Bigboss Vs Usability

http://www.hceye.org/HCInsight-KATRE14.htm

Nokia rules Indian GSM

The annual TNS CellTrack 2006 study, which covered around 3,000 Indian mobile users and 1,057 multi-brand retail outlets across 17 telecom circles, found that Nokia’s rule of GSM markets is overwhelming.

Nokia, retained top spot in the Indian GSM market with 79 percent market share, while Motorola more than doubled its share to seven percent in 2006. Motorola’s gain was Samsung’s loss for the latter’s GSM market share dropped from 6 percent in 2005 to 4 percent in 2006.

Meanwhile in the CDMA market, Nokia again managed to retain its share, while Samsung lost market share from 17 percent to 8 percent, and Motorola too lost market share from 12 percent to 4 percent.LG had 49 percent of the CDMA market vis-à-vis 43 percent in 2005.

Source: mobilemonday

GSM-R: Railways own mobile network

RailTel Corp, the 100 percent subsidiary of the Indian Railways, has decided to rope in private cellular operators to build a special mobile network — GSM-R — dedicated for railway officials.

GSM-R services will be available to a 2 lakh-strong CUG (Closed user Group) of senior railway staffers and will be available across its 63,000-km maze of tracks nationally. The GSM-R services will be available on a monthly rental basis and RailTel has decided to source GSM-R compatible handsets from leading cellular operators.

RailTel also plans to offer cellular coverage along its tracks to enable travelling passengers avail of mobile phone services seamlessly while on board.

It will also offer location-based addressing allowing loco drivers to dial a single number to contact the nearest station master depending on location of the train. GSM-R will enable one-way broadcast communication and allow calls to be established within small groups.

Source: isource updates

Usability in movies

Jakob Nielsen's take on Usability in movies. Sounds interesting!!!!
Click here to read

'YouTube' for Mobile Phones

Moblr, the world’s first free mobile video sharing service, launches in the UK today. The service enables users to upload video clips that have been filmed using a mobile phone to http://www.moblr.com where they can be shared with friends, family and the Moblr community. Moblr means that users are no longer tied to their PCs to watch video - videos can be accessed and shared anywhere, anytime and for free from a mobile phone.

With video cameras as standard on most mobile phones, more and more people are capturing ‘You’ve Been Framed’ type clips on their phones. However, most find it too expensive to send them to their friends via MMS. With Moblr, users can simply upload the clip to the Moblr site from their 3G phone and Moblr will forward a SMS message to alert their friends and family that the clip is available to view.

Moblr automatically converts files into a format that is compatible with most mobile phones and PCs. This means that videos can be passed from one mobile phone to another and from a PC to a mobile phone without any problems.

Source: 3g.co.uk

The Google phone

Google is on the move. The internet giant has held talks with Orange, the mobile phone operator, about a multi-billion-dollar partnership to create a 'Google phone' which makes it easy to search the web wherever you are.

The collaboration between two of the most powerful brands in technology is seen as a potential catalyst for making internet use of mobile phones as natural as on desktop computers and laptops.

Source: Guardian unlimited

Opera Mini pre-installed in Nokia 6300

Opera Mini Web browser is shipping in most markets with selected Nokia 6300s, says Opera Software.

Opera Mini is a Java-based Web browser that enables full Internet access on the majority of mobile phones in the market. By using a server to pre-process and compress Web sites before sending them to the handset, Opera Mini offers a remarkably fast browsing experience as it reduces the size of data transferred.

Opera Mini launched in January 2006 and has since gained more than eight million users. It is available as a free download at www.operamini.com.

Source: mobilemonday

100 songs on Nokia phones

Users of Nokia music edition mobiles can now get to hear the tunes of Indian music legends. The company has partnered with the Indian Music Industry (IMI) for placing 100 songs of over 10 Indian music legends in the latest Nokia N-series (Nokia N91, N73 & N70) music edition mobiles.

Some of the top names one will be able to hear on Nokia mobiles are Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhonsle, A.R. Rahman, Manna Dey, Kishore Kumar, S.D. Burman, R.D. Burman, Mohd. Rafi, Geeta Dutt and others.

The facility will be available on latest Nokia N-series music edition mobiles costing between Rs 20,000-Rs 30,000.

Source: iSource updates

Gabriel white views on Motorola motofone User experience

"I'd like to share some of my experiences on this project and hope that this helps encourage others to share experiences about products they've worked on.I no longer work for Motorola (the parting was amicable, and I had a fantastic time working in their Beijing studio. I'd recommend CXD at Motorola as a great place to work, and China rocks), and the following views are mine and not Motorola's. Second, I'd like to make sure that Richard Schatzberger gets due credit as the creative lead on the UIfor this project."

Motorola has done a few interesting things with MotoFone:

1. Worked to create a product that specifically targets the unconnected poor in developing countries.
2. Used an innovative set of technologies in the device (specifically an "EPD" or "electronic ink" display)
3. Brought "high end" design to a "low end" product

A lot about delivering on 1 was focussed on designing a product that provides only essential functionality and doing away with many of the things that are just cruft. Focussing on the essentials meant that we were able to provide the best possible experience on core features(sounds simple, but it becomes a compelling mantra). Fewer features means less possibility for error - there's simply less that you can do with the device. This makes mastery much easier for the unconnected and inexperienced. There was lots we learned in research and testing about opportunities for confusion, and simplification (especially around the "flat" UI) just made things a hell of lot easier. The "iconic" UI and voice prompts are part of that package.

The EPD is a fantastic piece of technology because: the display is damn huge, the numbers are insanely huge, and it's high contrast in full sunlight. It's so easy to read the display when you're dialling and in a call, and it's so easy to read the display when it's outside.These humble attributes are beyond fantastic.

While designing a phone for people who may not be literate posed a significant number of challenges, one other challenge around doing the IxD on this product was cost. The constraints of making a phone for such a low manufacturing cost are not to be underestimated. For a device like this 1 cent is a lot of money on the bottom line with the projected sales volumes. The UI design/ hardware engineering / SW engineering teams were all co-located in a Beijing skunkworks and worked hand in hand, which helped no end. This might sound kind of straight-forward, but in a global company like Motorola this is in itself a feat.

Motorola has taken a serious leap in bringing its high end design language to a "low end" product. Normally you pay more for the high end design and the cheap-skates get the design offcuts. Not with this product, and it's really great to see an aspirational product that'saccessible to all.

I want to make sure that I don't paint this design as completely rosy.There are some risks that Motorola is taking with this project, andI'm sure that you'll be able to identify areas that may have questionsaround them (and which product is without risk?). That said, though, I think that in almost every situation the product team made decisions that best supports the target customers' needs.

Now to some of the specific questions that have been raised:

Josh Viney- I don't understand why mobile phone manufacturers insist on either integrating the headphone jack with the power jack or putting them so close together that it's almost impossible to have both attached at the same time. When the two functions use the same jack it prevents users from using their own headphones (on mobile devices that have stereo music capabilities), and prevents users without Bluetooth headsets from using the phone w/ a headset while it is charging.

GABE: Cost. When you're comparing the LEDs that cost 1c and the LEDsthat cost 1.2c, you know you're in for a long night.

David Malouf- How come only the Industrial designers have faces and have something to say? Can you give us a report from your perspective?

GABE: I should have a face soon. I left the day before the photoshoot, but a pic of me should be there shortly (and the observant will notice that the photo will have given me a sex change).Motorola is an engineering company that is transforming into a company that values design. Significant advances have been made on this, and things are continually getting better. Transformation isn't instant -things have come a long way and will continue to improve. The UI teams and industrial design teams are work much closer for each new product.As UI and ID merge, close collaboration is a prerequisite.

Joshua Seiden- Maybe I'm missing something, but there is almost no discussion of the way the software behaves. (A small nod to flat navigation.) Motorola is starting to pimp design, but as always with Moto, it's just about the static elements. Hardware, icons, even sound get their own shout-outs. Where's the love? More importantly, isn't this just moreof the same?

GABE: Good point. I guess it just reaffirms that communication is a critical part of design. The UI team had unprecedented access and leverage in this project. The product, engineering and design teams defined this product together. We also had direct access to and buy-in at senior VP level. Everyone understood that the UI was critical.

David Malouf- Why is it IxDers are so focused on software? The keyboard, the display, the sound. These are the primary interaction points and while I do think it would be important to add the software side, (Gabriel,can you do something about that?) I think there is a lot to learn in this presentation about doing broad research for consumer electronics across different cultures.

GABE: We were able to do some fantastic research (like the quote that you mention illustrates) before, during and after design. I've learned some pretty amazing stuff about researching in developing countries. Like bringing a whole design testing roadshow to a rural Indian village without power (note to self: make sure your generators have enough grunt otherwise you'll need to wait 4 hours for a new one). Andsome amazing insights about people's perceptions and experience oftechnology (logical hierarchies, bah!).

Josh Viney- I agree that it looks like a cool phone, but what makes it really different from any other phone? It's great that they took the time to research the mobile phone experience around the world, but I'm very skeptical about whether coming up with a new display, menus, and "universal icons" is really worth anything. Check the specs. There are no new features, and it looks like they might be missing a couple.There's no MMS, WAP, Web browser, email, camera, edge, Bluetooth, music player and the list goes on.

GABE: For people in developed countries, I think you have an arguable point. For the primary target market of this phone it's a different story. No, the phone's not revolutionary. But it provides an experience that's sufficiently different to the current offerings to make it more relevant to the people who will be using the product.It's great for the fact that it DOESN'T have features.

David Malouf- A lot of the buzz around this phone from the blogsphere has been metwith "When can we get it?" There are many people in Western Markets who are sick of the "do everything" phone. They are looking for a"phone" . not much else. Cameras, GPS, internet, etc. are not items they care about.

GABE: While the phone was designed for emerging markets, I think you're right. This phone has a lot of potential for people who just want a phone, and so could be a bit of a dark horse in developed countries. Also, I'd love a sexy super-thin phone for when I go out ona bender on the weekend (who cares if I lose it?!).

Read more about Motorola motofone User experience

Mobile phone as music device

Online learning company Intuitive Media and digital media magazine New Media Age carried out a survey of nearly 1500 UK teens. Mobile music is leading the mobile content market. The key user group, young early adopters identify mobile music downloads as the most interesting service. 29% of 8-13 yr old shares music on their phones with nearly half (45 percent) of the remaining respondents stating that they’d like to share music in this way.

The problem is by no means a minor threat to music sales - of the 80 percent of kids who listen to music on the move in some way, a significant 30 percent do so primarily on their phone, making it an important music device for this demographic.

The research gives an insight into the increasingly important kids mobile market. With 72 percent of 6-13 year olds now owning their own phone and 26 percent spending at least GBP 1 or more on content a week, mobile content providers, network operators and media companies can no longer afford to ignore mobile for this demographic.

Source:mobilemonday

Finnish mobile survey results

The main mobile data service that people use is SMS (90.2% in 2002, 96.2% in 2006), ringtones and icons (52.5%–53.7%) routine banking (18.5%–16.3%).

Search services become the second most used service in 2004 with 62.8% using their mobile phones to find out phone numbers and addresses. By 2006, 68.3% say that they use mobile search services. SMS is the leader year after year. But the number two spot was claimed in 2002 by banking, in 2003 by email, and in 2004–2006 by search services.

The third most popular “would use” service was GPS in 2002, timetables in 2003, email in 2004, MMS in 2005, and email again in 2006.

It is no wonder that 84.9% of the surveyed people responded this year that they would not be willing to acquire a new mobile subscription in order to get a bundled 3G mobile phone. People felt that they had no need for a 3G phone, they were not interested at the moment, they were satisfied with their existing mobile data service and that the phones include unnecessary features.

Source:mobilemonday

Mobile madness!

Njy!

http://www.hceye.org/Comptoon-KATRE09.htm

Choices brings comfort or headaches???

What's the common perception, does it lead to success of a product or failure.
Read more...

Features Vs Usability

What will you prefer- feature rich product or a usable product!!!!

Do people buy products for the features it has or for the ease of use... Whats your opinion??? Read more...

Bubble 2.0

Source: okcancel.com

Do you enV?

The new enV phone from LG Electronics for Verizon gets the big picture — at least in one respect. It is the first LG phone to have a two-megapixel camera built in.

The enV (yes, it’s pronounced “envy”) is large by current mobile phone standards, at roughly 4½ by 2 by ¾ inches. It flips open to reveal a screen with a 16:9 aspect ratio that is designed for showing photos and video, along with stereo speakers for music and a QWERTY keypad for text messages.

The camera offers a number of settings, like a range of image sizes, a timer, flash, four levels of white balance for different indoor or outdoor lighting and shutter sounds that include a childlike voice urging, “Say cheese.”

Source:NYtimes.com

Your smartphone as a web cam!

A marriage made in heaven? Why splash out on a separate webcam for your laptop or PC when your camera-equipped smartphone can do the same job, wirelessly?

Mobiola Web Camera for S60 3rd Edition

Source: Allaboutsymbian.com

Nokia's Roller-Coaster Report

Mixed results highlight strength at the top and bottom of the market and weakness in the mid-range, where Motorola and Samsung continue to gain

Is the glass half empty or half full? Mobile phone giant Nokia (NOK) reported third-quarter results Oct. 19 that contained both impressive growth and worrisome signs of weakness. Revenues rose 20%, to $12.7 billion, and handset shipments hit a record high of 88.5 million units in the quarter, up 33% from a year earlier. Nokia's market share also ticked up to just below 35%, according to market researcher IDC.

http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/oct2006/gb20061019_008187.htm?chan=tc&chan=technology_technology+index+page_tech+investing

Nokia's Roller-Coaster Report

Mixed results highlight strength at the top and bottom of the market and weakness in the mid-range, where Motorola and Samsung continue to gain

Is the glass half empty or half full? Mobile phone giant Nokia (NOK) reported third-quarter results Oct. 19 that contained both impressive growth and worrisome signs of weakness. Revenues rose 20%, to $12.7 billion, and handset shipments hit a record high of 88.5 million units in the quarter, up 33% from a year earlier. Nokia's market share also ticked up to just below 35%, according to market researcher IDC.

http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/oct2006/gb20061019_008187.htm?chan=tc&chan=technology_technology+index+page_tech+investing

Next-Gen Mobile Phones: Vision vs. Reality

At the ITU telecom-fest in Hong Kong, everyone wants to create a super, do-all, mobile phone. But no one can agree on which network standard to use

Mobile phones are destined to evolve into all-purpose digital appliances that will pack awesome processing power and operate at blistering data speeds that will seamlessly connect to the Internet and handle such tricks as video streaming on 30 or more channels.

http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/dec2006/gb20061205_230041.htm?chan=tc&chan=technology_technology+index+page_telecom

GPS Navigates Onto Holiday Wish Lists

The navigation devices are more popular than ever this year thanks to lower prices, better performance, and enhanced multimedia capabilities
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/nov2006/tc20061128_130487.htm?&chan=technology_technology+index+page_consumer+electronics

Slim n Thin

Motorola has recently launched the MOTOKRZR in India. It houses a host of premium multimedia features. It has a 2 MP camera with 8 x zoom or via video capture and playback capabilities. Measuring a mere 16mm thin x 42mm wide x 103mm long and weighing only 3.6 ounces, the MOTOKRZR slips easily into a pocket or purse. The handset has a unique solid glass front, premium craftsmanship, precision detailing and elegant finishes.

Source: The Hindu

Google is god of search right?

Google is god of search right? But Yahoo, the erstwhile king of directory searches, is still popular in the US. And it has come out with a list of its top searches of 2006. While we all too well know what figures mostly on Google's searches, Yahoo's top searches are an interesting mix, mostly dominated by personalities, and topped by Britney Spears and surprisingly WWE!

Source: TOI

What's on your mobile?

Barbie. The Don. TV shows. Sports. What do they have in common? You can get them all on your mobile phone.

The last few months have seen the launches of Hungama's Don video game, ESPN Mobile, Star 7827 `Voice' and Barbie in the 12 Dancing Princesses. The mobile content market is expected to grow from Rs 558 crore in 2005 to Rs 1,802 crore by 2007, according to the Internet and Mobile Association of India. Yet the format of such content is still largely centred on voice or SMS, services that do not require GPRS-enabled phones. While mobile phone ownership in India is growing at a record pace, Internet connectivity is not. So even though ESPN Mobile offers sports content in voice, video, text, SMS and games, it expects its voice and SMS services to be the main attractions.

Source: iSource updates

My connected life!

Today every individual leads a technology driven life. The clock seems to run so fast that you blink and there is a new gizmo waiting to lure you. But more than fashion being a factor, functionality is what lures the smart customers. Brand image comes in here. The customer with closed eyes can keep his finger on a trusted brand and that is the kind of image that Nokia has built for itself in the country.

Lately, the company has unveiled its strategy to lead the mobile digital convergence wave. As a part of this strategy, Nokia Nseries has unveiled 'My Connected Life', a new consumer concept aimed to leverage convergence between Internet, PCs and consumer electronics by bringing all experiences into 'one mobile device'.

As a first step to lead this initiative, Nokia Nseries has showcased the much-awaited Nokia N95. The gadget is a unique 2-way slide with 5-megapixel camera, Global Positioning System, Wireless LAN and 3.5 G HSPDA technology, that allows fast data transfers. It is slated to be available in India in early 2007.

Source: The Pioneer

How about a mobile projector!

Here’s one nifty addition to your cell phone that will make watching video-clips and pictures a much better experience. It’s a mini projector embedded in the cellphone which will allow you to project an image taken on a mobile phone on a wall or board just half a metre away.

The projected image will be the size of a laptop screen. This smart projector, called PicoP has been developed by US-based Microvision. It significantly overcomes the limitations of a small display on the mobile phone. The embedded projector will be great for watching TV on mobile (that should be available in India when 3G services start).

Cellphone-makers like Nokia are looking at integration of such projectors into their phones. The system, composed of semiconductor lasers and a tiny mirror, will be small enough to integrate into a mobile phone or an iPod.

Source: ET

Mobile autograph

Now, you don't have to mob celebrities to get that much desired autograph. Nexmoo solutions has launched an innovative service, `Mobile Autograph', where users can download their favourite celebrity's autograph along with a snapshot on their GPRS mobile phones.

An autographed photograph will cost Rs.15. They will be available in English and in other languages such as Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Hindi and Kannada.

Source: The Hindu

Race in reality with GPS gaming

Location-based gaming is set to hit the Indian market next year. If you believe you are a faster rider than your friend in the next city, you can now set the record straight with a location-based game. Start racing with people anywhere in the world - with the start time, current position and opponent's moves all logged using GPS. With a GPS-enabled gadget, you can receive your exact location in terms of longitude and latitude from satellites. Combined with a digital map of your city (such as Wikimap or Google Map), the user can navigate around the city - with important locations, landmarks and restaurants logged on the mobile. This navigator will open up a whole new window into the gaming universe. Games such as Treasure Hunt, where the user has to find an imaginary treasure hidden in the game zone (city limits) by unravelling clues given on the mobile, are popular in bigger game markets such as the US. As GPS starts to get popular in the country, device makers such as Nokia and Hewlett-Packard are planning to release gadgets for gamers in India.

Source: the Business line

Motorola motophone user experience

http://direct.motorola.com/hellomoto/motofone/experience/experience/index.html

MobMart- World’s first mobile-powered auction site

MobMart is the world’s first mobile-powered auction site. To sell something, just snap a picture, send it to 07720 11 00 22 and fill in the simple form. Selling is free.

MobMart is the first auction site to let you do everything from your mobile; sell, browse, bid and pay. Because you’re using your camera phone, you can post video clips too. Create your own TV ads! You can also do everything online at mobmart.com.

In case you’re wondering what to sell, it can be the biggest, the smallest, the craziest, the best video, or just the most well crafted sales pitch.

To browse online, go to http://www.mobmart.com

Source: Feedblitz

Samsung+Microsoft smartphone

Samsung Electronics, South Korea’s largest corporation, joined Microsoft on Monday in launching the first mobile phone in Asia and Europe to use high-speed HSDPA wireless technology. The companies said the phone — the Samsung Ultra Messaging i600 — was the world’s thinnest 3G smartphone with a full QWERTY keyboard.

It is also the first smartphone that supports Web applications like podcasts and RSS Feeder, which scans Web sites for updates, the companies said.

Source: ET

Moto is back

US-based Motorola is clearly the hungriest and strongest in the wolf pack of mobile handset makers that is taking on bison-like Nokia in India. The world’s second largest mobile handset maker holds the same position in India, although its market share here is smaller than its global average. Industry estimates suggest that Motorola accounts for around 17 percent of the market, just a fourth or so of Nokia. But then, less than two years ago, the share was half that.

The company has emerged the style warrior with phones very different from Nokia designs. The strategy also shows in model names and the building of sub-brands. The Moto prefix now has unconventional and catchy spellings for sub-brands—Razr, Slvr, Pebl and now Krzr.

Source: The Financial Express

Communication just got more human

An inexpensive ‘speak and listen’ messaging process, Voice SMS gives an emotional dimension to personal messages while businesses could use it to broadcast brief company information on mobiles

Imagine you are driving or rushing down the street to a business appointment, and you receive a text message that requires an urgent response. Unless you are adept at navigating traffic and simultaneously typing out a response, replying to the SMS could be a frustrating experience. And this is where Voice SMS steps in. A new short-messaging service that uses voice instead of text or pictures, it works on any GSM handset and any network. As there’s no infrastructure upgrade or back-end provisioning for operators to worry about, or handset configuration for consumers, an operator’s entire subscriber base has access to the service.

Voice SMS is an inexpensive and non-intrusive ‘speak and listen’ messaging process. It is an alternative to the time-consuming ‘type and read’ process of text SMS. Voice SMS lets you deposit a voice message by dialling the called number with a special prefix. It works across all devices. The benefits of Voice SMS include messaging across networks across countries enabled by the global ecosystem. For Indians, who live in countries like the UK, US and the Middle East, it presents an opportunity for international Voice SMS messaging. It will appeal to people who are more likely to use messaging services than conduct real time conversations. It also gives an emotional dimension to personal messages while businesses could use it to broadcast brief company information on mobiles. In many areas, low literacy level and lack of comfort with text messaging reduces its use. This is where voice messaging fills the gaps.

Source: iSource updates

Mobile sells

Mobile ads get more sophisticated as they try to deliver the best from TV and computer, minus the nuisances Technology has a way of blurring definitions and challenging consumer habits. This time round it is going to further delight—or confuse you if you are technophobic—by bringing the experience of the TV and the computer screen to your mobile screen.

Mobile marketing campaigns that were using SMS, and more recently MMS, have already helped to open up the eyes of the media world to the power of the mobile channel. Interactive TV and radio, product promotions using coupons and competitions, have exploited this medium. Now it is understood that Google has also started testing mobile ads for advertisers in India.

Google Mobile ads are text-based ad formats, which the company began testing with AdWords advertisers in US, UK, Germany and Japan in August 2006. These textbased ads appear along with search results delivered to mobile devices, and they contain either a link to a mobile website or a phone number which users can click on to generate a call. That sounds much like your computer screen during a Google search, doesn’t it?

Source: iSource updates

Nokia 1325 and Nokia 1265 offer strong feature sets at accessible price

Hong Kong, China - The latest entries into the CDMA handset market from Nokia (NYSE: NOK) were unveiled today at the 3G World Congress in Hong Kong. Targeted at consumers who use their mobile phone primarily for basic features like making phone calls voice and text messaging, the Nokia 1265 and Nokia 1325 feature a number of desirable features such as handsfree speakers and voice recorders.

Source: Nokia Press Office

Mobiles get love-savvy

Mobile phones companies have entered the realm of romance. Match-making firms are creating new services that allow people to post their dating profile online and then automatically receive a text message on a GPS-enabled phone when a match is nearby, say, at a coffee shop around the cornerThe phenomenon, also known as “mobile romance”, has already arrived in China. Most Chinese wireless service providers offer dating services to drive text message usage, which in turn creates revenue.

Source: TOI

What makes a user trust your product?

What makes a user trust your product? What gives him/her feeling of confidence that he/she is using a a product that is trusted? What factors govern the success of a product in terms of user acceptance, trust, safety, and returning users?

Is it the look, interface, speed or features????

The article "http://www.humanfactors.com/downloads/usability-newsletter.asp" suggests that its

- Clean interface
- Easy navigation
- Quick response
- Relevant & organized information
- Simple language

Most important, application of the user-centered process.

Google when you offline

A new startup called Webaroo allows you to search the web from your laptop or handheld, without actually connecting to the Internet. Amazing, don’t you think?
While biggies like Google, Yahoo and MSN are busy sweating it out to get people online, this Bellevue-based startup fills in the gap for those who are not yet online.

4G phones

Fancy a mobile phone that is a doctor, an interpreter and enables two-way video communication. Even as we wait for 3G mobile phones to take off that kind of vision would indeed seem too farfetched.

But mobile-users in Japan and Korea could get their x-ray images examined by their doctor and feedback available on a mobile phone by about 2010. That’s when 4G (fourth generation) mobile services will take off.

The new applications — like healthcare on the move — will be on 4G as it will enable ultra high-speed data transfers at over 100 megabits per second. Nokia has come up with a 4G mobile phone design where you will actually wear the phone as a wristband. The wrist phone can work independently as a phone or work with a bluetooth style headpiece.

The wrist piece could be used to pay metro fare, compare prices of holiday packages, make a call or just pay for a movie ticket. On the other hand, Samsung wants to use 4G phones as interpreters and portable doctors.

Source: ET

Yahoo! Mail and Messenger on Nokia Series 40 platform

Amsterdam, The Netherlands - Nokia and Yahoo! today extended their partnership to offer Yahoo! branded services including Yahoo! Mail and Messenger on Nokia's wide range of mobile phones operating on the Series 40 platform. Yahoo! services will initially be available on the newly announced Nokia 6300, the Nokia 5300 XpressMusic and the Nokia 5200. Moving forward these services and the ability to synchronise Yahoo! contacts, tasks and calendar on the PC and phone will be added to an even wider range of Nokia's Series 40 devices.

"Since the Series 40 platform was introduced in 2002, Nokia has sold more than 400 million mobile phones which operate using the platform," says Kai Oistamo, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Mobile Phones, Nokia. "In addition to the millions of users who can add Yahoo! services to their S60 smartphone, today's announcement empowers tens of millions of people with the ability to enjoy their favourite Yahoo! services on an even broader ranges of Nokia devices."

Source: Nokia press

60 Percent of 3G WCDMA Handsets will be GPS/Galileo Enabled by 2010

A new research report from the wireless analyst firm Berg Insight forecasts that 60 percent of WCDMA handset shipped worldwide will have integrated GPS / Galileo receivers by 2010. Satellite positioning technology enables delivery of location based services such as personal navigation on mobile phones. Another significant benefit is the ability to position mobile emergency calls with high accuracy.

Source: 3G.co.uk

The phone of the future...

…will store your latte preferences and order it for you when you walk up to a coffee stand (which it’s also located for you), says Nokia CTO Tero Ojanpera. And all this by 2010, too.

Heady stuff. Didn’t realize that device convergence would usurp the latte-ordering function of human beings, too.

Source: Feedblitz

Reliance communications launches 'Stock Mania'

With the objective of enhancing the stock market skills for its subscribers, Reliance Communications has announced the commercial launch of ‘Stock Mania’. On downloading this application the user is provided with a virtual fund of Rs 10 lakh as part of the registration. With this virtual fund, the player can start trading in stocks and monitor the portfolio on a real-time basis, without having any financial investments or implications.

Source: The Financial Express

Mobile gets LIVE

Telecom players push mobile Internet to stay abreast with times, and push up their revenue ratings. Indian carriers saw an addition of 6.7 million new users in the month of October. With 136.22 million users, the mobile subscriber base is six times the number of people in India who have a desktop computer. Clearly, anything to do with mobiles is a killer application.

Indian telecom players are fast realising the need to push mobile Internet to salvage their ARPUs (average revenue per users).

Early this month, domestic telecom player, Hutch, joined hands with MSN to enable mobile search, and now Bharti Airtel and Google have come together to empower mobile search for its subscribers.

Source: iSource updates

Airtel peps up services with a VAS monthly

Bharti Airtel is betting big on value-added services (VAS) to achieve its target of becoming the most admired brand in the country by 2010. It has now decided to launch one new VAS application every month for the next two years. Bharti’s partnership with Google to facilitate Google search on Airtel mobiles is also part of this strategy.

Source: iSource updates

Nokia, DD to pilot mobileTV

Global mobility leader Nokia and national broadcaster Doordarshan will launch a pilot project in India for mobile TV. The technology known as DVB-H broadcast mobile TV will be based on Nokia’s open standard-based DVB-H solution. The Nokia mobile broadcast solution will be delivered to Doordarshan via SHAF Broadcast in early 2007.

During the trial, Doordarshan will test the reception quality of the broadcast coverage and explore the options of supporting different service schemes such as advertising and interactive services. The pilot project will also enable Doordarshan to gauge consumer expectations. Mobile TV broadcasting allows the users to watch their favourite TV programmes.

The service works by receiving a digital TV broadcast signal optimised for mobile devices from the air in much the same way as TVs at home do. Broadcast mobile TV is not the same as a streaming video service over 3G or GPRS where each recipient gets a separate copy of the programme stream. Rather, one simultaneous TV stream can be received at any time by any number of users

Source: iSource updates

Telephone booths on Xpressway

The Noida-Greater Noida Expressway is as much a motorist’s delight as a nightmare. The speed the 23 km-long smooth road allows is also responsible for a large number of accidents. Addressing the problem, the city administrators are constantly evolving ways towards making the highway safe, secure as well as a convenient road network.

Giving shape to the first phase of a plan outlined several months ago, six telephone booths have been contracted for between the Noida Authority (NA) as well as the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) to ensure trouble-free driving on the expressway. Three each of these emergency telephones have been installed on either side of the Noida-Greater Noida Expressway. Explains Mukesh Mandal, general manager, Noida Telecom, "These phones which can be operated by pushing a button available in the booth will be linked directly to the police control room as well as patrol cars for immediate action in case of emergencies." Continues a senior officer of NA, "The idea is to provide the road-user with a certain measure of safety and security. The telephone booths will aid the commuters in seeking immediate police, medical or fire assistance in case of an emergency."

Source: iSource updates

Now Google search for Airtel users

Airtel subscribers in India will now be able to enjoy the benefits of Google's search engine on their Airtel Live web portal. Bharti Airtel and Google have announced a strategic partnership that will allow Airtel to bring Google search to the Airtel Live mobile WAP portal.

The service will be available for users who have GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) connection free of cost. But there will be charges for downloading any content.

"Mobile users in India today outnumber PC (personal computer) users in a ratio of 6:1, hence, this is going to have tremendous impact," Manoj Kohli, president, Bharti Airtel Ltd, told a press conference on Thursday here.

Google will also be using the platform to place Mobile Ads based on search items, which will be displayed alongside search results.

Source: iSource updates

Motorola plans for increased Indian presence

Handset giant Motorola Inc is betting on widening its market share in India by improving distribution, getting into bundling arrangements and broadening its financing deals, officials said on Tuesday.

Demand for handsets is soaring in India, the world's fastest-growing wireless services market, which added as many as 6.7 million new mobile services users in October.

"Market places like India are great volume opportunities," Allen Burnes, corporate vice president for Motorola's mobile devices business in high growth markets, told the media in an interview.

"There is massive industrial growth happening, and the burgeoning youth segment has disposable incomes never seen before." Motorola ranks second behind Nokia, as it does globally, in the booming Indian market, where huge demand is coming from rural areas and smaller towns. Mobile penetration is still only 13 per cent in a population of over a billion people.

Motorola has tied up with top five Indian carriers such as Bharti Airtel Ltd, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd and Hutchison Essar Ltd to offer handsets to customers.

Source: ISource updates

Mumbaikars No. 2 in forgetting mobiles

Mumbai ranks second only to London when it comes to forgetful travellers. In the past six months Mumbaites have forgotten a staggering 32,970 mobile phones, 349 laptops and 349 USB sticks/thumb drives in taxis. These are just the ones that have been reported as lost.

A survey of taxi drivers from 11 major cities across the world conducted by Pointsec Mobile Technologies reveals that thousands of mobile phones, hand-held devices, laptops and USB sticks are forgotten in taxis every day. The city is not alone when it comes to forgetful travellers.

The story of lost and forgotten mobiles echoes around the world with the same fate afflicting London, Sydney, Stockholm, San Francisco, Washington, Helsinki, Frankfurt, Munich, Berlin and Oslo. Of all cities, London emerges at the top with the most forgetful population, losing 54,872 mobile phones.

In case of handheld devices such as pocket PCs being lost, London (4,718) ranked highest once again, followed by Washington (2,260), Munich (1902) and Berlin (1125). The number of lost laptops was also the highest in London (3,179) with Munich in the second place (355) followed by Mumbai in the third spot (349).

Source:ISource updates

Changing mobile gaming habits

The mobile phone gamers surveyed frequently play mobile games with the vast majority (80%) playing at least once a week and 34% playing every day. The average length of a session is 28 minutes with India (39 minutes), United States (31 minutes) and Thailand (29 minutes) playing longer than average.

Mobile phone games are played on the move (61%) almost as much as they are played at home (62%). Also, mobile phone gamers are making the most of their idle time with 56% preferring to play while waiting.

The survey was conducted by Nielsen Entertainment, and saw 1,800 people surveyed in 6 countries.

"These research results further validate that consumers are looking to the next generation of mobile gaming to meet their gaming needs," says Jaakko Kaidesoja, director, games, multimedia, Nokia. "Consumers are demanding great graphics, great content and great game play and we have listened. Next year, we intend to deliver superior mobile gaming experiences which will include great looking, involved and connected games that are easy to find, manage and play."

Source: mobile-weblog

Nokia's First Mid-range 3G Smartphone Based on S60 3rd Edition

The Nokia 6290 is designed to meet the needs of the hectic professional looking to balance a hectic business and social calendar. With a number of practical new features, multiple alarms and handy Quick Cover access keys which enable instant access to a wide range of the device's useful features, including an interactive world travel application, consumers can use their mobile for many things. With constant connectivity via 3G technology, the Nokia 6290 ensures productivity remains a priority, providing email access, as well as connections to favourite websites. The Nokia 6290's mobile search application ensures the leading search engines and location-specific services are only the touch of a button away.

While the Nokia 6290 has been designed to help people manage time and improve productivity, this smartphone will be best appreciated for its simplicity. An ergonomic keypad, fast access keys and intuitive menu structure make getting started simpler than ever. The Nokia 6290 also offers a Setup Wizard to guide users through the process of establishing their specific email, MMS functions as well as operator-specific settings.

The Nokia 6290 combines the collective power of S60 3rd Edition and 3G in an easy-to-use, attractively designed package.

The suite of standard features includes:- 2 megapixel camera with 4X digital zoom - 2.2" QVGA 16M colour internal screen- Rich email functionality which supports attachments such as PPT, PDF, Word and Excel.- MP3 music player with excellent stereo surround sound- Two way video calling

The Nokia 6290 is Nokia's first mid-range smartphone to offer S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 1. Announced at the Symbian Smartphone Show in October, S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 1 opens up a world of possibilities, highlighted by an enhanced single browser that supports both full Web and mobile optimized content. There is also available a wide variety of add-on applications that can turn the phone into a highly personalized, versatile device. The applications range from games and entertainment to powerful business and navigation applications.

The Nokia 6290 phone has a talk-time of up to 3.5 hours and a standby battery time of up to 10 days.

Source: www.3g.co.uk

Strong Global Demand for MMS and Mobile Email

Preference for Mobile Data Services

Ranking
1 Text messaging
2 Email
3 MMS
4 Alerts via SMS/MMS
5 Instant messaging
6 Web browsing and searching
7 Location-based services
8 Mobile radio
9 Financial transactions
10 Downloading content
11 Mobile TV
12 Video calling
13 Video sharing
14 Gambling


Europe Spain : Multimedia messaging (MMS) has become a popular service among mobile phone users worldwide and mobile email may have even greater potential, according to a major consumer survey commissioned by the GSM Association, the global trade association for mobile phone operators.

More than 40% of the 3,061 consumers surveyed by Circle Research in Europe, North America and Asia regard MMS, which allows mobile phone users to swap pictures, music and video, as an indispensable service, while 38% see mobile email in the same light. When asked which mobile data services they prefer, the respondents ranked text messaging (SMS) first, followed by email and MMS ranked third.

“This comprehensive survey shows that there is considerable appetite for rich messaging services that broaden the range of communications options open to mobile phone users,” said Bill Gajda, Chief Marketing Officer of the GSMA. “After a slow start, MMS has gained a loyal following, while mobile email is clearly emerging as a must-have service for many people.”Mobile email has become an increasingly popular service among business people, in particular, thanks to technology that pushes the messages to users’ handsets mimicking the experience offered by text messaging. First launched in 2002, MMS has been gaining in popularity as handset displays have improved and mobile operators have signed interoperability agreements enabling the exchange of messages across networks.

The survey uncovered some significant regional differences. North American respondents ranked mobile email as the service they most prefer, ahead of text messaging and mobile instant messaging. In Europe and Asia, text-messaging scored highest, followed by mobile email and MMS.

Source:www.3g.co.uk

Americans love Sony Erricson best

Sony Ericsson ranks highest in satisfying customers who have owned their current mobile phone for less than two years, according to a J.D. Power and Associates report. The study measures customers’ satisfaction with their wireless handsets based on five key performance factors. In order of importance, these are: physical design (24%); operation (22%); features (20%); handset durability (19%); and battery function (15%).

The study also found that the average reported purchase price for a wireless handset has increased for the first time in two years. The average purchase price cited by users for a mobile phone is USD 94 - up USD 8 from the first volume of the study in 2006, which was released in May-and marks the highest average price paid for a phone since 1994, when phones averaged USD 99.

Sony Ericsson receives the highest ratings from customers in handset durability, and also performs particularly well in features and battery functionality. LG, Sanyo and Motorola, respectively, follow

Sony Ericsson in the overall rankings.“Sony Ericsson has come a long way in enhancing overall customer satisfaction, as efforts to improve their product lineup have really paid off,” said Kirk Parsons, senior director of wireless services at J.D. Power and Associates.

“New model offerings and a general improvement in overall reliability have enhanced the user’s experiences and elevated the brand to the top of the rankings. In fact, Sony Ericsson has recorded the most improvement of any brand included in the past three study reporting periods starting in 2005.”

The increase in the average purchase price can be partially attributed to the recent surge in popularity of thin phones, such as the Motorola RAZR, and music-enabled handsets, both of which typically have higher price points when first offered. The average reported purchase price for wireless handsets owned for less than six months is USD 102, much higher than the average price paid (USD 89) for the same ownership period last year.

“As more services are added to mobile phones-particularly MP3 downloading or streaming video-we should continue to see the wireless handset price point rise,” said Parsons.

“For example, the incidence of sending or messaging video and picture content has increased 50 percent between 2005 and 2006. However, as mobile phones become more complicated, satisfaction can increase if it becomes easier for customers to learn how to operate specific product and service offerings. This can also promote future purchases of value-added products and accessories.”

The study also finds several key wireless handset usage patterns:The average replacement cycle for a typical handset is 16.6 months-a notable decrease from 18 months in 2005.

Handset features that are used most frequently include: the speakerphone (32%); camera capabilities (27%); services to send/receive short messages (25%); and gaming (16%).

More than one-half of all current wireless users compared other handset brands before selecting their current wireless phone. Those customers who compare phones during the selection process are more likely to be satisfied overall with their current handset than those who do not.

Volume 2 of the 2006 U.S. Wireless Mobile Phone Evaluation Study is based on experiences reported by 21,679 wireless users who have owned their current mobile phone for less than two years. The results are from the two most recent study reporting waves, which were conducted in April and July 2006.

Overall Wireless Mobile Phone Rankings (Based on a 1,000-point scale)
Sony Ericsson 745

LG 735Sanyo 733

Motorola 732

Industry Average 726

Samsung 725

Nokia 713

Kyocera 711

UTStarcom (Audiovox) 707

Source: www.mobilemonday.net

Motorola users are struggling with usability

According to a poll by the magazine Mobile, more than three quarters of Motorola mobile phone users would not buy another Motorola handset because they are too difficult to use.
"In the survey of 55 Motorola customers, 78% said they wouldn't buy a Motorola handset again, with the majority citing problems with usability. The figure was slightly higher among first-time Motorola users. As many as 85% of the 48 first-time Motorola users in the poll want to switch to another manufacturer."
"The sample survey was dominated by RAZR owners, who made up almost half of all those asked. The survey revealed that 80% of RAZR users wanted to jump ship to another manufacturer with their next purchase."

Source: www.GUUUI.com