Blackerry Storm

I almost want to switch to Verizon Wireless for this. But I know that it’s not worth the service price nor is it worth the price of the phone. Bleh.

Sex and the City Commemorative Cellphone (Sony Ericsson W350i)

Big fan of the girls and the series? You probably will enjoy the new Sony Ericsson W350i and its Sex and the City Edition.

Released for a limited edition, the mobile phone comes in a clean ivory white shade. Its memory stick is also preloaded with Sex and the City media like the official soundtrack, a music video (Fergie’s Labels of Love) and wallpapers with the Sex and the City theme.

Other than that, the usual specifications to the Sony Ericsson W350i is the same like the amera (1.3 megapixel) and the touch screen display with external music controls and an integrated media player.

Would Carrie Bradshaw love this? Although, it seems as though this move to release the mobile unit is a bit late. The show has been canceled and the movie has been over for months. I wonder what Sony made them release this one so late into the game?

No HTC Touch HD For The US

Folks in the US who are looking forward to the HTC Touch HD will be disappointed as the Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer has clearly stated "Sad news, US. we looked into it- by the time we could bring Touch HD to the states, it would be old news. We do have other cool stuff coming.” Guess the import price for the HTC Touch HD is going to balloon shortly after this piece of news.

The Big Hug Adhesive Cell Phone Holder

Cars, especially older ones, don’t always have a convenient spot to put your cell phone and I’ve never been a fan of leaving it in my pocket while driving. Yes, you could slip it into your cupholder, but it’s not quite in the line of sight and that means your drink can’t go there. Which could be catastrophic for those in dire need of caffeine and are unwilling to hold it between their legs. Well with this little cell phone holder your phone will always be at the ideal spot for you.

It has adhesive backing so you can stick it to any random surface you like. It will work with some slim cell phones, and since it is made of soft material you don’t have to worry about it scratching up your phone. Unfortunately, since this is being sold over the internet you’ll just have to buy it and pray it happens to work with your phone. It does say that it will not work with the wider phones like the iPhone. It is sold with those giant purple hands, sadly, there are no other color options available. It is being sold for $3.99, which means the $5 shipping charge costs more than the product itself.

Product: Sourcingmap

The Numbers: Cell Phones Down, Smartphones Up, MobileSafari WAY UP

So while Apple is ramping up production of the iPhone 3G, it looks like the rest of the cell phone industry is in a serious slump. Kind of. According to the NPD, (via Ars Technica) only 28 million cell phones were sold this quarter representing a 13% year-to-year decline. But looking specifically at the model-by-model numbers, it looks like everyone is enjoying success on Motorola’s dime.

“Quarterly unit-sales of handsets fell to their lowest level, since NPD begin tracking the category in 2005,” NPD director of industry analysis Ross Rubin said in a statement. “Even so, most major manufacturers picked up market share that was lost by Motorola.”

But it’s not all bad news for the industry. Phones with QWERTY keyboards saw a 28% increase in sales and smartphones increased sales by 9%. The average price of a cell phone sold increased by 14% to $84 year-to-year. Consumers are more likely to spend more money on a handset since the iPhone was introduced and that feeling extends toward Blackberries, HTC devices, etc.

In related news, MobileSafari has been on an absolute tear since the release of the iPhone 3G. According to Analysts, (via MacDailyNews) MobileSafari has nearly doubled its market share to 0.31% since the launch. Doing rudimentary math, having more handsets on the market that are twice as fast as the old one, well, I guess it adds up.

And to top it all off, our friends at Engadget have created an iPhone specific web page. Why, you ask? Because in 2008, the iPhone/iPod Touch Family has accounted for nearly 96% of all mobile views on their full Engadget site. That’s just jaw dropping.

So that’s the state of the industry. Surprised that the iPhone 3G has had such an effect on the numbers? What’s to come?

Source:Theiphoneblog

'Green' Gadgets? Or Greenwashing?

The consumer electronics industry is finally discovering what other industries have known for a long time: "Green" products sell. Recently, there has been a sudden surge in "GREEN CONSUMER ELECTRONICS PRODUCTS." But are they all actually good for the environment? (Hint: No.)

Source:Therawfeed

Olympic Gadget Will Help You Find Stuff In China

A new mobile application under development by Germany's Fraunhofer Institute called COMPASS 2008 will be rolled out at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. COMPASS helps you finds things when you're in a FOREIGN COUNTRY. For example, when you want food, you just click on the food button. The software uses the GPS in your phone to figure out where you are, and checks nearby restaurants against what it knows about your preferences. (Hopefully you like Chinese food.) Once in the restaurant, you can write what you want in English, and COMPASS will translate it into Mandarin, or whatever the local language is, both spoken and written. COMPASS 2008 has already been successfully tested in China.

Source:Therawfeed

Robotic Cell Phone Friends

Japan, known for their advanced cell phone technologies, has come out with a new advancement that will allow you to truly call your phone a friend.

In April 2008, Softbank Mobile Corp, a Japanese company, will release the PhoneBraver, which is a new type of cell phone that doubles as a little robotic friend, ready to chat. Simply attach it’s little arms and leg to your phone and it will display various different faces on the phone.

PhoneBraver, cannot actually move, but can learn habits and display text messages to you when you make certain actions on the phone.

If you were to call someone on a regular basis, the phone might display a message coming out of the robots mouth saying, “You’re calling her often these days, aren’t you?” Users could carry on the the conversation with their robot friend by answering it’s questions and comments.

“We haven’t decided on specifics yet on the communication between the user and mobile, but your mobile would grow into a buddy different from others that is unique in the world,” he said.

The phone was made after a character in an upcoming television drama called “Cellphone Investigator 7″

The price for your own robotic phone has not yet been released but we can imagine it will be costly.

Source:Weirdasianews

Steve Jobs: 60 million iPhone apps downloaded, confirms kill switch

Steve Jobs, presumably speaking from a hyperbaric chamber where he's being nourished with an infusion of liquefied developers-souls before his next public appearance, had a few interesting tidbits about the AppStore for the Wall Street Journal this morning. Namely, users have downloaded some 60 million programs for the iPhone representing sales of about $30 million since the launch last month -- a 30/70 revenue split between Apple and developers, respectively. "The thing's going to crest a half billion soon," Jobs added, "I've never seen anything like this in my career for software." He went on to say that phone differentiation is no longer about radios and antennas (or uh, battery life) but about software. Steve also confirmed the controversial iPhone application kill switch in the event that Apple inadvertently approves a malicious program for distribution. Jobs said, "hopefully we never have to pull that lever, but we would be irresponsible not to have a lever like that to pull." As to the $999.99 I Am Rich application, the dubious download that displayed nothing but a glowing red gem, pulling that from the store was a "judgment" call. Sure, but that doesn't explain how it made it through the vetting process to begin with.

Source:Engadget

Lenovo's IdeaPad U8 makes official Olympics debut

Well, there it is, the Lenovo IdeaPad U8 launched official at the Beijing games just as we expected. With the launch come the final specs for this Asia-only MID we've seen incubating now for months: 4.8-inch touchscreen; the latest, sub-3 watt processor from Intel (uh hem, that'd be a Silverthorn-class Atom); 350-grams and 21 x 173 x 84-mm; up to 2GB memory and 6GB flash storage; dual-cameras; support for China Multimedia Mobile Broadcasting (CMMB) digital television via that protruding USB dongle; and 802.11b/g WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, EDGE data and China-specific TD-SCDMA 3G, presumably. Expect to see it trotted out tomorrow as Intel's San Francisco IDF gets underway -- with any luck, it'll be sporting WiMAX for a North American / European release.



Source: Pocketables

iPhone is the Next Step in Portable Porn

Steve Jobs is publicly against it, wireless carriers don’t want to endorse it, but as long as the internet’s involved, portable devices will inevitably be loaded up with the hottest, sexiest, and tiniest porn available. It’s already big in Europe and Asia, but portable porn hasn’t quite surged forward in America. Will it? Is the iPhone the device to carry it through?

With a big viewing area, the iPhone’s might have a screen just big enough. The Sony PSP, a contender in the portable porn market, clocks in with a 480 X 272 high resolution screen, comparable to the iPhone’s 480 X 320. The extra might help kick it out of “this is stupid small” and into an acceptable “hold it three inches front of your face” option. That, combined with easy internet access, takes care of the basics. (As for where to go on the web to find it, just head on over to the number one access point for iPhone porn sites: Google)

What about the iPhone’s whole touch potential? Sure, nipple twisting fingerprint circles on a smooth, cold, flat surface while sitting on a toilet in a mall bathroom might trigger a “EUREKA! I feel low” moment, but maybe there’s something to integrating touch with some kind of porn hacked application. We can all hang back until the Japanese sort out that whole avenue.

As for portable porn in general, there are upsides, and downsides. On the plus side, a phone’s a much more personal and private a device than a computer, less likely to be household/shared. Ironically, another advantage is that it’s much more public if you want it to be. Beer + iPhone porn = giggles among friends. And, fact is, if you ever “need” porn, you’ve always… got it… see, that’s just it, I’m not sure how I feel about the idea of having porn with me at all times. That’s committing to a lifestyle right there, like… I dunno… carrying a flask. Not only does having it in your phone create a whole new type of paranoia and set of porn-tracks to cover, but if you do get caught, all traits in the outward personality you’ve cultivated over the years will crumble in irrelevance under your new public identity as “guy who carries porn with him wherever he goes”. Still, it’s better than being the guy who keeps a “beaver shot” in his wallet.

The irony is that sticking a bikini babe as your wallpaper is still fairly socially acceptable, with womankind generally resigned to a “boys will be boys” attitude about covered nipples. But what happens when those bikini babes come to life?

I can’t help picture the ever so liberal “boys will be boys” attitude quickly dissolving with the knowledge that boys are carrying around their very own portable lap dancers. And these girls don’t ask for money when they’re done.

Source:Mmobilecommandos

If Iron Man Gets an LG Shine, Who Gets the iPhone?

The limited edition handset is the perfect metaphor for Marvel Comic’s latest blockbusting superhero. It wraps the inventive, technologically savvy qualities of Tony Stark in the durable, sleek, red and gold armor of Iron Man. Sweet.

But as cool as the movie looks, with all due respect, I was never a huge Iron Man fan growing up. Rich dude flying around in a suit of armor? Fap fap fap. So I can’t help but wonder Why does HE get a phone in HIS honor, when there have been countless comic book butt-kickers who deserve it way more? Are there less juvenile, more serious issues to ponder in the world today? Definitely. Did I spend an afternoon matching my favorite comic book characters with their respective cell phone technology? Absolutely.

Dr. Octopus - iPhone

At the height of smart-phone technology, who better to operate the multi-touch interface screen of Apple’s iPhone than evil super-genius Dr. Otto Octavius?

When he’s not busy throwing tanks, activating nuclear reactors or beating up Spidey, Doc Oc can use his mentally-controlled, telescopic tentacles to check emails, download music, text message his girlfriend while updating his blog, all at the same time! We’ll call it the iiiiPhone.

Wolverine - RAZR

For obvious reasons Wolverine needs something sharp, virtually indestructible, and able to accommodate his short temper. When he’s finished dealing with some punk Rogers customer service rep, he needs a phone he can throw into an enemy’s jugular. A cellular ninja-star if you will. So what better than a RAZR?

Silver Surfer - Motorola Q (Silver)

Exiled on earth, the Silver Surfer needs his very own silver…surfer…to surf….the web…get it? ‘Cause the phone is silver, and he’s……oh man that was terrible! What am I doing with my life?! Have you ever actually “booed” yourself? I can’t even look at myself in the mirror after that one. Wow.

The Hulk - TA-838/PT

“Hulk wearing ripped purple pants. What you wearing?” My impression of the Hulk having phone sex everybody….No? Nothing? Tough crowd. Anyhow, it’s pretty hard to picture the giant green bundle of rage delicately tapping away on his Blackberry, especially since one finger could turn the phone into blackberry juice. And I can’t picture him about to launch an oil tanker into orbit, only to be interrupted by Rihanna’s Umbrella song muffling its way out of his left pocket, when he pulls out his flip phone to take the call: “Hello? Hulk busy. Send text.” The Hulk needs something bulky with big buttons, something with the ability to send and receive calls while surrounded by explosions and incoming missiles.

Nothing takes a beating like the TA-838/PT Military Field Telephone, and incidentally nothing dishes them out better either. In the hands of our angry green friend the TA-838 is perfect for clobbering bad guys, smashing them into the ground like hammering a nail. And for fashion purposes, the phone also matches his skin color!


Source:Mobilecommandos

10 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Cell Phones

Just when we feel comfortable enough to say “wow, cell phones have really changed the way we operate,” things get even weirder. Here are 10 facts about cells from around the world that show the scale and style of our contemporary global use; sometimes for bad, but sometimes for real, cool, innovative good.

1. There Are LOTS of Them
There are half as many active cell phones on the planet as there are people. When you think of the general wealth distribution across the planet, it’s pretty remarkable to have over 3.3 billion active mobiles. Then again, Luxembourg’s mobile phone penetration rate is 158%. Yep - that’s 158 active cell phones for every 100 people.

2. And They Make a Mess
125+ million phones are discarded every year. Given the rate at which people go through cell phones (Koreans replace on average every 11 months), it’s easy to see how the environmental side can get out of control. At least there’s gold in the garbage! Yarr.

3. M-Voting in Estonia
While the 2008 US election is abuzz with web penetration, E-stonia’s been leading the global technopolitical charge. As Lithuania books a seat on the e-voting (online voting) train, Estonia’s letting mobile phones both act as a convenient vote delivery platform, but also a personal identity confirmation, ushering in a new era of what is being called “m-voting”.

4. Koreans Love to Text Message. Seriously.
Korean teenagers between 15 and 19 years of age send well over 20,000 text messages a year, on average (60.1 texts per day). I don’t care how fast StarCraft has made your fingers - that’s a lot of time that could have been spent… I dunno… talking to people. According to the Korea Times in February 2006, “over 30% of South Korean students send 100 text messages a day”.

5. The First Cell Phone Came Out in 1983
Well, at least, the first to get FCC acceptance. It was called the Motorola DynaTAC 8000X. Before you lolz at the cheesebag name, wait until you hear what it stands for: Dynamic Adaptive Total Area Coverage. Kinda endearing, I guess. They sound… proud.

6. Cell Phone… Or Flashlight?
Lost power? Sneaking back into bed? According to a Sprint survey, just under two-thirds of cell phone users use the backlight as a flashlight. A testament to human ingenuity! I guess it’s obvious, in a way. And here I thought I was being clever.

7. You Can Get Stuffed Into a Locker Through Your Phone
Ok, not really, but apparently text message bullying is on the rise in England. As an online anti-cyber-bullying guide explains, text message bullying allows for abuse around the clock. You want to pick on some kid, he’s available 24/7. It’s like those massive Blackberry ads at airports that boast that you now never have to leave the office. Bullying has never been more efficient!

8. Cell Phones Can Help Stop Nuclear Terrorism
Using solid-state radiation sensors, researchers at Purdue University are working to allow network of properly set up cell phones to track the presence of radioactive material. Since likely targets for terrorist attacks are major urban centers, and since most people have cell phones, this system could help collectively find out where the problem lies.

9. Used for National Disaster Response
Mobiles are more useful during an emergency than just for calling loved ones. Other countries have adopted systems whereby phone companies automatically warn citizens of emergencies/disasters - free of charge. Finland, in 2005, adopted such a system, as did Japan.

10. Half of Japan’s Top Fiction Was Written on Mobile Phones
Absolutely nuts. Turning the publishing industry on its head, this trend’s subscriber models are thriving and making significant money for aspiring writers, in turn fueling the phenomenon. Authors tend to be young women sharing fictionalized aspects of their lives. Five of the top ten works of fiction in 2007 were written on mobile phones. Japan, you never cease to amaze me.

Source:Mobilecommandos

Top 10 Cell Phone Etiquette Rules People Still Break

Do we really still need to talk about this? You’d think with over a decade of experience under our belts along with our inherent delusions of hyper sophistication that we’d have figured things out by now. But the sad truth remains: cell-phone douche-baggery is worse than ever! In terms of maturity levels, many of us rank amongst toddlers, interrupting anyone and anything with our loud nonsense, our little fingers obsessively pushing buttons with what’s left of our attention spans constantly distracted by various bells, whistles, and bright colors on tiny screens. This ridiculous need to be in touch with all people at all times is getting out of hand, and while we think we are staying more connected with each other, we are in fact treating those closest to us like China treated the Mongols. We’re building giant walls people! The following are basic cell phone rules of etiquette which people still can’t seem to follow. In fact, they should be called “How to use your common sense and remain polite in a human society.” Read them, learn them, and absorb them into your system as you would the vitamins from a mango smoothie.




1. Talking too loudly.
“YES! FOR THE LOVE OF BABY JESUS, WE CAN HEAR YOU NOW!” For some bizarre reason people feel the need to raise their voices while on their phones. I think we’ve come far enough, technologically speaking, to trust the phone’s microphone to adequately amplify and carry your voice. Your mouth couldn’t physically be any closer to the microphone, so unless you’re talking into it from a Captain Kirk distance or calling in an airstrike while under heavy machine gun fire, there’s no need to yell. Hell, even Kirk never raised his voice and he was communicating with an alcoholic Scotsman on a space ship!
Note: There are attention-seekers out there who speak loudly on purpose to “show off” recent accomplishments and victories to impress surrounding strangers. Do not hate on them too much, they were probably adopted and are cursed to constantly seek approval from anyone within earshot.

2. Holding inappropriate conversations in public.
No one needs to hear how wasted you were last night, or what color your boyfriend’s boxers were on the night the two of you, um, “played Scrabble.” Keep your personal conversations personal. If you don’t want people to see you crying in line at the bank or while ordering a stuffed-crust pizza, refrain from having emotional conversations in public. Offer to call the person back, step outside, or find a quiet place where you can openly and unabashedly describe your new foot fungus.

3. Rudely interrupting conversations.
Have you ever felt the only way to maintain a conversation with the person right in front of you is to give them a call? Ever arrive at the climax of a hilarious story, only to have the momentum ruined by “Sorry, I gotta take this”? Why is the disembodied voice of someone else more important than the flesh and blood standing before you? It’s very frustrating to stand around waiting while your “friend,” date, or family member gets into a phone conversation on your time. When this happens, I recommend simply walking away. Even when you’re sitting in a restaurant, if your date would rather chat with someone else, then you should get up and leave immediately to find someone else. Or, as I mentioned earlier, call them on their other line. “Hey, how’s it going? How’s your sea bass? Isn’t the wine delicious?” If you can’t beat ‘em, call ‘em.

4. Checking your phone at the movies.
Movie theatre announcements and people who are quick to “shhhh” have done a decent job of reducing reducing cell phone rings over the years. But people are still checking their calls and text messaging rfiends, silently, but equally annoyingly. There’s a reason why we spend an arm and a leg to watch movies in the theatre. When the lights go out and the screen lights up, we try to forget our everyday troubles and we submerse ourselves into whatever the hell world we bought tickets for. We escape. But when out of the corner of our eyes we see someone’s entire face light up while they check their phone messages, we’re yanked right back to reality and are reminded of how many jerks per square foot there are in the world. Turn your phones off, have a little consideration for the people around you. The world won’t stop spinning if you’re unavailable for 2 hours. “But what if there’s an emergency?” The odds of an actual emergency occurring are astronomical. Besides, if there was an emergency, it already happened. You already weren’t there, and chances are the people who could actually do anything about it, already have.

5. Texting while driving.

Somebody please get the “Darwin Awards” on the phone. Of course, if you’re driving when you do, make sure you’re on hands free or have pulled over before you start explaining how there are people who send texts while behind the wheel of a vehicle. According to a Harvard University study, cell phones cause over 200 deaths and half a million injuries each year. And that’s with eyes on the road! Laws are in place to make sure people aren’t talking on their phones, and yet people are typing?!?! (I very rarely use the double question mark with the double exclamation point at the end of sentences, but this is ridiculous) I would love to see the tombstone: Was LOL when he WCTTFW (Went crashing through the freaking windshield) Anyone caught texting while driving should be stripped of their driving license forever.

6. Texting while talking.
You ever have someone try to listen to your story while text messaging someone else? You want to give them points for making the effort as they clumsily insert “oh yeahs” and “un huhs” at all the wrong moments, cutting you off mid-sentence with a “no way” as they furiously thumb type in your face, but at the same time you want to volleyball spike their phone to the ground for being unbelievably rude. A third option is tell better stories.

7. Texting small talk.
Does our friendship mean nothing? Have we become so lazy and disinterested in each other’s lives that we’re asking people to sum up their days with a text? “How r u?” “What’s up?” “What’s new?” These arbitrary questions are annoying enough when asked in person, but at least we have the ability to fire back equally insignificant responses in one second or less. But expecting people to waste their time typing “not bad, u?” or “same sh*t” or heaven forbid “let me tell you about my day” is about as lame and pointless as your appendix.

8. Loud and annoying ringtones.
I was riding the bus to work one morning, when out of nowhere the silence was shattered with screaming. It was the type of scream a frat boy lets out when a serial killer is in the process of gutting him with a fountain pen. I just about had a cardiac arrest and many of the people on the bus jumped out of their seats. It was only when the repetitive screaming suddenly tripled in volume that we all discovered the culprit: a cell phone. Some jerk pulled the phone out of his pocket, embarrassed at how loud it was, and accidentally dropped it on the bus floor. The joke now on him, the whole bus watched in amusement as this dude’s face grew redder and redder, scrambling to pick up and silence the screams coming from his phone. While there are far too many stupid ringtones out there to mention here, the story makes the point: turn down your stupid ringtone! No one thinks you’re clever, or funny, or musically savvy when you’re little pocket jukebox interrupts their thoughts. That guy on the bus probably thought his scream-tone was hysterical, but the looks on everyone else’s face read loud and clear: “What a douche bag!”

9. Disturbing live performances.
Comedy shows, concerts, plays etc…Nothing boils my blood more than having art ruined by a ringing cell phone. I nearly gave a security guard a standing ovation when he grabbed a gentleman by the collar and escorted him out of a Cirque du Soleil show for having his cell phone go off during a particularly dangerous acrobatic stunt. You ruin someone’s comedy act or interrupt an actor on stage, in turn spoiling the experience for everyone around you who’s spent their hard earned money on a night out, and you’re an arrogant douche-monkey who should be put in the corner with the rest of the 5 year olds. But when you disturb a performer who’s very life depends on needle-point focus and concentration, you should be put in jail.

10. Location location location
There are countless locations where “taking the call” is inappropriate and extremely annoying to those around you. The first two off the top of my head as the most frustrating are in libraries, and fast food restaurant lines. One of the last places on earth, aside from an empty church or your own bathroom, where people can go to read, think, and study in silence, is under attack by people who refuse to disconnect from the outside world. Does the word SSSSHHHHH mean nothing to you? Take the call outside, before someone throws “War and Peace” or Stephen King’s “It” at your head.
While ordering food, there’s no need to explain how annoying a phone call can be for both the restaurant staff and for the customers in line behind you. Check out how one Subway restaurant dealt with this problem. Again, if people are going to act like children we need to treat them like children. Well played Subway, well played.

Source:Mobilecommandos