wi-fi
wi-fi

wi-fi

Wi-Fi & cellular subs to reach 55 mn by 2010

Worldwide demand for Wi-Fi and cellular converged services will reach 55 million by 2010. Western Europe, Japan and Korea will be key UMA markets and, as broadband penetration grows, China will quickly become a very attractive market. Wi-Fi and cellular convergence is about to hit the mainstream, with mobile operators planning to deploy UMA services over the next 12 months, according to a new report from Senza Fili Consulting, a consultancy focused on wireless data technologies and services.

KDDI Unveils MS Wi-Fi Phone

KDDI and Fujistu have introduced a prototype smart phone, or “hybrid information terminal,” that will be available to visitors attending the Aichi World Expo 2005, which begins here in March and runs through to the end of September. The ‘Love and Mate’ [.jpg] (yes, that’s what they’re calling it) handset comes in Orange and Blue; both feature Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition for PocketPC software for PDA and phone operation, and Windows Media Player 9. This is one of the first deployments of Windows on a phone in Japan.

Wi-LAN Launches Mobilis at ITS World Congress 2004

Wi-LAN Inc., the global provider of market-leading broadband wireless communications products and technologies and the original charter member of the WiMAX Forum, today launched Mobilis, the first commercially available two-way broadband wireless product designed for a high-speed mobile environment, at the ITS World Congress 2004 in Nagoya, Japan. Wi-LAN is initially targeting Mobilis at the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) market. ITS wireless applications include real-time video surveillance, streaming advertising, and hotspot Internet access for passengers.

OMRON Launches EPC-compatible UHF-band RFID Reader/Writer

OMRON Corporation, a leading Japanese RFID systems provider, is launching the V740 series EPC reader/writer for UHF-band RFID tags in North America. The first UHF tag reader/writer from a Japanese RFID device manufacturer, the unit supports both EPC Class 0 and Class 1 protocols. It is also designed to accommodate Generation 2 protocol by EPC Global (C1G2) by upgrading its firmware when these specifications become available. Additionally, the product supports standard network protocols including DHCP, UDP/IP over Ethernet, 820.11x (Wi-Fi), HTTP and SNMP, and its superior network adaptability enables its software to be easily implemented from remote sites.

Intel Finally Hits Tri-mode Mark

Intel Corp. released its tri-mode 802.11a/b/g Centrino wireless module late last week, missing its own estimates and severely lagging behind its competitors by as much as two years. Intel’s original Centrino technology hit the scene in March of 2003. The 802.11b wireless product was followed by a backward-compatible 802.11g version in October of that year.

Mobinet Index 2004

The latest Mobinet study from A.T. Kearney reports that 41 percent of the world’s wireless phone users expect to be regular or heavy users of data services by 2005. The Index looks at current and planned usage of wireless data services such as mobile email, games, music downloads, photo messaging, and news updates and the strong user demand represents a whopping 200-percent increase over the past year. Have mobile data services finally reached a tipping point?

Wireless to Transform How We Communicate

Enormous advances in wireless communications are ushering in a new era wherein organisations can dramatically improve productivity and efficiency, enhance competitive advantage and greatly benefit from more efficient communications with customers, vendors and key staff. New analysis from Technical Insights states: “Enterprises today are seeing real benefits from the use of mobile devices and applications. However, for m-commerce to grow significantly, a fully developed mobile communications network, ever more sophisticated devices and killer applications that enable ‘anytime, anywhere’ access of information [are] essential.”

3G Phones with Flash or WLAN

3G Phones with Flash or WLANThis free-for-all program takes you to KDDI’s recent launch event at the Imperial hotel announcing the carrier’s three new WIN handsets, all now making use of Macromedia Flash lite. You’ll get a close-up of these phones in action plus tips on the new 3G flat-rate price plan coming in August. We also highlight NTT DoCoMo’s N900iL dual-mode 802.11b/W-CDMA handset based on the FOMA N900i which, unfortunately, has been transformed into the de facto proprietary, intranet-only “Passage Duple” WLAN phone by NEC and DoCoMo. While future versions may run on the consumer-targeted M-Stage platform, for now this first baby step into the dual-mode 3G/Wi-Fi world is aimed exclusively at corporate-controlled walled gardens.

Hello Hot Spots: Wi-Fi Sniffing

Hello Hot Spots: Wi-Fi SniffingDo you need hassle-free WiFi & Bluetooth connectivity? Of course you do (so do we, come to think of it!) and Hiromasa Takato, product manager at Toshiba’s Global Strategic Planning Group, claims that their ConfigFree software will soothe you into a seamless WiFi connection wherever and with whatever Bluetooth-enabled device(s) you have at hand. WWJ took Hiro, his Pocket PC e805 PDA, his laptop, and a Toshiba A5504T (au) cellie for a test run — and a beer — in downtown Shinjuku. With hotspots multiplying like tribbles and all the buzz about VoIP and Bluetooth-enabled keitai about to boom, this is definitely a WWJ peek at the future — right here and now. Subscribers read on to get the full skinny! Full Program Run-time 12:51, also available in Real Player and Quick-Time formats.

The Ultimate 'Next-Generation' Mobile Gaming System

The Ultimate 'Next-Generation' Mobile Gaming System

Before all you Die Hard gamers on a post E3 convention rush get too excited, note we put quotes on “Next-Generation…” because this one is recommended for the age-6-and-up crowd. Also, to those business/suit types who are about to click away and search for “ARPU” and “Wi-Fi,” you might want to pause and read between the lines. OK, onto the skinny… Bandai have recently launched this very cool — a la Japanese style — clamshell handset to an eager young target market. In fact the handset was the must-have item during Japan’s recent Golden Week shopping spree… think Tickle-Me-Elmo-type hysteria. The “Card Commun” unit retails for about US$30 and features an onboard swipe function for the collectable character card-series based on Toei Animation’s popular Sunday morning cartoon show “Precure.” Simply put, this is like Pokemon and Tamagochi combimorphed, with a cycle or two of steroids tossed in! What really struck us was that while of course there is no voice function — or monthly call charges — it does have a P2P sync feature built in so kids can share content by joining their handsets together.