MIR Live

MIR Live http://live.mobileindustryreview.com News and opinion for 250,000 mobile industry executives and fanatics posterous.com Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:26:05 -0800 Geez it's STILL £1.28/meg in Europe on Three http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/geez-its-still-128meg-in-europe-on-three http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/geez-its-still-128meg-in-europe-on-three

Oh dear, it seems poor Three still can't cut a break from the other operators in Europe on roaming. Either that or it's still a crazy profit centre for them. No matter though, my iPhone is set to 'data roaming off' obviously. More lost revenue opportunities for Three. I'd have paid perhaps £5 for say 25mb data for the day here in Madrid.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Tue, 31 Jan 2012 03:57:37 -0800 Trying DaaS on my iPad -- it really does rock http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/trying-daas-on-my-ipad-it-really-does-rock http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/trying-daas-on-my-ipad-it-really-does-rock

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Fri, 27 Jan 2012 04:53:07 -0800 Chuck the flowers and buy her a Kindle? http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/chuck-the-flowers-and-buy-her-a-kindle http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/chuck-the-flowers-and-buy-her-a-kindle I like the way this advert from Amazon speaks directly to me. Valentine's Day? Nice reminder. Gift? Yeah I need to think about that. Oh, a Kindle? Good idea! I like buying technology. That said my wife already uses the Kindle app on her iPhone. But maybe she needs a stand-alone device? It's better than flowers...

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Thu, 26 Jan 2012 04:10:11 -0800 Stream Communications launches super-fast 3G data service http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/stream-communications-launches-super-fast-3g http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/stream-communications-launches-super-fast-3g I met this company at the UKTI MWC event this week and was thoroughly excited by the possibilities of their offering. I'm having a crazy day today so here's their press release. Have a read and see what you think:

<blockquote>Stream Communications announces the launch of freeflow, a new extra fast 3G service and SIM for iPad and Smart Tablet users.

Users of freeflow will experience web page download rates over Stream’s 3G network up to 50% faster than could be experienced from a typical ‘consumer’ 3G SIM. In addition, because of the way Stream manages the connection between the tablet PC and the mobile network, users will experience overall faster downloads up to 80% of their total connected browsing time.

Stream Communications further augmented its existing mobile infrastructure, originally developed for ultra-reliable machine to machine communications, to meet the specific needs of iPad and Android tablet users in the UK. Anyone with an iPad or tablet PC running a freeflow 3G SIM will be able to experience a vastly improved experience, both in terms of reliability and download speed.

Nigel Chadwick, founding Director of Stream Communications said: “Users of iPads and Android tablet PCs, particularly business users and entrepreneurs, value the reliability, knowing that they will be connected wherever they are, and that faster download will enable them to focus on their core business whilst on the move. Consumer 3G services rarely deliver this level of reliability, but Stream’s freeflowservice can – our customers benefit from a vastly improved experience both in terms of speed and connection up-time.”

“Stream’s bespoke infrastructure enables tablet users to improve download times vastly – in many cases being up to 50% faster. freeflow reduces the frustration felt, particularly by business users, who want to be connected more consistently but frequently experience issues around 3G connectivity and download speed. Stream’s unique advanced network management and infrastructure means minimised downtime and significantly faster downloads. Customers trialling the service likenfreeflow to using WiFi not 3G.”

Stream’s freeflow service will fully launch to coincide with the World Mobile Congress event in Barcelona, late February.

</blockquote>

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Wed, 25 Jan 2012 01:26:58 -0800 Bluetooth headsets like this should be outlawed http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/bluetooth-headsets-like-this-should-be-outlaw http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/bluetooth-headsets-like-this-should-be-outlaw I can't stand to see folk wearing Bluetooth in-ear microphone headsets out-and-about. I really can't. It's one of those things that seriously winds me up. I have no problem whatsoever with people wearing them for work purposes -- delivery drivers, plumbers, you know, folk who have a specific use-case requirement.

Sitting on the train wearing one is entirely unacceptable.

By all means use one -- but IN the office. Or, even better still, when someone is on the phone wanting to speak to you.

I know its illogical. It just winds me up.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Mon, 23 Jan 2012 07:48:09 -0800 London's tube platforms get WiFi this summer http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/londons-tube-platforms-get-wifi-this-summer http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/londons-tube-platforms-get-wifi-this-summer It's been much discussed but now apparently it is shortly about to arrive: WiFi when you are 200ft underground waiting for the tube. Provided it's good quality, I'm a fan... What about you? Will you be making use of this?

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Tue, 17 Jan 2012 08:41:02 -0800 Envirofone: Super fast! http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/envirofone-super-fast http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/envirofone-super-fast I'm delighted to say that Envirofone received and processed my old Three iPhone 4 within 48 hours. Super fast. If you want a no-nonsense, reliable phone recycling service, I thoroughly recommend them.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Thu, 05 Jan 2012 00:34:16 -0800 Keep Calm... http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/keep-calm http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/keep-calm

Created with Keep Calm and Carry On for iPhone

Kcaco

Did you see what I did there? A sneaky BlackBerry reference!

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Tue, 03 Jan 2012 06:26:53 -0800 Buy a mini for 50%, pay nothing for two years http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/buy-a-mini-for-50-pay-nothing-for-two-years http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/buy-a-mini-for-50-pay-nothing-for-two-years This is not a spam post! I saw this today advertised in The Telegraph and it made me think about my views of ownership. You see I don't really want to own much -- especially technology, cars in particular but also mobile phones. Car need maintenance and mobiles go out of date within 6 months. I want someone else to handle the pain so I can just get the utility. That's sort of what we see in the car industry with leasing however it's still all based on the purchase price and perceived 'value' of the vehicle. I just want the utility with all the costs rolled in. This offer from BMW will give you a Mini for half price. Then in two years you either give it back and get a new one or pay off the balance and own it. I like the idea of getting a new one. It's the same with phones. When will one of our manufacturers (or operators) start to offer this kind of thing? O2 is very much getting there with their iPhone lease offers. That rocks. I'd like to see what Apple, Nokia or HTC would do. Could I subscribe to HTC, for example, paying a tenner a month or 20 a month and get a new handset every 6 months (giving the old one back for them to resell)?

I wonder.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Tue, 03 Jan 2012 04:11:54 -0800 Today's iOS gift -- House & 30 Rock http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/todays-ios-gift-house-30-rock http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/todays-ios-gift-house-30-rock This looks like a pretty good one today from Apple's 12 Days of Christmas campaign: The pilot episodes of both 30 Rock and House. I'm going to download both later today. How about you?

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Wed, 28 Dec 2011 16:28:16 -0800 The iOS 12 Days of Christmas http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/the-ios-12-days-of-christmas http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/the-ios-12-days-of-christmas Did you download the 12 Days of Christmas app? There's been some fairly decent offerings so far. I downloaded the Coldplay mini album and was impressed that this came with video too. This morning sees the first free ebook that I've seen feature in this post-Christmas special offer series. If you haven't checked out any Apple electronic books then perhaps this might be the time to do so. Download the 12 Days of Christmas app in the store and pick it up. It's nice to be offered 'free stuff' -- although some of the items featured definitely aren't necessarily what I'd call 'premium' (for example the Coldplay offer was a live recording of their iTunes Festival performance -- one would expect that this would have been rather cheap or free for Apple). Now and again they seem to chuck a few interesting ones in -- I picked up the TopGear trip across Israel/Bethlehem/Iraq. I wonder what -- if any -- movies they will include? I also wonder just how popular the series is? It's a super time of year to do it and I also reckon its a fabulous way of introducing users to Apple's electronic store.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Sun, 25 Dec 2011 12:01:55 -0800 A quick reminder for iOS users http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/a-quick-reminder-for-ios-users http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/a-quick-reminder-for-ios-users Make sure you've got the 12 Days of Christmas app from Apple on your phone if you're an iOS user. It's always rather interesting to see what media Apple choose to promote to the masses -- a game? A movie? A TV episode? An ebook? Or of course... An app. The first free download starts tomorrow.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Thu, 22 Dec 2011 09:10:10 -0800 Good use of text survey functionality by Three http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/good-use-of-text-survey-functionality-by-thre http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/good-use-of-text-survey-functionality-by-thre I got these messages from 3 on my new iPhone number today. I was delighted. I wish operators would engage more! Not just after point of sale. I thoroughly enjoyed answering the little text survey!

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Tue, 20 Dec 2011 12:08:06 -0800 The Kicksend iPhone App is Here... http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/the-kicksend-iphone-app-is-here http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/the-kicksend-iphone-app-is-here

This looks interesting. I'm going to check it out!

(I'm also trying out forwarding to Wordpress via Posterous)

Begin forwarded message:

From: Kicksend <noreply@kicksend.com>
Date: 20 December 2011 19:51:34 GMT
To: ewan@mobileindustryreview.com
Subject: The Kicksend iPhone App is Here...
Reply-To: contact@kicksend.com

Ewan, the Kicksend iPhone App is Here!

Use Kicksend for iPhone and Get 100MB Free
Install the app and send a photo to a friend, list, or email and we'll automatically give you an extra 100MB.
The long-awaited Kicksend iPhone app is finally out! It's free, and lets you share large batches of photos, send large videos, receive files in real time, and even share files from other apps.

Sharing Large Batches

Sending photos using the default iPhone email app is extremely limiting - you can only send four photos at a time. If we take a bunch of awesome photos, we have to repeat this process many times to send them to our friends. With Kicksend for iPhone you can select up to twenty photos at a time and send them to any email address, friend, or even a list of thousands of people in high resolution. In the initial version of the app, we've limited batch sharing to just photos; we'll be adding videos in the next release.

Share Files from Other Apps

How have we enabled file sharing on the iPhone? Well, we've allowed you to send files from other apps using the Kicksend iPhone app. You can send files that are too big for you to send through email and files that other applications won't normally let you share. If you have a PDF file locked up in an app on your iPhone, all you have to do is choose "Open with Kicksend" and we'll let you send it to anybody you want.

Delivered to Your Friends' Hard Drives

If your friends have the Kicksend desktop app, any files you send them will be delivered automatically to their hard drives. You can be on the other side of the planet and send photos instantly to your best friend's computer, allowing them to view your pics privately, instantly, and effortlessly.

Receive Files Instantly on Your iPhone, Desktop, and Web

The iPhone app gives you the same great Kicksend experience that you're used to on the desktop or web. When your friends send you files, they show up instantly on all of the devices you have connected. You can stand next to your friend who's using the Kicksend iPhone app, send him a photo or video, and watch it appear on his screen instantly.
Get Kicksend for iPhone
We started Kicksend with a vision of a building an effortless way to send & receive the things we care about, with the people we know. This new iPhone app is a big step in that direction, and we hope you love using it as much as we do. As always, you can reply back to this email to talk to us or click on the ‘Send Feedback’ button in the app.

Thanks for using Kicksend,
The Kicksend Team

If you'd like to stop getting announcement emails, click here.
(c) 2011, Receivd Inc, Mountain View, CA.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Thu, 08 Dec 2011 05:05:20 -0800 2 for 1 at Pizza Express from Orange Wednesdays http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/2-for-1-at-pizza-express-from-orange-wednesda http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/2-for-1-at-pizza-express-from-orange-wednesda I suspect this is going to make Orange very popular with their existing 2 for 1 Wednesday night cinema ticket fans. Now you can add Pizza Express to the Wednesday night schedule. And don't forget you can then get a free movie rental from Orange on Thursdays!

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Mon, 28 Nov 2011 10:08:30 -0800 LogMeIn at 50% off right now http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/logmein-at-50-off-right-now http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/logmein-at-50-off-right-now LogMeIn is one of those apps that are likely to be on your list of "must haves" but the rather expensive retail price (around £20) may well have put you off in the past.

It's Apple's top-grossing third-party app and I use it most days to access and control my machines when I'm out and about.

Right now for "a limited time", you can pick up LogMeIn on iOS or Android for half the cost of the standard price. Be quick as I'm not sure when they will stop this -- my guess is they will revert to the old price sometime next week.

The Android version can be picked up for £9.69 and the iOS version now costs £10.49.

To access your machines on your mobile device, all you need to do is install the client on the relevant desktops.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/76139/ewan_bw.jpg http://posterous.com/users/10z6V1hcMsV Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Mon, 28 Nov 2011 02:01:48 -0800 All I wanted was a diet coke http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/all-i-wanted-was-a-diet-coke http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/all-i-wanted-was-a-diet-coke

El_prat_de_llobregat-20111128-

I've arrived into Barcelona for EIBTM, Europe's largest and most influential business travel meetings event (I'm speaking at the CEO summit on the topic of mobile).

I didn't bother with a diet coke at WH Smith in London Heathrow as I presumed British Airways would be able to offer that on-board. However since the flight departed at 730am this morning, someone at BA presumably thought that serving tea, coffee, orange juice and water was sufficient. It wasn't.

So off the flight I came and spied many convenient "snack time" vending machines. Wonderful. Stocked to the brim. I could use a diet coke. I gave a moment's consideration and then glanced at the payment section of each machine. Yeah. Shit.

You know the score. Coins only. And flipping Euro-bollocks coins too. Not even a credit card swipey thing.

I look forward to the time when I can wave my MasterCard-Approved NFC-compatible BlackBerry Bold 9900 at the "snack time" vending machine and be able to buy a diet coke.

I just need to wait a billion years for the mobile industry, the banking industry and the vending machine dullards to sort it out.

Shoulda done WH Smiths.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/76139/ewan_bw.jpg http://posterous.com/users/10z6V1hcMsV Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Fri, 25 Nov 2011 15:42:38 -0800 Stop everything and get your free 50GB Box.net account http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/stop-everything-and-get-your-free-50gb-boxnet http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/stop-everything-and-get-your-free-50gb-boxnet I had cause to download the Box.net iPhone client today just to check it out. I'd already registered a business trial account and then I saw the message below. As per the message there, everyone gets a free 50GB Box.net account of you register via the app. I tried this out and I can confirm it works. This offer is apparently valid until 2nd of December.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Tue, 22 Nov 2011 00:52:38 -0800 Somebody get this man a tablet http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/somebody-get-this-man-a-tablet http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/somebody-get-this-man-a-tablet I've done this myself quite a few times. There's nothing worse than seeing other people having to use their laptops like this. It really doesn't look good. It's bad at the station but it's even worse at the office. How many readers have at least one person in their office who wander around with their laptop open like this?

Fair enough, by the way, if it means you can avoid a 15-minute 'sleep then wake' process thanks to all the rubbish the IT team has installed on the machine for 'security purposes'.

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod Thu, 17 Nov 2011 03:33:20 -0800 The BlackBerry Curve 9380 has arrived http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/the-blackberry-curve-9380-has-arrived http://live.mobileindustryreview.com/the-blackberry-curve-9380-has-arrived This one just arrived this morning. I have to say in pretty impressed with its slight form factor. I am, of course, a huge QWERTY fan so I'm looking forward to seeing how I get on with the 9380 given it's a full touchscreen device. I will let you know how I get on...

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]]> http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/17411/Picture_1.png http://posterous.com/users/10FxD1HYgdX Ewan MacLeod Ewan Ewan MacLeod