Friday, August 29, 2008

The Evolution of the Mobile Phone

With new, improved mobile phones being released, mobile upgrade is a constant. But take a moment to think about how far those upgrades have come. Can you remember what your first mobile phone looked like? See if you can spot it in this video clip of the evolution of mobile phones, and be thankful we don't have to carry around Zack Morris-style brick phones any longer!



And after you've checked out the evolution, don't forget your Fun Friday telephone song of the week!

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Manufacturers Battle It Out for Latest, Greatest Smartphones

The number of mobile phones available on the market is steadily increasing, with experts estimating 100 wireless phones to be launched in the United States by the end of 2008. With the influx of phones comes faster, more complex smartphones capable of supporting outside software programs and applications. North America and Japan are currently tied for second in the race for smartphone adoption (each has 20 percent of all smartphones sold), while Western Europe claims the top spot (22 percent). Of the major phone manufacturers, HTC and Palm are expected to lead the way with the highest percentage of smartphones being released, while Motorola, LG and Sony Ericsson will stagger behind with the lowest percentage.

Regardless of the manufacturer, smartphones are rapidly changing mobile technology, wireless communications and pop culture. As this Forbes.com article demonstrates, it might be time to start shopping around for a new handheld toy.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Photoshop to Unlease Mobile Beta in September

Adobe Photoshop is gearing up to release a beta version of Photoshop Mobile, available on smartphone devices. The free download launches in September and will offer 5GB storage and a Photoshop.com account. Although the beta version will not include editing tools, Photoshop Mobile is destined to become a popular smartphone application.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

C-PAHC Changing Healthcare with Mobile Phone Applications

Mobile smartphone technology is yet again blazing a path for more efficient communication, this time in the field of healthcare. Medical Records Institute recently announced the
Center for Cell Phone Applications in Healthcare (C-PAHC), a new organization committed to studying and advocating mobile phone application advancement in healthcare. A successor of Mobile Healthcare Alliance, C-PAHC looks forward to the development of many healthcare applications for mobile phones. Their hope is that these applications will increase the use and exchange of health information. With the influx of smartphones and mobile devices, C-PAHC sees great new opportunities for healthcare and hopes to become the leader and center of mobility in healthcare for both current healthcare applications and those in development.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Ten Commandments for Mobile Phone Users

Ever since the introduction of cell phones, the mobile communication experience has intensified. More people have replaced landlines with their mobile phones, making it easier to remain “ultra-connected.” With the rising popularity of smartphones, features like texting, emailing, digital music, playing games, news upkeep, updating calendars/schedules and much more can be neatly organized within one device. As with all popular media, there comes a time when social etiquette rules should be set. Just as people had to be told TYPING IN ALL CAPS in an email was the equivalent of shouting angrily and a dictionary of online and texting acronyms became necessary, the staff at GeekBerry.net have compiled a list of ten commandments to help you be a respectful mobile phone user. Good luck and happy mobile communicating!

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Mobile Caller ID in Action

Interested to see what mobile Caller ID looks like? Check out this Privus Mobile demo on the AT&T Tilt.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Free Vintage Video Games Invade Smartphones

For fans of 90s-era video gaming, Another World (known as Out of this World in the United States and Outer World in Japan) has been released for Windows Mobile, giving you access to a classic game on your smartphone. And the best part… it’s free! Compatible with WM5+, both Another World and its sequel, Flashback, are available for download. To learn more about it, check out Smartphone Magazine’s review.

And in keeping with our (classic) Fun Friday theme, make sure you check out this New Edition video. It’s an oldie, but a goodie!

Thursday, August 21, 2008

New Palm Treo Pro Capitalizes on Smartphone Popularity, Helps Represent 19 Percent of U.S. Wireless Market

Palm released its newest smartphone, the Treo Pro, Wednesday. The new device runs on Windows Mobile OS and boasts a thin, sleek design. Palm is hoping the new phone, unlocked and priced at $549, will appeal to corporate buyers and IT managers. Palm aims to compete with Research In Motion (RIM), producers of Blackberry phones, which currently has double the amount of corporate phones under contract than Palm. With the Treo Pro, Palm said it hopes to regain its former position as a creative leader in smartphone technology, a place that becomes increasingly important as smartphones grow in popularity. Smartphones now represent 19 percent of all cell phones sold in the United States, a telecom analyst reported.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

For the class of 2012, Caller ID always existed

Beloit College (Wis.) released its annual Mindset List – a pop cultural look at the lives of incoming college freshmen. Meant as a resource for faculty, the list promotes an understanding of the new students’ cultural frame of reference. The list gained popularity outside the college, serving as a reminder of how rapidly our world changes (and giving everyone past the collegiate age a reason to feel old). While many adults still consider advancements in technology and communications as “cutting-edge”, the incoming class of 2012 views them as “the norm.”

With telecommunications technology, today’s college freshmen boast technical savvy, an uninterrupted wireless connection and an expectation of seeing the calling name on almost every home telephone call. The rest of us remember the days when kids passed notes in class instead of sending text messages, and instead of screening calls using Caller ID, we answered every ringing phone with curiosity. With mobile Caller ID capabilities now possible, it might not be long before we see the Mindset List tackle the topic of kids who don’t remember a time before you could see the name and number of every incoming caller on your wireless phone.

Friday, August 15, 2008

Calling Name Display Pricing

Want to see the calling name on your smartphone? Like most phone applications, mobile Caller ID has a price. Luckily, Privus Mobile makes it affordable for approved smartphone owners to receive calling name display on their device.

As mentioned in the New York Times, Privus Mobile subscription rates average around $8 per month. That’s actually less than the rate Americans are charged for caller ID in their home phone bundles – carriers just choose not to highlight that fact to their customers. Most American homeowners might be surprised to find they are paying an additional $12 per month to see the caller’s name.

With more consumers bypassing landline service all together and opting for just mobile phone service, Privus Mobile lets you affordably reconnect with the comfort of Caller ID. To experience Privus Mobile on your smartphone, Click Here to download this free trial.

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Phone Smart - Oft-Repeated and So Unromantic - ‘You’re Breaking Up’ - NYTimes.com

"¶Mobile phones will display the number of the incoming caller, but unless you recognize the number, that’s little help. Privus Mobile recently introduced a new caller ID service for cellphone users that looks much like that of conventional landline services. For about $8 a month, the Privus will identify about 95 percent of incoming callers. The only hitch: it works with a limited number of smartphones. See the list on privusmobile.com."

Phone Smart - Oft-Repeated and So Unromantic - ‘You’re Breaking Up’ - NYTimes.com:

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Privus Mobile discusses Calling Name Post-call Queries

Now that Privus Mobile has launched and is receiving coverage, I wanted to use this blog to discuss some of the questions Privus Mobile users and non-users have encountered with the service. One question I’ve heard a lot from customers:

Why does the Calling Name display sometimes appear during the ringing and other times after the call?

Well, it all depends on your wireless device, your carrier and the Wi-fi connection at the time of the call. Many of the new smartphones with Privus Mobile service, give you the names of your callers before you answer. Others provide the names and numbers once you hang-up or miss a call, allowing you to forward their info to your contact list automatically or with the push of a button.

Another frequently-asked question: Why would post-call information benefit me? Isn’t it already too late?

If you’re like me, you like to screen your wireless calls. Before Privus Mobile, I had to hope the unidentified caller left a message to figure out who the caller was. Then I had to listen to voicemail. Now, I can identify who the caller was after the call and still choose whether or not to save the name and number into my contacts list. The post-call service is great for those call-screeners like me, for those missing calls during meetings or classes or those just too darn busy to answer every call.

I hope this answered a few questions. If not, Click Here for a detailed list of FAQs or contact Privus Mobile Support. For non-Privus Mobile customers interested in the service, Click Here for a free trial. Be sure and check out the Privus Mobile Web site and blog for all of the latest mobile Caller ID information. I’ll be updating regularly with news and other information that might be useful.

As of August 7, 2008, here’s a list of Privus Mobile-approved wireless devices and the caller name functionality each one provides. For the most current information on devices and carriers, Click Here.

Fully functional Privus Mobile service (caller name and number during ringing)

AT&T

  • Samsung Blackjack II SGH-i617
  • Palm Treo 750w
  • Palm Treo 700w
  • Motorola Q9h
  • Pantech Duo C810
  • 8525 (HTC Hermes)
  • Tilt 8925 (HTC Kaiser)
  • HP iPaq hw6925 (HTC Sable)
  • S710 (HTC Vox)
  • HTC Advantage
  • Asus P527
  • MWg Atom Life
  • iMate Jam

Fully functional when connected to WiFi (otherwise, caller name provided post-call)

Alltel

  • PPC6700 (HTC Apache)
  • PPC6800 (HTC Titan)
  • Touch (HTC Vogue)

AT&T

  • 8125 (HTC Wizard)

Sprint

  • Palm TREO 800w
  • PPC6700 (HTC Apache)
  • Mogul PPC6800 (HTC Titan)
  • Samsung IP-830w
  • Samsung i325 ACE

Verizon

  • Samsung SCH-i760
  • XV6700 (HTC Apache)
  • XV6800 (HTC Titan)

T-Mobile

  • * MDA Vario (HTC Wizard)
  • MDA-IV (HTC Universal)
  • Wing (HTC Atlas)
  • Shadow (HTC Juno)
  • Dash (HTC Excalibur)
  • SDA (HTC Tornado)
  • HP iPaq hw6925 (HTC Sable)
  • HTC Advantage
  • S710 (HTC Vox)
  • Asus P527
  • MWg Atom Life
  • iMate Jam

Name delivered after the call is completed

AT&T

  • Blackberry 7130c
  • Blackberry 8100 Pearl
  • Blackberry 8300 Curve
  • Blackberry 8700c
  • Blackberry 8800
  • HP hw6920
  • HP hw 6925
  • Samsung Blackjack i607

T-Mobile

  • Blackberry 8700g
  • Blackberry 8705g
  • Blackberry 8800
  • Blackberry 8820
  • Blackberry Curve 8300
  • Blackberry 8100 Pearl
  • MDA Compact (HTC Magician)

Sprint

  • Blackberry 8703e
  • Blackberry 8130 Pearl
  • Blackberry 8330 Curve
  • Blackberry 8830
  • Intermec CN3 Mobile Computer
  • Palm Treo 700wx
  • Touch (HTC Vogue)

Verizon

  • Blackberry 8703e
  • Blackberry 8830
  • Blackberry 8130
  • Pantech PN-820
  • Intermec CN3 Mobile Computer
  • Palm Treo 700wx
  • XV6900 Touch (HTC Vogue)
  • SMT5800

Alltel

  • Blackberry 8703e
  • Blackberry 8130 Pearl
  • Blackberry 8330 Curve
  • Blackberry 8830
  • Palm Treo 700wx

Bell Canada

  • Blackberry 8130
  • Blackberry 8330
  • Blackberry 8830

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Mobile Caller ID

New Privus Mobile service provides incoming caller name on calls to wireless phones

Dallas – Aug. 4, 2008 – It’s something we’ve all dealt with – a call comes through on your mobile phone, and you don’t have any idea who belongs to the number displayed on the screen. It’s someone not already loaded into your contacts. Do you answer it? Do you let it go to voicemail? Is it important? Launched today, the innovative Privus Mobile service (www.privusmobile.com) from I D YOU, LLC can tell users who is calling by displaying the incoming caller’s name and number on the screen. It’s the world’s first and only real Caller ID for your mobile phone.

“We’re all looking for ways to have more control over whom we talk to and when – it’s the reason we have mobile phones in the first place,” said I D YOU President Greg Smith. “By showing the names of incoming callers – especially those not already loaded in a phone’s contacts – Privus Mobile gives users the power to make more informed decisions about which calls they take.”

So, who can benefit from using Privus Mobile? The service is a helping hand to the 32-year-old professional whose entire life – professional and personal – is managed from a single wireless phone. It’s a social necessity for the 21-year-old coed who’s hoping that Dave, the one she gave her number to this weekend, gives her a call sometime. It’s a sanity-keeper for the 50-year-old dad who just sat down to a family dinner only to be bombarded by calls from the repair men and painters scheduled to be working at his house tomorrow.

“People are receiving more and more calls on their wireless phones, and they want to know everyone who’s calling them, but this Caller ID service that was commonplace on home phones just hasn’t been available on wireless phones until Privus,” Smith said. “One of the additional benefits of the service is that Privus Mobile will save the caller’s name and number into your contact list with the push of a button; or automatically if you wish. No more tedious entering names for every new person who calls you – when they call, you’ll get all of their contact information on your display.”

Available at www.privusmobile.com, the downloadable real Caller ID application is specifically designed for smart phones. A full list of compatible devices can be found on the site. Those who are interested are encouraged to visit the website and get a free three-day trial of the service.

About Privus Mobile

I D YOU LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Accudata Technologies, has launched the industry-first Privus Mobile service, which provides real Caller ID service to wireless handsets, giving users greater control over who they talk to and when. I D YOU LLC, which is focused on providing the most comprehensive Caller ID service available, is headquartered in Allen, Texas. For more information, visit www.privusmobile.com.