated such players is meaningless (like counting microwave ovens without timers, or PDAs without mobile radio).
- By 2009 it will not be the specific format MP3 that anyone will care about, as it's got way too low quality for the long run, yet is good enough in the early market stages.
NE Asia Online
- All phones will be able to play music in max 1 year's time, hence the actual "MP3" player volume will be much higher by 2009. Counting only dedicated such players is meaningless (like counting microwave ovens without timers, or PDAs without mobile radio).
- By 2009 it will not be the specific format MP3 that anyone will care about, as it's got way too low quality for the long run, yet is good enough in the early market stages.
NE Asia Online
Engadget about CTIA
Lots of new phones introduced. Read it for yourself.
CTIA highlights - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
CTIA highlights - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
OMA DRM will save the day?
There are right now way too many DRM methods being used. One can at least hope that OMA DRM (especially v2, as v1 is not good enough for e.g. music distribution) will have a chance to establish itself and also be used on PCs.
Mobile Industry To Drive Interoperable DRM - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
Mobile Industry To Drive Interoperable DRM - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
Thursday, March 17, 2005
Simplicity as a virtue
The industry seems to start realising that it's not just about adding more and more features to mobile phones. What's odd in this note is that no one mentions the added cost of those features, but only the added user complexity. Is the market so used to subsidising that no one sees the actual production and logistics cost of the phones? In any other industry it would.
Yahoo! News - Phones Need Simplicity Before Cool Stuff, CEOs Say
Yahoo! News - Phones Need Simplicity Before Cool Stuff, CEOs Say
The W800 Walkman phone will not support Sony Connect
What a blunder. Sony has made several wrong decisions in the music area lately, including not supporting MP3 until recently, and not supporting Sony Connect looks like another really BIG mistake even though it involves supporting the ATRAC3 format (which the phone doesn't currently). At least music can be uploaded from a PC.
"We were told that eventually they might add support for Connect (which would require a firmware upgrade, since the W800 doesn’t currently support ATRAC3)"
Sony Ericsson @ CTIA - Hands on with the W800 Walkman phone - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
"We were told that eventually they might add support for Connect (which would require a firmware upgrade, since the W800 doesn’t currently support ATRAC3)"
Sony Ericsson @ CTIA - Hands on with the W800 Walkman phone - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
iCare - another kids phone
Seems everything is starting with "i" nowadays. This phone has only 4 pre-defined numbers to choose from (accessed by pressing any of the "paws" of the phone). No display or anything, so this should be a very cheap phone to produce (and buy).
iCare kids� mobile - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
iCare kids� mobile - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
Nice packaging for the W800 Walkman phone
In a big plastic tube. The phone doesn't look like much in itself. It simply looks like a very cheap phone.
Sony Ericsson @ CTIA - W800 Walkman phone packaging - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
Sony Ericsson @ CTIA - W800 Walkman phone packaging - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
Wednesday, March 16, 2005
Pictures of Samsung's 7 megapixel camera phone
Engadget comment: "the screen is great (really, what’d you expect?), it’s got decent balance, and it’s surprisingly plasticy and light. Oh, and it uses a MMCmicro card, too, which is a bit annoying"
Samsung @ CTIA - the 7-megapixel SCH-V770 - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
Samsung @ CTIA - the 7-megapixel SCH-V770 - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
Nokia will support the WMA And WMV formats
Operators try to move consumers away from formats popular on PCs (MP3, MPG, WMV, WMA, MOV, RA etc), but I rather believe future phones need to support all those formats as well, to satisfy consumer needs, and enable use of media the consumer already has, or can download legally from web sites.
Play WMA And WMV On Your Nokia Phone - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
Play WMA And WMV On Your Nokia Phone - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
Why Moto didn't show iTunes phones at Cebit
The true reason?: "In response to a question about why Motorola did not show its upcoming iTunes phone at the Cebit technology fair in Germany Motorola said it tends to display its products before they go on the market but Apple's Chief Executive Steve Jobs does not."
"Many analysts believe that phones that can play and store music will be hugely popular among consumers because of the popularity of Apple's stand-alone iPod music player. But others say such phones will be less popular with carriers because they believe consumers will be more likely to download music to their phones via their computer rather pay more to operators by downloading directly over a wireless connection."
Top Technology News Sponsored by Audi | Reuters.com
"Many analysts believe that phones that can play and store music will be hugely popular among consumers because of the popularity of Apple's stand-alone iPod music player. But others say such phones will be less popular with carriers because they believe consumers will be more likely to download music to their phones via their computer rather pay more to operators by downloading directly over a wireless connection."
Top Technology News Sponsored by Audi | Reuters.com
Sunday, March 13, 2005
Yahoo delivers news feeds to phones
And I thought my idea with News Feeds at wap.abiro.com would be unique for longer than a few days. It shows it was a good idea though. Also, I have more feeds than Yahoo's, and I will add more over time.
"Now, when users log in to My Yahoo from their mobile devices, they will have access to their syndicated feeds, whereas previously these were only available when using My Yahoo from a PC."
InfoWorld: Yahoo delivers syndicated feeds to mobile devices: March 11, 2005: By : APPLICATIONS : NETWORKING : WIRELESS
"Now, when users log in to My Yahoo from their mobile devices, they will have access to their syndicated feeds, whereas previously these were only available when using My Yahoo from a PC."
InfoWorld: Yahoo delivers syndicated feeds to mobile devices: March 11, 2005: By : APPLICATIONS : NETWORKING : WIRELESS
Friday, March 11, 2005
What's the next killer app for phones?
The current one is of course voice and to some degree SMS.
Proposed here: games, music, television, video clips. I say: We seriously need more creativity and options than this.
Yahoo! News - CeBIT fair: Mobile operators dangling TV, music to help 3G take off
Proposed here: games, music, television, video clips. I say: We seriously need more creativity and options than this.
Yahoo! News - CeBIT fair: Mobile operators dangling TV, music to help 3G take off
LG LT1000 and SB1000 - phones with TV
For the Korean market only at this time. Supports DMB and satellite DMB respectively.
LG�s latest DMB TV phone, the LT1000 and SB1000 - Portable Video - portablevideo.engadget.com
LG�s latest DMB TV phone, the LT1000 and SB1000 - Portable Video - portablevideo.engadget.com
Sony Ericsson ROB-1 - robot camera
Kind of a weird idea. It's controlled from a phone via Bluetooth and it can roll around and take pictures or record videos of ... what?
New Bluetooth controlled camera - a camera on wheels which roves about and captures images
New Bluetooth controlled camera - a camera on wheels which roves about and captures images
Nokia tries out IMS on cdma2000
Nokia has previously tried out IMS over 3G (successfully I guess).
IMS stands for IP Multimedia System, and is a collective name for any and all services enabled by SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) over TCP/IP. Among the planned (and now specified) services are push-to-talk, video telephony, voice telephony, picture sending and instant messaging (IM), eventually replacing GSM/UMTS/CDMA telephony with SIP-based ditto. The mobile industry already has a set standard for IM, but expects to move to IMS/SIP-based IM down the road. When using SIP (or any other VoIP technology, e.g. H.323) audio and video are transferred via Real Time Protocol (RTP) over UDP, so circuit-switched connections are not needed nor used.
Digital Media Europe: News - Nokia tests IMS-based IP multimedia applications over CDMA 2000 network
IMS stands for IP Multimedia System, and is a collective name for any and all services enabled by SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) over TCP/IP. Among the planned (and now specified) services are push-to-talk, video telephony, voice telephony, picture sending and instant messaging (IM), eventually replacing GSM/UMTS/CDMA telephony with SIP-based ditto. The mobile industry already has a set standard for IM, but expects to move to IMS/SIP-based IM down the road. When using SIP (or any other VoIP technology, e.g. H.323) audio and video are transferred via Real Time Protocol (RTP) over UDP, so circuit-switched connections are not needed nor used.
Digital Media Europe: News - Nokia tests IMS-based IP multimedia applications over CDMA 2000 network
Samsung phone with 3 GB hard drive
It can be used as a portable general hard drive, but I believe it will mainly be used for music, as it supports all popular formats (more formats than I've seen in any other phone, including OGG and WMA). It claims to support also 3D sound, but whether that's supported only in games is not said.
The most peculiar feature, beyond the hard drive, is that it runs Windows Mobile.
Samsung Unveils 3GB HDD Phone - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
The most peculiar feature, beyond the hard drive, is that it runs Windows Mobile.
Samsung Unveils 3GB HDD Phone - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
Wednesday, March 09, 2005
Phones for children
One might wonder how old a person should sensibly be to have a mobile phone, but the application mentioned here is good nevertheless: To enable parents to reach their kids or the other way around, wherever they are. I've commented earlier about the absurdity of having a 911 button on such a phone, but we'll see what happens.
Yahoo! News - Cell phones dial into the preteen market
Yahoo! News - Cell phones dial into the preteen market
7 megapixel camera phone from Samsung
The race is definitely on for getting the highest resolution camera out (LG and others also want to be involved). It will need a lot of Flash memory, as each 7 MP picture will be around 4 MB at high quality.
Yahoo! News - Samsung Elec Unveils 7-Megapixel Camera Phone
Yahoo! News - Samsung Elec Unveils 7-Megapixel Camera Phone
The innovative side of Siemens
Concept products that show what might become popular in the future. What about a device that selects music in rhythm with your running, a phone that uses the table as a display, a "tricorder"-type device that controls your home equipment, etc?
Are these all real? Hard to tell.
Siemens - Innovations
Are these all real? Hard to tell.
Siemens - Innovations
Siemens SXG75 - their first 3G phone
Push-to-talk no success so far in Europe
A year ago everyone talked about push-to-talk (walkie-talkie via your mobile phone) as the next big thing, as it had been so successful in the States. In Germany it hasn't though, so far. Probably too early to draw any conclusions out of this though.
Digital Media Europe: News - German push-to-talk sales disappointing
Digital Media Europe: News - German push-to-talk sales disappointing
Fear of saturation
Right now there's no saturation in sight for mobile phones, as the Chinese, Indian and other Asian markets are developing so well, but some day also those markets will be more or less covered. Maybe then M2M or H2M applications are the next areas to explore and exploit.
"Before that happens, mobile handset vendors -- until now focused on growing their user base more than on high margins - will have to redirect their strategies to deliver higher profits per unit, while attracting and keeping higher-level customers."
I believe this will be hard, as manufacturers and operators now teach the market that advanced and expensive (from a BOM perspective) features don't cost more for the consumer.
The note points to an interesting fact that while Samsung was going for more high-margin phones during Q4, Motorola went for low cost, gaining significant market share in China and India.
Mobile Phone Market To Flatten Soon - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
"Before that happens, mobile handset vendors -- until now focused on growing their user base more than on high margins - will have to redirect their strategies to deliver higher profits per unit, while attracting and keeping higher-level customers."
I believe this will be hard, as manufacturers and operators now teach the market that advanced and expensive (from a BOM perspective) features don't cost more for the consumer.
The note points to an interesting fact that while Samsung was going for more high-margin phones during Q4, Motorola went for low cost, gaining significant market share in China and India.
Mobile Phone Market To Flatten Soon - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
Monday, March 07, 2005
Viruses in mobile phones - not just hype
Symbian OS and specifically the Nokia version Series 60 is the most used so called open OS in phones today. Windows Mobile, PalmOS, Linux etc don't even come close in penetration, so it's logical that virus creators first target Series 60. It's harder, but likely possible, to make spreading Java-based viruses, but I haven't heard about any so far.
The virus mentioned here is a trojan horse, which clearly signals (in reverse) "don't install me, I'm a virus", like the ILOVEYOU-virus did on PCs. That doesn't mean you need to be an idiot to install this. We all make mistakes.
"As has been the case with past viruses targeting the Symbian OS platform, however, users are still required to accept the installation of the virus whether receiving it via Bluetooth or MMS, which in conjunction with limited MMS interoperability amongst mobile network operators could contribute to slowing down the spread of the virus."
It's though a bad excuse for low MMS interoperability...
infoSync World : First Symbian OS virus to replicate over MMS appears
The virus mentioned here is a trojan horse, which clearly signals (in reverse) "don't install me, I'm a virus", like the ILOVEYOU-virus did on PCs. That doesn't mean you need to be an idiot to install this. We all make mistakes.
"As has been the case with past viruses targeting the Symbian OS platform, however, users are still required to accept the installation of the virus whether receiving it via Bluetooth or MMS, which in conjunction with limited MMS interoperability amongst mobile network operators could contribute to slowing down the spread of the virus."
It's though a bad excuse for low MMS interoperability...
infoSync World : First Symbian OS virus to replicate over MMS appears
Friday, March 04, 2005
Review of RIM Blackberry 7100g
Being a Blackberry this model is unusual in that it looks more like a normal phone than other Blackberry models. SureType still makes it reasonable simple to enter text.
Summary: "Overall, the BlackBerry 7100g is an innovative smartphone product that fits comfortably into the palm of one hand. On a scale of 1 to 5, I give the BlackBerry 7100g a 3.9 rating."
Yahoo! News - Product Review: RIM Blackberry 7100g
Summary: "Overall, the BlackBerry 7100g is an innovative smartphone product that fits comfortably into the palm of one hand. On a scale of 1 to 5, I give the BlackBerry 7100g a 3.9 rating."
Yahoo! News - Product Review: RIM Blackberry 7100g
Po... (hrrm) Adult content for phones
We all knew it would come to mobile phones as well. Abiro provides such content on a completely separate site, with a "you are warned" dialog, to protect younger people (or anyone else) from reaching it by mistake. Most mobile content sites don't even do that nowadays.
"A recent report from Juniper Research found that the adult industry is not only alive and well, it's booming in Europe and Asia, where 3G technologies have long supported the kinds of colorful graphics and streaming video that are only now beginning to arrive in the United States."
Yahoo! News - Cell Phone Users Put Porn in Their Pockets
"A recent report from Juniper Research found that the adult industry is not only alive and well, it's booming in Europe and Asia, where 3G technologies have long supported the kinds of colorful graphics and streaming video that are only now beginning to arrive in the United States."
Yahoo! News - Cell Phone Users Put Porn in Their Pockets
CE-ATA - disk drive interface for portable devices
Devices with this interface are expected to be out at the end of the year.
"CE-ATA fills the void in an industry lacking a disk drive interface tailored to the handheld and CE markets. The CE-ATA interface standard for small form factor disk drives addresses requirements inherent to such small devices, including low pin count, low voltage, power efficiency, cost effectiveness and integration efficiency."
Yahoo! News - CE-ATA Spec For Portable Devices Finalized
"CE-ATA fills the void in an industry lacking a disk drive interface tailored to the handheld and CE markets. The CE-ATA interface standard for small form factor disk drives addresses requirements inherent to such small devices, including low pin count, low voltage, power efficiency, cost effectiveness and integration efficiency."
Yahoo! News - CE-ATA Spec For Portable Devices Finalized
Wireless USB replaces Bluetooth?
Similar reach (10 m), yet 480 Mbps (= USB 2 speed)! Uses the USB protocol over wireless, so USB devices can communicate without cables and without special drivers. Nice!
Wireless USB killed the Bluetooth star - Wireless - wireless.engadget.com
Wireless USB killed the Bluetooth star - Wireless - wireless.engadget.com
SMS as ticket
Amazingly simple and practical. I'd like to see many more applications like this.
"A1 SMS Ticket works exclusively through SMS. Customers send an SMS with the country name or 'EISHOCKEY' or the match (i.e. RUS-AUT) to 0664 660 6000, after which they are led through the menu. The ticket itself is a text message as well and also a seat reservation. At no point is it necessary to exchange the SMS for a paper ticket. Before a game, users go to the A1 SMS Ticket gate at the game venue and show their mobiles."
Digital Media Europe: News - Mobilkom Austria offers SMS tickets for Hockey World Championship
"A1 SMS Ticket works exclusively through SMS. Customers send an SMS with the country name or 'EISHOCKEY' or the match (i.e. RUS-AUT) to 0664 660 6000, after which they are led through the menu. The ticket itself is a text message as well and also a seat reservation. At no point is it necessary to exchange the SMS for a paper ticket. Before a game, users go to the A1 SMS Ticket gate at the game venue and show their mobiles."
Digital Media Europe: News - Mobilkom Austria offers SMS tickets for Hockey World Championship
Thursday, March 03, 2005
Don't phone and drive
That's a high number, considering how the focus on the traffic situation diminishes when talking on the phone:
"About eight percent of all drivers in the U.S. were talking on the phone at any given time, the NHTSA survey found."
Yahoo! News - More Drivers Talking On Phone, Agency Says
"About eight percent of all drivers in the U.S. were talking on the phone at any given time, the NHTSA survey found."
Yahoo! News - More Drivers Talking On Phone, Agency Says
No WMA audio support in latest Nokia and Sony Ericsson phones
This even though Nokia claims they will support Windows Media DRM. That's odd.
Nokia, Sony Ericsson leave Microsoft out in the cold on portable audio - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
Nokia, Sony Ericsson leave Microsoft out in the cold on portable audio - Cellphones - cellphones.engadget.com
674M phones shipped 2004
""The market exceeded even the most optimistic forecasts in 2004. Strong replacement sales, seasonal dynamics and continued growth in emerging markets, especially Latin America, delivered the highest sales volume ever recorded," said Ben Wood, principal analyst for mobile terminals research at Gartner."
"The momentum built in 2004 is to continue into 2005 as Gartner forecasts worldwide mobile phone sales to exceed 730m units."
Digital Media Europe: News - Worldwide mobile phone shipments surpass 674m in 2004 � report
"The momentum built in 2004 is to continue into 2005 as Gartner forecasts worldwide mobile phone sales to exceed 730m units."
Digital Media Europe: News - Worldwide mobile phone shipments surpass 674m in 2004 � report
Wednesday, March 02, 2005
RFID will drive M2M adoption?
Music in phones - market heating up
If it hasn't been clear already:
""Music is the next big thing in mobile multimedia," said Anssi Vanjoki, head of Nokia's multimedia division."
"Nokia, Microsoft, Sony Ericsson and others believe a strong musical offering - unlike ringtones and other essentially cosmetic downloads - has the potential to win over new customers for mobile networks and the handset brands they offer."
Yahoo! News - Eyeing IPod sales, phone makers like Sony Ericsson announce music push
""Music is the next big thing in mobile multimedia," said Anssi Vanjoki, head of Nokia's multimedia division."
"Nokia, Microsoft, Sony Ericsson and others believe a strong musical offering - unlike ringtones and other essentially cosmetic downloads - has the potential to win over new customers for mobile networks and the handset brands they offer."
Yahoo! News - Eyeing IPod sales, phone makers like Sony Ericsson announce music push
Siemens sees red
It's not going well for Siemens at the moment, and the outlook is also bleak. There's been discussions about an acquisition lately.
Yahoo! News - Siemens sees mobile phone activities in red at start of 2005
Yahoo! News - Siemens sees mobile phone activities in red at start of 2005
Vodafone V603 for the Japanese market
Integrated TV and radio, with a special stand for watching TV. Also a motion detector for menu navigation and gaming.
Wireless Watch Japan - Two New V603s: Killer Swivel Clamshells
Wireless Watch Japan - Two New V603s: Killer Swivel Clamshells
300M downloads from iTunes
Now also more than 1M songs available. Impressive figures!
iTunes Surpasses 300 Million Downloads - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
iTunes Surpasses 300 Million Downloads - Mobile Phones/PDAs News - Designtechnica News
Tuesday, March 01, 2005
Hard drives in phones
It comes at a price though, in draining the battery quicker. There's a way to solve this for music and videos though: by buffering a song or video section at a time in RAM, so while that is playing the hard drive can shut down. The article is pretty "deep", so I recommend you don't read all of it. They might even miss my point above (I didn't come that far in my reading).
"...Samsung SPH-V5400, arguably the first camera phone to make use of a 1.5-Gbyte hard drive. Clearly there is a move toward replacing flash memory with hard-disk drives (HDDs) in portable devices to increase storage capacity in an effort to meet consumer demands for more songs, pictures and video."
Yahoo! News - Advanced hard drives clamp mobiles' power drain
"...Samsung SPH-V5400, arguably the first camera phone to make use of a 1.5-Gbyte hard drive. Clearly there is a move toward replacing flash memory with hard-disk drives (HDDs) in portable devices to increase storage capacity in an effort to meet consumer demands for more songs, pictures and video."
Yahoo! News - Advanced hard drives clamp mobiles' power drain
Face recognition in phones
...as a way to authenticate the user. Whether it will become a standard feature is anyone's guess. At least it's just software, so it shouldn't add to the bill of material for the phone.
This is another of those features that haven't shown up on PCs yet, but that is (for whatever reasons) added to phones. It's not bad of course, but it shows the advancement and creativity of PC technology is lagging behind the mobile phone technology.
Yahoo! News - Face-Recognition Security Comes to Mobile Phones
This is another of those features that haven't shown up on PCs yet, but that is (for whatever reasons) added to phones. It's not bad of course, but it shows the advancement and creativity of PC technology is lagging behind the mobile phone technology.
Yahoo! News - Face-Recognition Security Comes to Mobile Phones