Mobile

Tue
17
Dec
Dennis Faas's picture

FCC Votes to Lift Ban On In-Flight Smartphone Use

Tired of being told not to use your smartphone on a commercial flight? There's good news. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has voted to lift the long-running and often criticized ban on in-flight cell / smartphone use. The FCC voted 3-2 ... in favor of ditching the measure late last week. But there's still one major hurdle left: the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which has final say on whether or not you should be allowed to use a handheld electronic device while a plane is in the air. "The FAA is the expert agency on determining which devices can be used on airplanes," noted ... (view more)

Tue
10
Dec
Dennis Faas's picture

BlackBerry-Bieber Partnership? Guess Who Said No

There's something both pop star Justin Bieber and smartphone maker BlackBerry have in common: they're both Canadian. Even more precisely, they're both from Southwestern Ontario, the part of Canada that thrusts southwards into the American Midwest. ... Now, a new report says that Bieber, who is from Stratford, Ontario, attempted to help promote the struggling Waterloo-based BlackBerry. However, BlackBerry (formerly Research in Motion, or RIM) officials turned down the deal because they had concerns about Bieber's staying power. BlackBerry Dismisses Bieber, Bets On Keys The report comes from ... (view more)

Fri
06
Dec
Dennis Faas's picture

Dual Screen 'YotaPhone' Consumes Way Less Power

A Russian company is selling a smartphone that features both front- and rear-facing screens. The manufacturer, Yota, says the layout is no gimmick and will help increase the device's battery life. The company first unveiled the 'YotaPhone', which ... runs the Android operating system, last year. Although some analysts questioned whether it would ever see the light of day, Yota says the phone is already available to customers in Austria, France, Germany, Spain, and Russia. It plans to expand sales to another 20 countries next year. The front of the phone features a traditional LCD color screen, ... (view more)

Wed
27
Nov
Dennis Faas's picture

Restaurant: Turn Off Your Phone, Get Big Discount

One restaurant owner is so desperate to rid his fine dining establishment of annoying smartphones that he's established a new rule: if everyone at a table turns off their mobile device, all pay half price for their meals. The incentive is the work ... of Jawdat Ibrahim, a restaurateur based just outside Jerusalem in Israel. Ibrahim says he got really tired of watching couples enter Abu Ghosh, his fine dining restaurant, and spend the entire meal texting or talking to others. In some cases, Ibrahim says people were so distracted by their phones that they had to ask his staff to re-heat their meals ... (view more)

Mon
28
Oct
Dennis Faas's picture

BlackBerry Denies Writing Bogus BBM Reviews

BlackBerry Messenger is now available on Android and iOS phones. So far it's getting some tremendous reviews -- but there's something fishy about a lot of those write-ups. It's led some experts to suggest that someone has devised a campaign to flood ... technology websites with bogus reviews. At the moment it remains unclear who's behind the scam -- or if BlackBerry itself is involved. The BlackBerry Messenger service, also known as BBM, was previously only available on BlackBerry handsets. It's a variation on text messaging that has become very popular because there's no charge to send a message ... (view more)

Fri
25
Oct
Dennis Faas's picture

Court Restricts Police Use of GPS Tracking Devices

A federal appeals court has ruled that law enforcement authorities in the United States must get a warrant before hiding a global positioning system (GPS) tracker on a suspect's car. The ruling clarifies an issue left unanswered by a previous ... Supreme Court verdict. The legal confusion followed a high-profile case involving a suspected drug dealer who was tried and convicted after police tracked his movements using a GPS device attached to his Jeep. The man took the case to the Supreme Court, which overturned his conviction because it found that much of the evidence was inadmissible. The ... (view more)

Thu
10
Oct
Dennis Faas's picture

Sprint Smartphone Sold with Adult Content, Man Says

A Los Angeles, California, man is suing Sprint because he says the telecommunications firm sold his young son a smartphone with adult content already installed. Arsen Garibyan told Los Angeles reporters that he purchased the phone from a Pasadena, ... California-based Sprint dealer two years ago. He says that, when his underage son began using the device at home, he soon discovered illicit images and videos. According to the suit, which has been filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, "After a few minutes, (the boy) started asking, 'Daddy, what is this?' ... When Mr. Garibyan looked at the telephone ... (view more)

Fri
20
Sep
Dennis Faas's picture

'Sony Stick' Streams Internet Video to Your TV

Sony is launching its own version of the Google Chromecast plug-in stick for televisions. But Sony's 'Smart Stick' will be substantially more expensive than Google's device and may only work with some TVs. Google's Chromecast launched this past ... July. It plugs into an HDMI port on a TV set and lets users play virtually any online videos using a smartphone, tablet, or computer. The Chromecast uses WiFi to connect to the Internet and stream the video. Ironically, Sony's device actually uses Google technology -- in this case, features taken from Google TV, a range of set-top boxes that aimed to ... (view more)

Wed
11
Sep
Dennis Faas's picture

Nissan Smartwatch Tracks Vehicle, Driver Health

Nissan has become the latest firm to unveil a 'smartwatch'. In this case, the unique selling point is that the device can track your health, as well as the health of your car. Smartwatches, which use mobile Internet connections to power special ... features, appear to be one of this year's big tech tends. Samsung has already revealed a smartwatch called 'Galaxy Gear,' while Apple is reportedly working on a similar device. Nissan Watch Can Track Your Health Nissan's proposed 'Nismo' smartwatch has two main sets of features. The first is health-based, and uses the watch and strap to measure and ... (view more)

Thu
05
Sep
Dennis Faas's picture

Amazon's New Deal: Buy Print Book, Get E-Book Free

Have you ever purchased a physical book from Amazon? Then you may soon be eligible to receive a cheap or even free Kindle version of that same book. The new feature is called 'Matchbook,' and applies to any book that a customer has ever bought on ... Amazon (at any time) that is also available for the company's Kindle e-book reader. So far more than 10,000 books have been enrolled in the scheme, largely because of the involvement of publishing giant Harper Collins. Amazon is hoping to get other publishers on board soon. (Source: bbc.co.uk ) Once the system launches in October, users will be able ... (view more)

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - Mobile