ctia

Wireless industry waits for SF's next move on cell phone radiation

The wireless industry isn't celebrating a victory yet, despite a federal appeal court ruling that struck down San Francisco's attempt to force cell phone retailers to distribute radiation warning materials with each phone purchased.

The CTIA, the industry's trade association, remained quiet on the ruling. A spokesperson for the CTIA said that the group had no comment on the ruling, which came down yesterday. The court said the city couldn't make merchants promote a message they disagree with.

The CTIA is no doubt waiting to see what San Francisco is going to do next.

The city … Read more

Wireless industry attorney: San Francisco phone law 'laughable'

Updated at 12:56 p.m. PT: with additional information and background

An attorney representing the wireless industry said Thursday that San Francisco's attempt at educating the public about cell phone radiation was "laughable," asking the court to put a hold on the city's ordinance requiring cell phone merchants to distribute the materials until the industry is able to challenge the information.

The city's representatives continued to stand behind the ordinance, adopted in 2010, that created these fact sheets.

The two sides laid out their arguments before a judge during a hearing in the federal … Read more

San Francisco cell phone law may be tip of legislative iceberg

Later today, a Federal Appeals Court judge in San Francisco will hear arguments in the long-simmering legal battle between the city and the wireless industry. The outcome will be significant, not only for San Francisco, but also for states and other cities around the country.

As CNET's Maggie Reardon reports, the tussle started two years ago when the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed a groundbreaking resolution mandating that cell phone retailers display a handset's Specific Absorption Rate (or SAR) at the point of sale.

That quickly irked the CTIA, the cell phone industry's lobbying arm, which … Read more

San Francisco faces wireless industry in court over radiation warnings

The City of San Francisco will face off in court with the wireless industry today in a hearing that may determine if the local government will be allowed to force retailers selling cell phones within city limits to disclose possible health risks to consumers before they buy mobile devices.

In 2010, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and then-mayor Gavin Newsom approved legislation that would require manufacturers to provide information about the potential health risks associated with using cell phones.

Specifically, the ordinance required retailers to put up posters in stores that sell cell phones warning of potential risks. It … Read more

Congressman introduces new bill for cell-radiation warning labels

Rep. Dennis Kucinich, a democrat from Ohio, introduced a federal bill today that would put warning labels on cell phones and create a national research program to study cell phone radiation levels.

H.R. 6358, named the Cell Phone Right to Know Act, would also require the Environmental Protection Agency to update the standards for specific absorption rate, or SAR, the amount of radio frequency energy absorbed by the body when using a cell phone.

"It took decades for scientists to be able to say for sure that smoking caused cancer. During those decades, the false impression created by … Read more

Spike physical keyboards for iPhone let you type with ease

For consumers who have an iPhone, but yearn for the feel and touch of a physical, BlackBerry-esque QWERTY keyboard, SoloMatrix may have the solution.

Its product, Spike, is a protective case that has a hinged physical keyboard, which can be overlaid on an iPhone's display.

This lets users type away on a tactile keyboard, without the need for wires, docking, Bluetooth, or an app to download. You can help fund (and consequently preorder) Spike through its Kickstarter page.… Read more

Inside the Samsung Galaxy S III: Quad-core drives galaxial screen

The Samsung's Galaxy S III's vast 4.8-inch screen sits atop a quad-core processor and Sony camera, among other goodies exposed in detail via a chipworks teardown.

Before we dive into the specs, let's be clear. For a phone, it's big. Big enough to be brushing up against 5-inch mini tablets.

"I'd say it does verge on being unnecessarily large, but thankfully it isn't as ludicrously big as the Samsung Galaxy Note with its 5.3-inch screen," said CNET"s Jessica Dolcourt in her review of the phone.

And note this … Read more

Controlling your phone with motion

Hillcrest Labs isn't a household name, but if you have a Roku 2 streaming player (and really, you should) the company has entered your home.

Based in Rockville, Md., Hillcrest developed the motion-sensing technology used in Roku's remote. So when you're flipping through menus or playing Angry Birds, Hillcrest is behind how it all works. Its first product in the motion space was the Loop controller, which it showed at CES 2007. After that, the company went on to license its technology to Sony and LG, develop the Kylo browser, and sue Nintendo over the Wii controller.

For the next year, however, Hillcrest is thinking smaller. And by that I mean right down to the mobile level. Two weeks ago at CTIA in New Orleans, SVP Chad Lucien explained how the company is working to integrate motion control technology into cell phones and tablets. … Read more

Kyocera's Smart Sonic Receiver arrives in Japan today

At this year's CTIA in New Orleans, which just wrapped up last week, Kyocera debuted its Tissue-Conduction Audio Technology for mobile devices.

Today, the company announced that two new handsets featuring this technology will debut in Japan starting today: the Kyocera Urbano Progresso and the Kyocera K012 Simple Mobile Phone.

The former is an Android 4.0 handset that comes in three colors, has a 4-inch OLED touch screen, and an 8.1-megapixel camera.

The K012, however, is designed for seniors or those who want a simple feature device. It is a standard flip-phone that has four color variations, … Read more