Mobile and Hight Technology: 12/14/08

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Clearwire's $150 dual-mode WiMAX / Sprint CDMA modem launches Sunday

Yup, it's true, the dual-mode CDMA / WiMAX modem is real and will be sold by by Clearwire starting December 21st. The $150 device (after $50 rebate and two-year Sprint contract) is a first to function on both Sprint's EV-DO network and Clearwire's nascent mobile WiMAX service currently supporting Baltimore's collection of kitschy beauty salons. So yeah, the modem is of limited interest until Clearwire can build-out its network in 2009, starting with Portland in early January.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Microsoft's First Ever iPhone App

Yesterday evening, Microsoft quietly added the photo displaying app SeaDragon Mobile, its first-ever iPhone application, to the App Store. Could Microsoft Office for iPhone be far behind? Probably not, but this is a start. SeaDragon Mobile is pretty much a demo of Microsoft Live Labs' photo display platform (also seen in Photosynth). Users can use the app to zoom in on photos with incredible resolution. The app achieves this by storing different resolutions, and shows only the portions needed at any given time. When explaining the decision to use the App Store, Alex Daley, group product manager for Microsoft Live Labs, said he was impressed with the iPhone's superior hardware.

The iPhone is the most widely distributed phone with a (graphics processing unit). Most phones out today donвЂ™t have accelerated graphics in them. The iPhone does and so it enabled us to do something that has been previously difficult to do. I couldnвЂ™t just pick up a BlackBerry or a Nokia off the shelf and build Seadragon for it without GPU support.

It's the new Ray Ozzie Microsoft, right?

Fujitsu's Laptop4Life Scheme Gets You A New Laptop Every 3 Years 'Til You Die [Laptops]

Apple to turn the iPhone into a handheld game console?

Could the iPhone transcend the smartphone market and enter the realm of handheld gaming consoles? apple certainly thinks so, with the company’s John Geleynse recently claiming the phone could be a next-generation handheld gaming device. Calling it a potential rival to both the DS and the PSP, Geleynse's words aren't that much different from Apple's general point of view, which lends credence to the claim that Apple may try to push the device as suitable for a gaming experience.

Certain Apple stories this month in the U.S. will have an EA hosted “Games Sneak Peak” event, which will apparently outline where the iPhone (and iPod touch) could be headed in terms of gaming. The idea is truly novel – you have a single device that can handle your phone calls, email, geo-location, scheduling, music playing and more, then add “console” gaming on top of it. It certainly sounds appealing.

On the flip side of that, if you look at the design of any existing handheld console, you'll see that their developers put a lot of faith in having ample hand room and plenty of buttons to toy with. The iPhone is a sleek but tiny device, and Apple might have a very hard time convincing people that it's also a “handheld console”.

The Top 10 Android App Downloads: Pac-Man Pronounced King of Apps [Android]

Analysts Medialets found the top Android apps based on downloads, rating, and number of comments. It's a slightly limited mix of games, social networking, and audio tools, but Android's still just a baby. The number one app is Namco's immortal Pac-Man with more than a quarter-million downloads, no surprise since it's an exceptionally well made version of the classic. Brain Genius Deluxe and Bonsai Blast round out the games section. The Weather Channel app and ShopSavvy's barcode scanner represent for functional tools, and the rest is filled by music discovery apps and ringtone editors. The big surprise for me? MySpace Mobile clocks in at number 2, helped by its integration Shazam, number 7 on the list. But maybe that's because thinking about MySpace reminds me that Dane Cook is still out there, wreaking havoc on all that is good and funny.