Commute and compute

Is this you?

Do you whip out your mobile as soon as you get on public transport and start fiddling? What do you actually do?

1. Check SMSes (only to realise you just checked 3 minutes ago and there's nothing new).
2. Flip thru pictures you've already viewed like a hundred times.
3. Press random buttons, having nothing really to do.
4. Play a quick game of Snake only to quit halfway because you're getting down the bus.
5. Check email?

Do you also whip out your mobile when you're queueing for movie tickets? Do you whip out your mobile when you're waiting for your dental appointment? Do you whip out your mobile when waiting for a concert to start? Do you whip out your mobile when having dinner with your -in-laws and there's no interesting conversation going on?

Have you realised you whip out your mobile a lot?

Just musings from WCIT 2008... I kept seeing people whip out the most modern, evolved devices ever. I reckon lightning-fast reactions from hands-to-pocket will be the next evolution for mankind. Behaviour change means feeling for your mobile is going to be secondary.

For me, it's just my humble N95 that gets whipped out most of the time:

Q: The wonder of China

I really think one day everything techno we have will be made in China by some Chinese company with a really wierd sounding name.

Case in point: my friend bought a new phone yesterday for RM 400 bucks. Made in China. Designed in China. Christened the Holiday Q9. Sounds familiar? Check out the Motorola Q:

Specs:
Summary of Key Features
• One of the first devices to run on Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0; Optimized for Microsoft Exchange 2003 and a variety of third party email solutions that enable a broad set of corporate email capabilities*
• Thinnest QWERTY device in the world – 11.5mm
• Full, ergonomic QWERTY keyboard, 5-way navigation button and thumb wheel
• Video clip capture and playback
• Connectivity via Bluetooth, IrDA and mini-USB; compatible with Motorola H500, HT820, H5, H600, H700 Bluetooth wireless headsets
• Multi-Media Messaging (MMS)
• Dual, stereo-quality speakers
• Audio formats supported: iMelody, MIDI, MP3, AAC, WAV, WMA, WAX, QCELP
• Image formats supported: GIF87a, GIF89a, JPEG, WBMP, BMP, PNG
• Video formats supported: H.263, MPEG-4, GSM-AMR, AAC, WMV
• Mini-SD removable memory card slot
• Large, high-resolution display (320 x 240 pixels, 65K TFT)
• 1.3 mega pixel camera with photo lighting
• PIM functionality with Picture Caller ID
• Advanced speech recognition and speakerphone

Then have a glance at my friend's Holiday Q9



Specs:
* Mobile model CECT Q9
* System Window Mobile 5.0
* LCD 2.6 inches Touch Screen
* Support Bluetooth (Handsfree, A2DP, FTP supported)
* CPU / RAM ARM926T OMAP730 200MHz / 45mb
* Memory extenal: Mina SD card supported up to 2 GB/ internal:64 mb
* Digital Camera 2.0 mega pixels
* Audio/Video record: amr / 3gp; Audio/Video Player: mp3 / mp4
* Ring Type: 64 polyphonic / midi / wave / mp3
* Support java, WAP, USB 2.0
* Handsfree speaker Support
* Support GPRS
* Connection Wire: USB to PC,, Beam / Wireless: Bluetooth , Network cards
* Other Functions:ActiveSync, calculator, calendar, camera, contacts, download agent, excel mobile, file explorer, games, help, internet explorer, internet sharing, JAVA, messaging, notes, phone, pictures & videos, Pocket MSN, powerpoint mobile, search, SIM mgr, tasks, terminal services client, windows media, word mobile
* Network frequency: GSM 900/1800 MHz
* Language: Chinese, English
* Battery Li-ion 3.7V 1400 mAh

Yeaps, all that goodness (notice the 2.0 MP Camera vs. the 1.3 MP Camera?) for just RM 400. China's world domination might not be far off. Provided they can improve the build quality.

PS. For those of you sniggering, yes I'm also aware of NOKLA phones floating around. :)

Oh no! WiMAX jitters?

Read this, much to my dismay as I personally had high hopes for WiMAX.

Australia’s first WiMAX operator, Hervey Bay’s Buzz Broadband, has closed its network, with the CEO labeling the technology as a “disaster” that “failed miserably.”

In an astonishing tirade to an international WiMAX conference audience in Bangkok yesterday afternoon, CEO Garth Freeman slammed the technology, saying its non-line of sight performance was “non-existent” beyond just 2 kilometres from the base station, indoor performance decayed at just 400m and that latency rates reached as high as 1000 milliseconds. Poor latency and jitter made it unacceptable for many Internet applications and specifically VoIP, which Buzz has employed as the main selling point to induce people to shed their use of incumbent services.

We've all been waiting in giddy anticipation for WiMAX over here in Malaysia, at least the last two years have seen much PR play over tenders and what not. Reading this report, does this mean it will all go to waste?

I'm moaning about my "2 KM unfettered broadband internet access, limitless web-surfing whilst at the outskirts of Sabak Bernam" dream going down the drain, but Erna says: "Sounds more like poorly planned infrastructure."

I hope, for all our mobile internet dreams, that Erna is right. And that our Telcos (whoever gets the tender) can plan pretty well.

davidlian's primer about using 3G in Malaysia

Okay, you've just gone out and bought yourself a swanky new mobile phone. Chances are, the device in your hand is probably just 20% phone and the back of the box boasts cool internet stuff like"Web Browsing", "Search the Internet", "Upload your pictures" and my favourite - "Podcasts!" Problem is, with your old black & white screen phone, you've never actually considered what you're considering now - "should I 3G?"

The reason I'm writing this is because so many of my friends have asked me about whether they should subscribe to 3G or not. The answer is always the same: "Well, what are you going to use it for?"

So, in the best interests of saving time and staying consistent to what I'm going to say again and again, I'm going to put it here so I can tell my pals "Go read my blog." :) Oh, and this may help you to.

Mobile Internet?

I've always dreamed of having the internet with me wherever I go ever since TMNet launched its Hotspots (back in 2000), and I owned a Palm T3. With a Wi-Fi card, I imagined myself sitting daily by Starbucks and casually browsing the internet. And having people stare at me in envy as they walked past. That didn't happen.

Today, the scenario has been much improved. Even your local Ah-Beng coffee shop might have Wi-Fi, you'll never know. But IMHO, Wi-fi spots still just aren't ubiquitous enough.

My opinion is that in Malaysia, if you want to really enjoy having Internet wherever you go, you'll need to plonk down that RM 99 or whatever for unlimited 3G or EDGE. And don't try to go for the pay-as-you-go package, the amount of data needed to be downloaded even via simple surfing will burn a hole in your pocket at the end of the month.

I've only ever used Maxis 3G, and I've found it decent, except in my own house in Bangsar where I have extremely spotty coverage. Reports I've read say Celcom has better coverage and transfer rates for 3G, but I can't verify how good that is. Maybe when DiGi launches a 3G service we'll see better service? Who knows?

Either way, I don't think there's really a need to switch lines over 3G service, so stick to whichever mobile operator you're on and just subscribe to the unlimited data package, which is actually a good deal IMHO.

Five Things I do on the Internet

Now here's the crunch. How useful or worth it your investment into unlimited data is going to be really depends on your needs and what your device can do. Your needs will probably vary, so maybe I'll just share you mine.

For the sake of reference, I use a Nokia N95 to do all this stuff down here.

1. Catch up on my Forums reading
I follow a lot of forums, either for Warhammer 40k or just random technology forums. I may not post a lot of replies, but I love reading these forums off my N95 in between wait-periods. When I'm waiting for my next meeting outside. When I'm waiting for Lydia whilst she's shopping. When I go visit some relatives house and found that I have nothing to do.




2. Podcasts
I think I've posted somewhere that I love podcasts and listen to about 2 - 3 a day. What I personally do is I'll download the podcasts throughout the day onto my N95, and turn them on to listen to them whilst I'm out driving. As I spend an average of 1.5 hours in my car everyday, that's about 1.5 hours filled with listening to the content I like - again, Technology news and geek news. Actually, that's how I stay updated.



3. Post my pictures up and comment on other people's pictures
Since Share Online 3.0 was released, I've just been having a lot of fun with Flickr on my N95 that I haven't had before. I love taking pictures (either with my Canon 300D or N95) but hate taking the time to slowly load them to Flickr one by one. So it's really a boon for me to post up pictures directly from my N95 (plus it takes decent pictures too). Also, when I have spare time and I see KY or Suan posting some silly pictures, I'll just go leave a silly comment lah.



4. Watching silly YouTube clips - (I KILL YOU!)
A while back, YouTube launched their video app that allows Flash Lite 3 enabled mobile devices to watch ANY YouTube video (yeah, not just the crappy "selected" mobile videos). I downloaded the one for Nokia S60 devices, but there's other versions for selected Sony Ericsson, Samsung, Motorola and LG phones too. Err...I use this to kill long periods of time or when I want to show some people a funny clip I found but don't have a laptop or internet connection handy. Case in point, this was how I and a few friends watched that Achmed, the Dead Terrorist clip. I KILL YOU!



5. Connecting my Laptop to the internet.
Yeaps, you can get really broadband like speeds through your 3G connection and it doesn't have to be just enjoyed by your mobile. I find that when I'm out and about at work, I'll use my N95 to connect my Thinkpad to the internet and download mails via VPN or just update my blog. It's pretty straightforward, and if you are a Maxis user, you can find out how to configure it here. If you're Nokia user, like me, then you could just use PC Suite's One Touch Access app like below:



6. Twitter-ing!
Not too long ago I discovered a mobile app that allows me to send Twitter updates to my Twitter account. It's called Twibble! and can be found here. This is probably why you see more Twitter updates from me nowadays.



7. Email
The old faithful. I check my company mail and also gmail on my account. This is especially useful when you're ebaying for stuff like me and I want instant email updates as the bids draw to a close.



Okay, this is just the tip of the ice-berg of what you could do with a 3G connection, and the best part of it is...they're all free (save the RM 99 monthly fee for the package). Yeaps, no extra charges needed for extra services.

And there's much more to do - buy stuff off Amazon via a dedicated app, use eBay mobile to place bids, download and install new apps via MOSH - the list goes on.

But just to conclude before I get too long-winded. If you have the urge to do any of the above, and do it frequently, then I'd say go for it! 3G, I mean. The technology in Malaysia is ripe for the picking. :)

A Nokia phone that's nothing new

I'm so proud of Nokia (disclosure: one of my clients) today... this is the stuff I used to dream about as a kid - to take something from all the trash in my house and actually make something of it.


This phone's called the 'Remade', simply because it's made out of 100% recyclable or renewable materials. I spent a good while looking at the pictures to try and figure out where the recycled parts came from. You could almost see the aluminum that's similar to what you find in canned drinks, and I've read that the plastics come off recycled plastic bottles. Really interesting.

Anyway, read Jan Chipchase's blog post to get a better picture on the social idea behind Remade. He's got some interesting pictures of a gentlemen "remaking" the phone.

To Microsoft: forget Yahoo! and buy Motorola's handset division

This post is inspired by this post. See this cartoon.

So Yahoo decides to play wait-and-see with Microsoft, rejecting the initial offer and waiting for US$40 per share. Meantime, the Redmond money men must be calculating if that amount of money is worth spending for a company with so many similar technology assets.

Here, I present, another acquisition option: Motorola! Well, it's handset division.

Moto's all but hinted that they've thrown in the towel in the mobile phone industry and are "exploring ways" to accelerate the recovery of its handset business. Most analysts are reading this as "please buy us out."

And so the names have been spun around - LG could chomp and instantly make itself number 3 in this market. So could Samsung or even Huawei. My take is... what about Microsoft?

Sure, Microsoft can make great devices. Witness the XBOX 360 and all the Microsoft Mice and Keyboards. But it can just as easily flop (Zune?). Purchasing Motorola would give MS a leg into the mobile space and put it smack dab into the centre of the convergence space - internet + computers + mobile.

Serious.

The one thing that Motorola has consistently been unable to get right has been its operating system. In fact, personally, I think the best Moto phones are those that ship with Windows Mobile 6, which (surprise surprise), is a Microsoft product.

Services is the other thing that Motorola haven't really communicated a gameplan on. Microsoft does services. Doesn't take a genius to put two-and-two together.

The only problem would be integrating a hardware division into Microsoft. But, it's not like this something that Microsoft hasn't gone and done before. Moto's handphone division could still continue operating independently whilst integration could take a step by step process.

The bottomline is, MS has money to spend. Yahoo's probably a fair acquisition. But, in my books, Motorola's handset business looks prime.