Calls b/w Chennai-TN, Mumbai-Maha, Kolkata-WB made local

In a major benefit to mobile subscribers, Government today said that calls between Chennai and rest of the Tamil Nadu and likewise between Mumbai and Maharashtra, Kolkata and West Bengal, and in the whole of Uttar Pradesh would be treated as local calls.

New Delhi, May 21 (PTI) In a major benefit to mobile subscribers, Government today said that calls between Chennai and rest of the Tamil Nadu and likewise between Mumbai and Maharashtra, Kolkata and West Bengal, and in the whole of Uttar Pradesh would be treated as local calls. This would result in saving roaming and long distance (STD) charges for consumers, Communication and IT Minister Dayanidhi Maran said, adding that service providers would continue to operate in the same manner based on telecom circles. The minister said the facility would be only for calls terminating in the mobile network. This means calls from mobile to mobile and fixed to mobile within the states would be considered local. Till now the three metros — Chennai, Kolkata and Mumbai and the rest of Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Maharashtra — were treated as two separate telecom circles. Similarly in Uttar Pradesh, which has been bifurcated into two telecom circles for licence purposes, the consumers in UP (East) and UP (West) would be able to connect as local calls now. The new policy comes into effect from May 25, the minister said. PTI

Car tires send alert to driver by bluetooth

Mobile|blog.it, which by the way is my latest favorite blog to find great cell phone news (and I don’t speak Italian- you don’t need to speak Italian to find great links here), reports on a new product manufactured by Pirelli, to launch on the market next October, which is a tire cap which could send alert messages to the driver’s cell phone via Bluetooth.

Mobile|blog.it, which by the way is my latest favorite blog to find great cell phone news (and I don’t speak Italian- you don’t need to speak Italian to find great links here), reports on a new product manufactured by Pirelli, to launch on the market next October, which is a tire cap which could send alert messages to the driver’s cell phone via Bluetooth.

But according to Marco Magnocavallo, over at Mobile|blog.it, the strange thing it’s that on the Pirelli Xpressure site there’s nothing about Cellphones, Bluetooth, etc. They only speak about an "Electronical device"…

And two Italian newspapers picked up on the bluetooth side of the story, Repubblica yesterday and the Corriere della Sera wrote about it today.

So Marco wonders who’s right? Pirelli Xpressure website or the newspapers?"

Source:textually

Chinese send 750 million SMS daily

The spread of Short Messaging Service continues unabated in China with its volume increasing by 39 per cent in the first quarter of the year to 67.21 billion messages, the state media reported via The Hindustan Times.

The spread of Short Messaging Service continues unabated in China with its volume increasing by 39 per cent in the first quarter of the year to 67.21 billion messages, the state media reported via The Hindustan Times.

"According to the Ministry of Information Industry, China’s telephone subscriber base has touched 674 million, including 325 million fixed line phones and 349 million cellular phones, both occupying first place in the world, China News Service reported.

In the first quarter, more than 30 new telecom services were introduced.
Source:textually.org

Nokias New N-Gage?

Well after the great flop known as the N-Gage, Nokia announced at E3 that they were expanding the N-Gage line to more phones that would be compatible.

Well after the great flop known as the N-Gage, Nokia announced at E3 that they were expanding the N-Gage line to more phones that would be ?compatible?. Well this is a step further and while yes these are heavily Photoshopped they do offer a unique concept that may prove more poular than the original N-Gage.ngagenew.JPG
Source:Mobileslash via mobileburn

The New Vertu Ascent Pink

Vertu the world’s first and only manufacturer of handcrafted, luxury unveils a new exuberant colour variant: Vertu Ascent Pink.

Ultra feminine, ultra classy, ultra sexy, the Vertu Ascent Pink is set to become the hottest accessory of 2005.

Vertu the world?s first and only manufacturer of handcrafted, luxury unveils a new exuberant colour variant: Vertu Ascent Pink. Ultra feminine, ultra classy, ultra sexy, the Vertu Ascent Pink is set to become the hottest accessory of 2005.

The Vertu Ascent Pink is visually stunning featuring beautifully embossed leather in crocodile print, has a strip of polished keys on the front of the phone and matching ceramic pillow. Soft pink backlighting adds a touch of femininity to the sapphire crystal screen while maintaining the bold styling of its second line of luxury phones ? Vertu Ascent. So why introduce the Vertu Ascent Pink?

“The new Vertu Ascent Pink is the ideal accessory for women wishing to make a stunning personal statement without compromising on the quality and craft of a luxury product. This is a phone for women who are modern, confident and like to show their feminine side,” explained Giles Rees, Vice-President, Global Sales for Vertu. “It is perfect for men who are looking for something different – the ideal gift for that special person in their life,” he enthused.

Available in stores this spring/summer 2005, the special edition Vertu Ascent Pink handset is packaged with its own matching pink holster, and in a special pink package. To ensure exclusivity, the Pink Special Edition will have restricted availability in each region at launch.

The Vertu Ascent Pink is tri-band (GSM 900,1800 and 1900). It has Bluetooth and voice dialling capabilities, additional Vertu ring tones, supports GPRS, multimedia messaging (MMS) and concatenated short messaging (SMS).

Vertu Ascent Pink contrasts the feel of soft, hand-stitched leather with hard, custom-developed Liquidmetal? alloy ? a durable, scratch-resistant material with twice the hardness of Stainless Steel and two times more resilient than other metals, including titanium.

All Vertu phones are handcrafted in Vertu?s workshop. True to Vertu?s DNA of obsessive craft, the Vertu Ascent Pink has 240 individual components. The flat panel keypad alone contains over 150 different parts whose design is patented. Each key is manufactured by injecting a stainless steel mixture at high temperature and pressure into an oversize mould. As it cools, the key shrinks by 14% to produce the bevelled keypad design. The keys are then each set on two jewel bearings, to create the unique pivoting action and to guide each key?s movement.For more information please visit: www.vertu.com

Source:esato.com

Guy sends 182,689 SMS in one month

A gentleman from Ludhiana (India) found a unique way for getting his name registered in the Guinness Book of World Records. He sent 182,689 SMS in one month.
That makes 6000 text messages a day.

It looks like we have a new record here, close to 200’000 text messages sent in a single month.

A gentleman from Ludhiana (India) found a unique way for getting his name registered in the Guinness Book of World Records. He sent 182,689 SMS in one month.

That makes 6000 text messages a day.

Deepak Sharma aims to increase the number to 300,000 in the coming month.

Deepak sends messages to all his relatives and friends, who fortunately, fully support in his endeavour.

His wireless operator, Airtel, sent him a 1,411 page bill.

Source:Webindia

Bill Gates Holding a Samsung Cellular Phone

Bill Gates is holding two mobile devices using Windows operating
system before his opening speech at the “Microsoft Mobile and Embedded
DevCon 2005

Bill Gates is holding two mobile devices using Windows operating system before his opening speech at the “Microsoft Mobile and Embedded DevCon 2005” held in Las Vegas, reports The Dong-A Ilbo.

"The mobile device held on Gates’ left hand is the Samsung’s i300 cellular phone with an embedded hard disk drive.

The device held on his right hand is a cell phone from Taiwanese company HTC’s Universal model."

More on Windows Mobile 5.0 on Engadget and a related article from from Telecoms Korea about Korean carriers and handset makers adopting MS Windows Mobile 5.0.
Source:textually.org

Wind-Powered Cell Phones

Students at the Indian Institute of Technology have developed a pocket-sized turbine that attaches to your cellphone to charge it. Best suited for use in costal areas with near-constant wind flow or long talks with your mother, the device can also be used during travel as long as you set it up against the wind. The idea is to allow mobile users to charge and continue using their phone when they’re away from electricity, which is fine idea, but does the turbine give off a Pine-Fresh scent, or Cool Mountain Breeze? Because if not I can think of a way to overclock this thing.

Students at the Indian Institute of Technology have developed a pocket-sized turbine that attaches to your cellphone to charge it. Best suited for use in costal areas with near-constant wind flow or long talks with your mother, the device can also be used during travel as long as you set it up against the wind. The idea is to allow mobile users to charge and continue using their phone when they’re away from electricity, which is fine idea, but does the turbine give off a Pine-Fresh scent, or Cool Mountain Breeze? Because if not I can think of a way to overclock this thing.

Source:rediff
Full Story

Call to Protect

Call to Protect is a charity campaign that collects cast-off mobile phones to put in the hands of victims of domestic violence. They also sell the phones (although it’s not clear where, exactly), using the proceeds to fund similar organizations. If you’ve got an old phone you’d like to get rid of, it’s a nice alternative to trying to sell it for a few dollars.

Call to Protect is a charity campaign that collects cast-off mobile phones to put in the hands of victims of domestic violence. They also sell the phones (although it’s not clear where, exactly), using the proceeds to fund similar organizations. If you’ve got an old phone you’d like to get rid of, it’s a nice alternative to trying to sell it for a few dollars. Campaign Page [WirelessFoundation via TreeHugger]

Microsoft Launches Windows Mobile 5.0

New version of software provides partners with improved integration of technologies to deliver a more intuitive mobile device experience.

Microsoft today simultaneously launched new version of their Pocket PC and Smartphone operating systems. The new versions are more similar than ever featuring a new unified one-handed interface, but Pocket PC still maintains a touch screen interface and offers extra software like Office applications – now including a Powerpoint viewer. Windows Mobile 5 offers more options for fast data on handsets, adding support for newer 3G networks, and supporting Wi-Fi on both Pocket PC and Smartphone. It expands storage options, adding support for hard drives and speeding data transfer with USB 2.0. The new OS also offers greater carrier and manufacturer customization, allowing them to add features like Push-To-Talk, video calling and even additional media format playback like AAC. Read More
Source:Microsoft

School Reduces Suspension Over Iraq Call

School Reduces Suspension Over Iraq Call
Following yesterday’s story about a student suspended from school because he wouldn’t give up his cell phone while talking to his mom – a sergeant on duty in Iraq – during his lunch break, has been granted a reduced suspension, thanks to the power of the press.

Following yesterday’s story about a student suspended from school because he wouldn’t give up his cell phone while talking to his mom – a sergeant on duty in Iraq – during his lunch break, has been granted a reduced suspension, thanks to the power of the press.
According to the Associated Press, "on Friday, the school district reduced the suspension to three days, which will allow Francois to return to school Monday. School officials received many calls about the incident, said assistant principal Wendell Turner. People are fussing at us, calling us names," Turner said. "We are the school that serves Fort Benning," Turner said. "We’re well aware of students with parents overseas."

Hutch Announces Zero Rental Plan

Hutch has announced new offers for both prepaid and post paid customers across the country. The company is now offering three zero rental plans for its post paid customers and a Rs 199 plan for its prepaid customers.

For its post-paid customers Hutch has introduced ‘Talk299’, ‘Talk699’ and ‘Talk 899’ zero rental offers, under which the user will not be charged a monthly rental, instead the paid amounts – Rs 299, Rs 699 and Rs 899, which be given to the user as talk-time.

Hutch has announced new offers for both prepaid and post paid customers across the country. The company is now offering three zero rental plans for its post paid customers and a Rs 199 plan for its prepaid customers.
For its post-paid customers Hutch has introduced ‘Talk299’, ‘Talk699’ and ‘Talk 899’ zero rental offers, under which the user will not be charged a monthly rental, instead the paid amounts – Rs 299, Rs 699 and Rs 899, which be given to the user as talk-time.

Calls within the Hutch network will be charged at 50 paise per minute, while calls to other phones – cellular and landline, will be charged at Rs 1.69, Rs 1.19 and Rs 0.75 for Talk299, Talk699 and Talk899 plans respectively. SMS will be charged at 50 paise for all three plans.

For the Prepaid customers the company is now offering a Rs 199 recharge voucher with a validity period of 30-day. The customer receives only Rs 50 worth of talk-time for this recharge voucher.

Hutch has also reportedly cut roaming airtime rates by 33%, from Rs 3 per minute to Rs 1.99 per minute. The reduced tariffs would benefit all Hutch post paid and prepaid users across the country.

Nokia N91 to beat iPod?

Digital audio players from brands such as Creative, iRiver, Dell, Samsung and even Sony can’t compete with Apple’s flagship, the iPod. Will Nokia be able to compete with the iPod with its upcoming Nokia N91 – despite the higher cost? The Nokia N91 will feature a 4GB internal hard drive, a 2 megapixel digital camera and a 3.5 mm headphone jack. The phone also supports 3G services, including wireless downloading services. It is designed to play audio with music control buttons on a faceplate that slides down to reveal the phone’s keypad.

Digital audio players from brands such as Creative, iRiver, Dell, Samsung and even Sony can’t compete with Apple’s flagship, the iPod. Will Nokia be able to compete with the iPod with its upcoming Nokia N91 – despite the higher cost?

The Nokia N91 will feature a 4GB internal hard drive, a 2 megapixel digital camera and a 3.5 mm headphone jack. The phone also supports 3G services, including wireless downloading services. It is designed to play audio with music control buttons on a faceplate that slides down to reveal the phone’s keypad.

The company also claims that users will be able to send music to others via e-mail, bluetooth and MMS. So this phone might actually introduce wireless p2p but there are also some problems:

While it may be easy to share a file between two phones of the same type that use the same carrier, it will be much more difficult between different phones on separate networks. Diverse file formats, lack of carrier interoperability and digital-rights-management concerns are all expected to limit the ability to share music wirelessly. “Forget it,” industry consultant Richard Siber says. “It’s just too problematic.”

Nokia’s N91 will be compatible with all popular audio formats, except iTunes. The only thing that will likely limit the market penetration of the Nokia N91 is it high cost. It is said that this phone will cost around 700EUR ($900), so with carrier subsidies it will likely still cost more than $500. Not really that competitive with a $199 iPod mini.

Source: Reuters

Google bolsters mobile search

On Tuesday, the search company plans to introduce two new search options for mobile phones, reports News.com

“One feature lets people with browser-enabled cell phones use Google Local,

local.gif On Tuesday, the search company plans to introduce two new search options for mobile phones, reports News.com

"One feature lets people with browser-enabled cell phones use Google Local, a Web directory of local businesses and sights, by typing in a name and ZIP code.

Using the second feature, people can text message Google SMS (Short Message Service) with the short code "46645" to receive driving directions to most locations"