Trends I'm Watching

Broadband Wireless

Link: E M E R G I C . o r g: December 22, 2004 Archives.

Walter Moddberg writes about the most important development in US wireless communications:

This new Verizon network, which the company calls "BroadbandAccess," promises users in 18 cities so far that they can get on the Internet at typical speeds of between 300 and 500 kilobits a second. That's the equivalent of what many wired home DSL modems do, and much faster than prior American cellphone data networks. But in my first tests of the new network last spring I was able to do even better, averaging nearly 600 kilobits a second.

And, unlike Wi-Fi, another form of wireless broadband, the new Verizon network doesn't require the user to be near a "hot spot," usually found in coffee shops or hotels. Verizon hopes to have most major metro areas covered by EV-DO by the end of 2005, and Sprint is also planning to roll out an EV-DO network next year.

But so far, this capability has been available only via a special modem card inserted into a laptop computer, and it has carried a whopping monthly price tag of $80. Now Verizon is introducing two hand-held devices, a combination PDA/phone and a standard flip phone, that can tap the EV-DO network. And it is charging lower monthly fees to use the network with these devices than it does for laptop use.

Bottom line: The new Verizon EV-DO network is a very good thing, and it's a great addition to a laptop or PDA. But until Verizon and other carriers allow regular phones to have more computerlike capabilities, wireless broadband won't matter much for average cellphone users.

Personal Communicator and Computer

Link: The Broadband Daily ? Personal Communicator and Computer.

The rate at which mobile phones are changing is remarkable. Samsung recently introduced a camera phone with 1 megapixels and 1.5GB hard drive. Now Panasonic has announced that they will market a chip for mobile phones that will have a sensor, DSP, lens, and infra red focusing system without adding any bulk to the phones. These chips will allow cameras up to the resolution of 3 megapixels. The quality and functionality of mobile phones keeps on improving at a rapid rate. Combine this with the increasing availability of video content on phone and increasing bandwidth, and you clearly see what will be the real multimedia client for information and communication technology.

I do believe that for many reasons, mobile phones are real PCs (Personal Computer) or really PCCc(Personal Computer and Communicator). Currently computers have evolved to be the most common means for ICT (information and communication technology). This was natural because ICT evolved out of computing. Now we are at a very important point in the evolution of mobile phone technology. Due to miniaturization of sensors, processors, and storage, it is becoming possible to bring enough computing power in mobile phones. This computing power is definitely not comparable to today’s computers, but definitely can be compared favorably with lap top computers of a few years ago. The more important thing is that the computing power is becoming enough to utilize mobile phones as a powerful client, more powerful than traditional clients of modern road warriors – the lap top computer. Why do I think that it will is a better device to replace a lap top for many uses?

Online Machine Shop

Link: Online Machine Shop General FAQ.

eMachineShop is the remarkable new way to get the custom parts you need - the first true online machine shop. Download our free software, draw your part, and click to order - it's that easy! Your part will be machined and delivered - at low cost.

Just as you can now order books at the click of a mouse you can now order custom machined parts! eMachineShop is a remarkable new service that gives you the power to make custom parts - whether it's one part for a racing bicycle or a million parts for a new product. eMachineShop takes the trouble out of getting custom parts by providing free design software you download, which gives you expert design feedback instantly, computes an exact price in seconds and lets you conveniently order via the Internet.

The 46 Best-ever Freeware Utilities

Link: The 46 Best-ever Freeware Utilities.

There are a lot of great freeware programs out there. Many are as good or even better than their commercial alternatives. This is my personal selection of the best of the best. I've used every single product in this list and find each to be a gem. Of course other folks may differ but, hey, this is MY selection ;>) .

All these utilities have been featured in past issues of Support Alert newsletter. More freebies are featured in every new issue. In this latest update there are actually 56 utilities but this report will still be called now and forever "the best-ever 46 freeware utilities." Go figure:>) In light of the the current malware plague I've re-ordered the list so that the first four products are security related. Note: "Free" in this context means free for non-commercial or home use. Some products are also free for commercial use but I suggest you check out the licensing details of individual products before making that assumption. Last updated November, 2004.

Zigbee-Capable Phone

Link: Gizmodo : Pantech & Curitel Shows Off First Zigbee-Capable Phone.

As if we needed any more hints that Korean phone manufacturer Pantech & Curitel is one to watch, they've announced a prototype version of their P1 phone that can communicate over the upcoming Zigbee wireless home automation protocol. At their press showing today, P&C showed off the capabilities of the concept, which can communicate with Zigbee-standard sensors to control home appliances, check your mail, monitor your alarm system for trespassers—basically anything you'd expect home automation to be able to do, but controlled by a phone.

It's not that I think Zigbee is going to take over or anything—it's too early to tell and I'm not an expert on the subject, besides—but it pleases me to see a relatively small company trying out things that aren't just new for newness sake, but instead smart ideas that could actually be useful extensions of our normal phone use.

Portable Projectors

Link: Technology Review: Portable Projectors.

Portable Projectors Ramesh Raskar of the Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratory demonstrates how miniprojectors could be the antidote to handheld devices’ shrinking screens.

Chances are you can’t remember the last time you hauled a projector out of the attic to look at slides or movies. But, says Ramesh Raskar, you may soon carry one with you everywhere you go. Raskar, a research scientist at Cambridge, MA’s Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories, sees tiny projectors as the solution to one of the fundamental problems with our ever shrinking cell phones, PDAs, digital cameras, and other portable devices. The gizmos carry more and more of our data, but they are running out of room to display it to us. Build a tiny projector into each of those devices, though, and the world becomes your display. Raskar’s team has developed hardware and software that can project digital images onto whatever surface is handy—the wall, say, or a desktop—and make them look good even if the impromptu screen isn’t nice and smooth. And “once you buy into this notion that people would like to have this kind of an attachment,” he asks, “what will they do beyond just looking at those images?” Raskar envisions projectors as the heart of a whole new way of interacting with the world.

Open Source Linux-based PBX

Link: Indexed Forever ? Sell Short, SBC. Why? *

Asterisk is an open source Linux-based PBX, that is feature equivalent to six figure PBX systems. Like RedHat they sell compiled bundles for a few hundred dollars. But, again, we are a start-up, so my co-founder made Debian recognize the card (Asterisk requires a $100 card for PSTN phone or use of a $60 internet phone) he installed in our beige box PC. Then he configured Asterisk to talk to a couple VOIP termination providers, which is as easy as providing your static IP address. The ones that charge even take PayPal. The most time consuming aspect of setup was going through the configuration screens as there are so, so many features.

Now we have every conceivable telephony feature (ok, no RSS enclosure feed for voicemail, but it’s open source - we could add it). Look at a small/medium business telephony features list – we have that and much more.

And the cost? Free. In coming calls? Free. Outgoing calls? $0.013 per minute to the US. Unless we are contacting another Asterisk installation, then? Free (talk about network effects!). So our global telecommunication costs – about $10 a month for VIOP, $15 to SBC for a voice line we don’t use, $50 for DSL to an ISP (who pays something to SBC for using their lines). Instead of $75 per line, SBC gets about $40 total.