Archive for the 'Wi-Fi' Category
sipgate Inc. today announces the immediate availability of a free application for the iPhone, which, for the first time allows consumers to natively use any VoIP service which uses the industry standard SIP. Consumers can now use their iPhones to make and receive VoIP calls from their devices over a Wi-Fi Internet connection using a wide variety of VoIP providers. The VoIP-enabling software is available from sipgate’s website
www.sipgate.com.
With the sipgate service, users can dial any number without using minutes from a wireless plan. This is particularly useful when calling to or from other countries, as call costs can be as high as $3 per minute. However, when using a VoIP service, costs can be kept as low as $0.01 per minute. sipgate is giving new users 111 free minutes for domestic calls for users to test out VoIP usage on the device*.
Another benefit of sipgate is that consumers can use any domestic or international number provided by their VoIP service on their iPhone. This means that they can make and receive calls from different domestic and international numbers, all on a single device.
Thilo Salmon, CEO of sipgate commented: “We love VoIP and we love the iPhone so we are giving people like us who always wanted VoIP on the iPhone the ability to use any SIP-based VoIP service they want. We are thrilled that Apple is opening up the iPhone and we look forward to taking part in future application development.”
Salmon continued: “As a company we strive to make useful services accessible to everyone. There will be more innovation for businesses and consumers coming from sipgate this year, so keep your eyes open for more news.”
The iPhone has been doing an impressive job at hitting Steve Jobs self-made goal of 10 million in its first year with making the halfway point in December of 2007. Sending PocketPC, err, Windows Mobile devices scrambling, popular hardware maker HTC quickly answered Apple’s call for ease with the the Touch. While attempting to fix many of Microsoft’s ills on the mobile platform, it’s still no iPhone. But still, a nice phone in itself and now Alltel users can have one.
The following is the press release sent to SvenOnTech today.
The compact and stylish HTC Touch provides customers with a new way to stay connected and access music, photos, information, games and more. This sophisticated smartphone is easy to operate by using a finger to simply swipe or tap the innovative touch-screen “cube” interface. Alltel’s HTC Touch features four panels on the “cube,” including an Alltel-exclusive panel that provides customers with quick access to the latest smartphone applications to personalize their phones and help do more on the go. Customers can also customize the phone with ringtones, themes and games, in addition to pre-programmed links to shopping applications.
The additional panels provide easy access to contacts, including the ability to assign photos to each name; allow users to launch their applications at the touch of a button; and launch the HTC Touch’s multimedia functions, such as the music player, photos and video, with a tap of the finger.
The smartphone also provides access to Alltel applications, including the new Voice2TXT service from Spinvox that converts incoming voicemails to text and sends them to the customer’s text inbox, allowing them to discretely respond to voicemails via text messages without dialing their phone.
“The HTC Touch provides our customers with the information they want, and the personalization they desire, right at their fingertips,” states Brian Ullem, director of device strategy for Alltel Wireless. “This elegant, modern smartphone is perfect for style-conscious buyers who want the functionality of a PDA with swift access to their photos, videos, music and more.”
The HTC Touch features a 2MP camera with video, Windows Media Player, a MicroSD memory card slot, Bluetooth Wireless Technology and Windows Mobile 6.0 Professional. It is also preloaded with a variety of applications on the Alltel exclusive fourth panel of the “cube,” including:
Having both the XV6600, and the XV6700, I probably would have upgraded to this phone if I were still on Verizon. But since I have the far superior iPhone, I won’t. 
But in all seriousness, if you had to buy a Windows Mobile phone, I’d say this is a good bet for you. Still mind you, the system will need soft-reseting at least twice a day, you’ll have to buy a big ‘ol fat battery since the standard one won’t get you past lunch. But again, when you can’t (or won’t) get an iPhone, I’d say this is a good way to slap a smartphone onto your hip. Get yours from Verizon Wireless for $400 without contract or $300 with a two year commitment.
Features:
* EV–DO, 1X RTT Capable
* Windows Mobile® 6 Professional
* Microsoft® Office Word Mobile, Excel® Mobile, and PowerPoint® Mobile; Adobe® Reader® LE PDF viewer
* View, edit, create Word; Excel files; view only PowerPoint, PDF files
* Internet Explorer® Mobile
* Windows Media® Player 10
* Memory: 64MB RAM/256MB ROM
* Wi–Fi Connectivity (802.11 b/g)
* Slide Out QWERTY Keyboard with Trackwheel Navigation
* 2.0 megapixel camera with flash, auto–focus and video capture
* 2.8″ Display: 240×320 pixel; 64K color TFT
o Touch–sensitive LCD display
o Portrait and landscape orientation
Whether staying in a hotel, waiting for a flight or drinking a latte at the local coffee shop, Alltel customers can now connect to the Internet virtually anywhere. Alltel Wireless, America’s largest network providing coverage across the nation, today launched Alltel Wi-Fi, an easy-to-use solution powered by Boingo Wireless that instantly provides customers with laptop access to thousands of hotspots throughout North and South America. Alltel also provides wireless broadband access via Alltel Wireless Internet service, allowing customers to access the Internet from their laptop or smartphone at speeds of up to 2.4 Mbps on its nationwide data network.
Through Alltel’s relationship with Boingo, the world’s largest network of Wi-Fi hotspots, Alltel customers will be able to enjoy a fast connection all over the country. To provide customers with maximum coverage, Alltel is offering a Wi-Fi and EVDO Wireless Internet “bundle,” delivering unlimited Wi-Fi access from any supported hotspot starting as low as $9.99 per month, in addition to the customers’ Wireless Internet Plan. Pre-paid Wi-Fi cards are available at Alltel Wireless retail stores for $19.99 per week or $9.99 per day. Additionally, users can purchase Wi-Fi access at https://wifi.alltel.com.
“Wi-Fi is an excellent complement to Alltel’s existing portfolio of wireless internet solutions and is a good fit with Alltel’s strategy to provide customers with more ways to connect wirelessly to the Internet, email, or corporate intranet,” said David Maddox, director of product marketing for Alltel Wireless. “Alltel customers will get the best available wireless broadband connection throughout the country with EVDO and Wi-Fi from Alltel.”
D-Link, the end-to-end networking solutions provider for business and consumers, today announced its award-winning Draft 802.11n Xtreme N˙ Router (DIR-655) now allows users to monitor network performance through the use of Yahoo!® Widgets.
D-Link is the first networking company to support the Yahoo! Widgets utilities for home networking products.
D-Link’s addition of the popular desktop tools demonstrates the company’s ongoing commitment to maintain Xtreme N networking as best in class, said Daniel Kelley, Marketing Director for D-Link Systems, Inc.
The ‘D-Link Network Monitor’ Widget will display key network performance data for Internet, WLAN, and LAN connections. Over 30 types of network data are easily viewable from the widget, including number of networked devices, security settings and much more.
“We’re excited to offer Yahoo! Widgets as an added value to our customers,” said Kelley. “Computer users that understand the power available to them through our Xtreme N routers will be eager to use these tools to keep performance at its peak.”
Yahoo! Widgets provide users access to more than 4,800 desktop applications that allow them to stay current with a live , at-a-glance view of their favorite Internet information and services, PC performance and the status of peripheral computer components such as an Xtreme N network.
To get the ‘D-Link Network Monitor’ Widget, visit www.dlink.com/widget or download directly from the Yahoo! Widget Gallery by visiting widgets.yahoo.com and searching the gallery for ‘D-Link’. Users will also need to update their Xtreme N Router with the latest firmware available from the D-Link Support Site at support.dlink.com.
Powered by Xtreme N technology and equipped with three external antennas, the DIR-655 Xtreme N Gigabit Router provides superior wireless coverage for larger homes and offices, or for users running bandwidth-intensive applications. When connected to a cable or DSL modem, it provides high-speed Internet access to multiple computers, game consoles, and media players. The DIR-655 creates a secure wireless network to share photos, files, music, videos, printers, and network storage, and includes a 4-port 10/100/1000 Gigabit switch that connects Gigabit wired devices for enjoying lag-free network gaming and faster file transfers.
Price and Availability
Firmware (1.05 or later) to enable the Yahoo! Widget for the D-Link Xtreme N router is free of charge and now available and posted on www.dlink.com. The DIR-655, with an MSRP of $179.99, can be found throughout D-Link network of retail outlets and at its online store, www.dlinkshop.com.
D-Link today announced immediate availability of smaller form factor notebook ExpressCard(tm) adapters and desktop PCI Express adapters to take advantage of the latest draft 802.11n wireless network technology.
The D-Link Xtreme N( Notebook ExpressCard (DWA-643) is designed for notebooks now being sold by major brands such as Dell(, HP(, Toshiba(r), Gateway(r) and others offering users an easy upgrade to the future of wireless technology. For desktop PCs, D-Link now offers the DWA-556 Xtreme N PCI Express (PCIe) draft 802.11n desktop adapter “Our new ExpressCard and PCIe adapters provide further support to our customers who are purchasing the latest computers to hit the market, either desktop or laptop. Both bring wireless connectivity to the next level, allowing users to enjoy the best network performance possible,” said Brian Larsen, associate vice president of product development for D-Link Systems, Inc. “Combined with improved performance of draft 11n wireless technology, our newest Xtreme N adapters deliver strong connections for computers on the home network and improved throughput for running bandwidth intensive applications such as streaming media and online gaming.”
Both adapters are powered with the lightning speeds and greater range of connectivity made possible by the latest draft of the wireless networking standard, 802.11n. The smaller slots equipped on the newer-generation notebooks and desktops are designed for all future industry-standard wired and wireless ExpressCards and PCIe adapters.
“D-Link just keeps upping the 802.11n ante,” said the editors of Laptop Magazine, which recently gave the Xtreme N Gigabit router (DIR-655) their prestigious Editors’ Choice award for its superior speed, range and overall application of the draft 802.11n technology. Target PC reviewers wrote: “the DIR-655 is by far one of the most advanced and feature-packed routers on today’s market.”
Designed for use in larger homes and offices or for multiple bandwidth-intensive applications, the DWA-556 desktop adapter features three external antennas to provide higher performance than 802.11g technology while maintaining backward compatibility to 802.11g and 802.11b networks. Both adapters are designed to enhance network communications by allowing high-definition media streaming, file sharing, enhanced Internet phone calling (VoIP) and Web surfing. They also support advanced network security encryption (WEP, WPA(tm) or WPA2(tm)) and come with D-Link’s Quick Adapter Setup Wizard software.
Both the DWA-556 and DWA-643 are now available through D-Link’s network of retail stores, online outlets and company store, www.dlinkshop.com, for the manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) of $149.99 and $119.99, respectively. More information about the products can be obtained at the D-Link website, www.dlink.com, and by tuning into D-LinkTV.
D-Link, the end-to-end networking solutions provider for consumers and business, today unveiled a family of 3G mobile broadband wireless routers designed to make it even easier for on-the-go consumers, field technicians and mobile professionals to access and share an Internet connection virtually anywhere by blending Wi-Fi(tm) networking technology and a wireless broadband network.
The D-Link 3G Mobile Wireless Routers allow users to create a 802.11g/b-compatible wireless hotspot anywhere within range of a cellular network.
By plugging a compatible 3G notebook adapter into the D-Link 3G Mobile Router’s built-in card bus slot or a USB-enabled mobile phone, users can get immediate access to EV-DO, UMTS or HSDPA networks. The D-Link router can then share this signal via 802.11g/b Wi-Fi technology to notebooks, PCs or other Wi-Fi-enabled devices. The D-Link routers are available in two versions: the DIR-450 (EV-DO) and DIR-451 (UMTS/HSDPA).
“These routers are ideal in situations where a wired broadband connection, such as T1, cable or DSL, is not available,” said Brian Larsen, associate vice president of product development for D-Link Systems, Inc. “For instance, once users insert a notebook adapter into their D-Link 3G Wireless Mobile Router and create a wireless ‘hotspot’, they can then check their email, browse
the Web, access their company network and share information with colleagues in ‘virtual meetings’. This solution is significant to the market by enabling communications at temporary work sites such as construction or disaster areas, concerts and others.”
For security, both versions support wireless security features to prevent unauthorized access, including WEP, WPA and WPA2 that ensure a secure Wi-Fi network regardless of the connected devices. They also employ dual active firewalls (SPI and NAT) to prevent potential Internet attacks.
CES was ripe with iPod gadgets last week and truth is, it was hard to see the golden tree amongst the thick forest. But if you kept your eyes open, you would have seen a little something from silex. It’s golden apple is the wiDock and what an apple it is!
Docks are becoming as common as, well, as apples these days for iPods. What separates wiDock from the crowd is it’s magical ability to make sure everything on that iPod is current. It synchronizes wirelessly. Aah, I’m already in love with it! But it goes an extra step and will sync up to five different iPods to five different PCs or Macs on your network! Now we’re talking!
John Halloran, Project Manager at silex, took time out of his busy schedule to tell SvenOnTech all about this great little dock for any iPod with a dock connector (iPod, iPod nano, iPod mini.) Halloran told us that the built-in 802.11g wireless dock syncs associating an iPod by its serial number to any computer you choose on the network. So Danny can sync to his PC and mom can sync to her Mac all from the same wiDock. With a simple software install on each computer (Windows or OS X), Sx Virtual Link makes a virtual driver emulating a USB link. By pressing a button on the dock, the computer on the other end associated to that iPod starts the sync process. You can also initiate the Sx Virtual link to start up automatically if you so choose, to make for seamless sync jobs. If you’re sitting at your computer and the iPod is on the dock down in the living room, highlight the iPod in iTunes and start the sync from your computer. iTunes thinks it’s right there on your desk!
Halloran told me during our 30 minute call that silex sees the wiDock as helping make the iPod the focus of your home entertainment system. With RCA audio and S-Video outputs to connect to your system, you’ll be able to watch movies and enjoy your music without having to worry about the nagging music protection scheme on the content you purchased from the iTunes store. With its built-in support for the Apple Remote, you can sit down and enjoy anything on your iPod from the comfort of your couch. And yes, Halloran did confirm that silex is kicking around the idea of making its own remote as well for a future release.
When I asked Halloran about iPhone integration, he said while they haven’t been able to touch one to really see how it works, they do believe it should be an easy adaption to the wiDock since the iPhone too has a dock connector. When I pressed about its built-in Wi-Fi and maybe the ability to add silex software to the phone for wireless syncing anywhere (within ones home Wi-Fi next work), Halloran said that it was a possibility, but couldn’t commit to it until they see the iPhone first. Halloran did tell me that silex is currently working with other manufactures in getting silex’s technology in a wide variety of other products.
The worlds only Wi-Fi dock for the iPod can be had for $149 MSRP though it has been found as low as $120 on the street. Response to the wiDock was hot at CES and Macworld where many purchased it on the spot when they saw what it could do. We’ll be getting one in soon and we’ll tell you then if it’s as hot as we think it is!
Looks like XM has its work cut for it now that Sirius has just released it’s, excuse the pun, serious portable player, the Stiletto 100. With live reception, built-in Wi-Fi (which allows you to log into Sirius Internet radio), and the ability to purchase songs from Yahoo! Music Jukebox that strike your fancy when you hear it, this is one neat little unit to say the least. If you’re wondering what the 100 in the name means, that implies it’ll record up to 100 hours of Sirius programming for later use. Yes, I can record my Steelers games now during church service. With scheduling built into this unit, I can only say one thing, “Sweet!”
The Stiletto 100 also allows for users own MP3 and WMAs to be played and stored on the unit with easy synchronization via My SIRIUS Studio software that is included with the portable satellite player.
Measuring 4.7” x 2.0” x 1”, Stiletto 100 stores up to 100 hours of live SIRIUS Satellite Radio programming (2 GB), has a large 2.2” bright display, Aurora graphic user interface and a six-way navigation control that provides easy one handed access to all features and content. Stiletto 100, with a MSRP of $349.99, will include the radio, standard battery, slim battery, AC power adaptor, headset antenna, ear buds, PC cable, My SIRIUS Studio™ software and Yahoo! Music Jukebox™ software.
Sirius tells SvenOnTech that the Stiletto 100 will be available “this month” so that should be by tomorrow, no?
Looks like Californians can now add yet another law to the books as all Wi-Fi manufactures will now have to either plaster a huge warning sticker on the box or add something in the software setup that Wi-Fi is dangerous. No, it won’t make you lose your fingers or stub your toe or make you anemic, but if you don’t lock up and lock it up good, then someone may do stuff like, you know, view illegal pictures on your connection and it’ll be your door knocked down by the FBI instead of your neighbors.
While I’m for better security and all, requiring companies to slap warnings on the box won’t help. I do this stuff as my day job and I can tell you right now, there are customers that know about this issue, they just don’t how to fix it. Maybe user education or easy setup would be the better thing for these companies to apply.
Don’t worry you war-drivers, I don’t see this having any effect on your free selection of wireless networks. Just take a look at all the smokers to see how well warnings work.