Microsoft today announced the release of an update to Bing for mobile browser at m.bing.com. Bing for Mobile browser now includes a NFL feature where if you type a team or player, you will see upcoming games, stats and scores. While the game is on you can get real time updates of the plays. This feature is only available in the U.S. Additionally, now you can also check flight status by entering the airline and flight number to get the latest arrival and departure times.
For touch phone owners in the U.S. Bing has a new version of Bing for high-resolution touch devices. Bing has optimized the touch navigation to make the most of your phone, and added a new Movies feature. Search for Movies in your city, and you’ll see the movies playing nearby, show times, trailers, overviews, and video clips.
Nokia is currently running a video contest with a chance to win the new Nokia N900. The contest, "Offline as it Happens", requires contestants to submit videos of something interesting. It could be from a webcam, with your mobile phone or even an animation. You must submit your idea by November 13, 2009. The winning idea will be chosen and announced by the Nokia jury on November 15, 2009 and could be made into a Nokia film.
Nokia Siemens Networks is conducting end-to-end LTE interoperability testing with four leading device vendors across several frequency bands required in different regions, including AWS, 700 MHz and 2100 MHz. The tests cover several steps in end-to-end network configuration based on commercial LTE hardware, including the Flexi Multiradio Base Station and the Evolved Packet Core, and standard compliant software. The availability of commercial LTE terminals from multiple vendors and proven interoperability with networks providers is a prerequisite for any operator to launch commercial LTE services.
Nokia Siemens Networks recently completed successful calls with end to end LTE network infrastructure and LTE terminals. This marks yet another important milestone for the company towards commercialization of LTE. The tests show the interoperability of the Nokia Siemens Networks LTE radio and Flexi NS and Flexi NG evolved packet core network elements with real LTE terminals, and end to end compliancy with the LTE standard (3GPP March 09 baseline specifications).
AdMob, the world’s largest mobile advertising platform, examined the rapid and global growth of mobile Web and application usage over the past two years in their September 2009 AdMob Mobile Metrics Report. This month marks the second anniversary of the Mobile Metrics Report and the growth in traffic since September 2007 demonstrates that mobile data usage is a truly global phenomenon. In September 2009 AdMob received more than 100 million ad requests from 14 countries, and more than 10 million ad requests from 64 countries.
The report also highlights the rapid growth in usage of mobile Web sites and applications on new devices in the past year. In September 2008, the Motorola RAZR was the top device in the US, and the iPhone was the only touchscreen device in the Top 10. In September 2009, the list of the top 10 devices includes five with touchscreens, six with Wi-Fi capabilities, and six with application stores.
VoxOx by TelCentris, the first and only free consumer service that unifies today’s key communication channels — voice, video, IM, text, social media, e-mail, fax and more — into a single user interface, today introduced “unlimited” monthly subscription plans for calling and two-way texting via VoxOx. Domestic and worldwide plan options are available.
As part of the launch, VoxOx, which is currently in beta, is offering a $2.45 introductory rate for its monthly domestic calling plan (U.S. and Canada), which marks the lowest published rate of all leading Internet telephony providers, including more than 15 percent lower than Skype.
Users who take advantage of this offer will enjoy an ongoing subscription at this highly discounted rate.
The new monthly subscription rates are as follows.
Smartphone prices are falling as shipment volumes increase, and a new study from ABI Research finds that while in 2007 only 18% of smartphones on offer cost under $200 retail, that percentage has already grown to 27% this year. By 2014, say the firm’s forecasts, 45% of the smartphones shipped that year will be priced below $200.
These numbers highlight a rapid change in many consumers’ attitudes about smartphones, and a corresponding shift in vendors’ and mobile operators’ sales and marketing strategies.
The result: more and more smartphones and conventional phones are priced in similar ranges. Handset makers’ and carriers’ marketing strategies must accommodate both groups of consumers: those who want a basic replacement phone, and those who care about what the OS can do for them. In some markets, these strategies are further complicated by the heavy subsidies that mobile operators may offer.
Back in August of 2007, we reported that The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) confirmed that Google will launch a cell phone within a year. The WSJ claimed Google had developed a cell phone prototype to ultimately give away free cell phones and service to subscribers. The Google was to be bundled with advertisements from its search engine, e-mail and Web browser software applications and considered a major threat to existing carriers like Sprint, Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile.
Nothing ever came of the Google phone until today. Today TheStreet.com is reporting that Google will be launching an Android powered smartphone by the end of this year. The Google phone will be available via retailers and not via telcos. This is according to Northeast Securities analyst Ashok Kumar, who has been in contact with Google's design partners about the plan.
Qualcomm Innovation Center, Inc. (QuIC) and the Symbian Foundation, today announced that QuIC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, has joined the Symbian Foundation and has been appointed to the Symbian Foundation board of directors. QuIC will support the Symbian Foundation with active participation on the board of directors and each of the four councils that govern the development of the Symbian platform.
QuIC's charter is to focus on optimizing open source software for use with Qualcomm technology. QuIC brings to the Symbian Foundation a wealth of knowledge and expertise in open source and, as a Symbian Foundation board member, QuIC is committed to working with its fellow board members for Symbian's continued commercial success. QuIC joins wireless operators AT&T, Vodafone and NTT DOCOMO; silicon providers ST Microelectronics NV and Texas Instruments; and handset manufacturers Samsung, Sony Ericsson and Nokia on the Symbian Foundation board.
Best Buy Mobile will pre-sell the highly anticipated Verizon Motorola DROID smartphone beginning October 29. The phone will land in stores November 6. The Motorola DROID is the first Verizon device running on Google’s innovative Android operating platform.
Customers who purchase the smartphone at Best Buy Mobile can avoid the hassle of mail-in rebates with instant savings applied at the point of purchase. The phone will retail for $199.99 with two-year activation.
Best Buy Mobile has become a leading destination for smartphone purchases, in part because of the promises the store offers its customers: better choice of phones and networks; impartial, informed advice; straightforward pricing; and someone to be there for the life of the phone.
Google announced today Google Maps Navigation (Beta) for Android 2.0 devices featuring a GPS navigation system which includes 3D views, turn-by-turn voice guidance and automatic rerouting. Unlike most navigation systems, Google Maps Navigation is built from the ground up to take advantage of your phone's Internet connection. (See demo video above).
The first phone to have Google Maps Navigation and Android 2.0 is the Droid from Verizon. Google Maps Navigation is initially available in the United States and is free.
Below are seven features of Google Maps Navigation because it's connected to the Internet:
Asurion Mobile Applications, a provider of people-centric mobile applications, has a free app for Android powered devices called AddressBook. The app allows mobile phone contacts smart and social. (See video below).
With the numerous social media services, AddressBook cuts through the chatter to ensure you’re always up to date with social feeds, including Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Flickr, from your most important contacts, placing them directly into your phone’s AddressBook.
Users can get the updates they want and interact easily with their key contacts all from a central location without bringing the social network “clutter” into their mobile phone. AddressBook uses an open framework, allowing developers to continuously add features and functions.
Verizon Wireless today officially unveiled DROID by Motorola, the first smartphone powered by Android 2.0. DROID by Motorola features the brainpower and breakneck speed of a modern smartphone, designed to outperform where other smartphones fall short. The DROID goes on sale Nov. 6.
The DROID comes with:
High-speed Web browsing
Voice-activated search
Customizable large screen,
Access to thousands of Android applications and
Hundreds of widgets
DROID by Motorola has a solid exterior, intelligent interior and is one of the thinnest full-QWERTY slider phones available. It is a no-fuss, high-tech, location-aware, voice-recognizing, over-the-air updating, multi-tasking machine – and it is available just in time for holiday wish lists.
Nokia has released a new Nokia N97 software update 2.0 that adds new user experience elements and functionalities to the device. The standard version of the Nokia N97 software update 2.0 is available immediately through the PC on the Nokia Software Update website, and will be followed by a wide range of country and operator versions over the coming weeks as well as possibility to do the update over-the-air.
Also this week, Nokia N97 mini makes its big debut in stores. With its stainless steel cues, the Nokia N97 mini is designed for style-conscious people who are active with social networks. The device features a tilting 3.2" touch display, QWERTY keyboard and fully customizable homescreen. The Nokia N97 mini features same software with the Nokia N97 and will be in stores with an estimated retail price of EUR 450 before taxes and subsidies.
Among the new experiences available with the free 2.0 software update are:
According to a report in the LA Times, men who wear their cell phones on their belt for many years "may" have decreased bone density in the pelvic area. This is according to a new study published in the Journal of Craniofacial Surgery.
The study on bone weakening caused by cell phones is hardly convincing because the difference in bone density when comparing both sides of the pelvic area is statistically insignificant.
The study was conducted by researchers in Turkey who examined the bone density in the upper rims of the pelvis of 150 men who wore their cell pones on a belt. The men carried their cell phones for about 15 hours per day for about 6 years.
There have been many studies that try to link cell phone use to health problems and they have not been conclusive.
Cricket Communications today announced the availability of the compact and stylish LG HELiX which marks LG’s reintroduction into the Cricket handset lineup.
LG HELiX features a large 176x220 2.0" TFT 262K internal color display and a 96x64 TFT 262K external color display. Customers can dial quickly on its large keypad and increase the font size for a fast and easy read. The 1.3 mega pixel camera allows customers to take pictures of friends and family and assign picture IDs to easily identify incoming calls. Voice Clarity improves speech intelligibility and automatically adjusts hearing level when a user is receiving or sending calls in noisy environments. Bluetooth technology, one-touch speakerphone, and speaker-independent voice commands make it easy to stay in touch with contacts while on-the-go.
The Symbian Foundation announced today the launch of Symbian Horizon, the publishing program for Symbian developers, at the Symbian Exchange and Exposition 2009 (SEE 2009). Developers can now sign up for the program to have their applications listed in the Symbian Horizon Directory, processed through Symbian Signed, and published to a growing list of application store partners. The goal of Symbian Horizon is to help developers bring their applications to the largest mobile market in the world in a cost effective way. This publishing program is now being scaled up to process thousands of applications in 2010.
Horizon demonstrates Symbian’s commitment to improving the developer experience, including helping developers build applications, place them in a variety of global stores, and provide marketing support. The Symbian Foundation created Horizon in response to developer concerns that there were too many challenges and costs associated with developing and publishing a Symbian application to the global market of potential customers. In addition to reducing these costs, Symbian and its members seek to improve developers’ access to global markets through translation and localization assistance.
According to a new report from Juniper Research, the volume of green application downloads to mobile handsets could exceed 400m by 2014. The report suggests that one of the key drivers would be high-profile “ecozones”, areas dedicated to green-themed mobile content and apps, within operator and OEM application stores.
The green handsets report utilised scenario-based models to derive estimates of green app downloads, handset recycling rates, no-load energy emissions from handset chargers and green handset shipments. The incremental model anticipates relatively low-key promotion of environmentally sustainable products and services by handset vendors and operators, and a consequently lower level of awareness of such products by end-users. Under this model, adoption and download levels were considerably lower, reaching 192m by 2014.
According to new analysis from Juniper Research, consumer demand for environmentally sustainable mobile devices will be the primary driver behind the growth of green handsets, which could see global shipments grow to 485 million units by 2014.
The scenario-based forecasts within Juniper Research’s new report - ‘Green Mobile Handsets & Applications: Strategies, Scenarios & Forecasts 2009-2014’ - also suggest that even with an incremental attitude shift by consumers, numbers will still grow from a quarter of million shipments in 2009 to over 105 million by 2014.
One of professional football’s most animated stars and avid Twitter user, Chad Ocho Cinco, has announced the creation of the Ocho Cinco News Network (OCNN); the nation’s first athlete-operated social media news network, powered by Motorola’s MOTOBLUR technology. Ocho Cinco broke the news regarding the launch of OCNN via Twitter this past weekend.
Known for his headline-making quotes, the Cincinnati wide receiver is teaming up with Motorola and tapping into its innovative MOTOBLUR technology to form the heart of OCNN and fuel its ongoing mission to provide fans with the latest insider information and breaking news from on-and-off the football field. Whether through his highly-anticipated end-zone dances, or patented catch phrases, including “child pleeez” or “kiss da baby,” Ocho Cinco has become an entertaining lightning rod for both media and fans alike.
Ocho Cinco’s vision includes daily and weekly OCNN reports to be delivered using MOTOBLUR via his Motorola CLIQ on sports, entertainment, lifestyle and a host of other topics.
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