Mae : Wireless Mobility Blog
Mae
| News and views on everything wireless and mobile, from WiFi and WiMAX to 3G and fixed-mobile convergence (FMC).

Google Patent Imagines a Freer World for Making Mobile Calls

September 26, 2008

Imagine if, when you wanted to make a call on your cell phone, you could pick the best rate and most appropriate connection method by choosing between a group of providers bidding for your business? That would beat being locked into a rigid carrier contract. It might also introduce some unforeseen complexities, but hey  -- an appropriately-designed technology system can handle that!

 

That essentially is the message in Google's new patent (#20080232574), "Flexible Communication Systems and Methods," which describes a system where one or more telecom carriers bid to provide connectivity for a communications "session" (think phone call).

Review: Tritton's AXVisor Bluetooth Speakerphone

August 4, 2008

If you're like me and find most Bluetooth headsets uncomfortable and/or inconvenient to use, the AXVisor (model TRIBC200) from Tritton Technologies might be just what you're looking for. This is a Bluetooth speakerphone unit that, as its name suggests, clips to the sun visor in your car for hands-free conversations.

 

 

 


I tested out the Tritton AXVisor with my AT&T phone, a Nokia 2085 clamshell. I quickly discovered that, as with any Bluetooth device, the functionality of the Visor is limited mostly by the hands-free function on the phone you have.

Avanquest's Connection Manager Simplifies Secure Wireless Internet for Laptop Users

July 30, 2008

I got a call this morning from a rep at Avanquest Software, alerting me to the fact that the company is offering free consumer downloads of its new wireless networking tool for laptop users, Connection Manager. (The software has a retail value of $29.95.)

 

Connection Manager is designed for anyone living the "mobile lifestyle" with a laptop in tow. Its function is to provide users with quick, secure Internet/network access regardless of the connectivity method being used.

 

"Connection Manager automatically identifies and stores necessary network and security parameters for virtually every type of publicly used connection standard, including standard Ethernet, WiFi, ADSL and WiMAX," the company said in a July 22 announcement.

iSuppli Estimate: iPhone 3G Costs About $173 to Manufacture

June 27, 2008

One of the challenges for manufacturers of consumer electronics products is how to minimize the cost of building a particular gadget, while maximizing profits. Cut too many corners, and there's the risk of losing potential customers. Spend too much on features people don't really care about, and it's likely the result will be unnecessary costs.

 

It appears that Apple has struck a pretty good balance between these two extremes in the new iPhone 3G.

EarthLink Pulls Out of Muni WiFi in New Orleans, Philly; What's Next?

May 21, 2008

I got a note the other day from Craig Settles, an expert in the area of municipal WiFi networks, who wanted to make sure I’d seen the news about EarthLink pulling out of the muni WiFI network in Philadelphia. (Incidentally, last month EarthLink also made known its plans to pull out of the muni WiFi project in New Orleans, effective May 18.)   In a press announcement dated May 13, EarthLink made clear its plans to terminate WiFi service in Philadelphia, following months of unsuccessful negotiations with the city government to transfer management of the entire network — worth $17 million — to the municipality or to Wireless Philadelphia, a non-profit.   “EarthLink has worked diligently for many months to transfer our WiFi network to a new owner -- at no cost," said Rolla Huff, EarthLink's chairman and chief executive officer, in a statement. “Unfortunately, our hope that we could transfer our network to a non-profit organization that had planned to offer free WiFi throughout Philadelphia will not be realized.

Use GPS 'Trackstick' to Record Your Travels, Create Free Google Earth Maps

April 24, 2008

Now here’s a cool wireless gadget: the Trackstick II Personal GPS Tracker. This little device uses GPS to track its own location, time, data, speed, heading and altitude at present intervals. Since you can pop it in your pocket or purse, that means it also can track your location — or the location of anything that moves.   That’s great, but what do you do with the location data gathered?

CTIA Wireless 2008 News Roundup

April 3, 2008

This week (April 1-3) was the CTIA Wireless 2008 show in Las Vegas. All week TMCnet has been reporting on news from the show, which is put on (as the name suggests) by CTIA, an organization whose acronym formerly stood for “Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Assocation,” but now simply goes by CTIA  —  The Wireless Association.   The show’s Web site has a full roster of news highlights from this week, but here are a few that caught my eye from TMCnet’s coverage.   Nortel Shows How Carriers Can Deliver Better, Faster Networks to Reach True Mobile Broadband   40,000 Reasons for Wireless Recycling   Mobile Industry Adds 22 Million Net New Customers in 2007   AT & T Intros New Music Application and Extended Napster Coverage   Sprint and Sierra Wireless to Launch Nation's Smallest Mobile Broadband USB Modem   Ericsson demonstrates world-first end-to-end HSPA Evolution technology for speeds of up to 42 Mbps   For even more coverage of the show, check out the blogs for Rich Tehrani and Greg Galitzine.

Eye-Fi with My Little Eye... Wireless Photo Uploads

March 24, 2008

Uploading digital photos from a camera to a computer is a task that lots of people (myself included) tend to put off since it takes time and requires digging for the USB cable. (Which drawer did I put it in again?) Wouldn’t it be great if there was an easier way to get photos from camera to computer hard drive—or better yet, directly to a bogging or social networking site?   A startup called Eye-Fi thought so, too. And they did something about it: developed the Eye-Fi wireless SD card. This is a 2B SD card that pops into a digital camera just a like a regular card.

Research Confirms That Even Use of Hands-free Phones Distracts Drivers

March 11, 2008

I’ve long held the belief that driving while talking on a cell phone is dangerous, even if one is using a headset or switching on the speakerphone function. (Although I’m as guilty as the next person of talking while driving anyway.) Now some recent research adds more backing to that argument.   Marcel Just, director at Carnegie Mellon University’s Center for Cognitive Brain Imaging, decided to find out the extend to which non-driving activities distract drivers from their primary task of steering a vehicle down the road.   In a March 9 report that’s been making the rounds online, USA Today explained what happened when 29 volunteer subjects were hooked up to an MRI brain scanner while engaging in a simulated driving exercise.

Infonetics Report Highlights 2007 WiMAX Growth

March 6, 2008

WiMAX is hot and getting hotter. That’s essentially the conclusion reached by Infonetics in its recent WiMAX and Mesh Network Equipment and Devices report.   Just how hot? During 2007, the WiMAX market grew sequentially 46 percent (for the year), with worldwide sales (fixed and mobile) just shy of $800 million.
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