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Sidecar comes out of beta, reinvents phone calls
Smartphones have revolutionized how we communicate and the way we create, share and consume content. Yet there's one aspect of using these devices that remains stuck in the last millennium, and that's the calling experience -- yes, apparently some people still make phone calls. Sure, there are plenty of VoIP and video calling apps out there, but few are simple and beautiful. Enter Sidecar, a free app which aims to reinvent the way we make phone calls by adding messaging as well as real-time video, photo, location and contact sharing to that antiquated calling experience. It achieves this through an intuitive and polished user interface plus a handful of standards such as SIP and XMPP. Phone calls between Sidecar users are free anywhere in the world -- the app even supports free WiFi calling to any number in the US or Canada. While Sidecar's been available in beta on Android for several weeks, it's launching on iOS today with support for the iPhone and iPod touch. We've been using the app on and off for a few days on several handsets, including a Galaxy Nexus HSPA+ and an iPhone 4S and it works exactly as described. Looking for additional details? Check out the demo video and full PR after the break.%Gallery-155893%
Nokia N9 review
MeeGo to be folded into Linux-based Tizen OS, slated to arrive in 2012 Want a Nokia N9 in the US? Expansys has some, but it'll cost ya Motorola Droid 2 stars in its first video, touts 1GHz CPU and 512MB of RAM? It's taken a long time for Nokia's MeeGo-packing N9 to make its way into our top-secret labs (the N9 moniker was first applied to early E7 prototypes), but it's here in our dirty little hands, at last, and it's glorious -- well, as glorious as a stillborn product can be, anyway. The N9 is the latest and greatest in a long line of quirky, interesting, yet ultimately flawed touchscreen experiments from Nokia that includes the Hildon-sporting 7710, a series of Maemo-based "internet tablets" (770, N800, N810, N900) and most recently, the N950 MeeGo handset for developers. What makes the N9 special is that it represents Nokia's last flagship phone as an independent player. MeeGo is already dead, and future high-end devices from the manufacturer will run Windows Phone and use Microsoft's services. So, is this the company's final bittersweet hurrah? Did MeeGo ever stand a chance against Android, iOS and Mango? In its attempt to stay relevant, is Nokia throwing out the baby with the bathwater? Most importantly, how does the N9 fare in today's merciless dual-core world? Find out after the break. %Gallery-137175%
Invoxia NVX 610 desktop VoIP phone for iPhone and iPad hands-on (video)
If we're going to spend $599 on a phone, it needs to offer unparalleled audio quality, absolutely seamless device integration, and a drop-dead gorgeous design. Invoxia, a new entrant to the world of VoIP telephony, claims to have created just that, with its NVX 610. The desktop unit uses an iPhone (or iPod touch or iPad) app as its control interface -- the hardware itself includes only touch-sensitive volume, mute, speakerphone, and voicemail keys. With the exception of accessing your iOS device's address book, however, all of the phone's hardware is self-contained. Calls are processed using the built-in ARM Cortex-A8 processor, and can be made via Skype or any third-party SIP. You can also take incoming iPhone calls using the handset or speakerphone, but all outgoing calls are processed using VoIP, not your iPhone's mobile network. We took a peek at the NVX 610 at IFA, and definitely liked what we saw. Jump past the break for our initial impressions, and a (somewhat noisy) intro video from Invoxia CEO Serge Renouard.%Gallery-132121%
Bria extends VoIP phone client to iPad
If you've been looking around for a solid VoIP/SIP client for the iPad or iPhone, consider CounterPath's Bria. For all the excitement around VoIP on the iPhone and iPod touch (including high profile apps like Skype, Vonage TalkFree for Facebook and Line2), relatively few developers have gone after the corporate side of the voice mix. With so many large enterprises using Asterisk-based PBX replacements for VoIP telephony, a solid SIP client for iPhone and iPad seems like a natural winner. Bringing the advantage of its long pedigree in desktop VoIP clients, CounterPath now delivers some of that savvy to iOS with Bria. On the Mac, Bria is the successor to the capable EyeBeam and free X-lite softphones; now shipping on both the iPhone (US$7.99) and launched this week for the iPad ($14.99), it provides some of the key features needed in a mobile voice solution. Bria works out of the box with major IP-telephony service providers (ITSPs), but keep in mind it does not include service with the app; you need to be using a hosted service or your company's IP telephony infrastructure for Bria to work. The three most important considerations for any softphone app are call quality; call quality; and, of course, call quality. I was able to make and receive calls on several WiFi networks using Bria and a Fonality PBXtra server (built off the Trixbox Asterisk platform). While I heard a bit of near-side echo and low-bandwidth choppiness during some calls, most of the time the audio was as good or better than it would be on a conventional iPhone call, and less likely to drop. The people I called reported my voice quality as 'awesome' and 'really spectacular,' so it seems the artifacts I heard from time to time were on my side only. It's easy to set up Bria; the app takes the same credentials and server info you use for your desktop VoIP/SIP softphone. Once you enter your server name and authorization, you can begin making and receiving calls. Bria is optimized for WiFi use, but it will work over 3G if you enable that option in preferences; however, you're at risk of chewing up your wireless data allocation if you make a lot of calls that way, and quality will suffer a bit. On the flip side, you are not using any voice minutes, and for calls to colleagues on your internal phone system you will appear to be calling from your office extension -- a great trick when you're actually enjoying a piña colada by the pool. %Gallery-126141% The iPad edition of Bria works perfectly with multitasking, allowing you to switch apps and continue a call in the background. Both standard wired headphone/mic combos and Bluetooth headsets work great, but what's really surprising is that the iPad works quite well as a speakerphone -- plop it onto your conference table and away you go. You can optimize your voice quality by selecting a preferred codec in the advanced app preferences; this is also where you turn on 3G calling, set backgrounding options, and adjust other items. For the best quality on 3G calls, Counterpath offers the G.729 premium codec as an in-app purchase -- unfortunately, it's $8.99, so it's unlikely to appeal to most users unless you really need the improved low-bandwidth mojo. Backgrounding may affect your battery life, since most SIP servers will require a UDP connection that isn't directly supported by Apple's notification scheme; some newer servers may work with TCP, which does save power and improve background rings. You can also set incoming calls to forward to your cell number for when Bria's not running. CounterPath's market position provides a good perspective on the impact of iOS and the Mac in the enterprise market, since its products address business needs almost exclusively. When I spoke to senior VP of marketing and products Todd Carothers earlier this week, he acknowledged the accelerating interest from businesses big and small in Apple platforms: "We have seen a significant enough growth in Mac Bria sales since the launch of 3.0 to SME/Enterprise customers. What's happening is Enterprises want multiple OS support with common UI elements." Being able to offer a consistent user experience across PC and mobile platforms would seem to be particularly important for telephony applications, since business users are going to spend a lot of time making and taking calls. Bria is definitely a business product at a business price, and it's a bit frustrating that CounterPath didn't choose to deliver it as a universal app instead of the split-SKU arrangement in place now. Nevertheless, if your company is rocking an IP PBX and you want a premium VoIP experience, there's no better choice right now.
LCD-equipped Cisco REN301 Residential Gateway stops by FCC, reveals all its dirty secrets
Ah, the all too familiar WiFi troubleshooting dance: the network goes down, you dig through the closet for an Ethernet cable, saunter over to the router, jack yourself in, type in the IP address, and start poking around at your settings. Cisco's REN301 Residential Gateway (a fancy way of saying "router"), which just passed through the FCC, could make things at least a little bit easier thanks to its built-in LCD screen and capacitive touch controls. Wave your hand over the display to bring it to life and you can check the status of your connections, modify some basic settings, and peruse a log of calls that have come in over the SIP VoIP phone jacks. The REN301, which has a single band 802.11b/g/n radio, can also turn USB drives and SD cards into NAS storage -- the company even throws in a 32GB card to get you started. We don't have a price or release date, but since it's been splayed open for federal regulators we probably won't have to wait long. There's a couple of pics of the router's UI after the break.
Atheros debuts first Bluetooth 4 / 802.11n system-in-package
You know Atheros, right? The company known for its various wireless networking products has just announced a little something called the AR6233. Billed as "the first SIP solution to support the new Bluetooth 4.0 standard," this system-in-package (that's what SIP stands for -- but you already knew that) sports the aforementioned Bluetooth radio, as well as 802.11n "with a near-zero impact on the battery life of portable devices." Sounds like just the thing for your handcrafted boutique cellphone startup! The architecture works with ARM or x86 processors, and is expected to be in volume production in Q2, 2011. PR after the break.
Cisco suggests WiFi Flip Video camera by Christmas, wants to integrate products with Apple's FaceTime
A rambling Computerworld report from Cisco's Live! event is bringing us news of even more goodies, beyond the business and home tablets already revealed. In an interview with Marthin De Beer, Senior VP of Cisco's Emerging Technologies Group, De Beer strongly hints at a WiFi enabled Flip Video camera by the end of 2010. While he didn't say it in so many words, he did say, "We didn't buy Flip to have it be only a video recorder," adding, "I look forward to Christmas," when asked about a possible timeline. That seems clear enough. The conversation then gets muddied when De Beer begins discussing video as a "pervasive play" for Cisco, something that will "ultimately span across everything we do." And in a bid to interoperate with all devices, including Apple's new handset and certainly future iOS devices, De Beer said, "We would absolutely love to integrate with FaceTime." When, is the question left unanswered. Until then Cisco plans to introduce a mobile Movi iPhone app to the App Store that ties back into Cisco's Tandberg SIP-based video conferencing solution. Now, maybe it's a stretch, but with Cisco slowly creeping into the consumer space, it's hard not to take away a sense that it will be introducing software and devices interoperable with its Silicon Valley neighbor's FaceTime solution in the not too distant future. Hit the source to read the interview in full.
RIM's BlackBerry Mobile Voice System 5 lets you stay tied to your desk without being tied to your desk
Though the Bold 9650 and Pearl 3G are clearly the big announcements out of Orlando at RIM's WES conference this morning, there was a third bit of news in the mix, too -- with a decidedly heavier enterprise slant, that is. BlackBerry Mobile Voice System 5 extends the existing product with SIP support, allowing calls to transition seamlessly between cellular and WiFi networks. What's more, it'll work on pretty much any open WiFi hotspot (subject to enterprise policy, we're assuming), so this is just about the best way in the business to keep you desk phone with you at all times. Assuming you're enough of a glutton for punishment, that is.
Google to acquire Gizmo5, swing at Skype with VoIP-enabled Google Voice?
There's no official word on this yet, but the inimitable Michael Arrington says that Google's up and purchased VoIP company Gizmo5 for "around $30 million in cash." You know, pocket change for the crew in Mountain View. The deal would presumably bring Gizmo's SIP-based VoIP talents to Google Voice, taking it from quirky phone-management service to complete end-to-end calling solution, and instantly catapulting it into direct competition with Skype. Heavy stuff -- we'll see if Google or Gizmo5 confirms Mssr. Arrington's report sometime soon.
Vonage Mobile iPhone and BlackBerry apps available for download
You remember Vonage right? The trailblazing VoiP company is still around and appears at first glance to have instigated a bit of coup in the battle for VoiP calls over AT&T connections. Unfortunately they haven't, at least not yet. See, the free Vonage Mobile app just added to the iTunes App Store for the iPhone and iPod touch has been approved for making international calls over AT&T's cellular network (take that Skype) in addition to WiFi. Unfortunately, we're not talking about SIP calls over EDGE/HSDPA data. Like the rejected Google Voice app, if you're out of WiFi range but still have voice service then Vonage Mobile will redirect your international call (entered directly into the App or selected from your address book) to a local access number in the US -- you're then using your AT&T minutes while being charged Vonage Mobile's discounted worldwide calling rates. The app is strictly pay-as-you-go for the moment and will not give free global calling to those who subscribe to Vonage's $25 per month Vonage World plan -- Vonage says that will come before the end of the year. The Vonage Mobile app for BlackBerry only works over your carrier's voice network while the iPod touch app only works over WiFi, naturally. Also, BlackBerry users will revert to Vonage's lower rates anytime they make an international call whereas iPhone users must launch the Vonage application first.[Thanks, Ricky B.]
T-Mobile steps forward with LTE voice standard, faces uphill battle
It's still a shockingly open question exactly how the world's carriers plan on transporting voice over LTE -- which is something everyone who loves 4G should be freaking out about, considering that it threatens launch schedules and interoperability among unlocked handsets. A vibrant array of possible solutions are currently on the table, including everything from SIP-based IMS (which is already approved by the 3GPP, helpfully) to the controversial thought of leaving legacy GSM and UMTS networks live for the sole purpose of running voice. T-Mobile International is putting its bets on VoLGA -- Voice Over LTE via Generic Access -- by participating in the VoLGA Forum, which has just published the second version of its specifications and aims for 3GPP consideration later this year. The technology routes circuit-switched (that is, old-school) voice over data packets, but the problem is that there are a bunch of companies proposing the same thing in slightly different ways; Nokia Siemens Networks, for example, is working on its own proprietary standard that'll go head-to-head with VoLGA. Currently, T-Mobile's the only major network actively participating in VoLGA's development, though it apparently has the support of every major infrastructure vendor except Nokia Siemens. Whether it's VoLGA or something else, let's hope everyone gets on the same page on the double before everyone gets too entrenched in incompatible technologies that make roaming difficult and handset variety lame.
Nokia makes VoIP a little harder in S60 3.2
For Nokia, WiFi and VoIP have seemingly gone hand-in-hand for as long as 802.11 radios have been offered in S60 handsets. It makes sense, of course -- the internet is a great way to yap at little or no expense compared to plain old cellular voice minutes when a traditional WiFi hotspot is available, and Nokia was really ahead of the curve with jumping on the bandwagon and making sure that the capability has been available out of the box. Unfortunately, it looks like constant carrier pressure may have finally gotten the better of Espoo, with GigaOM confirming that 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2 doesn't contain a SIP stack built-in the same way that FP1 historically has. That doesn't mean VoIP products are totally locked out, but it does mean that apps that rely on the native stack are out of luck until they've implemented a new stack of their own. Products like the N78 and N96 are affected by the buffoonery, while the E71, which uses FP1, is not -- a good thing, considering the corporate affinity for VoIP and the Eseries' business leanings.[Via jkOnTheRun, thanks BFish]
How to reveal blocked caller ID info: a video guide to risky behavior
Let's say for some reason someone has his or her caller ID blocked and is calling you all the time. Let's then say you really want to know who that person is for, you know, whatever reason -- not that we'd know anything about that. Some crafty phreaker types have come up with a way to do this using an enterprise-spec asterisk box and a SIP trunk provider. In a demonstration video, a hacker tweaks said asterisk box with some new configurations to strip out privacy flags, forward the call to another number, and ultimately reveal caller ID information which, surprisingly, is still available. This isn't meant to be easy, but if the terms "prepend," "SIP trunk," and "asterisk box" don't scare you away, go ahead and watch the video after the break. Big disclaimer: we're not responsible for your broken gear, jail time, or restraining orders.
New open source voice project
Ryan McDougall has announced the formation of a new Sourceforge project, called VoIP for Virtual Worlds. The long-term goal is to create an interoperable open-source standard for all virtual worlds. To help the project find its feet, the initial short-term goal is to create an open-source replacement for the existing Vivox component (SLvoice) that is used for voice in Second Life that can communicate with a SIP-based backend server. Developers who are interested in the effort can start with the project's new mailing list. We don't presently know if an open-source solution could be fully compatible with the existing voice system in Second Life as the existing system relies heavily on Vivox servers and backend software.
Touchmods SIP VoIP client for iPod touch is out tonight
Got an iPod touch? And some audio input hardware? Want to make some VoIP calls? If you answered yes to all of the above, you'll want to check out the Touchmods site later tonight, when they'll supposedly be releasing their full-on SIP client for the touch. Hopefully by now it's a little more prettied up than the last time we saw the thing above. If those last videos are anything to go by, though, it looks like it will be.
iPod touch SIP-VoIP application videoed in action
Sure, there's less than 24 hours before everyone and their grandmother can hop online and grab 'hold of the SIP-VoIP application, but if you won't be bothered with it unless there's proof that it works, you're in the right place. The crafty folks over at touch mods have videoed "the first VoIP call" made with an iPod touch, the aforementioned software and their own microphone appendage. Granted, the dialogue is about as uninteresting as it gets, but trust us, that's not what's important here. Check out a couple of in-action videos after the jump.[Thanks, Tyler]
Creative's InPerson WiFi video phone outed by FCC
Tough luck Creative, good news Type A consumers. The FCC just outed Creative's unannounced, inPerson wireless video conferencing solution. Not only that, but they've loosed the user manual, external photos, and even splayed the device wide to reveal a VGA camera, built-in dual microphones, and TI DaVinci graphics chip. Here's what they've got coming: 802.11b/g WiFi and Ethernet, 76-degree wide-angle lens with "excellent low light performance," H.264 video with SIP support, rechargeable/removable Li-ion battery, remote control, headphone jack for privacy, and TV-out to view callers on a larger display. The battery can be charged in 5-hours for a 2-hour run when using the built-in, 7-inch, 16.7 million color LCD at 50% brightness. That lifespan increases to about 5 hours when sending the display to the TV. It's also fully integrated with SightSpeed accounts. As such, it features automatic SightSpeed account login, speed dials, call history and contact list management as you'd expect. So is this the device / service mashup that will finally bring ubiquitous distribution of the dedicated video phone promised since the '50s? No. Of course, even the first generation brown Zune can garner buyer hysteria when the price is right. So go ahead Creative, tell us, how much and when?%Gallery-12039%
iPod touch VOIP update: SIP signalization working
iPhone hacker eok writes to let me know that he and Samuel have gotten SIP registration and signalization working. They took a few mobile terminal shots, but the real work is being done via ssh. Samuel is working on connecting the audio in/out to the pjSIP. If you have iPhone or iPod touch coding skills and want to get involved in the project, connect to #touchmods on irc.undernet.org. It looks like most of the work will be done on European time. Oh, and if anyone is giving away free iPods to worthy developers? eok recommends that Samuel gets one first. He writes that Samuel has been the driving force behind the compilation.
HTC's HT1100 (Nike) with TouchFLO lives... on Japan's DoCoMo
There it is, the HTC HT1100, aka Nike, aka the Touch II WinMo 6 Professional slider we've been anticipating. This FOMA handset packs HSDPA (naturally, for DoCoMo) and GSM for international roaming while representing HTC's second handset to feature the TouchFLO interface. The QVGA display has been trimmed back to 2.6-inches while the sliding keypad chunks it up a bit to 112 x 51 x 16.9-mm / 130-grams. 802.11a/b/g WiFi, SIP support, Bluetooth, 2 megapixel camera (with a 1 megapixeler up front), FM tuner (?), and microSD round out the specs. So it's official, now we just need a release a bit say, closer to home.
Linux-powered VoIP uber-phone does WiFi video conferencing
We're not sayin' we'd put one of these bad boys in our living room or anything, but adorning the board room table with a four-line VoIP phone that sports a built-in 3.5-inch LCD, webcam, and Zach Morris-style handset wouldn't be a half bad use of resources. The SysMaster Tornado M20 uber-phone does a lot more than hold down IP calls, as it also manages to handle video conferencing, IPTV, video- / audio-on-demand, internet radio, voicemail, email / chat / news, and local weather information. This conglomerate even touts a dual-core processor, 32MB of RAM, and 32MB of flash memory, and the integrated Ethernet jack, WiFi, RCA audio outs, and Linux-powered UI are all welcome additions. Of course, we've no idea if you can rig up Tetris on this thing and use the 4, 8, and 6 keys to control your pieces, but it'll only cost you $260 and a tick of your time to find out.
