Developages - Development and Technology Blog

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

We’d been encouraged in previous spy shots that AT&T was intending to keep a clean, brand-free look on the front of the Fuze, but what were we thinking? That’d never sit well with the suits up on the 49th floor of AT&T’s headquarters (we just made that up, by the way — we have no idea how many floors AT&T’s headquarters has), and sure enough, the latest batch of shots is showing a big ol’ logo slapped on the upper right of the face. The poster says release is currently planned for early November, but we’d say that target is about as solid as one of those Jello rings you make in a bundt mold. We’ll believe it when it’s on the shelf, as they say.

[Via wmpoweruser]

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Original post by Chris Ziegler

Filed under: Cellphones, Portable Audio

We must say, we didn’t really expect Samsung’s P270 to get official in this manner, but we’ll take what we can get. Nanoradio has today unveiled that its “Always On WiFi” solution has been “commercially launched inside the world’s first 3G UMA phone.” The tech was already available in the 2.5G P250, but its inclusion in the 3G-capable P270 makes it a world’s first. For those unaware, this creates a dual-mode cellular / WiFi mobile which doesn’t require WiFi to be toggled on or off in order to save battery life. Sadly, that’s about it for details, but hopefully Sammy will come along soon and flesh things out.

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Cellphones, Portable Audio, Portable Video

var digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/apple/DevTeam_releases_PwnageTool_and_QuickPwn_2_1′; With firmware 2.1 now out for the iPhone and iPod touch we bring you the inevitable PwnageTool and QuickPwn response. Apparently, the DevTeam took offense to a previous posting where we questioned the relevancy of continued jailbreaks in the age of the AppStore and official, worldwide iPhone distribution.

So, we’ll put it to you dear reader: as much as we respect these guys for their gen-1 iPhone unlocking and pre-AppStore era work, is PwnageTool and the ability to jailbreak your phone still as important as it was?

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Original post by Thomas Ricker

I missed the 8×8/Packet8 news on July 16th about its new hosted small office “key” system and plug-and-play IP phones. Joan Citelli, Director of Corporate Communications emailed me asking for a briefing, but apparently I never replied since her email was still marked as unread and nothing in my Sent Items. Email overload I guess. The news was about 8×8, working with handset maker Aastra Telecom to provide a key system to the SMB market,which is part of the new Packet8 675xi series.

I happened to come across Carolyn Schuk’s article while surfing the web and came across her post about some 8×8 news that I missed. She writes, “8×8 is VoIP’s Rodney Dangerfield. It just gets no respect.” She has an excellent point and one which I wholeheartedly agree with.

Carolyn then lays out her case: “Consider how it stacks up against its far better-known pure-play VoIP competitor, Vonage: In the last five years, 8×8 revenues grew 460.3 percent while Vonage’s grew 0.0 percent. 8×8 made $700,000 during the first quarter of this year. Vonage lost $8.9 million and is shopping for a $215 million refinancing deal to stay out of bankruptcy. 8×8 holds 73 patents. Vonage just got its first. Despite this, Vonage’s stock price is $1.58 while 8×8’s is $1.03.”

She goes on to explain that the news coverage of the new Packet8 675xi series was sorely lacking, which sparked the Rodney Dangerfield comment. I’m guilty as charged, since I didn’t cover the news. Though it wasn’t for a lack of respect that I didn’t cover the Packet8 news. Sometimes it’s just impossible to cover all the daily VoIP news in addition to my testing of VoIP products, managing the MIS department as CTO, etc.

Well, better late than never. Today, I thought I’d give an overview of the new Packet8 675xi series.

First off, the Packet8 675xi IP phone series consists of three models — the 6753i entry level phone, 6755i intermediate phone and 6757i CT advanced phone. Essentially these are OEM’ed versions of the Aastra 53i, 55i, and 57i CT but with a special firmware load. Each model offers full duplex speakerphone functionality, programmable softkey appearances, LCD display screens, embedded XML browsers and up to nine call appearance lines. All models support Power over Ethernet and come equipped with dual auto-sensing switched Ethernet ports.

Here’s pictures of all 3 models:

The Packet8 675xi series include intercom paging and direct dial from a searchable corporate directory. Prices for the Packet8 675xi series range from $129.99 for the 6753i to $349.99 for the high end 6757i CT model which includes a DECT cordless phone as part of the bundled offer. The 6757i CT model’s built in DECT antenna allows the user to roam up to a 300 foot radius from the 6757i CT base telephone. The Packet8 675xi IP phones also feature corporate directory display and lookup, intercom paging, and shared line appearance.

The Packet8 675xi series of IP phones incorporates 8×8’s advanced NAT traversal technologies. This allows users to simply plug the phone into any Internet connection and immediately make or receive calls without performing any network or firewall configuration.

The high-end Packet8 6757i CT includes an integrated cordless handset with coverage up to 300,000 sq ft. It has a large 144 x 128 pixel graphical backlit LCD display and 6 dynamic context-sensitive softkeys, and with its large screen it can take full advantage of XML based programs.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, the Packet8 675xi series use SIP trunking to Packet8’s network infrastructure. All of the telephony functions such as transfer, conferencing, voicemail, etc. reside on the Packet8 network. Thus, you don’t need any costly IP-PBX hardware at the customer premise - you just need IP phones. This can be a huge cost savings for SMBs looking for an inexpensive VoIP solution, especially as the costs and margins for IP-PBXs continue to shrink with growing price pressure from more competition and open source solutions like Digium’s Asterisk.

Packet8/8×8 certainly has earned my admiration with some great products and services, a cool videophone, and more VoIP patents than you can shake a stick at! My ‘respect’ has been duly given.

Tags: 8×8, Aastra, Asterisk, Carolyn Schuk, Digium, IP phones, Packet8, Packet8 6757i, Packet8 6757i CT, Packet8 675xi, smb

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Original post by Rico

Filed under: Storage

First things first: this guide is absurdly complicated for what you get, but if you’re the kind who thinks the journey is half the fun, you’ll likely be in nerd heaven. In an attempt to make an easily accessible hidden storage disk, one Doppelgangergang hacked up an unused phone jack, a 4GB flash drive and a USB / phone cable. After a good bit of splicing, cutting and soldering, a custom phone line-to-USB cable emerged, enabling him to discreetly access the data with mum and dad assuming he was simply doing research over that trusty 56k connection. Really, MacGyver would give mad props here — tap the read link to see if you’re up for the challenge.

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Peripherals, Storage

Alright, so we’ve harshed a little bit on FireWire recently, but we’ve got to stop and give the venerable interconnect some love: the 1394 Trade Association says that there are now over a billion FireWire ports out there. That’s quite an accomplishment, even if we’re not so sure that the group’s claim that “every 1394-equipped device sold now has 1 billion opportunities to connect” is the most accurate or useful way of measuring the success of the technology. Even still, growth is always a good thing, and with an estimated 15 percent expansion rate in existing markets and some new applications like in-car networking showing potential, it looks like FireWire is set to hold its own against USB and eSATA for a while longer.

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Original post by Nilay Patel

Filed under: Peripherals, Storage

The 1394 Trade Association is already talking up FireWire S3200, but Symwave is taking baby steps, demonstrating a 1.6Gbps system known as S1600 (shocking) that’s backwards-compatible with FireWire 800 and 400 this week at a conference in China. That’s great and all — transferring 1000 four megapixel images in five seconds sure sounds like a good time — but speeds like that probably aren’t going to cut it when FireWire 800 devices are already thin on the ground, everyone’s looking forward to S3200, and the 4.8Gbps USB 3.0 spec is already making appearances on schedule for a launch in 2010. Not to mention that Wireless USB 1.1’s target speed is 1.0Gbps — you know we’ll take a slight speed hit if we can ditch the cables.

[Via PC World; Warning: PDF read link]

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Original post by Nilay Patel

Filed under: Laptops

We’ve already witnessed Intel’s Penryn family filter into a select few of HP Compaq’s business-minded lappies, and similar to Dell’s update-as-we-go mindset, the firm is refreshing four more models today (while leaving others to age further). As of this very moment in time, the 8510p, 8510w, 8710p and 8710w laptops can be configured with the 2.1GHz T8100, 2.4GHz T8300, 2.5GHz T9300 or 2.6GHz T9500, depending on machine. Granted, you’ll pay a pretty penny for those smaller, cooler processors, but we’re sure the corporate card won’t even notice the added weight.

[Thanks, Christopher]

Read - HP Compaq’s 8510p
Read - HP Compaq’s 8710p
Read - HP Compaq’s 8510w
Read - HP Compaq’s 8710w

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Laptops

Although HP has already stuffed Intel’s latest Core 2 Duo chips into its Pavilion lineup, now it appears that some of its business-minded units are also getting the Penryn treatment. As of now, the 2.1GHz T8100 is an available option on the 6720s and 6820s, while the 2.4GHz T8300 becomes available on the 6510b and 6710b. Reportedly, the firm’s 8700 lineup will be joining the club within “the next two weeks,” but we won’t blame you if you head elsewhere in the meantime.

[Via CNET]
Read - HP Compaq 6720s
Read - HP Compaq 6820s
Read - HP Compaq 6510b
Read - HP Compaq 6710b

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Handhelds

You might remember that little BenQ MID prototype which was doing the rounds at IDF and CES. Well, it looks like the folks at HQ have decided to get all official with the newly-repainted gadget — creatively dubbed the BenQ Mobile Internet Device — during another three letter party, MWC. According to the press release, the unit boasts a 4.8-inch touchscreen, 0.3-megapixel webcam, and “high-speed mobile internet access.” Interestingly, the company appears to be aiming for some fancy-shmancy gesture input, like sliding finger movements and the ability to shake the device to minimize windows — a feature which should notably increase the numbers of these which get thrown across a room. BenQ still hasn’t given any release date or expected price on the Menlow-based device, so don’t start any breath-holding competitions just yet. There’s one more press image after the break, if you haven’t seen enough (and we suspect you haven’t).

[Via jkkmobile]

Continue reading BenQ’s MID gets official-er, can be shaken like a martini

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Original post by Joshua Topolsky

Filed under: Laptops

We’re still on waiting for the official 20,000 word review from John Mayer before we make our final decision, but tech journo heavyweights from USA Today, Wall Street Journal and Newsweek (with Pogue of the New York Times notably absent) have had their MacBook Airs for about a week now, and true to form are espousing some opinion on the slab of metal. Turns out there are few surprises, and you could probably draw the same conclusions from reading the spec sheets and drooling over the press shots like the rest of us losers. Battery life could be the biggest trouble point, with a couple guys rating it around 3.5 hours with heavy use, and even less when watching a movie on iTunes — Apple’s five hour prediction seems a bit optimistic. Nobody’s thrilled about the stuff Apple cut out to get the size down, but it’s hard for these guys to poo poo Apple’s decisions outright (Levy’s comparison to circumcision is downright uncomfortable, to say the least) since there’s an undeniable sexiness to holding and using the Air. One nice perk of the underwhelming power is that the laptop doesn’t run as hot as Apple’s other portables, making it a winner in the “laptop” department. Oh, and 3G? Edward Baig says he asked Jobs about the much-rumored feature, and the idea was apparently tossed around, but eventually dropped due to the desire to give consumers a choice and to keep things slim. 160GB HDD? Again with the slimness. So if you need the sexiest and slimmest thing going, there’s no question the MacBook Air fits the bill, but it certainly looks like Apple excluded a lot of potential customers with the compromises made.

Read - Edward Baig “Given the compromises, I don’t expect anyone to use Air as their only computer.”
Read - Steven Levy “The things that Apple left on were the ingredients for a quality computer.”
Read - Walt Mossberg “If you rely on spare batteries, expect the usual array of ports, or like to play DVDs on planes, this isn’t the computer to buy.”

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Original post by Paul Miller

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Portable Video

Where the failed promise of Managed Copy on Blu-ray and HD DVD left us all hanging, Apple, iTunes, and Fox have oddly picked up the pieces. As paradoxically quietly announced at this week’s Jobsnote, the new Family Guy Presents Blue Harvest DVD comes with an included movie file that one can pull off the disc onto their machine — but only by making use of an included code (and a copy of iTunes with a valid account, of course), which ensures the DRM is still there. What’s unclear is whether the movie file is DRMed before being pulled off the disc, or is encrypted specific to one’s account during the process of download from the disc. Ultimately these details won’t change the fact that iTunes Digital Copy is a ripe target for people who wants to legitimately buy their media, yet doesn’t think it should be friggin’ rights managed. Crazy, we know.

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Original post by Ryan Block

Filed under: Cellphones

If you’re carrrying around a Mobiado Luminoso cell phone, it’s a safe bet you might be interested in Bissol’s brass-encased 4GB flash drives — so why not jack the ritz factor by combining them in Mobiado’s new battery cover for the Luminoso, which features a storage / display compartment for the included drive? That’s right — Mobiado asked itself what its customers wanted, and came up with a custom battery cover that only holds an opulent brass flash drive. Damn, we knew we weren’t exactly the target market, but you’d think they’d at least try to go quadband first.

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Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Original post by Nilay Patel