149" OLED... this will redefine Home Theater market!
An Apple a Day...
This week is the week of Apple news. Forget about President Obama's first State of Union Address or the Feds holding the rates steady, all eyes are on Apple. First, they rocked Wall Street with their $3B earnings in Q1 of 2010. Second, Google out-witted Apple Engineers with a true Google Voice web app workaround. Third, Apple announced the much-waited-rumored-sketched iPad Tablet device. Lets take a deep breath and digest the latter two news.
Google Voice Web App: I'll make this one quick; this has always been a battle of the wits. Simply speaking, Google Engineers are way too much of a bad-ass to take no for an answer, so they are proving a point by beating Apple's backwards-thinking App store by offering a fully functional Google Voice application via Web Browser. PC Mag has a good hands-on review here.
Apple iPad: What is this thing suppose to be? I'm lost. Steve Jobs pitched it as filler for a gap between a smartphone and a laptop but I can't figure out what does this serve. As it stands for me, my iPhone and laptop is what I take along pretty much everywhere I go. For me to grind out some real work, I'll bust out my work-issued 14" Laptop with a real keyboard and resolution (1440x760) for some spreadsheet action. While traveling, I rely on my iPhone a bit more to stay in sync with news, emails and calls. There really isn't anymore room in my bag for another device. For those without a Smartphone and a laptop, this is probably considerable, however, for a device that is suppose to rival a real computer, the OS (iPhone OS 3.2)
isn't quite as capable (yet) to replace a laptop. For starters, Apple messed up in two areas: 1). Lack of Camera for video-conferencing and 2). Still doesn't support Flash... WHAT?!?. That said, this tablet is nothing but an oversized iPhone without the phone, atleast it has a microphone. For more detailed info on specs, checkout Engadget's post. At a starting price of $629 plus a monthly data premium from AT&T... I've already to tossed this one right next to the Apple TV section.
{Does anyone else besides me find the name iPad a bit confusing with iPod... both visually and phonically?}
Google Voice Web App: I'll make this one quick; this has always been a battle of the wits. Simply speaking, Google Engineers are way too much of a bad-ass to take no for an answer, so they are proving a point by beating Apple's backwards-thinking App store by offering a fully functional Google Voice application via Web Browser. PC Mag has a good hands-on review here.Apple iPad: What is this thing suppose to be? I'm lost. Steve Jobs pitched it as filler for a gap between a smartphone and a laptop but I can't figure out what does this serve. As it stands for me, my iPhone and laptop is what I take along pretty much everywhere I go. For me to grind out some real work, I'll bust out my work-issued 14" Laptop with a real keyboard and resolution (1440x760) for some spreadsheet action. While traveling, I rely on my iPhone a bit more to stay in sync with news, emails and calls. There really isn't anymore room in my bag for another device. For those without a Smartphone and a laptop, this is probably considerable, however, for a device that is suppose to rival a real computer, the OS (iPhone OS 3.2)
isn't quite as capable (yet) to replace a laptop. For starters, Apple messed up in two areas: 1). Lack of Camera for video-conferencing and 2). Still doesn't support Flash... WHAT?!?. That said, this tablet is nothing but an oversized iPhone without the phone, atleast it has a microphone. For more detailed info on specs, checkout Engadget's post. At a starting price of $629 plus a monthly data premium from AT&T... I've already to tossed this one right next to the Apple TV section.{Does anyone else besides me find the name iPad a bit confusing with iPod... both visually and phonically?}
Quick take on the Apple iPad: It's a PC, sort of
I need some time to think about it, but after listening to the feed of the announcement and chatting with my friend Chris Dunphy, my quick reaction is that the iPad is more like a PC than I expected. That's not necessarily a bad thing. I had been thinking of the tablet as a new, third category of devices focused on content consumption. The content play is in there, but focused on print only rather than video and other forms of media, at least for the moment. But given its features and software, and especially the iWork suite, the iPad is actually more like a low end PC-displacement product: The PC reimagined as a portable, touchscreen device. Content delivery is a part of that rethinking. Nine years after Tablet PC, somebody got it right.
The iWork pricing of $9.99 per module is a knife aimed at Office, and a disturbing precedent for all traditional productivity app companies. If you're in one of those companies, you need to rethink your business model quickly.
I'm not saying the PC is dead (not at all), but it looks like Apple is trying to gradually move up from the smartphone space to chew chunks out of the PC market. So maybe the iPad really is a response to PC netbooks, which is what my Apple alumni friends said a year ago. In some ways the iPad is worse than a netbook, in some ways it's better. I will be very interested to see how it sells against netbooks this fall.
I'll have more to say after I've had some time to digest the announcement. In the meantime, your comments are welcome.
The iWork pricing of $9.99 per module is a knife aimed at Office, and a disturbing precedent for all traditional productivity app companies. If you're in one of those companies, you need to rethink your business model quickly.
I'm not saying the PC is dead (not at all), but it looks like Apple is trying to gradually move up from the smartphone space to chew chunks out of the PC market. So maybe the iPad really is a response to PC netbooks, which is what my Apple alumni friends said a year ago. In some ways the iPad is worse than a netbook, in some ways it's better. I will be very interested to see how it sells against netbooks this fall.
I'll have more to say after I've had some time to digest the announcement. In the meantime, your comments are welcome.
Philips C702 cheap touchscreen phone
Philips announced about their newest mobile phone Philips C702, in this month. it will be launched at the end of this February. it has a 2.8 inch resistive touchscreen and has Handwriting recognition feature. the internal memory of this phone is 4MB and it supports up to 8GB memory cards.
also Philips C702 is just a 2G phone and it don't have Wi-Fi feature. it has a 1.3 MP camera which is enough to get a clear picture. but Philips C702 has a good GPS receiver and it supports A-GPS as well. also Philips C702 has a good media player and allows to use custom ring tones.
also Philips C702 is just a 2G phone and it don't have Wi-Fi feature. it has a 1.3 MP camera which is enough to get a clear picture. but Philips C702 has a good GPS receiver and it supports A-GPS as well. also Philips C702 has a good media player and allows to use custom ring tones.
Android at Mobile World Congress
There will be technical presentations throughout the day and a developer lounge where you can talk to Android team members and meet others in the growing Android developer community.
Whether you’re already developing Android apps, you're an experienced mobile developer, or you’re considering making your first foray into writing mobile applications, the Android Developer Lab will provide access to the resources you need to create innovative and compelling apps for the Android platform.
Space is limited in the technical sessions, so if you're attending MWC and want to come by the Android Developer Lab, make sure to sign up now.
Also, we're offering a limited number of complimentary passes that provide access to the Android Developer Lab, the rest of App Planet, and the general exhibition areas for MWC. Sign up to be considered to receive a pass.
Hope to see you in Barcelona!
ACPO Managers Guide
ACPO Managers Guide.Good Practice and Advice Guide for Managers of e-Crime Investigations.I telephoned and spoke with a personable Stephen Clarke today of the Police Central e-crime Unit (PCeU). PCeU is the department apparently responsible for the proper and appropriate dissemination of factual information to Managers (Clients and Stakeholders) for the Police. I contacted Stephen as I was
Asus M10 nuvifone with Windows mobile OS
Asus is not a very famous mobile phone manufacturer but they have launched couple of new mobile phones. this is Asus M10 nuvifone which announced last week. it's a full touchscreen phone which has a 3.5 inch resistive touchscreen. the phone has 4GB internal memory and supports up to 32GB memory cards. it also has an Accelerometer sensor to rotate UI.
Asus M10 nuvifone is a 3G phone which supports 7.2MBP/s HSDPA speed. it also has both wi-fi and bluetooth features. the main camera of this phone is 5MP and maxumum picture resolution is 2592 x 1944 pixels. the camera supports video recording and Geo-tagging features.
this phone runs with Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5.3 Professional OS. it has a 600MHz processor to run it properly. Asus M10 nuvifone has a good GPS application with A-GPS support. it also comes with pre installed windows mobile applications like pocket office.
Asus M10 nuvifone is a 3G phone which supports 7.2MBP/s HSDPA speed. it also has both wi-fi and bluetooth features. the main camera of this phone is 5MP and maxumum picture resolution is 2592 x 1944 pixels. the camera supports video recording and Geo-tagging features.
this phone runs with Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5.3 Professional OS. it has a 600MHz processor to run it properly. Asus M10 nuvifone has a good GPS application with A-GPS support. it also comes with pre installed windows mobile applications like pocket office.
Reckless speculation about the Apple tablet
One of the easiest ways to embarrass yourself online is by making predictions for the record about an unannounced product. You're layering risk on top of risk -- not only might your predictions be wrong, but the information you're basing them on might be wrong as well.
But it's fun so I'm going to do it anyway.
Assuming that Apple actually announces a tablet product on Wednesday, here are four things to watch for...
What does it do, and who is it for? Aside from being cool, the tablet will need to solve some real-world problems for normal people if it's going to be accepted. In my opinion, there are two potential markets for a tablet, based on market research I've done in the past. One market is as an entertainment/browsing/content device, and one is as a business information-management tool (an info pad, a subject I wrote about here).
The worst thing Apple could do is try to target both markets with one device, in my opinion. The customers are not compatible, and they need a different mix of features. You could end up with a tweener that doesn't really delight any one group (can you say Palm Pre?)
Based on press reports, and friends who have links to Apple, it looks like they're going for the entertainment market. I think that's wise -- it's a natural fit with Apple's relatively young, creative image. It also leverages the infrastructure Apple has already created for the iPod.
Watch the infrastructure. Another problem Apple could solve is a major malfunction in the market for content products (magazines, books, short stories, video, etc). Content creators today have a couple of choices -- give their stuff away online, or pump their materials through a traditional distribution system that absorbs 85% or more of the revenue on overhead, distribution, printing costs, mailing, etc. Either way, creators often get shockingly little reward for their hard work.
What creators need is a system that will let them bypass the current distribution system entirely, selling directly to consumers and pocketing most of the revenue themselves. They could actually charge less money per copy, sell in smaller quantities, and still make more profit.
Apple could create that billing and distribution system. Or it could create a system that attempts to reinforce the power of today's content middlemen. The key question will be how easy it is for a content creator to sell something through Apple directly, and how big their revenue cut is. If Apple shares 70% or more of revenue, and lets anyone create their own content, the floodgates will begin to open.
This could have an enormous impact on the content industries. Ultimately it would give much more power to content creators, at the expense of publishers and other middlemen. And it would enable consumers to get a wider variety of entertainment and information than they can today. (I wrote about some of the possibilities here. That article is old now, but the situation has barely changed in the meantime.)
So, even though I am intensely interested in the Apple tablet's technology, I am even more interested in the business model around it. That's where the real revolution could happen, in my opinion.
Ignore the first 100 days' sales. A company of Apple's stature is almost always able to drive significant sales in the first three months of availability, especially when creating a new category product. There are enough fans and early adopters to virtually guarantee a sales spike early on. The big question is what happens after the enthusiasts have bought.
Remember, the original Macintosh 128 was quickly snapped up by about 70,000 drooling enthusiasts (including me!). We bought even though the computer had ridiculously little memory and almost no software. Picture a word processor that can't create a document longer than 10 pages. I paid $2,500 for that! After the first three months, Mac sales flattened, and didn't recover until Apple fixed the shortcomings of the product.
So I expect a sales explosion in the first three months. In fact, if there isn't one, the product is in deep trouble (see Apple TV). But even if it sells out at first, that doesn't mean much until we see at least six months of sales data. Preferably nine.
Price is a huge unknown. Here's the story I heard from my Apple alumni friends: There is a gap in Apple's product line. Apple has the iPhone and iPod Touch at around $300, and it has the iMac and MacBook at about $1,000. It needs something in the middle, and the tablet is expected to fill that gap.
The price point I heard from my friends was about $600. Lately the price rumors have gone higher, and I don't know what to think about that. Could be true, could be wrong, could be Apple leaking a fake price so they could "surprise" people with something lower. All I know is that at $1,000 they are in conflict with the low-end Macs, and at $300 they are in conflict with the iPhone, and my friends are adamant that they won't do either.
But even if the price is around $600, I think there is a problem: In all the market research I've done on mobile devices, the latent demand for a tablet device is centered at prices of $199-$399. You can skim a very small percent of the users at $499, but even that is a stretch. A price of $600 or higher is way beyond the comfort zone of most potential customers for a tablet, no matter how great the device is.
It scares me on Apple's behalf. You can get into deep trouble when you design a product around your business needs rather than the customer's feature needs. You start rationalizing things: "We know we ought to sell it for $300, but that doesn't work for us, so we add a bunch of extra features that ought to be worth $300 more, and we plan a big marketing campaign, and we convince ourselves that the product is so special that people will feel compelled to open up their wallets. It's just a couple hundred dollars more, after all..."
Nonsense. Some products have natural price points, and it's very hard to change them. Great marketing and great features get you a 10-20% premium, not 100%.
So watch the price on Wednesday. If it's in the $300-400 range, I am very comfortable with Apple's chances. If it's over $600, I will be very interested to see what special magic Apple has put into the product. I think they'd need features on the order of burning bushes and loaves-and-fishes in order to sustain a price of $600 or more in the long run.
But for the record, I'd be delighted to have Apple prove me wrong.
But it's fun so I'm going to do it anyway.
Assuming that Apple actually announces a tablet product on Wednesday, here are four things to watch for...
What does it do, and who is it for? Aside from being cool, the tablet will need to solve some real-world problems for normal people if it's going to be accepted. In my opinion, there are two potential markets for a tablet, based on market research I've done in the past. One market is as an entertainment/browsing/content device, and one is as a business information-management tool (an info pad, a subject I wrote about here).
The worst thing Apple could do is try to target both markets with one device, in my opinion. The customers are not compatible, and they need a different mix of features. You could end up with a tweener that doesn't really delight any one group (can you say Palm Pre?)
Based on press reports, and friends who have links to Apple, it looks like they're going for the entertainment market. I think that's wise -- it's a natural fit with Apple's relatively young, creative image. It also leverages the infrastructure Apple has already created for the iPod.
Watch the infrastructure. Another problem Apple could solve is a major malfunction in the market for content products (magazines, books, short stories, video, etc). Content creators today have a couple of choices -- give their stuff away online, or pump their materials through a traditional distribution system that absorbs 85% or more of the revenue on overhead, distribution, printing costs, mailing, etc. Either way, creators often get shockingly little reward for their hard work.
What creators need is a system that will let them bypass the current distribution system entirely, selling directly to consumers and pocketing most of the revenue themselves. They could actually charge less money per copy, sell in smaller quantities, and still make more profit.
Apple could create that billing and distribution system. Or it could create a system that attempts to reinforce the power of today's content middlemen. The key question will be how easy it is for a content creator to sell something through Apple directly, and how big their revenue cut is. If Apple shares 70% or more of revenue, and lets anyone create their own content, the floodgates will begin to open.
This could have an enormous impact on the content industries. Ultimately it would give much more power to content creators, at the expense of publishers and other middlemen. And it would enable consumers to get a wider variety of entertainment and information than they can today. (I wrote about some of the possibilities here. That article is old now, but the situation has barely changed in the meantime.)
So, even though I am intensely interested in the Apple tablet's technology, I am even more interested in the business model around it. That's where the real revolution could happen, in my opinion.
Ignore the first 100 days' sales. A company of Apple's stature is almost always able to drive significant sales in the first three months of availability, especially when creating a new category product. There are enough fans and early adopters to virtually guarantee a sales spike early on. The big question is what happens after the enthusiasts have bought.
Remember, the original Macintosh 128 was quickly snapped up by about 70,000 drooling enthusiasts (including me!). We bought even though the computer had ridiculously little memory and almost no software. Picture a word processor that can't create a document longer than 10 pages. I paid $2,500 for that! After the first three months, Mac sales flattened, and didn't recover until Apple fixed the shortcomings of the product.
So I expect a sales explosion in the first three months. In fact, if there isn't one, the product is in deep trouble (see Apple TV). But even if it sells out at first, that doesn't mean much until we see at least six months of sales data. Preferably nine.
Price is a huge unknown. Here's the story I heard from my Apple alumni friends: There is a gap in Apple's product line. Apple has the iPhone and iPod Touch at around $300, and it has the iMac and MacBook at about $1,000. It needs something in the middle, and the tablet is expected to fill that gap.
The price point I heard from my friends was about $600. Lately the price rumors have gone higher, and I don't know what to think about that. Could be true, could be wrong, could be Apple leaking a fake price so they could "surprise" people with something lower. All I know is that at $1,000 they are in conflict with the low-end Macs, and at $300 they are in conflict with the iPhone, and my friends are adamant that they won't do either.
But even if the price is around $600, I think there is a problem: In all the market research I've done on mobile devices, the latent demand for a tablet device is centered at prices of $199-$399. You can skim a very small percent of the users at $499, but even that is a stretch. A price of $600 or higher is way beyond the comfort zone of most potential customers for a tablet, no matter how great the device is.
It scares me on Apple's behalf. You can get into deep trouble when you design a product around your business needs rather than the customer's feature needs. You start rationalizing things: "We know we ought to sell it for $300, but that doesn't work for us, so we add a bunch of extra features that ought to be worth $300 more, and we plan a big marketing campaign, and we convince ourselves that the product is so special that people will feel compelled to open up their wallets. It's just a couple hundred dollars more, after all..."
Nonsense. Some products have natural price points, and it's very hard to change them. Great marketing and great features get you a 10-20% premium, not 100%.
So watch the price on Wednesday. If it's in the $300-400 range, I am very comfortable with Apple's chances. If it's over $600, I will be very interested to see what special magic Apple has put into the product. I think they'd need features on the order of burning bushes and loaves-and-fishes in order to sustain a price of $600 or more in the long run.
But for the record, I'd be delighted to have Apple prove me wrong.
Gigabyte GSmart Android phone with pictures
Gigabyte GSmart is an upcoming phone which is not officially announced yet. it's a Android phone which runs Android 1.6 version. like all Androids, Gigabyte GSmart is a full touchscreen phone which has a 2.8 inch touchscreen. about the design, it will be a very handy phone because of it's display size and round corners.
Gigabyte GSmart has a Trackball and an Accelerometer sensor. the internal memory of this phone is 512MB and it supports up to 16GB memory cards. it supports 7.2MBP/s HSDPA connectivity and has bluetooth and Wi-Fi. it has a 2.0MP main camera which is enough to take clear pictures. this phone powered by a Qualcomm MSM 7225 528 MHz processor and a 256MB RAM. it has a GPS receiver with A-GPS support. also the music quality of Gigabyte GSmart is great. it has a 3.5mm audio jack and the media player supports many file formats.
Gigabyte GSmart has a Trackball and an Accelerometer sensor. the internal memory of this phone is 512MB and it supports up to 16GB memory cards. it supports 7.2MBP/s HSDPA connectivity and has bluetooth and Wi-Fi. it has a 2.0MP main camera which is enough to take clear pictures. this phone powered by a Qualcomm MSM 7225 528 MHz processor and a 256MB RAM. it has a GPS receiver with A-GPS support. also the music quality of Gigabyte GSmart is great. it has a 3.5mm audio jack and the media player supports many file formats.
Android at the 2010 Game Developers Conference
2009 has been a great year for Android Market. With the support of developers like you, Android Market now has more than 20,000 applications. Of these applications, games have proven to be particularly popular with Android users. Seven of the ten most popular paid applications on Android Market are games, so there's a significant opportunity for game developers as the number of Android devices continues to grow at a rapid pace.
To better support this trend, we are increasing our support of Android game development. As a first step, we will be presenting a number of Android sessions at the Game Developers Conference on March 9th and 10th in San Francisco. The sessions will be technical and will include everything you need to know about Android game development in Java or C++. Engineers from the Android team will also be available to answer your questions. Whether you are new to the platform or already have games in development, we would love to meet you face-to-face, answer your questions, and see what you're working on. Be sure to keep checking the GDC site because we'll be adding more sessions.
But that's not all. Google and GDC will also be providing complimentary Android phones to attendees who register for All Access or Tutorials and Summits passes by the Early Bird deadline of February 4, 2010. Qualified attendees will receive either a Nexus One or a Verizon Droid by Motorola, so they can quickly apply what they learn from the various Android sessions. You can find more details about the Android phone offer on the GDC site.
Our goal is to make it as easy as possible to develop awesome games for Android, and this is a first step. Hope to see you at GDC!
Sony Ericsson Vivaz or Kurara upcoming phone
Sony Ericsson Vivaz is a newly announced mobile phone. it also known as Sony Ericsson Kurara. it's a high end phone which has many new features. Sony Ericsson Vivaz has a 3.2 inch touchscreen and an Accelerometer sensor. also this phone runs Symbian Series 60, 5th edition OS. it has 70MB internal memory and supports up to 32GB memory cards.
Vivaz has a 750MHz processor and a PowerVR SGX graphics chip to give high resolution. it has a TV out which gives VGA output and has many pre installed applications.
the main camera of this phone is 8MP which supports 3264x2448 pixels picture resolution. this camera has very interesting touch focus feature. camera application also has geo-tagging and face and smile detection features. also Sony Ericsson Vivaz supports HD video recording. the maximum video quality is 1280x720 pixels 30fps video.
in connectivity side Sony Ericsson Vivaz supports 10.2MBP/s HSDPA and 2MBP/s HSUPA connectivity. it has a very good GPS receiver with Wisepilot navigation support.
Vivaz has a 750MHz processor and a PowerVR SGX graphics chip to give high resolution. it has a TV out which gives VGA output and has many pre installed applications.
the main camera of this phone is 8MP which supports 3264x2448 pixels picture resolution. this camera has very interesting touch focus feature. camera application also has geo-tagging and face and smile detection features. also Sony Ericsson Vivaz supports HD video recording. the maximum video quality is 1280x720 pixels 30fps video.
in connectivity side Sony Ericsson Vivaz supports 10.2MBP/s HSDPA and 2MBP/s HSUPA connectivity. it has a very good GPS receiver with Wisepilot navigation support.
Google shoots itself in the foot in mobile
I wish I knew the inside story on Google's recent confrontation with the Chinese government. At first Google's announcement looked like a principled, well thought-out stand in a long behind-the-scenes dispute (link). But as more details have emerged, it has started to look as if Google didn't think through the consequences outside of its core search business. In the mobile market, those consequences could be significant. Here's why...
Google's Android OS has been gaining enormous support among mobile operators and handset vendors because it was viewed as the most feasible alternative to total domination by Apple. All of the other OS options had nasty baggage -- Microsoft was viewed as both controlling and unable to create demand, Symbian was seen as Nokia's pet, and the other flavors of Linux were all below critical mass.
In contrast, Google seemed technically competent, vendor-neutral, and capable of attracting users. (By the way, it says something about Apple's growing power in the mobile industry that a company as controlling as Google was seen as the safe partner; it's kind of like cozying up to a kodiak bear to escape a tiger.)
Google's dispute in China damages its image as a safe partner. A phone announcement in China involving Motorola, Samsung, and China Unicom has now been delayed because of the dispute, and it's not clear when it will be rescheduled. The public story on the delay is that Google demanded it (link), but I'm not sure I believe that. China Unicom is basically owned by the Chinese government, and I wouldn't be surprised if the delay was forced by them as a way to punish Google.
Either way, picture how this must feel to Motorola and Samsung. They have nothing to do with the dispute, but now they're trapped between Google and the Chinese government. That wouldn't be a big deal if we were talking about, say, the Cambodian phone market (no offense, Cambodia), but Samsung and Motorola both view China as a critical growth market. They can't afford to be pushed out of it.
Even aside from the political fears, real economic damage has already been done. Google's actions have delayed the imminent release of some major licensees' devices. Unless you have worked in a handset company, it's hard to understand how utterly unacceptable that is to them. Product launches are planned many months in advance, and are coordinated down to the day. Samsung and Motorola both have phone inventory waiting to be sold. There's cash tied up in that inventory, salespeople can't make their quotas, advertising was probably planned that now has to be rescheduled at additional cost, and so on. Plus, both companies now lose ground to competitors selling other devices. Most phones have a short lifetime anyway, so sales lost now probably can't be made up later. If you were a Motorola employee and you caused that sort of disruption, you'd probably get fired. But Motorola can't fire its OS supplier.
At least not immediately.
Because of problems like this, Google is now talking hopefully about retaining its business unit in China even if it closes down its search engine there (link). That raises the question of why Google threatened to completely pull out of China in the first place. If I were an official in the Chinese government, I'd view this flip-flop as a sign of vulnerability, and would be tempted to systematically go after targets like Android in an effort to put more pressure on Google. But for the moment the government appears to be moving cautiously, perhaps to avoid creating sympathy for Google.
Maybe in a week Google and the Chinese government will have come up with a neat, face-saving resolution to the whole problem. But even in that best-case scenario, Google's image as a supplier to the mobile industry has been damaged. The company has shown that its search business is more important to it (and more top-of-mind) than its mobile OS. Mobile operators outside of China won't care about this, but the handset vendors will. Some of them are based in China, and almost all manufacture there and sell into that market. Who's to say that Google won't end up in another dispute in China in another year? Add in Google's decision to start making its own phones in competition with licensees, and it now looks like a much less reliable OS supplier than it was six months ago.
To a Chinese phone company, relying on Android must now feel extremely uncomfortable. I bet Samsung went ballistic in private; it is completely intolerant of a supplier who's interested in anything other than making Samsung rich. I'd expect Samsung to put more emphasis on its other OS options in the future. And somewhere at Motorola, a harried executive is probably rolling his or her eyes and starting work on evaluating alternative smartphone operating systems, yet again.
The question is what alternative they'd choose. There's speculation that the LiMO alliance may be strengthened (link), and I could picture Chinese officials eventually trying to create a home-grown OS standard, just as they did in 3G (link). But the most straightforward alternative is Symbian, and I suspect it may get a quiet second look in many places -- although for the handset companies, that would feel like fleeing a tiger and a bear in order to hug an anaconda.
Google's Android OS has been gaining enormous support among mobile operators and handset vendors because it was viewed as the most feasible alternative to total domination by Apple. All of the other OS options had nasty baggage -- Microsoft was viewed as both controlling and unable to create demand, Symbian was seen as Nokia's pet, and the other flavors of Linux were all below critical mass.
In contrast, Google seemed technically competent, vendor-neutral, and capable of attracting users. (By the way, it says something about Apple's growing power in the mobile industry that a company as controlling as Google was seen as the safe partner; it's kind of like cozying up to a kodiak bear to escape a tiger.)
Google's dispute in China damages its image as a safe partner. A phone announcement in China involving Motorola, Samsung, and China Unicom has now been delayed because of the dispute, and it's not clear when it will be rescheduled. The public story on the delay is that Google demanded it (link), but I'm not sure I believe that. China Unicom is basically owned by the Chinese government, and I wouldn't be surprised if the delay was forced by them as a way to punish Google.
Either way, picture how this must feel to Motorola and Samsung. They have nothing to do with the dispute, but now they're trapped between Google and the Chinese government. That wouldn't be a big deal if we were talking about, say, the Cambodian phone market (no offense, Cambodia), but Samsung and Motorola both view China as a critical growth market. They can't afford to be pushed out of it.
Even aside from the political fears, real economic damage has already been done. Google's actions have delayed the imminent release of some major licensees' devices. Unless you have worked in a handset company, it's hard to understand how utterly unacceptable that is to them. Product launches are planned many months in advance, and are coordinated down to the day. Samsung and Motorola both have phone inventory waiting to be sold. There's cash tied up in that inventory, salespeople can't make their quotas, advertising was probably planned that now has to be rescheduled at additional cost, and so on. Plus, both companies now lose ground to competitors selling other devices. Most phones have a short lifetime anyway, so sales lost now probably can't be made up later. If you were a Motorola employee and you caused that sort of disruption, you'd probably get fired. But Motorola can't fire its OS supplier.
At least not immediately.
Because of problems like this, Google is now talking hopefully about retaining its business unit in China even if it closes down its search engine there (link). That raises the question of why Google threatened to completely pull out of China in the first place. If I were an official in the Chinese government, I'd view this flip-flop as a sign of vulnerability, and would be tempted to systematically go after targets like Android in an effort to put more pressure on Google. But for the moment the government appears to be moving cautiously, perhaps to avoid creating sympathy for Google.
Maybe in a week Google and the Chinese government will have come up with a neat, face-saving resolution to the whole problem. But even in that best-case scenario, Google's image as a supplier to the mobile industry has been damaged. The company has shown that its search business is more important to it (and more top-of-mind) than its mobile OS. Mobile operators outside of China won't care about this, but the handset vendors will. Some of them are based in China, and almost all manufacture there and sell into that market. Who's to say that Google won't end up in another dispute in China in another year? Add in Google's decision to start making its own phones in competition with licensees, and it now looks like a much less reliable OS supplier than it was six months ago.
To a Chinese phone company, relying on Android must now feel extremely uncomfortable. I bet Samsung went ballistic in private; it is completely intolerant of a supplier who's interested in anything other than making Samsung rich. I'd expect Samsung to put more emphasis on its other OS options in the future. And somewhere at Motorola, a harried executive is probably rolling his or her eyes and starting work on evaluating alternative smartphone operating systems, yet again.
The question is what alternative they'd choose. There's speculation that the LiMO alliance may be strengthened (link), and I could picture Chinese officials eventually trying to create a home-grown OS standard, just as they did in 3G (link). But the most straightforward alternative is Symbian, and I suspect it may get a quiet second look in many places -- although for the handset companies, that would feel like fleeing a tiger and a bear in order to hug an anaconda.
123456, The Most Popular Password
According to this article from the NY Times, "123456" is the most popular password right up there with "password", "iloveyou" and "princess".On a seperate news, NY Times will likely to charge, 2nd attempt, for audience to read their news articles online... its like taking one step forward and two steps backwards. (shaking my head in disbelief!)
IRC office hours update
You may recall that we announced IRC Office Hours for Android app developers back in December. We just want to provide a quick update that upcoming office hours will be held on Thursdays from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. PST, instead of twice weekly. These will be held in the #android-dev channel on irc.freenode.net as before.
Please post your questions on Stack Overflow with "from-irc" tag in addition to "android" tag one day before office hours. We will follow up on those specific questions during office hours, and will also post answers after.
We hope to see you there!
Jawbone Icon Bluetooth Headset is out, Not Feeling it...
I remembered when Aliph introduced its original Jawbone bluetooth headsets with killer industrial design as well as performance that blew away most of the competitions. Along the way, Aliph introduced a couple of updates (Jawbone II, Jawbone Prime) but the bluetooth headset market has gotten extremely fierce thus making it hard to stand out like the original.Yesterday, I received news on the new Aliph Jawbone Icon headset. This tiny jewel is supposed to have packed with all sorts of nice amenities including iPhone battery meter and some sort of app tie-in with their My-Talk website service.
Several things looks disappointing from my early gatherings: 1). They did not include a set of dedicated volume buttons figuring their auto adjust sensor would do the trick and 2). The design is a little too fashionable, to the point where it reminds me a set of fancy cuff links hanging off the side of your face. In all fairness, I've not tried this headset yet. But until I can get a review unit for a final verdict, I'm more looking forward to the new Spracht Aura BT headset that is coming soon.
Samsung S5630C new phone with Anycall brand
Samsung S5630C is another newly announced phone which comes with Anycall brand. they going to release this phone to Chinese market only. it's a 2.8 inch touchscreen phone which has a an Accelerometer sensor as well. the internal memory of this phone is 80MB and it supports up to 8GB memory cards.
Samsung S5630C has bluetooth but wi-fi is not avilable. it's a 3G HSDPA phone which supports 3.6MBP/s HSDPA. the main camera of this phone is 3.15MP and it supports video recording as well. Samsung S5630C supports java applications and it has a good media player which supports many file formats.
Samsung S5630C has bluetooth but wi-fi is not avilable. it's a 3G HSDPA phone which supports 3.6MBP/s HSDPA. the main camera of this phone is 3.15MP and it supports video recording as well. Samsung S5630C supports java applications and it has a good media player which supports many file formats.
Retrolink NES Classic Controller USB - $8 at Amazon
My cousin actually gave me one of these for Christmas. This is a retrolink-NES USB controller, perfect for them ROMs and Emulators. I noticed it going for $8 (shipped free if you are an Amazon Prime account holder). This is for a pre-order so they won't have stock until sometimes in Feb; better snag it when its cheap!
Location Area Codes (LAC)
Location Area Codes (LAC)The desire to create databases containing MCC/MNC/LAC/CellID may seem a good idea but might produce inaccurate or erroenous results depending upon the way in which the information is used. It is known that LACs (and CellIDs for that matter) change and therefore a database becomes out of data fairly quickly.LACs change for various reasons. Commonly LAC Dimensioning can be
Motorola Shadow Google Nexus two Unofficial review
if you are a mobile phone fan, you may already know about Google Nexus one phone. it was a most talked phone and released in this January. this phone made by HTC and it has a 1GHz processor. but personally i believe this phone is not a super phone, and it has couple of weaknesses in the design and the Android OS as well.
this new phone is also a Android phone which has more features and good design. it says to be Google Nexus two. but still Motorola haven't announced it officially. these are the unofficial specifications.
Motorola Shadow has a 4.3 inch huge capacitive touchscreen which supports multi-touch. the phone has a slider QWERTY keypad as well. it has 8GB internal memory and supports up to 32GB memory cards. i assume it has a 1.3GHz processor because now this processor exists.
Motorola Shadow has a 8MP camera and it supports HD video recording. also it has a built-in HDMI port to transfer HD videos.
this new phone is also a Android phone which has more features and good design. it says to be Google Nexus two. but still Motorola haven't announced it officially. these are the unofficial specifications.
Motorola Shadow has a 4.3 inch huge capacitive touchscreen which supports multi-touch. the phone has a slider QWERTY keypad as well. it has 8GB internal memory and supports up to 32GB memory cards. i assume it has a 1.3GHz processor because now this processor exists.
Motorola Shadow has a 8MP camera and it supports HD video recording. also it has a built-in HDMI port to transfer HD videos.
New Motorola XT720 MOTOROI Android phone for korea
If you have seen my previous posts, you may figure out this phone is similar to Motorola XT701 in appearance. but this is a new version which going to be release to the Korean market only. Motorola announced about this phone in 2010 January and it will be released in 2010 February.
this phone has a 8MP camera and supports HD video recording. also the camera has xenon flash and supports Geo-tagging, face and smile detection features. Motorola XT720 supports T-DMB broadcasting service for Korea. the internal memory of this phone is 8GB and it supports up to 32GB memory cards. it has a 3.7 inch touchscreen which supports Multi-touch input method.
Motorola XT720 MOTOROI runs with Google Android V2.0 OS. it has a built in HDMI slot to get the recorded video out. and it comes with lots of applications installed to Adroid.
this phone has a 8MP camera and supports HD video recording. also the camera has xenon flash and supports Geo-tagging, face and smile detection features. Motorola XT720 supports T-DMB broadcasting service for Korea. the internal memory of this phone is 8GB and it supports up to 32GB memory cards. it has a 3.7 inch touchscreen which supports Multi-touch input method.
Motorola XT720 MOTOROI runs with Google Android V2.0 OS. it has a built in HDMI slot to get the recorded video out. and it comes with lots of applications installed to Adroid.
LG GW820 eXpo new phone for AT&T with a Mobile Projector
LG announced about this phone in 2009 December and still they haven't released it. LG GW820 eXpo is an AT&T phone. it has a 3.2 inch resistive touchscreen and a slider mechanism full QWERTY keypad. the internal memory of this phone is 128MB and it supports up to 16GB memory cards.
in connectivity side, LG GW820 eXpo supports 7.2MBP/s HSDPA and it has both blueooth and Wi-Fi. even this phone looks like a regular one, it has a 1GHz processor. i think this is the first 1GHz phone of LG. also GW820 eXpo runs with Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5 Professional OS.
the main camera of this phone is 5MP and it comes with a LED flash. it supports VGA video recording as well. as i mentioned in the title, LG GW820 eXpo has a built in mobile projector. LG also says this phone has a Smart Sensor fingerprint recognition feature. but still they haven't announced much information about these two features.
in connectivity side, LG GW820 eXpo supports 7.2MBP/s HSDPA and it has both blueooth and Wi-Fi. even this phone looks like a regular one, it has a 1GHz processor. i think this is the first 1GHz phone of LG. also GW820 eXpo runs with Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5 Professional OS.
the main camera of this phone is 5MP and it comes with a LED flash. it supports VGA video recording as well. as i mentioned in the title, LG GW820 eXpo has a built in mobile projector. LG also says this phone has a Smart Sensor fingerprint recognition feature. but still they haven't announced much information about these two features.
Samsung M2520 Beat Techno new music phone
couple of months ago Samsung released very cool and smart music phone samsung beat DJ. this new phone which called M2520 Beat Techno is like the brother of beat DJ. this new phone is not a high end phone but it has very good music quality. it has DNSe (Digital Natural Sound Engine) technology which outputs very quality sound. Samsung M2520 Beat Techno also has dedicated music keys.
the internal memory of this phone is 15MB and supports up to 8GB memory cards.
Samsung M2520 Beat Techno is not a 3G phone and wi-fi is not available. it has 1.3mp camera and a stereo FM radio. this phone has an automatic equalizer application called Auto EQ. also you can find your music very easily via Find Music recognition service.
the internal memory of this phone is 15MB and supports up to 8GB memory cards.
Samsung M2520 Beat Techno is not a 3G phone and wi-fi is not available. it has 1.3mp camera and a stereo FM radio. this phone has an automatic equalizer application called Auto EQ. also you can find your music very easily via Find Music recognition service.
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It's been a while...
Its been quite some time since I've posted anything here. Sincere apologies. I've been pretty busy at my work as my managers have really been challenging me (aka kicking my ass) but its a good feeling to constantly push oneself. That said, I'll actually be working towards a mobile commerce related project and will be sure to update my general experience in dealing with this upcoming project here. Speaking of which, I read that Digby just locked in a new retail client, Wet Seal which makes the mobile platform war quite fierce between Digby and UsableNet. My only gripe with UsableNet at the moment is that they insist on making you use a subdomain based on UsableNet.
As far as Mobile OS front, I've been playing around with Google's NEXUS One since around the Middle of December. Because of the NDA from the party where I had access from, I didn't want to post any feedback on it until this month. The procrastination got to the best of me so a perfectly good draft of Nexus One is just sitting on my desktop. In short, the phone is pretty slick as far as hardware and software integration goes (love that little vibration when you press on the touchpad) but the hardware itself doesn't make you feel like its a premium phone. Don't get me wrong, the OLED display is crisp and the Snap Dragon CPU is blazingly fast, but my general take with Android OS has been that it is trying to be too smart, thus taking away some of the control and decision making a user is accustomed to (case in point, I had a heck of a time loading my contacts from MacBook address book to the darn thing). There is no doubt in my mind, Android has the staying power and my prediction still stands, Google Mobile will dominate this space very soon.
Other updates:
Mobile Monday Brooklyn, is an event for all mobile fans to gather up and drink Free Beers. Check it out if you are in the neighborhood and talk mobile.
Random shoutout:
I just discovered OakleyVault.com, pretty steep discounts on my favorite brand of sunglasses and casual apparels.
Earthquake Haiti:
Please support them anyway you can. Red Cross is taking donations via Mobile, simply text "90999" and you'll be making a donation via your cell phone bill. More options can be read here.
As far as Mobile OS front, I've been playing around with Google's NEXUS One since around the Middle of December. Because of the NDA from the party where I had access from, I didn't want to post any feedback on it until this month. The procrastination got to the best of me so a perfectly good draft of Nexus One is just sitting on my desktop. In short, the phone is pretty slick as far as hardware and software integration goes (love that little vibration when you press on the touchpad) but the hardware itself doesn't make you feel like its a premium phone. Don't get me wrong, the OLED display is crisp and the Snap Dragon CPU is blazingly fast, but my general take with Android OS has been that it is trying to be too smart, thus taking away some of the control and decision making a user is accustomed to (case in point, I had a heck of a time loading my contacts from MacBook address book to the darn thing). There is no doubt in my mind, Android has the staying power and my prediction still stands, Google Mobile will dominate this space very soon.
Other updates:
Mobile Monday Brooklyn, is an event for all mobile fans to gather up and drink Free Beers. Check it out if you are in the neighborhood and talk mobile.
Random shoutout:
I just discovered OakleyVault.com, pretty steep discounts on my favorite brand of sunglasses and casual apparels.
Earthquake Haiti:
Please support them anyway you can. Red Cross is taking donations via Mobile, simply text "90999" and you'll be making a donation via your cell phone bill. More options can be read here.
Nokia 3208c New touchscreen phone with keypad
Nokia 3208c is a upcoming phone which announced 2009 September. and they will release this phone to china market only. Nokia 3208c has a 2.4 inch display with touchscreen. it also has a keypad as well. this phone supports the handwriting recognition feature.
Nokia 3208c has 13mb internal memory and supports up to 4GB memory cards. this phone has a 2Mp camera which supports video recording. Nokia 3208c is a 2G phone and wi-fi is not available. it has a good media player and a FM radio with RDS.
Nokia 3208c has 13mb internal memory and supports up to 4GB memory cards. this phone has a 2Mp camera which supports video recording. Nokia 3208c is a 2G phone and wi-fi is not available. it has a good media player and a FM radio with RDS.
Nokia 7020 is cheap but a handy flap phone
Nokia 7020 is a newest phone which released in 2009 December. it's just a simple phone but has very nice look. Nokia 7020 is a 2G phone which has a 2.2 inch display. it has a good music player and music quality but unfortunately this phone has a 2.5mm audio jack. so you can't use other regular earphones with it.
the internal memory of this phone is 45MB and it supports up to 16GB memory cards. Nokia 7020 has a 2MP camera which supports video recording as well. it has newest Symbian S60 OS and comes with number of applications like Nokia maps and windows live messenger.
the internal memory of this phone is 45MB and it supports up to 16GB memory cards. Nokia 7020 has a 2MP camera which supports video recording as well. it has newest Symbian S60 OS and comes with number of applications like Nokia maps and windows live messenger.
Android 2.1 SDK
Today, we are releasing the SDK component for Android 2.1, so that developers can take advantage of the new features introduced in Android 2.1. Please read the Android 2.1 release notes for more details. You can download the Android 2.1 component through the SDK Manager.
In addition to the new SDK, a new USB driver that supports Nexus One is also available today through the SDK Manager. The USB driver page contains more information.
Motorola XT800 another new Motorola phone with Androis OS
if you have seen my previous posts you may find number of high end new Motorola phones which runs Android OS. Motorola announced more than 10 this type phones in last December and this January. most of them has very similar features.
Motorola XT800 is another this type phone which announced in December. this phone has a large 3.7 inch capacitive touch screen and supports multi-touch. it has 512mb internal memory and supports up to 32GB memory cards. Motorola XT800 supports 7.2MBP/s HSDPA connectivity. it also has both bluetooth and wi-fi.
like other related phones in XT series, Motorola XT800 has a 5MP camera. the camera comes with a dual LED flash and supports geo-tagging. it runs with Google Android version 2 OS which called Eclair.
also Motorola XT800 has good navigation features. it has a GPS receiver with A-GPS support and a digital compass. another special feature is this phone has a built-in HDMI port which allows to play back over HD videos.
Motorola XT800 is another this type phone which announced in December. this phone has a large 3.7 inch capacitive touch screen and supports multi-touch. it has 512mb internal memory and supports up to 32GB memory cards. Motorola XT800 supports 7.2MBP/s HSDPA connectivity. it also has both bluetooth and wi-fi.
like other related phones in XT series, Motorola XT800 has a 5MP camera. the camera comes with a dual LED flash and supports geo-tagging. it runs with Google Android version 2 OS which called Eclair.
also Motorola XT800 has good navigation features. it has a GPS receiver with A-GPS support and a digital compass. another special feature is this phone has a built-in HDMI port which allows to play back over HD videos.
LG GD880 Mini new touch phone with windows mobile OS
LG GD880 Mini is a newest phone which is not officially announced yet. this phone has a 3.2 inch touchscreen and an Accelerometer sensor. it has 100MB internal memory and supports up to 16GB memory cards. it supports 3.6MBP/s HSDPA and has bluetooth and wi-fi.
LG GD880 Mini has a 5Mp camera which supports 2592 x 1944 pixels resolution. even it's 3G phone it doesn't support HSDPA. as my title says LG GD880 Mini runs with windows mobile OS. this phone has a GPS receiver with A-GPS. also it has a good FM radio with RDS support.
LG GD880 Mini has a 5Mp camera which supports 2592 x 1944 pixels resolution. even it's 3G phone it doesn't support HSDPA. as my title says LG GD880 Mini runs with windows mobile OS. this phone has a GPS receiver with A-GPS. also it has a good FM radio with RDS support.
HTC Smart cheap upcoming touchscreen phone
HTC Smart is a smart phone as it's name. HTC announced about this phone in 2010 January and it will be available soon. HTC Smart is a full touchscreen phone which has a 2.8 inch touchscreen and it has Sense UI interface. this phone runs with a new OS called Brew Mobile.
HTC Smart is not a high end phone so it will be cheap. this phone has a 300MHz processor and a 256MB RAM. the internal memory is 256MB and it supports up to 16GB memory cards. HTC Smart is a 3G phone which supports 3.6MBP/s HSDPA. it has bluetooth but wi-fi is not available. the main camera of this phone is 3.15MP and it comes with a LED flash. HTC Smart phone has a good media player which supports many file formats and it has a 3.5mm audio jack as well.
LG GT540 newest phone with Google Android OS
As you know google Android is the mobile phone OS which has a very high trend to be popular. many major mobile phone manufacturers has announced their newest phones with Android OS. in current situation Samsung,HTC and Motorola are pioneers of this trend. but LG was silent and they launched only one phone with Android OS.
but this January LG announced about their newest phone LG GT540 with Google Android OS. it's a mid range full touchscreen phone which has lots of new features. they haven't specified it's touchscreen size yet but i assume it may be 3.2 inch. also this phone has 128MB built in memory and supports up to 32GB memory cards. LG GT540 is a 3G phone which supports 3.6MBP/s HSDPA. it also has bluetooth and wi-fi.
this phone has a 3.15mp camera which supports video recording as well. even LG GT540 is a 3G phone video call is not available in this phone. LG GT540 comes with many social networking and other great applications like youtube.
but this January LG announced about their newest phone LG GT540 with Google Android OS. it's a mid range full touchscreen phone which has lots of new features. they haven't specified it's touchscreen size yet but i assume it may be 3.2 inch. also this phone has 128MB built in memory and supports up to 32GB memory cards. LG GT540 is a 3G phone which supports 3.6MBP/s HSDPA. it also has bluetooth and wi-fi.
this phone has a 3.15mp camera which supports video recording as well. even LG GT540 is a 3G phone video call is not available in this phone. LG GT540 comes with many social networking and other great applications like youtube.
Motorola BACKFLIP like apple iphone in design
As you can see in these pictures, this phone is almost similar to apple iphone in design. but it's a new Motorola phone called Motorola BACKFLIP. they announced about this phone in this January and it will be available soon. the special thing of this phone is it has a full QWERTY key pad. Motorola BACKFLIP has a 3.1 inch display which is little bit smaller than iphone's screen.
this phone has a new interface called MOTOBLUR UI. and it runs with Google Android OS. also Motorola BACKFLIP supports up to 32GB memory cards and comes with a 2GB memory card. in connectivity side it supports 7.2MBP/s HSDPA and has bluetooth and wi-fi.
the main camera of this phone is 5Mp and it supports 24fps HVGA video recording. Motorola BACKFLIP has a GPS receiver with A-GPS support. it's microphone is special because it has noise cancellation feature.
this phone has a new interface called MOTOBLUR UI. and it runs with Google Android OS. also Motorola BACKFLIP supports up to 32GB memory cards and comes with a 2GB memory card. in connectivity side it supports 7.2MBP/s HSDPA and has bluetooth and wi-fi.
the main camera of this phone is 5Mp and it supports 24fps HVGA video recording. Motorola BACKFLIP has a GPS receiver with A-GPS support. it's microphone is special because it has noise cancellation feature.
Second Life isn't dead, but it's a niche
Lately, some articles wondered about what had happened to Second Life, the virtual world that had a quite intensive hype period in 2007 and 2008. Usually, these articles follow a similar pattern: a journalists revisits the "lost" virtual world, isn't really impressed by what he/she sees. The article is then followed by a few comments by average visitors, who tend to agree with the journalist, and then the Second Life community discovers the article and start defending their world with examples of great projects being done in Second Life and sooner or later accuse the journalist of not going to the right places and not taking enough time.
Second Life is a niche
Well, here's the thing: I did spend a lot of time in Second Life, met many, many wonderful people in there, and I know what great things people are doing there. So I hope I can add my 2 cents into the debate from a fair perspective. If you ask me, SL certainly isn't dead, and it is in fact doing quite well from a business perspective. But I also think it's fair to say that it is a niche service. It's great for content creators, artists, musicians, it's great for people with enough patience and perseverance to put up with the lag and other technical issues. But it's awful for the average internet user, and I must confess that I'm also having difficulties with finding reasons to log in other than to read and respond to the occasional message or notice.
Yes, you can attend many wonderful events, see a lot of great art etc.. But only if you are prepared to spend a lot of time troubleshooting various technical problems. Have meetings? Yes, but only with people already using SL. In all these years I haven't managed to convince a single friend to try out SL, and believe me, I tried!
Doing one thing really, really well
I think the main problem with Second Life is that it can do almost everything, but that it doesn't do anything really, really well, but at the same time it has a huge learning curve. On the other hand, a more limited virtual world like World of Warcraft is really good at keeping its users engaged and entertained for hours and hours. No, you can't have your own house or design your own clothes in there, but nonetheless you have a lot of fun! And I must confess that lately I prefer killing Murlocs in Azeroth (and paying for it!) to waiting for the newest Second Life wonder to load.
A lot of potential, but not there yet
Now, don't get me wrong. I still do believe that virtual worlds have a lot of potential, potential for education, potential for doing business. But I can't teach if my students have to spend hours just to start feeling comfortable in a new environment, and I can't do business meetings without having any of my business partners in-world. I would love to do all that, to save all of us the environmental and other costs of travels, but I can't.
So, while there is a lot of potential, there isn't a virtual world that fully uses it - at least not for the average user, who isn't willing to spend hours learning a new piece of software.
Who is going to reinvent virtual worlds?
And that is why I'm still waiting for someone that will be able to reinvent virtual worlds in such a way that it will be easy and nice to have classes in-world or business meetings. And at this point I'm not sure Linden Lab, the makers of Second Life, will be able to pull that off. M Linden is no Steve Jobs. And what we need is an iPhone of virtual worlds. Something that will be so intuitive, so sexy that everyone will want a piece of it. Something with an awesome user interface that is able to provide a great user experience. That's the one thing my ideal virtual world should do really, really well.
And while I'm running out of patience for Second Life's technical woes, I still believe that someday something that reinvents virtual worlds will come along. Perhaps it will be some sort of augmented reality application or something entirely new. I don't know, but I can wait for the right thing.
Second Life is a niche
Well, here's the thing: I did spend a lot of time in Second Life, met many, many wonderful people in there, and I know what great things people are doing there. So I hope I can add my 2 cents into the debate from a fair perspective. If you ask me, SL certainly isn't dead, and it is in fact doing quite well from a business perspective. But I also think it's fair to say that it is a niche service. It's great for content creators, artists, musicians, it's great for people with enough patience and perseverance to put up with the lag and other technical issues. But it's awful for the average internet user, and I must confess that I'm also having difficulties with finding reasons to log in other than to read and respond to the occasional message or notice.
Yes, you can attend many wonderful events, see a lot of great art etc.. But only if you are prepared to spend a lot of time troubleshooting various technical problems. Have meetings? Yes, but only with people already using SL. In all these years I haven't managed to convince a single friend to try out SL, and believe me, I tried!
Doing one thing really, really well
I think the main problem with Second Life is that it can do almost everything, but that it doesn't do anything really, really well, but at the same time it has a huge learning curve. On the other hand, a more limited virtual world like World of Warcraft is really good at keeping its users engaged and entertained for hours and hours. No, you can't have your own house or design your own clothes in there, but nonetheless you have a lot of fun! And I must confess that lately I prefer killing Murlocs in Azeroth (and paying for it!) to waiting for the newest Second Life wonder to load.
My lil' gnome mage (right) might not have custom hair or skin like my SL avatar (left), but she's more fun to hang out with
A lot of potential, but not there yet
Now, don't get me wrong. I still do believe that virtual worlds have a lot of potential, potential for education, potential for doing business. But I can't teach if my students have to spend hours just to start feeling comfortable in a new environment, and I can't do business meetings without having any of my business partners in-world. I would love to do all that, to save all of us the environmental and other costs of travels, but I can't.
So, while there is a lot of potential, there isn't a virtual world that fully uses it - at least not for the average user, who isn't willing to spend hours learning a new piece of software.
Who is going to reinvent virtual worlds?
And that is why I'm still waiting for someone that will be able to reinvent virtual worlds in such a way that it will be easy and nice to have classes in-world or business meetings. And at this point I'm not sure Linden Lab, the makers of Second Life, will be able to pull that off. M Linden is no Steve Jobs. And what we need is an iPhone of virtual worlds. Something that will be so intuitive, so sexy that everyone will want a piece of it. Something with an awesome user interface that is able to provide a great user experience. That's the one thing my ideal virtual world should do really, really well.
And while I'm running out of patience for Second Life's technical woes, I still believe that someday something that reinvents virtual worlds will come along. Perhaps it will be some sort of augmented reality application or something entirely new. I don't know, but I can wait for the right thing.
HTC Bravo upcoming phone
HTC Bravo is another super mobile phone from HTC which is not officially announced yet. it's a another Google Android phone HTC. it has a 3.2 inch capacitive touchscreen and supports multi-touch. HTC Bravo has an optical trackball as well.
this phone powered by a 1GHz processor and has 320MB of RAM. it has 512MB internal memory and supports up to 32GB memory cards. this phone has a 3.5mm audio jack and it's sound features are very special. HTC Bravo supports Dolby Mobile sound enhancement feature which gives very high quality sound.
HTC Bravo supports 7.2MBP/s HSDPA and 2.0MBP/s HSUPA connectivity. it has both bluetooth and wi-fi as well.
HTC Bravo has a 5MP camera with a LED flash. it also supports high resolution video record. the maximum video resolution is 1280x720 pixels. it has a GPS receiver and a Digital compass. also HTC Bravo comes with lots of applications.
this phone powered by a 1GHz processor and has 320MB of RAM. it has 512MB internal memory and supports up to 32GB memory cards. this phone has a 3.5mm audio jack and it's sound features are very special. HTC Bravo supports Dolby Mobile sound enhancement feature which gives very high quality sound.
HTC Bravo supports 7.2MBP/s HSDPA and 2.0MBP/s HSUPA connectivity. it has both bluetooth and wi-fi as well.
HTC Bravo has a 5MP camera with a LED flash. it also supports high resolution video record. the maximum video resolution is 1280x720 pixels. it has a GPS receiver and a Digital compass. also HTC Bravo comes with lots of applications.
Spracht Aura EQ Bluetooth Headset Looks Great
Spracht has been making quality bluetooth accessories for a while now, I've even covered a couple of reviews myself here and here. What they have announced today at CES is probably their hottest design to date: the Aura EQ Bluetooth Headset. It has already received so much buzz amongst the tech blog sites instantly. From "futuristic", "looks like a stealth bomber", to "alien symbiote", this hot little headset is sure to take the crown as the next hottest bluetooth headset.Some noteworthy features: it amplifies receiving voice to account for exterior noises or bad connection and it has no buttons to mess with using a capacitive touch so you can adjust volume simply by sliding your finger on the unit itself (not sure how it holds up by accidental touch).
Nokia 6700 slide cheap 5mp camera phone
Nokia announced about this phone little early and it will be available at the Q1 of year 2010. according to Nokia, this phone is going to be cheap. Nokia 6700 slide is a 5Mp camera phone which has lots of other new features. it's a 3G phone and supports 10.2MBP/s 3g HSDPA speed. this phone has bluetooth but wi-fi is not available.
the internal memory of this phone is 45MB and it supports up to 16GB memory cards. also Nokia 6700 slide comes with a 2GB memory card included.
as i mentioned earlier Nokia 6700 slide has a 5MP camera. this camera made with Nokia's Carl Zeiss optics and has a LED flash. this phone has a FM radio with RDS. also GPS is not available but it comes with Nokia Maps application.
the internal memory of this phone is 45MB and it supports up to 16GB memory cards. also Nokia 6700 slide comes with a 2GB memory card included.
as i mentioned earlier Nokia 6700 slide has a 5MP camera. this camera made with Nokia's Carl Zeiss optics and has a LED flash. this phone has a FM radio with RDS. also GPS is not available but it comes with Nokia Maps application.
Motorola MT710 another super mobile phone is comming
Motorola announced about this phone in last December. MT710 is another high end mobile phone which has 3.7 inch capacitive touchscreen. this phone runs with Google Android OS. according to their press release Motorola MT710 will be available in next couple of months.
it has a 3.7 inch capacitive touchscreen and supports multi-touch. the internal memory of this phone is 4GB and it supports up to 32GB memory cards. Motorola MT710 supports 7.2MBP/s HSDPA connectivity. it also has both bluetooth and wi-fi. the main camera of this phone is 5MP. it comes with a LED flash and has geo-tagging feature.
another very special feature of this phone is TV CMMB broadcast receiver. Motorola MT710 has a good GPS receiver with A-GPS support. it also comes with lots of applications like YouTube and Google Talk.
Victorian Texting
Victorian Texting.During the Christmas 2009 break I managed to visit and take the tour of Porthcurno Telegraph Museum in Cornwall (http://www.porthcurno.org.uk/). A truly amazing place, full of historical artefacts depicting the history of telegraph, morse code etc. I recommend all UK and international examiners and experts who haven't been to the Museum to visit and learn about the history of
Sony Ericsson Elm HD audio 5mp camera phone
Sony Ericsson Elm is another newest phone which has lots of cool features. it's a very good music phone because of the HD Voice ready feature. Sony Ericsson announced this phone in 2009 December and it will be available in next couple of months.
Sony Ericsson Elm has a 2.2 inch display and 280MB internal memory. it also supports up to 16GB memory cards. this phone has an Accelerometer sensor for rotate UI and allows to play motion based games. in connectivity side,Sony Ericsson Elm has a 7.2MBP/s HSDPA modem. and it has both bluetooth and wi-fi.
it has a 5MP camera which comes with a led flash. the camera supports Geo-tagging, face and smile detection features. it's GPS receiver also supports A-GPS and has Wisepilot navigation feature. another good feature of this phone is Noise cancellation with dedicated microphone.
Sony Ericsson Elm made with Eco friendly materials. it has lots of useful applications like Picture editor/blogging,CO2 Calculator,YouTube, Facebook, MySpace and Twitter.
Sony Ericsson Elm has a 2.2 inch display and 280MB internal memory. it also supports up to 16GB memory cards. this phone has an Accelerometer sensor for rotate UI and allows to play motion based games. in connectivity side,Sony Ericsson Elm has a 7.2MBP/s HSDPA modem. and it has both bluetooth and wi-fi.
it has a 5MP camera which comes with a led flash. the camera supports Geo-tagging, face and smile detection features. it's GPS receiver also supports A-GPS and has Wisepilot navigation feature. another good feature of this phone is Noise cancellation with dedicated microphone.
Sony Ericsson Elm made with Eco friendly materials. it has lots of useful applications like Picture editor/blogging,CO2 Calculator,YouTube, Facebook, MySpace and Twitter.
Samsung S5550 5mp camera upcoming phone
Samsung S5550 is a newest phone which is not officially announced. but this may be a valuable phone because it has a 5mp camera. the phone has a slider opening keypad and has a 2.2 inch display. Samsung S5550 has DNSe (Digital Natural Sound Engine) technology which outputs very good quality sound.
the internal memory of this phone is 106mb and it supports up to 8GB memory cards. also Samsung S5550 is a 3G phone which supports 3.6mbp/s HSDPA. as i said earlier Samsung S5550 has a 5mp camera with LED flash. the maximum resolution is 2592 x 1944 pixels and it supports Face detection feature.
this phone has a good FM radio with RDS and has pre installed applications like google maps. but GPS is not available.
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