mobile

Microsoft starts a FUD war against open-source Symbian

That didn't take long. Nokia announced just last week that it would be open sourcing Symbian, the world's top mobile operating system by market share, and a few days later Microsoft has started a FUD war against the move.

The ironic thing in this Microsoft FUD offensive is that it's using precisely the wrong example from open source to wage the war: Linux. While it could have found some examples of open source that fragments, is more costly than proprietary software, etc., it chose Linux, which isn't:

[Microsoft's] Rockfeld sums up those challenges with what some might call the "F word": fragmentation. Fragmentation is bad, he says, because application software developers have to create multiple versions of their code for different operating systems, or different versions of the "same" operating systems. "There are more Linux consortiums that come and go than there are Linux phones," he says....… Read more

Some .Mac users already getting @Me.com e-mail forwarding

While Apple's upcoming MobileMe service has yet to hit retail shelves and overtake the existing .Mac offering, it looks like some users are already getting early benefits of the updated platform including proper e-mail forwarding with the @Me.com alias. MacRumors is reporting that the transition has already begun to take place for some, but not all current .Mac subscribers, meaning if you've got a Yourname@mac.com and somebody sends an e-mail to Yourname@me.com it'll still end up in the right place.

Other MobileMe services still have yet to catch up, including the improved … Read more

Can Verizon V Cast take on iTunes?

Verizon Wireless has upped the ante in its efforts to take on Apple's iTunes store in the digital music market by offering DRM-free music for all purchased music plus a new subscription service. But will it be enough to make a dent in Apple's dominance?

On Monday, Verizon Wireless will announce the revamped V Cast music store, which will be loaded with digital music that is free of the pesky digital rights management encryption on all songs that are purchased through the store. Verizon is joining Amazon as the only other digital music distributor that will be selling … Read more

iPhone talks with China Mobile now going smoothly

After talks broke down earlier this year between Apple and China Mobile over the (non-pirated) introduction of the iPhone, Apple's concession to non-U.S. carriers that they don't need to share revenue has apparently restored progress with the world's largest carrier.

This comes as China's government reports mobile accounts are nearing the 600 million mark. China Mobile alone has more than 400 million accounts. These numbers don't mean there are that many people with cell phones, however. I and many others have multiple SIM cards. I use one for visiting friends, but others use second … Read more

Viigo 3.0 beta chases Yahoo Go 3.0 beta

Another Yahoo department has cause for concern. Up until last week, Yahoo Go was top dog in the mobile widget arena, pulling everything from weather, news, and finance to local listings, Flickr photos, and search onto Yahoo Go 3.0 beta, the company's rich application for smartphones. But Viigo 3.0 beta has added many of the same elements to what is essentially a faster-loading and more visually straightforward wrapper.

I've sung Viigo's praises when it was flexing new-found muscle as a superb RSS reader for Windows Mobile and BlackBerry devices. The new beta, released June 19, … Read more

Virgin Mobile USA buys Helio for $39 million

Virgin Mobile USA will pay $39 million in stock to buy operator Helio, the company said Friday.

The deal ends more than a month of speculation that the two troubled mobile virtual-network operators would combine forces.

As part of the purchase, Virgin Group, which owns Virgin Mobile USA, and SK Telecom, the South Korean phone giant that holds a majority stake in Helio, will each invest $25 million in the combined company. In exchange for its investment, SK Telecom will be given a 17 percent stake in Virgin Mobile.

Helio, which was created to bring advanced cell phones and services to the U.S. market, … Read more

Motorola Rokr E8 review

Five months after it nabbed two awards at CES, the Motorola Rokr E8 has landed at a U.S. carrier. It will go on sale July 7 for T-Mobile ($199 with service), but we got our hands on a review model this week to give it a full shakedown. It's always exciting when a new phone arrives in the CNET labs, particularly when it's a model that was born with lots of fanfare. After a couple days of poking and prodding, we can report that the Rokr E8 hits some high marks. Its music player performs well and … Read more

Nokia researcher Jan Chipchase

New Scientist magazine has a good interview with roving Nokia researcher Jan Chipchase. He travels around the world observing and photographing how people live their lives, and how mobile phones fit into that. It's kind of amazing that Nokia allows him to blog about it as much as he does, normally a large corporation would keep a much tighter lid on this kind of research. But he's a good ambassador for the brand, and I'm sure there's plenty he doesn't make public (including the all-important conclusions!).

I appreciate Chipchase's modesty: he avoids the term … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 754: Molly.wood, here I come!

ICANN approves its plan to totally overhaul the Internet domain structure, but all we can do is make fun of the name "Winklevoss." Hee. "Winklevoss." Also today, Microsoft wants to shut off your gadgets from afar (or at least, their patent filing suggests that they do), the Samsung Instinct is totally the new iPhone, and torrent freaks think JJ Abrams' new show, Fringe, will be a hit. Phew! Listen now: Download today's podcast EPISODE 754

Judge Ends Facebooks Feud With ConnectU http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/06/26/judge-ends-facebooks-feud-with-connectu/

Facebook suspends app that permitted … Read more