Using WI-FI as an alternative to cellular networks congestion.

With the popularity of samart phones these days, come a drawback in the form of clogged cellular network connections who more often than not, got more than they can handle.
So to help remedie the situation, some of the nation biggest wireless carriers are offering a temporary relief in the form of WI-FI connection from hot spots. With WI-FI, customers can bypass the carriers wireless networks and make or receive phone calls and deliver or access fast data in areas where they normally wouldn't.
In that regard, AT&T, the carrier with the most isssues with network coongestion, is leading the way with close eely to 20,000 company's accessible hot spots. Those hot spots are freely accessible as part of their monthly data plan to AT&T customers with Windows Mobile phones as well as AT&T customers owners of an iPhone or a Blackberry even though, many of them are not aware of that option.
To find those free hot spots, iPhone owners can download WI-FI locator apps like the free hot spots finder, WI-FI Finder from JiWire which will offer users a list of nearby hot spots based on their locations. Blackberry or Windows Mobile phones owners on the AT&T network, don't have access to such free applications, but for a certain fee, can download apps from either the Blackberry's App World or the Android Market.
T.Mobile, another big wireless carrier, also offers free WI-FI connections to its subscribers as part of their monthly data plan but for only about 10,000 hot spots locations.
But for an additional $10 a month, T.Mobile customers are able to place unlimited calls from any hot spot without exceding their plan limits. Unfortonatly, among T.Mobile 30 WI-FI capable phones, only 18 of them can make such calls and to make it even more restrictive, the Android powered phones are not among them.
Another big wireless carrier, Sprint does not offer WI-FI connections but instead is taking another route in the form of WiMax technology, in conjonction with its partner, Clearwire Communications.
With that technology, Sprint is trying to cover entire cities in an Internet cloud and not just some hot spots. That's why the project is slow going and is rolled out in only a few cities (Baltimore, Las Vegas, Boise Idaho, Bellingham Washington and Portland Oregon) with a few more on the work.
In cities where its WiMax is present, Sprint's actual subscribers would have to pay an additional fee to acces the network and they have the option to pay a $ 60 monthly fee for unlimited connection, or pay by the day to the tune of $10 for a full 24 hours.
Verizon Wireless, the nation biggest wireless carrier doesn't offer a WI-FI cellphone connection even though it is promoting a device commonly called MI-FI that for $100 a month, will enable up to five devices to connect to the Internet. But the catch there is , you have to be near a cellular covered area for the device to work.



For more, see NYTimes.com

Android HTTC Hero to debut October 11 on the Sprint network.

It has been announced that the third Android run smart phone called HTTC Hero, would arrive on October the 11th on the Sprint's network.
Beside the fact that the new phone is not not supported by T.Mobile which has been the only carrier offering the previous two Android versions, the G1 and the myTouch3G, the real surprise may be the decision by Sprint to offer the new phone at $180 ( with a rebate and a two years contract.)
According to PCmagazine, the HTTC Hero is an noticeable improvement to the first two models with a 3.2- inch multitouch screen, a 5-megapixel camera, WI-FI capability and a speedy 528- MHz Qualcomm processor among others things.
On top of all that, the new phone is eligible for Sprint's popular Everything plan and will have access to all of Android apps like ShopSavvy, Pandora and Flixter.
The HTTC Hero will be available at Best Buy and Sprint stores when it goes on sale October 11.

For more, see PCmag.com

New Blackberry Curve 8520 offered at a discount.

On August 5th, Research inMotion, the maker of the popular Blackberrys released its newest addition to the Curves series with the Curve 8520. In releasing this newest version, something very interesting happened as far as pricing, which can be very attactive at the right place.
Speaking of price, the Curve 8520 is offered at prices never seen for any Blackberry at launch. To get right to it, the Curve 8520 is offered for $129 by T.Mobile which is the service provider for the device, and even better, Wal-Mart is selling it for $49.99. Both those prices, require a two year service plan with T-Mobile which starts at $55 a month for voice and data only.
The new device has all the features someone comes to expect from a Blackberry device including a a full QWERTY keyboard. On top of tools like right and left shortcuts buttons, the Curve 8520 also sports a new feature not seen on any Blackberry model before, a trackpad instead of a trackball or scroll.
The Curve 8520 come equipped with a 2 megapixels camera and a 1-gigabyte microSD memory card.
To connect to the Internet, the Curve 8520 uses WI-FI instead of the fast 3G network, but will automatically connect you to trusted networks within range.

For more, see WSJ.com

Free Internet calling services for cellphones.

Even if the possibilities have been around for a while, making free international calls via cellphones have remained challenging. Two companies, Skype, the market leader and Fring, an Israel based company, offer the most user-friendly cellphone applications for international calls. But, there are still some hussles and for these applications to be worthwhile, someone has to plan to make a lot of international calls.
For these two applications to work best, they better be downloaded on a phone with WI-FI capabilities with the user staying within the hot spot during the phone call.
For both Skype and Fring, users are assigned an ID or name that they use to dial up with the call going through the service's Internet servers.
Calls made to others members of both services are free while those made to non members using a Skype prepaid account, are at a cheaper rate than the one charged by traditional phone companies.
The Skype cellphone application can be dowloaded directly to a phone using Windows Mobile or to a PC and then transfered to the phone later.
According to the New York Times,"for those without a Windows Mobile phone, Skype recently introduced Skype Lite, which runs on dozens of Nokia and Samsung phones with Symbian software, as well as a few Motorola Razr models. On Skype.com, these users can type in their mobile numbers and Skype will send a message to the phone with a link to download the software."
Skype Lite also runs on the G1, from T-Mobile, also known as the Google phone, which operates on the Android software platform. To get the application,one's only need to visit the “Market,” Android’s app store and click on the free Skype application.

For more, see NYTimes.com

D-Link DIR-685, a multi-function router, backup hard drive.

In the market for a home wireless router or a backup hard drive or both, D-Link has a new gadget that combines those two functions and much more. That new gadget called the D-Link DIR -685, combines a wireless router, a home backup hard drive, and a digital picture frame.

It is equipped with the latest WI-FI(802.11n) signal which can turn an entire house into a WI-FI hot spot and come with all the conceivable home router's features like Application Rules, individual Web site blocking, a sophisticated firewall, network access list, etc. The D-Link DIR -685 has a very distinctive feature in its 3.2 inch color display screen which beside showing the router's settings, can also display some preset Internet information like Twitter posts, photos from Facebook or Flickr accounts, stocks, sports scores etc.With all these features and many more that the D-Link DIR- 685 has to offer, comes the most frustrating part: the device's user guide which comes in PDF form, does not contains a lot of information; one option in figuring it out, is to visit D-Link Web site.

In any case, if you are ready for a wireless router with a lot of potentials but unfortunately with no less irritation, the D-Link DIR-685 is an solid option. The price is also compelling: it retails for $300.

For more, see NYTimes.com

HP new touchscreen wireless Web capable printer

According to PC World, printer manufacturer Hewlett-Packard is planning the release later this year of a touchscreen inkjet printer that is capable of letting users print documents from the Web without a PC.
Priced at $399 , the printer will allow users to br0wse some specific Web based content on a 4.33-inch touchscreen panel. Some of that content is provided by an initial selected group including Google, USA Today, Coupons.com and DreamWorks Animation.
Additionally, users will be able to print or upload photos directly to HP's Snapfish photo-sharing and printing service.
The company will also provide applications so that users can personalize Web-based content such as coupons and calendars that can then be printed. Users will also be able to print customized news from USA Today based on their interests, HP said. Users will not be able to print articles from newspapers other than USA Today, but support for more sites and content will be added over time.
The wireless printer will also print pictures from PCs and the iPhone through Wi-Fi or Bluetooth and like other all-in-one printers, it will also copy, scan and fax documents.

For more, see pcworld.com

A competition for Kindle e-reader is coming soon.

Plastic Logic, a 10 years old little known company founded by two Cambridge professors, just revealed the prototype of a new e-reader the size of the jumbo Kindle DX. It is extremely thin, has no keyboard, but does have a touch screen that displays a tool-bar along one edge and tabs for recently read books and documents. The device is WI-FI ready and will come with 3G cellular connectivity and users can turn the pages with the flick of a finger. The company said the device is designed mainly for business users and an e-commerce site which will allow owners to buy books, magazines and newspapers, is in its testing phase.
The device is set for release early next year and the company has not settled on a sale price yet.

WalkingHotSpot, an innovative way for wireless Internet connection.

For those of you who want wireless Internet connection and are not satisfied with online access through a smart phone but are not ready to commit to a multi year service plan, help has arrived thanks to a application called WalkingHotSpot by software maker TapRoot Systems. The application works with smart phones running the Windows Mobile or Symbian operating systems and the user needs to download it to create a WI-HI network or hot spot around the phone that laptops can tap into for Internet access.
It creates a rolling WI-FI to anywhere a cellphone signal is available, allows up to five devices to be connected to the Internet at the same time and with an one time price of $24.99 and no service plan, you cannot beat that. All you will have to worry is the one bill from your cellphone carrier.

Chrysler to make some cars Wi-Fi hot spots.

Starting Monday, Chrysler is making Wi-Fi an option for some of its vehicles. A trunk mounted router produced by a small company called Autonet Mobile, will turn some models , into a travelling Wi-Fi hot spot. Multiple users would be able to surf the net at the same time and the hot spot will extend up to 100 feet away from the vehicle. At $499 plus a $29-a- month subscription, the system will not be cheap.

For more, see Wired.com