Mobile Phones
AT&T reconfirms launch date for MMS service
Sep 24th
AT&T posted an update on its Facebook page which basically revealed two important facts: First, it reconfirmed 25th September as launch date for MMS service, Secondly AT&T announced the time at which the MMS service will arrive to your handsets. The time is set to late Friday Morning with respect to Pacific time. This is the announcement that AT&T made:
MMS Update: We know you’ve been eager for this service so we wanted to offer a quick update on the launch plans for MMS on Friday, Sept. 25. Late morning, Pacific Time, on Friday, the new carrier settings update enabling MMS should be live and ready …to download through iTunes. We’ll provide the steps and all of the details you need right here at that time.
Apple gets clearance to sell iPhone in South Korea
Sep 24th
Good News if you live in South Korea and are waiting for the arrival of iPhone. According to Wall Street Journal, Apple has finally succeeded in getting approval from the South Korean government to sell iPhone.
Previously the South Korean Commission was in denial and didn’t allow Apple to sell its iPhones in South Korea. The reason attributed to this decision was that Apple‘s iPhone violated a South Korean rule which required the use of domestic technology for location based services in smartphones. The only breakthrough obviously was to create an exception in the rule to permit Apple to sell iPhones and that’s exactly what the South Korean Commission has done.
A few questions remain unanswered
Questions which remain still unanswered are:
- When will Apple be allowed to start selling iPhones?
- Which carriers would be used with iPhone?
- What distribution technique will Apple employee?
A spokesman for Apple in Seoul declined to comment and further discuss on this significant news. Anyways that’s good news for South Korean people.
LG reveals specifications for LG Chocolate BL 20
Sep 24th
LG may have not yet made an official announcement regarding its yet to arrive LG Chocolate BL20 phone. But what it has done is that it has added the specifications for the LG Chocolate BL20 phone on its website.
The smartphone has touch sensitive keys, 5 Megapixel camera, Bluetooth 2.1 and much more. It seems that there is no support for Wi-Fi and GPS as it does not appear in the specifications for LG Chocolate BL 20.
LG Chocolate BL 20 Specifications
The complete official specifications of LG Chocolate BL20 are
- GSM/GPRS/EDGE 900/1800/1900 MHz
- UMTS/HSDPA 900/2100 MHz
- 2.4 inch TFT QVGA display with 262K colors
- SMS and MMS 1.2
- Email (SMTP, POP3, IMAP4)
- WAP 2.0/HTML/XHTML web browser
- Bluetooth 2.1
- USB 2.0
- PC Sync
- 5MP camera with autofocus, flash and video recording
- ARM9 processor (unknown frequency)
- 256MB Flash memory
- 128 MB RAM
- MicroSD card support, up to 16GB
- 106.9 x 50.8 x 12.3 mm
- 115 grams
You may also want to check the following link which lists the available colors for LG BL20, a video and much more
LG Chocolate BL20 makes an appearance in an LG retail store
China Unicom to launch iPhone on October 15th
Sep 23rd
China Unicom is is about to launch iPhone on 15th of next month. Pricing will be set at 1,999 yuan (US$293) for the 8 GB model and 2,999 yuan (US$439) for the 16 GB model. Both models will require two-year contracts with pricing beginning at 186 yuan (US$27) per month.
It is not yet official about the iPhone’s launch over there, but as China Unicom is preparing to ship the device, the info about it started trickling out from the regional offices and sales channels.
China Unicom announced in late August that it had struck a three-year deal to bring the iPhone to China. At the time, the company said only that it was looking to launch the iPhone by the end of 2009.
China Unicom Chairman Chang Xiaobing said:
China Unicom to 10 billion yuan buy 5 million units iPhone,
The news is unfounded, but it also unveils that China Unicom and Apple’s sales agreement between the its core buy iPhone 3G handsets in China three years of exclusive marketing rights, though to be underwriting a number of iPhone mobile phone, but shall not participate in Apple’s share.
Download iTunes 9.0.1
Sep 23rd
Apple last night released an update to iTunes 9, called iTunes 9.0.1. Apple revealed iTunes 9.0.1 via Software Update as well as the iTunes download site. No need to guess what this update brings to you. As always, iTunes 9.0.1 update brings with it a fixes to a number of bugs. Don’t go anyway, below is the list of important bugs that have been fixed. The list includes
iTunes 9.0.1 fixed issues
iTunes browsing issues resolved
- Resolves issues browsing the iTunes Store.
iTunes performance issues addressed
- Addresses a performance issue where iTunes may become unresponsive.
iTunes unexpectedly quits
- Fixes a problem where iTunes may unexpectedly quit.
Podcast syncing problem with iPod and iPhone resolved
- Fixes a problem syncing Podcasts in playlists to iPod or iPhone.
Sorting multiple discs in a album gets fixed
- Fixes a problem sorting albums with multiple discs.
Issue with Zoom button fixed
- Addresses an issue with the Zoom button not switching to Mini Player.
App syncing for iPod and iPhone improved
- Improves application syncing for iPod touch and iPhone.
Updated Genius
- Genius is now automatically updated to show Genius Mixes.
iTunes 9.0.1 supported Platforms
The latest update is available for download for both Mac (OS X 10.4.11 or later) platform as well as Windows (Vista, XP) platform
AT&T turns of View My Message service temporarily for iPhone users
Sep 23rd
According to MacRumors, AT&T has turned off its View My Message service for iPhone users. Before you think anything else, AT&T has disabled this feature temporarily. AT&T has done this in order to prepare users account for MMS capability which AT&T is expected to activate on 25th September.
View My Message service is basically a workaround that lets you receive and read MMS messages. The message which AT&T sent to its users read:
Picture & video messaging (MMS) will be available for iPhone on 9/25. While we prepare your account for MMS capability, the current “view my message” experience will be turned off but your ability to send and receive text messages will not be affected.
Netflix streaming not coming to iPhone
Sep 22nd
Were you wishing and waiting for Netflix streaming to come to iPhone?. Well I hate to say this to you but it seems Netflix streaming won’t be coming to iPhone and iPod Touch. This information was retrieved by Netflix CEO, Reed Hastings during an interview conducted by the Reuters.
From the interview one can conclude that Hastings has no plans to bring streaming to iPhone and iPod Touch. Netflix seems focused on spending its efforts on its core TV based business, Blu ray players and Video Game consoles. Mentioned below is the excerpt from the interview
Reuters: Any plans to work in partnership with Apple and the iPhone?
Hastings: it’s something that’s likely to come over time. But nothing in the short term. (With) movie watching, we are not focused on mobile yet, but (instead) on the TV, on Blu-ray and on the video game consoles. We will get to mobile eventually, including the iPhone.
Get a closer look at the Sony Ericsson Xperia X3
Sep 22nd
Have you heard about Sony Ericsson Xperia X3. Even if you haven’t heard about it no worries. We have got amazing pics which would surely please you. PhAndroid has put up a nice collection of the Sony Ericsson Xperia X3 pictures thanks to the contribution from different sources.
The sources who contributed for these cool pictures are:
The pics show Sony Ericsson Xperia X3 in both Black and White colors. Both look amazing and beautiful in their own ways. Sony Ericsson Xperia X3 is regarded as the most powerful Android phone yet based on the features it provides.
Sony Ericsson Xperia X3 specs
- 4 inch touchscreen
- 8 Megapixel camera
- 3.5mm headset jack
- GSM support
- LED Flash
- Video (resolution 640*480)
Go ahead have a look at the cool pictures of Sony Ericsson Xperia X3 and admire them.
iPhone activation zones come to Apple retail stores
Sep 22nd
During the last week, we informed you about a rumor regarding Apple‘s plan to bring iPhone activation zones to its retail stores. Well that news has turned out to be 100% reality rather being a rumor. Yes, Apple has infact rolled out iPhone Activation Zones in some of its retail stores, as MacRumors reports. As we informed you previously, the iPhone Activation Zones focuses on bringing a dedicated iPhone staff and provide a dedicated contact point for customers to activate their iPhone as well as get assistance regarding the initial setup of their iPhones.
Apple has already configured its various retail stores to assign dedicated space for the iPhone Activation Zones. It has also started mentioning about the iPhone activation zone on the iPhone purchasing page which reads:
Reserve an iPhone at your nearest Apple Retail Store. Our knowledgeable Specialists provide expert advice, custom setup, and fast activation at the iPhone Activation Zone.
FrenchSite TechShower posted a photo of the new iPhone activation Zone at the San fransisco flagship store.
The iPhone Activation Zone is equipped with dedicated iMac computers for activation and signage of iPhones.
With the iPhone activation Zone, it is likely that the customer experience will increase and the satisfaction level for the customer support is sure to rise. An excellent step taken by Apple.
Nokia brings text messaging for blind people
Sep 21st
Mobile phone users with visual impairments have so far been unable to benefit from the growing popularity of text messaging in recent years. But now they can as Nokia brings text messaging for the blind people.
Nokia Braille Reader has been developed as a joint project between Nokia, Tampere University and the Finnish Federation of the Visually Impaired. It works by allowing SMS access to the blind and visually impaired. It captures received SMS messages and brings them to the foreground for reading using Braille and tactile feedback.
This means that blind people can understand an incoming text by reading the vibrations generated by their mobile phone.
Nokia spokesperson Roope Takala said:
We have been thinking of how to do something about accessibility for quite a while.
Nokia Braille Reader is still in Beta phase, so there may be bugs and Beta Labs is asking anyone who downloads and uses this app to get involved and feedback their experiences.
See this video below for more information.
