December 22, 2007
Student Catches Principal Fighting With Student on Cellphone Camera, School Responds By Banning Cellphones
Way to go, Caddo School Board. You've won yourself the Gizmodo luddite of the week award. See, when a student films the principal of your Huntington High School fighting another student, the correct response isn't to ban cellphones, it's to make sure principals don't fight with students. It was only after the student showed the clip to local media that you actually did something about the situation, putting the principal on paid administrative leave. As a side note, we would also have accepted "resigning and putting people not completely retarded onto the school board" as a correct response. [Shreveport Times via Techdirt - Image courtesy Chicspeare]
Posted by Tom at 02:48 PM
December 21, 2007
Air France Makes In-Flight Calling Possible, Gallic Shrugs All Round [Air
Air France is to let passengers loose on their cell phones by turning on its in-flight mobile data and voice system. An initial three-month trial period will only allow SMS and mobile emails, with voice calls expected to come later. Although this is the first European carrier to allow mobile devices to be used, one wonders whether the famously laconic French will be le bothered by the news. The system, dubbed "OnAir", which was first mooted last year, has been pushed back repeatedly during development. Just one of its planes, an Airbus A318, has had the system installed, and the test is expected to run for six months. OnAir will only be in use when flying above 10,000 feet, and it will apparently set you back about the same as international calling - around $2.50 per minute. '" Kit Eaton [Wi-Fi Net News via Boy Genius Report]
From Air France Makes In-Flight Calling Possible, Gallic Shrugs All Round [Air
Posted by Tom at 04:09 PM
December 07, 2007
Nextlink Invisio G5, World's Smallest Bluetooth Headset
You already read the headline. So you already know that the Nextlink Invisio G5 is the world's smallest Bluetooth headset. So I'm waisting your time. We're retreading old ground. You want to know one thing'"just how small is this headset? 3.3cm long and 1.6cm wide, or 1.2in long and .6in wide for the less metrically inclined. And it still manages decent functionality. Less that six grams in weight, the Invisio G5 manages to include a three button interface and a 'Soft Spring' for comfort. And the battery life, while not stunning, will keep up with most mobiles with four hours of talk time and up to 150 hours of standby. Apparently the headset also comes with Nextlink's Protective Charging Case that recharges the device for up to 20 hours of talk time and 30 days of standby before the need for a plug. Then again, in its case, the G5 is neither the world's smallest Bluetooth headset nor in any way function...so you take the good with the bad. The Invisio G5 looks to be Europe only for now, costing the equivalent of $165. [product via techdigest]
From Nextlink Invisio G5, World's Smallest Bluetooth Headset
Posted by Perry at 09:49 AM
November 30, 2007
Windows Mobile Successor Launching Early 2008
Shown at the Mobius Conference in Amsterdam, the next version of Windows Mobile will be "an update rather than an upgrade." This means that it's not Windows Mobile 7/Photon, which would be a huge leap in functionality, but more along the lines of the transition of WM5 to WM6. Most of the stuff The Unwired saw behind closed doors is hush-hush so they can't describe it, but the new revision will be available starting Q1 2008, and will be on shelves in new phone form around Q2 or Q3. The good news for current WM users is that you can technically upgrade your old phones to the new OS, but it's up to the phone manufacturer'"like it was for the transition between Windows Mobile 5 to 6'"to determine whether they want to put the resources into doing so. [The Unwired]
From Windows Mobile Successor Launching Early 2008
Posted by Matt at 02:53 PM
November 29, 2007
Verizon Responds to 30 Rock Nut Shot [Corporations
Anyone who watched last week's episode of 30 Rock had to have noticed when, after characters on the show praised Verizon Wireless service, Tina Fey turned abruptly to the camera and asked, "Can we have our money now?" It was...harsh to say the least...but just harsh enough to make the 30 Rock watchers at home laugh at the ad instead of becoming annoyed by its intrusion. In short, it was a little piece of genius. Still, many of us wondered if Verizon saw the shot coming ahead of time. Here's what the company (Lou Rossi, director of media and sponsorships) has had to say about the ad: We talk with NBC on a consistent basis about opportunities...We had engaged them to think about some ways we could help increase our presence in the marketplace, and they came back to us with the '30 Rock'-specific opportunity. And then they added. But that Tina Fey is a total bitch. OK, they might not have said that last part. And it's a good thing, because we don't have the time today to suit up with armor, ride our horse to New York and defend her honor. Tomorrow, maybe. reuters via textually
From Verizon Responds to 30 Rock Nut Shot [Corporations
Posted by Mel at 11:10 AM
Blockbuster Wants to Bring the Joy of No Late Fees to Your Cellphone [Home
After getting reamed by Q3 losses and basically conceding the online rental space to Netflix, Blockbuster looked to be refocusing on its B&M stores, ironically signified by its installation of in-store digital rental kiosks. So naturally its next move is cellphones. Yeah. Says CEO James Keyes: We're talking with virtually all of the major manufacturers about the opportunity to provide greater mobility and convenience... The challenge is how do I make this convenient for everybody. They're also chatting up a number of software companies about partnerships. Apparently, the idea came to Keyes after he got a tech to download some stuff from Movielink onto his Blackberry. Which, it's a nice idea, but Blockbuster's past forays into other distribution channels haven't gone so smoothly, to put it mildly. Moreover, the installation of digital kiosks for portable media players inside of B&M stores indicates to me they don't quite "get" what digital distribution is all about. They do have to branch out beyond B&M if they want to survive in the next few years, that's true'"true IP VOD will be a killstroke'"but I don't know if making it easier to put movies on your cellphone is Blockbuster's golden ticket. It might be a start, if they get it right for a change. [Reuters, Flickr]
From Blockbuster Wants to Bring the Joy of No Late Fees to Your Cellphone [Home
Posted by Jason at 08:26 AM
November 24, 2007
T-Mobile's 3G Plan Details Coming December 6th? [Big Fat
We've heard things like this before without results, but The Inquirer is reporting that a reader was tipped off to TMO US 3G handsets and plans. That rep replied with a date of December 6th, citing internal docs. It's a thin thread to hang this rumor off of, but last September, T-Mobile won an auction for 2100 and 1700MHz bands covering 474 million people. One would hope they're pulling the trigger sooner or later on 3G. I mean, their attempts to blanket the country in Wi-Fi haven't exactly replaced EDGE. Probability guess-timate: 20%. [Inq]
From T-Mobile's 3G Plan Details Coming December 6th? [Big Fat
Posted by Peter at 03:27 PM
November 22, 2007
Samsung's Thin 3-Megapixel SCH-u900 FlipShot Camera Phone Hits Verizon
Last time you saw the SCH-u900, it was fugly. Now, gussied up and ready for the holidays, the u900 makes its Verizon Wireless debut in red and black with a new nickname, the FlipShot. The 3.0-megapixel camphone replaces the now defunct a990 with a thinner body and a new rounded-edge look. It's got what you'd expect from a high-end feature phone: EV-DO, GPS with VZ Navigator, and Bluetooth'"stereo audio, dial-up networking, serial port and object push for vCard, plus basic print and image profiles. The black version starts selling on Verizon's website today, while the seductive red model will only be available at Best Buy, beginning 11/26. Total cost for this baby will be $200, after you sign your life away for one-fifth of a decade, of course. [Verizon Wireless]
From Samsung's Thin 3-Megapixel SCH-u900 FlipShot Camera Phone Hits Verizon
Posted by Joe at 11:14 AM
