Mozilla Adds Strength to the Mobile/Browser Based Gaming Tide

September 9, 2010 at 7:37 am | Posted in Mobile Computing, Trends | Leave a Comment
Tags: , ,

A brief but important Slashdot post about Mozilla’s new Open Web Gaming initiative.

As we’ve been pointing out for some time, mobile and browser-based gaming represent a big shift in the capability underpinning gaming, and will likely push gaming into an even broader market, but more importantly, to more interesting applications. The App Store’s game sensations are evidence of the demand you can tap into with the right form factor (one where getting a game, playing a game, or acting on a recommendation to play a game are reduced to instant gratification).

With a clearly proven and profitable model, and with developments like Epic’s release of Epic Citadel as a prototype of what the Unreal platform can do on an iPhone, and the success of platforms like Steam, Mozilla’s announcement looks like a strengthening in the momentum in the market.

Android Openness? Not If The Carriers Have Their Say

September 9, 2010 at 7:31 am | Posted in Gadgets, Mobile Computing, Trends | 1 Comment
Tags: , , , ,

A great post today on TechCrunch by MG Siegler.

It’s been the craze over the last few days to post stories about how Android is overtaking the iPhone, how open Android is. The inference is that this is a referendum on Apple’s closed system.

Messur Siegler puts a nice shiner on at least part of that argument; he’s very fair in his assessment, but he basically puts out a convincing (and highly probable) argument that mixing an open system with “closed” carriers is like mixing ice cream and dirt. The ice cream just doesn’t taste the same anymore.

From his post – “My point is not to bash Google — what they’ve created is an excellent mobile operating system. My point is that the same “openness” that Android users are touting as a key selling point of the OS could very well end up being its weak point. If you don’t think Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint are going to try to commandeer the OS in an attempt to return to their glory days where we were all slaves to their towers, you’re being naive.”

The Web Is Dead…But The Internet Isn’t. Now Pay Up.

August 18, 2010 at 4:00 pm | Posted in Mobile Computing, Trends | Leave a Comment
Tags: , , ,

Not so long ago, it seemed that all software and services would be free – paid for by advertisers eager to get their wares in front of the eyeballs of web-ravenous consumers.  Google, for example, has ridden this wave in more ways than one.

But today, the implications of the shift to new computing form factors (smartphones, ebook readers, and “tablets” like the iPad), and new, highly integrated device/software/content platforms is becoming clear.

It’s killing the web. But it may just bring balance back to the internet, world of business models, and company financial statements.

Yesterday’s Wired Magazine article, The Web Is Dead. Long Live the Internet, sums it up well. “You wake up and check your email on your bedside iPad — that’s one app. During breakfast you browse Facebook, Twitter, and The New York Times — three more apps. On the way to the office, you listen to a podcast on your smartphone. Another app. At work, you scroll through RSS feeds in a reader and have Skype and IM conversations. More apps. At the end of the day, you come home, make dinner while listening to Pandora, play some games on Xbox Live, and watch a movie on Netflix’s streaming service.”

Rather than a browser-centric, open experience, more semi-closed and device specific experiences are defining our internet experience these days – and the likely explosion of embedded systems and sensor computing will only strengthen this trend.

It may not be an overstatement that Steve Jobs and Apple has done far more for this revolution than any other company. By providing an insanely compelling…uh, mp3 player…they not only won the fruits of premium pricing, but they also gained an installed base primed for backward integration into content. They became a music retailer – in spite of complaints about DRM, etc. – and made it profitable to sell music again after the Napster era.

iTunes video services repeated this success in the area of movies – Netflix had already gutted countless strip mall video stores across the country. Combined with Netflix’s streaming service and sites like Hulu (paid services coming out soon), a profitable model for “video rentals” returned.

And now Apple is making the three-peat happen in area of publishing with its iPad – eBooks are actually flying off the shelves in a way they haven’t in spite of years of availability online.  For software providers like Microsoft and Google who are more open in terms of the devices and parties who implement their software, there’s a cautionary note in this – being an “app” producer may or may not be the really lucrative part of the equation, and control of the right parts of the equation might just be indispensable to success.

The truth is, this model has been silently alive for a number of years in hardcore gaming. Software is developed for a specific device platform, and internet and client-side features are blended into a user-centric experience.  Or, as Wired puts it, it is clear we’re headed for “a post-HTML environment.”

Maybe it’s already here?

Menlo: Will Microsoft Staying in The Mobile Game Be A Good Thing?

August 9, 2010 at 12:53 pm | Posted in Gadgets, Mobile Computing | Leave a Comment

According to a paper recently published, Microsoft Research has been working away at a product (OS like Android, or integrated device like iPhone remains unclear) which would compete against the iPhone and Android phones on the market.  While it may be easy to “poo-hoo” Microsoft (after all, from what seems to be known about the Menlo project, it would simply bring them even with the pack at best, and it is only a research project), that knee-jerk reaction may be misguided.

The first reason it may be is that extremism still seems to be alive and well in technology, just as it is elsewhere – just as there are rabid Republicans out there in the political world, so too are there Democrats foaming at the mouth.  So merely the introduction of a similar yet acceptable Microsoft phone would be greeted as manna from heaven from Microsoft lovers and Apple haters.

But it is also important to remember that Microsoft is still a very, very big kid on the block.  With some deep pockets.  And if you look at the original text of the research paper, you’ll see that their focus seems to be on understanding the architecture of mobile, from the standpoint of mobile/PC interaction, mobile/sensor/surroundings interaction, etc., all focused around end user utility.

ZDnet commentator Mary Jo Foley expects the result will be consistent with Microsoft’s past openness to multiple outside device producers.  She thinks that “the Menlo team is continuing to focus on a new mobile operating system — not just the existing Windows Embedded Compact-based ones — that will work on a variety of processors.”

In many ways, just the presence of additional voices in the landscape of mobile computing will benefit the consumer – added competition and innovation will create better products and better prices.  And while your technology religion might be strong, over time, good products at good prices tend to trump technology brand affiliations.

(Paper source, “User Experiences with Activity-Based Navigation on Mobile Devices,” Association for Computing Machinery, Inc., Proceedings of MobileHCI 2010, http://research.microsoft.com/pubs/121932/activitybasednavigation%20mobilehci2010.pdf)

(Article source, ZDnet, Microsoft Research shows off a prototype ‘Menlo’ mobile phone,

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/microsoft/microsoft-research-shows-off-a-prototype-menlo-mobile-phone/7029?tag=nl.e539)

Citibank iPhone App: Security or Convenience?

August 4, 2010 at 11:00 am | Posted in Mobile Computing, Trends | Leave a Comment
Tags: , , , ,

Remember those quaint old days when you used to get bills by mail, would pull out your check book and stamps and get down to killing some trees?

Although they’ve gone the way of the 8-Track…er…compact disc, it may not be a good thing that the initial paranoia consumers felt about the transition to the web has gone away.  Smart phones are giving us new reasons to think about how we bank – and the security of our information.  iPhone and Android phones now are routinely used to check balances, pay bills, transfer funds.  And while that’s great if you need to top up your balance before a major purchase, mobile computing is still working out its kinks.

Recently, Citibank made changes to their iPhone application which hint at those kinks.  After a regular security reviews, it was discovered that the company’s iPhone app was accidentally saving information related to the account in a hidden file on the iPhone.  The company notified users via a letter advising them to download the new app and change their access code.

What’s the moral of the story?  First of all, if you have a Citibank account and use the app, then make sure to download the updated version to avoid any problems.  But also be aware of the kinks.  Citibank was fortunately doing proactive reviews; but in this new mobile age, you still have to be cautious.

Some Google Power Behind the iPad – Or Android Tablet…

June 23, 2010 at 11:00 am | Posted in Gadgets, Mobile Computing | Leave a Comment
Tags: , ,

Google’s released its Iterative Web App for Gmail as a way of testing concepts and refining Gmail for tablets.

This should be the tip of the iceberg in terms of new applications and refinements targeted to this form factor.

GoogleVoice: Singlehandedly Overcoming AT&T Voicemail Shortcomings?

June 21, 2010 at 11:00 am | Posted in Gadgets, Mobile Computing | Leave a Comment
Tags: , ,

The iPhone really keeps AT&T in the game.  And maybe Google does too.

In my many years of using AT&T, the signal/connection quality and voice mail quality have been frustrating at best.  I’ve had dozens of dropped calls, and periodic complaints about voice mail not answering calls.  But just as I consider switching – I consider getting rid of the iPhone.  From Windows smartphones, Sony Ericsson smartphones, to Palm smart phones, no smartphone has matched the iPhone.  And of course, I’m not alone.

But I recently found that GoogleVoice is another great way to patch up the service problems from AT&T, specifically in the area of voicemail.  When you sign up for GoogleVoice account, you are able to reroute your voicemail to GV’s service, circumventing error-prone AT&T voicemail.

GoogleVoice inbox

GoogleVoice inbox

What is even better about making this switch is that Google uses ASR to convert incoming voice mail to text, and sends it to your email (and stores it visually in your GoogleVoice account).  In addition to making it possible to store and archive voicemails much more easily and flexibly, you can actually see what message was left without calling your voice mail.  In contrast to what the iPhone calls “Visual Voicemail” this is *really* visual voice mail.

It’s true that the ASR is not perfect – take a look at the attachment below.  But ASR can be tweaked and improved with data and experience, so expect this to improve. In fact, for those who are so inclined, you can submit your voicemails with poor transcription to Google to help them improve, which is a great feature.

But probably the most exciting part of GoogleVoice, in our opinion, is the fact that it points towards greater unification in messaging, turning multiple possible channels into a single message queue for users, which has been a grail of the industry for quite a while.

Finally, to give AT&T credit, it does appear that their network is improving based on recent experience.

iCandy 4.0 (iPhone OS4 update)

June 7, 2010 at 5:34 pm | Posted in Gadgets, Mobile Computing | Leave a Comment
Tags: , , ,

courtesy IDG News Service

A great overview of the features coming out this summer. Between video calling, the new ad platform, multi-tasking, and other features like a unified inbox, and HD video might get lost in the shuffle. It may just be that this device meets sky-high expectations…

Skype for iPhone Introduces…Skype for iPhone. Really.

June 7, 2010 at 11:00 am | Posted in Mobile Computing | Leave a Comment
Tags: , ,

Skype announced over the holiday weekend a new version of their iPhone app which supports 3G Skype to Skype calls (calls to users who are also on Skype) and SkypeOut calls, not just the calls over WiFi networks we’ve had recently.

This means a lot of interesting questions will now be asked in the place of “When can I stick it to my overpriced cell phone plan by using Skype?”:
* Multitasking Support:Will this be meaningful to users without multi-tasking? At this point, being “signed in” to Skype to get a call can be a bit of a dodgy affair. Users may have a hard time devoting all their time to being in Skype, or constantly signing into Skype.
* Business Model: Once multitasking is in place, and users can supplant cell usage with Skype usage, that will increase the price pressure on phone providers – will they change their business models, pricing, or just become a new class of ISPs?
* Video Calling: With the new forward facing camera in the iPhone mean video calling will finally take off? Video calling, with the new iPhone, now seems as if it may just have a chance to become mainstream – I can only imagine Palm, Blackberry and Android phones will follow suit with the forward facing camera.
* What We Don’t Know We Don’t Know: – Will people flock to video calling, creating new hazards to the afternoon stroll, finally supplanting the annoyance you feel toward people who stand in the middle of the sidewalk talking instead of moving to the side? Will those guys who talk on their cell phone in public bathrooms while doing their business start video conferencing too? Will Apple work the “rear” (that’s an unfortunate term, I know) facing camera into the act so you can have a group video and audio conference (someone should design a “stand” or base as an accessory…)?

Here’s a Wired article about the massive download number (5 million) they racked up. Their writer speculates further that the traditional “VoIP as a way to stick it to the telco” theme may be transforming into a way for telcos to accelerate profits 3G service usage.

To iPad, or Not to iPad?

June 4, 2010 at 11:00 am | Posted in Gadgets, Mobile Computing, Trends | Leave a Comment
Tags: , , ,

eWeek ran an interesting “presentation” this week about devices which you should consider buying before you run out to buy an iPad.

Their choices underscore an important point – consumers used to have one, putty grey choice for computing, but now have a myriad of choices in terms of form factor, etc. eWeek’s list features an XBox, an HP Android Tablet, and an iPod, not to mention laptops.

It’s clear now that consumers are the beneficiaries of hardware manufacturer’s drive toward fairly common features through different hardware platforms (for example, you can play PC games if you like, on your laptop, or you can browse web content and message your friends on your XBox).

It isn’t about giving all consumer’s the ultimate gadget – it’s about giving a specific set of consumers the gadget or combination of gadgets which fit into their life.

That said, bummer that the Wii didn’t make it on.

Next Page »

Blog at WordPress.com. | Theme: Pool by Borja Fernandez.
Entries and comments feeds.