January 28, 2012
Ugg boots banned at school after students caught hiding cell phones in the fuzzy footwear
According to The Daily Mail, students at a Pennsylvania school have been told to leave their ugg boots at home after they caught one too many students hiding cell phones in them.
Image from Australian Ugg Boots.
Fines threat for credit text messages
UK Firms face raids and fines of up to £500,000 for sending unsolicited text messages about credit or compensation. The BBC reports.
Typical messages claim recipients are entitled to money, promise to write off debts or find a loan, or suggest accident compensation can be claimed.
But in many cases, the products they are selling can actually make people financially worse off.
Read full article.
January 27, 2012
Police track phones with silent SMS
In Europe security services have been sending thousands of Silent SMS messages, allowing them to locate and track phones without the recipient's knowledge. A legal vacuum exists around the technique. Owni.eu reports via @jranck.
The Silent SMS allows the user to send a message to another mobile without the knowledge of the recipient mobile’s owner. The message is rejected by the recipient mobile, and leaves no trace. In return, the sender gets a message from a mobile operator confirming that the Silent SMS has been received.
Read full article.
Previously: - Silent SMS track terrorists
Cell phone ban for commercial drivers - how it will affect them
The US cell phone ban for commercial drivers means for most companies that they will have to double up personnel if theirs driver arent' allowed to make a phone call to announce an upcoming delivery (most companies give a 30 minutes heads up). If the driver is alone, he will have to pull over to make his phone call. [via Cracked Door]
Read full article.
The Big Bang Theory. Raj buys new iPhone and falls in love with Siri. Genious
Watch last night's episode of Big Bang Theory on Suri. Genious!
January 26, 2012
Is iMessage Starting to Take a Bite Out of Standard Texting?
Nevan Mrgan, an app developer for Apple’s mobile operating system, saw a noticeable decline in the number of standard text messages he was sending almost immediately after Apple rolled out iMessage on Oct. 12. [via Bits]
AT&T and Verizon did not immediately respond to requests for comment on whether they were noticing an impact on their businesses.
Read full article.
North Korea threatens to punish mobile-phone users as 'war criminals'
North Korea has warned that any of its citizens caught trying to defect to China or using mobile phones during the 100-day mourning period for Kim Jong-il will be branded as "war criminals" and punished accordingly.
[via The Telegraph]
January 25, 2012
Agency using cellphones for quick job placements in Japan
According to The Economic Times, a placement agency in Japan is using phone handsets' global positioning system to quickly match workers to temporary jobs, doing away with interviews and other formalities.
The firm locates the applicants, using the global positioning systems built into their cellphones and promptly contacts prospective employers.
Employers can view applicants' track records of work performances on LocationValue's phone site and dispense with face-to-face job interviews before landing capable workers.
At present, an estimated 320,000 workers are registered with the company's service.
Read full article.
UK mobile operator O2 sends your phone number to every website you visit
According to TNW, if you reside in the UK and you are one of the millions of subscribers to mobile operator O2, you may be alarmed to learn that the carrier is sending your mobile number to every website you visit on your mobile phone.
Twitter: More than 760,000 tweets sent during State of the Union address
According to Twitter blog, President Obama’s State of the Union address saw the microblogging service record more than three quarters of a million tweets relating to the speech. TNW reports.
Read more.
Why You Shouldn’t Text and Walk
Casey Neistat filmed a PSA-type video about the dangers of texting and walking at the same time for the NY Times. [via Gizmodo]
January 24, 2012
Google Data: Smartphones Overtake PCs
New data from Google released exclusively to Ad Age shows that more consumers in key global markets have Internet-capable mobile devices than computers.
Read full article.
Huh? Text Messaging Horror Haunts Europe
I don't fully understand this article or how the title relates to the content. Seems overly complicated but it's related to "text messaging corrosion" and published by Forbes no less. See for yourself.
Orange to provide free access to mobile Wikipedia in Africa
In the first partnership of its kind, mobile telecommunications operator Orange and the Wikimedia Foundation will provide more than 70 million Orange customers in Africa and the Middle East (AMEA) with mobile access to Wikipedia – without incurring data usage charges.
[IT News Africa via @mobileactive]
'Republik Twitter': A New Twitter-inspired film
A new Twitter-inspired film, Republik Twitter, coming to the big screen in Indonesia next month. TheNextWeb reports.
The film is slated for release date on February 16, just after Valentine’s Day, and it will be in Bahasa Indonesia and not English, as is almost all of the promotional materials.
Read full article.
SpareOne, A $50 Cell Phone That Runs On One AA Battery
SpareOne is a simple phone that can run off of an AA battery—perfect for stashing as an emergency phone along with a prepaid SIM card.
Spotted at CES by Brian Lam of WireCutter.
[via FastCompany and BlogLaptop.]
Cell Hound alerts prison officials as soon as a cellphone call is made
The federal government confiscated more than 21,000 cellphones in 2010 from inmates in correctional facilities nationwide. Prison security officials have longed battled contraband, such as cellphones and now a Maryland company may have an answer. 11News reports.
Security Products ITT is marketing Cell Hound, its technology that can alert prison officials as soon as a cellphone call is made. Company director Terry Vittner said the technology is better than cellphone jamming, which creates radio frequency pollution. The pollution prevents calls from going out or coming into the facility.
Cell Hound can also used by businesses that want to know if workers are on the phone during critical work hours.
Read more.
January 23, 2012
London 2012: Olympics to create 'record' wireless spectrum demand
The London Olympic and Paralympic Games are likely to require up to 20,000 separate wireless frequency assignments, according to the communications regulator Ofcom, nearly double the amount of licences that it granted for the city over the course of last year.
[via the BBC]
January 22, 2012
Police Report 90% of Crimes in India Solved by Cell Phone Records
According to The Times of India, 90% of the cases in one city are solved using forensic information derived from cell phones. Call data records, or CDR, obtained from cell phones is one of the most important tools Indian law enforcement deploys these days. Law Enforcement Today reports.
Cops say that CDR has come in handy for almost every high profile crime case which has occurred in the city in the last seven years. "Now we have better and more accurate CDR technology, which certainly has improved the capabilities of the force. We have solved cases within 24 hours using CDR," the official said.
Read full article.
January 20, 2012
Studies show that mobile phones encourage a more secure, connected and productive life
Numerous studies have shown that there is a strong link between mobile phones and economic growth. The theory here is that mobile phones encourage improved access to educational opportunities, health resources, business and employment opportunities. Another tie into this theory is that it will be more women accessing mobile phones that will encourage this economic growth. SocialEarth reports via @mobileactive.
Security: Studies have shown that an overwhelming majority of women feel safer because of their mobile phones globally.
Connectedness: 85% of women report feeling more independent because of their mobile phones. With access to hospitals and other information for their daily lives, at the click of a button, women can be connected to the rest of the world from the most rural regions.
Productivity: From India to Senegal to Kosovo, women are beginning to realize that the power of mobile phones unlocks economic opportunities in their regions. According to one study regarding women’s opinions on mobile phones, more than half agree that mobile phones encourage additional income.
However, there are certainly hurdles to women owning mobile phones in developing countries. These hurdles include the costs of handsets and service, a lack of understanding as to why they need mobile phones, fear of not being able to learn how to use the technology, and cultural issues relating to the stigma of a women’s role.
Read full article.
Sweden races to beat US on mobile phone payments
According to The Global Post, Sweden is racing to become the first developed country whose people regularly pay for things with their mobile phones.
Because four mobile providers — Telia, Tele2, Telenor and 3 — have formed a joint venture to provide the service, it will be available to 97 percent of Swedish mobile subscribers from the moment it goes live this summer.
Read full article.
January 19, 2012
Phone Stacking Game Goes Viral, Forces Dinner Conversations
The latest phone stacking game craze is simple enough. If you’re at, say, a restaurant with your friends, or at a dinner party and so on, participants simply stack their cell phones at the center of the table. The Inquistr reports.
The phone stacking craze all started with Brian Perez, a Tumblr blogger who goes by the name “Lil b”. The blogger says he came up with the game as a ” fun concept in this new age high tech life of ours,” rightfully adding that “Conversation is the spice of life.”
Read full article.
Shine a Light: The Suitcase That’s Saving Women’s Lives
In the fight against maternal mortality in the developing world, a rugged, portable “Solar Suitcase” is providing reliable electricity to clinics in 17 countries where healthcare workers previously struggled to provide emergency obstetric care by the light of candles, flashlights and mobile phones.
The Solar Suitcase powers medical LED lights, headlamps, mobile phones, computers and medical devices.
[Ken Banks for National Geographic. via @jranck]
January 18, 2012
New App Lets You Track Great White Sharks
The Marine Conservation Science Institute has just launched a new iPhone and iPad app focusing on great white sharks.
The app, called Expedition White Shark, displays a map with live tracking data for the sharks tagged with real-time tracking devices, so that users can follow these sharks at the same time as the research scientists! A “news” interface lets you keep up to date on the latest in shark conservation and research news, and you can learn more about sharks from the “facts” tab. There is also a “meet our sharks” section that provides photos and data on all of the tagged sharks, as well as numerous photos and videos of great whites and the research team in action.
[via Laptop]
No increase in brain tumours in the Nordic countries
The incidence of glioma - the most common form of brain tumour - is not increasing in the Nordic countries, contradicting the claim that mobile phone use is a cause of the disease. This according to a new study from Karolinska Institutet published in the scientific journal Epidemiology. Press release via Medical Express reports.
Read full press release. Image from Dragon Tatoo Trilogy
Apple's new, edgier personal assistant called Surly
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As presented by The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (12/1/11).
Apple's new, edgier personal assistant called Surly, as presented by The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (12/1/11). Funny.
[via Kevin McCurley+]
New Samsung technology can make cell phones waterproof
Samsung has just announced their anticipation for a product known as superhydrophobic coating. The technology is said to be capable of literally making cell and smartphones waterproof and has been used on clothes for decades. Digital Journal reports.
Read more.
January 17, 2012
Singapore Bank Launches SMS After $1 Million in Losses
In response to a ATM skimming scheme that hit some 700 DBS Bank customers in Singapore - DBS is one of the largest retail banks in South East Asia - the bank announced last week plans to launch a real-time SMS/text alert service. BankInfoSecurity reports.
"This kind of countermeasure has most typically been deployed with Internet banking systems to thwart Trojan-based fraud attacks, but it can work very effectively in just about any transaction environment," Wills says. "This flexibility offers FIs a good way to leverage their investment in a customer alert system."
Read more.
Mobile Phone App Measuring Radiation Exposure is Launched in Australia
The Tawkon app for Android tracks and rates a phone’s level of mobile radiation exposure (low, moderate or high) and suggests situation-specific adjustments for lowering it to safe levels during a call.
Tawkon is currently undergoing tests for FCC certification.
[via ITWire]
Related links to articles on radiation detectors in cell phones, blogged by textually over the years.
Mobile Lorm Glove - A communication device for deaf-blind people
The Mobile Lorm Glove from The Design Research Lab in Berlin is a communication and translation device for the deaf- blind. It translates the hand-touch alphabet Lorm, a common form of communication used by people with both hearing and vision impairment, into digital text and vice-versa.
The prototype enables the deaf-blind user to compose messages via the pressure sensitive palm of the glove that are transmitted as a text message to the receiver's handheld device. Vibrotactile feedback patterns allow the wearer to perceive incoming messages. It supports communication over distance, provides access to autonomous information and serves as an interpreter for people not familiar with Lorm.
via Laurent Haug
January 16, 2012
Are we ready to give mobile operators our health information?
Network from Michael Rigley on Vimeo.
A visualization of the trace of the information we feed into networks when we send a MMS by Michael Francis Rigley, a graphic designer from San Francisco.
