Business News Holding

Category: smartphone

  • 7 Start-ups To Watch From Mobile World Congress 2009


    The big names of the mobile world occupied vast stands at MWC in Barcelona – but some of the most interesting and innovative products, applications and technologies came from start-ups.
    Smartphone.biz-news has pulled together some of the enterprising newbies that are likely to make a big impact in the future, including video interviews and photos.

    Irish start-up Dial2Do created quite a stir at this year’s Mobile World Congress.
    The Dublin-based company lets you do various tasks on your mobile simply by calling a number and speaking.
    So you can send email or text messages, record reminders, post updates to Twitter or Jaiku stream or even listen to internet content – all while driving your car.

    The Lisbon, Portugal-based start-up wizi has developed an instant location sharing application, with the focus firmly on on individual networks.
    The free mobile app allows you to share your location instantly by e-mail or SMS.

    TuneWiki is a the music playback app that shows Karaoke-like lyrics and album art on almost all  the music on a phone. It has features like searching YouTube for videos of tracks, plus searching its database for certain song lyrics if users only remember part of a song.
    Watch below a short video demo.

    ART has developed interference cancellation technology with the potential to dramatically improve 3G call connectivity and mobile broadband download rates. Crucially, the Texas-based company says the solution doesn’t require additional network investment but will allow twice as many users to connect in the same 3G coverage area.

    MEEPASS has a developed cutting edge mobile identification solution with a secure ID tag. It works on any mobile phone and uses a 2D barcode that verifies a user’s identity without the need for the handset to be network connected. Watch below a short video demonstration

    French start-up Kapsys has developed a voice-activated GPS for city dwellers that can be used to walk, bike, roller blade, scoot or take public transport. It is also a an MP3 player, a radio and a mobile phone receiver via Bluetooth.
    See below a short video demonstration of the Kapsys device.

    Modu has designed a potentially-groundbreaking sleek and light mobile device that slips into a variety of so-called "jackets" – music players, other cellphones, car stereos, digital cameras, etc.
    See below a short video demonstration.

  • Truphone Unveils First Multi-country Mobile Service


    Truphone has unveiled its plans for a single-SIM, multi-country mobile service that will enable users to make calls in supported countries at local rates.

    The mobile communications company says a key aim of the Local Anywhere service is to eliminate the hassle of switching SIM cards or the expense of often-exorbitant roaming charges when callers use their handsets on foreign trips, according to voip.biz-news.

    Truphone claims that the new service, which will launch in September, will offer up to 80 per cent savings on roaming charges when visiting other countries.

    Making the announcement at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Geraldine Wilson, Truphone’s CEO, said the service was intended to get rid of the need for people to juggle multiple devices and phone numbers to avoid paying roaming charges.

  • Can MEEPASS's Mobile Tag Replace Credit Cards and ID?


    French software developer MTag has just launched its cutting edge mobile identification solution MEEPASS at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

    The secure ID tag works on any mobile phone and uses a 2D barcode that verifies a user’s identity without the need for the handset to be network connected.

    The idea is that rather than carrying a wallet full of credit cards and ID, users’ mobile phones act as a single source of verified and secure identification.

    Christian François Viala, marketing director for MTag, said the software functioned without any connection costs and didn’t use a Near Field Communication chip – so removing the Big Brother effect often associated with this type of technology.

    He told smartphone.biz-news that although MEEPASS was a new product the technology had been tried and tested with the company’s mobiletag barcode reader software.

    Mobiletag enables a mobile to read 2D barcodes or tags using the phone’s camera – redirecting users to content, information or a service.

    The software has been is widely used in France and Poland and is ready for deployment in Spain, Germany, Italy and the UK.

    With MEEPASS, the solution creates a one-off 2D barcode ID tag to identify the user in situations ranging from payment transactions, loyalty programmes, ticketing and couponing.

    "Why continue to carry several credit cards, loyalty cards, tickets and coupons when all you have to do is use your mobile to identify yourself instead?" said Viala.

    MEEPASS uses private/public crypted RSA key 1024 bit technology and is downloaded by users, who then register with a personal PIN code.

    MTag has just opened an office in Atlanta, Georgia and as part of its expansion drive targeting the US market.

  • Location Sharing Start-up Wizi Sees Google Latitude As Challenge


    For a start-up like Wizi having Google launch a competing product might seem like the kiss of death.

    Not so with the Lisbon, Portugal-based developers who have welcomed the launch of Google’s Latitude as a way of bringing attention to their instant location sharing application.

    The free mobile application allows you to share your location instantly by e-mail or SMS.

    André Gonçalves, Wizi’s marketing manager told smartphone.biz-news that they saw Latitude’s launch as a challenge and an opportunity to let consumers find out about their product.

    He said Wizi’s focus was on individual networks rather than social networks and the app is typically used to tell friends your location or where you are going to meet.

    "We are something like Latitude but a bit different," he said. "Our focus is on instant location sharing.

    "We cannot compete with Latitude but it is a challenge to tell people how our app is useful to them."

    Locations can be shared between Wizi users or with an email or SMS.

    Privacy is a key feature and visibility is totally controlled by the user: with the option to become invisible to friends or disable the link to a location map.

    Wizi works on Windows Mobile or J2ME compatible devices but versions are in the pipeline for Blackberry, Android and the iPhone.

    Wizi for the Apple handset has already been used by a restricted community of early adopters who volunteered to be part of the Beta Testing Program.

    Another feature of Wizi is recommending the best routes when driving in the city using traffic data collected in real time by its community, helping to save time and the environment.

    Gonçalves said they are currently talking to handset manufacturers and operators. The former were interested because Wizi was a useful add-on to show the potential of the latest phones.

    He said the latter saw Wizi as an opportunity to increase ARPU.

    Wizi will be launching Brazil this year and the start-up is in discussions with operators in Spain and the US.

  • ART's Breakthrough Technology Promises Uninterrupted High-speed Mobile Broadband


    Advanced Receiver Technologies (ART) has launched interference cancellation technology which has the potential to dramatically improve 3G call connectivity and mobile broadband download rates.

    Crucially, the Texas-based company says the solution doesn’t require additional network investment but will allow twice as many users to connect in the same 3G coverage area.

    It can do all this while maintaining broadband connectivity throughout the entire cell – including tripling data transfer speeds at cell edge.

    The solution tackles the problem of inter and intra cell interference, which can reduce 3G network capacity by 50 per cent – and can restrict the data transfer rate at cell edge by 70 per cent.

    The Single Antenna Interference cancellation-Joint Detection (SAIC-JD) is embedded into the baseband chip within a handset.

    UPDATE: ART has just been announced as the winner of the GSMA’s 2009 Mobile Innovation Global Award competition’s EMEA tournament for the most innovative true mobile start-Up.

    David Clifton, ART’s co-founder and VP, told smartphone.biz-news that the solution would allow network operators to double capacity, improve voice call connectivity and offer continuous high-speed broadband to 3G users.

    He said it effectively meant a "better user experience and seamless high-speed data coverage".

    "We have had nothing but positive feeback," said Clifton.

    "The technical people are still sceptical, but that’s going to be the case when something is almost too good to be true."

    Testing of the technology is due to be completed in June and Clifton said it would then take between 6-12 months for handset manufacturers, chip makers and operators to bring the solution to market.

    Jacob Goldman, ART’s VP of business development, said the company’s partners were smartphone manufacturers.

    He said SAIC-JD enabled high-speed connection throughout the cell – something that was not currently possible unless a user was standing still or under the tower.

    "A smartphone can never work properly if the handset is moving. The only way it can work properly is to have interference cancellation technology," he said.

  • Dial2Do Making Hands-free Mobile Tasks Simple


    Irish start-up Dial2Do are creating quite a stir at this year’s Mobile World Congress.

    The Dublin-based company lets you do various tasks on your mobile simply by calling a number and speaking.

    So you can send email or text messages, record reminders, post updates to Twitter or Jaiku stream or even listen to internet content – all while driving your car.

    Ivan MacDonald, Dial2Do’s CEO, told smartphone.biz-news that the service was designed to be easy and handsfree.

    He said typical users were commuters who wanted to make the most of the their drive time to get get tasks done.

    Currently available in 20 countries around the world it so far only comes in an English language version, but MacDonald said a Spanish service was coming shortly.

  • Intivation Launches World's First Solar-powered Mobile Phone

    Intivation today launched the world’s first low-cost solar-powered mobile phone.

    The Dutch company uses an innovative converter that takes 0.5v from a solar cell and steps it up to the 3.7v needed for any lithium ion mobile phone battery.

    Intivation’s technology combines a single solar cell with its chip software. It can function on any handset.

    UPDATE: Intivation has just been announced as the winner of the GSMA’s 2009 Mobile Innovation Global Award competition’s EMEA tournament for the most innovative wireless device-centric technology.

    Paule Naastepad, Intivation’s CEO, told smartphone.biz-news it offered charging even in low-light conditions while also being effective in high temperatures.

    He said that in terms of performance the technology provided a 193 per cent improvement in average light, tilt, angle and shading.

    Intivation also announced a solar-powerd charging case for the iPhone, which it says more than doubles battery use. 

    The Intivation technology is being used in a ZTE-made handset, the Coral-200 Solar, which is being deployed by the Digicell Group from this June.

    It will be targeting emerging markets where there an estimated 640 million people with network coverage but without a reliable electricity supply.

    For operators, Naastepad said there was the potential to increase ARPU by more than 10 per cent, largely because if a mobile was constantly charged it was more likely to be used.

    Other advantages include: 

    • technology allows for a small cell
    • cheaper to manufacture
    • looks better
    • faster charging more reliable




  • Nokia, Vodafone and Adobe Help Kick-off Mobile World Congress 2009

    Nokia, Vodafone and Adobe Help Kick-off Mobile World Congress 2009


    This year’s Mobile World Congress is now underway and already there has been a flurry of announcements and launches from some of the big names lining up in Barcelona.

    Vodafone has unveiled a raft of new mobiles, including its first own-branded consumer GPS phone – the Vodafone 835.

    The 3G candybar handset is to be available across Europe from spring on contract.

    Other newcomers to the 3G range include the Vodafone 735 and Vodafone 736 – a candybar and slider version respectively of the phone.

    Hot on Vodafone’s heels comes Nokia, with the news that it is launching its own online app and media portal – the Ovi Store.

    The Finnish telecoms giant has made its N97 smartphone the first device to be "pre-integrated" with Ovi Store, but existing S40 and S60 customers will be able to download the service from May.

    Not surprisingly, a developer site has been launched offering a 70 per cent revenue share.

    Adobe announced this morning that Flash Player 10 – the full version of Flash that runs on PCs – is to be available on smartphones running Windows Mobile, Google’s Android, Nokia S60/Symbian, and the new Palm operating systems.

    Devices with Flash Player 10 are expected to hit the market starting in early 2010.

    Obviously, the glaring exception to the list of applicable devices is the iPhone – though Adobe executives do promise that it’s coming.

    Earlier, Carl-Henric Svanberg, CEO and president of Ericsson, told delegates at MWC that 2008 had been a year of establishing mobile broadband.

    He talked about the impact investment in telecom infrastructure can have on societies and their prosperity – even in the current economic climate.

    "Mobile phones have had a profound impact on peoples’ lives all over the world," he said.

    "The mobile industry is now on the verge of another significant wave of investment, which will bring affordable mobile broadband services to all."

    Svanberg finished by stressing that the fundamentals of the telecoms industry were sound, as was demand.

    "The operators are generally in good shape and the networks are fairly loaded," he said.

    "As we move further into a financially turbulent 2009 our focus will be to manage our company for value creation. In this market environment there will be opportunities to strengthen our position and I am convinced that we are uniquely positioned to capture them."

  • Emoze Aiming To Be "Skype of the Push Email World"


    It was interesting to hear Eitan Linker, CEO of emoze, talk about his company’s efforts to introduce the mass market to mobile push email at the Showstopper event on the eve of Mobile World Congress 2009.

    Emoze’s free software enables users to configure multiple mobile email accounts and send and receive emails from corporate, personal and family accounts all on the same mobile.

    Linker told smartphone.biz-news that their aim is to simplify the user experience to help bring push email to as many people as possible – and obviously to emoze.

    He said while there are more than one billion email accounts globally, RIM had only 20 million Blackberry subscribers for its email services – making it very much a niche market.

    Emoze hopes to change that.

    Find below the VideoInterview:

    "We are a win, win, win option," said Linker. "It’s a win for the carriers because we drive data; it’s a win for the handset manufacturers because we are not operator dependent; and it’s a win for the user because it’s a free application that’s easy to use."

    Emoze’s goal is aided no end by the fact the software can be downloaded to a wide variety of mobile devices – from high-end smartphones to standard Java-enabled handsets.

    As well as providing access to several types of email accounts, users can also access social networks such as Facebook.

    While the application is free, users can upgrade from the basic one account option to a premium account, which allows them to have multiple accounts for EURO 1 per month.

    Emoze also offers an enterprise solution, which enabled small companies to give staff email without the need – or the cost – of upgrading handsets.

    "We are looking at the mass market and trying to make it easy for them," he said. "We are like the Skype of the push community."

    As the company’s website explains:

    "Emoze brings true mobility to the mass market by enabling users from all walks of life to turn their mobile phones and mobile devices into fully functional personal communication devices.

    "Emoze has created real push-event technology. emoze delivers real-time, secure synchronization of emails, calendars and contacts – pushing data and updates anytime, anywhere using any mobile service provider network or WiFi.

    With emoze’s unique technology, synchronization occurs every time there is an incoming or outgoing event, rather than via periodical checks for change."

  • Bitstream Launches "Fastest Mobile Browser"


    Bitstream is launching its new BOLT mobile browser today with the claim that it is the fastest on the market.

    Sampo Kaasila, VP of R&D at Bitstream told smartphone.biz-news, that the new browser was "25-50 per cent faster" than competitor Opera.

    Speaking at Showstoppers on the eve of Mobile World Congress 2009 in Barcelona he said this was backed up by tests carried out in India.

    While he admitted the tests weren’t done independently of Bitstream, he was confident user experience would bear out the company’s claims.

    Kaasila said the BOLT beta provides a PC desktop-like view of Web pages on even the most basic feature phones.

    It will not, however, be available on the iPhone and Bitstream has no plans at the moment to change that.

    Bitstream is hoping to appeal to hordes of non-iPhone handset owners, of whom only around 15 per cent regularly browse the internet on their mobiles.

    "We are hoping to increase that percentage with BOLT," said Kaasila.

    The mobile browser includes high standards compliance such as AJAX and flash video support.

    Kaasila said it also both optimized to conserve battery life and to minimize data transmissions – so allowing people to browse longer without recharging batteries while consuming less data.

    BOLT supports streaming video from the likes of YouTube, vids.myspace.com, video.yahoo.com, blip.tv, dailymotion.com, and metacafe.com.

    Features of the BOLT public beta release include:

    • Fast, secure, desktop-style web browsing on both high-end and low-end handsets
    • Streaming flash video capabilities
    • WebKit rendering engine offers high standards compliance
    • Support for XML, ATOM and RDF formats of RSS feeds
    • Support for JavaScript and AJAX
    • Split screen and full screen modes for easy navigation and viewing
    • Intuitive keystroke shortcuts for easier navigation and content selection
    • 128-bit Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption for secure access to web pages
    • Server filtering to protect users from spyware and other malware
    • Certificate error notification
    • Easily add and select favorites and view browsing history
    • Ability to clear history and cookies