Mobile Phones News Blog

This year’s Macworld event threw up a few interesting surprises, which is an impressive feat in itself considering that Apple themselves no longer maintain an official presence at the annual event. However, a hot tip has come in this week that could shape the future of the smartphone as an even more essential everyday piece of kit.

Apple news site 9to5mac reports that a “well-connected developer” is in the advanced stages of creating an app that includes NFC communication for the purposes of financial transactions.

Though third-party apps such as Moneto currently exist for this reason, it seems that Apple is beginning to invest heavily in further developing this functionality themselves. The source stated that he’d spoken to Apple iOS employees who were “heavy into NFC” and that the developer himself was very confident of progress on their end, “enough to bet the app development on”.

If Apple is developing this technology for widespread use on its iDevices, it’s more than likely  discussions with credit card companies, banks  and the like, about partnering up to offer their products to customers are already underway. A recent hint was dropped by at Mastercard executive  Ed McLaughlin, who spoke to Fast Company magazine about his tech-based role as the head of Emerging Payments.

When quizzed if the Cupertino-based tech giant is involved in any such negotiations with Mastercard, McLaughlin replied: “When we have discussions with our partners, and they ask us not to disclose them, we don’t.”

With that comes the relatively safe assumption that Apple is looking to incorporate contactless payment technology in a future product – whether it’ll be ready for release within the upcoming iPhone 5 remains to be seen.

Augmented reality is a technology that combines the real world with digital information. It gives users the impression that they are interacting with real and physical objects. The technology itself is not exactly new and is being used in a varied of applications from GPS systems to fitness apps.

There are numerous cool augmented reality apps already in the market. However, not all are perfect or match expectations. While many have unshakeable image recognition technologies, getting real time information or even recognising objects and colours is still a challenge.

Future

The future of augmented reality seems to be more inclined towards haptics and tactile feedback (which uses sense of touch).

Earlier, Senseg, which claims mastery over such technology, had demonstrated at the Consumer Electronics Show, haptic technology that allowed users to feel their apps on the touchscreen by manipulating an electric field. With the technology, users will now be able to feel bumps and ridges, and also figure out which areas are more rough than others. The company believes if users are able to get the feel of anything other than glass, it would be a better experience.

The company demonstrated an Android tablet with a touchscreen, which had different textures on it. Users get used to such a touchscreen quickly and may not want to go back to a regular touchscreen. Senseg has deliberately made the effect subtle so it doesn’t distract the users while making its presence clearly felt. The company is still working on different kind of sensations.

Another app from application developer CrowdOptic may point towards a new trend in augmented reality apps. The new technology of CrowdOptic focuses on crowds, such as in concert or sports events.

When the camera of the smartphone is pointed at a player during a sporting event, it displays real time information about the player and the game. The details and context can also be shared through different social networks. So far, getting information on moving objects through augmented reality apps was not possible.

Evidence has surfaced pointing toward the introduction of a quad-core processor in future Apple iPhones and iPads. The current processor of choice for the 4S and iPad 2 is the dual-core A5, but keen observers over at 9to5Mac have spotted updated code inside the latest beta version of iOS 5.1 that offers support for quad-core processing.

Although it is no surprise that Apple are looking to move to quad-core (with numerous sources discussing the highly anticipated A6 chip), this latest revelation suggests there is a possibility we could see the new processor at some point in 2012.

Additionally, the fact that the code has been found in iOS 5.1 beta software implies that the technology will be seen in the iPhone 5 and iPad 3.

The connotations of a quad-core processor within an iOS device are likely to whet the appetite of any Apple fan. The chip will give extra power for operating system navigation and gaming, faster image capture and processing and the ability to run advanced software. Furthermore, quad-core will give the devices housing it ability to power very high-resolution displays, adding fuel to the rumours of a retina display showing up on the iPad 3.

One thing is for sure, with the likes of Asus already pushing out a quad-core tablet, Apple will not want to stay behind the curve for too long.

A new Android app has been launched which enables users to search for files and documents remotely from the devices where they have stored their documents like desktop PCs and laptops. Those documents can also be downloaded, copied and sent to other users — and all this happens from within the app.

The app, named PocketCloud Explore, has been developed by Wyse Technology which is well known for its thin client computers. Some time ago it also came out with PocketCloud Remote Desktop Access app which allowed the users to search a Windows desktop through their iPhone. The new Android app allows the users to type their query on the phone, which allows full text search of the desktop of the users.

To use the app, users will have to install one more app, called PocketCloud Comparison on their desktops, which then facilitates the search. Whenever the app sees a result, the file is displayed to the users with a drop down menu where the download, copy, move and transfer options are also available. If the users want to transfer their file, the app opens the Gmail automatically and an email is created with the file attached to it.

The company has advised the customers to secure their smartphones with a password so their data remains secure, which is important since there are several devices and their contents are associated with it. Users also have the option to block the app from accessing some of the files.

The Arab Spring, Michael Jackson’s death, the Hudson plane crash. Each of these news stories was transformed by a new dimension of coverage through social media and citizen journalism. Each was instantaneously broken – by people, not journalists – with continuous real-time updates comprising of eye-witness accounts, commentary, images and film. And it was all powered by the once humble mobile phone.

The people that report the news are no longer the gatekeepers of topical information. Instead they observe and share events in harmony with those present at its epicentre. Bloggers like Maikel Nabil, who was at the heat of the Egyptian revolution, and Sohaib Athar, the man who unknowingly tweeted the dénouement of Osama Bin Laden, can offer at firsthand a vivid window into current events,  just as successfully as the globetrotting reporter.

Social networks and the near-ubiquity and interconnectivity of the world wide web has taken many plaudits for democratising journalism, but it is the smartphone that has placed information quite literally into the palm of the public.

Smartphones and their connectivity have become so powerful that news organisations are rapidly reconsidering their approach to reporting. International news agency Reuters named their first Social Media Editor in July following an ultimatum by Peter Horrocks, Director of BBC World Service, to BBC journalists to ‘tweet or be sacked’.

In recent months, American news network CNN has laid off several staff members, many of them photojournalists. The blame for their departure focused entirely on the technological capabilities available to citizens at the scene. Jack Womack, Senior Vice President of CNN said that recent analysis had shown that “small cameras are now high broadcast quality,” and that, “more of this technology is in the hands of more people2. The smartphone, it seems, has surpassed the photojournalist and their trusty digital SLR camera.

That’s a disappointing truth, however agile the dissemination of information by mobile phone is; Photojournalism has captured images that symbolise the emotion and pathos surrounding the most tormenting and euphoric subjects, providing timeless and iconic reference points for often complex situations. Whether those complexities can be framed by a smartphone remains to be seen.

Parallel to this, verification of user-generated content will inevitably pose a problem. The mainstream media is already struggling to cope with the veracity of stories, images, and even quotations. When protests began against the Egyptian regime in Cairo, social networks became inundated with images elucidating the tale of brutal crackdowns by the regime. Tear gas, bullet recalls and aggressive policing had all been apparently sighted during the revolution. Yet even the most passive glance could peer through the facade; these were images taken from an American phone, misappropriated for the purpose of pro-revolutionist propaganda.

The smartphone has connected millions to a dialogue between themselves and the world, bequeathing real-time knowledge as well as the power to shape it. Without them, we wouldn’t have witnessed the death of G3 protestor Ian Tomlinson at the hands of police, nor awed at the final flight of the Endeavor Space shuttle above the clouds. Just remember though,  use your new found power wisely.

Fring, a popular VoIP solutions and services provider for mobile platforms, has announced yet another update for the Android based devices.

The new update has been released specifically for Samsung devices which were earlier had some problem with the app. The new Fring app is expected to give better audio support for newer Samsung devices like the Galaxy S2 and the likes of it.

Fring application had recently announced the DVQ (Dynamic Video Quality) technology a creation by Fring labs. This technology ensures better video and audio transmission by automatic adjustment of the video and audio quality based on the type of internet connectivity available for the device.

With the new update, users will be getting better compatibility with many more devices than earlier and bugs like the orientation of the video being turned upside down on Samsung Galaxy S2 has also been remedied with. Now the Fring Playgrounds will only be available as a part of the original Fring application.

The updated Fring mobile app available for download from the Android Market or alternatively follow the link to download application.

Lenovo’s ThinkPad tablet, which initially supported only WiFi for internet connectivity, has received an upgrade which will enable it to connect to 3G networks as well for data connectivity.

For 3G connectivity, Lenovo is making use of the Qualcomm’s Gobi 3000 platform. The benefit of using the Gobi 3000 platform is that it offers worldwide connectivity and far better roaming options to any one as it is able to connect to both GSM and CDMA networks for data connections.

This solution further widens the workable area limit of the people utilising this technology as the Gobi chipset can allow data transmission no matter where and which network a user might be on.

The Lenovo ThinkPad will now be the first Android tablet that gives enterprise customers a single mobile platform for use throughout the world. The new ThinkPad tablet with the Gobi 3000 chipset eliminates the need to change hardware to support different carriers or mobile connectivity standards from region to region. With Gobi 3000 technology, ThinkPad Tablet users can easily connect to any major carrier and stay connected with global roaming support when business brings them overseas.

For now, the tablet has only been announced for the users in the United States of America but is expected to be launched in other countries soon. However, an official confirmation on the price and date of the worldwide launch of the tab is still awaited.