If you own one of the top of the line Nokia cellular phones, Nokia has unwrapped a piece of gadget-candy that will let you get a little bit more out of it.The On-The-Go Mobile TV add-on cable plugs into Nokia's micro-USB port and brings you any available DVB-H signals available. This won't do you much good here in the states but the DVB digital TV broadcast standard is gaining a foothold in Asia and parts of Europe. DVB has seen tons of exposure in Korea and portable TV devices are quite commonplace.

The tiny USB Mobile TV device is barely more than a cable in size, but has a 3.5mm headphone jack for TV sound. Once you are plugged in you can use the tiny controls on the connector to change the channel and turn the volume up and down. The price is also pretty tiny at roughly $50 as well as the DVB signal, where available, is freely broadcast into the air. If you happen to live in an area where you have access to DVB, the On-The-Go Mobile TV should be available for order by the end of the year.

09/16/2010 - It is hard to find a phone that surpasses the iPhone in terms of functionality or design. But perhaps you are locked into a contract with a carrier other than AT&T, or you are sick of the dropped calls and poor service that AT&T is infamous for. BlackBerry is the iPhone's closest competition and has quite a loyal following, as well.

Both BlackBerry and iPhone have been around long enough that I probably could not tell you anything you do not already know about them. What you may not know is that Google and Microsoft are both working hard to make phones that will serve your needs better than the two current leaders. If there is anything I learned during my time working at Microsoft, it is that competition drives innovation. We should be thankful that the underdogs do not give up and let Apple have a monopoly on smart phones.

Google emerged on the smart phone scene with its Android platform, which is now available on a variety of phones with all major U.S. carriers. You have most likely seen Google phones advertised through Verizon's rampant marketing campaign, promoting its Droid brand of Android-powered smart phones. The Android interface is similar to the iPhone and is open to outside influences. Users can replace Google-made applications with third party apps as they please, which is something you cannot do with an iPhone.

Android phones also have an app store similar to the iPhone's, but with the proliferation of various phones running Android, app developers are flocking to the platform for the same reasons they did when Windows was competing against Macintosh for desktop computers. That is to say, Apple only has one phone on one carrier, while Google has dozens of phones on all carriers. The phone designs among Android phones come in all shapes and sizes. If you prefer a slide-out keyboard for typing, the Motorola Droid or Droid 2 are good options.

If you do not mind typing on a touchscreen, the Droid Incredible or Droid X are both sexy choices. T-Mobile, Sprint and AT&T all have similar offerings if you prefer to avoid Verizon. Microsoft was one of the first to emerge on the smart phone scene, back when smart phones were only owned by nerds like me. Unfortunately for Microsoft, Apple and BlackBerry’s innovative ideas left Windows Mobile in the dust, a phone that only die-hard Microsoft fans (or corporate users with no choice in the matter) use. However, Microsoft has been deep in its labs working on a revolutionary update to its smart phone platform that will be featured on new devices in the coming months. This platform is called Windows Phone 7, and Microsoft plans to compete with Android by making it available on several different phones with all of the major U.S. carriers.

One of the big advantages of Microsoft’s new phones will be their ability to stream music from Microsoft’s vast Zune Marketplace. After paying a monthly subscription fee, users can listen to practically anything they want whenever and wherever they please. So, if you are looking for a new phone, I suggest checking out some of these devices and upcoming options before settling on one of the current leaders. I myself carry an iPhone, but I am hoping that the home team, Microsoft, comes out with something that leaves Apple in the dust.
source: www.dailyevergreen.com

You will soon be able to recharge your mobile wirelessly.

Japanese technology company Fujitsu has developed a system that is capable of charging multiple portable electronic devices like mobile phones and laptop computers without the need for cable connections.The company unveiled a prototype system at an Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers conference at Osaka Prefecture University and it claimed that it was first of its kind in the world.

It works on the transmission of electricity using magnetic fields between the charger and the electronic device. The technology allows wireless charging at distances of up to several metres.

Scientists at Fujitsu Laboratories plan to commercially sell products having wireless charging system by 2012.

"This technology paves the way to integrating compact wireless charging functions into mobile phones and enabling multiple portable devices to be charged simultaneously without any restrictions on their position with respect to the charger," the company was quoted as saying in a statement.

The company added: "We are also looking at applying the results of this work to fields other than portable electronics, including power transmission between circuit boards or computer chips, and providing mobile charging systems for electric cars."

9/15/2010 - Gadget-mad South Korea now has more mobile phones than people, with a growing number of users carrying multiple handsets for business purposes, telecoms authorities said on Wednesday.

The Korea Communications Commission said there were 50 million mobile service subscribers in the country as of this month, more than the population of 48.8 million.

"You may say there are 1.2 million people carrying two phones, but excluding children and those with no phones, the number of multiple-phone owners could be far higher," Choi Seong-Ho, the commission's communication service policy director, told AFP.

Now mobile phones are not simply a tool to make calls and send text messages but an essential part of everyday life encompassing business, shopping and Internet searches, he said.

South Korea launched its first mobile phone service in 1984 and the number of subscribers grew exponentially through the late 1990s and early 2000s.

The agency also said there are 3.67 million smartphone users in the country, 7.4 percent of the total.

Statistics Korea estimates the 2009 population at 49.30 million -- still fewer than the number of mobile phones.