General news

**nauriceprivat** · #1 (**permalink**) 12-18-2007, 11:00 PM

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Before you say “WTF,” let me emphasize that this is actually nice and planet-loving idea with the point to welcome Christmas without cutting any trees.
Apparently, Taiwan’s port city Kaohsiung will gather 50,000 people on Shidai Avenue in Kaohsiung, southern Taiwan, to form the shape of a giant Christmas tree. The participants will hold up flashlights, fluorescent sticks and cell phones, and will pose for a cameramen who will take photos from a helicopter. Not exactly the most eco-friendly vehicle…
Anyway, if you’re wondering what’s on the image on the right side, that’s the [Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...]that lights up and flashes when your mobile phone rings. Yeah, it’s stupid but I needed some picture to illustrate the post.

**nauriceprivat** · #2 (**permalink**) 12-19-2007, 01:36 PM

While us Yankees have to wait on Sprint to complete their [Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...], the super-advanced nation of Pakistan has just launched the largest WiMAX network we’ve ever seen. Now, we’re not exactly sure what a huge network looks like, but we’ve been told this one looks fairly big.
Motorola and Wateen Telecom have teamed up to bring the “first 802.16e commercial WiMAX network” to 22 Pakistani cities, with more cities presumably slated to get the WiMAX goods sometime in the near future. Wateen already has registered interest from 20,000 Pakistanis, so it’s pretty safe to say that the initial launch will do just fine. And, with a 2Mbps WiMAX option (on the downstream, of course), we’re going to bet that Wateen will do just fine in the longer-run.
Motorola has deals with Sprint and Clearwire to bring WiMAX to the States, but we’re more than a few months away from a full-scale commercial launch. And, if Sprint wants to turn their business around with their XOHM network (which is pretty much their only option at this point), then they had better be planning to offer more than 2Mbps of downlink throughput. We’ll take 10Mbps of wireless data, please.

**nauriceprivat** · #3 (**permalink**) 12-20-2007, 07:41 AM

[Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...][Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...] writes that a group of 22 companies called the [Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...] has been formed to create a set of benchmarks and give consumers simple to understand scores that differentiate cameras by something other than their megapixel count. Included in the 22 companies are Motorla, Nokia and Sony Ericsson. This could not have come at a better time, people need to stop buying this “N is bigger than N-1 so it must be better” bullshit. This [Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...] gives you an idea of how they plan to test camera phones, but I’m more in seeing how they plan to market the scores to consumers and how simple their rubric is to interpret, that is the hardest part.

**nauriceprivat** · #4 (**permalink**) 12-20-2007, 07:48 AM

[Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...][Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...] and has come back with some data and a money shot quote that is hard to ignore:

“What is certain is that the record label as you know it is dead and in its place have risen “digital entertainment companies”, who only produce single-track MP3s and are just as savvy at dealing with brand partnerships, pre-loaded mobile content and online guerilla marketing as they are at making music.”

People in my social sphere call me insane, for many reasons actually, but recently more often for proclaiming that record labels need to croak, piracy is the norm yet no one admits it and that the monetization model currently known as selling music is archaic. Ed proves my point fantastically and if you think that the Chinese market is the exception to the rule then you’re mistaken. Europe and the USA are heading right in that direction and PR moves like “[Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...]” from Nokia are just there to delay the reality setting in that future attempts at charging money for music will result in failure.
I’m waiting, with my right leg twitching, for a mature P2P solution to rise and reach critical penetration. Who will make the Napster of mobile phones?
Update: MTV wrote a great article called “[Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...]” that runs through the major events that shocked the industry.

**nauriceprivat** · #5 (**permalink**) 12-20-2007, 09:18 PM

We know, it’s getting to be that time of year and, if you’re anything like us, you’re running around frantically trying to get your affairs in order before that dreaded wonderful deadline. All the hustle and bustle of the holiday season leaves us with less and less time to get our fill of tech-news - and we figure our readers are starting to feel the holiday-crunch as well. So, why not take all your tech-news with you?
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The IntoMobile Mobilized Web Portal is available for free for all Windows Mobile and BlackBerry users. We’re working to bring the Viigo-powered IntoMobile Mobilized Web Portal to Symbian and Palm users, so sit tight, we’ll get it to you guys in due time. Meanwhile, WinMo and BlackBerry users can download our IntoMobile To Go through [Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...] - or hit up our new Viigo button near the upper-right corner of our homepage (at the top of the sidebar). If you prefer to install the IntoMobile To Go client OTA (over-the-air) onto your mobile phone, simply point your mobile browser to this [Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...].
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**nauriceprivat** · #6 (**permalink**) 12-20-2007, 10:45 PM

Finally. If drivers in the UK are anything like we see in the US, then this legislation is sorely needed.
Come this Thursday, new legislation will hit the UK-books that will threaten British drivers with jailtime, in addition to fines, if they’re caught using their mobile phone to text or talk whilst on the road.
The charge of “dangerous driving” can bring a maximum sentence of 2 years, and unlimited fines can be levied against the offending driver. While jail may not be a realistic penalty in most cases, the “unlimited fine” could turn out to be a significant deterrent.
As we [Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...], UK drivers are already subject to laws that prohibit the use of cellphones while driving. However, the relatively lax penalties aren’t really doing enough to scare drivers away from texting-while-driving - thousands of Brits flout the law everyday.
The new law would make jailtime a possibility for anyone caught with their attention focused on their handset rather than the road ahead. While it doesn’t affect drivers using hands-free setups, UK officials can pull over and cite (or arrest) anyone that seems to be a danger on the road.
Hey you! Get off that damn cellphone and pay attention! Or, maybe we should lobby for jail time for Americans that like to drive while using their mobile phones? Yea, that would be nice.

**nauriceprivat** · #7 (**permalink**) 12-21-2007, 11:28 AM

While we’re sure IntoMobile readers don’t send SMS on racial clashes, it’s important to emphasize that you should avoid sending even the related jokes while in Malaysia - who knows how the local authorities may interpret them. Apparently, by sending such text messages, you could be detained under the Internal Security Act.
According to local authorities, the reason is that a certain unscrupulous person has been spreading rumours via SMS to incite racial clashes. The police is aware about the incident and is prepared to act…

**nauriceprivat** · #8 (**permalink**) 12-21-2007, 01:59 PM

Well folks, it seems that the day when we’ll be able to regularly use our mobile phones while flying in the plane is approaching, with Air France being the first company to test the new OnAir’s onboard mobile telephony system. Apparently, OnAir got the certification from the European Aviation Safety Authority (EASA) that their system doesn’t interfere with the radio-navigation instruments on the Airbus A318 (what about other airplanes?).

The system is activated at 3,000 metres (10,000 feet) when passengers see the newly setup “Switch off your phone” sign turned off.
At the moment, OnAir has roaming agreements with multiple mobile network operators, including the three major operators in France: Orange, Bouygues Telecom and SFR. The airline company is currently testing the new system on its international flights and the service is presently limited to data and messaging services. After the end of of the six-month trial, Air France will examine the feedback and potentially enable voice calls as well…
In the other news, [Only Registered and Activated Users Can See Links. Click Here To Register...]…

**nauriceprivat** · #9 (**permalink**) 12-21-2007, 03:59 PM

Be sure to file this under “why this haven’t happened earlier,” as I just can’t figure out why it took so long for General Motors to implement Bluetooth technology in its vehicles. This is especially significant as nowadays most of us have Bluetooth-enabled handsets and when we know that other auto makers — especially Japanese — are eating GM’s market share like cupcakes.
One notable example is the brand new Cadillac CTS. This baby has everything — including the full iPod integration, the Gracenote database for your CDs, and 40GB in-dash hard drive — but not Bluetooth. And before you go “WTF?” - GM is assuring us they’ll undertake the “broadest roll-out of Bluetooth in the industry,” with the technology appearing in 30 vehicles across the GM range by 2009.
In the meantime, if you’re so desperate for Bluetooth, buy one of the available car-kits or some other non-GM car…

**nauriceprivat** · #10 (**permalink**) 12-22-2007, 03:46 PM

It’s always good to see mobile industry gaining traction around the world. And while most of us have already experienced all the “glory” of SMS political marketing — also known as SMS spam — people of Kenya just started to feel it.
A billboard for one of the presidential candidates says “Let’s reason together. SMS me your views — my number is 2345.” Next, we know key figures never see most of the messages people send them, but what the hack - it’s nice to get an answer even from the staff…