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Thursday, January 27, 2011

The demand for mobile data is exploding


The demand for mobile data is exploding, presenting operators with a unique opportunity to generate new revenue streams and grow their business. However revenue is not growing fast enough to ensure profitability. Not only is the mobile data traffic growing much faster than revenues, but the revenue growth rate also tends to decline over the years.
Download the Openet whitepaper to find out ways to address this challenge and better capitalize on the mobile data opportunity.
The whitepaper analyses business models and capabilities that will help an operator to optimize its subscriber potential, differentiate itself from the competition, and achieve its mobile data revenue maximization goals.

T-Mobile performs U-turn on data cap cut


T-Mobile has backtracked on its decision to drastically cut the mobile data use allowances for existing as well as new Smartphone customers, following an explosion of public anger at the move.
On Thursday, the operator said it will now only offer the reduced levels of data to new and upgrading customers, while existing customers will get the 1-3GB they signed up for until their contracts run out.
The U-turn, announced on Thursday afternoon, came shortly after the consumer group which? Said its legal team was of the opinion that T-Mobile was breaking its own terms and conditions by announcing the 'fair use' cap cut less than a month after it will come into force on 1 February. The cut, which will mean an 83 percent reduction in the amount of data an Android user is supposed to use each month--from 3GB to 500MB,was only announced over the weekend.

AT&T Barcelona GSMA Video Contest


AT&T is proud to issue this challenge to the MOFILM community of aspiring filmmakers. If you think you have the talent then take some time to download the brief. You don't need to be in the USA or Canada to have creativity and flair - show us what you're made of and you could be joining AT&T along with MOFILM and our special invited guests in Barcelona, Spain in February 2011.
Grand Prize
A trip for two to the GSMA Mobile World Congress in Barcelona
Round trip travel for two (2) people to Barcelona with 3 nights hotel accommodation
Exclusive screening event of your video at the MOFILM awards night in Barcelona
$8,000
2nd Prize
$4,000
3rd Prize
$2,000
4th Prize
$1,000
5th Prize
$1,000

Vodafone more data tiers will come on mobile networks

Vodafone seems set to introduce further data tiers, as networks get serious about managing the effects mobile services are having on their networks.
"Data pricing has to adjust," Vodafone CEO Vittorio Colao told the Nokia World summit in London on Tuesday morning. "We are already providing, today, (data) caps. More will come.
"The principle here must be that, a bit like motorways or hotels, every class of service must have its own price and customers must be able to pay for whatever level of service he or she wants - we cannot penalise those who pay more."
That will ring an alarm with advocates of net neutrality - the principle that all internet data packets should be routed with equal efficiency.
But tiring the speed of internet services to end users - which is already common practice from many landline ISPs - is not necessarily the same issue which riles the campaigners.
Some carriers have struggled to meet the expectations of a wave of new Smartphone users with network capacity. O2 UK, which was Apple's exclusive iPhone retailer for a time, has fallen over several times in the last couple of years. Colao said Vodafone had not shirked from improving network infrastructure, which he listed as #1 out of five industry priorities at Nokia World, even during the recession.
But carriers have this year introduced caps on monthly data use, limiting customers to significantly less than their liberal "fair use" allowances.
Colao referred specifically to last week's Economist cover feature which examined "The Web's New Walls" - ways in which internet services are fragmenting despite not necessarily riding over "net neutrality" concerns.
"One can agree or not agree with the points in the article," Colao said. "But it's very important we have a debate on the future of the networks, especially the mobile part of it. We cannot get the incentives of all the players wrong."

Orange and T-Mobile to debut NFC mobile payments this summer

Mobile payments coming Q2
Orange and T-Mobile, under the joint banner of Everything Everywhere, will be rolling out NFC-enabled SIM cards this year for mobile payments in association with Barclaycard.
Customers will be able to use their mobile phone to simply swipe and pay for items at a range of outlets, which already number over 40,000, from Q2 2011.
This will include Pret a Manger, EAT, Little Chef, McDonalds and Co-Op, and Everything Everywhere has confirmed to TechRadar that more outlets are likely to be announced by the time the technology rolls out.
No touching, can't get mad
A spokesperson said: "Outside of payments, we also support the vision of mobile contactless lifestyle services.
"We see a future where a consumer can use the mobile phone to spend on the high street, get discounts and redeem in store as well as use the phone as a ticket for the bus, train or access to a sports or music venue."
As the payment system is SIM based, customers won't need to have a high end device like the Google Nexus S, although the technology will be handset dependent.
Tech Radar was also told a range of devices from prominent names will be rolled out over the coming months to support the technology used.
Orange has long been a staunch supporter of getting NFC technology onto the high street, and it's not surprise it's finally doing so under the Everything Everywhere brand, which will mean more customers can get behind the scheme.
The finished plans for the roll out haven't been finalized as yet, so expect to hear more about how 2011 will be the year contactless payments comes of age in the near future.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Verizon's Mobile Recovery like Find my iPhone but for VZW Android, webOS and BlackBerry handsets

mobile recovery alarm
Fancy the idea of having Big Brother track your handset if it goes missing, but aren't so keen on owning an iPhone, paying up for Mobile Me and signing a deal with AT&T? Fret not, fretful one, as Verizon Wireless has just launched an extension of its Total Equipment Coverage program that essentially provides the same services, but for VZW-branded BlackBerry, webs and Android phones. The full list of compatible phones is down there in the source, and the best news is that the Mobile Recovery app is offered free of charge to those already paying up $7.99 per month for TEC. When enabled, it will allow users to remotely lock the device, sound an alarm (solving the infamous "couch cushion" dilemma) and wipe contacts from the phone. If a recovery proves unsuccessful, the carrier will supposedly provide you with a next-day replacement, but we've got an idea that there are quite a few lines of fine print to read beforehand. At any rate, it's a lovely option to have -particularly if you're already paying for TEC -- and it's available to download and activate as we speak.

A More Reasonable Projection


Given both Internet and wireless history, I suggest mobile Internet traffic growth over the next 5 years is more likely to be in the range 50% to 100% CAGR.  There may be a 12-18 month period when it grows more than 100% per year, but only for 12-18 months and only if some alternate technology enters the mix (for example, widespread use of Wi-Fi hotspots.

Mobile network traffic growth


It's interesting to look back on the growth of mobile networks so far.  Here are some numbers on cell sites, subscribers and voice minutes of use, extracted from CTIA data by Andrew Odlyzko.
      1991              2006
Subscribers            6.38 M          219.7 M
Cell sites                6,685           197,576
MOUs                    5.2 B           858 B
 Over 15 years, voice traffic grew 165x which is 41% CAGR. 
As an aside, it's interesting is to separate the growth in capacity due to more cell sites from the growth due to better wireless technology.  Over the 15 year period 1991-2006, we got a 30x growth in the number of cell sites, or 25% CAGR.  That suggests improvements in wireless technology (the transition from 1G AMPS to 2G and 3G systems) provided for only 5.58x of the increased traffic, or 12% CAGR.  This surprised me.  It can't be due to uncounted data traffic as data traffic was a small percentage of the mix in 2006. If true, it's rather embarrassing for the 2G and 3G equipment providers.  Any suggestions?
There's a different view in this study of available mobile data download speeds done by Novarum Inc.
This shows available download data rates doubling in a little less than 24 months, or ~45% CAGR. However, this is measuring available bandwidth, not actual traffic.  None-the-less, it's suggestive of capacity as these measurements were made on live networks during business hours.

Overestimating mobile data growth till 2014

Cisco has recently updated their forecast of mobile data growth.  The good news is their forecast compound annual growth rate (CAGR) is down, from last year's forecast of 131% to their current forecast of 108% growth per year.

Unfortunately, when you look over the past 15 years of Internet traffic growth, the idea that any specific sector could exceed 100% growth for more than 1-2 years just isn't credible.
In the early days of the Internet (prior to 1994) traffic did approximately double each year. And, as Andrew Odlyzko points out in his classic study, there was a period of perhaps 18 months in 1995-1996 when US traffic grew much more rapidly, however growth reverted to 100% per year in 1997. And since then, Internet traffic growth has been slowing.
The most comprehensive data I am aware of is from Minnesota Internet Traffic Studies (MINTS) which shows the rate of Internet backbone traffic growth slowing so that in recent years (2008-2009) it has been in the range 40%-50%. For a good discussion of long term trends see Internet Growth Trends & Moore's Law.

T-Mobile data issues hit Nexus One owners

T-Mobile data issues
Nexus One owners are complaining of a widespread data outage Friday morning on T-Mobile's network.
Nexus One owners are reporting data network issues Friday morning.
As with most reports of outages, it's always difficult to get a sense of just how many people are being affected. But Google's customer support forums are full of Nexus One owners reporting that they are unable to access the data network, and other news outlets are getting tips from their readers that something is amiss.
A Google employee confirmed there was some sort of problem with T-Mobile's data network in a forum message: "We're aware of reports with T-Mobile data connections, including the error: 'To connect to the Internet with the device you are using, you'll need a web Connect data plan.' We're currently working with T-Mobile to resolve this issue."
A T-Mobile representative did not immediately respond to a request seeking more information on the outage. Last November, T-Mobile suffered a serious outage that had customers up in arms. And in October, Sidekick owners faced the possible loss of their data after a glitch.
Let us know if you're having problems with your Nexus One in the comments. At the moment, the problem appears to be confined to Nexus One owners, although if other T-Mobile customers are having data issues, please also let us know.
Google posted this notice in the support forums: "The problem experienced by some users with T-Mobile data connections has been resolved. If you are still having trouble establishing a connection please power down your Nexus One, then turn it back on." Let us know if that does, or doesn't, work for you.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Top 25 Android apps The best of the best


The Android Market may not have as many apps as the iPhone App Store yet, but there are still enough to be overwhelmed, and it’s growing at a breakneck pace. To help you sort through them all, here’s my list of the best apps I’ve found on Android. Again, remember that this is a snapshot in time. The Android platform is developing so quickly right now that I guarantee my home screen look different a month from now.
The best way to view my list of the top Android apps is in the screenshot gallery. However, you can also view my top 25 in the list below.
The screenshot

Android apps Screenshot

The list
1. Google Voice
Google Voice is a service that is so useful I consider it one of the top benefits of Android itself, especially since Apple rejected the Google Voice app for the iPhone. It gives you a phone number that can ring to multiple places or devices and it allows you to access all of your voicemail and text messages over the Web. The Android app integrates even deeper. It can make outgoing calls look like they’re coming from your Google Voice number so that you can keep your real mobile number private.
2. Advanced Task Killer
One of the realities of having a multitasking mobile OS in Android is that you have to manage your apps so that they don’t hurt performance or battery life. Advanced Task Killer (or ATK) is my favorite. It even comes with a widget that you can tap once to kill all open apps.
3. Dropbox
Dropbox is a great cloud service that automatically syncs a folder of files between multiple computers (Windows, Mac, or Linux). This app extends Dropbox to Android and interacts with other apps (such as Documents To Go) to open the files.
4. Evernote
Once you get used to typing on a virtual keyboard (and it honestly took me over a year to do it), then these devices are great for note-taking, and Evernote is a great note-taking app. It is similar to Dropbox in that it saves data locally but syncs it across all your machines and devices.
5. DroidAnalytics
For some reason Google doesn’t have an official app (for either Android or iPhone) for Google Analytics. The best one I’ve found on Android is DroidAnalytics. Another good one is mAnalytics.
6. Documents to Go
The free version of Documents To Go offers a great little reader for Word and Excel files. You can upgrade to the full version (for $15) if you want to edit files and add PowerPoint files to the mix. If you do want editing capability, I’d also recommend taking a look at QuickOffice.
7. Amazon Kindle
I never warmed up to the Amazon Kindle e-reader, but I’m a big fan of the Kindle mobile app. Since it was released I’ve read a lot more books simply because my smartphone is always with me and I can pull it and read a few pages anytime I’ve got a couple minutes free.
8. Places Directory
This is an awesome app for finding shops and services near your current location. From restaurants to movie theaters to medical facilities to taxis, this app is very accurate and takes advantage of the business information from Google Local. This app is better than the info you get from a GPS unit (or app) and better than any of the similar apps available on the iPhone.
9. Tripit
I dig Tripit. It is by far the best app I’ve found for keeping track of all my travel itineraries. It runs on some great backend systems. You simply forward your confirmation emails for your flights, hotels, rental cars, and more to Tripit and it automatically organizes them into trips with all your details and confirmation numbers.
10. Seesmic
Twitter is an amazing instant-intelligence engine and it was made for mobile browsing. Although there’s an official Twitter app for Android now, Seesmic is still the best Android Twitter client.
11. FCC Speed test
I’m obsessed with running speed tests to check my bandwidth in various places, both to see 3G fluctuations and to check the quality of Wi-Fi. There are a number of really good speedtest apps, but my new favorite is the FCC Test app.
12. Astro File Manager
Another one of the great things about Android (if you’re a geek or a tinkerer) is that you have lower-level access to the system itself. Astro is an app that lets you navigate the Android file system.
13. Got To Do
There are plenty of to-do apps to choose from on Android but I prefer Got To Do because of the solid interface and the fact that it can sync with the online service Toodledo.
14. Gist
Many of us have contact lists scattered across various computers, devices, and online services. Gist is a Web service that can bring them together and even pull in stuff from the Web to help you stay up to date with your most important contacts. There’s an Android app as well as an iPhone app.
15. TED Mobile
TED is a fascinating event that features a meeting of the minds of some of society’s most influential thinkers. You’ll definitely disagree with some of them, because there’s a large diversity of opinions, but many talks are worth listening to. What I love is that they’ve taken the videos from their conference and made them freely available on the Web. This app provides a great way to access the videos. I hope more conferences follow TED’s lead on this.
16. Pandora
Pandora is a streaming “radio station” for the Internet age. You simply search by an artist or song and it will create a running playlist based on that one piece of information. It intersperses an occasional ad between songs but the ads tend to be fairly localized and occasionally even useful.
17. Shazam
If you want to impress your friends with a mobile app, show them Shazam. Ever hear a song being played at a store or on the radio and ask yourself, “Oh, what song is that?” That’s where Shazam comes in. Just hit the button and let it listen for 15 seconds, query its database, and then return the name of artist and the song. It has about an 80% success rate.
18. Dial Zero
Are you one of those people who dial a customer service line and just keeps pressing zero until you get to talk to a real person? Then Dial Zero is your new friend. This app provides a directory of a ton of U.S. businesses and gives you numbers to help you get closer to a real person and instructions for which prompts to hit to speak to a human being as quickly as possible.
19. Google Goggles
This is a fun app that is a little but ahead of its time. It does visual searches. You can take pictures of things and then the app tries to tell you what they are. It’s limited in its scope but it is pretty cool, and it’s definitely a peek into the future. One of the coolest features is the ability to take pictures of text in a foreign language and let that app translate for you. In a foreign country, this can help you read street signs and avoid going into the wrong bathroom. :-)
20. Google Sky Map
Ever look up at the night sky and try to tell your kids the name of that constellation you’re pointing at, or try to remember which planet that is in the southern sky? Google SkyMap lets you point your smartphone at it and get the information. This is part of a new breed of apps called “Augmented Reality” apps that layer digital information on top of real world experiences.
21. Tricorder
A lot of geeks I know like to say that our smartphones are becoming more and more like the Tricorders on Star Trek. Well, here’s a fun app that turns your Android device into a virtual Tricorder. It even offers some useful environmental information, including GPS data, wireless data, and ambient sound measurements.
22. FxCamera
Honestly, the camera software on Android is an area where major improvements are needed, but this app is a great example of what’s possible. It has solid camera controls, full customization options, and offers some great effects for photos.
23. Photoshop Mobile
Photoshop is, of course, the best known photo editor in the world and its mobile app doesn’t do anything to hurt that reputation. But while the desktop version is know for having a zillion features, the mobile app is distinguished by its simplicity. It’s the best Android (and iPhone) photo editing app for simple crops, brightness adjustments, and sharpens, for example.
24. Bump
Bump is a fun (and useful) idea for sharing info between two phones using the accelerometer, and it works across Android and iPhone. You can use it to share contact info (yours and others), photos, and apps. You both simply open the Bump app, choose what you to share, and then hold the phones in your hands and bump your hands together.
25. Barcode Scanner
This app turns the Android camera into a barcode scanner. You simply scan a product’s UPC code and let the app go to work to find it in Google Product Search or a search on the open Web. You’ll be amazed at how fast it works. This is great for when you’re shopping retail and you want to check the price of a product online before buying to make sure you’re paying a fair price.

Mobile cloud services to emerge in 2011 and 2012

SINGAPORE-As mobile device adoption looks set for "tremendous growth" in the coming decade, carriers and third-party vendors are expected to ride this wave toward mobile cloud services that provide security and additional compute capabilities, a Frost & Sullivan executive stated.
According to Nitin Bhat, partner at research house Frost & Sullivan Asia-Pacific, the world is becoming more Web-connected than ever before, and will drive the number of connected devices sold globally from 6 billion in 2011 to 80 billion in 2020. Connected devices include Smartphone, tablets, televisions and smart grids, Bhat said during a media briefing here Thursday to reveal the research firm's 2011 ICT predictions.
The analyst went on to note that in terms of smart phones sales, the Asia-Pacific region will experience a jump from 50 million devices sold to 100 million in 2011. This figure will account for 20 percent of total mobile devices shipped across the region this year, he added.
The increased adoption of Web-enabled mobile devices would, in turn, lead to the emergence of mobile cloud services revolving around mobile security and additional compute capabilities for Smartphone, he predicted.
Bhat explained: "As more people use Smartphone and tablets, there will be more viruses that would be aimed at these devices. There are already viruses for Apple's iOS and Google's Android platforms and through SMS [short message service], and we're expecting the first signs of malware for tablets to emerge this year."
To respond to these threats, many third-party vendors are already offering remote security services such as remote wipes, though, mainly to enterprise customers, he said. Asia-Pacific carriers, however, are still slow to capitalize on this trend and provide these services to their customer base, he noted.
That said, Bhat predicted that carriers are likely to enhance existing Smartphone capabilities, which are currently "limited", through the cloud. These include increasing the device's memory capacity and processing speed, he said.
"Rich communications" come to fore
Besides new cloud services, Bhat noted that "richer communications" and the shift to mobile computing will have the biggest impact on the enterprise market. The analyst defined "rich" communications as "communication technologies that help enable and enhance existing business processes".
Elaborating, he said such technologies would include video, VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol) and social networking features. These technologies will, in turn, be used to augment existing corporate collaboration tools such as wikis and blogs, he added.
He cited video as one that has already taken off among consumers, with video streaming taking up more than 40 percent of today's mobile bandwidth, and he expects this phenomenon to translate itself into the business arena, too.
Bhat said: "Richer communications are likely to gain rapid adoption among companies, which would change the enterprise communication paradigm."
As for mobile computing, the analyst noted that portable PCs, which refer to tablets, netbooks and notebooks, have already overtaken desktops in the global PC sales in 2010. Portable PCs currently account for 61 percent of the PC market, while desktops clock in at 39 percent. This gap is expected to grow further in 2014 with portable PCs taking up 75 percent and desktops making up the rest of the market, he said.
With regard to tablet devices, Bhat said shipments will hit approximately 15 to 17 million devices in 2011.
He noted that Apple currently holds majority market share with its iPad tablet, but its market share will eventually be chipped away by other tablet makers, such as Dell Computer, Samsung, NEC and Toshiba, as their devices enter the market.
In an earlier report, Yankee Group predicted that global tablet revenues will rise from US$16 billion in 2010 to US$46 billion in 2014. The market analyst added that the Asia-Pacific region will eventually dethrone current market leader North America to dominate tablet revenues, accounting for 58 percent of worldwide sales revenues in 2014.

Yellow Dot Program Brings Emergency Help

BALDWIN COUNTY, Ala.) - There's a new program in Baldwin County to help with emergencies. It's called Yellow Dot, and it's run by the Baldwin County Sheriff's Office. Here's how it works: Authorities take your picture and your personal information. That information is put in the glove box of your car, and a decal will be placed on the lower left corner of your windshield. If you're in an accident, first responders will see the decal and know where all your information is. You can get signed up at 14 locations in Baldwin County: Baldwin County Sheriff's Department - Foley Sheriff's Department - Robertsdale Bay Minette Police Department Doug Taylor State Farm Fairhope Police Department Frances Hulk-Jones State Farm Gulf Shores Police Department Loxley Police Department Orange Beach Police Department Rosinton Volunteer Fire Department Russell Insurance Agency Silverhill Police Department Spanish Fort Fire Rescue Tim Simmonds State Farm

T-mobile staff sell off customer data

Have heard from people in the industry that trading of customer data is the norm in various sectors of marketing, retail and mobile networks. It is still shocking to see this in the news.
Staff at mobile phone company T-Mobile passed on millions of records from thousands of customers to third party brokers.
It seems that the company itself alerted the Information Commissioner once they discovered this. Christopher Graham, who has been recently appointed as the IC, has called for prison sentences for those trading such data.
I am keen to go much further and close down the entire unlawful industry in personal data.
Sounds good, provided the definition of unlawful is customer friendly.
This is the other side of the bad coin of personal data  which is itself imprisoned in various silos and platforms. There are quite a few online that have more than ‘custodial’ overtones  Models of Data Imprisonment.

T-Mobile Shadow Phone White and Mint

Product Description...
Sporting a faster processor than its predecessor and adding T-Mobile's Hotspot Enabled Wi-Fi service, the T-Mobile Shadow slider phone also runs the Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional operating system--enabling you to view and edit Word and Excel documents as well as view emails in their original HTML format and enjoy quick access to contacts with the ability to search a call history and contacts database. The built-in Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g) supports both voice and data, making it easier to stay connected to family, friends and colleagues using T-Mobile's Unlimited Hotspot Calling service.
T-Mobile Shadow Phone


tmobile-shadow-2-mint-open
The slider-style T-Mobile Shadow smartphone provides access to personal email and IM buddies, ability to edit Microsoft Office documents, and quick connection to your Fave
Offered in a white/mint coloring, the Shadow slider phone has a large, brightly colorful 2.6-inch LCD screen and spinning scroll wheel for easy navigation. Other features include a 2-megapixel camera/camcorder, Bluetooth for handsfree communication and stereo music streaming, MicroSD memory expansion (up to 8 GB), quad-band GSM connectivity with EDGE data services, and up to 7 hours of talk time.
T-Mobile Service
With T-Mobile HotSpot Enabled service, you'll effortlessly transition between Wi-Fi calling and T-Mobile's wireless network while you talk. You can get unlimited nationwide calls over Wi-Fi--at home via your wireless router or at any U.S. T-Mobile HotSpot. You can also use the HotSpot Enabled service via most open, or unsecured, wireless routers, as well as any secured wireless router for which you have access to the password from the owner. Whenever you're not using a Wi-Fi network, the phone works just like a regular mobile phone, using your Whenever Minutes under your T-Mobile voice plan.
Additionally, this mobile phone operates on GSM 850/900/1800/1900 networks and can handle high-speed data connectivity via T-Mobile's EDGE network (which stands for "Enhanced Data Rates for Global Evolution"). As a quad-band world phone, this phone supports international roaming, extending the ability to stay connected while traveling abroad. This high-speed, mobile data and Internet access technology is fast enough to support a wide range of advanced data services (with average data speeds between 75-135Kbps), including full picture and video messaging, high-speed color Internet access, and email on the go.
This phone also includes compatibility with T-Mobile's myFaves service, which allows you to call up to five of your most common contacts--on any network, even landlines--without using any of your minutes. Learn more about myFaves from T-Mobile.
Download cool new games, HiFi Ringers (real songs by today's hottest artists), MegaTones (instrumental versions of songs), and wallpapers quickly, as well as stay connected via the Web, instant messaging, and email.
T-mobile-shadow-2-mint-angle

Phone Features
Teaming with manufacturer HTC, T-Mobile's Shadow offers an innovative design and simple user interface that strips out the complexity of traditional multi-function phones for a quick learning curve to all of this Smartphone’s communication and organization features. The 2.6-inch LCD screen has a 240 x 320-pixel resolution and support for a 65K color depth. The phone's face has a scrolling navigator button--which you can spin for faster scrolling through applications and contacts--complemented by send/end, home, back, and two soft keys for navigation. It smoothly slides up to reveal the alpha-numeric keypad that uses Blackberry's Sure Type keyboard layout, which places two letters per key.
The phone's internal memory can be expanded via optional MicroSD memory cards (up to 8 GB in size). The internal phonebook is only limited by the available memory, and it offers multiple fields for phone numbers, and email/IM addresses. A special my Fauves feature is integrated into the shadow, where a lighted navigation wheel gets you to your Fave 5 quickly and easily, enabling you to call, text, email, or IM with a single touch. You can customize your Fave 5 witha photo and icons you create or purchase from T-Mobile, as well as choose a distinct ringtone for each Fave.
This phone provides Bluetooth version 2.0 wireless connectivity with EDR (enhanced data rate), and includes profiles for communication headset, hands free car kits, and audio/video remote control. With the A2DP Bluetooth profile, you can stream your music to a pair of compatible Bluetooth stereo headphones.
With the integrated Wi-Fi networking, the T-Mobile Shadow allows you to quickly surf the Internet over open wireless networks at home, at your business, or at Wi-Fi hotspots (such as your local coffee shop). Additionally, with a Hotspot Enabled plan, you'll be able to effortlessly switch between Wi-Fi calling and T-Mobile's wireless network while you talk.
The 2-megapixel camera provides a range of five resolutions and four quality settings, and it features white balance and brightness settings, and several shooting modes. It will also capture video clips for as long as you have available memory.
tmobile-shadow-2-mint-back

The phone is compatible with text (SMS) and multimedia (MMS) messaging, as well as POP3 personal email accounts. It includes XT9 predictive text entry (the new version of the T9), with such features as a word prediction list and spelling correction that spots transposed letters and missed keys, as well as instant integration into all applications on the device.
Other features include:
Music playback: MP3, WMA, AAC, WAV
Stay in synch with your Contacts, Calendar, and Tasks in Microsoft Outlook
Send and receive instant messages with Yahoo!, MSN, AOL, or ICQ
Reminder feature, so you never forget other friends or family member's birthday or anniversary
An array of lights and sounds that differentiate one function from another, whether you’re receiving an e-mail, picture message or calendar appointment notification
Speakerphone
Voice-activated dialing enables you to make a call with simple voice commands when your hands are busy
Processor: Texas Instruments OMAP V1030, 260 MHz
Vital Statistics
The T-Mobile Shadow weighs 5.3 ounces and measures 2.1 x 4.1 x 0.6 inches. Its 1100 mAh lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 7 hours of talk time, and up to 168 hours (7 days) of standby time. It runs on the 850/900/1800/1900 MHz GSM/GPRS/EDGE frequencies.
Powered by Windows Mobile 6.1
Microsoft's Windows Mobile 6.1 offers a number of handy features that make searching through email, editing Microsoft Office documents, and staying on top of your most important communications even easier. Emails can now be viewed in their original rich HTML format and now offer the ability to visit embedded links. It also includes Windows Live for Windows Mobile, which provides a full set of Windows Live services, such as the Windows Live Messenger IM application, which now enables you to chat with more than one person at one time or send a file.
With Windows Mobile 6.1, your phone will finally be able to emulate the power and features of your PC's Microsoft Office suite. You'll be able to neatly view, navigate and edit Word documents and Excel spreadsheets in their original formatting--without affecting tables, images or text--as well as view PowerPoint presentations.
Microsoft Office Word Mobile features include spell-check, Find and Replace commands, bulleted lists, text formatting, and support for tables for the first time.
With Excel Mobile, you're not just confined to editing charts: with the new Chart Wizard you can create charts quickly and easily.
PowerPoint Mobile allows you to view the full presentation, rehearse timings, check the order and any live links you may have in your presentation. You can then email comments back to the team or communicate via MSN Messenger for an immediate response.
After creating or editing a Word document or Excel spreadsheet, you can synchronize it with your PC and it will automatically be converted to the PC version.
All Windows Mobile 6.1 powered devices include Direct Push Technology for up-to-date e-mail delivery and automatic synchronization of Outlook calendars, tasks and contacts through Microsoft Exchange Server. It also offers a set of important device security and management features that include the capability to remotely wipe all data from a device should it be lost or stolen, helping ensure that confidential information remains that way.

Why Mint Plus Intuit is a Big Idea

Mint.com Press Conference

Today, exactly two years after launching at TechCrunch40, I’m excited to announce that we have signed a definitive agreement to be acquired by Intuit, makers of Quicken, QuickBooks, and TurboTax, for approximately $170 million.  It’s a great opportunity that could bring Mint.com’s unique approach to personal financial management to millions more consumers and small businesses as well as the 1,800 banks and credit unions serviced by Intuit.
In two years, we’ve attracted over 1.5 million users, found over $300 million in savings, managed $50 billion in assets, and helped people track nearly $200 billion in purchases.  Most importantly, we’ve helped a lot of people better understand and do more with their money. Thousands of people have told us that Mint.com has helped them pay off debt, control their spending, manage job loss, and even resolve money disputes with their significant other.  Expect all of this goodness to increase after the acquisition closes. And yes, expect Mint.com to remain free!
This acquisition makes sense to me because, first and foremost, Mint.com and Intuit share a common vision.  Intuit is, and has always been, a very customer-centric organization, with constant usability studies and follow-me-homes that observe how people use software and the problems they’re trying to solve.  This is fully aligned with my design philosophy here at Mint.com.
In addition, by joining Intuit, we can accelerate our ability to add more fantastic new product functionality into both Quicken and Mint.com. This means more people will find it easy and affordable to stay on top of their money issues. Bottom line? I see this as a chance to take a big leap forward toward our ultimate goal of improving the national savings rate.
Personally, I’ll play a leading role in the next phase of the evolution of Quicken, one of the best known, most trusted, and respected brands in software. A recent survey showed that 85% of U.S. adults had heard of Quicken.  It’s humbling to work with the people who really pioneered the field of personal finance applications.
Intuit is equally excited.  They recognize Mint employees as innovative thought-leaders in the field, who can make a breakthrough contribution to Intuit have connected services strategy.
We expect the deal will close by the end of the calendar year. We’re looking forward to the opportunity to be part of a larger team with more resources that will continue to deliver the best personal finance tools out there!
Aaron Patzer
Founder and CEO
I wanted to let you know that I’ve been following your comments and I totally appreciate your passionate response to our announcement. I’ll try to address your concerns as clearly as possible.
Here’s a little more detail on what’s happening. After the acquisition closes, the Mint.com team will be leading the development of both Mint.com and Intuit’s existing personal finance products, Quicken desktop and Quicken Online. The fact that Intuit has agreed to acquire Mint.com, and is leaving our team intact, is evidence that Intuit has been impressed by and wants to build upon the user experience that Mint.com offers. We’ll not only improve upon that experience for Mint.com but also bring our know-how to the Quicken product line. Destroying the Mint.com user experience does not make sense for Intuit, Mint.com or any of our users. 
I can’t speak to Intuit’s customer service but Mint has always been as responsive as possible to our users. We believe this is one of the reasons for the success we’ve had and the trust you’ve put in us. Our ability to respond quickly to user requests is key to the way we build software. In fact, in the discussions leading to this deal, Intuit heard a lot about our software development process and told us they are very interested in learning how they can do the same thing for all of their software products, not just the personal finance ones.
Aaron Patzer..
Founder and CEO...
Intuit founder Scott Cook on why Mint.com won’t change

iPhone Core Data saving error

I am getting the following error when trying to save an object into my core data model:
2010-09-01 22:07:50.569 Score Card[26566:207] *** Assertion failure in -[UITableView _endCellAnimationsWithContext:], /SourceCache/UIKit_Sim/UIKit-1262.60.3/UITableView.m:904
2010-09-01 22:07:50.570 Score Card[26566:207] Serious application error. Exception was caught during Core Data change processing. This is usually a bug within an observer of NSManagedObjectContextObjectsDidChangeNotification. Invalid update: invalid number of sections. The number of sections contained in the table view after the update (1) must be equal to the number of sections contained in the table view before the update (1), plus or minus the number of sections inserted or deleted (1 inserted, 0 deleted). with userInfo (null)
Detected an attempt to call a symbol in system libraries that is not present on the iPhone:
_Unwind_Resume called from function -[NSManagedObjectContext(_NSInternalChangeProcessing) _processRecentChanges:] in image CoreData.
2010-09-01 22:07:50.572 Score Card[26566:207] *** Terminating app due to uncaught exception 'NSInternalInconsistencyException', reason: 'Invalid update: invalid number of sections. The number of sections contained in the table view after the update (1) must be equal to the number of sections contained in the table view before the update (1), plus or minus the number of sections inserted or deleted (1 inserted, 0 deleted).'
*** Call stack at first throw:
(
 0 CoreFoundation 0x02661b99 __exceptionPreprocess + 185
 1 libobjc.A.dylib 0x027b140e objc_exception_throw + 47
 2 CoreFoundation 0x0261a238 +[NSException raise:format:arguments:] + 136
 3 Foundation 0x000bae37 -[NSAssertionHandler handleFailureInMethod:object:file:lineNumber:description:] + 116
 4 UIKit 0x0033a9a6 -[UITableView(_UITableViewPrivate) _endCellAnimationsWithContext:] + 7806
 5 UIKit 0x0032a75b -[UITableView insertSections:withRowAnimation:] + 56
 6 Score Card 0x00003918 -[History controller:didChangeSection:atIndex:forChangeType:] + 133
 7 CoreData 0x0246db81 -[NSFetchedResultsController(PrivateMethods) _managedObjectContextDidChange:] + 2177
 8 Foundation 0x0002a0e1 _nsnote_callback + 145
 9 CoreFoundation 0x02639f29 __CFXNotificationPost_old + 745
 10 CoreFoundation 0x025b926a _CFXNotificationPostNotification + 186
 11 Foundation 0x0001fc8a -[NSNotificationCenter postNotificationName:object:userInfo:] + 134
 12 CoreData 0x023a8879 -[NSManagedObjectContext(_NSInternalNotificationHandling) _postObjectsDidChangeNotificationWithUserInfo:] + 89
 13 CoreData 0x02418193 -[NSManagedObjectContext(_NSInternalChangeProcessing) _createAndPostChangeNotification:withDeletions:withUpdates:withRefreshes:] + 259
 14 CoreData 0x0238b208 -[NSManagedObjectContext(_NSInternalChangeProcessing) _processRecentChanges:] + 1352
 15 CoreData 0x023c4e55 -[NSManagedObjectContext save:] + 149
 16 Score Card 0x000053ad -[TimeRun saveAction] + 65
 17 Score Card 0x00004116 -[TimeRun countDown] + 326
 18 Foundation 0x000561c9 __NSFireTimer + 125
 19 CoreFoundation 0x02642f73 __CFRUNLOOP_IS_CALLING_OUT_TO_A_TIMER_CALLBACK_FUNCTION__ + 19
 20 CoreFoundation 0x026445b4 __CFRunLoopDoTimer + 1364
 21 CoreFoundation 0x025a0dd9 __CFRunLoopRun + 1817
 22 CoreFoundation 0x025a0350 CFRunLoopRunSpecific + 208
 23 CoreFoundation 0x025a0271 CFRunLoopRunInMode + 97
 24 GraphicsServices 0x02f4000c GSEventRunModal + 217
 25 GraphicsServices 0x02f400d1 GSEventRun + 115
 26 UIKit 0x002ceaf2 UIApplicationMain + 1160
 27 Score Card 0x00002998 main + 102
 28 Score Card 0x00002929 start + 53
)
terminate called after throwing an instance of 'NSException
I am just not sure how to fix the issue. I am not inserting any sections, so I am at a loss here. Ideas?
EDIT:
Does it have to do with how I am fetching my results? It seems I am using a key for section name, but I don't want sections:
- (NSFetchedResultsController *)fetchedResultsController {
 if (fetchedResultsController != nil) {
 return fetchedResultsController;
 }
 NSFetchRequest *fetchRequest = [[NSFetchRequest alloc] init];
 NSEntityDescription *entity = [NSEntityDescription entityForName:@"Mission" inManagedObjectContext:managedObjectContext];
 [fetchRequest setEntity:entity];

 // Create the sort descriptors array.
 NSSortDescriptor *startDescriptor = [[NSSortDescriptor alloc] initWithKey:@"title" ascending:YES];
 NSArray *sortDescriptors = [[NSArray alloc] initWithObjects:startDescriptor, nil];
 [fetchRequest setSortDescriptors:sortDescriptors];

 // Create and initialize the fetch results controller.
 NSFetchedResultsController *aFetchedResultsController = [[NSFetchedResultsController alloc] initWithFetchRequest:fetchRequest managedObjectContext:managedObjectContext sectionNameKeyPath:@"title" cacheName:@"Root"];
 self.fetchedResultsController = aFetchedResultsController;
 self.fetchedResultsController.delegate = self;

 // Memory management.
 [aFetchedResultsController release];
 [fetchRequest release];
 [startDescriptor release];
 [sortDescriptors release];

 return fetchedResultsController;
}//end

PSP Minis Get Over One Million Downloads


Sony Computer Entertainment America has announced that more than 1 million video games have been downloaded using the PlayStation Minis service, which was launched less than one years ago. The program was announced in August 2009 and the first titles were introduced in October of the same year, with the Play Station Portable initially the only platform that could download them. In December Sony announced that a firmware upgrades for the PlayStation 3 home console would introduce the ability to download Mini titles.
On a post on the official PlayStation blog, Susan Panico, who is the senior director of the Play Station Network, has said, “Many more minis are on the way, including Pacman CE from Namco Bandai Networks, so keep your eye on the PlayStation Store. Congratulations to all of our minis developers (over 50 in all), here’s to another million downloads!”
The Minis were initially seen as a way to boost the appeal of the PlayStation Portable Go, the version of the handheld that gets all its content through the PSN. Critics of the program said that it was just an attempt by Sony to copy the success of the iTunes service from Apple and initially a lot of games were ported from the phone. Recently Rob Dyer, who is a senior vice president of publisher relations at SCEA, has said that it's not clear whether the Mini program would be viable in the long term.
Here are the top ten most downloaded games launched through the PSP Mini service:1. Age of Zombies - Half brick
2. Monopoly - Electronic Arts
3. Field runners - Subatomic
4. Zombie Tycoon - Frima
5. Bloons - Bloober Team
6. Spot The Differences! - Sanuk
7. Pinball Fantasies - Cowboy Rodeo
8. Mahjongg Artifacts: Chapter 2 - G5 Entertainment
9. Yeti sports Pengu Throw – Xendex
10. Break quest – Beat shapers and Nurium Games

can restore to a pre-jailbroken firmware while simultaneously maintaining your current baseband (and thus your ultrasn0w carrier unlock


You can also add whatever packages you want in the “Expert” mode of PwnageTool, if you wish to pre-install Cydia packages. iPhone 3Gusers get the additional benefit of selecting their own boot and recovery logos, and features like multitasking and battery charge percentage.
PwnageTool’s main advantage to ramdisk-based methods (limera1n, greenpois0n, redsn0w) is for unlockers — those that need to keep their current baseband and preserve their ultrasn0w unlock. But in this new age of both bootrom- and userland-based exploits, it’s an excellent platform for continuing the jailbreak through all future firmwares. More on this later! In the meantime, please enjoy this free software and please provide any usage feedback in our comment section below.
AppleTV 2G users: Welcome to the JB family! Right now, about all you can do is command-line stuff via ssh. You also have afc2 available, so you can use tools like ifunbox to move files around. These are the *very* early days of AppleTV 2G jailbreaking, so it’ll take some time for JB app developers to come up with methods to use your AppleTV 2G from the remote, versus the command line. PS: Your ssh password is “alpine”…please change it when youcan 
Expert mode: By popular demand, the IPSW file selection in Expert mode is now completely manual (doesn’t use Spotlight). Just pick your IPSW file directly instead of waiting for the Spotlight search to complete. In Expert mode, the default is to hacktivate (“Activate the iPhone”), so if you have a legit SIM card be sure to deselect that option in Expert mode.
DFU button: That “DFU” button in PwnageTool is more than it looks like. It guides you through the DFU process, but then also runs the appropriate exploit to convince your device and iTunes that all is legit. The DFU button in PwnageTool is not just your average DFU.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Why Im switching to the Verizon iPhone: I need a phone


 Boy Genius Report - 14993 days 12 hours 36 minutes ago
Yesterday, my cohorts weighed in on the question on countless iPhone owners’ minds right now — should I ditch AT&T and buy an iPhone from Verizon? The answer is going to be different for everyone,...
Verizon reportedly ready to offer unlimited data plans on iPhone
Still not believing that Verizon Wireless will introduce a CDMA'd iPhone for its network tomorrow? We can't say we're completely sold either, but it's getting harder and harder to fight off the...
Verizon iPhone, at&t Androids – Mobile Data is the Winner
Today's announcement of the Verizon Wireless (VZW) iPhone and last week's announcements of Androids for at&t mean that we're going to have better mobile data networks at lower prices. That's the.

Verizon iPhone, AT&T Androids - Mobile Data is the Winner.

Announcement of the Verizon Wireless (VZW) iPhone and last week's announcements of Androids for AT&T mean that we're going to have better mobile data networks at lower prices. That's the most important consequence of being able to choose your phone and your network separately. We in North America have a long way to go to have the mix and match choices of phones and service that most of the world has, but we're moving forward.
Since we will be able to purchase the same phones (roughly) to work on either network, AT&T and VZW are left to compete on network quality, technical capability, coverage, and price. That's what we consumers want them to be doing. The beneficial effects of that competition are already visible.
Network Quality: Today's announcement by VZW was full of not-very-subtle innuendo about the AT&T network, which failed to handle the iPhone load adequately in congested areas. Industry insiders say that VZW has invested heavily to assure that their boasts don't come back to bite them. The VZW network has stood up under the load of the surprising number of Droids sold — more new activations recently than iPhones (competition with Google may be why Apple released the iPhone to VZW). AT&T has poured money into its network in a partially successful attempt to overcome its service problems before iPhone devotees had a network choice.
Top data speeds on AT&T's 3G data network are higher for technical reasons than those on VZW's 3G network. But, because of less network congestion on VZW, EFFECTIVE data speeds (the speed that you actually get) are often better on VZW. Great to have them competing to sell us higher speeds.
Technical Capability: The CDMA technology that VZW uses cannot handle voice and data at the same time; AT&T's GSM technology can. My VZW Droid can't browse the web while I'm on the phone; Mary's AT&T iPhone can. I've found this more an annoyance than a serious problem so far — but, as I begin to use the data functions of my phone for much more than web browsing, this restriction will, I think, become unbearable. Although I can buy a plan which lets me use my Droid as hotspot for up to five devices (something AT&T doesn't offer), I had to buy a separate device to be my hotspot because I can't give up having a phone while I'm on my computer. VZW is moving quickly to rollout a 4G technology called LTE (Long Term Evolution) which does handle voice and data at the same time and supports much higher speeds. AT&T is also moving to LTE but at least a year behind VZW; meanwhile their marketing people have labeled an upgrade of AT&T's current technology, which does improve data speed, as "4G". Sometimes we engineering types have to rely on the marketers to bail us out when we can't deliver.
Coverage: "Can you hear me now". VZW was first off the mark to use nationwide coverage as a distinguishing feature. There are claims and counterclaims and both networks have holes. Here in Vermont VZW has better coverage than AT&T; but there are certainly places where AT&T works and VZW doesn't — that's the reason Mary and I have phones on different networks. Some people sacrificed coverage to get the iPhone they wanted; we won't have to make that tradeoff anymore; so there will be increased market pressure on the network operators to improve coverage. That's great news in rural areas: even though there are not enough of us living in some places to justify a cell tower just to serve us, AT&T and VZW know that, when the city people come up to visit, they expect their phones, which are also their web browsers and navigation devices, to keep working. Nationwide coverage is important to everybody and head-to-head competition means we'll get there sooner rather than later.
Price: AT&T and VZW prices are roughly the same — but VZW's current $29.99 data plan for smart phones is unlimited; $25 at AT&T gets you only 2GB (gigabytes) with a $10/GB charge for going over. Once you start watching video on your phone (my Droid can drive a television screen), 2GB won't be hard to consume. VZW hasn't yet confirmed that this data pricing will apply to the new iPhone, but it's very likely that it will. Long term VZW has said that it wants to go to charging incrementally for data; but, so far it seems that they'd rather make the marketing point that their network can handle unlimited data and AT&T can't.
Which brings us to Sprint? They have Androids but no iPhones. They have a smaller network than AT&T or VZW and may be hindered by their early adoption of WiMAX instead of LTE as a future architecture. But Sprint has unlimited data plans not only for phone but also for computers and various tablets. If we are left with a duopoly of AT&T and VZW, I think we'll eventually not have any unlimited data plans to choose from. But, if Sprint can survive and compete, we'll benefit in price and quality from that competition. BTW, Sprint CEO Dan Hesse was my boss at the old AT&T when we popularized all-you-can eats $19.95/month for dialup. If Dan hadn't understood the benefit consumers would see in not having to worry about going over a quota and running up a big bill, AT&T would never have allowed me to offer that plan. I'm sure he hasn't forgotten the market reaction.

Vodafone's revenue from data services such as smartphone and high-speed


A recent report from the United Kingdom found that many users waste money for being on the wrong mobile phone contract. ZDNet Asia rounds up a few applications that can help users remain aware of just how much of their mobile phone plans they are using....
Comparison Web site Top10.com reported that U.K. residents were wasting about US$1.2 billion a year on the wrong mobile phone contract. It said 55 percent of mobile phone owners never used up their permitted quota of talk time, while 8 percent exceeded their contract allowance and had to pay more.
The Web site suggested that before upgrading their phones or switching networks, users should check their previous bills to better understand their consumption pattern.
Although the Top10.com research focused on voice and text plans, the same situation appears to be happening to data plan subscribers as well. In the United States, Apple iPhone exclusive dealer AT&T scrapped its unlimited data plans in favor of tiered data plans to curb 3G broadband usage.
In a recent interview with ZDNet Asia, a Procera Networks executive noted that AT&T decided to cancel its unlimited data plan after understanding subscribers' data usage. Currently, many of the region's telcos have yet to comprehend how their subscribers' data circulates, he said.
With the rise in number of Smartphone users, an ABI Research report said mobile network operators in Asia-Pacific's developed markets are struggling to cope with the exponentially exploding data usage and the demand that this is placing on their networks.
For users, turning off 3G and switching to free Wi-Fi can be a way to cut down on 3G consumption. But for those who need to use 3G, ZDNet Asia scoured the Web to find several applications that can help users keep track of their data usage on the different mobile platforms.
Most phones include a built-in data usage monitor. For example, Apple iPhone users can go to General > Settings > Usage to check on the data sent from the phone. But third-party applications can give a clearer picture of the phone's data traffic.
A quick search of the Apple App Store found several apps dedicated to tracking data usage. Data Usage and Data Genie are two paid apps selling at US$0.99. For Singapore users subscribing to Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel), a free app called iBBOM is available.
For Google Android users, free apps such as 3G Watchdog and Net Counter both have a rating of more than 4.5 out of 5 on Androlib.com.
Research In Motion's BlackBerry users can look at e-office Mobile Data Alerter to monitor their data traffic.
In the same ABI Research report, Indonesia was noted to have one of the cheapest mobile broadband rates in the world, alongside the United Kingdom and France. The country's 4GB data package for the BlackBerry Internet Service (BIS) costs as low as US$17 a month, said the research firm.

Demand for mobile data boosts Vodafone revenues

VodafoneDongle 460

Strong demand for mobile data has helped Vodafone increase its service revenues for the first time in 18 months, as its key markets recovered from recession.
Britain's third-largest mobile phone operator today reported a 1.1% rise in service revenues to £10.58bn in the last three months, reversing a trend that began in the final quarter of 2008. Revenue from data services such as smartphones and high-speed internet "dongles" jumped by 25%.
"These are the first quarterly results to show service revenue growth since the global recession impacted," said chief executive Vittorio Colao.
"We have achieved these results through our continuing commercial approach in key European markets, focusing especially on data, and from strong growth in emerging markets, with India now cash-positive at an operating level and our highest ever quarterly revenue in Turkey," he added.
Colao also said that Vodafone would announce a change of strategic direction in October, to "drive shareholder value". This is understood to include a new focus on data services, especially in emerging markets like India and China.
Colao declined to give further details this morning, saying it would be "disrespectful to his board", but hinted that it may be driven by the increased number of mobile operating systems on the market today.
"The world has changed," he told reporters. "Many operating systems are strong and competing … this is a good opportunity to have a look at our strategy."
Vodafone saw strong growth in demand for smartphones in Europe during the quarter, particularly in the UK where the company started selling Apple's iPhone earlier this year.
Since taking over as chief executive in summer 2008, Colao has been trying to increase growth in Vodafone's existing territories rather than continuing with the acquisition drive that has given it stakes in markets around the world.
Vodafone also announced today that it has finally resolved a long-running dispute with the UK tax authorities. This row centred on Vodafone's decision to register Mannesman, the German mobile giant it acquired in 2000, in Luxembourg.
HM Revenues & Customs had claimed that Vodafone owed taxes in Britain under the Controlled Foreign Companies rules, which the mobile operator disputed. It has now agreed to pay £1.25bn to settle the case, having previously made a provision of £3.1bn on its books.
Shares in Vodafone rose 1.88% this morning to 151.85p.

RIM to ship 1m BlackBerry Playbooks in Q1

 RIM shift a million of these things

That's 200,000 more than the Xoom
BlackBerry-maker RIM is betting big on its first tablet effort, the BlackBerry Playbook, apparently expecting more than one million shipments of the device by the end of March.
The one million figure laughs in the face of Motorola's projected 800,000 target for its Android-running Xoom tablet.
The BlackBerry Playbook is not set to launch until March 2011, starting with a Wi-Fi only model before a 3G version hits the market.
We liked it
TechRadar was very impressed when we did our Hands on: BlackBerry PlayBook review describing it as "the first tablet that genuinely has a shot at knocking the iPad off its best-in-class pedestal."
RIM is working hard to keep the buzz around the PlayBook going, having announced it in October 2010.
With prices potentially undercutting the iPad by around £100, the one million shipments bet could well pay off.
Via SlashGear

Intel chief not worried by Microsoft's ARM decision

Intel CES

Will help us in tablets, not harm us in business
Intel CEP Paul Otellini has insisted that he is not worried about Microsoft's announcement that the next version of Windows will run on ARM chips.
Currently Windows runs on x86 chipsets – based on an early Intel CPU – but new designs are beginning to proliferate on other devices, and UK Company ARM in particular is having an impact.
Microsoft's announcement at CES 2011 that it would not be limiting its next Windows release to x86 systems, but that it would also run on ARM chips is set to shake up the world of chips.
And clearly that is not something that Intel can ignore as it looks to the future.
Analysis: ARM vs Intel: the next processor war begins
Speaking at the company's financial results, Otellini insisted that Microsoft's forthcoming changes to Windows will actually help the company in the touch-enabled (tablet, PC and mobile phone) arena.
And he expressed his doubt that ARM can make an impact on the business PC area that makes the money for Intel.
"The plus for Intel is that as they unify their operating systems we now have the ability for the first time, one, to have a designed-from-scratch, touch-enabled operating system for tablets that runs on Intel that we don't have today; and, secondly, we have the ability to put our lowest-power Intel processors, running Windows 8 or the next generation of Windows, into phones, because it's the same OS stack. And I look at that as an upside opportunity for us," said Otellini.
"On the downside, there's the potential, given that Office runs on these products, for some creep-up coming into the PC space.
"I am skeptical of that for two reasons: one, that space has a different set of power and performance requirements where Intel is exceptionally good; and secondly, users of those machines expect legacy support for software and peripherals that has to all be enabled from scratch for those devices."
Intel is certainly in rude health in the mean-time, with the company announcing record fourth quarter results (including a $3.39 billion profit – around £2.1 billion) and making confident prediction for the first quarter of 2011.
Via Engadget

HP was clear number 1 in 2010 PC sales

Hewlett Packard was the clear leader at the top of the PC sales market in 2010, according to Gartner's latest figures, but Dell and Lenovo put on growth spurts behind second placed Acer.
Hewlett Packard has a massive 17.9 per cent share of the global PC market – with estimates that it shipped a whopping 62.7 million PCs last year, compared to nearest rival Acer – whose 45.2 million shipments put it in second place with a 12.9 per cent share.
However, HP's market share had dropped significantly from its 2009 total of 19.1 per cent – and although Acer's share percentage remained the same, it was Lenovo that put on a major growth spurt to move up to a 9.7 per cent share and fourth place.
Dell up
Former number one Dell was 0.1 per cent up on its 2009 market share, and now has a 12.1 per cent share of the pot to take third place.
It was Tosihba in fifth place – and it moved up to a 5.4 per cent market share, with all other vendors bringing the remaining 42.1 per cent.
HP retained the No.1 position with good performances in the consumer mobile PC market, but less so in the professional mobile market, explained Gartner's report.
"Acer continued to grow its market despite the difficult consumer market conditions. Lenovo increased its consumer business presence in EMEA, which led it to make its debut in the top five PC vendors ranking, and Toshiba moved to the No. 6 position [for the Q4 figures]."

T-Mobile's new 'Screw You' data tariff..


Gary Marshall: T-Mobile tries to redefine the definition of browsing
Mobile phone companies tend to give their products memorable names. Orange has Dolphin, Canary and Racoon. Vodafone has its Connect Webpacks. And T-Mobile, of course, has its new Up Yours, Screw You and Na Na Na We're Not Listening plans.
There are three really galling things about T-Mobile's dramatic cuts to its fair use policy. The first is that it's such a big cut, with 3GB of monthly data (the allowance for some Android customers) dropping to just 500MB.
The second is that this cut is being applied retrospectively to people who've taken out long contracts.
And the third thing is the complete and utter balls T-Mobile is trotting out to justify it.
T-Mobile has offered two justifications for the 83% cut in customers' data allowances. The first is that nobody will be affected by it, because most people only use around 200MB a month.
If that's the case, why cut it? If hardly anybody uses more than 200MB, what's the problem? It can't be network congestion, because as T-Mobile points out, everybody's doing the 200-meg-a-month thing.
Which leaves explanation number two, which is that there’s a difference between file downloading and browsing? Checking your email is browsing, even though it's actually downloading. Viewing web pages is browsing, even though many web pages include video, which T-Mobile thinks is downloading, and you're not supposed to do that on your mobile phone.
According to T-Mobile, "If you want to download, stream and watch video clips, save that stuff for your home broadband.  Browsing means looking at websites and checking email, but not watching videos, downloading files or playing games."
I'm trying very hard to imagine how that statement could be any more patronising, any more wrong or any more annoying. As Charles Arthur puts it in The Guardian: "You want to take us back to the text-only web? To Lynx?"
Malevolent or just a mess?
There are two possible explanations for this mess. The first is that someone in everything every where’s marketing department - that's the name for the firm created by T-Mobile's merger with Orange - has dropped an almighty bullock and made it seem as if future changes to the fair use policy will apply to current contracts.
I don't think that's it, though, because we'd have had an official "oops" by now. So it seems that without warning, Everything Everywhere has decided to take away the thing that many people signed up for.
This behavior is contemptible. The monthly allowances were T-Mobile's unique selling point, with people signing up to long-term contracts purely on the basis of those allowances. To turn around a few months later and slash those allowances is appalling. And to then stay quiet while your customers panic beggar’s belief.
The answer is simple: if T-Mobile can't or won't reverse the policy change, it should agree to terminate the agreements of anyone who wants out.
If those users are placing such unreasonable demands on T-Mobile's network by using the services they're actually paying for, presumably T-Mobile will be glad to see them go.

T-Mobile mobile data allowance halved..


500MB is your monthly lot
T-Mobile is set to reduce its data allowance for smartphones to 500MB from 1 February.
Most T-Mobile contracts previously offered a 1GB limit so the reduction sees customers entitled to half the data they had before.
As T-Mobile Android contracts were offered with 3GB of data per month, we're waiting to hear back from the operator about whether the T-Mobile Android data allowance has also been slashed to 500MB.
No to mobile video on your mobile
Despite having all the capability, the memory, the battery life and super-slick screens made for watching video clips while you're out and about, T-Mobile wants you to keep video in the home.
T-Mobile helpfully (and not at all militantly) states: "If you want to download, stream and watch video clips, save that stuff for your home broadband."
Internet browsing, however, is still all right with the network: "So remember our Mobile Broadband and internet on your phone service is best used for browsing which means looking at your favourite websites like Facebook, Twitter, Gmail, BBC News and more, checking your email and looking for information."
The news comes less than a month after Three's announcement that it will be offering true unlimited data on its One Plan tariff.
You'd think that one half of Everything Everywhere could be a little more generous with its data but unfortunately for T-Mobile customers, it seems not.
Via Eurodroid

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Nokia Mobile Phone Prices

Nokia
X6
Rs. 48,000
Nokia N8
Nokia
N8
Rs. 42,000
Nokia N97
Nokia
N97
Rs. 39,000
Nokia N900
Nokia
N900
Rs. 37,000
Nokia N97 mini
Nokia
N97 mini
Rs. 33,000
Nokia C7
Nokia
C7
Rs. 32,900

Nokia N86 8MP
Nokia
N86 8MP
Rs. 32,500
Nokia N81 8GB
Nokia
N81 8GB
Rs. 29,500
Nokia X6 16GB
Nokia
X6 16GB
Rs. 28,000
Nokia E72
Nokia
E72
Rs. 27,200
Nokia N79
Nokia
N79
Rs. 26,300
Nokia N82
Nokia
N82
Rs. 26,000

Nokia E65
Nokia
E65
Rs. 24,800
Nokia 6260 Slide
Nokia
6260 Slide
Rs. 24,000
Nokia E75
Nokia
E75
Rs. 24,000
Nokia 5730 XpressMusic
Nokia
5730 XpressMusic
Rs. 23,000
Nokia E55
Nokia
E55
Rs. 23,000
Nokia N85
Nokia
N85
Rs. 22,800

Nokia N81 2GB
Nokia
N81 2GB
Rs. 22,000
Nokia E71
Nokia
E71
Rs. 21,300
Nokia E61
Nokia
E61
Rs. 21,200
Nokia 5800 XpressMusic
Nokia
5800 XpressMusic
Rs. 21,200
Nokia E66
Nokia
E66
Rs. 20,000
Nokia N73 Music Edition
Nokia
N73 Music Edition
Rs. 19,900

Nokia N78
Nokia
N78
Rs. 19,800
Nokia E52
Nokia
E52
Rs. 19,800
Nokia 7900 Prism
Nokia
7900 Prism
Rs. 19,500
Nokia 6210 Navigator
Nokia
6210 Navigator
Rs. 19,500
Nokia 6600 Slide
Nokia
6600 Slide
Rs. 18,900
Nokia 6760 slide
Nokia
6760 slide
Rs. 18,800

Nokia 6700 classic
Nokia
6700 classic
Rs. 18,700
Nokia 6500 Classic
Nokia
6500 Classic
Rs. 18,500
Nokia 5610
Nokia
5610
Rs. 18,500
Nokia 6720 classic
Nokia
6720 classic
Rs. 18,500
Nokia 6500 Slide
Nokia
6500 Slide
Rs. 17,900
Nokia 6220 Classic
Nokia
6220 Classic
Rs. 17,900

Nokia 6600 Fold
Nokia
6600 Fold
Rs. 17,800
Nokia E5
Nokia
E5
Rs. 17,800
Nokia 5630 XpressMusic
Nokia
5630 XpressMusic
Rs. 17,200
Nokia 5530 XpressMusic
Nokia
5530 XpressMusic
Rs. 17,200
Nokia 6233
Nokia
6233
Rs. 15,600
Nokia E63
Nokia
E63
Rs. 15,400

Nokia 6730 classic
Nokia
6730 classic
Rs. 15,200
Nokia 5320 XpressMusic
Nokia
5320 XpressMusic
Rs. 14,900
Nokia X3 02 Touch and Type
Nokia
X3 02 Touch and Type
Rs. 14,900
Nokia 5230
Nokia
5230
Rs. 13,600
Nokia N72
Nokia
N72
Rs. 13,500
Nokia C5
Nokia
C5
Rs. 13,500

Nokia 7610 Supernova
Nokia
7610 Supernova
Rs. 13,200
Nokia 3600 slide
Nokia
3600 slide
Rs. 12,900
Nokia 5310
Nokia
5310
Rs. 12,400
Nokia 6120
Nokia
6120
Rs. 12,000
Nokia 7500 Prism
Nokia
7500 Prism
Rs. 12,000
Nokia X3
Nokia
X3
Rs. 11,600

Nokia 5233
Nokia
5233
Rs. 11,500
Nokia 6303
Nokia
6303
Rs. 11,300
Nokia 7310 Supernova
Nokia
7310 Supernova
Rs. 11,000
Nokia 5250
Nokia
5250
Rs. 10,900
Nokia 6300
Nokia
6300
Rs. 10,800
Nokia 6303i classic
Nokia
6303i classic
Rs. 10,800

Nokia 7230
Nokia
7230
Rs. 10,750
Nokia C3
Nokia
C3
Rs. 10,500
Nokia 5220
Nokia
5220
Rs. 10,400
Nokia X2
Nokia
X2
Rs. 9,100
Nokia 7210 Supernova
Nokia
7210 Supernova
Rs. 8,550
Nokia 5130 XpressMusic
Nokia
5130 XpressMusic
Rs. 8,400

Nokia 3500 Classic
Nokia
3500 Classic
Rs. 8,300
Nokia 3110
Nokia
3110
Rs. 7,900
Nokia 2730 classic
Nokia
2730 classic
Rs. 7,500
Nokia 5000
Nokia
5000
Rs. 7,100
Nokia 2700 classic
Nokia
2700 classic
Rs. 6,900
Nokia 2760
Nokia
2760
Rs. 5,600

Nokia 2630
Nokia
2630
Rs. 5,200
Nokia 2690
Nokia
2690
Rs. 5,200
Nokia 2600 Classic
Nokia
2600 Classic
Rs. 4,950
Nokia C1 01
Nokia
C1 01
Rs. 4,600
Nokia 2220 slide
Nokia
2220 slide
Rs. 4,550
Nokia 2330 Classic
Nokia
2330 Classic
Rs. 4,400

Nokia 5030 XpressRadio
Nokia
5030 XpressRadio
Rs. 3,125
Nokia C1 00
Nokia
C1 00
Rs. 2,675
Nokia 1800
Nokia
1800
Rs. 2,550
Nokia 1208
Nokia
1208
Rs. 2,300
Nokia 1616
Nokia
1616
Rs. 2,300
Nokia 1209
Nokia
1209
Rs. 2,250

Nokia 1280
Nokia
1280
Rs. 2,200
Nokia 1202
Nokia
1202
Rs. 2,100
Nokia 1203
Nokia
1203
Rs. 2,050