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Google To Power Vodafone Mobile Search – Imagination Lacking: 3GSM
The news is coming out of 3GSM thick and fast, so we’re going to be reporting in a slightly different way. When we see a press release that we think it’s of interest to you, Dear Reader, we’ll put it up in full, with a brief comment at the top. Normal service will be resumed post 3GSM – unless you tell us you like this format.
We’re increasingly disappointed about the view of a couple of technologies by the wider market. The primary recipients of over-glowing acceptance in our view are Apple with their iPod and Google with search. OK, they’re good products, but really …. have some imagination. There are other products/services around that are equally good, and we’re sure that it’s only a matter of time before the alternatives exceed what is currently seen as the benchmark.
To fit in with this trend, Vodafone (who for goodness sake should have more confidence and technical expertise) have signed with Google, to have them power search on the Vodafone network.
Vodafone and Google team to create innovative mobile search experience for mobile phone users
Vodafone today announced that it is collaborating with Google todevelop innovative mobile search services for its customers.
Vodafone will integrate Google’s search capability into its consumerservice, Vodafone live!, providing customers with the most relevantinformation, wherever they are and whatever time of day it is.
Google’s search results will be delivered through Vodafone’s high speeddata networks. Combining Vodafone’s mobile expertise with Google’ssearch capability will ensure that customers can quickly and easilyfind what’s relevant to them. The new service will offer simultaneoussearch both on Vodafone live! and the wider Web.
Vodafone’s integration of Google search will take the mobile internetto a new level. Vodafone live! was the first mobile service to makedata services easily accessible to mobile customers. Whether checkingthe weather, looking for a restaurant or getting the most up-to-datenews, consumers want search services that meet their everyday needs.
Alan Harper, Group Strategy Director, Vodafone, said: “Innovative mobile search will become increasingly important as fastand easy access to information and services are increasingly demandedby customers on the move. Together, Vodafone and Google will focus oncreating the best mobile search service in the market, helping to bringthe mobile internet to life. Our customers will be able to findrelevant information and services faster, making the Vodafone live!customer experience even better. Our intention is to develop ourrelationship with Google to ensure Vodafone customers continue to havethe very best in mobile services.”
Nikesh Arora, Vice President, European Operations, Google Inc., said: “As people become more mobile, it’s increasingly important that we canprovide them with access to information when on-the-go. Googleunderstands that mobile phone users are looking for more than a desktopreplacement – they want directly relevant content, quickly. Vodafonehas long been a pioneer in providing mobile data services to itscustomers and we believe that by working together we will ensure a userfriendly experience for mobile users.”
14 February, 2006
Sony Cybershot DSC-W50, DSC-W30 To Battle Ixus
Ahead of the big PMA (Photo Marketing Association International) show at the end of the month in Florida, Sony has announced two new 6-megapixel cameras in their ‘W’ range.
The ultra-compact Cyber-shot DSC-W30 and DSC-W50 models feature optical viewfinders, Sony’s Clear RAW imaging technology (claimed to produce low noise images up to ISO 1000), a 3x zoom and 2.0-inch and 2.5-inch screens, respectively.
Looking somewhat reminiscent of the Canon Ixus / Elph range, the miniaturised, re-engineered W-series offers a compact, highly pocketable design (89x59x23mm) with a price that’s easy on the pocket too, with the DSC-W30 retailing for $230 (~£132, ~e193) and the DSC-W50 for $250 (~£143, ~e209).
Both cameras follow the trend of offering high light-sensitivity settings (in this case, up to ISO 1000), letting snappers capture fast-moving subjects and take more natural-looking low light shots without flash.
At higher ISO ratings noise can become a real issue, but Sony are claiming that their Clear RAW imaging technology keeps the multi-colour snow-storm effect to a minimum.
Boasting 400 shots on a single charge, the DSC-W30’s batteries should provide enough juice to keep compulsive photographers going all day, while Sony’s Real Imaging Processor circuit claims to deliver quick start-up and fast shot-to-shot times.
Both cameras come with 32MB of internal memory, with Sony sticking with their propriety Memory Stick Duo storage, offering capacities up to 2GB.
To help fumbling newbies and the easily baffled, Sony has added a new function guide which displays a short onscreen text explanation whenever a shooting mode is selected. This can be turned off once the user becomes familiar with the icons on the mode dial.
The Cyber-shot DSC-W30 should be available later this month, with the DSC-W50 following in March.
SC-W30/DSC-W50 specs:
Sensor 1/2.5 ” Type CCD, 6.0 million effective pixels
Image sizes 2816 x 2112, 2816 x 2112 (3:2), 2048 x 1536, 1920 x 1080 (HDTV), 1632 x 1224, 640 x 480
Movie clips 640 x 480 @ 30 / 16fps, 320 x 240 @ 16 / 8fps, 160 x 112 @ 8fps
File formats Still: JPEG
Movie: MPEG VX
Lens 38-114mm, F2.8-5.2, 3x optical zoom, Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar
Focus 5 area Multi-point AF, Single, Monitoring
Metering Multi-pattern, Center-weighted, Spot
ISO sensitivity Auto, ISO 80, 100, 200, 400, 800, 1000
Shuttter speed 1/2000 – 1sec
Aperture F2.8-7.1 (wide) F5.2-13 (tele)
Modes Auto, Shutter priority, Aperture priority
Scene modes Twilight, Twilight Portrait,Landscape,Beach,Snow,Soft Snap
Connectivity USB
Weight (no batt) DSC-W30: 123 g (4.5 oz)
DSC-W50: 127 g (4.7 oz)
Dimensions DSC-W30: 89 x 59 x 23 mm
DSC-W50: 89 x 57 x 23 mm
Sony
14 February, 2006
Vodafone Embrace SIP Internally. Nokia To Supply: 3GSM
The news is coming out of 3GSM thick and fast, so we’re going to be reporting in a slightly different way. When we see a press release that we thinks of interest to you, Dear Reader, we’ll put it up in full, with a brief comment at the top. Normal service will be resumed post 3GSM.
This _is_ an interesting one. Nokia and Vodafone have knocked heads a few times about Nokia and their domination of the handsets market – and Vodafone’s keenness for their relationship with the subscriber not to be lost.
Here Nokia IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) will go Worldwide for Vodafone. The real buzz is that Vodafone will be SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) enabling their core network.
This is the switch to IP for Vodafone and, we judge, an acceptance that they need to fit in to the significantly cheaper IP world, rather than just sticking to their expensive, proprietary cellular networks.
Vodafone awards global contract to Nokia for IMS
Espoo, Finland – Nokia has been selected by Vodafone Group as a preferred supplier, with a contract to begin deploying the Nokia IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) solution to Vodafone affiliates worldwide. The first deployments are expected during 2006.
Under the agreement, Nokia becomes a preferred supplier of Vodafone’s IMS network architecture and the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) technology that will enable Vodafone to pilot next generation services and start interoperability testing. Nokia is also deploying its OMA-compliant Presence and List Management solutions. IMS is an essential element of the Nokia Unified Core Network solution and a key enabler of multi-access methods.
“Vodafone is excited by the enormous possibilities that are emerging with IP Multimedia,” says Detlef Schultz, Head of Global Supply Chain Management at Vodafone. “IMS is going to play a strategic role in our future service delivery. We intend to pilot the next generation of services using this technology and will start interoperability testing with other operators as soon as possible. We have the utmost confidence in Nokia’s ability to deploy IMS on a world-wide scale.”
“We are extremely pleased to be cooperating with Vodafone in pioneering the benefits of IMS for consumers,” said Giuseppe Donagemma, Vice President, Networks, Nokia. “Vodafone clearly recognizes how important IMS is in providing next generation multimedia services that are rich in possibilities and independent of access.”
Nokia provides to the telecommunications market a complete, end-to-end solution for IMS-based multimedia, including the Nokia IP Multimedia Subsystem solution and application servers for services such as Presence, which are connected to the IMS via the open IMS Service Control (ISC) interface. Nokia is the leading vendor of IMS/SIP enabled terminals, with several models of video sharing and SIP enabled terminals already on the market.
With its IMS solution and wide range of IP multimedia capable devices, Nokia has taken the lead in making IP Multimedia commercial. Nokia has over 70 IMS references, including 48 commercial references for the fully IMS compatible Push to talk over Cellular (PoC) solution and 14 references for IMS Core with mobile and fixed operators globally. Commercial launches include over 20 PoC and several Video Sharing services.
14 February, 2006
BT Movio Partners With Virgin Mobile TV, Endemol: 3GSM
They’ve been busy boys at BT this week, with the UK telecoms giant making two major announcements.
On Monday, BT announced a content partnership with Big Brother producer Endemol to provide original shows and interactive content for BT’s new broadband television service.
Endemol now join a growing list of broadband content providers signed up by BT whose roster now includes recently bagged deals with BBC Worldwide, Paramount, Warner Music, National Geographic, HIT Entertainment and Nelvana.
BT/Virgin mobile TV deal
With the ink still drying on the Endemol deal, BT have also announced a new agreement with Virgin Mobile to offer TV services through its broadcast digital TV and radio service, BT Movio.
Virgin Mobile – Britain’s fourth-largest mobile operator – will use BT’s Movio mobile TV product to give their customers access to a wide range of digital TV content and more than 350 DAB digital radio stations.
Using the UK’s existing digital audio broadcasting (DAB) network, the broadcast service will be offered on a limited exclusive basis to virgin Mobile customers later this year. BT Movio will be available in the future to all mobile operators in the UK.
The announcement of the deal coincided with the unveiling of HTC’s new handset at the 3GSM World Congress 2006.
HTC Trilogy handset
The Trilogy TV handset, the world’s first DAB-IP enabled Smartphone, was developed jointly by BT, TTP and HTC and sports a 2.2″ screen for viewing video content and multimedia-focused features including a removable storage and an integrated 1.3 mega pixel camera.
Emma Lloyd, managing director, BT Movio said: “Bringing the world’s first DAB-IP enabled Smartphone to market is another huge achievement for BT and the beginning of a step change towards open standards in the area of TV broadcasting over DAB.”
“By working with Microsoft and HTC we have been able to develop a handset that provides an easy to view, high quality experience, wrapped into a hi-spec media driven mobile phone. This will be vital in attracting mobile operators to the BT Movio service,” she added.
Microsoft partnership
BT has developed a strategic relationship with Microsoft for delivering broadcast services on a mobile handset, with their Windows Media technologies enabling BT Movio to deliver high-quality audio and video content over a DAB network using minimal bandwidth.
The BT Movio service also comes with Windows Media Digital Rights Management (DRM) technology for the secure delivery of premium video and music content.
These are certainly interesting times for BT, with their recent activity seeing the company pushing ahead to create an alternative distribution network and channel for existing content to both broadband and mobile devices.
Although Orange, 3, and the Vodafone Group already offer streamed TV channels over their 3G mobile networks, this solution gobbles up precious bandwidth.
Phones on the BT Movio service, on the other hand, simply pick up broadcasted signals. As Virgin’s sales and marketing director Graeme Hutchinson explains: “It’s not downloaded; it’s not looped; it’s real TV just like you get at home.”
BT Movio
14 February, 2006
Nokia 6136 Serves Up Wi-Fi Mobile: 3GSM
Launched at the 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona, Nokia’s new 6136 phone is being touted as the handset that brings GSM and wireless LANs together.
Claiming to be “unifying GSM and Wi-Fi connectivity”, the 6136 is a UMA (Unlicensed Mobile Access) phone giving users the ability to roam seamlessly between GSM mobile and Wi-Fi networks.
Thanks to the wonders of UMA technology, network charges can be slashed as the phone automatically switches to a VoIP connection when one becomes available – so if you’re on the phone as you come home, your mobile will instantly transfer the call to your Wi-Fi network.
The quad-band Nokia 6136 will be able to connect to GSM networks at 850, 900, 1800, and 1900MHz (so no problems using it in the States as well as Europe) and comes with a built in 1.3 megapixel camera and FM radio.
There’s also a microSD memory card slot for expansion.
So far, there’s only UMA service in operation, the BT Fusion product, which we reported on in June last year.
The technology holds much promise for operators, offering the ability to deliver new voice and data services to subscribers over WLAN access networks.
Because of its limited bandwidth, GSM only supports basic data services, whereas super-fast Wi-Fi can deliver far richer content though support connections of speeds (theoretically) in excess of 50Mbps.
At a press conference on Monday, Jorma Ollila, Nokia’s chief executive said, “We want to help our customers complement their existing mobile services with mobile IP. UMA gives users an alternative to PC-based VoIP,”
He added that UMA devices would appeal to companies who wanted to reduce call costs by moving their voice and data to common IP networks.
The Nokia 6136 UMA phone is expected to be available in Q2 2006, priced around €275 (~$327, ~£188). The company will also release network operating equipment to support the new converged handset.
Orange customers are expected to be the first to get UMA’d up, and there should be plenty of Wi-Fi hotspots about after the company recently took over broadband outfit Wanadoo.
We’ve no idea how much the network charges are going to be, but they should certainly be cheaper than making calls via Orange’s normal network.
Glossary: UMA (Unlicensed Mobile Access)
This specification enables the seamless hand-over of voice and data connections between GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) networks and WLANs.
Nokia
BT Fusion
14 February, 2006
Motorola Dis Apple, Expect More Microsoft Music Phones: 3GSM
The news is coming out of 3GSM thick and fast. To keep up we’re planning to report is a slightly different way. When we see a press release that we thinks of interest to you, Dear Reader, we’ll put it up in full, with a brief comment at the top. Normal service will be resumed post 3GSM.
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There’s been plenty of rumours about Motorola not being happy with Apple, following the iTunes Mobile launch. Today Mot announce that they are two-timing Apple with Microsoft. Interestingly they say they’ll have OTA (Over The Air) delivery of content by 2007.
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Motorola and Microsoft Plan to Bring More Choice to Mobile Music Fans
Seamless integration of Windows Media technologies will deliver complete music experience and redefine music discovery on Motorola handsets.
BARCELONA, Spain – 13 Feb 2006 – Today at 3GSM World Congress 2006, Motorola Inc and Microsoft Corp strengthened their existing relationship by announcing a collaboration to integrate Microsoft(r) Windows Media(r) technologies on a number of Motorola’s music handsets, which will allow users to access content from the broadest selection of online music stores from around the world.
Motorola’s music handsets will add support for Windows Media Digital Rights Management (DRM), Windows Media Audio (WMA), the enhanced Windows Media Audio Professional (WMA Pro) codec and Media Transfer Protocol (MTP). These technologies will give consumers the maximum flexibility and options when purchasing and playing back their digital music.
Forthcoming Motorola music handsets will enable seamless connectivity to Windows(r)-based PCs via the USB 2.0 high-speed protocol. By supporting MTP, Windows Media Player will automatically recognise Motorola handsets and enable users to quickly and easily sync their music from their PC to their phone. Music acquired from any pay-per-download or subscription store using Windows Media technology will transfer and play back on Motorola handsets.
In addition to making Motorola handsets interoperable with PCs, Motorola and Microsoft plan to provide mobile handset offerings that are tailored for discovering and acquiring music over an operator’s 3G network. Incorporating the efficient encoding capabilities of the WMA Pro codec, this rich music offering will provide operators with handsets optimised for efficient music downloads* over a 3G network. Consumers will also benefit from quick and easy access to high-quality music on the go.
“Our relationship with Microsoft is about making the mobile world seamless with the desktop world and allowing consumers to experience music wherever and whenever they want,” said Richard Chin, corporate vice president of Global Product Marketing at Motorola. “Building on our existing relationship, this expanded collaboration can further enrich the mobile music experience and expand the mobile music offering to our operator alliances and consumers.”
“Combining Motorola’s wireless handsets with Windows Media technologies will significantly advance the mobile music experience,” said Amir Majidimehr, corporate vice president of the Windows Digital Media Division at Microsoft. “Motorola’s upcoming handsets with Windows Media will offer consumers and operators worldwide the widest range of high-fidelity, no-compromise music choices.”
Motorola began shipping Microsoft technologies on select handsets in 2005, and plans to offer Windows Media-enabled music experiences on multiple handsets worldwide in the second half of 2006. Support for over-the-air delivery capabilities and WMA Pro is expected to follow suit in 2007.
13 February, 2006
DS Lite: New official Nintendo photos
This just in … New official photos of the Nintendo DS Lite. Since the end of January, there’s been mockups and photoshop’d images appearing on gadgets sites all over the Web.
Well, you know that good things come to those that wait and we’re here to deliver to you – witness the very latest, hot off the wires images of the DS Lite.
Nintendo top man Satoru Iwata announced it on 26 Jan, telling the world the Nintendo DS Lite would be less than two-thirds the size of the original DS and more than 20 percent lighter. He also revealed, to the relief of many, that it would also have a brighter screen too.
It’s expected to hit Japan in March – the start is rurmoured. Europe and elsewhere sometime after.
Nintendo Japan DS Lite site
10 February, 2006
BBC TV Plus – The Apprentice Comes To Broadband
‘The Apprentice’ TV show has been a smash hit in the UK, much the same as it was in the US. The BBC now plan to use it as the ‘first extensive broadband experience,’ as part of the BBC TV Plus project.
While the series is being shown on TV , the episodes from that series will be viewable on demand via broadband, as will ‘must see clips’, ie promo clips from forthcoming episodes. Sorry non-UK readers, all of this is only viewable in the UK.
This broadband-video advance will be supplemented by the now-to-be-expected blog, this time by a fiery (other would say mouthy) contestant from the last series.
BBC Two Web site – Now Broadband-enabled
All of this is accessible via the heavily reworked BBC Two Web site. The Beeb have taken a big step forward with the new site, really embracing the concept of what a broadcasters Web site can be in a broadband age.
Arriving at the page brings you a quick-to-start video of the latest show they want to promo, leaving the rest of the page is uncluttered. When video previews are clicked on, a new window is launched showing the preview with a very neat feature – moving the mouse pointer off the window, dulls supporting text, so the focus is on the video – as it should be.
Why’s it taken the BBC so long?
Initially looking at these advances it’s easy to get excited, but when looked in context of how long it’s taken, a frustrations come to the surface.
Ashley Highfield, BBC New Media & Technology uber-miester, has been banging-on about the potential of broadband for years, but has taken ages to get from talk to action, despite the hundreds of millions of pounds that have been spent between him joining and now.
There have been blips of excitement. Back in April 2003 we gave a strong thumbs up to the first strong use of broadband we’d seen by the BBC, under bbc.co.uk/broadband. The site has changed considerably since then – thank goodness, it was nearly three years ago – so our comments from then won’t bear direct relevance. What was really impressive then was the synchronisation of text and graphics with the video’s timeline, something that’s not supported by this project.
(Funnily enough, after reading that article the person responsible for the project contacted us and it turned out to be someone whose previous work outside the BBC we’d been very impressed with.)
The talent behind these type of advances don’t often get name checks, so it’s great to be bale to correct this
The development of BBC TWO’s new-look site has been led by Kate Bradshaw (Executive Editor) and Dominic Vallely (Channel Executive Broadband), project managed by Zillah Myers, with design by Julie Dodd, Tim Bleasdale and Audrey Rapier.
The website and player have been produced by New Media Production & Development, led by Victoria Felton (Executive Producer, Editorial).
New look BBC Two site
The Apprentice
bbc.co.uk/broadband
9 February, 2006
1Gb Nano iPod Debuts As Apple Cuts Shuffle Price
Keen to further expand their vice-like grip on the portable digital music market, Apple have unveiled a cut-down 1GB version of their turbo box-shifting iPod Nano player.
Apple are hoping that their new 1GB Nano iPod will lure in yet more punters with a wallet-tempting price tag of just $149 (~£86, ~€125), $50 less than the cheapest Nano currently available, a 2-gigabyte model.
The new 1GB Nano can hold up to 240 songs or 15,000 photographs and comes with all the usual Nano features, including the colour display and docking connector.
The company have also announced price cuts for their entry level model, the tiny, screen-less iPod Shuffle which has been reduced to $69 (~£40, ~€58) for the 512MB model, and $99 (~£57, ~€83) for the 1GB model.
Apple are the undisputed lords of the US digital music device market with an estimated 70 percent market share, and these latest price cuts will no doubt have some rival product execs reaching for the bottle in desperation.
As Shaw Wu, an analyst with American Technology Research, put it: “Apple is selling a $69 MP3 player with the best software. How do you compete with that? It’s tough.”
“In the US market they have already won,” he added, estimating that Apple currently has something like 40 percent share of the worldwide market.
The iPod range continues to be an outrageously successful money spinner for Apple, with around 32 million iPods shifted last year, including 14 million during the holiday season.
iPod Nano
8 February, 2006
Sony VAIO VA1 Series Wireless Home Entertainment PC
Sony has announced the new VAIO VA1 Series, a wireless home entertainment desktop computer.
Looking like it was knocked out by designers in a hurry to get home, the chunky machine seems to lack Sony’s usual flair for design, but underneath the less-than-glamorous exterior lurks a novel hybrid machine, boasting analogue and digital TV tuners, a DVD rewriter and capacious hard drive.
The display is a big Sony 20″ screen with true 16:9 aspect ratio, X-black technology and double lamp illumination, with a nippy 2.8GHz Pentium D 820 processor powering the PC.
Graphics are taken care of courtesy of an ATI Mobility Radeon X700 with 128MB RAM, with the integrated TV tuner offering both analogue and digital channels, with built in Freeview.
Running on Microsoft Windows XP Media Centre Edition, there’s a high capacity 250GB hard drive inside and a dual layer DVD DVD±RW rewriter, capable of recording up to four hours of DVD-quality TV in one go.
High definition audio is provided by Sony’s Direct Stream Digital (DSD), a technology developed by Sony in conjunction with Philips.
Despite its all-in construction, some expandability options are provided with space for a second hard disk and slots for more RAM.
In line with its home entertainment pretensions, the machine includes a wireless keyboard with built in touchpad, a wireless mouse and remote control.And to keep things neat and tidy, the whole caboodle uses a single plug. Nice.
Full details, comprehensive specs and product photos are (as you can see) somewhat thin on the ground as we went to press, but we’ve heard that the Sony VA1 should be available from February, priced at around £1,500 ($2,620, €2.185).
8 February, 2006