February 4, 2012

Telenav Scout GPS in-car display integration hands-on

Image errtew-580x321.png

At Pepcom during CES 2012 we got the opportunity to hop into a vehicle containing a 7-inch display that would, when connected with Telenav’s technology, be able to run all the navigation and service-finding awesomeness we’ve come to expect from the GPS navigation group. What we got to see what just that, an Android device not only mirroring itself to the display, but displaying a whole different interface made specifically for the 7-inch form factor, it showing maps, favorite places, traffic information, information about the current status of your car, and more.

Headset maker Jawbone raises another $40M, bringing its total to $210M raised

Image jawbone-icon.jpg

Jawbone , the maker of cool Bluetooth headsets for cell phones and other cool hardware, announced today that it has raised $40 million. The amount is one of the biggest raised by a mobile hardware company, but San Francisco-based Jawbone has always been ambitious.

Apple grabs iOS concept UI creator

Image ios_concept_dynamic_icons-580x342.jpg

Apple has hired the designer behind a number of iOS UI concepts, including a fast app switcher and dynamic icons that access different elements of an app, bringing the arts student on for a seven month internship.  Jan-Michael Cart  confirmed the placement this week, and while at present it’s unclear what exactly the arts student will be involved in with Apple, it seems likely to be iOS and potentially OS X interface design. Cart’s concepts caught attention because of the way they neatly brought together existing iOS and OS X controls and gestures.

Panelists: The Endgame for AT&T and T-Mobile

Just what did they expect? “My feeling from the beginning has been, this felt like it was using a sledgehammer to crack a nut,” says Ovum’s Jan Dawson.

Apple seizes iPhone sex domains

Image iphone_4s_sg_52-580x458.jpg

Apple has claimed eight domain names being used to direct iPhone-curious surfers to mobile porn sites, the original registrant handing over the URLs in return for the Cupertino company dropping a World Intellectual Property Organization complaint . Domains including “sex4iphones.com” and “iphoneporn4s.com” had been registered by an unnamed Israeli company and directed to a variety of mobile-formatted smut, something Apple understandably wasn’t pleased with.

Biscotti TV Phone brings video conferencing to your TV with Google Talk

Image biscottitvcontactsmenu-1321057034-580x471.jpg

The Biscotti TV Phone has gone on sale today and offers an easy solution for folks wanting to use their TVs for video conferencing. Sporting a camera and microphone, the device works with Google Talk for free internet voice and video services over a WiFi connection without the need to connect to a computer.

AT&T’s planned T-Mobile merger will create 96,000 jobs, CWA says

Image cwa-logo-2.jpg

The Communications Workers of America (CWA) union said on Tuesday that AT&T’s planned $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile USA will create 96,000 additional jobs in the United States and bring another  5,000 others back from overseas . The union said Sprint and other opponents of the merger are “inappropriately” implying that the deal will actually result in job cuts and says such conclusions, which were reached in a Sprint-commissioned study, are the result of “sloppy research and the inability to distinguish between the change in the number of wireline and wireless jobs.” Read on for more.

Nokia kicks off free London WiFi trial, eyes Africa and India

Image nokia_n9_wifi-580x473.jpg

Nokia has revealed plans to kick off a free WiFi trial in London, UK, offering free internet access that could spread to other cities as the company’s wireless ambitions progress. The new scheme uses phone kiosks operated by  Spectrum Interactive  which offer up to 1Mbps downloads per user; registration will not be required, and you won’t need a Nokia device in order to access it. The two month trial will be operated until the end of the year, the BBC reports, with 26 hotspots initially.

Apple “iTV” rumors persist and now a concept rendering

Image 9-640x479-580x434.jpg

Following revelations from Steve Jobs’ biography by Walter Isaacson, long simmering rumors of an Apple “iTV” television set have boiled over with the latest reports claiming it’s a matter of “when” and not “if.” A new wave of speculation on an upcoming Apple product certainly can’t be without concept renderings and that’s what we have here from artist Guilherme M. Schasiepen .

So What if Smartphones are Expensive, at Least we have Choices and Subsidies [Opinion]

Image android-phones-600x399.jpg

After seeing an opinion piece on smartphone pricing by Dan yesterday, followed by our report that the DROID RAZR may be $649 off contract, one of our readers wanted to express his thoughts on the matter. Are we more fortunate than most countries?