May 14 Verizon Wireless to Embrace Linux OS
Found in:Verizon, Linux, smartphone,

We keep talking about Windows Mobile and Symbian, about Android or Mac OS, so imagine my not-quite-so-big surprise when I heard Verizon Wireless is thinking outside the box. They are thinking about changing their preferred OS. They have just joined Limo Foundation which, and I quote, is an industry consortium dedicated to creating the first truly open, hardware-independent, Linux-based operating system for mobile devices end quote.


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Mar 01 Gupp unveiles Linux Powered Smartphone called Phreedom
Found in:Devices, Linux, Smartphone, Mobile News,

Now we have a Malaysian company called Gupp Technologies that have unveiled a Linux based Smartphone called Phreedom. I have to say that I am impressed after these all attempts of putting linux on PDA!

Gupp says the Phreedom targets consumers and cost-conscious businesses, which can reduce roaming costs by using VoWiFi when possible, with GSM/GPRS used as a backup. Additionally, the phone offers smartphone features such as Internet browsing, music downloads, and email.

Along with a QWERTY hardware keyboard, the Phreedom has a landscape-mode 2.5-inch QVGA (320x240) LCD display with 265K colors. Connectivity options include an 802.11b/g WiFi radio with WEP, WPA, and 802.11i support, and a "double tri-band" GSM radio apparently supporting 850/1800/1900 MHz and 900/1800/1900 MHz.

Additional touted Phreedom features and specs include:

* PXA270 processor clocked at 312MHz
* Boots from NOR Flash
* Combined 320MB flash and SDRAM
* 2200mAh lithium ion battery
* USB
* Claimed five hours of talk time in WiFi mode
* Claimed 144 hours standby time
* 4.4 x 2.6 x 0.75 inches (112 x 65 x 19mm)
* 4.6 ounces (130gm)
* Mobile Linux 2.6 kernel

The Phreedom phone will ship in Q2, 2007, according to Gupp. It will be distributed by 3P Electronics, a global electronics vendor described as serving a broad network of retail chains, according to Gupp co-founder Guy Tessens. 3P is one of Gupp's backers. Pricing was not disclosed.

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Jan 08 Nokia N76, N93i and N800 promo videos
Found in:Mobile News, Linux, Nokia, Devices,

Nokia has just made available new promo videos of its latest phones. Infact they are quite nice looking and as ever will work nice and will be filled with features.

So if you want to watch the new promo videos Go to Nokia's CES page and click on Blog and then Videos.

Note that the Nokia N800 is Linux-based and doesn't include telephony options.

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Jul 14 Super Mario Bros. clone Supertux ported to Pocket PC
Found in:Games, Pocket PC, Linux,

Pocket PC software developers has successfully ported one of the built-in by default in SuSE linux game called Supertux. It is quite good clone on Super Mario Bros. game.

Till now there are a few decent Super Mario Bros. clones ported to the Pocket PC ( like Quigley's Quest, OpenJazz or Gold Miner Joe ). SuperTux i can say is better made than the other clones and is more interesting and spectacular.

In SuperTux you will Run and jump through multiple worlds, fighting off enemies by jumping on them or bumping them from below. Grabbing power-ups and other stuff on the way.

SuperTux is priced $9.95 and is available for order here.

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May 05 A Look at What is New With Free Voice Over IP Providers
Found in:Tips, Software, Pocket PC, Linux,

What you should know before signing up with a voice over IP provider. The information provided in this article is geared toward people who operate a Linux operating system and are interested in converting their Pocket PC into a free Voice Over IP Phone. At the end of this article you will see a comparison chart, which will show the following:

* What operating system/platform do you need? Will you be running a Linux, Macintosh, Pocket PC or Windows Microsoft operating system?
* What is the pricing structure?
* Will you be able to make calls from your computer to a real landline phone?
* The ability to use videoconferencing or not
* Where can you buy it?
* How is the sound quality?

I trolled the Internet for something new, interesting, unusual and perhaps something you’ve never heard about in the Voice Over IP or digital telephone markets. Before going further, I would like to define the following important industry terms:

* What is Voice Over IP?
* What does the term server-side mean?
* What does the term client-side mean?

In a recent article, Peter Wolchak of Backbone Business Technology Lifestyle, interviewed Mario Belanger, president of Avaya Canada to get his perspective on the Voice Over IP market. Mario Belanger said, "Over the next five years, we expect the Canadian telecom market will shift offering fully converged IP telephoning solutions. Globally, there are approximately 400 million business lines and only about 18 million to 20 million are IP based business phone lines, which works out to 5% of the market. We're seeing a dramatic growth in IP telephony we think it will continue over the next five years. Our goal over the next five years is for Avaya's communications solutions to become designed into the offerings from the Canadian service providers. For example, customers will be able to call their service providers in Avaya solutions designed to fit their needs. This is likely not going to happen within five years, but is a longer-term goal." Mario Belanger also shared that the new features such as: meet me conferencing and unified messaging will put Voice Over IP in a competitive advantage over traditional long-distance services.

What is voice over IP?

Simply put, Voice Over IP is the ability to make a telephone call from your computer. The call on the Internet that you make from your computer, Pocket PC, tablet PC or laptop is turned into a voice signal, which is patched into your callers’ regional telephone network. Voice Over IP, digital telephony or Internet telephony is a technology that brings both Internet and the phone together. Internet telephony is an exchange of voice data over a network. Your local telephone company has a dedicated network to transmit voice data. However, with Internet telephony, the voice data streams over a general network, which in this case is the Internet.

Here is what you need to make calls on your computer or Pocket PC:

Plug your landline phone into a broadband Internet router
* Plug the broadband router to your electrical outlet for power
* Connect a cable from your Internet ADSL or cable modem to the broadband router/Voice Over IP phone adapter unit
* Connect a cable from the voice over IP broadband router / phone adapter to a router or hub switch
* Connect your desktop computer, Pocket PC or laptop to a router / hub switch

If you do not understand this information, please click on this link:http://www.broadvoice.com/support_install_SPA2100-bv.html where you'll be directed to a diagram, that visually explains what you need to do to make calls on your computer or Pocket PC.

As a business user, it's important to take into account that there are problems in using this inexpensive technology to make long-distance calls from your computer. Please keep these in mind:

* When making an outgoing long-distance call, you may or may not connect. Voice Over IP is still in its infancy in development.
* If you're using a 56K modem as your Internet connection speed, your voice will have a delay in the connection. You can remedy that by subscribing to a broadband cable Internet service provider.
* Before calling your local telephone company to disconnect your landline, the Voice Over IP technology has a lot of catching up to do.
* What if you need to make an emergency call and call 911? You're not guaranteed 100% that you Voice Over IP call will go through. In my previous article Voice Over IP Comparison, which you'll find by clicking on this link: http://www.symbianone.com/content/view/2123/31/ I discussed how there are full-service Voice Over IP providers, that will allow you to make 911 calls. Both Vonage and Net2phone have this service.
* Another problem with digital telephony is that there is not an E.164 standard like the ones set up to assign cell phone or landline phone numbers.

Eavesdropping On An Internet Telephone Call

Since Voice Over IP is still a developing technology, it's really easy for even a high school student to hack into your system to spy on your Internet telephony conversation. Encryption is not available on Voice Over IP. I wouldn't advise you to throw your Mickey Mouse telephone away just yet!

What Does the Term Server-Side Mean?

The server-side in the Voice Over IP equation would be the Internet telephony service provider. You need to sign up with a Voice Over IP provider if you want to make Internet telephone calls. There are full-service telecommunication firms such as : SIP phone, SIP Broker, Vonage, lingo, AOL, Total Talk, Verizon Comcast, Shaw cable, and Baby Tel, which are Voice Over IP service providers. These providers offer web-based Voice Over IP service for a monthly subscription fee. Some digital telephony providers are free such as: Skype and X-lite Counterpart Solutions Inc. Watch how Skype lets you make Voice Over IP calls to a conventional landline. In this case, you'll only be able to make PC to PC calls. Forget about ordering pizza or Chinese food on a Friday night if you are Skype user.

Pocket PC Voice Over IP - A Surprising Feature

Pocket PC owners, you'll be glad to know there is a company called Counter Path Solutions Inc. who will sell you a single user license for your Pocket PC for only $29.95 USD. It's called a Pocket PC 2.2 Sip SOFT Phone. Best of all, you can make videoconferencing calls if you upgrade to the next level. When you save money by using your Pocket PC to make free long distance calls, it’s like crispy, salty beer nuts - it's addictive! Once you start, you can't stop. To find out how you can use your Pocket PC as an Internet phone, please click on this link: http://www.xten.com/index.php?menu=Products&smenu=PPC. Best of all, you don't even need a headset to make or receive calls using the Pocket PC 2.2 Sip SOFT Phone application.

What Does the Term Client-Side Mean?

There are generally three types of standards or protocols in a typical Voice Over IP solution.

• 1) H.323
• 2) SIP or Session Initiation Protocol
• 3) There are also third-party proprietary protocols used by: Skype, SCCP, CISCO.

What's the difference between the session initiation protocol and the rest of the different standards? SIP stores the VoIP customer's IP address in their own package. This can be a problem when your Linux, Macintosh or Microsoft Windows operating system is behind a firewall.

Both Gnome Meeting and Microsoft NetMeeting use the H.323 protocol. Apple's iChat, SIP phone and Microsoft Messanger use the Session Initiation Protocol(SIP).

Hardware for you - The Client

If you want to have the highest possible sound quality, consider these two options:

1) Purchase a TALKPro USB 100 parrot translator from VXI Corporation for only $129.00 USD. You can call them toll free at (800)742-8588. Their Corporate website is: vxicorp.com. Hours of operation are from 8AM to 5 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. Some of the features I really enjoy on this Macintosh certified headset include: volume dial control, the mute on and off button, the quick disconnect switch, Echo reduction, noise canceling technology ensuring higher speech recognition accuracy. Once you start using the VXI talk Pro headset, you'll never consider any other brand name. If you are also a Macintosh user, you'll be glad to know that these headsets are compatible with Macintosh laptops and computers. If you would like to read a recent press release on the talk Pro USB 100, please click on this link:http://www.vxicorp.com/about/Press/2006/2006-04-04.asp. In addition to the noise canceling technology, you'll also appreciate the very high call quality coming through on your TALKPro USB 100 parrot headset. This product comes with a two-year unconditional warranty.

2) In addition to considering your network architecture, look at how much available bandwidth you can access. I tested a Voice Over IP call using a slow dial-up 506K modem. The call was not even, there were dead gaps where I couldn't hear anything from the other caller. The static and connection was really poor and inconsistent. I tested another call using my Talk Pro USB 100 headset from VXI. This time using a high-speed broadband cable connection provided by Shaw cable, the call had clarity, there were no echo sounds, and I could hear the person very clearly through out the duration of the call. I was really impressed. I run a Linux operating system and installed Gnome Meeting on my computer and have found this to the best option.

If you want a use your Pocket PC as a Voice Over IP phone, your best bet is a Pocket PC 2.2 SIP phone from www.xten.net. Here is a comparison chart of four applications, which I tested. Comparison Chart.

	Gnome Meeting	Kphone	Skype	X-Lite
Licence	Open Source / GPL	Open Source / GPL	Proprietary free ware	Proprietary free ware
Operating System	Linux	Linux	Linux, MS windows, Mac	Pocket PC, Linux, MS windows, Mac
Make Calls from your computer to a real phone	Yes	No	No	No. But Pro-version. Possible
3 way calling	Yes	no	no	No. only in Pro-version
Sound quality	Very good, consistent	Good enough for me since I use Broadband connection	Good, sometimes choppy & flaky	The sound was good in both directions, sometimes on a subsequent call, there was static in the speech
Requires Headphones to work	yes	Yes	Yes	No
Protocol	H.323, SIP	SIP	Has their own proprietary Protocol	SIP
Where to buy it?	Gnome Meeting	Kphone Website	Skype Website	Buy it from the Xten Website

You are not bound by a fixed location. Like the old adage, have phone will travel; only now it's the broadband router and phone adapter that travels with you. Simply pack the adapter in your suitcase and at your new destination just plug it into a broadband connection. Say hi to your friends and neighbors back home just by using one of the Voice Over IP providers recommended above. Source: The Linux Journal issue 145.

Source: Rene Tse.

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Feb 25 Dual mode Linux GPS Smartphone introduced by ImCoSys
Found in:Devices, Linux, GPS,

ImCoSys, a Swiss company, has published a datasheet for a dual-mode Linux smartphone that also integrates a GPS receiver, WiFi, and Bluetooth. ImCoSys says its smartphone, a quad-band GSM design with a PDA-like form-factor and they will showcase it next month at CeBIT in Hannover, Germany.

The ImCoSys phone is based on a Texas Instruments OMAP 730 processor. The same chip was used in another dual-mode Linux phone announced by E28 at 3GSM last month. The ImCoSys phone has 64MB each of RAM and Flash and additional SD Card slot, which can be used to load maps or expand storage, the company says.

The phone has a LCD-TFT touchscreen display supporting 262K colors and QVGA (240x320) resolutions. Listed connectivity options include a USB port, and now is the interesting part - an RS232 serial port. The device also supports external GPS and GSM antennas.



The ImCoSys phone measures 4.9 x 2.5 x 0.7 inches (125 x 64 x 18mm) and features :
* Quadband GSM (850/900/1800/1900) with GPRS Class 10 and CSD modems
* 802.11b WiFi, with WPA support
* Bluetooth 1.2
* GPS receiver

On the software side, the ImCoSys Smartphone runs a Linux 2.4.20 kernel, with user-interface software supporting German, English, French, Italian, and Spanish languages. Software included on the phone is Web/WAP 2.0 browser, Java runtime (MIDP 2.0), push/pop/smtp email client, SMS/MMS message client, calendar, calculator, world clock, and memo applications.

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Feb 07 Real life pics of Treo running Linux
Found in:Mobile News, Treo, Linux,

The Treo linux idea is getting popular this year as you will see at the following pics. Nothing has been released but at least we can get an idea of what it will be.

more info and pic here

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Jan 16 2006 Worldwide Newton Conference & the NewtonOS runs on Linux PDA
Found in:Mobile News, Linux,

The big news coming out of the 2006 Worldwide Newton Conference is that the NewtonOS runs on Linux PDA’s! You read that right, we’re one step closer to having a Newton running on non-Apple hardware.At the 2004 WWNC, Paul demoed Einstein, an emulator running on Mac OS X. He’s improved it over the past year, making the emulator seven times faster.

On my Quad PowerMac G5, it has a speed rating of 9400 iterations/second when running Frank Gruendel’s NewtTest. A stock 2100 has a rating of 11,000. An accelerated Newton clocks in at 13,000. So, we’re not there yet, but we’re getting closer to matching and breaking the speed barrier. The Linux version of the emulator is much, much slower. I don’t doubt, however, Paul’s ability to get the speed up to an acceptable number.



Apple has shown us that the soul of the Macintosh lies not in the choice of processor but in the software and user experience. At the 2006 Worldwide Newton Conference, we demonstrated that the soul of the Newton is not trapped within aging hardware. It’s ready to burst out and transfer its elegance and functionality into a new line of devices. The next year and a half are going to be exciting!



The Linux PDA port of Einstein has a ways to go before it is ready for primetime. Nevertheless, it’s available today! If you have a Linux-based PDA with X11 support, you can run NewtonOS!

The second day of the conference will be tomorrow. I’ll have more updates as they come!

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Jan 04 Motorola announces new LInux A910 Smartphone
Found in:Devices, Smartphone, Linux,

Motorola announces a Linux-Java smartphone under the name A910. It has built in Wi-Fi 802.11b/g, with a 1.3 megapixel camera. The smartphone has a TransFlash (micro-SD) slot, with voice recognition software. The A910 is expected to be available in 1st Quarter of 2006. Whether its available in our shores, that's an unknown.

Streamlined and distinctive, the Motorola A910 delivers a full suite of intuitive productivity tools to seamlessly manage your busy life whether at work or vacationing in Belize. This advanced mobile device can serve as your main means of communication providing everything you need and want in a handset. Too busy to dial a number? With sophisticated voice features and WiFi connectivity* via UMA technology, all you need to do is speak your command and the handset takes care of the rest. The A910 does it all - not only can you listen to MP3 songs, create a personalized soundtrack to simultaneously play along with a selection of your favorite photos that you took with the 1.3 Megapixel camera with Lumi-LED Flash™, you can also manage email* and stay mobile. Tuned in to you, the Motorola A910 packs next generation Linux-Java operating system, Bluetooth® wireless technology, J2ME™ performance, and enhanced text prediction features for a simplified yet powerful mobile experience.



Stress-Free

The perfect way to balance your life in the palm of your hand. Utilizing a balanced Linux-Java operating system and Wi-Fi connectivity, the Motorola A910 surpasses its predecessors with user-friendly features - everything from text messaging to email management. Experience efficient text messaging with prediction features, intelligent addressing, and seamless language switching, or organize on-the-go with MOTOSYNC™* for managing emails, calendars, and contacts. To fit your fast-paced life, the superior J2ME performance will allow you to do it all with precision and speed.



In-Touch

Snap high quality images via the integrated megapixel camera with photo lighting, then create a mobile slideshow of your moment enhanced with MP3 tunes to send to friends and family. Or capture your achievements in real time with video record and playback, and then share via advanced Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS)*.

Supreme Intelligence

This smart mobile believes in prioritization. With the A910 you can answer a call, Instant Message* and email* while sending off a multimedia slideshow to a friend* – this handset ensures that you can multi-task with the utmost of ease and confidence. It can even keep track of those lucky people you communicate with most and automatically place them at the top of your contact list for easy access. This is one smart mobile.

SUMMARY OF FEATURES:

• UMA technology allowing seamless access to GSM and GPRS features over WLAN (802.11b/g)
• Next generation Linux-Java software platform
• 1.3 Megapixel camera with Self Portrait Viewfinder External Display and photo lighting
• Video capture, playback, and 3GPP Streaming
• Progressive downloading to view video clips as they download
• Streaming audio with high quality audio enhancements via headset
• 3D audio and shared media player with multiple audio codecs thru the enhanced mini-USB headset jack
• Removable TransFlash™ memory card slot
• Speaker independent voice recognition - simply state the name or digit — no prerecording required
• Enhanced lighting of the keypad, displays, flash and camera
• Integrated Bluetooth® wireless technology
• MOTOSYNC software with ActiveSync and Airsync for personal desktop integration and enterprise IT integration

The Motorola A910 is expected to be available in Q1 2006. For more information regarding pricing and product availability in your region, please contact your local Motorola representative.

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Dec 11 Linux solution for 2G and 3G mobile phones
Found in:Mobile News, Linux,

RENESAS Technology, represented by Hitachi Australia, and Wipro Technologies have announced that they have ported Wipro's AQUA - a Linux-based mobile phone reference framework - onto Renesas' SH-Mobile Series application processors for 2.5G and 3G mobile phones. This enables mobile phone manufacturers to utilise Linux solution for SH-Mobile, in addition to solutions for Symbian OS and iTRON. Renesas Technology will propose Linux solution based on AQUA from January 2006.

inux is an open source and general-purpose operating system including sophisticated multitasking and networking functionality. Linux is becoming widely adopted as an embedded OS in communication equipment such as network servers and network terminals. Many mobile phones incorporate real time operating systems (RTOS) due to features such as speed and modest memory utilisation. However, it costs more to develop applications, thereby fueling the adoption of Linux which has rich applications.

As Linux has a large-scale standard framework and was designed as a general-purpose OS for PCs, it has faced challenges to customize optimally for mobile phones. Also software specialised for mobile phone needs to be developed for Linux. Wipro Technologies, one of the world's largest R&D service providers with expertise in developing applications for Linux, has developed AQUA and ported onto SH-Mobile to solve these problems. AQUA is a reference framework designed to be compact for mobile phones, having rich applications.

Customers willing to use the AQUA platform can significantly reduce the burden of software development for mobile phones embedding SH-Mobile. Customers will also be provided with system integration services including Linux kernel and applications from Wipro.

Renesas Technology and Wipro will work together to provide Linux-users with mobile phone solutions as well as solutions for consumer products in the future.

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