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June 29, 2005
i hope this rumor is true - RAZR running windows mobile
I do really like the Moto RAZR V3 profile, but the camera is a bit weak, and the Moto OS is could be a bit more usable. I'm not a huge fan of the MS Mobile platform, but I like it better than the Palm OS. I'd consider using this model with a keyboard if it does indeed exist.
And, if it doesn't, Moto should hire the designer that photoshopped this!
Posted by Steve at 12:59 PM | Comments (4533) | TrackBack
Google Earth
(click for bigger size)
I'm sure Google bought Keyhole for a song, but i'm glad they did because I otherwise wouldn't have tried this app. (With GOOG at $300, I'm sure Keyhole got a lot more out of the deal than they expected - good for them)
Google Earth allows you to get satellite views of wherever you are going on the globe in 3D.
What is this useful for? Well, I wanted to get a better feel how far my hotel was from the airport on an upcoming trip to Spain, and well, this was the tool to do it with.
I'm sure there are other uses as well that I certainly don't need or haven't thought of, but color me impressed with just this.
Posted by Steve at 07:52 AM | Comments (1839) | TrackBack
June 27, 2005
unlocked cell phones getting easier to get
i noticed today that Tiger Direct, which has been sending me catalogs since i fell off my mother's teat, has started selling unlocked GSM phones. this is cool. i have heard from a few folks at Cingular that they keep seeing more and more of these things on their gateway, which is interesting.
people are catching on that we're way behind the rest of the world when it comes to phones, and that you can go elsewhere...
Posted by Steve at 08:01 PM | Comments (1804) | TrackBack
one thought on google wallet - Google is a marketplace for content
Google Wallet seems like a no-brainer to me. they already have a ton of payment infrastructure to support AdWords and AdSense, right? Ebay is a marketplace for things, Google is a marketplace for content.
as a content publisher, you can already buy AdWords and use AdSense to peddle your content. makes total sense that you could also sell it via the same account as well.
very smart, if this rumor indeed is true. (i know no info)
Posted by Steve at 08:48 AM | Comments (2525) | TrackBack
June 24, 2005
Google Mobile Search
I was playing with Google Mobile Search today (it's really cool!) which allows you to only get XHTML results from a search on your mobile phone.
this essentially means they've flagged XHTML sites into a separate searchable index.
what struck me about this, is that it must be somewhat easy for Google to create sub-indexes of their index so that results only come from a sub-index.
this means it would be equally as easy for them to create a "blog" search or RSS feed search. Now I think they need to make that a real time set of results, but it has to be coming soon.
With the new Technorati getting slower and slower and being clouded by "Tags" which are totally useless, I imagine I will be saying goodbye to Technorati very soon. Right now it's a habit that i use Technorati every day, but man, I would expect to drop them like a steaming hot iron if i had a real time Google. (or Yahoo!)
Posted by Steve at 08:51 PM | Comments (3689) | TrackBack
Best Buy, you've let me down
i used to shop at Best Buy all the time. i mean, i bought a lot of stuff there. today, we were moving offices ( bigger digs to handle our 12, 13? employees) so i went to Best Buy looking for the 3 or 4 things i wanted i expected them to carry. what did i find? bubkis. (10 pts for the yiddish)
Best Buy no longer stocks anything. they have a whole store fulla stuff, but nothing i want. this included a PSP game, a DVD, and i don't think you can find any CDs there anymore.
What happened?
Posted by Steve at 08:34 PM | Comments (711) | TrackBack
cell phone jammers
i saw this via an AdSense keyword - but who buys cell phone jammers? these are evil for sure. I think Target stores have these. i have a cell phone with every carrier, and none of them work in Target stores. either that or they must have some other radio interference...
Posted by Steve at 08:28 PM | Comments (261) | TrackBack
June 21, 2005
games from japan
while in japan i picked up a few nintendo DS games for the kids...Nintendogs! pretty popular game there. basically, think tamagotchi, but with real dogs. there are three versions (two shown here) that allow you to feed, train, and grow your pup into a real dog. there's a couple cool twists:
1. the dogs react to voice commands. yep, if you know such things in Japanese, you can train your dog with commands. in through the DS microphone, and the pup on screen reacts.
2. you can put your dog onto your friend's DS via wireless, and they can play together.
have we figured out how to do any of this stuff yet? no way.
part of this was an experiment to see how well my kids would do without being able to read. the answer is "so-so". it turns out the y need their parents help now and again in learning video games more than i thought.
The PSP game (above) is called "Shotokou Battle" and generally seems to require a lot of setup before actually racing. i was told "Japanese like a lot of details."
At any rate, Nintendogs is cool, and i think there is an american release coming.
Posted by Steve at 08:32 AM | Comments (1913) | TrackBack
June 19, 2005
Treo 650 vs Nokia 6680 [via This is Mobility]
This is Mobility has a good comparison of the Nokia 6680 and the Treo 650.
Treos are certainly more popular around these parts (for one, because you can buy them from the operators) so this is interesting because it's U.K. based where Palm certainly doesn't have the foothold that it does in the U.S. It will be interesting to see how the Treo can make inroads in the U.K. where certainly people aren't tied to their palm apps.
Posted by Steve at 08:33 AM | Comments (66) | TrackBack
June 08, 2005
Japan wins in empty stadium
This was wild - but it was wild in Tokyo as Japan qualified for the World Cup by beating North Korea 2-0. What was wild about this game as I witnessed on television was that the game was played in an empty stadium in Thailand as a punishment for throwing bottles at the crowd in a game against Iran.
Posted by Steve at 04:54 PM | Comments (1345) | TrackBack
cool, that's real 3G
for those of you 6680 users out there, that's what the signal strength indicator looks like when you get a real 3G signal. it's pretty snappy here in Japan. okay, back to the Japan / North Korea qualifying match.
Posted by Steve at 05:48 AM | Comments (2265) | TrackBack
June 06, 2005
PSP and DS games, and language
i was reading this article in CNET about PSP Games Slumping in Japan and noticed that the top titles there for both the PSP and the Nintendo DS, all the top rated games in Japan are different than the ones on the top of the list here.
that got me to thinking... my kids seem to get around videogames pretty well without being able to read - could they play these titles and enjoy them without being able to read Japanese?
well the good news is i'm going to Japan this week, so we'll be able to find out. i definitely want to bring back a few of these to see how the top of the top holds up against the U.S. favorites. i'll report back with my findings...
Posted by Steve at 12:25 PM | Comments (1933) | TrackBack
June 02, 2005
more and more VOIP for me
more and more i am moving to using VOIP as my primary voice telephone technology. at home we've been using AT&T Callvantage, which once i figured out how to put it behind a router has worked wonderfully. it's great that i can get at my call logs from anywhere and listen to voicemails over the web or have them emailed to me. not to mention not having to pay SBC.
mostly though i've been using Skype, which is just a fantastic service for communicating on a global basis. all my scheduled calls between North America and Europe i now try to setup using skype which is both a VOIP client and an IM client. they also support calling out to landlines and (some) mobiles - and now have plans for incoming calls as well.
i bought this $20 Altec Lansing headset (only the best for me!) and it works great for this type of task.
it's also worth noting that most of the IM providers and Apple have PC-to-PC calling capabilities and will probably open up calling to standard telephone networks eventually.
So what do i use my mobile for then? well, i still use it as my primary number, for calls on the go, as well as most domestic calls. mostly however, i use my mobile for data.
i use it to read and respond to email, i use it to read feeds and blogs, and use it for IM and texting. i use it to read books. oh, yeah, and a few games.
Posted by Steve at 08:23 AM | Comments (647) | TrackBack