Tom Keating : VoIP & Gadgets Blog
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Mobile Phones

Mobile Phones, cell phones

Polycom KIRK DECT SIP Phones

September 22, 2008

Polycom today announced the launch of its latest KIRK Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications (DECT) wireless products. Polycom has introduced three new products: the KIRK Wireless Server (KWS) 300, the KWS 6000, and the KIRK 5040 handset. which are all SIP-based.

The name KIRK certainly evokes Captain Kirk from Star Trek and most likely intentionally, since Captain Kirk and his crew made the wireless communicator famous 40 years ago. No doubt Polycom has some Trekkies in their engineering or marketing teams.

Solar-Powered iPhone Case: What Would Q Think?

September 19, 2008

Now this makes a lot of sense in this day and age of energy efficient and seeking out alternative energy sources -- using solar power to charge your cell phone.

After taking a look at the specs for Solar Cases that can power the Apple iPhone, a few pop out right off of the page, including a charge time of less than three hours and a weight of less than a quarter of a pound (100 g).

And while it looks simple to use, it actually is.

Here's how it works, using the built-in rechargeable battery in the  Solar Case:
1. Insert iPhone into Solar case
2. Turn Power ON, iPhone will be fully charged within < 3 hours

Now, by solar power:
1. Insert iPhone into the Solar case
2.











Can't I Tether Up My iPhone ...?

September 17, 2008

Tethering is a feature that allows you to use your mobile smartphone as modem to connect to the Internet or corporate LAN over your carrier's cell phone network.

Unfortunately, Apple has not integrated tethering into the iPhone -- both the original EDGE data network model or the iPhone 3G.

Nor is it (apparently) going to allow anyone else to offer an iPhone tethering app of their own through the AppStore.

Nullriver, which had seen its NetShare iPhone tethering application put up and then taken down from the App Store for no apparent reason, appears to have gotten a definitive answer on where Apple stands on the matter.

A recent posting to the company's blog reads:
Looks like Apple has decided they will not be allowing any tethering applications in the AppStore. As such, NetShare will not be available in the iTunes AppStore.








What's Not Hot in Japan? Try iPhone

September 15, 2008

It may come as surprise to all of us here, but iPhone sales are not cutting it in Japan.

Apple's partnership with Japan's third-largest mobile operator, Softbank Corp., to sell the iPhone 3G certainly created a buzz. Like elsewhere, Japanese consumers lined up at stores in advance of the phone's release on July 11, and many locations sold out almost immediately.

But now analysts estimate that demand in Japan has fallen to a third of what it was initially, and analysts are now expecting fewer iPhone sales.

Who's to blame? There's no supply shortage: The device is readily available in Apple stores and other outlets.





Live Streaming Video via Mobile Phone Camera

September 12, 2008

Om Interviews Skype CEO

September 12, 2008

New iPod touch supports VoIP

September 11, 2008


The Cult of Mac claims that the new iPod touch is VoIP-capable on the hardware side:
With 5 wires connected to the Touch headphone jack (instead of 4 on the previous model), the device now supports the external microphone included with some headsets, according to Kyle Wiens of iFixit, who fully dismantled an iPod Touch on Wednesday.
So who needs an AT&T-restricted iPhone? Course, you'll need to be in range of a Wi-Fi network to use VoIP on the iPod touch.

It is worth pointing out that this is not the first time someone has run VoIP on the iPod touch. Touchmods added a microphone hack to the older iPod touch version. Another group enabled a SIP softphone client for the iPod touch to use with the "hacked-in" microphone.

With the new iPod touch - no hacking required.




Court bans VoIP app on iPhone

September 10, 2008

A ruling was just issued by the Higher Regional Court (Oberlandesgericht) of Hamburg, Germany banning VoIP on the Apple iPhone. Specifically, the sipgate VoIP app (image right) has been banned - all part of T-Mobile's ongoing fight to block VoIP on the iPhone.

Apparently, the court felt that sipgate would "lure" iPhone users into "jailbreaking" their iPhones. WTF? Banning software because it might entice customers to do something bad?

Buying an iPhone at Best Buy

September 8, 2008

Best Buy began selling the Apple iPhone on Sunday, becoming the first U.S. retailer to do so outside of Apple and AT&T stores. The Apple iPhone will be carrier in 970 Best Buy stores. Rich Tehrani and I decided to take a walk to Best Buy which is just down the street from TMC and take some pictures of their display.

Pantech Breeze -- Well, Almost So Simple ...

September 4, 2008

If life could be simple again -- really simple? -- wouldn't we all be better off?

And in one of the area where simple could be good -- even great (Palm Pilot drum roll, please), Pantech has introduced its Breeze cell phone.

It's key benefits can be summed in with just two letters -- E and Z:
  • EZ to use: simplified, easy-to-read user interface
  • EZ to connect: back-lit one-touch quick call keys
  • EZ to access: one-touch speakerphone and camera
  • EZ to handle: oversized keypad with separated buttons
The Breeze is a slim, good-looking flip phone (4 x 2 x 0.7 inches) that weighs less than four ounces and includes an external 1-inch (diagonal) screen.

Nothing so special yet, but flip it open, and you find three quick-dial buttons labeled 1, 2, and 3. They sit below a nice size (2.2 inch) LCD.

The main keypad buttons are comfortable and sizable, and the handset includes a slender volume button and a nonstandard headphone jack on the side.

Using it is a relative breeze, but how can we get this even simpler?

Remember how easy rotary dial and push button phones were?












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