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I smelled a little girl and I liked it?
Once upon a time, on a warm afternoon in May, I followed Goldilocks on her adventure, one smell at a time. As she made her way through the illustrated forest on the iPad in front of me, I tapped the screen and leaned over a small cylinder for a whiff of the woods. A few seconds and a whirring sound later, the smell of pines, faint but fresh, brought the classic children's book to life. A lush green, mossy forest instantly popped into my head. And as the subtle smell started to wear off, so too did my skepticism toward olfactory technology. Or so I thought.
The TUAW Daily Update Podcast for June 23, 2014
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get some the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the player at the top of the page. The Daily Update has been moved to a new podcast host in the past few days. Current listeners should delete the old podcast subscription and subscribe to the new feed in the iTunes Store here.
You can now turn your iPhone into a smell-o-phone
Well, the future is finally here, ladies and gentlemen. Scientists at Harvard have made the smell-o-phone a reality, and they did it using an iPhone and a contraption called the oPhone, a large contraption that mixes various scents to create specific aromas. The oPhone syncs with an iPhone app called oSnap, which lets you tag photo messages with whatever scents tickle your fancy. On the other end of the message -- which the company calls an "oNote" -- the recipient's oPhone device mixes the necessary scent notes and spews forth the aroma the sender specified. So, imagine getting a photo of a bonfire along with the bouquet of burning wood, or a snapshot of some flowers accompanied by their pleasant essence. It's certainly a niche gadget, but it's got some seriously futuristic appeal. If you're interested in this strange new communication method, you can pre-order the oPhone hardware via the company's Indiegogo campaign. Of course, if the only smell you're after is bacon, there's already an app for that... [via Yahoo]
Apple's mobile partner in China announces its own iPhone rival
The parent company of China Unicom, Apple's sole partner for carrying the iPhone in China, revealed plans on Monday to release its own mobile computing platform. Dubbed "Wophone," the platform will compete directly with Apple's iOS and Google's Android. Last year, Apple partnered with China Unicom, the nation's second largest mobile carrier, to release the iPhone 4 in China. The exclusive availability of the iPhone on China Unicom's network helped the carrier compete with rivals China Mobile and China Telecom for new customers in China's nascent 3G wireless services market. In a statement, China Unicom said it hopes Wophone will help the company and its manufacturing partners develop a broader variety of more affordable 3G devices and introduce them to market more quickly. The rapid introduction of new 3G devices could help woo new customers away from market-leading China Mobile who released its own mobile platform, "Ophone," in 2009. China Mobile leads the wireless market in China with about 589 million total subscribers, but has only 22.6 million customers for its higher revenue 3G services. China Unicom said 15.5 million of its 170 million subscribers were on 3G at the end of January.
Motorola's MT716 OPhone launched in China, looks just like a Droid with Cliq's keyboard
If only this was a hoax. Yes, that's some bitter talk alright, because this Motorola MT716 from China Mobile is almost the perfect Droid that we once had on our dusty wish list: a similar slider form factor but with a hard-cap keyboard, as opposed to one with spongy mashers. In fact, eagle-eyed readers might have already spotted that this is the exact same keyboard as featured on the Cliq. Compared to its distant relative, other differences on this OPhone include an 8 megapixel camera (with dual-LED flash and 720p camcorder feature), an extra VGA front-facing camera, TD-SCDMA radio, WAPI connectivity (WiFi-compatible), and CMMB TV streaming; otherwise, you'll find the same weedy 600MHz TI OMAP3430 chip, 480 x 854 LCD, AGPS and Bluetooth 2.1 inside. Now if you'll excuse us -- we have a petition to write up.
Sony Ericsson announces China-bound A8i Ophone: its first-ever TD-SCDMA smartphone
We're actually surprised it's taken that long for Sony Ericsson to join China Mobile's TD-SCDMA bandwagon (potentially 554 million accounts!), but as the old Chinese proverb goes: "it's never too late to fix the fence, even if you've already lost a few sheep." The new Ophone 2.0 handset in question is the A8i, which bears much resemblance to the oh-so-popular Xperia X10 (also available in China) except for the smaller 3.5-inch touchscreen, 5 megapixel camera, CMMB mobile TV feature, and the seemingly missing Timescape plus Mediascape apps. No prices announced just yet, but we're told that both the "Titanium Black" and "Shiny White" editions will be heavily subsidized when they come out in October.
Motorola Ming A1680, MT810, and XT806 begin their Android mercy mission in China
Motorola's venerable MING handset revisions were just made official in three Android-toting varieties for China Unicom (model A1680 pictured above left), China Mobile (MT810, pictured center), and China Telecom (XT806, on the right). The TD-SCDMA riding MT810 ships with the Android derived OPhone 2.0 operating system and two touchscreen displays: a 3.2-inch stylus-friendly resistive touchscreen and a second transparent capacitive cover that provides a finger-friendly experience when closed. Other specs include 720 x 480 video capture, 720p video playback, and support for China's CMMB mobile television spec. China Telecom's XT806 is built on Android 2.1 with GPS, 720p video capture, and support for both CDMA EVDO and GSM for global wanderings. Finally, China Unicom's A1680 packs a 3.1-inch AMOLED touchscreen, Chinese WAPI WiFi, 5 megapixel camera, GPS, and Motorola's sixth-generation SoftStylus handwriting system.
Motorola MT810 Ophone to sport both capacitive and resistive digitizers, makes TV cameo
Remember the Motorola MT820 that got leaked in China last week? Well, for some mysterious reason it's now adopted a new name -- MT810 (but with the same codename, "North Sea"). According to IT168, the tipster isn't exactly clear on whether the two model numbers refer to the same hardware configuration, but a quick search on the Chinese regulator's database reveals just MT810, and that it'll work on China Mobile's TD-SCDMA network and WAPI (China's own take on WiFi). Going back to the latest leak: we're now learning that the camera will capture 720p footage -- apparently a first on the Ophone platform -- and a minimum of 5-megapixel stills, accompanied by an LED flash. As for the flip cover, turns out it also serves as a capacitive touch layer, while the screen underneath is coupled with the good-old resistive digitizer -- ideal for those who prefer writing Chinese with a pointy stylus instead of a sausage. Sadly, the tipster's still mum about the cover's rumored 3D filter capability, which would in theory go nicely with some live soccer on the phone's CMMB mobile TV capability, as teased by a recent commercial on China's national television -- video after the break, if you can bear the jealousy. [Thanks, Rachel]%Gallery-92553%
Dell Mini 3T1 and Mini 3iX 3G phones spotted with Chinese mobile regulator
If we need another reason to be envious of Chinese residents, it'd be the premium treatment that they're getting from Dell these days. Spotted on Chinese mobile regulator TENAA's website are two 3G phones from seemingly different design departments -- the never-before-seen Mini 3T1 (pictured) is a "TD-SCDMA / GSM dual-mode cellphone" that "supports HSDPA," dons a 2-megapixel camera on the back plus a front-facing one, and we're betting on Ophone for the OS; the second device is the familiar Mini 3iX (an exotic cousin of AT&T's Aero) that will sport the same old WCDMA radio and WAPI (the Chinese equivalent of WiFi). No word on availability of either handsets in China yet, but hey, who cares when the Streak is on the horizon? Update: on the same website we also dug up the Mini 3iW -- essentially the Mini 3i (so just 2G and no WiFi) but with the additional WAPI radio.%Gallery-90276%
Motorola XT701 finally completes Android trio in China, courtesy of Unicom
It's no surprise that the Motorola XT701 (aka Motoroi) was going to land in the hands of China Unicom with its WCDMA radio, but man, that must've been a painful two-and-a-half-month wait for Chinese Motofans. Mind you, considering earlier worries about Google's departure from China, it's better late than never, right? Like its Korean and American counterparts, the XT701 also sports Android 2.0 but boosted with WAPI support -- China's very own WiFI standard. Fork out ¥4,299 or about $630 and this phone's yours.
Motorola MT710 quick hands-on
We've already had a quick look at the Korean Motorola MOTOROI, and we figured it was only fair if we gave the Motorola MT710 a fair shake, too. The MT710 is running the Android-based Ophone OS on some pretty sweet hardware including an 854 x 480 FWVGA resistive touchscreen display -- to help with Chinese handwriting recognition we'd bet -- replacing HSPA 3G with TD-SCDMA for 3G, and a pretty slick housing accented in reflective and red metals. Of course the MT710 isn't meant for our market, but we're still encouraged to see how many Android sets are cropping up here at the show and indeed from Motorola.%Gallery-85819%
China Mobile's OPhone platform goes 2.0, supports WinMo API... wait, what?
Remember the OPhone platform, Open Mobile System? You know, China Mobile's supposedly beefed up Android? Things have become even more interesting as OMS jumps from 1.5 to 2.0 -- it now supports Scalable Vector Graphics UI elements and does voice recognition, but what really caught our attention was the vague mention of Windows Mobile API support. Now, our understanding is that it's been China Mobile's intention to make Symbian and WinMo apps run on OMS all along, but we don't know if this update means WinMo apps will run natively in OMS through some compatibility layer, if there'll be Symbian- and WinMo-based versions of OPhone, or that it'll just be easier for developers to port WinMo apps to OMS. No word on what phones will be getting 2.0 or when they'll be getting it, but considering Android's generally positive outlook on upgradeability, we're hoping the answers are 'all' and 'soon.'
Lenovo LePhone seen again, Android skinned like Skylight
We've been graced with a stack of new shots of Lenovo's LePhone, and, beauty aside, another standout here is the similarity of this phone's Android / OPhone skin to Lenovo's Skylight OS. Of course, they're not the same UI exactly, but, between that and the optional keyboard accessory that mirrors the IdeaPad U1's detachable display, it looks like the beginning of a happy -- and winsome -- family. Wander on to the gallery for all the shimmering and glossy poses -- including one that looks suspiciously like HTC's typical exploded view of all angles. %Gallery-82725%
Motorola's XT701, MT710, and XT800 do Android for China's big three carriers
Even through the lean years, Moto's been making waves in China where it enjoys comparably high popularity -- it was one of the first major manufacturers to throw its support behind the nation's homegrown TD-SCDMA 3G tech, after all, and it's had a tendency to get the company's sexier WinMo smartphones like the SURF. On that note, it doesn't come as much of a surprise to see that they've now announced not one, not two, but three fairly attractive, high-end Android handsets specifically for duty in the Far East, one for each of China's big three carriers (each of which employs a different 3G technology, per the gub'mint's orders). Starting on the left, the XT701 is the phone that we'd believed to be the Sholes Tablet -- and considering that it uses HSPA for China Unicom's airwaves, we still have no reason to believe it couldn't make the leap across the Pacific. The MT710 (pictured center) is an OPhone for China Mobile and stands the least chance of making an unfettered jump to another continent since it uses a completely customized UI along with a positively China-only TD-SCDMA radio. Finally, the XT800 on the right looks like a Dell Mini 3i done right to us, rocking dual-mode GSM and EV-DO for China Telecom's rather heterogeneous network. We've got to hand it to Moto here: by all appearances, these 3.7-inch WVGA, 5 megapixel beasts could get Android fans drooling pretty much anywhere in the world, so let's get 'em over to Europe and America on the double, eh? [Thanks, Vitala]
Motorola MT710 bringing its Droid-ish good looks to China this month
China Mobile is about to spoil its half billion subscribers with yet another Android smartphone in the 3.something-inch category. The Droid's keyboard-deprived younger sibling, the MT710 is about to hit Chinese stores this month, with TD-SCDMA 3G capabilities and OPhone OS 1.5 giving it a distinctly local flavor. WiFi connectivity will also be available, thanks to Moto playing nice with China's new security protocol, and the CPU has also changed to a 624MHz Marvel PXA310 chip, which is growing a bit long in the tooth now. Still, with that dashing red stripe on its side and a presumably thinner chassis, the MT710 just might be somebody's idea of a Droid perfected. You'll find the full specs of the new handset at the Moto Developers links below.
LG bows its GW880 OPhone for China Mobile, we start packing our things
We don't know what exactly China Mobile is putting in its manufacturer partners' tea during contract negotiations, but considering how rapidly China's largest carrier has grown its OPhone line into the most desirable single-network lineup of Android handsets in the world, we'd strongly recommend they continue to do it. Rumors of an LG entry back in August have now come to fruition in the form of the GW880, a full touch handset launching this month featuring a solid 3.5-inch WVGA display, 5 megapixel camera, and support for a pair of pretty important homegrown standards -- TD-SCDMA for 3G and CMMB for mobile TV tuning. For comparison, LG's only other announced Android phone -- the GW620 Eve for global distribution -- steps down to a HVGA display, so yeah, if you'll excuse us, we've got a Mandarin lesson in a couple minutes.
Dell Mini 3i OPhone detailed ahead of this week's China Mobile launch
After so much speculation and rumor, it's hard to believe that Dell's first modern cellphone is ready to launch. And while we've already seen the official press release announcing the Mini 3 for Brazil and China, today we get a followup release with a bit more detail. As expected, the Chinese Mini 3i variant is quadband GSM/EDGE only (no 3G) and packs a 3.5-inch nHD, 640x360 touchscreen display just like that found on Nokia's N97. The 58.35 x 122 x 11.7-mm OPhone will ship in "Red Passion" and "Oiled Bronze" colors packing Bluetooth, a 3 megapixel auto-focus camera with flash and video capture mode, microSD slot, and GPS with pre-loaded maps. And in case you're wondering why China first, that's easy: Dell's going after China Mobile's 500 million subscriber base when its first handset hits authorized stores later this week.
Motorola's MT710 OPhone for China makes us dream of Droids without keyboards
While it's busy trying to rebuild market share on the backs of Android-powered devices in North America and Europe, Motorola's already got a bustling business in China, so it makes sense that they'd want to contribute some Google juice over there as well. That dovetails nicely with China Mobile's Android-based Open Mobile System -- which runs those so-called OPhones -- and Motorola has yet to bring an OPhone to market, so that's where this little beast appears poised to come into play. The MT710 is said to feature an 854 x 480 display clocking in at 3.7 inches and 3G support (using China Mobile's up-and-coming TD-SCDMA network), but beyond that, little is known; rumor has it that Motorola will intro a total of seven Android models in China over the next year, though, and this is clearly one of them. Shave three or four millimeters off the Droid's girth with this puppy, and count us in. [Via PMP Today]
Dell Mini 3iX has WiFi, 3G, and a number of leaked UI photos
You know what's ridiculous? Modern smartphones without WiFi (why hello there, Pixi and Tour). Looks like Dell's getting the message with the supposed Brazil-bound Mini 3iX, which as far as we can tell is the Mini 3i as it should've been -- same specs, plus WiFi and 3G connectivity. The OPhone-esque user interface also seems to have gone through some changes, at least cosmetically, and Cellular Cafe has the vivid imagery -- so might this be the little guy rumored to be coming to AT&T, or will we get the 2G variant instead? How about we just skip this one altogether and get the Streak?
Motorola to introduce eight OPhones on China Mobile next year, celebrate intensely
Motorola may be pinning its comeback hopes on the CLIQ here in America, but it obviously has some rather large plans for the world's largest carrier, too. An admittedly perplexing report has surfaced purporting that the creator of the iconic i776, er, RAZR, is fixing to distribute not one, not two, but eight OPhones to China Mobile next year. For those unaware, OPhone is an Android-based OS tailor made to operate on the aforesaid carrier and cater to its customers, and to date, quite a few other manufacturers have jumped on board over there. Sadly, no actual details about the eight Moto handsets were given, so it looks like it's just you, a cup of joe and your hyperactive imagination for the time being.