WirelessData
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Sony working on a Cyber-shot camera with 3G cellular connectivity?
If the warm, soothing waves of IEEE 802.11 are beaming down on your location, there are certainly several ways to send pictures directly from your camera to the cloud, but Sony's reportedly prototyping a camera that won't need a single bar of WiFi to get your upload on. Our friends at gdgt cite anonymous sources that say Sony's got a camera with a built-in 3G modem in the works, and we're not talking about a cameraphone. While Sony's cellphone CMOS sensors may have improved, gdgt says the prototype unit will probably be a dedicated point-and-shoot, though the publication says their moles aren't sure it's actually coming to market. If it does, though, here's hoping it comes with some Whispernet so we don't have to foot a monthly or (perish the thought) per-picture bill!
T-Mobile getting ready to roll out new webConnect broadband plans, offer 20 percent discount
Already a T-Mobile subscriber? Been thinking about adding a mobile broadband plan to go along with it? Hold on to that credit card for a little longer, as we're hearing that the company is about to roll out new webConnect plans that will, at least in some cases, include a 20 percent discount for those who already have voice plans. The date March 13th is mentioned as something of a line in the sand between the current and new offerings, but really that's about all we know at this point. Well, about these plans, anyway. We know lots of things about other stuff.
AT&T introduces new post-paid plan for tablets, for those who prefer paying ex post facto
Month-to-month billing is a great way to go for those who aren't going to be traveling with their tablets all the time. If you'll be a more frequent mobile data user, but still don't want to get stuck with a contract, AT&T is introducing new post-paid plans. They can be added to an existing wireless plan (single billing FTW) and will see you billed automatically every month, but now you can cancel whenever your heart desires. Initial pricing is on-par with the pre-paid plans, which means $14.99 for 250MB or $25 for 2GB. It's only the overage charges that are different here, $10 per 1GB versus $25 for 2GB on the pre-paid option. Not a huge difference, that, so really this is more of a convenience thing.
Aska Electron promises to add data transfer to wireless power systems
Try to get past the mess of wires in the prototype above for a minute; you might just be looking at the future of wireless power -- at least if the folks at Aska Electron have their way, that is. They've developed a new system that not only wirelessly charges your gadgets (a la Powermat and others), but wirelessly transfers data at the same time at speeds up to 120Mbps. While complete details on how that's possible are still a bit light, the system does apparently use the same coils for both charging and data transfer, but different wavebands for each. The real kicker, however, is that while it's seemingly still just in the prototype stage, Aska says it expects the first commercial applications to hit the market by the end of this year. Exactly what those products might be isn't clear, but Aska says the technology could eventually lead to thinner, waterproof devices that don't need ports of any kind.
Qualcomm demos augmented reality app for digital photo frames (video)
Want a glimpse of the future? How about one from Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs? What he demoed in London just now was a groovy concept that combines his company's two service technologies: augmented reality and peer-to-peer. The idea is that you want to upload an image from your phone to one of your many wireless photo frames (actually WiFi-connected PCs in disguise here), but rather than having to pick your desired frame from an eye-dazzling list of WiFi SSIDs, you can just use this augmented reality app -- developed using Qualcomm's very own AR SDK, naturally -- to point at the frame and shoot the file over. Pretty rad, huh? But we picked out one flaw: currently, the app identifies each frame by remembering its previously uploaded image, so if two or more of these frames display the same image, the app would get confused. This can of course be fixed by simply adding a QR code onto the actual frame. Anyhow, you can see this demo in action after the break.
Clearwire's Rover service goes live, offers $5/day 4G service
Looks like the prepaid wireless data market is starting to heat up: Clearwire just launched its Rover service, which offers 4G wireless data for as little as $5 a day -- with two free days included when you first sign up. That's not bad if you just need a quick hit here or there, although you need to pony up $150 for that Rover Puck WiFi hotspot we saw at the FCC last month or $100 for a USB stick, and anything more than a day quickly becomes less of a deal at $20/week and $50/month. Oh, and it's 4G-only, so if you're not living or working in a WiMAX city you're out of luck. Still, those prices aren't terribly out of line with the competition, although we might be more inclined to choose Virgin's $40/mo prepaid MiFi and settle for 3G speeds while getting more coverage. Decisions, decisions -- what a wonderful problem to have. PR after the break.
Best Buy partners with Clearwire, will Connect customers to 4G
When we first heard through the grapevine that Best Buy was launching its own branded wireless data service, Connect, rumor had it that 4G was going to be baked right in there. We'd later learn that was just wishful thinking, but today's announcement of a partnership with Clearwire makes it instead simply look premature. Starting sometime next year, Best Buy Connect will offer 4G wireless data over Clearwire's WiMAX network -- and that's all the two are saying about this partnership right now. We're hoping prices for these next-gen data plans stay with their current levels, $30 monthly for 250MB up to $60 for 5GB, but all that extra bandwidth might just make those caps feel even tighter.
Chinese scientists demonstrate 2Mbps internet connection over LED
LED data transmission used to be all the rage -- we fondly remember beaming Palm Pilot contacts via IrDA. Then we got omni-directional Bluetooth and building-penetrating WiFi, and put all that caveman stuff behind us. But now, scientists the world over are looking to bring back line-of-sight networking, and the latest demonstration has Chinese researchers streaming video to a laptop with naught but ceiling-mounted blue LEDs. The Chinese Academy of Sciences claims to have realized a 2Mbit per second internet connection that transmits data simply by modulating the flicker of the little diodes, and imperceptibly enough to have them serve as room lighting as well. Like Boston University before them, the Chinese scholars see short-range LED networks controlling smart appliances. It's not quite the gigabit speed you'd get from laser diodes, but this way you'll get more mileage out of those expensive new bulbs, eh?
Another optical wireless experiment shows us that LEDs will beam your future downloads
Beaming data with light is hardly a new thing, but lately we've seen a number of attempts at making it rather more usable and, more interesting, rather more speedy. We're starting to get the feeling that those maybe/maybe not dangerous microwave-based systems have had their days numbered. The latest to beam bits with blinkenlights is a team at the Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications in Germany, which will be showing its stuff at the always happenin' Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exposition in two weeks. The team was able to use a commercial LED and get an impressive 230Mb/s transfer rate, which doesn't compare to the gigabit Penn State managed or 500mb/s Siemens pulled off, but those were done using rather more specialized hardware (like the Siemens rig pictured above). It's interesting stuff, and we're looking forward to see the commercial applications for this tech, but we do have one nagging question: what if you want to surf in the dark?
Alltel announces $40 laptop data add-on
Have a voice line with Alltel? Listen up: you're now lined up to get some of the cheapest laptop EV-DO in the business. The Verizon division (still feels weird to say that, doesn't it?) has announced today that wireless data can be yours for a mere $40 a month -- $20 less than usual -- when added as a second line as part of a Smart Choice Pack with a voice line. That gives you EV-DO Rev. A and your choice of three cards; sadly, none of those cards are ExpressCards, but hey, for $40 3.1Mbps internet, we're more than willing to cut some corners and let a USB dongle hang off the sides of our laptops. For the record, Cricket is still a smidge cheaper at $35, but this is the first time a national (well, pseudo-national) carrier has dipped this low. Makes you wonder whether the parent company is going to partake, doesn't it?
Sprint Nextel sends unlimited plans to more markets
Sprint Nextel has taken its unlimited voice and data plans outside of the Bay Area and into Minnesota and Pennsylvania. The CDMA carrier's "unlimited" plans include unlimited voice, text and data use for $120 per month and all that plus unlimited PC data card use for $150. Based on these plans, we think these are really money savers for Sprint customers who use the maximum out of all the services Sprint Nextel offers. We don't want to imagine how many batteries these kinds of customers keep on hand, but we're sure those thumbs and vocal cords get a strenuous monthly workout, no? In addition to the St. Paul-Minneapolis and Philadelphia markets, Sprint Nextel's unlimited offering is also available in Sacramento, Stockton, Redding and Modesto, California and Reno, Nevada, according to the carrier.
Nokia Siemens pumps virtual MIMO networking
After some recent testing, Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) is on the verge making Virtual Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) the transmission protocol for Long-Term Evolution (LTE) networks. Translation: the wireless networking company is going to be squeezing more data bits into existing allocated spectrum -- which is sure to please heavy-use data customers (and moreso to carriers). The NSN team used SDMA (Space Division Multiple Access) techniques to link two separate mobile devices with a base station simultaneously -- and on the same radio channel. Technically, that is quite a feat since radio communication becomes directional and quite efficient, unlike traditional cellular networks. Using current GSM or CDMA systems, wireless customers and towers broadcast in a 360-degree pattern -- but not so with SDMA technology. NSN's results included data uplinking at 108 megabits per second. That is a data rate we can get excited about -- and so should carriers needing to use existing spectrum more efficiently. Seeing as NSN just opened its doors a month ago, this is quite an impressive announcement, no?
T-Mobile rivals Vodafone, offers up portable USB HSDPA modem
There's just nothing like good old fashioned competition, but it always gets interesting when the challenger rolls in with pretty much the exact same product. Interestingly enough, this seems to be the case with T-Mobile's latest attempt to yank some 3G market share from Vodafone, which released its own oval-shaped HSDPA modem not too long ago. T-Mobile's rendition may look the part, but the pricing is where it differentiates itself, as the firm will reportedly be offering the unit up for just £29.99 ($61) with a one-year contract, or free if you sign your name to an 18- or 24- month deal. Moreover, the monthly data charge for "unlimited" usage is the same as the one-year purchase price, which looks mighty tasty compared to Vodafone's seemingly outrageous £53 ($106) monthly fee for the same privledge. The modem looks to be available on T-Mobile's UK site right now, so if you were moments away from pulling Vodafone's trigger, you can thank your lucky stars.[Via TrustedReviews]
