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| November, 2006 | Home| About us| Services| Contact Info | |
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Note from Jason Flick Lots of new business devices out last month and some interesting changes, but you can read about that in the newsletter. On the business mobility front, Nokia is continuing to make progress. Traditionally they haven’t done well in the business markets; although they’ve always had at least one business-focused handset, it was only a small fraction of their marketshare. Nokia is seeing RIM and Microsoft entrenching themselves in this expanding market and are concerned they’ll start making progress into the European market, of which they own 70+ percent. Have a look at the Nokia business site and see if you feel any of the devices are competition for RIM and MS, my view is they have a long way to go and not much time to do so.
Cheers, Jason Flick, |
The World's Thinnest Pocket PC Phone
By James Alan Miller
October 30, 2006
E-TEN Information Systems has unveiled what it asserts is the world's thinnest Pocket PC Phone. Sure, the 15.5
millimeter (mm) goldfish X500 doesn't seem all that thin when compared to other
recent Windows Mobile devices: the 11.5-mm thick Motorola Q and new T-Mobile
Dash, for example. But keep in mind that the E-Ten is a full-fledged Pocket PC
and not a Windows Smartphone like these other devices.
This means, among other things, the goldfish x500 delivers a touch
screen and the ability to edit and view Microsoft Office applications, both
features not available with Windows Smartphones.
Pepper Pad 3 scores a review
By Thomas Ricker
October 20, 2006
Although dubbed a "mini-review," Carrypad just spat-out 1352 words on the Pepper Pad 3 for your inspection.
Online over WiFi within 5-minutes of unboxing, the latest Pepper Pad did impress although not without some minor
gripes. Messaging is limited to AIM and POP3/IMAP mail out of the box (no VoIP)
and the device is very awkward to hold while using the stylus for navigation.
However, the reviewer "loves" thumbing around on the keypad and found the
scrollwheel "superb." Users can expect just under 3-hours of battery life with
2:40 tested with WiFi on, music playing, and screen at 30% -- that's more than
most UMPCs, however, the Pepper Pad 3 runs the Pepper Desktop, not a Tablet
version of XP.
CNET editors' review
Reviewed by: Bonnie Cha
September 12, 2006
The RIM BlackBerry Pearl wasn't exactly a hidden gem. Specs and images of the
Pearl (a.k.a. the 8100, a.k.a. the Stealth) leaked onto the Web about a month
ago, and Research in Motion certainly made no secret that it planned to release
devices with integrated multimedia capabilities, though it never named a
specific product or release date. However, today RIM along with T-Mobile
officially introduced the BlackBerry Pearl to the world, the first BlackBerry to
offer a built-in camera, video and music playback, and expandable media. While
we certainly welcome these additions, the Pearl isn't offering anything
revolutionary; most smart phones today have the same capabilities and offer more
functionality, such as video recording.
Business Mobility
Today's workforce is increasingly on the move. The need to talk, make decisions,
and access information and resources while mobile is crucial. Employees want
mobile solutions to help make their busy lives more efficient, yet it's
difficult to take advantage of network resources and applications when away from
their desks. By adopting mobile technology, your company can adapt to the
increasing mobility of your workers and increase efficiencies.
Nokia
offers comprehensive services to help your business increase its mobile
capabilities.
First Looks At Crossbow
By Jon Westfall
October 9, 2006
Windows Mobile 5 is the current OS of choice for Windows Mobile users however the next iteration, codenamed Crossbow,
has shown its face, check out the full Pocket PC homescreen shown above! It has
a glossy title bar and soft keys and will feature Vista-esque folder icons etc.
Pieter Knook, a Microsoft Sr. VP, has commented that Microsoft plan to release
an upgrade to their mobile platform yearly which is interesting and could mean a
new OS with every yearly upgrade for pay monthly contracts. Knook has also
commented that Crossbow will have strong links with Office 2007 and Exchange 12
as well as including the mobile version of Office Communicator, an Instant
Messenger tool for enterprises.
Crossbow is still a long ways off, but for now we can be content with seeing how
the Today screen will change (slightly) in the next version of our OS of choice.
I can't say it is anything breathtaking, but it's good to see something starting
to leak out. It does have that blasted battery icon in the top bar - Please MS -
tell us that we can disable that with a registry
change!
Motorola Prepping Q Pro
By James Alan Miller
October 16, 2006
The Q has successfully helped Motorola stake its claim in the American smartphone market.
Since its release last May, however, competition has grown more intense, with a
number of new compact QWERTY keyboard-based smartphones making it to market or
coming soon. These devices - which include the T-Mobile Dash, Nokia E62, and the
RIM BlackBerry Pearl (a keypad/keyboard hybrid really) - have dimmed the Windows
Mobile phone's star a bit. Not only will some potential customers find them more attractive and - perhaps - more
powerful, all three hit or beat the Q's $200 with service contract sweet spot
price point.
HTC September Revenue Misses Analyst Estimates
By Nurhisham Hussein
October 11, 2006
"Handheld-device maker High Tech Computer (HTC) was unable to meet
market analysts' estimate of NT$9.5-10 billion (US$286-301 million) in revenue
for September, according to the Chinese-language Commercial Times. Due to tight
supply of some raw materials, HTC's unaudited revenues for the third quarter as
a whole also fell short of analysts' expectations by 6.7%, the paper indicated."
Seems HTC is building devices faster than its suppliers can keep
up! What with the slew of new devices released this year, plus ODM demand, and
it looks very much like Windows Mobile will have a great
year - HTC's quarterly operating revenue is jumping 100% every quarter. Let's
just hope they don't miss any Christmas shipping deadlines!
PalmSource to Change Name, Ending an Era
By James Alan Miller
October 12, 2006
Since ACCESS acquired PalmSource nearly a year ago for $324 million,
the subsidiary has maintained a separate - if blurred
- identity from its parent company. This about to change, as PalmSource
announced today that it is in the process of changing its name to ACCESS and
merging its identities with the Japanese firm once and for all.
ACCESS clearly wanted to emphasize its brand every since it brought
PalmSource on board. All development on the Palm operating system ceased and the
next mobile OS to be released by ACCESS/PalmSource is to be called the Access
Linux Platform (ALP), for example. While ALP, introduced in February, offers
backwards compatibility to many of the currently available 25,000 Palm OS
titles, the new OS was rewritten from the ground up using open source components.
To compliment the name change, the company today also unveiled a new
corporate logo and merged the ACCESS and PalmSource Web sites. "Our new logo
has been designed to symbolize the transformation of ACCESS as it evolves into a
truly global company dedicated to providing innovative products and technology,”
according to ACCESS CEO Toru Arakawa.
These products include the company's popular NetFront browser, which ACCESS said is now
deployed on 279 million devices, including smartphones and PDAs, worldwide. ALP
will feature NetFront as well, of course.
Palm Launches Low-Cost Treo 680 Smartphone
By Elizabeth Millard
October 13, 2006
Palm has unveiled the latest model in its Treo smartphone line, with a lower
price designed to expand the line's appeal beyond business users.
The Palm Treo 680 is a quad-band world phone that features e-mail, Web
browsing, messaging, and multimedia options. According to Palm, carriers around
the world will announce additional product details, availability, and pricing in
the next few months.
Also announced for the Treo line is the availability of Google Maps, a mobile
application that will be offered as a free download from the company's online
multimedia library.
Video 1st Look - HP iPAQ rx4540
Key features of the smart design include:
- Choose to view digital content in either landscape or portrait mode to
maximize the viewing pleasure of videos, photos and games.
- A scroll wheel for a single, smooth, one-handed operation for access and
navigation of digital content.
- A large 2.8-inch-wide anti-glare touch screen to quickly launch media
applications for entertainment gratification.
- The HP iPAQ rx4000 Mobile Media Companion series, which is built on
Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 Software for Pocket PC, also includes a suite of
connectivity options, such as integrated Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, enabling consumers
to stay connected on the go.
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