June 18th, 2008 | Posted in Comms, Mobile | 
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While the Supernova conference is mostly about the future of the network, a part of that network is mobile. And if you listen to most attendees, the two most important mobile players right now are Apple and the iPhone and Google and Android.
Oddly, it’s as if two other established players — Nokia and Research in Motion — have been relegated to the sideline as also-rans. One conference attendee even asked during a discussion about the future of mobile, “Is Blackberry dead?”
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June 17th, 2008 | Posted in Comms, Mobile | 1 Comment
The mobile buzzwords at Supernova 2008 are plentiful: location, social networks, iPhone, Android, the cloud. But these are so . . . now.
At Supernova on Monday we got a glimpse of what’s next for mobile and our digital lifestyles and quite frankly, it has squat to do with hardware like the iPhone, software like Google’s open-source operating system Android, mobile platforms put forth by Apple, Google, Nokia, Research in Motion, and the carriers.
What’s coming is life profound: Put billions of sensors in cell phones, regardless of hardware, operating system, or carrier, and affect the way we understand traffic or the weather. With continued advances in chipsets, accelerometers, compasses, we can change the way we interact virtually with the physical world around us. We can turn monthly cell phone bills, which are difficult to use beyond paying, into living information integrated into our working and personal lives and social networks.
“We’re just getting started,” said Bob iannucci, Nokia’s chief technology officer.
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June 13th, 2008 | Posted in Comms, Mobile, Other | No Comments
As with everything else iPhone, there’s been a great deal of speculation following the Worldwide Developers Conference regarding the App Store, where Apple intends to sell and distribute third-party applications.
There’s been talk of the grand opening being in July and at the end of June. Details continue to trickle out about how the store will operate. And “overnight” polls indicate the App Store will mean hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue, perhaps even a billion, for Apple by the end of 2009.
One thing puzzles me, though: How can Apple potentially make $1 billion from the App Store by the end of 2009 when it’s estimated by some that 70 percent of the third-party applications will be free?
Go figure.
For now, here’s a quick look back at some of the App Store news following the WWDC keynote.
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June 11th, 2008 | Posted in Comms, Mobile, Net TV, Other | 3 Comments
There are only a couple of more shopping days left until Father’s Day, that once-a-year event when wives and kids all across the U.S. buy Dad ties, aftershave, and other things he — let’s be honest here — will never use.
So to make shopping easier this year, we’ve assembled a few digital lifestyle ideas for your husband or Dad. Most of these are more expensive than Aqua Velva aftershave but, since we’re being honest here, these are what Dad might buy for himself, including a remote control beer cooler.
The obvious
The most sought-after Father’s Day gift on the planet will be the new 3G iPhone from Apple, which isn’t available until July 11. Until then, a hand-written IOU redeemable for the iPhone will do. Thankfully, the price is coming way down: $199 for the 8 GB model, $299 for the 16 GB phone. And since it now supports the enterprise with Microsoft Exchange syncing and other business-place features, the grumpy IT guys at Dad’s office will be happy.
Alternatives: none. Sure, we could argue for a Sony Ericsson, BlackBerry, or HTC smart phone, but why bother? Until Google’s Android phones are available — long after this Father’s Day is over — the iPhone will head Dad’s wish list.
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June 11th, 2008 | Posted in Comms, Mobile | No Comments
You may be tiring of iPhone news, but this — the post Worldwide Developers Conference keynote days — is just the quiet before the next iPhone deluge — the July 11 availability of the phone and the grand opening of the App Store.
For the next 30 days or so, you can expect lots of iPhone news to trickle out. New third-party apps. New hardware reviews. New analysis.
We’ve sifted through the first day of post-keynote jubilation to provide you with new software announcements, transitioning from iPhone 1.0 to 2.0 and moving from .Mac to MobileMe, the change in the iPhone business model, and the disappointments voiced by some now that the WWDC hangover is clearing.
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June 9th, 2008 | Posted in Comms, Mobile | No Comments
I really could have used MLB.com’s new At Bat application for the iPhone this weekend.
Our seats for the Cardinals-Astros games Friday and Sunday weren’t bad, all things considered, but we were in the outfield underneath an overhang from the deck above us at Minute Maid Park. We could not see the gigantic scoreboard, which is essential for real-time game information and knowing what the heck is going on.
To help us keep up with player names, positions, averages, and all the other stats generated by baseball, I turned to a Web-based application for the iPhone called Sports Tap. It’s a wonderfully simple app that tracks games and events in the sporting world from baseball, basketball, football and hockey to NASCAR, and Formula 1 racing. It’s sort of a mobile SportsCenter without the ESPN branding.
I tapped on St. Louis at Houston and was taken to a scoring summary, or boxscore. The user interface was a bit primitive — I had to go to separate pages to view St. Louis or Houston player statistics, and there was no wiki-like link between the two for easy navigation, but overall I could keep up with lineup changes and statistics.
MLB.com, the interactive arm of Major League Baseball, has substantially improved on Sports Tap by not only offering real time scores and statistics but also video highlights, which amazingly are available moments after a play like Lance Berkman’s towering 460-foot home run on Sunday.
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June 9th, 2008 | Posted in Comms, Mobile | 1 Comment
Let’s make it official.
Apple introduced iPhone 2.0 today at the World Wide Developers Conference.
Yes, it supports 3G and faster data networks.
Yes, it supports GPS.
Yes, it has a few cosmetic changes and is thinner.
Yes, it carries a (dramatically) lower price: $199 for the 8 GB iPhone, $299 for the 16 GB model.
No, it’s not immediately available, but you can get it in 22 countries starting July 11.
As far as some of the other rumors floating around . . .
Microsoft Exchange and full enterprise support is enabled out of the box.
“Exchange for the rest of us” will be available through MobileMe and Me.com, the re-branding of .Mac.
Third-party applications and the App Store will be available in early July.
No, there does not appear to be an improved camera or video recording (including video chat) of any kind. There’s no Flash support. Or external storage slots. And still no cut and paste! What gives?
Anyway, a tour through today’s keynote.
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June 5th, 2008 | Posted in Comms, Mobile | No Comments
By now, everybody in the known universe has offered up their iPhone 2.0 predictions, prognostications, forecasts, and prophesies. We even think that NASA’s Phoenix Lander may have found an iPhone wish list on Mars, but we’re not sure.
As you can imagine, iPhone 2.0 speculation has reached a fever pitch again — just like iPhone 1.0 did last June — with ideas ranging from the obvious “duh” to “out there”, just like Mars.
For our own amusement, and yours, we’ve sifted through wish lists and predictions to come up with what we think will happen, what may happen, and what’s still to come for iPhone hardware, features, and applications.
You’ll be able to judge the pundits on Monday, after Steve Jobs delivers the keynote speech at the Worldwide Developers Conference. Until then, if you see something missing, add it to the comments. Because there is one thing we’ve learned: Everybody has a special feature or application they’d like to see on the new iPhone, and we can’t predict ’em all.
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June 4th, 2008 | Posted in Other | 1 Comment
A lot is being made of cloud computing these days, especially in light of Microsoft’s Mesh initiative and the various online products and strategies cooked up by Google.
With the rumored changes coming to Apple’s .Mac product, could a revamped MobileMe or Me.com — whatever it is ultimately called — eventually become my personal cloud?
I hope so. My digital life needs one, whether supplied by Microsoft, Google, or Apple, it doesn’t matter.
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June 3rd, 2008 | Posted in Audio | 1 Comment
It seems like a millennia ago when music fans huddled around the radio to listen to Casey Kasem’s “American Top 40” or the television on Saturday mornings to see what new artists appeared on “Soul Train.”
Now, all you have to do is fire up the Internet and head over to any one of a million or two music sites like iTunes and last.fm to find new artists and “Top 40” lists that mix the familiar with the obscure.
Three such sites — SpiralFrog, We7, and The Filter — are in the news this week and each, in its own way, is working hard to introduce you to new music and entertainment content.
SpiralFrog, the free, ad-supported music download service, today announced a digital distribution agreement with EMI Music.
EMI’s catalog of digital music and videos will be available to consumers for legal downloading from SpiralFrog in North America. EMI artists are certainly recognizable — from The Beach Boys and Miles Davis to Norah Jones and Coldplay — but while your listening to old favorites it’s impossible not to stumble on indie artists and breakout bands while using the site.
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