I was just wondering when I can move ahead with my plans for global domination and pick up my Verizon Wireless data plan, card and a Kyocera KR1 router to use as a backup internet connection here. But, it appears that the Kyocera KR1 is still not out. Although I did just notice that they are now listing various KR1 accessories on their website, so this could be a sign that Kyocera will be releasing the KR1 soon. But, seriously they need to get that thing to market already so that I can geek out. I guess I can just get my EV-dO service rolling for now and move it to my backup when the KR1 comes out, but I feel like I will jinx it if I do that.

ust noticed that our friends at Amazon are making an offer you can’t refuse if you are in the market for a RIM Blackberry. The offer that came out today is for a *free* RIM Blackberry 8700c if you sign up for a 2 year deal with Cingular Wireless. I may have to pick up one of these bad boys, especially with the traveling I have coming up this year.

I just got off the phone with my friend who had purchased the new Treo 700w for Verizon, the day they were released here in San Francisco.  Apparently, he had to take it back for a new one as the old one had terrible microphone cross-noise issues. When used on the street, the background noise took over completely and if he was lucky, his voice would get precendence every 30 seconds. With the new phone, that appears to have been fixed, so maybe he just got a lemon right out of the gates. Whatever the case, you would think you would get some quality control with a $400 phone.  I know that the Treo 600s had some serious phone issues as well. The bottom line is, with a Treo, I don’t think you should expect to get the best cell phone performance out of it.  But, you should get something usable.

Technorati Tags: Treo+700, Verizon, Wireless

Ooh la la….the new Treo 700w from Verizon Wireless….I WANT ONE.  Nice upgrades from the recently released Treo 650 including Windows Mobile 5.0, WiFi support and a whole lot more.  I am waiting for Kenny to come over here and let me demo his Treo 700w and as a matter of fact, I have to call him now because this is just plain silly.  Here are the specs on the new Treo 700w:

• Microsoft Windows Mobile5.0(Pocket Outlook, Pocket
  MSNMessenger, Activesync, Pocket Word, Pocket Exel, Pocket
  Powerpoint, Pocket IE, Windows Media Player 10, pictures, voice
  recorder, calculator, clock, alarm, games and much more)
• 1xRTT/1xEV-DO
• 128MB/60MB storage capacity
• Built-in Bluetooth wireless technology
• Windows MediaPlayer 10
• Wireless Sync
• Compact, all-in-one smartphone
• 240×240 color TFT touchscreen
• 5-Way Navigator
• QWERTY Keyboard with LED Backlight
• 1.3 Megapixel digital camera
• Expansion Slot for SD Cards
• Speakerphone

I mean come on…1xEV-DO support AND WiFi?  I don’t know what to do with myself right now.  Cingular…where are you guys? Hello?

Technorati Tags: Treo+700, Verizon+Wireless, WiFi, EvDO

I just returned from my annual trip with my family to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico and I brought my laptop down with me along with my Nokia 6620 smartphone.  This year was different because I wanted to stay in touch over the internet with a couple of business contacts as well as check on a few things periodically while I was in Mexico. Surprisingly, this was very easy to do.  I have been using my Nokia 6620 as an internet gateway over bluetooth connection for over a year and this setup worked, “out of the box” while down in Mexico.  My only concerns were roaming charges while south of the border. I made a call to Cingular’s wireless data technical support the night before I left to see what my options were. The documentation on their website was misleading at best and made it sound as if unlimited data plan customers did not pay any international roaming charges for data.  I called and spoke to a knowledgeable girl in their tech department who confirmed this, but checked with her manager just to make sure. The manager confirmed this, noted it in my account and I was off.

I tested to see if I had internet WAP connectivity in the Cabo San Lucas airport as soon as we landed and I had full signal, and EDGE service.  It was looking good.  After getting settled at the hotel, I fired up my laptop, dial-up networking over Bluetooth and boom, I was connected. I have to admit I was pretty shocked.  The dial-up settings were the same as the link above.  I will have to see what, if any surprises await on my Cingular bill to confirm that this is a free deal for unlimited data plan customers.

Technorati Tags: Cingular, Cabo+San+Lucas, Internet, Wireless, Data

Well, I think I have been one of those on the side of the fence that says we are really going to see widespread adoption of wireless technology into all facets of our lives for some time now. But, I guess when CNN predicts a wireless boom, it is a little of a bigger deal. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist, or maybe it does, to understand that the technologies and implementations wireless manufacturers have been releasing over the past year or two are actually beginning to adress real needs and things that can make people’s lives easier. This, after all, is what technology is all about, right? The CNN article notes that for as little as $25/mo (Sprint Wireless), you can have wireless broadband speeds comparable to WiFi networks anywhere in the US (well, at least a decent sized city). Now, that means that things that you might want to have access to while you are out and on the town can now be available. Microprocessor speeds, cheap costs of hardware like memory and increased wireless data speeds are all combining to make these technologies usable by the masses. Thanks for the validation CNN.

Vodafone has just announced the release of the sweet Nokia 702NK II (aka Nokia 6680) 3G Smartphone in Japan. The 702NK II/Nokia 6680 is a Symbian OS based 3G handset. Users can view things like Microsoft Word and Excel documents on their handsets, eliminating the need to open a laptop or notebook computer. But, the coolest feature of the 702NK II/Nokida 6680 is that it is the first handset to support Vodafone Office Mail, a push email service, that allows users to remotely access company email, address books and scheduled calendar tasks. This is the technology that deviced like the RIM Blackberry have had for years.

Sigh, it is tough being a geek in the United States sometimes. Big business is really into making money here and it is preventing me from getting my super geekiness on at times. Tech Central published an article today about 3.5G network upgrades in Malaysia. For those of you who don’t know about 3.5G let me give you a little taste. While 3G delivers around 400Kbps to 700 Kbps here and maybe 64Kbps upstream, 3.5G is talking about 14Mbps downstream and 1.8Mbps upstream. Now, this is reason enough to move to Malaysia for a guy like me. Based on HSDPA (high speed data packet access) technology, telco provider Maxis Communications Bhd along with Ericsson will be conducting trials of their 3.5G network at the beginning of 2006. Maybe I should go on my honeymoon in Malaysia?

So, it is that time of year again…you know, the time when gifts abound and your dreams or electronic bliss may or may not come true. But, we can always dream can’t we? This year, I hope that Santa, or whomever else would like to deliver one to me, will be bringing me the Samsung i730. Of course it will be complete with Verizon Wireless’ unlimited EvDO data plan so that I can not only run cool applications at blazing speeds on my phone, but so that I can also get those speeds using the phone as a high speed internet gateway via a Bluetooth connection. Yes, this is possible and yes it is very easy to set up. So, what about you guys? What are you hoping for this holiday season? That is, besides your two front teeth.

Thinking that I am over my Nokia 6620 Smartphone, I am plotting the purchase of my next phone. I have been looking at things like the Samxung i730, which is currently in the lead. But, I have not ruled out the Nokia 9300, which has a full QWERTY keyboard for entering text messages, email or composing documents. Now, I don’t think that I will necessarily be composing a novel on something like a 9300, I do think that having a full keyboard built into the chasis is extremely useful. I think that the Blackberry devices have proved that having a full array of keys to punch is a useful addition. The only thing is that I will not get a Windows OS, that I am currently leaning towards. Plus, Cingular’s HSDPA has not been launched here in San Francisco and I may not be able to hold out much longer.