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Period tracker app Flo launches 'Anonymous Mode' for iOS devices
It will make its way to Android devices in October.
Coolpad's Flo is its first 3G smartphone in the US, heads to T-Mobile's GoSmart network
Coolpad isn't exactly a household name here in the States, but the outfit is otherwise known for its budget-minded offerings. Today, it is introducing the Flo, a 4.5-inch smartphone running Android Jelly Bean -- the company tells us this is the first Coolpad device with 3G capabilities to hit North America. (Sorry, folks, no LTE.) Aside from that, the Flo also sports an undisclosed dual-core, 1GHz Qualcomm chip, 4GB of onboard storage (expandable up to 32GB) and a decent 1,880mAh battery. Customers using T-Mobile's GoSmart prepaid service can snag one now for $99, which isn't too bad if you'd like to save a few bucks during your holiday shopping.
Nexus 7 factory image and binaries now available from Google
Wanna mod that shiny new Nexus 7? Today's your lucky day. Google just posted the factory image and binaries for its second generation 7-inch tablet -- also known by the product name "razor" and device name "flo". The factory image lets you restore your new Nexus 7 to the exact software it shipped with in case you grow tired of that custom ROM you cooked up using the binaries (natch). Speaking of which, the packages include drivers for audio and sensors from ASUS, NFC from Broadcom plus graphics and everything-but-the-kitchen-sink from Qualcomm. This comes mere hours after some open source drama surrounding the binaries (which now appears to be resolved) and with plenty of time to spare for UK customers. Follow the source links below and have fun hacking this weekend.
Qualcomm says all options are on the table for FLO TV, including sale of spectrum
FLO TV may be dead as we know it, but it's still a significant asset for Qualcomm, and it looks like the company is keeping all options on the table for what to do with it. As CEO Paul Jacobs himself laid out during a recent analysts' conference call, that includes a possible restructuring of FLO TV's wholesale business model, a joint venture with a third party, or a complete shutdown of the service and sale of its sure-to-be-valuable 700MHz spectrum. On that latter possibility, there's apparently been some "strong interest" from various parties looking to use he FLO TV network or spectrum for one purpose or another, although specifics beyond that are obviously still being kept under wraps.
Japan chooses ISDB-Tmm over MediaFLO for new mobile TV network, KDDI pouts
Well, that wasn't much of a delay at all! Japanese regulators have apparently gone ahead and selected NTT DoCoMo's proposal for Japan's next-gen mobile TV network scheduled to go live in 2012 -- ISDB-Tmm, an evolution of the country's existing one-seg technology -- over the MediaFLO-based solution floated by competitor KDDI. Considering that KDDI is tied up in CDMA / EV-DO, it's little wonder they were pushing MediaFLO, a product of CDMA patron saint Qualcomm -- but it's a moot point now that the license is going to DoCoMo's broadcasting consortium. For what it's worth, KDDI -- understandably none too pleased by the decision -- has said that it will refuse to offer programming for the new network, which likely means that its 30 million-plus subscribers won't have access. Great to see these guys can work together so well, isn't it?
Samsung Flight II and Eternity II official for AT&T
At AT&T, it's not just about the Xperia X10 today -- at least, not if Samsung has anything to say about it. Sammy's introduced a pair of sequels in the last few hours, the Flight II (pictured left) and the Eternity II (pictured right), both previously-rumored devices that re-up the company's media-centric dumbphone strategy both with and without physical QWERTY keyboards. Choice is good, isn't it? In the case of the Flight II, you get a 2 megapixel camera, memory expansion to 16GB, a full HTML browser, a switch from the original Flight's portrait QWERTY to landscape, and support for AT&T's questionably-useful Video Share service; the Eternity II takes away the keyboard but lets you scale up to 32GB of additional storage, includes "smart gestures" for the touchscreen display, and carries over the original Eternity's support for AT&T's FLO-based Mobile TV. The Flight II's available right now as a RadioShack exclusive for $50 on a two-year deal, while the Eternity II swings into AT&T stores on the 15th of the month for an unannounced price. Follow the break for the full release.
FLO TV Personal Television hands-on (video)
After a few years of marketing FLO TV through Verizon and AT&T, Qualcomm has struck out on its own to sell a standalone FLO TV, this here FLO TV Personal Television. It seems like a bit of an odd choice in the current media consumption climate, and the price is certainly steep at $250, along with the $9+ monthly subscription fee, but Qualcomm naturally has its reasons. Basically, if people want a second screen to watch FLO TV on, or already have a non-FLO phone that they're happy with, this gives them the option, and then there's the all-important family car ride where you might hand this device to your kid, but wouldn't be so likely to toss them your own phone. Unfortunately, the lack of a hefty carrier subsidy means the $250 pricetag doesn't seem too in line with the quality of this device -- particularly the screen, which pales in comparison to those found on the similarly priced Zune and iPod touch (at least on the prototype device we played with). The touchscreen interface is pretty simple and reasonably quick, though touch detection isn't exactly first-tier, but basically this whole device is as straightforward and no-frills as it looks. Check out a quick hands-on video after the break.
AT&T touts Opera-powered full web browsing with new phones from Samsung and Pantech
AT&T wants you to know that you don't need a smartphone just to get a rich, full web experience from your handset -- theoretically, anyway -- with the introduction of four new models from longtime partners Samsung and Pantech alongside a new featurephone browser. First up from Samsung comes the Flight (pictured left), billed as a "next-generation messaging device" on account of its full QWERTY portrait slide paired with a full touchscreen up top; it'll be available next month for $99.99 on contract after rebate -- that is, if you didn't buy it on Craigslist already. That silvery slate in the middle that's more likely to be catching your eye is the Mythic, rocking TouchWiz on a 3.3-inch display along with AT&T Mobile TV, making it a fitting successor to the Eternity and big brother to the Solstice; like the Flight, it swings onto retail next month, but you'll be paying a stiffer $199.99 on contract after $50 rebate. Turning our attention to the Pantech side of the table, we've got the Reveal (pictured right) that lets you have it both ways with a numeric keypad up top twined with a QWERTY slider underneath. It's 3G-capable, AT&T Navigator-equipped, and available for your enjoyment on October 18 in red and blue. Finally, the Impact (not pictured) has an OLED touchscreen up front, but when the texting gets hot and heavy, the phone opens up to reveal a second display along with a QWERTY keyboard. It'll be available in pink and blue, though neither pricing nor availability are being announced just yet. Gluing everything together is AT&T's new mobile browser, described as "a rich hybrid experience that gives you a HTML experience similar to your PC browser at home" that "works really well on a feature phone." Additionally, users visiting att.net from their PCs will be able to send bookmarks to their phones' mobile portals -- kind of a neat trick, especially when you're trying to minimize the number of URLs you have to mash out on an on-screen keyboard. Of course, featurephone browsers have a reputation for generally sucking, so considering that AT&T bills its new line of devices as "full web browsing phones," it'll be interesting to see how close they actually come to delivering on the claim; it's said the phones use "advanced data compression from Opera Software," which we're thinking is very likely some variation of Opera Turbo -- not a bad start.
Qualcomm's FLO TV device caught in the wild with a cup of joe
If you're on AT&T or Verizon you may have watched an episode of something or another wirelessly via FLO TV, and while the service has hardly taken the nation by storm, it's probably the closest thing to DMB we Americans are going to get for awhile. Qualcomm was rumored to be working on a dedicated device for the service also called the FLO TV, a television-tuning gizmo with a capacitive touchscreen, and now here it is, captured sitting precariously close to the edge of the table, looking set to tumble onto what's surely a greasy, dingy floor below. The device also doubles as a PMP, and while only 4GB of storage means it won't be a particularly good one, with any luck there's a microSD slot in there somewhere. It's all very hush-hush at this point so we don't have any idea about pricing or availability, but perhaps the loose lips at the FCC will give us an answer to that second question soon.
FLO hopes to cut mobile TV costs by going straight to the customer
Besides the very real possibility that the average person isn't all that into the idea of watching live television on a screen the size of a few fingernails, there are two totally quantifiable reasons that MediaFLO-based mobile TV services offered on AT&T and Verizon have yet to sell like gangbusters: poor device selection and wallet-busting pricing strategies. It's already been known that FLO looks to solve the first problem by creating accessories that can give more phones access to the signals -- and it turns out they're looking to knock down pricing, too, by bypassing its carrier partners' services and going straight to subscribers. FLO doesn't control how AT&T and Verizon price their services even though it's responsible for the common backbone that powers both of them, and it figures that if it can get service out of the door for under $10 a month on an annual plan, it has a better chance of succeeding than the $15 and higher that's being charged currently. Of course, $10 is still a lot to pay for non-on-demand programming on a really small handful of channels, but it's a step in the right direction.[Via mocoNews]
Verizon's VCAST TV service expands to three new markets
FLO had promised that it would waste no time rolling out new markets just as soon as old analog TV spectrum started to free up, and sure enough, that's exactly what they're doing. Verizon -- whose VCAST TV service runs on FLO's backbone -- has officially announced expansion into the San Francisco, Cleveland, and Milwaukee markets, meaning the select few with a VCAST TV-capable phone (read: not the enV Touch) can start enjoying a handful of made-for-mobile boob tube channels in the new regions immediately -- provided they plunk down for the monthly fee ranging from $13 to $25. Just how badly do you wanna see Late Night from the warm glow of your phone, eh?
FLO TV to add 39 markets following DTV transition
If we're using availability across AT&T's and Verizon's lineups as a benchmark, we'd venture to guess that FLO isn't doing terribly well -- but be that as it may, the Qualcomm subsidiary is rearing to expand its coverage just as soon as the remainder of the nation's analog television stations go dark on June 12. In fact, they're really, really serious about it: 15 new markets will go live the moment the analog signals turn off, adding Boston, Houston, Miami, and others, while another 24 will tack on by the end of the year. Existing live markets like Chicago and New York will enjoy expanded coverage, too, but the question remains -- where's FLO's meal ticket? More hardware helps, but it might ultimately take a transition to free services before mobile TV takes off.
Qualcomm developing FLO TV accessories for iPhone OS 3.0, other smartphones
Qualcomm's fledgling FLO TV service might be on to something this time. President Bill Stone's announced plans to offer mobile broadcast to phones via add-on peripherals, including an iPhone 3.0-compatible antenna /chip accessory that's currently in the works, although without an estimated release window (Business Insider suggests it'll be ready sometime next year). The company's also looking into accessorizing Windows Mobile phones, either with a plug-in or some device that connects over Wi-Fi / Bluetooth. Seeing as the latest comScore statistics say less than one percent of all phone users watch mobile broadcast TV, which at the moment has to come built-in, this could prove to be a boon for the service -- assuming Q or the carriers can do something about those excessive pricing plans or fierce competition from Sling.[Via Electronista]
AT&T adding four temporary Mobile TV channels to show every March Madness game
It turns out that MediaFLO's US network might not be as close to operating capacity as we'd thought, because AT&T wants to bring you live broadcasts of every single game of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship this month on its Mobile TV system -- and in order to do so, "up to four additional seasonal channels" will spring out of thin air to pick up the load. For non-basketball lovers, it's great news because no other programming will be killed off to accommodate it, and for basketball lovers, it's good news because... well, it's a lot of basketball we're talking about here. The special channels should spring to life on March 19 when the first round of the tournament kicks off.
Inevitability, meet mobile TV: FLO Forum boss talks free content
You can only pimp a pricey, woefully underutilized multimedia network for so long before drawing the conclusion that there's probably something fundamentally wrong with your business model, and indeed, operators around the world have had nothing but trouble attracting subscribers to premium mobile TV services as they've launched over the past few years. The head of the FLO Forum -- the nonprofit group tasked with advocating MediaFLO -- is now acknowledging that mobile TV needs some free, ad-supported content in order to get off the ground (it's just too bad the key players couldn't have figured that out before launching two services in the States), noting that South Korea and Italy have seen some limited success going that route. People like free stuff, but it remains to be seen exactly how Qualcomm and others are going to be able to sell enough advertising space and combine it with enough compelling premium content to get some return on investment; nationwide mobile TV networks don't just build themselves, after all.
Qualcomm never says die, puts cash into British MediaFLO network
Qualcomm's opting for the "la la la la, I can't hear you!" approach to the EU's decision to roll deep with DVB-H, it seems, committing $16.3 million in the UK to scoop up about 40MHz worth of nationwide spectrum for testing its own MediaFLO there, seemingly in an effort to woo locals to FLO's benefits. To be clear, Qualcomm says that it won't go solo with a commercial launch -- it wants a business partner to do that, much as it uses Verizon and AT&T in the States -- but it seems like the company has no problem dumping a few quid into getting the rejected standard some time in the spotlight. The odds are certainly against it, but hey, you've gotta admire their commitment.
AT&T promises mobile TV "as early as possible" in 2008
So we know that AT&T slipped its MediaFLO-based mobile TV launch from the end of 2007 out to early '08, but just how "early" are we talking? Well, "as early as possible," to be specific. That rather unhelpful statement is all that's coming out of AT&T for the moment regarding its go-live window for the service, saying that testing is going "very, very well" but that it wanted to take an extra timeout to "make sure the user experience is absolutely optimal." As far as we're concerned, those statements are in conflict with one another -- if they'd planned to launch in '07 and everything's going well, what the heck's the hold up? At any rate, when it does launch, it turns out that we'll be getting essentially the same lineup MediaFLO offers through Verizon's VCAST TV presently, featuring channels from Fox, NBC, ESPN, CBS, and MTV. That rubs us the wrong way considering that AT&T's original press release mentioned its intention to take advantage of advanced MediaFLO capabilities like datacasting and music, so to summarize: less functionality, later than originally expected. Everyone cool?[Via mocoNews]
LG's Shine and Vu for AT&T: colors, dates, and FLO -- oh my!
So here's the deal for AT&T's CU720 Shine: AT&T looks to be preparing the anticipated slider (or, at least it was anticipated like a year ago) for a Black Friday launch. The silvery model will launch first, with black and red both planned for early '08. The Vu -- alias Prada, alias CU920 -- is still on track for an early '08 launch, too, though LG and AT&T are apparently pushing hard to get it rolled out in December, presumably to catch some last-minute holiday sales. MediaFLO support is confirmed in this bad boy, meaning that glorious display should see a little more action than the Cellular Video and MobiTV options AT&T subscribers have today. Oh, and are you wondering how that name's pronounced? Turns out it's "view," not "voo." Thank goodness.[Thanks, Kal-El]
Qualcomm looking to push MediaFLO in Taiwan with joint venture
DigiTimes is reporting that Qualcomm has openly expressed interest this month in setting up a joint venture in Taiwan to get the ball rolling on MediaFLO there. Having bagged two of four national carriers in the US (with the distinct possibility of bagging one or two more still in the cards), Qualcomm appears to be turning its attention to distant lands. As DigiTimes points out, the company has already set up a joint venture with Japan's KDDI (a CDMA carrier, unsurprisingly) to push its proprietary mobile TV tech in that country, so it seems like similar ventures elsewhere are a foregone conclusion. Noting that a joint venture could be either "financial or technological," Qualcomm already runs a MediaFLO-based trial in Taiwan that kicked off earlier this year, so we figure that it may be looking to get an infusion of local cash to take the service commercial -- especially considering that it'll be going up against a handful of recently-awarded DVB-H licenses in the country.[Via mocoNews]
DVD-sniffing dogs awarded medals, returning to NYC
Lucky and Flo, the two danger-loving police dogs whose exploits as international crime fighters are well know to readers of this site, have just become the first non-humans to be awarded Malaysia's outstanding service award for their tireless work in trotting around and sitting down at the first whiff of plastic. Following several raids that led to 26 arrests and $6 million in seized counterfeit DVDs during their five month tour of duty -- as well as a contract on their young lives -- these real-life Underdogs will be returning home to a hero's welcome in New York later this week, although there will be no ticker tape parade for the courageous canines. Rather, they'll be put right back to work in the hopes that they "take a bite out of movie piracy in the Big Apple," according to the Motion Picture Association's Edward Neurbronner -- that is, when they're not busy putting on little, um, dog-and-pony shows at local events. Well we certainly wish you guys luck as you begin your new career battling piracy stateside (and later on in Canada, apparently another hotbed of IP theft), although we're still not sure why the cops need trained dogs to help them track down all those nefarious pirates hiding in plain sight on almost every avenue in Manhattan.Read - MedalsRead - Return to NYC