Logitech has announced it is releasing its brand new Speed Force Wireless wheel for Nintendo Wii today for gamers looking for more than just a glorified circle. The wheel, which is considerably more heavy duty than the Wii Wheel from ...

If you're a reader of Smartphone & Pocket PC (SP&PPC) Magazine, I've got some bad news for you -- SP&PPC is suspending publishing and the next issue will be its last. Lack of advertising and circulation were blamed for the decision. Thaddeus Computing, publisher of SP&PPC, will be publishing iPhone Life, though. Current subscribers who still have issues remaining will get iPhone Life by default, but there are other options, so check the announcement linked to above.

There is some good news, though. First, the SP&PPC Web site will continue in operation. Second, Thaddeus is leaving the door open for additional issues of SP&PPC, or a generic smart phone magazine, if somebody steps forward (advertisers or entrepreneurs).

Do you read Smartphone & Pocket PC Magazine regularly? If so, what do you think of this decision?

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While I get the majority of my news and content online, I still do subscribe to a few magazines including MacWorld, Laptop, and Smartphone & Pocket PC Magazine. I am very saddened by the news that there will be one final issue of ...

XDA Developers’ A_C’s S2U2 has just been updated to version 1.21. The popular application brings Apple’s iPhone screen locking look and feel to Windows Mobile.

S2U2 (Slide To Unlock 2) is a simple screen locking tool similar to the iPhone, with abilities to change wallpaper, display current weather, sms, mms, missed calls notifications, calendar events, full screen contact picture on incoming call with the option of having S2A (Slide to Answer), and many more. The new and revised version addresses some bugs in former releases like memory leak in certain scenarios, screen sleep, calendar events, application focus on device wakeup, etc.

S2U2 is a must have freeware application for WM5 Phone or WM6/6.1 Professional devices, very useful for those who like to iPhonize their Windows Mobile devices or avoid accidental answering or rejecting a call.

Comments [3]

As a supplement to this video, be sure you check out Apple Newton: Some History and Interesting Facts. This isn't just an old handheld device. It's a Newton, and as I'm starting to use the device more, plus get further insights from our readers on other capabilities of the Newton, I'm beginning to see the magic behind it. There is a very lively following behind the Newton today.

In this video, we take a tour of the hardware. We find that there is an inbuilt holder for the stylus, plus a smartly-placed stylus rest. We also find that of the two PCMCIA expansion slots, one is filled with 4MB of flash memory - and a quick comparison to the current flash memory standard for handheld device, microSD, lets use so how far we've come in the miniaturization of memory.

The next segmemt will cover a tour of the software on the Newton. As mentioned in the video, it has taken me a significant amount of time to learn how to use the Newton OS. Many aspects of it are intuitive, but the layout of everything is quite ...

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Back in July we wondered: Where is the Windows Mobile App Store? A point of strength for the iPhone is the excellent App Store, and now it looks like Android will have a similar platform.

Today Google announced the Android Market. It adds some extended functionality not found in the iPhone App store. For example, you can see what resources the program will require (GPS, Networking, etc). Since there will be many different Android devices, being able to quickly determine what kind of hardware the software requires will be helpful. This problem of software/hardware compatibility is one (of many) that a Windows Mobile app store would face, but it seems that Google has remedied the issue through the notification screen seen below. Also, users can tell whether they've already installed a certain application; one of the annoyances of the iPhone App store is that it shows you applications that you have already installed.

Comments [2]

The new iPhone 2.0 and iPhone 3G have been advertised as being enterprise ready and all, but it turns out there's a major security flaw in the iPhone operating system. Check out this article on Gizmodo to see how easy it is to bypass the iPhone's password protection.

Windows Mobile's security on the other hand is a lot more advanced.

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I’m quoting the article below, with my personal thoughts in red. I just don’t get the problems people are having. Here’s an article from today which seems so stupid as to be not even worth writing, yet the Associated Press had nothing better to do apparently.     First an iPhone price cut left early buyers feeling foolish, and then came reports that some iPods were spitting sparks. Now the new iPhone 3G has been marred by bugs, spotty service, disappearing programs for the device and a veil of s

According to wmpoweruser.com, the iPhone internet cannot be called the full internet anymore. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) in the UK has deemed that for any internet browser to handle the full, real internet, it must support Java and Flash, two popular standards that the iPhone does not yet support. The ASA has also stated that Apple cannot advertise that the iPhone supports and displays the real internet as that is misleading.

On the other hand, Windows Mobile does support true internet capabilities with Internet Explorer, Opera Mobile, SkyFire, and NetFront. Of the browsers mentioned, all are freeware except for NetFront, which is a paid-for application.

Comments [2]

Before continuing the video series on the Apple Newton, I wanted to share a bit of history on the Newton so that you can have a better appreciation for the vintage handheld device. I've also unearthed some TV commercials that aired in the 90s for the Newton, plus a fascinating Getting Started video for earlier Newton models. Read on for more...

Comments [4]

Browsing through Apple’s App Store, I lucked out on a program I’ve been meaning to try: Catamount’s PocketMoney. Previously available for $9.99, Catamount dropped the price to $0.99 for a few days only, and I snatched it up as soon as I saw it. How could I resist? Catamount was a dedicated Newton app developer. They’ve ported their PocketMoney finance manager to everything from the Palm to the PocketPC, and it only made sense for them to bring their piggy bank to the iPhone.How does it handl

After spending 36 grand on the iPhone and with the final push from Finney, i thought i will write a quick comparo with HTC touch (my previous phone). Though i might tread to other handsets like Nokia's and SE's that might have crossed my path. Maybe Touch might be a wrong comparision, but i think it offers great value at the current price of 13-14k INR. Touch Diamond would be a better rival but i dont have access to one right now and wouldnt do justice to it. ps: I might be biased to iPho

If this was 1997, I would have just paid $1,000 to buy the Apple Newton MessagePad 2100. That's more than an HTC Touch Pro sells for today, a device that is possibly the most feature-packed phone ever of any platform, let alone Windows Mobile. The Newton's prohibitively high price is one of the reasons why it didn't gain wide market acceptance.

Let's talk specs. The Newton MessagePad 2100 uses an Intel StrongARM processer running at 162MHz, a large 6.1" 16-scale 480x320 monochrome touchscreen display (which comes out to 95PPI), 8MB ROM, 4MB RAM, and 4MB extra storage via the expansion slot. It has two PCMCIA card slots and infrared IrDA for wireless file transfer. To interface with your computer, it uses the trusty serial interface which is now just about extinct.

Why are we covering an 11 year old vintage handheld device? Shouldn't this be in a museum somewhere? As mentioned in the video, I thought it would be interesting - and possibly fascinating - to understand the user experience that Apple wanted to create with their first attempt at a handheld device. We are looking ...

Michael Mace of Mobile Opportunity has posted an interesting article called “Does anybody really know what smartphone market share is?”

The first surprise is that Nielsen shows Apple in fourth place in smartphone share. That's wildly different from what Canalys, the source usually reported, has been saying (link).

Canalys shows Apple’s market share as 28% in Q3 2007 while Nielsen shows it at 8% at the same time.

The conflict in the numbers underlines how ridiculously useless the publicly-available third party sales numbers are in the mobile phone market, and how little attention the press is paying to the inconsistencies. Apple's share varies from 8% to 28%, and no one even notices. Hey, we got a pretty chart and it confirms what we wanted to say, so don't ask questions.

Speaking of pretty charts, did anyone notice the one shown in Steve Jobs’ keynote earlier this year? Take a look at it again. The graphic was actually designed to make Apple’s pie piece look bigger. Also missing is the fact that Windows Mobile (because Microsoft is not a manufacturer) actually takes up a chunk of the Palm, Motorola, ...

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PC Pro reviews the Apple iPhone 3G and writes, “The iPhone 3G is an evolution rather than a new species, beyond adding 3G and GPS support, it is the original phone with a new skin and poor battery life…The first thing that will strike ...

3G Apple iPhone - the New Hit on the Market CEO of AT&T Randall Stephenson announced that Apple is launching a new iPhone next year. This fancy gadget got the name 3G. This gives the smart phone the new capability of having a very high rate in connecting to the Internet compared to its first models. It results in the downloads to take place a lot faster. Bloomberg.com reported that Stephenson announced in a meeting that the g3 iphone will be launched to the market next year according to h

Australian PC Authority does a first look review of the Apple iPhone 3G and writes, “The iPhone 3G is truly an impressive device, although those familiar with its predecessor will lament the lack of features such as MMS, cut and paste ...

The Treo Pro was announced without carrier support for the USA, meaning that the only way to get it is through Palm at a steep $549 plus tax and shipping. However, wmpoweruser.com has a great article detailing the way to get the Treo Pro for nearly free.

Since AT&T and Apple offers a steep discount, but a very tightly controlled process for acquiring an iPhone 3G, the best thing to do is get an iPhone 3G for around $199 and sell it on E-Bay, which goes for around $700, saving the SIM.

Order your Treo Pro and pay about $50 in difference.

This is a circuitous route to take, but if you really want the Treo Pro, it sure takes the zinger out of the price tag.

Comments [2]

PC World -

(Credit: CNET Networks)

In this day and age when every other person is a self-described foodie, finding the best mobile application to point you to a taste bud-bending experience requires as much discernment as finding the authentic voice from among throngs of folks who think they know good eats.

I'd be lying if I didn't claim snobby epicurean tendencies, myself.

This headstrong belief in one's own taste credentials is exactly what fuels the need for informative and well-designed food-finding applications. Too simple and a foodie will shun it. Too esoteric and it could alienate a growing segment of people who really care about the art and science of meal-making.

I've recently studied several restaurant-recommending applications for iPhone and other mobile platforms, including Yelp and Urbanspoon for iPhone and Zagat To Go for Windows Mobile, Palm, and BlackBerry, and wondered how relative newcomers Munch ($0.99) and LocalEats ($0.99) compare to these more established services.

Munch for iPhone turns out accurate results, but what's with the ratings?

(Credit: CNET Networks)

There are, of course, things to laud and criticize with each app. Munch's interface has a ...

Matthew Miller over at ZDN posts his thoughts on the whole 3rd party app failure to launch debacle. Quote: "I actually still see the issue on my original iPhone, upgraded to the version 2.0.1 firmware and the reinstall method seems to work for me most of the time. I returned my iPhone 3G last week because I found it to be less stable than my other S60 and Windows Mobile devices who can handle 3rd party applications much better since they are now mature platforms. It seems that the iPhone update and 3G device were a bit rushed to market or else the testing with 3rd party applications was limited. I do look forward to a stable iPhone experience, but it seems we will have to wait until at least September to see such a device." On a related issue Mike Temporale of mobilejaw.com has this to say on WinMo 3rd party apps and stability. Quote: "In my recent post about stability, I talked about Windows Mobile and how it is a stable platform. The source of all that instability is poorly written 3rd party applications. To help prove my point, I’m taking on the “No Reboot Challenge”. The idea is simple, no more ...

Engadget reviews the Apple iPhone 3G and writes, “There are always things that could be improved, features to be added, fixes that should be applied — but from first to second gen, from year one to year two, Apple has proven itself a ...

The latest version of Palringo for iPhone includes Push-to-Talk -- walkie-talkie style voice instant messaging.

iPhone 3G review: Twice the hype, half the novelty. It’s finally here - the iPhone 3G. No, we mean that literally. It’s finally at our office and boy, are we excited! GPS, HSDPA purring under the new iPhone hood with a hefty number of ...

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Apple is working to improve its troubled MobileMe service, but in the mean time it's trying to keep subscribers happy by waiving the fees for using it.

Techware Labs has posted up their side by side comparison of the iPhone and iPhone 3G. Quote: "So your probably sitting back in your chair wondering “Why would you buy the new iPhone if you already have the old one?” Don’t worry, I’ve asked myself the same question. The lower price of $199 makes the iPhone extremely appealing to impulse buyers, however the additional $10 a month for the 3G iPhone plan cancels out the reduced price. Additionally the price of $199 is only available to those that are eligible for an upgrade, already own the original iPhone, or to those that want to sign up for a new contract. If you are stuck between a rock and a hard place, much like I was, on whether or not to upgrade from the older first generation iPhone to the new one, here’s my advice - don’t do it. The only new features are GPS (not even a real turn-by-turn GPS), and the 3G speeds, which eats up your battery. If I hadn’t signed the 2-year contract already with AT&T, I would go back to the old iPhone and save the $10 a month.” They seem to do a nice job of ...

The second minor update for the system software for Apple's smartphones is now available through iTunes.

Electronista is reporting that the Android phone made by HTC using Google's open source operating system may in fact be coming this November. The first device will ship sans Microsoft Exchange right out of the box, but may come with an update for Exchange support at a later date. What is interesting about the device is that Google will embed the device with software to support advertising. These ads will lower either or both of the device's cost and/or monthly usage fee.

The report also mentions that the first Android phone on T-Mobile will also have access to the T-Mobile App Store, which is similar to the App Store on Apple's iPhone, but will support multiple operating systems and handsets that carrier sells unlike the iPhone App Store.

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The Mercedes-Benz of modern PDA’s / media players. Apple iPod Touch 8GB Review (Firmware 1.1.5). In my quest for a modern Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), I evaluated several models including the HP Ipaq, Asus, and the Palm Zire Z22. ...

Although the latest version of the iPhone has most of the features corporate smartphone users need, for many companies the lack of full device encryption is a deal breaker.

But someone who's actually seen the gadget -- similar, if not identical to the one in the photo -- tells us that both the hardware (from handset-maker HTC) and Google's Android software suffer from a similar problem: They're technically ...

Mail Online reviews the Apple iPhone 3G and writes, “Web browsing is excellent, although annoyingly we found the BBC’s iPlayer site did not work. There is hope that this may be fixed once the handset goes on sale… ...

VITO Technology just launched an application/program launcher similar to that found on the iPhone where users can arrange their icons on a series of different screens. Tapping and holding down on the icon will enact an iPhone-like jiggly behavior and users can remove the icon. The new launcher is called Winterface.

Winterface comes with an integrated task manager, a way to create photo contacts as a "program" icon to launch the contact's information quickly, a lock screen requiring a swipe to unlock.

The program will be good for users who either want to jazz up their device with a different look and feel than the traditional Windows Mobile Start Menu or the Program folder, or for users who need a quick way to launch and categorize their programs based on what they used most or another efficient manner. With Winterface, like the iPhone App screen, you can have different screens for different icons. Screen 1 may be reserved for messaging icons and photo contacts, screen 2 may be reserved for productivity applications, screen 3 may be used for games, and so on. In contrast, the Windows Mobile Program folder categorizes everything by folders and icons in ...

Despite the glitches and headaches surrounding the iPhone 2.0 software and the App Store, the simple to use downloading and purchasing of applications over the air system that Apple has created has been relatively successful and is a wonderful idea if the theory worked perfectly. It looks like T-Mobile seems to think so as well, with the carrier trying to emulate the App Store model for all phones and all platforms available.

The carrier is said to follow a similar revenue-sharing model as Apple. Apple currently gets a 30% cut from all applications sold through its stores to cover costs for bandwidth and to underwrite the system to push out updates to applications, similar to the way that Windows Update happens on a PC. However, the T-Mobile model is more flexible with its revenue sharing scheme as T-Mobile will demand more for data-intensive applications. This could mean that Sling Player may cost the developers more to sell through T-Mobile than a non-web game application.

With all the talks about a Windows Mobile application store to mimic Apple's success, it looks like T-Mobile's version may come close. The T-Mobile App Store is scheduled for this Fall ...

Paragon Software Group has launched a series of multilingual dictionaries for iPhone and iPod Touch. This includes dictionaries for English, French, and Italian.

Brighthand reviews the Apple iPhone and writes, “Many people use their phone for different tasks. As for me, when I’m not home, most of the time I’m on the Internet or texting. 3G is widespread where I live, so it’s worth it… ...

Mirror does a hands on reviews of the Apple iPhone 3G and writes, “I found I was usually having to recharge the phone every two days, after making an average four or five calls, plus half an hour’s blast of music and surfing a day, ...

Gizmodo reviews the Apple iPhone and writes, “This is really not a revolutionary phone. It’s more like the iPhone we wished Apple made last year. But basics, like cut, copy and paste are still missing. (As is MMS, thanks for the ...

slashdot has posted a burb about the possbile cause of 3G issues on the new iPhone. Quote: "Richard Windsor of Nomura published a research note… Tuesday singling out the iPhone 3G’s chipset, made by Infineon, as the probable culprit for the reception problems we reported on Monday. The dropped calls, service interruptions, and abrupt network switches experienced by iPhone 3G users reminded Windsor of similar complaints five years ago, when 3G phones were first launched in Europe. ‘We believe that these issues are typical of an immature chipset and radio protocol stack where we are almost certain that Infineon is the 3G supplier,’ Windsor wrote. ‘This is not surprising as the Infineon 3G chipset solution has never really been tested in the hands of users. Some people will not experience these problems as it is only in areas where the radio signal weakens that the immaturity of the stack really shows.’" Read: Infineon chipset possible cause of iPhone 3G issues

Facebook's EZcode.

(Credit: ScanLife)

Scanbuy announced on Wednesday their Scanlife barcode reader for iPhone. The software allows for scanning an EZcode using the iPhone's camera then instantaneously launch the website to which the code is associated. This basically saves you from having to remember the website in question'...

... who would not enjoy listening to music without the ever present headphone wire getting in the way? To remedy this situation, the good folks at Brando have the Infinxx AP23 Stereo bluetooth transmitter. ______ Review: DragonsteelMods.

MacWorld reviews the Apple iPhone 3G and writes, “If you’ve been cautious and waited a year for the second generation of iPhone, your patience will be rewarded. The iPhone 3G improves on the original iPhone’s audio quality, ...

One of the things Apple is most famous for is their Reality Distortion Field or RDF. The video below is another perfect example of how they achieve this. The video shows the Apple "Unslow" commercial showing how fast everything on the iPhone 3G is, side-by-side with a real-life video of a user performing same tasks that were performed in the commercial.



As you can see, the real world is nowhere near as fast as Apple's advertising. On a positive note, Apple is no longer using big hands to make the iPhone look smaller.

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CTV reviews the Apple iPhone 3G and writes, “There are several new cellphones that mimic some of the iPhone 3G’s features; its touchscreen, 3G data speeds, and ability to play videos, but Apple’s handset is the only one that uses them ...

Astraware has launched its first arcade-style title for the iPhone with the release of GTS World Racing. This is one of the first third-party applications to utilize the accelerometer as an integral part of the user experience.