Forum enthusiast (on several sites) Menneisyys put together a multi-part 'bible' post on the differences between vanilla MP4 and H.264 video (ASP vs AVC) in our forums. He actually did this a couple of months ago but the subject's more relevant now than ever. Read on for the link and some of my own thoughts.
FT.com are reporting, along with a surprising number of should-know-better tech sites such as IntoMobile, how most Apple iPhone users use more than 25MB of data a month, and this is being reported as a big earner for O2 and is being contrasted to only 2% of other phone users hitting the 25MB/month mark. A masterpiece of spin, considering that the iPhone comes with flat rate data and increased use actually harms O2's bottom line, while data use from other phones generates them revenue. Staggering. I see Ewan M agrees too, so it wasn't just me...
Coming over the wires on Christmas Eve was the report that Anssi Vanjoki, the Exec VP at Nokia leading the push on the Finnish Community Portal, Ovi, would be happy for Apple's iTunes store to be represented (reports CNN). "Of course, Apple can get into our portal. We even invite (Apple Inc chief executive) Steve Jobs to do so," he is quoted as saying. It's highly unlikely that Jobs would take up this offer, but in ensuring Nokia's online strategy, including its music store, is mentioned in the same breath as a more powerful competitor (in this case the iPod) is classic marketing strategy for an underdog.
Ho hum, another month, another would-be competitor to the Nokia E90 Communicator. This time it's the Asus M390W , running Windows Mobile 6 and also with HSDPA, etc. Still, the run of E90 copies surely shows that there's a market for this much-maligned form factor?
Thanks to AAS reader Martin Mauch for alerting us to his new home-brew S60 (all versions) Python-based project and task management system, MobileGTD . Based on plain text files in a folder hierarchy, this does have the benefit of complete platform independence, at least in theory.
UIQ Technology recently held a Developer Fast Track Event in Budapest. Some of the presentations from that event are now available for download from the UIQ website. Presentations range from an introduction to UIQ and its developer program to expert tips and tricks from EMCC.
The latest Carnival of the Mobilists , number 104, is hosted at the Mobility Weblog. As usual the carnival rounds up an eclectic selection of writing on mobile from around the web.
In a move that perhaps wasn't so surprising after all, the Nokia N-Gage team have announced that the service is now delayed again, quoting "unexpected difficulties". No date in January has been stated. Let's hope that it's early January and that more than the N81 is supported when N-Gage does come online. You can read the N-Gage blog statement below, and there's an editorial about this latest delay over on All About N-Gage.
Nokia is looking for some consumer insight and feedback to help it develop future versions of PC Suite. You can fill in this survey to offer your views on the current version. Nokia PC Suite evokes mixed reactions, some people love it while others find it slow and confusing. Personally I can't remember the last time I had a problem, a far cry from a few years ago when the software was a temperamental beast, but that doesn't mean usability can't be improved.
Pulsepaper is a freeware application that allows you to automatically change your S60 phones wallpaper up to three times a day. The application can sources images from a variety of sources including a flickr search. web image search, weather satellite images and more. If you are looking for a similar application, but one which uses local images, you can check out myLook from Bitween .
Sony Ericsson has announced the winners of its 2007 Content Awards. Congratulations to RealNetworks (Playman Extreme Running) in the games category, BitCycle (Pull Face Image Manipulator) in the Imaging category, Opera (Opera Mini 4.0) in the productivity category, Gracenote (TrackID) in the music category and Clavitones (Geeks themes and graphics) in the graphics category.
Nokia's latest Nseries device, the N82, is now becoming available online in the UK. The Nokia UK Online shop offers the SIM-free Nokia N82 adventure pack which is available from the at £399. The adventure pack bundles a copy of Nokia's Sport Tracker Application and a Salomon back pack with the phone. Our affiliate phone shop also has the N82 from free on a range of O2 contracts as does Carphone Warehouse and other retailers are likely to have similar offers.
