June 8th, 2007 | Posted in Comms, Mobile, Net TV, Other | 
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Apple’s World Wide Developer Conference (WWDC) kicks off on Monday with a keynote speech from the company’s founder and charismatic CEO, Steve Jobs. As is usual in these matters, the web is full of rumors and pundit-driven premonitions of what might be announced. Not to be outdone, after scouring the Internet and tapping the minds of all of my Apple-connected colleagues (OK, I hassled a few people on IM), here are last100’s five WWDC predictions.
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June 8th, 2007 | Posted in Mobile | 3 Comments
After debuting first in Asia, and then Europe — this week Nintendo DS users in the USA can finally get their hands on a version of the Opera web browser designed specially for the hand-held game console. Optimized for use with the DS’s dual-screen and touch-screen stylus input, the software comes on a Nintendo DS game card, and transforms the device into a portable web browser which connects through the built-in WiFi.
When I got a chance to test the European edition of the browser earlier this year, I was impressed with the user interface which does make good use of the DS’s unique design. However, similar to my experience with Sony’s PSP, I found browsing to be on the slow side, although whether this is the fault of the built-in WiFi or the time it takes for the device to render web pages, I’m not sure. The other down-side, compared with the PSP, is that because the web browser is stored on a game card, you have to keep swapping it out to actually play games, and then change cards again every time you want to browse the web. It would be much more convenient if the browser came pre-installed in the device’s internal memory. Where the DS browsing experience does trump the PSP though is through having a touch-screen for inputting web addresses on the virtual keyboard. With no touch-screen on the PSP, I found typing to be a miserable experience.
The DS browser has a recommended retail price of $19.99.
June 7th, 2007 | Posted in Comms, Mobile | 5 Comments
Macwold UK reports on a recent survey carried out by Solutions Research Group which looks at the likely demographic of US purchasers of the iPhone. The results are based on an online survey of 1,230 American consumers in May 2007, and reveal some interesting, though arguably predictable results, about who said they would buy the $499 device.
So your average iPhone early adopter will be male, in their late 20s to early 30s, affluent, and live on the East or West coast.
[poll=4]
June 5th, 2007 | Posted in Mobile, Net TV | 10 Comments
It’s common for new technology to press the boundaries of what’s permissible under current intellectual property laws or to challenge existing business models — or both — and Sling Media’s SlingBox is no exception. The futuristic looking device connects to a home’s TV signal (cable box, digital tuner or PVR) and then ‘slings’ that signal over a broadband connection to either a PC or cell phone, or in theory, any Internet connected device that can run the SlingPlayer software. While the ability to re-stream television for personal use is popular with customers, television networks and content producers aren’t so impressed.
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June 4th, 2007 | Posted in Audio, Comms, Mobile | 16 Comments
When Walt Mossberg interviewed Steve Jobs on-stage at last week’s D: All Things Digital conference, he pressed the Apple CEO for an exact release date for the iPhone. “Late June” replied Jobs. “Like the very last day of June?”, countered Mossberg. “Err, yeah”, Jobs confirmed with a broad smile. Well, it’s now official. The iPhone will hit Apple and at&t stores in the US on June 29th.
Now armed with an exact release date, last night Apple kicked off its television advertising campaign. Three commercials have been produced (available on the company’s website) giving us a good insight into how Apple plans to market the device. Here’s a break-down of the three ads, and how they attempt to position the iPhone.
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May 30th, 2007 | Posted in Comms, Mobile | 7 Comments
Sporting a 10inch screen and full-size keyboard, Palm’s new device called Foleo — which the company’s founder Jeff Hawkins talked up as a new product category in itself — is essentially a note-pad-sized laptop, designed specifically to dynamically sync with and compliment the computing power of a smart-phone. The problem that Palm is attempting to solve is that no matter how powerful cell phones have become, there are times when a larger screen and proper keyboard makes more sense — such as composing emails, editing a spreadsheet, or using web apps.
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May 30th, 2007 | Posted in Mobile | 1 Comment
The second big announcement at the opening day of the D: All Things Digital conference (following Microsoft’s unvieling of Surface, its gesture-based UI) is a new mobile computing platform called Livescribe. Taking the shape of an ordinary ball-point pen, the device can digitize notes written on special miniature-dotted paper, as well as record and playback audio. Then comes the clever bit — double tap on a word you’ve written and the smart-pen will replay a portion of audio at the exact point the notes were taken, so for example, a few keyword notes can be tied to a place in a recorded lecture or interview. Later on the synced data can then be downloaded to a PC where it can be “replayed, saved, searched or sent”.
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May 29th, 2007 | Posted in Mobile, Other | 8 Comments
Update: news has just come out about the product described below, officially named Surface. It’s a lot bigger than the iPhone, but uses similar multi-touch technology. Here is our write-up.
Over at ZDNet, Mary Jo Foley reports on the imminent unveiling of Microsoft’s own multi-touch technology — code-named ‘PlayTable’ — which could prove to be the company’s answer to the iPhone. Also known as the Milan Project, the technology is designed to “allow users to navigate and manipulate data inside a browser or application using gestures”, says Foley. “Think pinches, pushes, waves, etc”. Even more intriguing is that the announcement could come as early as tomorrow, when Bill Gates is set to take the stage with his old rival, Apple CEO Steve Jobs, at the Wall Street Journal’s D: All Things Digital conference.
Foley notes that the project has been developed by Microsoft’s Mobile and Entertainment Division (MED), which is the same business unit responsible for the Xbox, Zune and Windows Mobile devices.
It’s easy to see how Microsoft might incorporate the Milan multi-touch capability into Zunes or Windows Mobile phones. In fact, one source told me that Microsoft has been pitching Milan to various wireless carriers, with the hopes that they will support a Milan-enabled Windows-Mobile phone in the not-too-distant future.
Of course Microsoft doesn’t have the greatest track record when it comes to marketing consumer electronics — XBox being the exception — and Foley says that the company sees additional markets for ‘PlayTable’.
Multi-touch/gesture-recognition technology also would be a natural fit in medical (think of several doctors collaborating over a shared medical file); architectural (shared schematics), educational, hospitality and lots of other applications, Microsoft is hoping.
Whether Gates tries to get one up on Apple at tomorrow’s event (where Jobs will undoubtedly show off the iPhone), what is clear is that Apple isn’t the only company that’s been working on bringing a gesture-based user interface to market. At this point it’s also worth noting that when Jobs announced the iPhone he boasted that Apple had over two hundred patents relating to the device.
May 25th, 2007 | Posted in Mobile | 4 Comments
Although most modern cell phones have a built-in calendar application, trying to sync your appointments (or remembering to do so) between different devices, such as a smart phone and desktop computer, can be a hassle. An increasingly viable alternative — as mobile web access becomes ubiquitous and more affordable — is to store your data ‘in the clouds’ by using web applications such as those provided by Google and Yahoo. But for this to work requires those companies to create a mobile-friendly version of their web app — which for email, both companies have done, but until now, only Yahoo (out of the two) offered a mobile-friendly version of their calendar app.
In typical Google-like fashion, its mobile version of Calendar is a simple affair — perhaps a little bit too minimalistic. You can browse appointments, and add new ones, but curiously, you don’t seem to be able to edit an existing one.
To check out the mobile-friendly version of Calendar, point your phone’s browser to www.google.com/calendar (or if your device doesn’t redirect automatically, or you want to check out the mobile version from a desktop browser, visit www.google.com/calendar/m).
May 24th, 2007 | Posted in Comms, Mobile | 10 Comments
BT and Sony have inked a four year deal that will see the two companies bring voice calls, video conferencing, and IM functionality to PlayStationPortable (PSP) users across Europe. The partnership intends to integrate the PSP with BT’s existing broadband video and voice ‘softphone’ products, and in the following months, additional features will be launched to enable calls and messages to PCs, fixed lines and mobiles. The service will initially roll-out in the UK, with other parts of European to follow.
In a joint press release, Steve Andrews, BT chief, Mobility and Convergence, is quoted as saying:
“The PSP is an excellent device for both gaming and communications, because of its high quality screen and audio capabilities. With over 8 million PSPs shipped across Europe, we are very excited by the opportunity to give customers a whole new communications experience, connecting and seeing friends across the world through BT’s technology”.
It’s certainly true that Sony’s hand held game console has a very nice screen and good audio, but I can see a couple of issues holding it back from being a really useful communications device. Instant Messaging will be a pain, as there is no touch screen or physical keyboard. Additionally, the machine will have to connect over WiFi, and in the UK at least, we are far from free or low cost ubiquitous WiFi access, and I don’t think the PSP’s younger users are going to have the spending power to hang out at Starbucks all day long — making it OK for use around the home, but not really viable as a mobile communications device.
Update: The BBC has more details, including a video demonstrating the snap-on video camera for video calls. Also of note, the new PSP functionality will only work on home or BT wireless hotspots because it utilises BT’s 21 Century Network (21CN), which is specifically designed for Internet Protocol (IP) technology such as VoIP.