Tag: Windows mobile
Google launches "Sync" beta for iPhone and Windows Mobile
Switching handsets is a pain, right? Having to copy across all your contacts, all your calendar info, your photos and videos, etc. Nightmare, unless you’ve got a handset like the INQ that just pulls it all off Facebook, or course. Well, Google wants to alleviate some of that pain with its release of “Sync”.
It’ll add your Google Calendar events and Gmail contacts to your phone, as well as syncing them in the background, over the air. Any changes you make are pushed, rather than pulled, onto the phone, so it all happens double-quick. If nothing else, it makes a handy backup of your important data if your phone gets stolen or lost. Now, where’s my S60 version?
Google Sync (via Official Google Blog)
More Google Apps: Google makes 1.5 million books available on mobile, free | Google Maps for Mobile gets an update – with friend tracking!
Top 10 Tuesday/Wednesday: 10 things to look for in a mobile phone
The launch of the very tasty Toshiba GT01 has got me thinking. What is it I’m after in the perfect phone? Well, what with the choice of handsets these days being about more than having polyphonic ringtones, and section 2 subcategory B of Sod’s Law stating that you can’t have everything, I thought it might be a good time to prioritise, especially with MWC 2009 just around the corner.
So, here we go then. The Tech Digest top 10 features to look for in a mobile phone as according to me and with all the subjectivity and bias I can muster. In reverse order…
Fennec, aka Firefox Mobile, hits phones next week
There’s a lot of people out there, particularly users of Windows Mobile devices, waiting patiently for Firefox Mobile. As Microsoft continues to alienate its users by refusing to allow them to upgrade mobile IE without buying a new phone, a free, open source alternative’s going to look very attractive.
Well, if you’re in that camp, then you don’t have too long to wait. Internal Mozilla documentation suggests that Fennec should see an outing next week, initially on the HTC Touch Pro. There’s touchscreen and non-touchscreen versions, and it’s expected to appear on other Windows Mobile devices over the forthcoming months. I’m looking forward to an S60 version.
Fennec (via ShinyShiny)
Related posts: Mobile Internet Explorer 6 not available as an upgrade | Mozilla releases first alpha of Firefox for mobiles aka Fennec
StopThief! Protect your smartphone if it's stolen
With a mobile phone stolen every twelve seconds in the UK (presumably not the same mobile phone), there’s every need for services that can stop handsets being used if they go astray.
StopThief is a new application from mobile security firm UMU that will block the use of a smartphone if it falls into the wrong hands…
Dell to release smartphone, bored analysts suggest
Let’s face it, it’s all a bit quiet in the technology world after the shock of running around Macworld and CES so soon after the festive overeating, so it’s not surprising that a few new speculations are surfacing.
Take the possibility of Dell making its own smartphone. That notion’s been around since almost the same time last year and has now resurfaced.
An analyst with Kaufman Brothers, Shaw Wu, says sources indicate that a Dell smartphone “is closer to reality than before”…
IcePhone – concept mobile with triple-flip
This is pinteresting- a concept mobile phone from a company called “The Medical Phone Ltd”. It’s a triple-flip device complete with touchscreen, QWERTY keyboard, and a third ‘function panel’. It runs Windows Mobile and features GPS, A 3.1 megapixel camera, and Wi-Fi. It runs Windows Mobile 6.0, and features ‘ctrl-alt-delete’ functionality, appararently, which seems a rather strange feature to highlight.
The IcePhone began life as a medical/survival device, and it still retains some of that functionality. There’s one-button access to call 999, your nearest hospital and your doctor simultaneously. It’ll be available in Thailand ‘soon’, but they reckon they’ll have it out in the UK before May next year. The bad news? It’ll be retailing at £670 or so. Pricy.
IcePhone (via BGR)
Related posts: RIM announces the flippin’ Blackberry Pearl 8220 | Toast One flip toaster *may* be a prototype for now, but let’s petition the designer into production…
Asus develops 'world's fastest smartphone' – the P565
Smartphones aren’t usually rated by their speed – they usually get reviewed on how bloated their set of features is. Unfortunately, that bloat can really slow phones down – I know that when I tested out the N96 it crawled compared to my zippier N95. Asus, however, has just launched what it claims is the world’s fastest smartphone – with an 800MHz processor.
I remember back in the day (though surprisingly not that long ago) when that was a chip in a zippy PC, perfectly capable of playing Quake III, when paired with a decent graphics card. That said, it’s probably not going to be as zippy as an old Pentium III, due to its much smaller form factor.
Mobile Internet Explorer 6 not available as an upgrade
The problem with massive companies like Microsoft is that while some bits of the company can be doing great, forward-thinking stuff, other bits of the company can spectacularly drop the ball.
That’s what’s happened at Microsoft over the weekend. On Friday, Microsoft announced sweeping changes to Windows Live. Today we find out that Mobile IE6 won’t be available as a download – you have to upgrade your handset to get it.
It’s a ridiculous, idiotic move from Microsoft that’s only going to annoy and frustrate its users, who’ll turn to piracy to get the software they want on their handset. Microsoft says, in explanation:
O2 launches new Xda 'Zest' on PAYG
O2 has just announced the launch of the Asus-built Xda ‘Zest’ – the first Xda model to be available on Pay as you Go. If you think that means it’s going to be a bit ‘budget’, then think again – it’s remarkably well featured.
At the core of the device is a 2.8″ touchscreen, and it runs Windows Mobile 6.1. It’s got Wi-Fi, HSDPA, a 3-megapixel camera and an FM radio. It’s even got GPS – a function that’s rather rare on PAYG handsets.
The Xda Zest will be available in O2 shops and online from the 17th November. It’ll cost £250 on the aforementioned PAYG, but there’s also 12 and 18 month contracts for those wanting to pay less up front.
O2 UK
Related posts: O2 unveils XDA Orbit 2 GPS smartphone | O2 launches 3G Xda Stellar with GPS, QWERTY, colour touchscreen
Ballmer: Zune to show up on Windows Mobile, Android/Apple bashing
Steve Ballmer’s been talking to a number of sites about the challenge faced by Android, as well as future Zune plans. They sound quite intriguing, and he doesn’t miss the chance to bash Google. Over to Steve…
