phones

DoCoMo prototype phone could pay the bills

If NTT DoCoMo had its way, one day in the future users might be able to make electronic payments via their mobile phone while the handset remains in their pocket.

The Japanese cell phone operator this week showed off a prototype equipped with a sensor developed by Kaiser Technology that can send electric signals through the human body. Practical uses include opening doors to secure areas without flashing security cards or programmed personal preferences such as drivers' seat and steering wheel angles.

All these are still hanging in the air, though, as the company isn't sure if the technology … Read more

CNET Live - Episode 26 - Show Notes

We were expecting John C. Dvorak, tech curmudgeon, but he never showed, so we just featured more of your calls. And they were awesome calls too! Brian Cooley was off today, so Molly Wood stepped in again to help out. Thanks Molly!

Watch the show on CNET TV.

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Hands-on with the AT&T Tilt

Whether you know it as the AT&T 8925, the HTC Kaiser, or the HTC TyTN II, this highly anticipated Windows Mobile 6 smart phone officially got its crowning today as the AT&T Tilt. And we'd say the name is quite fitting, given that it has a slide-out screen that tilts 40 degrees for a better viewing angle. However, this smart phone isn't just about the innovative design. It's packed to the gills with features for the mobile professional, and though we've only had a chance to play with a preproduction unit, we … Read more

Turn your smart phone into a Garmin navigator

Garmin has a really small idea for making smart phones a whole lot smarter.

The GPS device maker announced Wednesday GPS software called Garmin Mobile XT. Embedded on a microSD card, the software gives the handset access to a slew of location-based services, such as maps, driving directions, real-time traffic and weather information, local gas prices and friend-finding tools.

The card is $99, a steal compared with the average Garmin device, which will run you anywhere from $200 to $1,000. And, of course, you don't need to ferry around a separate navigation device.

Mobile XT comes loaded with … Read more

ARM's new Cortex core ready for low-power multicore chips

Two weeks after Intel signaled its future low-power intentions, ARM has unveiled its latest mobile chip design for smart phones and consumer devices that will arrive around 2010.

The Cortex A9 is an extension of the Cortex family of applications processor cores that ARM unveiled two years ago with the Cortex A8. It combines the multiprocessor support of older ARM cores with the Cortex design, ARM's highest-performance implementation to date. Several ARM partners, such as Texas Instruments, Samsung, STMicroelectronics, Nvidia and NEC Electronics also announced plans to use the Cortex A9 in future chips for smart phones and consumer … Read more

iPhone bricking: I blame AT&T

After a while with my newly dehacked iPhone, I'm left with Tap Tap Revolution withdrawal, many fewer icons and a loss of some of the features I had come to appreciate from my iPhone.

Could you say I'm bitter? Perhaps. But what may surprise you is that I've had a bit of a change of heart. (In my pre-update post), I told you that if Apple decided to brick iPhones and disrupt hacks, it will have single-handedly destroyed its ability to maintain its post as the world's most influential tech company.

But after analyzing the update that actually came out, I don't blame Apple anymore. Instead, I blame AT&T for forcing Apple to do something that it has never done before and effectively become the bad guy while AT&T laughs its way to the bank.

Shame on you, AT&T.… Read more

Asus smart phone headed for Asia, Europe

After several delays, the much-awaited smart phone from Asus, the M530w, will finally make its way to shops in Singapore, Thailand, Australia and the Philippines this weekend. Touted to give the Dopod smart phones serious competition, the M530w will retail in Singapore for S$828 and be available exclusively at Asus authorized shops and M1 outlets. (M1 is one of the major mobile carriers in Singapore.)

Targeted at mobile business users, the Asus M530w comes with a suite of connectivity features that include 3G, tri-band GSM, 802.11b/g wireless LAN and Bluetooth. It is also equipped with a 2-megapixel … Read more

Verizon, where's your iPhone killer?

Verizon Wireless unveiled four new handsets it plans to have on the market for the Holiday 2007 season, but unless I missed something, there wasn't an iPhone killer among them.

On Tuesday, Verizon Wireless invited various reporters, such as myself, to a hotel in New York City to take a look at new handsets expected to launch before Thanksgiving just in time for the holiday season. Company representative said that these phones were just a sampling of what's to come, with more handsets expected to hit store shelves in the next couple of months. Maybe I am being … Read more

What if your GPS receiver became a phone?

As much of personal technology rapidly converges into single handheld devices, one of the last frontiers is GPS. But here's a twist: Rather than trying to cram a satellite receiver into a mobile phone, what if a company went about it the other way around?

Cybergraphy Technology's GlobalTrack G200P is a compact receiver with an integrated microphone and speaker that can actually be used as a phone, though we have no idea what kind of reception it would get. As a GPS unit, though, its credentials seem worthy--a high-sensitivity receiver that the company says has a maximum standby … Read more

V-Moda earphones meld phone, music

V-Moda has always been able to combine quality with high fashion, not an easy feat considering the limited canvas afforded by something as small as an earbud. And now it's managed to cram a key new function into its headsets as well.

The latest version of its "Vibe Duo" model is designed for the iPhone with a built-in set of controls that include functions for calls as well as music--yet another reflection of the ever-converging worlds of mobile handsets and media players. Apple includes its own headphones with the iPhone but worked with V-Moda to develop its … Read more