Do You Want a 3D Phone?

Touchscreens are passe, and no-one cares about the size of your camera. As of July 1 it's all about how many dimensions you have. HTC and LG are leading the charge, specifically the EVO 3D and the Optimus 3D, respectively.

With the recent outbreak of 3D technology, from cameras and video cameras to gaming and home entertainment systems, phones were never going to get away from it.

Cnet reviewers give reasonable credit to the
EVO and the Optimus, but it's certainly not everyone's cup of tea. The angle between the screen and your eyes has a narrow window of efficacy and it's easy to miss, which may put off people. The hack may not be worth the novelty.

As more phones hit the market with 3D capabilities, it will be interesting to see whether it's a fad or a legitimate feature people are interested in. If you can't get out of your contract and want 3D, get this cheat sheet.

We say skip the 3D and move straight onto lasers and holographic projection.

Could Driverless Cars end Traffic?

Google has been cruising around the US in automated cars for ages, Nevada is passing legislation that is a step toward allowing these machine controlled vehicles to roam the roads and Opel is currently evaluating a study on the impact on safety, congestion and fuel consumption networking cars using Vehicle to vehicle technology would have.

This seems the obvious direction transport is going. Trains, trucks, taxis, aeroplanes and ships are all constantly informing each other where they are, amongst other information so it's natural to assume private vehicles would do the same. Some are already heading that way, augmenting sensory input with other info.

In the interim though, what about person to person? More specifically, phone to phone. Networking smartphones in a way that allows people within a certain area or who share destinations and travel routes to share information. This would allow them to stagger their travel times, carpool, or alert each other of heavy congestion and suggest alternative routes. It could go a long way towards alleviating fuel consumption and reducing traffic congestion, and it wouldn't require any additional infrastructure because it's all in place already.

Someone start working on that, please.

Smartphones to Replace Keychains?

We posted an earlier article about how phones are looking to replace cash and plastic and become your wallet on top of already being your communication device and entertainment source. Now it seems they may very well take over the role of keyring too.

Lockitron, a US based company, has a DIY system that connects your doorlocks to a your phone via your router. You can lock and unlock a deadbolt using your smartphone. What's more you can grant access to other smartphones via an SMS for once off uses, say for dinner guests, or for a limited window period, if you have a contractor visiting.

Even better are reports on Springwise that they're working on an NFC based system, so you'd just swipe your phone across your door to enter. Very Star Trek. This is especially good news for people who constantly lose their hotel key cards or get sick of having to traipse down to reception to get them re-coded.

If you could have this system in your car, house and office you would be able to eliminate having to carry keys at all.

Rumors About iPhone 5

Almost the instant Apple unveiled their new iOS 5, rumours of an iPhone 5 release began emerging in the tech and mobile circles. Given Apple's almost cult-like following, it is not surprising that the rumours began and got such traction, especially given the reputations of some of the speculators.

The speculation began with a story on the Boy Genius Report, where claims were made that the iPhone 5 would include a radical redesign. The report was met with skepticism by many, and this skepticism was further entrenched by a report published by Bloomberg stating that the iPhone 5 would look similar to its predecessor, but would be faster due to the upgraded processor. They also claimed the phone would be released in September…

Whatever the future holds, iPhone 5 is certainly on the horizon and will undoubtedly be as anticipated and welcomed as the similarly rumoured iPad 3. The other little piece of knowledge we can all take away from the rumour mill, is that only Steve Jobs really knows what's planned at Apple.

Watch this space...

The Sounds of Charging

Cellphones have an uncanny knack of dying at the most inopportune times: Late at night, stuck in ridiculous traffic, lost in the middle of no-where or while you're being chased through a forest by an Axe-wielding cannibal.

Fortunately, plenty of brainpower has been applied to the dilemma and a host of options have been created that will take care of your needs in roughly 75% of the scenarios mentioned, and plenty that are slightly less intense.

Some are really eco-friendly too, like the thermo-electric charger that uses an open flame or the solar powered version. And for those who live in places that are overcast and not amicable to an open flame, there's the laborious last resort of a hand wound charger. We even found some hand held wind powered options.

If powerpoints are in short supply the Flipit charger leeches power from an outlet already in use, but our choice for sheer novelty and potential is the wearable battery charger that converts sounds into electrical power. UK service provider Orange, as part of their sponsorship of Glastonbury annually unveils an eco and festival friendly initiative. This year they revealed the Sound Charge. It leaves quite a lot to be desired in the aesthetics department.

No more stumbling around in the dark wishing your torch app and GPS had enough juice left after shooting hours of footage of your favourite bands. Finding your tent just got that much easier.

Who Gets the Pie?

There are really only three mobile OS systems worth talking about: Google Android, Apple iOS and Microsoft WP7. Almost all manufacturers are on one of those.

There has also been a lot of movement and buzz recently what with new updates coming out including iOS 5 and Mango, as well as the rumour mill getting involved about the possibility of Apple releasing iPhones that aren't linked to a contract or a carrier. This, combined with their recent tendency to take the best jailbreaks and include them in software upgrades (or just do what the other guys have done, only better), makes us wonder how much longer it takes until Apple turns their whole strategy on it's head and opens up the software on all it's devices to developers.

Maybe the announcement by research firm IDC that Windows will have 20% market share within the next 5 years has been the cause of a re-assessment of strategy. Whatever the cause, we should all be cheerful: it means the end user is going to get better and better products as developers vie for domination.

Texting at 10 000 Feet

We're used to turning our devices off when we fly. You send that last message to whoever is meeting you, power down and hope that there's something worthy of your attention in the complimentary magazine. When there isn't you vacantly stare at the safety instructions or the menu because anything is better than making accidental eye contact with the person sitting uncomfortably close to you and will continue to do so for the near future.


We've all been told that the polite demand to power down is due to interference with the plane controls. It's coercion through fear, but the evidence to support this is practically non-existent. Would you get on a plane that could fall out the sky because of a tweet?

More than anything this policy is about manners. You don't have a loud and animated discussion in a crowded space full of strangers and planes fall into the same category as elevators, trains and cinemas.

SAA is joining a handful of airlines cautiously entertaining the integration of mobile devices into air travel, whether it's passengers doing status updates at 10 000 feet or pilots using manuals on iPads instead of huge textbooks. So yay for the environment there.

We think it's a step in the right direction, so long as everyone remains polite and considerate. Cos it's not like they can ask you to leave because you're bothering everyone else, is it?

Andriod - Zero to Hero in Two Years

Unlike the iPhone which enjoyed almost frenzied sales when it launched, when Google launched its Android operating system for mobile phones and tablets in 2008, it barely made a ripple in the global mobile market's pond. But just over two years later and the Android has made huge ground, and is now on an almost even footing with its two biggest rivals, Apple IOS and Blackberry.

While Android has undoubtedly made ground on its competitors because Google has allowed phone manufacturers to use it for free, there are other factors that have accounted for its success. According to wheresthesausage.com, Android also has a powerful brand property in its little green robot, which has become a symbol synonymous with the operating system. Google are well aware of this, and have worked to recreate the 2-D image in various 3-D formats, and this has in turn led partners like Sony to embrace the logo raising the brand equity.

The strength of this recognisable brand property has played a massive roll in driving Android sales over the past two years, allowing the brand to become a major mobile player. So we're sure you'll be seeing a lot more of the little green robot over the next few years.

Fancy Fingerwork

Nothing like a bit of exercise to build up a healthy appetite, although the citizen's of Stockholm may discover that what they're burning off in calories doesn't quite match what they're putting back in with this promotion.

The Swedish Ronald has begun a promotion which allows locals to play a game of Pong against a digital opponent, with the prize of a free item off the McDonalds menu if they can last 30 seconds or more. The mobile interaction is built in such a way that the user doesn't need to download anything. They simply log onto a website, their location based software confirms they're in the area and if they win a digital coupon is sent to their phone.

The promotion is called Pick n Play. We imagine that one local franchise would disapprove of such a campaign were it run domestically. Unfortunately Pong With Ron doesn't roll off the tongue quite so smoothly.

What is a Twimera?

Twitter has been generating a lot of buzz, if you'll pardon the onomatopoeic contradiction. First they bought Tweetdeck, then they introduced the Follow button, and now they've announced that in partnership with Photobucket they're going to be taking photosharing and hosting in-house, as opposed to leaving it up to third party developers like it has been until now.

Twitter is pretty amazing because they gave permission to the users to decide how they would like to use it instead of telling them. Now they're building on that foundation and by looking at where they've started we can sorta kinda guess at their intentions.

Tweetdeck makes using Twitter very, very easy on a computer, so they have a platform to flesh out their web presence. The Follow Button makes connecting a one stop affair, (similar to the Facebook Like or Google's +1), and the combination of hashtags, video and photosharing mean information of any sort is categorised and at your fingertips in real time.

This is total conjecture of course but if you put all the pieces together, stand back a bit and squint through one eye, Twitter may very well be shaping up to become a chimera that existing animals like search engines, browsers and social media platforms should be very wary of. Maybe most importantly, it's built to work seamlessly across multiple platforms and was born post mobile bubble boom, and that could be the most important factor of all.