Posts Tagged ‘smartphones’

Apparently there is a new iPhone application out there that lets me monitor my sleep cycle by simply sleeping with the iPhone at the corner of the bed. The application is called Sleep Cycle by Lexware Labs. It is currently a $0.99 app in the iTunes store as an introductory offer.

This is my sleep cycle for Feb 15

The application is simple: Set the alarm for your wake time. For me, I don’t usually set an alarm – When I want to get up, I wake up. Nonetheless, I did setup the alarm for testing sake.

I set the iPhone on the corner of the bed. They say you need to plug in the device to maintain power, but I am not ready to sleep with 115 Volts sitting by my head just yet. I had the phone charged up, so I left the cable on the computer. It did go through about 50-60% of battery life during the evening. They say you could drain your battery and the alarm won’t go off, but they do suggest that if you don’t want to keep it plugged in, you might want to set another alarm so you don’t miss your wake up time.

Where to put the iPhone while sleeping

I suppose if you also have one of those foam beds that don’t transfer motion, you will not be able to use the application – It would be cool to try, though. I should ask a friend who does have one of those beds to try out.

The program uses the accelerometer to judge when you move on your bed. The phone will then determine what part of sleep you are in. I know when I wake up in the middle of night, the first thing I will do is flip sides.

This also means you have to sleep alone – or in a King Bed with 2 spring mattresses for this to work properly.

There are some other limitations – You cannot play any other music while this program is running. If you only have an iPod, you won’t be able to use this app. It’s a limitation of iPod – when the device turns off, the accelerometer does, too. I don’t know if it will work with iPad, but I would guess the same thing goes with the accelerometer.

So I used no cable, I did get about 8 hours, although it got tougher around 8 A.M. to sleep. I just don’t sleep that much. I also left my case on, which could change the numbers. You have to put the phone face-down, in which I placed it right on the spring of the bed for best use.

It was the first night of sleep, so I will try this for the next few nights. Will see what my sleep cycle says.

MarketWatch reports that, according to Roel Schouwenberg of Kaspersky Lab Americas, Android and iPhone handsets will be the next target for hackers.

Kapersky is a leading manufacturer of anti-virus software. (Full disclosure: I have used Kapersky products for years and found them reliable. I have Kapersky on this Linux box even as I type.)

Interestingly, the article also states:

It is not clear why people who can disrupt operating systems do so. The reason is not likely to be to make money, although handsets are being used more and more often for banking and financial transactions. Attacks on widely used software are as often as not committed for political purposes or to disrupt global business or government systems. Hacking into Android or OSX probably does not satisfy any of those aims, at least for now.

Indeed, I believe that one reason that smartphones have not been subject to greater attack over the years is that most of them simply do not contain the kind of information that would repay in monetary terms the effort of cracking them. Nor are cellphones suitable for botnets because traffic to them is monitored by the cellphone provider; the percentage of time that a wi-fi enabled phone spends on a wireless internet connection is not enough to justify the effort of trying to recruit it into a botnet, when so many vulnerable computers are out there saying, “Take me! Take me! Take me!”

In other words, the probable motive for the predicted incredible rise in attacks on cellphones is simple vandalism, the same motive that leads kids (and some grown-ups) to shoot up road signs.

I suspect another reason for the prediction is a desired increase in sales of anti-virus software. Here’s a whole new market that the anti-malware vendors have not yet successfully tapped.

The article contains a major fallacy, embodied in this passage:

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Reuters reports that Dell is working on an Android phone for the U. S. market to be distributed by AT&T. (They credit the Wall Street Journal with breaking the story.)

Smartphones . . . have exploded onto the corporate and consumer market as users increasingly access information and entertainment on the go.

Worldwide factory shipments of smart phones are expected to rise to 235.6 million units in 2010, up 27.9 percent from 184.2 million in 2009, according to iSuppli. That is a far cry from a 12.3 percent decline projected for cellphones overall in 2009.

But analysts warn that the world’s No. 2 PC maker would face a tough challenge in a market already crowded with competition. On Wednesday, South Korea’s Samsung said it would also begin selling an Android phone through Sprint Nextel’s network.

As much as I like Dells–until my son moved out, there were five in the house–Dell cannot woo me to AT&T. I’m very happy with my current cellphone carrier, who I’ve been with for almost a decade and who has always done stuff like actually answer the phone in less than a minute when I’ve had to call them and been able to answer my questions promptly and accurately, all this at a reasonable price and with unlimited roaming.

I know persons who have iPhones. iPhones are really really neat gadgets (although the Apple walled garden approach to life does give me pause).

As far as I am concerned, my cellphone service is not just about the cellphone. It’s also about the service. The calibre of my carrier’s service has earned my loyalty.

It’s been a few weeks since I’ve posted a Bitstrips. Today I was inspired.

Me and my brother really enjoy going to breakfast every now and then. What was better – there was a restaurant that actually had Wi-Fi access. Therefore, we both would take our laptops and surf while eating.

That was two weeks ago.

Now we have smartphones that have wireless access. Of course, I have the iPhone 3GS and he has the Blackberry 8330. So why do we need the Notebooks? Heck – we can go to any place that serves breakfast because the Wi-Fi access selling point is null.

The only thing we cannot do is run any program that requires Flash. That means no Bitstripping while at breakfast with the phone. So we still need the computers and access at one point. That is, until we get netbooks with 3G access….

As you might have heard, I made the decicion to get an iPhone. I looked over all the smartphones – especially those with windows mobile on them (I still have a spot for the good old mobile). The one phone I wanted just didn’t seem to be going in the direction of the standard Smartphone. The screen was too small and the buttons separated. Little round dots that you need a pin to use. Not what I had in mind.

Therefore, I logged on, found out the iPhone was available right now, and made an impulse buy. Well, not really an impulse buy. Yet, this was definitely out of character.

What I like about the iPhone 3GS

The biggest improvement to me was somehow, the touch sensativity was a lot better. I could actually hit the keys on the glass keyboard and get what I was typing. There are a few mistakes here and there, but when you are used to typing using another sense (that being touch), then you find you have to relearn.

- Ease of Use

I had the device configured and downloaded all the important apps: Shazam, Facebook, Tweekdeck, Wordpress, the Zippo app, handy leveler and Bug spray. I was also able to import all my contacts and dates without issue – especially since my Outlook expected a Windows Mobile phone. The iPhone pretty much took over on the sync and went from there.

- Camera

This is a good and bad point. The good is the quality of pictures in a decent lighting situation. I would guess that dark lighting won’t be the best – especially since there is no flash. But I really didn’t buy this for the camera. Oh wait – I might’ve bought this for the video…..

Sound Quality

This is the most impressive part of this phone. Being able to turn up the volume a little more and HEAR what was said. Whomever worked on that area – I give kudos to. Even though there are some that say kids turn it up too loud and experience hearing loss – I say that I am glad the kids didn’t ruin this option for me. I need more volume.

What I don’t like about the iPhone 3GS

The one thing that baffles me is how I can put my music on the system. It won’t let me drag and drop any of my songs on the list. While it’s not a big deal, it did get a little frustrating. I’ll get the hang of it eventually.

- Camera

I told you the camera was good and bad. The bad about it is simply the button. If I am taking a self video – maybe for seasmic or YouTube, I might miss the un-tactile switch. Then the beggining and end of the video is a blur while I move to turn it off.

- I miss my Indicator Light

On my HTC 8125, it blinked red when I had a missed call or text. This phone has no indication until I hit that little button with the square on it. Heck, I could have a missed call on it right now and wouldn’t even notice.

- I Want to Keep it ON

When I plug in my phones, I like to have the screen stay on for more than a minute. The HTC was setup for 10 before the screen would go to sleep. I want the iPhone to do the same. Maybe it’s just a setting I’m missing. I am new to this device.

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What about the HTC 8125?

If you think that the HTC will be retired, then think again. I have some ideas for that phone. I just need to back up the data, in case I need to use it as a phone.  I had that phone for 4 years and it did a lot INCLUDING surfing the web. I will also miss Bubblebreaker – although there might be an iPhone App out there. Let’s hope so.

These are just first day thoughts of the phone. I may change my tune next week. Heck, I could change it tomorrow. For now, it was well worth the investment.

Oh yeah – I still need a case and a car charger for the new phone. That is the next venture.

You might remember the products. You might remember the hype. Then, you are tooling down highway 41 years later and all of a sudden you think to yourself – “Hey, whatever happened to…”

Failed ideas. Maybe it was a great idea, but wasn’t made right, or design errors brought it down. Maybe it was just a bad product. Well, let’s take a stroll down memory lane and see if we cannot repeat these errors again.

Oh yeah, why 16? Well because we could.

The Computer Watch: Whether it was the Ruputer, the MSN Direct ‘Smart’ Watches, the Timex Data Link Watch or another gadget watch – BTW – I remember having a “Transformers watch”. It was awesome!

Still, the Dick Tracey style communication watches, the “Computer on a wrist”, never really hit it off. I even remember a watch that gave you directions. You would put in the paper tape and turn a little dial to indicate where you are and where you are going.

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The next few weeks are going to be do or die for the Palm Pre. With it’s release of June 6th, we will see if this new phone from Palm is going to be able to stand up to the Apple iPhone. Especially when the new 3.0 version comes out by the end of the month.

iPhone has had a very strong showing. It knocked down Motorola’s RAZR and brought the world of Smartphones to the forefront of mobile technology. You can pretty much do anything you need on the phone from take photos, to record and listen to music, check mail and even turn your life over to this amazing device. That is, if you can afford the mobile plan.

Palm has been around for over 10 years in handheld organizers. There have been some reorganizations of the company – changing to PalmOne, for example. Nonetheless, Palm has some technologies and patents they can update and re-use to model this new competitor.

Both have Application stores. Both run 3G and have GPS capabilities. Both will have a 3.0 megapixel camera, WiFi 802.11g and Bluetooth.

Palm will have the advantage for the few who like the Tactile response with a built in QWERTY keyboard. Palm will also have a standard USB port; hopefully I can hook up my standard USB car charger to. iPhone will have the memory advantage with 16 and 32GB of memory where the Pre will only have 8 (7 GB in all reality because the OS will need a part to run).

Both will be expected to have a $199 price tag – if you get a 2 year plan with it. It’s just a question of whether you want Sprint, AT&T or if you know how to unlock the phone to use on your favorite carrier.

Of course we would be remiss if we didn’t also talk about the Windows Mobile phones, the Blackberry phones and Android. However, in the last 3 years, only Blackberry has been able to really dent the iPhone market, but they skew the numbers with their 8 versions of phones.

I already hear people talking about how they are going to make the switch. The biggest complaint for the iPhone is the AT&T exclusive contract. I know that in some parts of Wisconsin, I can’t even get service from the AT&T phone. What good is a smartphone if it’s not smart enough to connect to another tower?

I am going to weigh the options in many ways. First of all, we’ll see what happens with the Pre in the first couple weeks – if there is a major problem, it will surface quickly. Second, we’ll watch the financial reports. Palm was on the verge of bankruptcy not more than 9 months ago. They have a lot riding on the Pre. If that fails, they might be up the proverbial creek.

The Palm Pre also has another battle to worry about. That is the Sprint factor. Sprint has not been doing that well itself and they are riding on this phone to make people switch. We’ve seen companies turn around before and this could tip the scales in Sprints’ favor, but you have to remember that this could also topple like a house of cards.

Next, we’ll watch the App stores. One thing that seems to be good business is having a App store with good programs in it. Apple claims they have earned 20-25 million for the Apps alone. That is a good infusion of cash to keep things going. This will be a good infusion in the Palm company.

End result – There will be a good challenge to see who can prevail. Of course I believe that both can survive. The true tests is when Android comes out with their next phone and when Windows Mobile 7 gets released.

In the meantime, enjoy this weeks’ Bitstrips. Then answer the QOTW – Will you get a iPhone or a Pre?