Ha! I noticed Michael Gartenberg, who is my blog-neighbor MobileDevicesToday (I edit MobileAppsToday), asked…
Is the Zune the Rodney Dangerfield of technology?
Then, Roy Furchgott on The New York Times said…
So, I guess…
T-Mobile G1 == Zune == Rodney Dangerfield
I was just reading a good review of the new Celio Redfly C8N terminal companion for Windows Mobile smartphones over on Brighthand…
It looks like Celio listened to potential customers who told them their $500 price for the original model was way too high for a dumb terminal. The new C8N comes in at a more reasonable $299 (but still too high, IMHO). There’s also a smaller model for $229 (also too high). For $299 you get a dumb terminal that provides an 800×400 view into your Windows Mobile smartphone, a decent keyboard, and the ability (with an additional $20 cable) to watch videos from an iPod or Zune (or other media player).
If you spend another $40, you can get an Asus Eee PC 904 with a 1024×600 display, 1GB RAM, 160GB HD, and a 6-cell battery. It does not have Bluetooth. But, you can add one via a USB dongle very inexpensively or step up to another model like the Eee PC 1000H (what I use) for $479 and get a 10-inch display as well as Bluetooth. And, oh yes, it also has an SDHC card reader built in so I can read photos off my camera. And, wait, it has a 160GB hard drive so I can backup my photos while on the road. And, what’s this? 802.11n WiFi too? And since you can run Windows XP or Linux (or Mac OS X for that matter), I can use a real browser like Firefox instead of IE4 Mobile Minus for web browsing. And, yes, I can tether my Windows Mobile T-Mobile Dash smartphone to it either using Bluetooth or a USB cable.
It would make a lot more sense for Celio to become a software vendor that enables low-end netbooks like the Acer Aspire One ($329 for the flash storage-only, 3-cell battery model) to become Windows Mobile terminals. It would remove the all the issues surrounding hardware manufacturing and distribution and become a nimble firm with a use software product.
Apple, RIM (Blackberry), and Samsung are above the J.D. Powers industry average score for smartphone satisfaction…
J.D. Power: Apple’s iPhone top dog in customer satisfaction
…but Windows Mobile device manufacturers HTC, Motorola, and Palm are all below the average. Samsung also makes WiMo devices.
There are a couple of interesting findings reported in the J.D. Powers press release…
– Top reason for choosing a smartphone brand: Internet capability (45%)
– 34% of smartphone users downloaded 3rd party software
I launched a new weekly feature over on my day-job-blog: MobileAppsToday.com called App of the Week. The recognition cuts across all the major mobile smartphone platforms. You can find the announcement and the first App of the Week, Ilium Software’s eWallet, at…
MobileAppsToday App of the Week Category
I think I can do a pretty good job IDing apps for Windows Mobile, iPhone, and Google Android. But, since I’m not a Blackberry or Symbian Series 60 (Nokia, etc.) user, I could use some help ID-ing apps that people should know about in those areas. If you have a recommendation or a write-up on your own site, please let me know. If you look at my site, you know I provide full attribution when I find something interesting on other sites/blogs. So, I’d be happy to link to your review or commentary on app.
Of course, I would be grateful to pointers to good apps for Windows Mobile, iPhone, and Google Android too. The somewhat lesser known apps would be good. I’d like to try to give awareness of interesting products to end-users and a way for developers to make a living. Freeware or for-fee products are all fine for recommendations.
Thanks!…todd
My first T-Mobile Dash battery went bad after about a year of use. This was around last March or April (2007). I bought a new replacement battery through T-Mobile around that time. Today, I noticed that my battery was at 2% charge after turning it on. I had fully charged the battery the night before and turned off the phone after the battery was charged. I fully charged the battery after noticing this and then used it like I normally do. The battery was down to about 50% at the end of the day (night). Normally, the battery is between 70 and 80% capacity after a 14 hour or so period.
This sudden drop in charge capacity is very similar to what I saw in the original battery when it started to go bad. However, this time the second battery went bad in less than 7 months of use. That seems awfully short to me. I’m not going to buy a third battery, however. My T-Mobile G1 (Google Android) phone should arrive sometime next week. So, I’ll either switch to a different phone or muddle along with awful battery life for another 10 days or so.
I bought this Belkin Mini Surge Protector Dual USB Charger recently hoping it would solve two problems at once. First, it is smaller than the power strip I’ve been carrying on trips for years. So, it would reduce luggage volume and weight slightly (every ounce counts). Second, it also has two USB charging ports. My hope was that it would help me eliminate one or two USB charging transformers.
Unfortunately, it turns out that the USB ports only provides 500mA per port. Most USB chargers I have lying around are a full 1A. Basically, my devices don’t even see power when plugged into the Belkin’s USB port and doesn’t charge. I tried a couple of HTC Windows Mobile phones and found that none of them saw power when plugged into the Belkin.
However, it is still a useful and small power string and surge protector with three grounded A/C outlets. So, I’m taking it on my trip to San Jose next week. I won’t be using it to charge anything from its USB ports though.