Technology Current

Nokia N82 Black

Nokia’s still fairly new N82, previously seen only in silver, has now been launched in an attractive jet black version. There are no new features over previous one, although a software update has placed a new focus on geotagging. Using the built-in GPS receiver, photos taken with internal 5MP camera can be automatically tagged with locational data. which can then place pictures on a map when uploaded to photo-sharing sites such as Flickr. Direct uploading to this site is supported, as well as other popular user-generated content websites such as YouTube.

More Information @ http://www.Nokia.com

Source Information from PDA Essentials & GPS Advisor Issue 74

Palm Centro

The Palm Centro is the first Palm OS PDA I have seen in ages. Will it be able to lift Palm back into the limelight?

It turns out the answer appears to be ‘not a lot’. The Centro’s specs aren’t particularly inspiring, and Palm has made quite a bit of of a hash of the qwerty keyboard. The saving grace is the Palm OS (and apps), which even though it’s seen little by way of change in the long gap since it was last used, seems fresh, clean and easy to get to grips with.

But let’s start with the keyboard. The Centro is quite a narrow PDA in which to put a qwerty keyboard. Palm could have chosen to go with small but well spaced keys, and this might have made it easier to find them by touch. But the large keys that have been used sit flush to each other, and I the whole new experience of using the keyboard irritating because we couldn’t work up much speed.

The screen is a bit small too. It’s 320 X 320 pixels are clear and bright though, and the screen is touch sensitive so you can make selections either by prodding it or by using the large navigation button that sits between it and the keyboard.

Sold Sim-free, the Centro can accommodate your current SIM so you can simply migrate from your existing phone. But don’t expect anything too fancy from it. The specifications mark the Centro out as the kind of PDA that a newcomer to the arena might choose- and the newcomer who doesn’t want a huge array of features at that.

There’s no wi-fi, and the handset is quad-band GSM with GPRS and EDGE but no 3G. There is a camera, but its 1.3 megapixel capability puts it at the bottom of the pile as far as PDA cameras are concerned. Bluetooth and infrared are built in.

There’s 64 MB of memory for your own applications and data, and you can add more via a microSd card. To get to the card slot you need to remove the battery cover. This helps make for a neat overall look to the Centro, but it might be annoying if you’re the kind of person who likes to swap memory cards a lot.

As I already noted, the Pam OS and applications are what lift this PDA from the realms of the average. Its simple array of application icons on the main screen, which you can group however you want, make it easy to get to what you need, while the array of built-in apps are strong enough to class the Centro as a good personal information manager (PIM) with added plus points.

On the PIM front, Contacts,Calendar, Tasks and an application for writing memos are available. For entertainment there is the camera with video shooting mode and the PocketTunes MP3 player.

The 2.5mm headphones slot won’t please everyone, and nor will the lack of A2DP stereo Bluetooth. For those with productivity in mind the VersaMail software will pick uo POP email, and you can use the built in copy of DataViz Documents to Go to view PDFs. Online pursuits are catered for by a web browser, and Google Maps is also built in.

Other software includes a calculator, phone dialler, voice dialling, voice recorder, world clock with alarm and a solitaire game.

Taken as a whole, the Centro has to be classed as a mid-range PDA with a very competent software armoury. IF you’re wanting an alternative to WM and S60, we recommend you give it a look, as even with its limitations it is a good value for its price.

More information at http://euro.palm.com/uk

Source Information: PDA Essentials & GPS Advisor Issue 74 @ www.PDA-Essentials.co.uk

Cell Phone Fraud

Author: Douglas Stewart

In today’s marketplace, there are so many cell phones and cell phone service providers that many consumers do not know one from another. This has led to the crime of cell phone fraud becoming more frequent.

The FCC (Federal Communications Commission) defines cell phone fraud as the unauthorized use, tampering, or manipulation of a cell phone or service. As this crime began to rise in the 1990s, the Wireless Telephone Protection Act was passed in 1998 to criminalize the use, possession, manufacture, or sale of hardware or software used to clone fraudulent cell phones. This cloning is a type of cell phone fraud.

Every cell phone has a unique factory-set electronic serial number (ESN) and its own telephone number. Certain people will illegally monitor radio transmissions from the cell phones of legitimate subscribers. These individual then can create a cloned cell phone, which is a cell phone that has been reprogrammed to transmit the serial number and phone number of another legitimate cell phone. As both the cell phone and its clone have the same identifying numbers, the cellular system can not distinguish the difference. The legitimate subscriber who owns the original cell phone will end up getting billed for calls from both the phones. The agency warns that if when you receive your monthly cell phone bill and there are charges on it that you do not recognize, you should contact your cell phone service provider immediately.

The cell phone manufacturers are helping in the fight against cell phone cloning by making improvements on their products to make the cell phones more resistant to reprogramming. These companies have had quite a bit of success with their efforts and some of them feel that the problem should be totally resolved in a few years..

Another type of cell phone fraud is subscriber fraud. This is basically another form of identity theft. The perpetrator uses someone else’s name and social security number to purchase a cell phone and sets up an account with a cell phone service provider. The charges for the phone and any calls that the person makes is billed to the person whose name is on the account. If you are the victim of subscriber fraud you should report it to the authorities immediately a well as contacting your cell phone company, although it will probably be a long and complicated process to get the situation straightened out.

As with any other types of identity theft, there are precautions that you can take. You should shred any documents that contain your personal information, such as old check stubs and bank statements. It is a proven fact that many of these thieves retrieve the information that they need to obtain someone else’s identity by going through that person’s trash. You should also avoid giving out your personal information to any company or Web site that asks for it, usually under the guise of a charity or a sweepstakes contest. You may also want to refrain from carrying your social security card around with you in your purse or wallet as well as any other documents that may have this all-important number written on them in case your purse or wallet is lost or stolen. If the thief does not have your social security number, he cannot steal your identity as easily.

Cell phone cloning has been decreasing with the help of the manufacturers but subscriber fraud is happening more and more frequently. Again, keeping your personal information protected can prevent you from being a victim of these identity thieves.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/computers-articles/cell-phone-fraud-432853.html

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You just got a new cell phone or you want to personalize your current cell phone visit this article on cell phone accessories.

Mms ? the Best Messaging Technology

Author: David Hensley

MMS is a multimedia messaging service and has created a revolution in the messaging method. MMS provides an entire multimedia experience of photos, text, pictures, animations, audio and speech. By using the MMS, the mobile users can send their multimedia messages from their multimedia enabled mobile handset to other email and mobile users. With the MMS technology the mobile users can receive multimedia messages from mobile users, multimedia enabled applications and email users. MMS can support audio formats like WAV, MIDI and MP3. MMS is also used for sending Video clips of a movie or show to other mobiles.

MMS functions in a way similar to SMS. A SMS contain text messages with minimum character limits. But a MMS can send messages with more text capacity. SMS has limitations like only pictures and text can be sent. MMS is user friendly as you can send audio and video clips with text. It provides you advantages like by using MMS you can receive certain MMS messages after your working hours. Older mobile handsets will not have the MMS support and so you cannot have the MMS technology inbuilt in them. Recently introduced handsets of Sony Ericcson, LG and Nokia companies are Multimedia Message Service enabled. The price of these mobile sets has also been reduced significantly. All the service providers have also started to offer MMS to their customers. MMS is used by all the mobile users and has reached similar acceptance level like SMS.

MMS provides the user complete multimedia knowledge and is definitely going to increase the mobile communication usage. Many in the communication industry, for networks of 2.5 G and 3G, consider MMS as one of the biggest potential moneymakers. It is a standard telephony messaging system that allows transferring messages containing multimedia objects like video, audio and objects along with text messages as in SMS. MMS is mainly used in mobile networks along with similar messaging systems like Mobile Instant Messaging, SMS etc. In today’s context, MMS is considered as best and proven messaging technology and it has surpassed Electronic mail and SMS. The penetration of MMS was slow and though it was introduced into the market way back in 2002. In the recent years it has attained mass-market acceptance. By improving its technology, MMS has reached wide adoption by major market players as it offers them greater business opportunity in the whole telecommunication market. Short Message Service or SMS is transformed in full form as MMS. With the MMS technology in a mobile handset, the mobile user need not confine his messages to text only. MMS is designed to operate with GPRS, 1x/EVDO mobile packet data services.

MMS enables a large number of applications used for private communication, business, entertainment and information. MMS is delivered in two modes and they are immediate and deferred. You can take a snapshot using your camera phone and send the image by using MMS to your friend with animated picture messages. You can also send your favorite audio files and can also do simultaneous playback advertising. MMS faces lot of challenges like bulk messaging, distribution lists, WAP Push, handset configuration and content adaptation. MMS is different from EMS that is Enhanced Messaging service that is SMS with additional capabilities. MMS is going to be used as community-based communication method in the future years.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/technology-articles/mms-the-best-messaging-technology-410230.html

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Visit http://www.smsfreeguide.com for a detailed study on various forms of SMS and how short messaging can be used as a powerful marketing tool.

Getting To Grips With Wifi

Author: Jon Kelly

Most of us have seen some of the amazing technology which we are supposedly going to be using in the future (as well as the ideas seen in sci-fi films!). But today we are living through the wifi age; however, some of us seem to have got a little left behind. When it was topical it was not available to the average user, and suddenly we are playing technology catch-up. So here is a guide to get you up to date.

Wifi stands for wireless fidelity. This is a technology which allows users to access a network through the transmission and receiving of radio waves. Nearly all laptops and notebooks are now fitted with WiFi technology. If you are considering using an older laptop you can get adapters which will make wifi possible. Bear in mind that as more and more laptops are wifi compatible, the manufacturers will slowly phase out the adapters, so think forward and decide if that really is the sensible way forward.

If you are looking to use your laptop when you are out and about you will need to find some hotspots. These are usually in cafes, airports, hotels and other similar places. Hotspots are basically wifi networks which are open to the public. They are usually strategically placed by companies who are trying to get your business or are hoping that you will spend money with them while you are surfing the net; e.g. cafes and hotels.

So if you are sending information through the airwaves between your computer and the network is there any security or can someone simply catch your message and steal your information? Due to the location of most hotspots and the ulterior motive to get you to spend money with them, your security is not their primary concern. Wired equivalent privacy (WEP) was the original standard; this was a form of encryption. As with many security measures this was quickly and easily broken. Most wireless networks are open and hence have no encryption at all.

There are, however, a few tips which may help you to maintain a level or security. Firstly you must check that your firewall if activated. The firewall monitors information getting into your computer and will try to stop anything which is known to damage or compromise your computer. Secondly, you should disable the file sharing facility which Windows offers. This facility is great on a secure network, but if you are in a public network you do not want to share your files with anyone else using the same network.

Finally you can make the actually files slightly harder to access by marking the folders as private and by password protecting the documents. None of these are guaranteed to protect your data or computer from hackers or viruses, but they are all steps to help.

Hopefully this information will help any new wifi user to go out with confidence and log on to a public network. Once you start, you will suddenly find that you can work from anywhere, and work does not even have to know where you are! Or you can simply stay in touch with your friends and family while enjoying traveling the globe.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/technology-articles/getting-to-grips-with-wifi-431105.html

About the Author:

Jon Kelly is a published author who writes articles and reviews on computers and wifi. If you would like to find out about wifi and learn more about new developments.please visit: http://www.troubleshootwifi.com

Freeloader Solar Charger

Solar chargers have intrigued a lot of users for a while now.

The Freeloader Solar Charger is a well priced unit, with two section, the battery compartment and two solar panels.

The solar panels face together when not in use to help prevent wear and tear from their fragile surfaces.

The Freeloader comes with 11 connectors, such as for Nokia smart phones and the iPod. It also comes with a mini USB cable. The internal battery can be charged in as little as 3 hours via USB or 5 via solar power. BE cautious, like with all solar devices the light quality greatly effects the charging performance. The led’s gauge how well the unit is charging, the brighter the led, the more efficient.

The Freeloader Solar Charger is light, compact, and very efficient. It can hold a PSP charge for 2.5 hours and charge a PDA for up to 22 hours. IT is also capable of hold it’s charge idle for 3 months!

Check it out at www.solartechnology.co.uk

Sony Ericsson W960i

With the iPhone taking a large piece of the music market, the W960i offers a feature-packed alternative to try and reclaim the crown.

Multimedia- Come stock with 8MB memory and plenty of useful desktop Software. This make it very easy to add multimedia to your phone. IT has a 2.6″ screen that is great for video, and is accompanied with top notch sound quality.

Connectivity- The 3G HSDPA was scarified to keep costs down but the wi-fi is there to boost connection speed and web browsing.

Performance- The W960 has a long boot up time and often lags when opening applications. Beware of battery life when using 3G/multimedia.

Sony Ericsson W960i V.s. iPhone- The W960i is more versatile as a phone than Apple’s device. The storage is even but the Sony has better connectivity and camera features. It only shortcoming is with the interface. But once again the iPhones lack of keyboard is another drawback in comparison.

You can learn more about the Sony Ericsson W960i at www.expansys.com

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Some off topic hilarious Ameriquest commercials. 5 of the funniest commercials ever!!!

Brand new Hancock trailer. Much much better than the first snippet they called a trailer. I can’t wait to see another Will Smith Hit!!! Who’s with me?

Samsung F700

The Samsung F700 definitely has an iPhone look to it. It is about the same size all around (slightly thicker). But the extra nice touch would be the sliding keyboard with makes for a much better typing interface.

Multimedia- Comes with a small amount of memory, but mini cards can be purchased. It also comes with an internal MP3/Video player. Plus there is a Youtube direct connection also!

Connectivity- Lack of wi-fi is a major downer, but is does feature 3G HSDPA, which makes browsing much easier.

Performance- Nice quick response when moving around the menu, also nice video and music playback. The battery life although i don;t the the exact time is pretty good.

Samsung F700 V.s. iPhone- The win goes to the iPhone is the touch screen department, but the Sliding keyboard is a giant bonus for the F700. The Samsung always wins in the camera, and web surfing categories.

For more info on the Samsung F700 check out www.shop.vodaphone.co.uk