Dallas -- AT&T Inc. today announced that its iPhone 3G customers can set up accounts online before heading to the nearest store to activate and complete the purchase, reducing in-store wait times as the busy holiday shopping season approaches.New customers can perform a pre-qualifying credit check and determine eligibility to port an existing phone number to AT&T in advance by visiting http://www.att.com/iphone. Existing AT&T customers can also determine eligibility to add a new line for iPhone.

The new AT&T online service joins Apple's existing offering to give customers the fastest way to get up and running with their new iPhone 3G by starting the setup process online and finishing in the store. For more information, please visit http://www.apple.com/iphone/buy.

iPhone 3G combines all the revolutionary features of iPhone plus 3G networking that is twice as fast(1) on the nation's fastest 3G network, built- in GPS for expanded location-based mobile services and iPhone 2.0 software, which includes support for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync and runs thousands of third-party applications that are available through the Apple App Store. ... more

2 New iPhones for 3rd Generation

by Insider

******************

October 11th, 2008 Today we heard a rumor that iPhone will have 2 versions. The rumor is that the second version will be a smaller smart phone.  


October 8th, 2008 
We just got our first Insider sniff of a 3rd generation iPhone being worked on in China. We expected, but not this soon. We will keep you posted in diary fashion as the photos come in.

Once again iPhone rumors are floating in China . The latest is that the next generation iPhone released will be not be one iPhone but  two iPhones! Why is China the place where these rumors start? Simple, thousands of people are involved in building iPhones and those that have the means know how to get inside information, once it starts the information spreads. These rumors are used by accessory manufacturers and agents in China to decide what they will produce, when they will start to manufacturer it and when they should unload the old stock. The right decisions could mean millions of dollars if you get it right and you get it early. Our Insider diary will give you the rumors as we hear them and we will post photos and dimensions as we see them. If you are an accessory company we don’t have to tell you that you should take the information at your own risk. If you are a consumers, it will be interesting to follow how things unfold.

I own a BlackBerry Curve and a 1st generation iPhone. I love the media aspects of the iPhone - music, movies, pictures and so on. It's the best - really.... But, as an email device reliant on good connectivity, it is shite. I frequently have issues getting a stable connection. I often cannot pull email in when I want to. I always get dropped calls (and my BlackBerry is on AT&T also and this doesn't happen)....

BUT, my biggest issue with this device is its total lack of copy & paste. It's like making a car without wheels (or round ones at least). Can someone please tell me how it came to pass that Apple - who innovate and lead the way in personal computer technology and innovation could be so f-ing dumb as to not release a device with copy & paste?

Worst of all, Jobs will come on stage to rapturous applause at some other Apple conference in the next few weeks and announce that "we have developed copy & paste - available in the new software update". The audience will cheer and clap... NO - don't applaud and clap. This product should have always had this... Always... Stand up/jump out of your seats and shout "about f-ing time"... Apple need to listen to their customers and read the blogs out there....

So, sorry to say... I have lost my iBone for my iPhone... Device is less frustrating if one turns off the radio signal and just uses it for media....

Meanwhile, the same news source writes that state-owned TOT still intends to push ahead with an ambitious plan to invest THB29 billion in rolling out an UMTS network in 2009-11 via its cellular arm Thai Mobile. It aims to sign up at least 350,000 3G subscribers next year and four million by 2013, and expects the service to break even within seven years. However, TOT executives reportedly acknowledge ‘privately’ that the actual costs of the rollout could be higher than original estimates, says the Post. TOT received cabinet approval for the plan last month, and the Information and Communications (ICT) Ministry supports the proposal, but it still requires endorsement from the National Economic and Social Development Board and the Public Debt Management Office. TOT is currently in the process of buying out sister telco CAT’s holding in joint venture ACT Mobile in order to gain full management control of Thai Mobile. The tiny, debt-ridden GSM operator is the country’s only holder of 2100MHz frequencies. Cellular market leader AIS launched a small scale commercial UMTS network in the 900MHz band in May; it is hoped that the state will award 2100MHz concessions to private operators sometime next year.

Source: TeleGeography

Ban on commercial use of GPS in Egypt has consumers frustrated

Technology lovers and modern car owners in Egypt consider themselves unlucky because of a government ban on the usage of Global Positioning System (GPS) technology. Telecoms Law 10/2003 outlaws the import of GPS-equipped mobile phones, and retailers found selling them could lead to the confiscation of their entire stock. The same applies to any kind of commercial use of GPS technology, which includes cars equipped with GPS devices. Mobile phones like the Nokia N95, N82 as well as iPhones and some 3G phones are banned in Egypt, leaving the market deprived of the latest technology and features that are fast becoming standard in the new generation of mobile phones. GPS helps users navigate to their destination inside cities and in remote areas. It also functions as a guide for places of interest as well as hospitals, police departments and businesses.
Source: GIS Development; Daily News Egypt, 9 October, 2008

See also: Mobile handset makers urge to end GPS ban (June 2008)http://www.amcham.org.eg/publications/businessmonthly/June%2008/indepth(mobilehandsetmakersurgeendtogpsban).asp

After some speculation which caused a mislead to my earlier blog posting and some well-kept secrets about the Telus/Bell plans to upgrade to GSM/HSPA, it seems that the plan will go ahead as plan - this time it's official - but instead of dropping their CDMA networks for GSM/HSPA, the 4G/LTE network will be deployed.

I was reading through the press releases of both Bell and Telus and by reading those press releases, I realized that they are deploying the 4th Generation (4G) Long Term Evolution (LTE) network coast to coast. Thanks to their recent licences they had managed to secure during the Wireless Spectrum Auction back in May of this year (2008), it is expected that the new network will be ready by 2010. Both Bell and Telus selected Nokia Siemens and Huawei to provide the infrastrucutre that Bell and Telus will deploy. After all, it seems that both companies has the "Angels & Airwaves" on making their network to be adaptable for visitors in Canada - especially the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver and the recently announced plan for Toronto to bid on the 2015 Pan Am games (which I will cover on my next blog posting).

This is spreading like wildfire! From the message boards to many blogs such as WirelessNorth.ca. The only problem is, how will other providers that run on the big players' networks will benefit from the upgrade - especially Virgin Mobile, Koodo and Solo? It's up to them to decide for themselves.

References:

"Vendors cheer Bell-Telus network announcement, posts unoriginal quote." National Post. 10 October 2008. 10 October 2008. <http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fpposted/archive/2008/10/10/carriers-cheer-bell-telus-network-announcement-posts-unoriginal-quote.aspx>

"BCE and Telus announce joint network upgrade." National Post. 10 October 2008. 10 October 2008. <http://www.financialpost.com/story.html?id=873515>

"Bell, Telus to upgrade networks." Toronto Star. 10 October 2008. 10 October 2008. <http://www.thestar.com/Business/article/515644>

"Telus and Bell announce GSM plans for Canada - HSPA 3G networks by 2010." IntoMobile.com. 10 October 2008. 10 October 2008. <http://www.intomobile.com/2008/10/10/telus-and-bell-announce-gsm-plans-for-canada-hspa-3g-networks-by-2010.html>

Cuando se dieron cuenta de la importancia de la música mp3 en el creciente mercado de la reproducción de canciones en formato de audio digital, las grandes compañías de Silicon Valley como Apple mediante Steve Jobs crearon el iPod junto con iTunes que crearon un Boom en la sociedad, convirtiéndose en uno de los aparatos mas populares en el planeta.

Pero como la tecnología avanza, sacaron varios modelos para adaptarlo a las distintas necesidades del público, dando como resultado el iPod shuffle, el nano, el classic y el touch. Y hasta aquí se pensó que el iPod había llegado a su  máxima evolución. Pero lo que hiso Applet fue fusionar dos conceptos en uno, un reproductor de música mp3 y video con las funciones de un celular, obteniendo algo llamado “iPhone” un iPod touch con funciones de celular.

Este IPhone es uno de las cosas mas deseadas por la gente actualmente, pero esto no se acaba aquí, recientemente sacaron la versión “3G”  del cual resalta su GPS integrado y pleno acceso a la internet por wi-fi.Pero para culturizarnos veamos el inicio de la visita guiada por la misma Applet...

Entonces la pregunta es ¿Y ahora que vendrá?, sabemos que la tecnología avanza y que no podemos pararla, pero a cuanto de ustedes no les ha pasado que compran un dispositivo electrónico el momento y tras unos meses sale uno mejor a ese, y el que tenias ya no es mas superior, es por esto que llegamos hasta pensar en no comprarlo porque al rato sale algo muchísimo mejor, razones hay muchas pero navegando en la web me encontré este top, “el top 10 de las razones para no comprarte el iPhone 3G”  gracias a www.esquizopedia.com

10. Mejor espera que salga el iPhone Shuffle que costara 49$, no tendrá pantalla pero si el logo de Apple. No hace falta que explique que solo tiene un botón y las llamadas ocurren al azar. Minimalismo total, puro y duro.

9. Los colores del iPhone son terriblemente aburridos. El color de moda en el mundo (menos en Venezuela) es el rojo.

8. El iPhone 3G no tiene teclas. Cuando Steve Jobs se de cuenta que las teclas son necesarias y le ponga esas bonitas teclas blancas y cuadradas al iPhone, tu iPhone se va a ver como de los años 70’s.

7. Más de la mitad de las aplicaciones para el iPhone son calculadoras de propinas. Un reciente estudio británico encontró que la gente que no se ha comprado un iPhone deja menos propinas que sus contrapartes iPhonizados. Al final de mes quienes no tienen iPhone ahorran más dinero.

6. El iPhone es más complicado de usar que un Nokia 2100.

5. El iPhone no está diseñado para el trópico o lugares donde te suden las manos, tampoco para el verano. El mismo estudio británico encontró que la unión de manos + sudor + lo bonito y liso del iPhone hace que el numero de caídas aumentara el triple (comprado con el Nokia 2100). Por otro lado nada más sucio en el mundo que una pantalla iPhone 3G de dedos sudados.

4. Si buscas la felicidad, no la encontraras en un teléfono, por más iconos bonitos que tenga (según un estudio británico de la felicidad).

3. Cuando estés aburrido en la consulta medica no vas a poder jugar con la tapita de la batería, quien sabe porque el iPhone no tiene este elemento de diversión incorporado en su diseño. El 89.7% de los visitantes de un consultorio medico juega con las tapitas de su celular (según un estudio británico de una universidad britanica).

2. Si te amarras a un plan de 2 años cuando salgan los nuevos modelos de iPhones, tus amigos que hoy no tenían posibilidad de comprar el teléfono, compraran el iPhone 4G y se amarraran a un plan de 2 años, y entonces los amigos de tus amigos que no pudieron comprar el 3G ni el 4G podrán comprarse el modelo de iPhone 5G. Al final siempre, hagas lo que hagas estarás 2 años en el pasado. Tu próximo teléfono, si la matemática no falla será un iPhone 6G.

1. Si un día tu novia se decide a dejar que la grabes mientras tienes sexo con ella, estas perdido… ¡NO GRABA VÍDEO!

¿Qué podemos hacer? pues aguantar hasta que salga algo mejor que esto es difícil pero no imposible,  comprarlo seria una opción pero tienes que tener en mente que el día de mañana habrá algo superior, o también podemos no comprarlo  y gastarlo en otra cosa o hasta donarlo, algo posible pero difícil de hacer.
Yo no tengo IPhone, aunque quiero uno, la decisión es de ustedes.

Para mayor información www.apple.com/es/iphone

Tags: applet steve jobs ipod itune iphone tegnología

First, my plan; I'm extremely happy with it. My bill comes in at just under $100/month (all BS service/911 charges and taxes included), about a $20 increase over my old Telus plan. That plan gave me 700 anytime minutes, weekends and evenings after 6, no data, no texting plan. For that $20 increase, my minutes dropped to 500, no weekends, and "evenings" start at 9pm. But I added unlimited calling to 5 numbers - and 80% of my voice minutes on Telus went to only 2 numbers - 6gb of data traffic a month, and virtually unlimited text messaging. If data wasn't an issue, my plan would actually be cheaper than Telus's, with the text messaging and My5 added on for the price of 200 minutes. I really don't feel ripped off - well, any more than any other Canadian compared to many other countries' plans, anyway.

I've been using data like mad - lots of Youtube videos, a ton of GPS with Google maps open to full satellite view, the whole bit - and I've racked up only about an average of 10mb of data a day. The 6gb plan, while not branded "unlimited" like AT&T's in the US, is unlimited for all intents and purposes. As I hear it in the US, anyways, despite the "unlimited" tag AT&T phone and bitch you out if you go over 5gb. Without hacking the phone so you can use it to stream torrents through it to your laptop or something, and with the limits the iTunes store puts on your ability to download music and video over 3G, it really doesn't seem even remotely possible I'll hit 1gb a month, let alone 6. None of the data plan gets used at home, where the wifi kicks in, so I've got no worry that I can't use my iPhone to my heart's desire without worrying about getting charged data overages. In short, I'm very happy with the plan I've got from Rogers.

On to the phone itself. I don't need to go on about how nicely the touch interface works or the other mundane stuff; you've read it many times before I'm sure. I'm happy with it as a phone; I hate talking on the phone and avoid it so it wasn't that big a deal. My only complaints involve battery life and push email. Push email works most of the time, but not all of the time. Sometimes I need to restart the iPhone to get it to work, sometimes it just doesn't. I'm not sure if the problem lies with the phone, with Rogers, or with MobileMe, but it's a little irritating. Sometimes SMS messages from Telus customers don't come through in a timely manner, either, though I've no idea where the fault there lies, that happened on my Telus phone sometimes, too.

The battery life is rough. For many people it's probably not bad, and I'm aware that benchmarks put it into the acceptable range for any 3G device. But when I spend all day at work using the iPod functionality to listen to music, plus watch (high-quality ripped) videos on cigarette and lunch breaks, plus talk on the phone for a half-hour or so... the battery's over half-done by the middle of the afternoon. It definitely needs a charge-up. Add in the huge battery drain if I decide to use mapping features, and I'm needing a recharge during the day. A set of speakers at work that are compatible and would keep it charging would be a big help, and it only takes a half-hour to an hour plugged in during the day to keep me in solid green no matter how much I use it, but I still wish the battery lasted longer. Switching the phone out of 3G or turning off fetch and location services help, but I prefer to keep them on as much as possible.

As to the good... I don't even know where to start. It's a completely life-changing device. As someone with a very large and well-maintained database of music - I'm one of those with album art for every track and lyrics for most - I like it even more than I loved the iPod for the way it displays and uses the information, and it works like a dream. I especially love the headphones, with their tiny little microphone/click button that lets me listen all day to music while seamlessly answering my phone calls, pausing and starting, and skipping tracks with the phone in my pocket. Also terrific is the way the new Genius playlists work - one button press on the song I'm currently listening to and it doesn't stop playing, just puts the track at the head of a new 25-song Genius playlist.

This is my second iDevice that supports video, and while watching video on the nano wasn't bad, the screen size and quality of the iPhone is obviously much more suited to watching video. Using Handbrake, I can easily rip my own DVDs into iPhone compatible formats, and I actually enjoy watching them, they look so sharp. Converting DivX files into iPhone-compatible formats with ffmpegx is also easy, though I obviously wish it just supported DivX.

The really life-changing aspects of the iPhone are the App Store, the 3G data speeds, and the new GPS functionality. With 3G data, you're almost moving at DSL speeds. Using the internet is actually a pleasure, and I'm constantly reaching in my pocket to look something up on IMDB or Wikipedia - and unlike previous mobile browsers I've used, I can then get sucked into Wikipedia for a half-hour, since it's as pleasurable to use as sitting at your computer. Once the long-rumoured and now-confirmed development of Flash for the iPhone comes, there's little I won't be able to do that I do on my computer.

GPS has hitches and burps when really using it hard - such as our favourite new hobby, geocaching - and I wish it had voice instructions to go with driving directions. But it's so incredibly useful, especially with the right apps, it shines way past the minor irritations, and with 3G data speeds, satellite maps from Google Earth load fast enough to have them turned on all the time. I can call up Locly, have it provide a list of pubs based on my current location, then with a couple finger-taps, have directions to their door pop up. Or I can pick a restaurant and with a single tap, phone for reservations. Using Twitterrific, I can have it update the current area I'm twittering from, snap a picture, upload it and associate it with my tweet in seconds. While the camera is unremarkable, it's decent, and it's just having it on the iPhone instantly that is so enjoyable; I can snap a picture of something interesting and have it posted and tagged on Facebook in seconds, reading my friends' comments about it in minutes. Or I can call up Flixster's Movies app, find a list of (GPS-located) nearby theatres and what's playing them, order tickets directly on the iPhone, then watch the trailer before getting Google Maps directions to the theatre.

Apps to view and browse my XBL friends, apps to help geocaching, use my del.icio.us bookmarks, read my RSS feeds (synced to my computer), browse Digg, pull up real-time traffic cameras, or chat on AIM and MSN. A complete database of every baseball player in history, with full stats. Even an astonishing number of good games - Tap Tap Revenge and Cro-Mag, especially. So many cool ways people have taken advantage of the accelerometer, too, from Cro-Mag's responsive driving controls, to a surprisingly good lightsaber, to shaking the phone to refresh Facebook, to providing real-time data on acceleration and braking G-forces while driving a car. Even one app that can record a 10-second long clip of music from any source and then identify it, providing links to YouTube videos and the song in the iTunes store.

I always viewed my phone as more of an inconvenience than anything - I generally don't like talking on the phone for some reason, but we all need one. I never thought that Apple would be able to take an item I generally dislike and turn it into something that I literally can not keep my hands off.

This upgrade comes at a time when demand is beginning to exceed current offerings; because, mobile devices, such as smart phones, netbooks, and laptops are becoming more reliant on the 3G network
for functionality. The idea of a partnership between the two is also somewhat welcome, as Canada has been notoriously difficult to upgrade and cover properly in the past -- a point hammered home to Canadians
every month in the form of "system access fees."

By anticipating the growing demand, BCE and TELUS are positioning themselves as a 'safe' choice for consumers by building a network with excellent, high speed coverage that is future proofed for several
years. While Rogers will still be the high speed wireless king for the next year, they should definitely be worried as their most valuable advantage has just been negated by the competition.

[q url="http://www.financialpost.com/story-printer.html?id=873515"]

Genuity
Capital Markets analyst Dvai Ghose said the upgrade poses negatively for Rogers, although the company will maintain its HSPA monopoly in Canada for much of 2009.

"However, as Bell and TELUS will only launch HSPA in early 2010, Rogers may still win all the early roaming
contracts from AWS new entrants. That being said, over time, Rogers may have to compete against Bell and TELUS for new entrant roaming revenue."

[/q]
[found via Alan Sawyer]

continue for some more pics

I actually expect more than this from X1, but it just a package after all. So, anything will do.(is it?)

thanks to fosfor.com

Full instructions can be found on Johns blog here: http://tech.kateva.org/2008/09/iphone-21-does-not-fix-unknown.html .

This is done using the latest version 8 iTunes and iPhone firmware.

So far, so good, all data is back, unfortunately all the icons have been repositioned, its a shame apple can't retain the position of the icons. Data and passwords seem to have been retained.

Everything seems updated, so this is probably the best solution at the moment, i'll give some more feedback after a few applications have been updated. The true test.

The touch screen of the Storm however is remarkably different because it's 'clickable': when touched, the screen depresses slightly as if it's a typewriter key. RIM president Mike Lazaridis described the touch-screen as a "truly tactile touch interface" which "solves the longstanding problem associated with typing on traditional touch-screens."

To fence of the stiff competition of other recent smartphones (think Apple iPhone, Google's T-Mobile G1, Samsung Omnia,...), the Blackberry Storm offers a large range of high level features, including 3G, HTML web browser, 3.2 megapixel camera, video camera, media player and GPS.

RIM hasn't announced a release date yet but the Storm should become available before the Christmas holiday season. In the US, it will be linked with Verizon, while in Europe, India, Australia and New Zealand it will be available with a Vodafone subscription.

Além do G1 e do Nokia 5800 (comentados anteriormente), mais dois smartphones 3G vêm por aí, um BlackBerry e um Samsung.

BlackBerry Storm

Contando com GPS, câmera de 3,2 megapixels, acelerômetro, fone 3,5 mm, media player, tela de 480 x 360, 1 GB de memória (expansível com cartão microSD), bateria com duração de 15 dias (standby) ou 5,5 horas (conversação) e mais. Site oficial.

Samsung F 480

• GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900 - 2G Network
• HSDPA 2100 - 3G Network
• 2.8" TFT touchscreen display - 256K cores/240 x 320 pixels
• Vibração
• MP3 & Ringtones Polifônicos - Personalização/Download
• 30 ligações perdidas, 30 recebidas, 30 realizadas (registro de chamadas)
• Ligações com fotos, 1000 entradas na agenda
• microSD (TransFlash) Card slot
• 3G HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps
• EDGE Class 12
• Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP
• GPRS Class 12 (4+1/3+2/2+3/1+4 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
• USB
• MMS, SMS, EMS, Instant Messaging, Email
• HTML & WAP 2.0/xHTML Browser
• 5 Megapixel Camera - 2592х1944 pixels, autofocus, video, flash
• Java MIDP 2.0
• H.264/H.263/MPEG4 player & MP3/AAC/AAC+ player
• Visualizador e organizador de documentos
• Built-in viva-voz
• 95.9 x 55 x 11.5 mm

Wi-PHONE; Wireless üzerinden veya normal internet üzerinden sabit telefon arama özelliği. Ucuzluk ve kolaylık birarada. ayrıntılar için tıklayın....

Wi-RO; Yurtdışından Türkiyeyi çok ucuza arama servisi. ayrıntılar için tıklayın....

Video-FON; 3g cep telefonunuzdan ailenizle sabit telefondan görüntülü konuşabilme. ayrıntılar için tıklayın....