Year: <span>2005</span>
Year: 2005

Year: 2005

Mitsubishi Electric Selects ACCESS NetFront i-mode Global Profile

ACCESS announced that its NetFront(r) i-mode(tm) Global Profile integrated software solution was selected by Mitsubishi Electric for deployment in its M430i i-mode handset. The M430i is currently offered by leading i-mode operators such as Bouygues Telecom, COSMOTE, E-Plus, Far EastTone, KPN Mobile, Telefonica Moviles, BASE, Telestra, and WIND, with additional i-mode operators to follow. NetFront i-mode Global Profile is a comprehensive, integrated solution specifically optimized for the i-mode Global service. It offers operators and their handset partners seamless i-mode Global deployments while reducing overall cost and time-to-market.

Japan's Most Popular Cell Phones

According to research done by Idomco that surveyed handset sales in the greater Tokyo area for the week ending 3 April, the NTT DoCoMo NEC 901ic in white pearl is No. 1 in the ranking of top 20 models. The survey also notes a new entry on the charts, in 4th position, for DoCoMo’s SH700i by Sharp in black; 17 of the 20 are 3G handsets. Log-in to access the full list.

Renting Skis with RFID

EM Microelectronic has developed in cooperation with Skidata and EC-Passage a transponder chip, the EM4026, which greatly facilitates the handling and identification of rented skis or snowboards at ski resorts. The battery-less transponder, which contains the chip connected only to a small antenna, is integrated into the ski at manufacturing time and powered by the reader field that can operate at temperatures down to -40C.

Nokia's 8801 and Ryuichi Sakamoto

Nokia has unveiled a truly inspired mobile phone for today’s connoisseurs of quality and taste. Encased in a slim stainless steel body, the Nokia 8801 [.jpg image] subtly glides open to reveal a number of distinctive details. The Nokia 8801 features exclusive audio accompaniment, including all ring tones and alerts, by award-winning composer Ryuichi Sakamoto. This attention to detail continues Nokia’s heritage of premium mobile phones that have set the industry standard for elegance and performance. (Thanks Joi..!!)

Chaku Uta Full Downloads Exceed 5 Million

KDDI and Okinawa Cellular are pleased to announce that cumulative downloads EZ “Chaku Uta Full“, part of the au mobile phone service provided by KDDI and Okinawa Cellular, surpassed 5 million on April 3, 2005. The EZ “Chaku Uta Full” service, launched on November 19, 2004, its millionth download in January, 2005, 2 millionth download in February, and 3rd and 4th millionth downloads in March. EZ “Chaku Uta Full” is a music download service through which an entire song can be downloaded directly onto a mobile handset. With a maximum download speed of 2.4 Mbps via CDMA 1X WIN technology and the Double Fixed packet data fixed fee service, users can easily download music anywhere and anytime without worrying about packet data fees.

Sports Geek Heaven — Live Baseball for the Mobile Screen

Sports Geek Heaven -- Live Baseball for the Mobile ScreenThe weather is warming up and that means a lot more than Cherry Blossoms in this country — bring out the beer and bentos! Baseball season is back! The new season also brings some cool new technology that will knock pro baseball off the TV screen, out of the ballpark, through the sports bar doors’ and right onto your keitai screen. Like many traditional staples of entertainment here, pro baseball is going mobile — but with a decidedly animated twist.

Tokyo-based Craftmax’s Digital Stadium broadcasts select American and Japanese pro-ball games over DoCoMo 3G cell phones transforming live action into an animated play-by-play, pitch-by-pitch rendition of the game right down to ball speed and trajectory, complete with an electronic scoreboard, the roar of the crowd and sound effects for hits, runs and score changes. This is not fantasy baseball, and not an online game, but rather The Real Thing — rendered into animated avatars standing in for flesh-and-blood players. Check-out this quick video preview below of our upcoming program including a product demo and chat (which was for the most part in Japanese) with the company founder Mitsumasa Etoh.

Toshiba Exits China Cellphone Market

Japan’s Toshiba Corp. said on Monday it had sold its 33 percent stake in a mobile phone joint venture in China to a local partner, withdrawing from a highly competitive market with hefty growth potential. Toshiba, Japan’s second-largest electronics conglomerate, set up the venture with Nanjing Putian and another company in Hong Kong in 2000 to make and sell Toshiba handsets in China.

Hitachi Claims Leap in HDD Density

Hitachi Global Storage will come out with hard drives containing 230 gigabits of data per square inch. “We’re redesigning the head and disc quite significantly,” said Bill Healy, senior vice president of product strategy and marketing at Hitachi. The technology will allow Hitachi to come out with a 20GB microdrive, which has a diameter of 1 inch (currently microdrives top out at 6GB).