Been looking forward to porting your BBM addiction to iOS or Android in hopes of finally kicking that Crackberry to the curb? Take a seat — it looks like RIM’s private messaging service isn’t going anywhere. According to a Wall Street Journal source, the firm’s new CEO has shut down rumors of a BlackBerry Messenger port. “It was not up for discussion,” the WSJ was told. According to a person “familiar with the matter,” CEO Thorsten Heins decided that RIM shouldn’t be pursuing licensing deals. Heins’ apparent house cleaning might be a deal breaker for BlackBerry veterans looking to jump ship, requiring users to stick with RIM to maintain their dwindling BBM contact lists. Bummer? Sure is, but at least your pals don’t need a security clearance to ping you.
If not for Leap Day, Apple would’ve seen this one granted a year to the day after it was filed; as it stands, 365 days will just have to do. At any rate, Apple has not only managed to secure a patent this fine morning for an eject-able SIM tray, but also one for an antenna isolation apparatus. In simple(ish) terms, the patent details an antenna structure in a portable electronic device that’s comprised of “first, second, and third resonating elements aligned along a common axis parallel to a ground plane,” with a multiple-arm, multiple-frequency design taking shape. It’s also pretty clear that the intention here is to reduce radio-frequency interference between the antennas — something that’ll prove increasingly important as wave support is added in future iPhones. Unfortunately, there’s no word on whether this patent will allow AT&T-infused iPhone 5 handsets to display “7G” in the indicator bar.
So now that Skype is under Microsoft, you thought they’ll put their Android app aside? Nope, that’s not the case. They may be busy with Skype integration into Windows Phone 7 Mango, but they’ve also updated their Skype for Android after the Skype for iPad.
The latest update to Skype’s Android application has just been rolled out and a big part of its goodies delivery is two-way video calling. Only a quartet of phones is supported right now though: Google’s own Nexus S, HTC’s Desire S, and the Xperia Neo and Pro from Sony Ericsson, all handsets that shipped with Android 2.3 installed. Yes, the Nexus S 4G is NOT included in the list, and Skype has confirmed that it’ll only be included in the next release.
Video calling between the Skype Android app and the desktop version is a yes, besides among the three phones listed above. Once connection is established, frame rates were smooth and buttery and the UI is simple and un-intrusive yet offers quite a few functions. You can mute the call, choose between the front- or rear-facing cameras, reposition the small window that shows your video feed anywhere on the screen or — with a double tap upon that window — switch focus so that your own video output dominates the screen and your buddy’s feed is relocated to the smaller preview. It’s a great looking implementation of video calling.
Also included in Skype v2.0.0.45 is a UI overhaul and support for SMS messaging, neither of which suffers from any handset restrictions. Hit up the Android Market on your phone to get at the latest software.
When a certain anonym gets overused on the Internet, the severity is that it also influences our daily conversation “in real life”. The Oxford English Dictionary has added a few new words from the web’s favorite pronouncements into their dictionary. Among them are the standouts OMG, LOL and FYI, joining their compatriots IMHO and BFF among the proud number of officially sanctioned initialisms (abbreviations contracted to the initials of their words) used in the English language. Shockingly enough, the expression OMG has had its history tracked all the way back to 1917, while LOL used to mean “little old lady” back in the ’60s, and FYI first showed up in corporate lingo in 1941. The oddest thing? The actual ♥ graphic has also made it in, though the syndrome is not that severe that as they didn’t actually add in the <3 and XOXO emoticon into the dictionary.
Well, ever since the invention of mobile phones and SMS (short message service), teens have been texting in frenzy day and night. But here’s a crazy fact, teens these days type an average of three dozen times per night before sleeping. Yes, that’s done on the bed! Do they have that many friends?
The claim comes from a study by the JFK Medical Center, which concluded that teenagers send an average of 34 texts a night, often sleeping with their phones so as not to miss a single vibe. Yes, that’s absurd. Sadly, I’ve been through that period of age. But that also comes with “attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety, depression, and learning difficulties.” Which many of the teens will have suffered from anyway, regardless if they send 50 texts a night, or not.
Here’s a rare example of “Boy who cries wolf”, but in a much bigger scale, and much more modernized. What is supposed to be a very ‘top secret’ number, only contactable from three specific phones, was messed up by a simple “software glitch” at AT&T, that caused little Hutchinson of Kansas to go berserk. Due to the “glitch”, a random number accidentally called the wrong number caused by misdialled from a local, which triggered the emergency line to activate a citywide tornado alarm. Well, all hell goes loss. Thankfully, nobody’s injured, and the system’s being restored. But nobody knows who the boy is.
Motorola has launched a 2G flipper in Korea, the MOTO V10. It is design with gradation of black and red. It has a 2.0-megapixel camera (looks like it’s a mid-range phone), Bluetooth, integrated mp3 player, external memory card slot and more. Quite a basic phone with great design, oh yeah I still love their V3.
Sony Ericsson has released W205, a basic Walkman phone. It is a slider that comes with Walkman player, FM radio and TrackID music recognition. You can record a sample of a song from the radio and set it as your ringing tone. The Sony Ericsson W205 Walkman will be available in selected markets from Q3. Specs and one more pic after the break. Read more…
The Nokia 5730 in the XpressMusic series is a S60 smartphone with 3.5G support, 3.2megapixel camera, Wi-Fi, GPS and the first music-optimized device to features QWERTY keyboard. It also has 100mb internal memory plus a microSD slot that support up 16GB. The Nokia 5730 XpressMusic will be available in the Q3 2009 with an estimated retail price of 280 EUR excluding subsidies and taxes. More pictures after the break. Read more…
LG Electronics has finally released its Incite aka LG-SU200/KU2000 in Korea. It is running on Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional and comes with a crystal-clear 3-inch touch screen with vibration feedback, 3.0-megapixel camera, Wi-Fi, and preloaded with Internet Explorer HTML Web Browsing Microsoft Office Mobile, Microsoft ActiveSync 4.5 and Windows Media Player 10. The LG Incite will be released in Korea market via SKT and KTF, going for 700, 000 KRW. Read more…
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