I am Joe21: 2010

Friday, November 19, 2010

WordPress for iPhone/iPad v2.6 Released

Attention Apple-gadget-owning WordPress users! Have you been using the WordPress iOS app for iPhone and iPad? Or maybe you tried it a while back and thought it wasn’t for you? Either way, the new release — v2.6 — will knock your socks off. Why? A bunch of reasons:

Mophie Juice Packs for iPhone 4, iPad en route to Apple Store

We have some details for you on Mophie's upcoming Juice Pack Universal line. Ready? Okay: available at the Apple Store sometime this month (and at Mophie's website now), all the new models, including Boost ($60), Reserve ($40) and Powerstation ($100), are compatible with all iPhone and iPod touch form factors, while the latter also throws iPad compatibility into the mix. Additionally, Reserve and Boost both feature one amp current (which, as the company points out, means they'll charge your device twice as fast as your standard 500 mAh charger), while Power Station boasts 2.1 amps. Not bad, eh? PR after the break.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

HP: webOS products coming but these things take time

We’ve been anxiously waiting to see what Hewlett-Packard will do with Palm and the webOS platform since the $1.2 billion acquisition but it looks like we may have to wait a bit longer.

On his blog, HP’s “innovation czar” Rahul Sood said HP Palm is working on webOS smartphones and connected devices but it could be a little while before we see these.

You will certainly see products released over the next 12 months, some sooner than others, and some which are very exciting to me. The stuff that excites me the most are the new form factors. Now, when I said “over the next 12 months,” I really mean over the next 12 months. Not at the end of 12 months, not tomorrow … but over the next 12 months we will see the makings of a new portfolio and the beginning of something great again. There is no predefined window of opportunity in the technology business; lack of innovation is the only thing that closes the window.

There are challenges when you bring together two companies with distinct cultures. Palm was once a much smaller company with less access to resources than HP. HP, on the other hand is large: that’s

TeleNav, the fine folks behind the GPS navigation apps for AT&T, T-Mobile, Rogers, and Bell, have announced a new advertising program that points users to sponsored search results. It sounds an awful lot like the Poynt announcement made earlier today, but TeleNav’s existing partnerships with carriers will likely give them a leg-up.

There’s something to be said for the advertising effectiveness of a mobile application designed for turn-by-turn navigation – at that point, it’s not just about subliminally inserting logos into people’s heads, but actually affecting shopping decisions at the source. I would be curious to see if carriers need to agree to these advertisement programs, or have any rights to alter sponsored results in their own ways. Poynt and TeleNav should still be able to coexist without butting heads too much – after all, Poynt is about more than just directions, and includes movies, white pages, weather, and a lot of calendar and address book integration.

The Apple iPad has been selling like hotcakes despite being a “niche” device, or not having a place in the market, according to some analysts prior to its release, but now it looks like it’s going to an even bigger boost. Well, perhaps not quite as big as selling in China soon, but close enough. Starting September 26, every single Best Buy location in the U.S. will be selling the iPad.

This is good news for those who’ve been reluctant to order it from Apple online, who don’t live near an Apple retail store, and whose local Best Buy retailers don’t carry the tablet computer. It’s also perfect for the holiday season where the iPad is likely to be a hot commodity for holiday shoppers. Having it at every Best Buy location is going to be very convenient.

The HTC Aria is one nice little Android phone and it’s even better when such a phone gets an update. It’s not so good when said update isn’t what you’re expecting at all. Recently, this tiny, Sense UI bearing phone received an update, but nowhere Froyo was to be found.

It’s not all bad, though, as the update the Aria is receiving packs a couple of fixesthat some may be happy to hear. But, let’s face it, this is a minor update and hopefully Froyo (Android 2.2) will pop up shortly.

If you’re like me, you’re obsessed with the mobile game Angry Birds and the lite beta version which hit earlier this month wasn’t enough to satisfy your pig-killing needs. I have good news for you, as the Rovio team said the full version is due to hit Android in 2-3 weeks.

In an interview with the folks over at TalkAndroid, Rovio talked about the release date and some of the issues we’ve been seeing. As you may recall, we heard from many users who said the Angry Birds beta couldn’t be found in the Android Market on devices not running 2.2. There are also support issues with devices like the HTC Wildfire.

Acer had some 7- and 10-inch Android tablets in the works, but it looks like it's not stopping there. DigiTimes is now reporting that the company is also prepping a 5-inch tablet which, like the others, will be based on Android 3.0 and will roll out sometime in the first quarter of 2011. Of particular note here is that the 5-inch model will reportedly boast both "handset and tablet PC functionality," which would pit it up against the likes of the Dell Streak. Details otherwise still seem to be pretty up in the air for all three, though in fact, DigiTimes says that Acer is still deciding between Qualcomm's Snapdragon and NVIDIA's Tegra 2, and that it will even release an Intel-based Windows 7 model before the Android tablets in order to "test the water in the market."

Sunday, September 5, 2010

iOS 4.1 offers new photo features, Game Center

Though music and entertainment were the of focus of Wednesday's Apple press conference in San Francisco, CEO Steve Jobs devoted a few minutes to the next release of the company's mobile operating system. iOS 4.1 will be available next week for the iPhone and iPod touch. And in a change from previous OS updates, it will be free for iPod touch users.

Here's a summary of the new features that Jobs announced. We'll add to this list as we learn of other additions and we'll follow up with a hands-on review after next week's release.

Bug fixes
These will be for the proximity sensor, Bluetooth, and iPhone 3G performance. Though Jobs didn't detail the specific problems that Apple is fixing, we've experienced the latter two issues on the iPhone 4 and previous models. In fact, Bluetooth connectivity with stereo headsets was one of the first issues we noticed with the iPhone 4 the day it went on sale.

Ever since Apple's spring run-down of iOS 4, we've been curious about Game Center, Apple's attempt to add an across-the-board social gaming dashboard for the iPhone and iPod touch. Apple left it out of iOS 4's release, but it will finally be available for free next week as a download after the release of iOS 4.1, and will appear on iOS 4.2 on the iPad.

Game Center was given a quick demo at today's Apple music event, and it seems to offer some actually useful features. While social multiplayer services such as OpenFeint already exist, Game Center will work across most games. Like Xbox Live's dashboard or PSN, game achievements and player-to-player automatching will be highlighted. Player-to-player game invites will appear as popups.

Nokia has sent out an email notification to alert Ovi Files users that the service, which lets them access their computer data remotely via the Internet, will be shut down from October 1.

"Nokia is discontinuing the Ovi Files service, effective October 1, 2010," the company said, while asking users to uninstall the Ovi Files Connector client on their computers. Nokia added that users will not lose any content since the service only mirrors the files residing on the desktop.

Nokia assured users they will still be able to share content between their handset and the PC via Ovi Suite. The difference is that this method requires a wired connection and isn't a direct substitute for Ovi Files.

The world's largest phone-maker started to build its suite of Internet services in 2007. Ovi Files, previously known as Files on Ovi, was the result of Nokia's acquisition of Avyenu. The beta service launched in July 2008. A year later, it moved from being a paid to an entirely free service. According to Nokia, Ovi Files had 631,000 active users worldwide to date with over 1.5 million registrations.

Samsung's plans to create the Galaxy Tab Android tablet can't come as much of a surprise at this point, but today's announcement at IFA 2010 marks the first time we're seeing official specs from the company.

Official pricing is still unknown, but we now know that the device is due to hit European markets in mid-September, and the US and Asia by year's end. The Galaxy Tab's size and specs put it somewhere between the phone-like Dell Streak and the magazine-size Apple iPad. The Tab uses a 7-inch capacitive touch screen with a 1,024 x 600 Wide Super VGA (WSVGA) resolution. It ships with Android 2.2 (Froyo), the complete Google apps Market, Flash 10.1, 16GB or 32GB of memory, GPS, and integrated sensors, such as a gyroscope, accelerometer, light sensor, and geomagnetic sensor.

Google's mobile operating system just got bolstered by four new Android smartphones from Chinese telecommunications provider and handset-maker Huawei. The company said previously that it plans to announce a new Android smartphone at the IFA tradeshow in Berlin this week.

Dubbed the IDEOS (Industrial Design Evolution Operating System), the touchscreen smartphone runs on a stock implementation of Android 2.2 Froyo, the latest version of the Google OS, and will be priced between US$100 and US$200. The IDEOS has a 2.8-inch QVGA display, 528MHz processor, 3.2-megapixel camera, 3.5mm audio jack and a microSD card slot. It also supports a range of wireless connections including 7.2Mbps HSDPA, GPS for navigation, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi b/g/n and doubles as a Wi-Fi router.

The iPhone 4 will officially land in South Korea starting September 10th, according to KT Corp. which confirmed the highly anticipated launch date on Saturday. The iPhone 4 was originally expected to launch on July 30th in the Asian country but problems with regulatory approval forced its delay. After some wrangling, the South Korean government finally gave Apple’s flagship smartphone the rubber stamp of approval at the beginning of August.

As the exclusive carrier for the iPhone 4 in South Korea, KT is ready and rearing to get the handset into the hands of the masses. KT has been accepting pre-orders for the Apple-branded handset since August and sold over 130,000 handsets in the first nine hours of availability. Crashing servers and general chaos accompanied this very successful pre-launch. This degree of enthusiasm is not surprising as KT, also the exclusive carrier or the iPhone 3GS, has sold over 850,000 3GS handsets since the model launched last November.

Google: Hey Apple, Our Android Sales Numbers Don’t Include Upgrades

We had already heard Google Music for Android could see a delay until next year and a new report today shows that the service could be limping along.

Reuters reports that Google Music hasn’t signed a single music label, which doesn’t portend well for something that will need a large catalog to compete against Apple and its iTunes juggernaut.

That doesn’t mean Google Music is dead in the water though, as some music companies are giddy at the chance to stick it to Apple.

“Finally here’s an entity with the reach, resources and wherewithal to take on iTunes as a formidable competitor by tying it into search and Android mobile platform,” said a label executive who asked not to be identified. “What you’ll have is a very powerful player in the market that’s good for the music business.”

The Apple iOS operating system, which powers the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad, is really gaining traction among web users and it has surpassed the traffic of Linux and Android users, according to data from Net Applications.

It probably shouldn’t be too much of a surprise, as there are now more than 120 million Apple iOS devices and these are generally heavy web users. The Linux platform has been around for a long time but it hasn’t come close to cracking the mainstream the way Apple iOS has, despite consumer-friendly versions like Ubuntu.

The data said the Apple iPhone, iPod touch and iPad accounted for 1.1% of all devices that accessed the Internet while Linux accounted for less than 1%.

“It’s something to take note of when a mobile operating system passes something that’s been around forever,” said Vince Vizzaccaro, a Net Applications vice president, in a prepared statement. “Mobile’s growth curve is strong and mobile is becoming quite a phenomenon on the Internet.”

The Google Android platform has been gaining steam lately, as the search giant said it has been activating about 200,000 units a day and it recently outsold every other smartphone platform in the United States. Still, the Net Applications data says that Android devices only account for about 0.2% of devices that access the Internet.

“Whatever the sales are, we’re seeing iOS totally dominate the market on the Web,” Vizzaccaro said. “iOS has nearly a 6:1 advantage over Android.”

Things could swing in Android’s favor over the next year or so, though, as we’re ready to see a plethora of new devices running that little, green robot. The Samsung Galaxy Tab is the first of many tablets that we should see flood the market and this could help Android get a big boost. The Google OS will also power a slew of new smartphones and connected devices.

Energizer Announces Wireless Charging Mat for iPhone 3G and BlackBerry Curve 8900

To butt heads pretty directly with Powermat, Energizer today announced that they’ll have an inductive charging pad and case for the iPhone 3GS and battery door for the BlackBerry Curve 8900 starting in October. The mat is Qi-compliant, which is a standard many cell phone manufacturers are huddling around.

Powermat’s learning how to bypass sleeves and cases altogether by building wireless charging right into the batteries themselves, but that has yet to come to market. Energizer’s a bit of a beast in the charging market, and unless Powermat and other wireless charging companies can take advantage of their head start, Energizer will probably steamroll them. Though inductive charging hasn’t been especially prevalent among mobile manufacturers so far (except Palm), their presence in the Wireless Power Consortium is a hint that maybe even Energizer will get cut off at the source for these products in an upcoming generation of smartphones. The more players the better, in any case – I’m looking forward to a world where I can charge my phone on a restaurant table during dinner, or on my car’s dash while on the move.

That "leaked" low-end LG Android device from a few days back? Turns out it was nothing more than the Optimus Chic, one of two Google-powered phones that the company announced back in early July. They're still not ready to let us touch the damned things here at IFA apparently on account of the fact that they're not commercially available yet but we got close enough to conclude that you definitely won't be fooling anyone into thinking that you've dropped many hundreds of euros on your phone. You could argue that Huawei set the tone for IFA's small-but-notable mobile presence this year with its introduction of the Ideos in other words, cheap Android gear and both of these LGs look primed to go head-to-head with the Ideos in that arena. Nokia had long been hoping to totally own the smartphone industry in emerging markets by driving S60 into the bargain basement but with this latest round of Android releases coming dangerously close to the same price points, we could have an interesting battle on our hands.

Apple's Ping gains a million users in first two days

We're still trying to figure out exactly what Apple's new Ping social network is good for, but apparently quite a few people are curious about it: it's already racked up a million users in its first two days. That's just a third of the people who've downloaded iTunes 10, so we're sure the numbers are will grow even faster as more people snag iTunes and the network effect starts to kick in and things will get really crazy if Apple and Facebook ever work out their little tiff. Just remember: it's a social network for music.

Vodafone's Microsoft Surface: like Go Fish for phones

Microsoft worked with Vodafone late last year to deploy Surfaces to a few dozen stores in several European countries (much as AT&T has done in the US), and one of those units happens to be set up at the carrier's IFA booth this week. The basic idea here is that each available model appears as a card that can be twirled, resized, and flung around the screen. When the software first starts, the cards start in a deck from which you can "deal" onto the table but when we first approached it, the Surface had obviously already been played with because the cards were in complete disarray. Not too helpful when you're a befuddled buyer trying to browse models and make a choice from a dizzying selection of handsets, but that doesn't mean it's not cool if nothing else, parents, it's something to babysit the kiddies for a few minutes while you go about your business in the store. Follow the break for video of the Surface in action.

Friday, September 3, 2010

twitter mobile usage dominated by iPhone and BlackBerry users, not Android

Twitter has realized that mobile is the place to be and has been pushing out mobile clients to all the major platforms over the course of this year. Twitter launched its Twitter for BlackBerry app as a private beta in February and rolled out the official app in July. Unlike the other mobile platforms which were developed by Twitter independently (Android) or via acquisition (iPhone), the Twitter for BlackBerry app was developed in conjunction with RIM. Soon there after, Twitter took on the Android powerhouses of Twydroid and Seesmic when it launched the official Twitter for Android back in April of this year. Last but not least, it acquired Tweetie and rolled out the official Twitter for iPhone in May.

Great devices aren't great without content and if you want it done right, sometimes you have to do it yourself. For Toshiba that means a new online content and services portal called Toshiba Places. The point of this companion software is to ensure that all said company's screens have a similar look and feel which will bring a consistent experience to every size screen while still being optimized for a TV or mobile phone (for example). Places will help you gain access to your own content or share it in your social networks as well as offer access to applications and various other online content. Exactly what premium content is available wil vary region by region and so until the US announcement comes we'll have to wait to learn which of our favorite sources will be included.

Skype 5.0 beta brings 10-way video calling to the world

Skype's Windows client is showing a bit of ambition today as its latest beta version now boasts a mighty 10-way video calling implementation. The earlier v5.0 beta threw up five-way vidchat, but it'd seem Skype kept its software engineers working through the summer and now we've got double the visual fun. Which would be awesome if we actually had nine other people we cared to see while talking to them. This update also brings a UI makeover, your typical stability and call quality improvements, and a neat automated call recovery feature.

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

OS 5.0.0.912 Leaked for the BlackBerry Curve 3G

BlackBerry Curve 3G owners are no doubt enjoying their new devices. While a shiny new Berry in-the-hand is always a good thing, I have a feeling many 9300 owners would be tickled pink of OS 6 was on board well unfortunately that’s not what this leak is all about. Sorry.
Yesterday I noticed that 5.0.0.912 leaked for the 9300, and is available right here for download. But don’t fret. BlackBerry 6 is coming, I promise I have a feeling we won’t see many more of these 5.0+ leaks it’s going to be all about BlackBerry 6, baby!
Download OS 5.0.0.912 for the BlackBerry Curve 3G >
Note: Remember, this is a leak and is very unofficial. Before you update, be sure to backup your device and take all necessary precautions before you proceed. After installation, if you notice anything noteworthy in the build, be sure to drop me a note or leave your thoughts in the comments.
Happy OS Updating!

Woman Breaks Text Messaging Record Using SWYPE on Samsung Galaxy S

Have you ever heard the unbelievably fast clicking and clacking of smartphone keyboard inside of a Journeys or during the trailers before a Twilight movie? If you thought teens were fast at texting, you should meet Melissa Thompson, a 27-year-old British woman who just smashed the Guinness World Record for the fastest text message ever.
Thompson wrote the phrase “the razor-toothed piranhas of the genera Serrasalmus and Pygocentrus are the most ferocious freshwater fish in the world. In reality they seldom attack a human” in 25.94 seconds, beating the old record held by 24-year-old Franklin Page who wrote the same phrase in 35.54 seconds earlier this year.
What phone did Thompson use to destroy the old record by nearly 10 seconds? A Samsung Galaxy S. And if you thought that the quickest or easiest way to bang out a text messege or e-mail was by using a physical keyboard, you’d be wrong. The record was broken using a touchscreen keyboard with SWYPE, a feature that allows users to write words and phrases by sliding their fingers across the screen.

Ever stayed at a Starwood Hotel or Resort? If so, you’re probably well aware of the awesome accommodations available If you’re a regular guest, booking and managing your SPG account is about to get a lot easier. That is, if you have a BlackBerry in-hand. Keep reading and I’ll get to the point, I swear.
Over the past few years, we’re seeing more and more hotels take to the mobile scene and with good reason. Apps and mobile sites that allow you to checkin, checkout or even book your next stay are chalked-full of awesom Super handy for sure. With that in mind, Starwood Hotels & Resorts have just launched their first app for BlackBerry.
Tailored around their Starwood Preferred Guest program, the new SPG application for BlackBerry is now available in App World for download. It allows you to manage reservations, view your Starpoints balance, check recent activity and more You can even make reservations, and browse available destinations at any one of the 1,000+ Starwood properties around the world.
David Godsman, VP of Global Web Services for Starwood commented on the launch:

With the 2010-2011 NFL season coming up on us fast (first games this weekend me thinks!?) there’s still time to load up and try out new Fantasy Football apps on your device of choice. If BlackBerry is your thing, Yahoo! has just released the 2010 Yahoo! Fantasy Football Launcher for your device.

Nothing too fancy here in reality it’s just a mobile site launcher. But, if you’re tied into Yahoo! Fantasy Football perhaps a little more than you’d like, this nifty little shortcut will make it much easier for you to be less productive at work, and more productive checking your NFL football stats.

If you’re not on a BlackBerry or just don’t care to have the mobile launcher installed, you can always hit up Yahoo! Fantasy Football on your device of choice at m.yahoo.com/fantasyfootball. Once there you’ll get live scoring, news, blogs, projections and the ability to manage your fantasy roster among other things.

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Philips GoGear Connect is a legitimate Android-based iPod touch competitor

For all its success, the iPod touch has few dedicated media player competitors capable of matching its big-touchscreen, WiFi, and voluminous App Store. Until today. Philips just went official with its GoGear Connect featuring the full suite of Google Mobile applications pre-installed with access to the Android Market for pretty much everything else. Spec-wize we're looking at a 3.2-inch display, WiFi, sound isolating earphones, built-in camera, and microSD slot. Sorry, no mention of the Android OS version though we've seen it listed at retailers with 2.1. Syncing your music is done over Bluetooth or a USB tether to your PC with Philips' Songbird providing the software assist. The MP4 player also supports Maps and location-based services presumably accomplished with the help of Skyhook and not via a GPS radio (though the Philips post is tagged "GPS"). Look for the GoGear Connect to land in Western Europe, China, and yes, the US, starting in late October with the price pegged at €249 (about $315) for the 16GB model.

1283253240 Tablet PCs, Mobile Handsets ViewSonic ViewPad 7 official: Android 2.2 and 'full' phone functionality

We know you're positively giddy with excitement to get at this OlivePad rebadge and ViewSonic is today fanning those flames of desire with a little bit of pre-IFA PR. Made official today, the 7-inch ViewPad 7 will try to lure in Android lovers with its tasty Froyo parfait, underpinned by hardware that includes front- and back-facing cameras, 3G for both phone and data transmissions, and a full-sized SIM slot. It doesn't seem to have an earpiece so we're unwilling to grant it the claim that it offers "full" phone functionality, but we'd be more worried about the unlisted internal specs on this thing the OlivePad makes do with a 600MHz ARM CPU and an underwhelming 800 x 480 resolution, neither of which should be making the iPad quake in its well padded boots. Price is expected to be "no more than £350" ($543) in the UK, though all we know about availability is that review units will start showing up in October. Ah well, the wait for a quality iPad alternative continues.

1283255160 Peripherals Sanyo's Eneloop Stick and Mobile Boosters will juice your gadgets

Make no mistake, we're unabashed Eneloop rechargeable battery fanboys around here. How could we not be given our mobile lifestyle and obsessive need to keep all our toys juiced. As such, we're stoked by the announcement of a pair of Sanyo power packs: the Eneloop Mobile Booster (model KBC-L2BS) and Eneloop Stick Booster (KBC-D1BS). The Mobile Booster is a rechargeable slab of lithium-ion with a pair of built-in USB terminals (and microUSB adapter) capable of pushing a relatively hefty 1 Amp charge for about 2 hours (or 500mA for 4 hours if charging two device) to gear that requires that kind of suck like the iPad. The battery pack can then be recharged over AC or a USB connection on your PC. The highly portable Stick Booster, meanwhile, ships with a pair of AA Eneloops so when the electrons cease to flow you can just swap out the dead batteries for a pair of fresh rechargeables. The Stick Booster is also an official Nintendo licensee so you can be sure that it'll charge your DSLite, DSi, or DSi LL (no mention of the 3DS). Look for these to ship October 21st in Japan.

i-Station Z3D 7-inch 3D Android tablet requires glasses, how convenient

Come on, you knew it would come to this. In an industry obsessed with 3D as a means of boosting sales, somebody was bound to introduce a 3D tablet that requires glasses (polarized, no doubt). While other companies like Sharp have 3D tablet ambitions designed around its glassesless parallax barrier display technology, Korea's i-Station has bolted from the gate with a 7-inch (800x480) Z3D 3D tablet featuring the Android 2.1 OS, 802.11b/g WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0, FM radio, 5000mAh high capacity battery, DMB television, either 32GB or 64GB or storage (depending upon model), and 1080p video support. And really, what could be more convenient than carrying around an extra pair of glasses just for viewing 3D content?

Call internationally for as little as 1.4 cents per minute. Transfer calls from your landline to your mobile phone. And get 3,000 minutes of free domestic calls every month. This August, ooma is releasing an upgraded version of its highly rated VoIP phone system. The new system, called the Telo, comes with a cordless handset that lets you check voice mail with the touch of a button. (Before, buyers had to supply their own handsets.) Basic use is free; the $12.99-a-month premium service includes features such as landline-to-cell transfers, a second line, and three-way conferencing. COST: $299.99 and up

The Best 5 iPad Apps for Business

Apple's just-launched iPad might be the must-have gadget of the season or perhaps the entire year but it's more than just a tech toy. Hundreds of dedicated applications ("apps") are already available to help small and mid-sized businesses remain productive on the go.

Already a consumer success with more than 1 million units sold within one month of its U.S. launch, Apple's iPad (from $499 is also gaining traction among mobile professionals looking to remain productive on the go.
Not everyone agrees on whether this "magical" tablet was built for business
This includes Apple's own iWork offerings, such as Pages for word processing, Numbers for spreadsheets and Keynote for presentations ($9.99 apiece), and dozens of inexpensive third-party apps (see below).
"Not only is the iPad built for travel it's just a pound and a half and with a battery pushing 12 hours between charges but its stunning 9.7-inch screen makes it a convincing showpiece to display media, online content or a visual presentation to a client or customer," says Scott Steinberg, CEO for the TechSavvy Global technology consulting firm in Seattle. "And its online, on-demand apps can transform the device into a portable language translator, note taker, personal digital assistant, info

These days, it's not enough to build a good website; to reach customers online, you have to reach them on their mobile phones. Here are two free tools for adapting your site for the small screen.

Ubik

This online service, which is in beta, lets you build a mobile site in just a few steps. Select one of 32 templates (which include ones for specific businesses, such as restaurants and car dealerships). Then edit the content through any Web browser and click Publish. If you don't want to use the standard-issue Web address (sitename.ubik.net), you can create a custom domain name or use an existing one. Ubik will even place ads for you, if you are willing to split the revenue 50-50.

BlackBerry Pearl 3G 9100, Milestone XT720 Coming to Wind Mobile?

Rumour has it Canadian carrier Wind Mobile will be picking up the BlackBerry 9100 and the Motorola Milestone (a.k.a. Motoroi) XT720. These would mark Wind’s second BlackBerry and Android phone, preceded by the BlackBerry Bold 9700 and the Huawei U8100, respectively.

Aside from size and form factor, the BlackBerry 9100 is mostly equivalent to the 9700: it has Wi-Fi, 3G, GPS, an HVGA display, 3.2 megapixel camera, 256 MB of memory, and a 624 MHz processor. The only real difference spec-wise is that Pearl 3G handles Wi-Fi 802.11 n, which from my experience isn’t that big of a leap from g. Overall, it’s nice little device - check out our review for the full rundown.

The Motorola XT720 will be Wind’s highest-end device, having an 8 megapixel camera with HD video recording, 3.7″ 480 x 854 touchscreen, Wi-Fi, GPS, 3G supporting up to 10.2 Mbps, and running Android 2.1. The XT720 has been available across Europe and on Cincinnati Bell for awhile now

Samsung has just announced their fourth smartphone based on their homegrown operating system Bada: the Wave 723. Unlike the original Samsung Wave, this model was created to serve the mid range of the market. It has a 3.2 inch LCD with a WQVGA resolution, Bluetooth 3.0, WiFi, comes with a leather case [pictured below], has a 5 megapixel camera, and will sell for 240 EUR starting in September in Germany, and then other markets later this year. Samsung says this device will not come to America, citing that operators don’t want to launch devices with the Bada operating system over there. Makes sense. People want Android, iPhone, and BlackBerry.
The original Wave didn’t get much attention from the press, even though it had a competent specification sheet and managed to sell over 1 million units in just 4 weeks. In today’s world there’s only so much room for the various mobile operating systems, and with Samsung already making Android devices, and promising to make Windows Phone 7 devices,

BlackBerry Curve fans get crazy as the 3G version is set to hit T-Mobile stores on September 8, just a little over a week from now. We reported earlier that it would hit September 8, and just in the nick of time T-Mobile confirms the launch date and includes pricing on its Facebook page. For $79.99 with a two-year contract you can grab the new BlackBerry Curve 3G if you’re budget-conscious but need solid messaging capabilities, reliable e-mail and killer battery life.

If you’re looking to grab the BlackBerry Curve 3G for T-Mobile in the near future, be sure to stay tuned as we get our review of the latest RIM handset for T-Mobile up soon.

Apple iOS 4.1 Will Not Fix iPhone 4 Proximity Sensor Issues

Are you getting frustrated with dialing or hanging up on your friends with your cheek while on your iPhone 4? Word was that Apple iOS 4.1, which is now in its beta stages, would fix the annoying proximity sensor issue that plagues the iPhone 4. However, it seems that we’ll have to wait quite a bit longer before this bug or issue is patched because it’s not coming with iOS 4.1.

According to Apple spokesperson Fiona Martin, the Cupertino-based company has yet to resolve the issue. For those hoping for a fix when the next big update comes, they will be in some disappointment. After all, Steve Jobs did promise that the issue would get fixed with the next big update, but like the ever elusive white iPhone 4, it’s set for some undefined time in the future.

Tomorrow was the deadline for RIM to offer a way for the the India government to lawfully intercept BlackBerry communications, which, if not satisfied, would have resulted in a ban of services. After reviewing everything and meeting with RIM, the Department of Telecommunications will test a proposed monitoring solution for 60 days which should allow the government to access both consumer BlackBerry Messenger data, as well as enterprise e-mail. We had heard a solution was suggested that involved forwarding e-mails to service providers that had landed on mail servers after everything was decrypted. From there, authorities could access information if needed.

Saudi Arabia put a much tighter timeline on RIM, but seemed to get what they wanted in terms of lawful interception, while things are still a work-in-progress in the United Arab Emirates, though progress is good. The need for governments to access BlackBerry transmissions has spurred RIM to create an international forum, where governments can relay their security needs to the telecommunications industry at large, and handset manufacturers can make their case for the privacy of enterprise data. The goal here is to get everyone involved,

For all the stupid pet tricks, first-person confessionals, and clips from Conan O'Brien's formative years that form YouTube's content, the one territory it doesn't really venture is pay-per-view à la Apple, Amazon, and others. Well, it'll be a Brave New World for the service and parent company Google if this Financial Times report is worth its weight in 3mm. According to the publication, the G-Men have been in talks with "Hollywood's leading movie studios" for several months, touting its reach as one of the main draws for the players involved, for the launch of an international pay-per-view service by the end of this year. Some prices are also thrown around here, to the tune of about $5 for new titles (streaming, not download) available the same time as the DVD releases. The video site has been doing rentals on a trial basis since early this year, with just a smattering of indie titles. The thought of paying to watch Blockbuster titles in the same window we watched three dozen (if not more) remixes of Keyboard Cat is still a bit of a new concept, but hey, that's the future for you.

Samsung Galaxy Tab accessories may include Bluetooth stylus and USB adapter

That weekend leak of Galaxy Tab accessories was apparently not done flowing. The same source is today dishing the dirt on a pair of highly intriguing extra bits for Samsung's upcoming tablet. Firstly, the Bluetooth pen acts both as a stylus for the Galaxy Tab and a sort of wireless remote control. It's compatible with other devices, meaning it can be used to control voice calls you receive on your cellphone. The second tidbit is no less thrilling: a USB adapter that promises to turn the Tab's dock connector into a standard-issue USB port. You don't need us to explain how handy a trinket that could be for the multimedia maven on the move. It's worth pointing out, however, that both these accessory leaks show what looks like an earlier hardware prototype of the Galaxy Tab, so we may be looking at slightly dated information. All such uncertainty and questions should be resolved come September 2.

New iPhone app from HomeAgain Pet

Popular cartoon character Snoopy has a role in a new iPhone app from HomeAgain Pet Recovery Service. As you can imagine, the free to download application helps reunite pet parents with lost microchipped pets.

Thanks to the use of a GPS receiver, pet lovers will be able to access information based on their current location. There are also photos and detailed descriptions of an animal’s physical characteristics as well as any guidance provided by the pet owner about its expected response to strangers or other distinctive “personality traits.”

Moreover, there are general information useful when dealing with unfamiliar animals in unusual circumstances, along with “heartwarming tales” of lost pets returned home shared by pet owners.

An estimated one in three pets will go missing and in that sense I invite every iPhone owner in the States to download this app and take its share in the action to bring back those pets home.

Korea Telecoms suffers an Identity Tab crisis

A 7-inch, aluminum-trimmed, multitouch tablet from Korea running Android? Why it could be none other than the Samsung Galaxy, er, KT Identity Tab. Think of this 1GHz tablet with TFT-LCD, 8GB of internal memory (and SD expansion), DMB TV tuner, light and gravity sensors, built-in ebook reader, and 3 megapixel camera as KT's answer to Samsung's Galaxy Tab Android 2.2 tablet expected to hit SK Telecom, South Korea's largest carrier, sometime in September. And with KT's take on the Tab priced at KRW300,000 (about $253) or free with

CyanogenMod-6.0 has released what's being touted as the "first stable release based on Android 2.2" and has hit the target number of supported devices, which by our quick count includes EVO 4G, Slide, Nexus One, Dream / Magic, Aria, and Droid and we might be missing a few. You know the drill; if you need a bit of Froyo in your mobile life.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Samsung Galaxy Tab, in the wild and now teasing CDMA

Okay, this is getting ridiculous. Samsung's Galaxy Tab has once again surfaced online via unofficial channels, and this time it's carrying a sticker on one side that clearly states CDMA. The iAndroid forum goer who allegedly snapped these shots praised the device for its strong speakers, call quality (although not clear if that's over 3G or WiFi), and ability to run Flash but at the same time notes the GPS is just a bit slow (it does work, though). More pictures in the gallery below, right next to our ever-increasing impatience to try this little guy out ourselves.

Vodafone teases with exclusive green Nokia N8, still mum on prices and availability

With September just a few days away, things are really about to get real for Nokia's flagship N8, especially in Europe. For instance, Vodafone's UK arm has just updated the "Coming Soon" page for this Symbian^3 device. What's new? Just the fact that the carrier will be offering the phone in two colors: black and green, with the latter ironically exclusive to red Vodafone. Yep, that's pretty much it no prices or dates mentioned just yet, but we'll be keeping an eye out for you N8 believers.

Top 5 features of BlackBerry OS 6

It may not be a brand new operating system, but RIM, maker of BlackBerry smartphones, has introduced many much-needed features with its OS 6. We go hands-on in our latest episode of Mobile Talk. OS 6 is currently available on the BlackBerry Torch 9800 in the US and we're still awaiting information on when it'll be available in Asia. The software will also run on current and upcoming devices including the Bold 9700 and Pearl 3G in the coming months.

Leaked HTC Windows Phone 7 handset features sliding speaker

HTC may be capable of making heroic smartphones, but it certainly can't contain leaks of its unannounced devices. The HTC T8788 looks set to join the brotherhood of Windows Phone 7 handsets due for a "holiday release". Engadget has apparently unearthed information on a touchscreen HTC slider destined for AT&T shelves in the US. But what's different is that instead of a QWERTY keyboard, the phone slides open to reveal a built-in speaker. There's also a kickstand around back, which will help make the T8788 more convincing as a portable media player.

That's about all the information there is for now, although there's a good chance it could make an October launch if speculation on the Web is to be believed. In the meantime, Microsoft will be releasing its Windows Phone Developer Tools on September 16, so developers have some time to code their apps and games in time for the official launch.

Sony Ericsson Xperia X10 for AT&T review

We've already published a pretty exhaustive review of Sony Ericsson's Xperia X10 some five months ago, but it's taken until this month for it to reach AT&T's network and retail chain. A lot's changed in the mobile phone market since then the iPhone 4, the EVO 4G, Dell Streak, numerous Verizon Droids, and so on. Does the X10 still compete? Read on to find out.

By and large, we're looking at identical hardware (and mostly identical software) as our review unit from back in March, so we'll be brief. The phone feels lighter than you might expect for a 4-inch smartphone, and while we like the matte backing, the glossy front has just as much of an affinity for fingerprints and smudges as we've (unfortunately) come to expect. There's a 3.5mm headphone jack next to the power button and micro-USB port, a dedicated camera button and volume rockers on the side, and just below the screen there's the familiar Android menu, home screen, and back buttons. For a split second, we forgot that the magnifying glass next to volume down actually means "zoom out," and as such we are still lacking a dedicated search button. And it's still annoying.