Let’s face it: the tech sector is dominated by dudes. RIM in all its philanthropicness is once again showcasing the women who, despite the numbers, have dived head-first into the field and found success. The third BlackBerry Women and Technology Awards has been announced, and applications are open to to all women kicking ass in technology. Categories range from multimedia, company advancement, mentoring, technology use in small to medium business, public sector and academia, and a bunch of others. Submissions are closed February 11th., and the award ceremony is March 12th. The prizes are an interesting mix, appealing to both tech and feminine tastes – it’s not often you’ll see a £1,000 software voucher and a spa day on the same list. Thanks Hayden!
Monthly Archive for November, 2007Page 2 of 13
Robb spotted a Seeking Alpha report which gives us a preliminary view of BlackBerry sales last Friday. Verizon’s new BlackBerry 8130 did pretty well, and it’s no surprise that AT&T’s $99 BlackBerry 8310 rocked the charts, too. On the losing end of things we have Sprint, who suffered a “lack of new devices at the U.S. wireless service provider’s stores”. Not enough BlackBerry 8130s to go around, Sprint? Tough break, especially with all that money you’re losing.
Hayden just updated us on the status of vTap, the video search and video player for mobile. It’s now optimized for BlackBerry OS 4.3, which included streaming video support, and stretches back to the 8700. The search is pretty cool, working a lot like Boopsie in that it offers results as you type. On top of YouTube searching, they’ve also got a Wikipedia search with the same instant-return feature. The usual disclaimer follows that you probably shouldn’t be trying this out unless you’ve got an unlimited data plan, or really deep pockets. While it doesn’t look like the video search is ready just yet (just Wikipedia), we’re sure it will soon be accessible at http://m.vtap.com from your mobile browser.
Missed out on all the Black Friday fun? Luckily, T-Mobile’s got a deal on Amazon where you can pick up the Wi-Fi Curve for dirt cheap
Google’s updated Maps to version 2.0, and the big new feature is cell-tower triangulation to find your location. This new beta program called My Location sounds a bit like SameCell, huh? Of course, if you have GPS integrated in your handheld, Google Maps can read that too. Google’s obviously keeping BlackBerry in mind, as it’s a Curve cut-out being used in the video demo, but Nokia, Java and Windows Mobile is supported too. Head on over to http://www.google.com/gmm on your mobile browser to check out the beta. Thanks, Ronen!
Password-keeping software SplashID has been updated to version 4 for Windows Mobile and BlackBerry platforms, packing a couple of new features: links which open directly into the browser, four more fields, an upgraded password generator, secure record e-mailing, and some updates to the desktop client. We poked around at SplashID awhile back, but compared to DataVault, the decision should be clear. Regardless, if you’re looking for an alternative, you can pick up SplashID over here.
In a dual cyclone of Wi-Fi awesomeness, the BlackBerry 8120 and 8320 have both hit Orange UK. All the usual goodies are here, inluding Wi-fi (with UMA voice support), 3.5 mm headphone jack, video capture on a 2 megapixel camera, and the push e-mail we all know and love.
A presenter at Kiwicon, a security conference in New Zealand, recently showed how easy it is to set up a Trojan virus on a BlackBerry. Given this involves installing the client-side program in the first place, Graeme Neilson from Aura Software Security makes it sound like a piece of cake.
“But all code that runs on Blackberrys is signed, right? Yes, Neilson says, but the maker of the portable device, Research in Motion (RIM), isn’t too fussy about who it sells certs to. If you want to get your Trojan code signed to run on a Blackberry, just go to the Research In Motion Web-site, plug in your details, pay a fee and voila! You’re in business.”
Yeah, there’s a lot to be desired when it comes to watching movies on mobile, but movie rental powerhouse Blockbuster is testing the waters, with BlackBerry in particular. By using their recently-acquired Movielink digital movie service, Blockbuster CEO James Keyes was able to throw a flick onto a memory card and pop it into his BlackBerry. All of the hassle of sideloading hasn’t gone unnoticed, as he readily admits “The challenge is how do I make this convenient for everybody”. Streaming video support is available in OS 4.3, and combined with a solid 3G connection, renting a movie while on the fly doesn’t seem entirely out of the question. Technical possibility aside, selling the idea to consumers is going to be the tricky part. How many people want to spend more than an hour staring at a two-inch screen?
The Wi-Fi Alliance, fine folks who set the standards for interoperability across Wi-Fi devices, has recently released a white paper which establishes a new certification geared specifically to handsets using VoIP. This Wi-Fi Certified Voice-Personal accreditation aims to ensure call quality by testing a, b, g, and n versions of Wi-Fi, protected-access 2, multimedia, and of particular interest to BlackBerry is the optional Power Save testing. These are all established certifications that the Wi-Fi Alliance has had for awhile now.
Continue reading ‘Wi-Fi Alliance establishes VoIP standards’
