russian

Phone Search:

RSS

Samsung Galaxy Note. First Look

Today, large companies, especially corporate giants like Samsung, do not surprise users with extraordinary products...

Apple In A Post Jobsian World HTC Sensation In Use iPhone 4S: Part One

Reviews Editorials

Mobile Phones Editorials MP3 Forum

Wednesday 04 August 2010

VISA Using microSD For Contactless Payments [ 04-08-2010 18:57 ]

Author: Serge Novikov Source: IntoMobile Translation by: Paul Smith

Contactless payment options have long been confined to Japan and remained a dream in the rest of the world and that's despite, or perhaps a result of, the various trials and promises that have been made over the years. Well VISA is adopting a new strategy in Europe with the launch of a contactless payment scheme in Turkey that uses microSD cards rather than handsets with built in NFC technology. The idea is pretty simple really; there aren't very many NFC enabled handsets out at the moment, but there are plenty of handsets that support microSD cards. Why not make use of that functionality? That's exactly what VISA are doing with help from DeviceFidelity who developed the modified microSD cards. The cards can be used as normal storage cards so there is no loss in functionality. Initially the scheme will only be available to Blackberry users, but VISA are saying they will soon be rolling it out to HTC, Samsung, LG, Nokia and Motorola handsets.

Rating:

Comment
All comments (0)

3G Facetime Call Uses 3 MB/Min [ 04-08-2010 18:48 ]

Author: Irina Turina Source: 9to5Mac Translation by: Paul Smith

Not being able to use Facetime over a 3G connection has been one of the biggest grumbles about the feature since Apple unveiled it back in June. Of course help was soon at hand from the Jailbreaking community and Facetime over 3G is now very much a reality. The chaps over at 9to5Mac have been doing some testing though to ascertain exactly how much data Facetime is using on a 3G connection. A valid area of research in these times of enforced data caps. The result of a 5 minute test call was some 14.7 MB of data being transfered (that's both up and down). Breaking that down into a more meaningful figure we arrive at the value of roughly 3 MB/minute for a Facetime call over 3G. That's actually not too bad, well at least for those with multi-gigabyte data allowances. For those on rather leaner packages it might be wise to stick with WiFi.

The images below represent data before the 3G Facetime call (top image) and data after the 3G Facetime call (bottom image).

Rating:

Comment
All comments (0)

Latest X10 Firmware Brings WiFi Bug Back [ 04-08-2010 18:43 ]

Author: Irina Turina Source: SE-NSE Translation by: Paul Smith

Sony Ericsson's X10 has had a shaky start to life, what with running with an older version of Android and a rather annoying WiFi bug to boot as discovered by our friends over at SE-NSE. Well all looked fine and dandy once the R2BA020 firmware update hit and that pesky WiFi bug was no more! Think again. The latest update for the X10, R2BA026, looks to have brought the bug firmly back to town. The chaps at SE-NSE are reporting that after having updated WiFi is once again switching on and off due to fluctuations in the cell phone signal. The guys at SE-NSE are recommending that people do not upgrade to the latest firmware version if they live in an area with poor reception as they will likely experience the same problems with their WiFi. You can see the bug for yourself in the videos below:

Rating:

Comment
All comments (0)

Facebook for Android Gets Update, Almost As Good As iPhone Version [ 04-08-2010 18:36 ]

Author: Irina Turina Source: TechRadar Translation by: Paul Smith

Facebook users have been somewhat short changed on Android handsets with the official app being nowhere near as polished as the iPhone version. Well Facebook have finally updated their Android offering and it's a damn sight better we have to admit, but still not quite up to the iPhone standard. The update brings a notification bar nestling at the bottom of your screen and a a photo-reel sits just above it that you can flick through to see all the new pictures your chums have been uploading. The updated app also allows the user to check events and crucially allows for a response without having to leave the app and go to the mobile version of Facebook's website. It's not all good though because notifications still force you out of the app. You get to see a preview of your notifications, but if you want to actually read them in full you'll find yourself kicked out of the app and onto the web. So a less than perfect update, but it is moving in the right direction and hopefully it won't be too long before it's up there with the iPhone version.