Wireless Internet
Wireless Internet

Wireless Internet

Family Flat Rate Voice Plan

Vodafone K.K announced today the company plans a staggered roll out of three new flat rate services: “Mail Flat-rate,” “Dual Packet Flat-rate” and “Family Call Flat-rate.” According to the company, these plans target all users from hard-core email addicts to fast-dialing families. Starting 1 October, the Family Call Flat-rate will make it possible for family members to call each other as often as they like with an additional flat-rate option that has a total fixed monthly charge of 315 yen. Matthew Nicholson, Vodafone Japan International Media Relations Manager, commented to WWJ: “This is the first time for such a comprehensive family call flat rate to be available in Japan.”

Change of Tack Boosts i-mode Overseas

Directly investing in foreign carriers was a fairly hefty blunder for NTT DoCoMo. It took big financial losses, and failed to establish i-mode as a global force. But a new president and a new plan have seen things change significantly. Former DoCoMo CEO Keiji Tachikawa led a number of huge investments in overseas carriers like AT&T Wireless and Three in the UK, in hopes of turning the operators into users of its i-mode system. The plan failed, to say the least, costing the company $17 billion in writedowns — a far cry from its runaway success in its home market.

Dilithium adds ISUP Triggering to DNA 3G Test Tool

Dilithium Networks, a leading provider of wireless multimedia solutions, today announced a major new release of its industry-leading 3G protocol analysis and test tool family, Dilithium Networks Analyzer (DNA). Release 3.0 of DNA provides support for ISUP terminal and monitoring (including China), ISUP signaling to initiate and receive calls, and ISUP based trigger for traffic monitoring. DNA 3.0 also incorporates powerful triggering capabilities for monitoring multiple simultaneous channels with the option of capturing traffic upon trigger. An Auto-Dialer feature, available as an option to existing customers, provides automated and unattended testing capabilities. Additional features include enhancements for ISDN support, expanded message logging capabilities, and more.

PSP Running Wi-Fi for Korea

KT Corp., South Korea’s biggest fixed-line telephone and Internet operator, announced Monday an alliance with Sony Corp. to equip the Japanese electronics giant’s popular PSP console with Wi-Fi Internet access. KT said PSP customers will be able to surf the Web via the company’s 14,000 hotspots nationwide. Kang Hee-won, a spokesman at Sony Computer Entertainment Korea, added it is the first time in the world for Sony to add Wi-Fi connectivity for the PSP machines.

WiFi Wok — DIY 2.4-GHz Repeater Kit

The folks at the usb-wifi section of Orcon.net have assembled a super, step-by-step how-to guide, complete with photos, for making your very own wifi wok! The largest (300-mm diameter) provides a 15- to 18-dB gain, enough to extend the range to between three and five kilometers, costs about US$5.00 and comes with a user-friendly bamboo handle that suits WLAN fieldwork — if you can handle the curious stares! Complete with Chinese parabolic cookware and notepad by Stan, you gotta check this out.

Philips Unveils WLAN Mobile Solution

Philips Electronics announced a new low-power 802.11g wireless LAN semiconductor system-in-a-package (SiP) solution for the mobile phone market. The new low-power 802.11g solution enables consumers to access voice, data and multimedia content through WLAN networks up to five times faster than current 802.11b products on the market without compromising the battery life of the mobile phone.