After filing our complaint a few days, ago, we finally received a response from T- Mobile.
Feedback from other readers here and web reports already had our expectations running low, and they did indeed confirm that as loyal customers of 10 years standing, we could expect no discount at all on an upgrade to the G1 phone.
Worse than that, they insisted that our decade’s worth of loyalty would be rewarded with an additional charge of £305, while a brand new customer could pick up the same phone – on exactly the same contract – for absolutely nothing. How crazy is that?
The T-Mobile rep we spoke to certainly seemed to empathise with our position: reading between the lines he was well fed up having to tell long-paying customers that they’re going to be royally shafted by his company (he actually started the call saying that it ‘wasn’t a call he’d been looking forward to making’).
Continue reading T-Mobile’s Stupid, Stupid Upgrading Policy (pt. 2)
Just ahead of the eagerly anticipated launch of the T-Mobile G1, the first phone running Google’s Android mobile operating system, Amazon has just announced that its MP3 music store will be pre-loaded as an application on the handset.
After being told for years that making a mobile call on a plane was likely to send the aircraft plummeting to the ground in flames, EU’s regulators have cleared the way for passengers to enjoy loud earfuls of, “HELLO? I’M ON THE PLANE!”
Microsoft have bought a teeny tiny piece of Facebook for $240 million, in return for they get 1.6 per cent of Facebook and the privilege of “expanding their advertising partnership.”
An NFC payment system is on trial in Amsterdam allowing people taking part to make purchases using their mobile phone. 
Approximately 100 selected JCB cardholders are now enjoying fast, easy, and convenient payments with Mobile J/Speedy at selected merchants, where they used to pay by cash. 
Although there’s no shortage of gadgets like smartphones, PDAs, iPod and PSPs that are capable of playing back video, getting footage on to the fellas can be a bit of a pain. 
Users can connect the V-Mate to the AV output of their video recorder, set-top box, Freeview, DVR, DVD player, TV or other device and use the V-Mate’s remote control to configure the device, plus record and access content via a TV-based interface. 
If – like us – you’ve been using digital cameras and electronics gizmos for years on end you might now be the proud owner of a huge pile of memory cards in a host of different formats, with a ton of cables scattered around the office. 
The USB 2.0 reader also conveniently doubles up as a Bluetooth hub, allowing you to wirelessly transfer data between Bluetooth devices such as mobile phones and PDAs. 
Compatible with Windows 98/98SE/ME/2000/XP, the 63x63x15mm reader weighs in at 76g and is powered by the host computer’s USB slot. 
As your collection of digital devices grows, you’ll probably find it near-impossible to stick with just the one memory card format as the pesky things keep on changing.
Getting data off these various cards usually means a trip to the back of the PC to install the various cables that came with all your camera/smartphone etc (when will they standardise all the ruddy USB connecters?!).
With most memory card readers offering support for a huge variety of memory cards, all you need to take on the road is a single USB lead to connect the card reader to your laptop and you’re sorted!
We were sadly guilty of leaving the charger for our Nikon N70 back in Blighty during out recent jaunt to NYC, and after seeing the battery levels accelerating downwards as we transferred zillions of images to our laptop, we shelled out for a cheap’n’cheerful Targus card reader, the TG-CRD14 ($25 street price).
As we 
It could be, that time will prove TiVo have announced prematurely this new augmentation, without fully taking account of the wide ranging business and legal implications. But in this fast moving sector, innovation is a necessity rather than an option.
TiVo have announced the release of new software, slated for the first quarter of 2006 that will let owners watch recorded television shows on their Sony PSPs and video iPods.
This development is a further blow to TV network schedulers and their much-relied on conventional prime time programmes. This theory is torn apart when mobile viewers are able to watch programmes recorded the previous night, on the go.