If in doubt …
Go for a walk.
- Taken at 12:06 PM on November 27, 2007 - cameraphone upload by ShoZu
Mobile data getting some traction
Looks like mobile data is finally getting some traction. It’s all well and good pointing to more page impressions but if the big guys are actually making some money then there has to more incentive to make the platforms better. See this from The Times
Vodafone and Britain’s other main mobile operators splashed out £22.5 billion on licences to operate “next-generation” 3G licences in 2000. The technology was supposed to transform mobile handsets into mobile computers, generating a lucrative uplift in revenues.
Consumers had appeared resolutely uninterested in the technology, with calls and texts still making up the bulk of mobile revenues. Better technology, more user-friendly handsets and the entry into the market of big brands such as Apple has stimulated more interest of late.
Arun Sarin, Vodafone’s chief executive, said that mobile data was “now a permanaent phenomenon”. The number of registered 3G devices had nearly doubled from a year ago, from 11.1 million to 21.4 million.
Google’s Android - the SDK Arrives.
You can see some groovy Google Phone OS (Android) stuff here. Some very rich men, who frankly all need a haircut, will wow you with their groovy new thing. I have downloaded the SDK and it all looks very, very lovely.
There is, of course, a lot of bitching and sneering in the Mobile space about more fragmentation blah blah and to an extent they all have a point. Thing is though it is 2007 and much as I am loathe to admit it the only coherent platform we have is Windows f@cking mobile for crying out loud. Symbian? I am sorry I am not writing C++ in the 21st century, no really. As for Java Me, we are right in the middle of trying to get cameras working and it’s all totally bust as per usual.
At the risk of repeating myself the good news of course is that smart people with dodgy haircuts at both Apple and Google think mobile applications are worth shaking a stick at. I’m hanging on to that for a while.
Hold your hats, here comes the GOOG
Google announce new phone OS. This will put the wind up the Symbian boys.
Wonder if it will have a dev environment? Google lke their Java but no sane man would visit Java Me on us again …. surely? But … but.
Update:
So it’s called Android and it sounds pretty good to me. Of course the ususal caveats apply: It’s going to take a while to get some traction and the data stuff is too expensive etc etc etc.
Phone Audit 2007
After mucking about with smartphones and Blackberries and I have decided that the best thing to do when getting a phone is to get the best camera you can get at the time. For me last year this was the Sony Ericsson K800i with a camera at 3.5 mega pixels. This is v good.
After getting the best camera the next thing to do is to try and get the most out of the rest of the phone. For me this has involved the following:
T-Mobile Web ‘n’ Walk: For around a tenner a month you get more than enough bandwidth to do loads of web/internet stuff with your phone. Makes you really use your phone without crapping your self about the bill. Moreover, you can plug the phone into you laptop and it is a very nifty modem. I often surf the web out of paddington station almost all the way home.
Gmail Mobile Client: I have switched over to mainly web based apps and gmail is fab and such a releif after monsterous client apps like Lotus Notes and Outlook. They have added more space online so it is brilliant value. The mobile Java Me version is very well written and is very usable. For the Blackberry herberts: you really don’t need to check your email all the time, honest.
Google Maps for mobile: Works very well when you need it particulary in 3G areas. Most times you don’t need GPS you roughly know when you are and just need to find the last detail. Google maps fits the bill.
Shozu: When you have phone with the best camera you can use shozu to upload to flickr, blogs and email friends all the time. Shozu for the K800i is pretty good but my chum Jason reckon the S60 version is toally seamless.
Remember the Milk Mobile: I am a big GTD fan and use RTM to store my next actions. Their mobile site is very usable and it allows you to check stuff and add new actions when you have idle time waiting for trains etc. Best of all it is the same list as you use on you desktop.
Bloglines Mobile: Non sluggish desktop feed readers for me. Bloglines is ace and the mobile version is very usable even on a small phone. Saved my bacon many times when the only alternative was the ‘kin awful Evening standard.
Opera Mini Browser: Most non-smartphone browsers are a bit cheesey but Opera Mobile lets you surf the non mobile web effectively. Zoom in and out of pages and even makes tea. Make sure you get the newest beta version.
It’s Alllll Good
“It’s all good” as Seasick Steve would say …. Googles share price tops $700 on the news they may be doing a phone. Much like Apple’s iPhone this is all a shot in the arm for the mobile industry. Google do some fab Java Me apps (Gmail and Google Maps) and if they are up for mobile then I can’t be that much of a loon after all.