Tag archive: mobile phones

In preparation for Mobile World Congress at the end of next month, the organizing body – the GSMA – has announced the 2012 shortlist of nominees for their prestigious Global Mobile Awards. That's right, it's not just those in with a chance of an Oscar nod on tenterhooks today. What makes the GSMA's awards worthy of attention is that they're voted on by 170 independent industry players — from chief… Read More

Picture the scene. You’re eating at a restaurant with a friend. You’re telling them what you consider to be a pretty interesting story and, just as you’re about to deliver the climactic line, your friend’s phone starts vibrating. “Just hold on,” they tell you, reaching for their device. Unable to close your story, you’re left staring at them like a dog that’s been shown a card trick. The moment has passed. The story is ruined. Since the… Read More

A new long-term study from Denmark's Institute of Cancer Epidemiology examined the medical histories of more than 350,000 mobile phone users over a period of eighteen years. The study's conclusion? Mobile phone users are at no greater risk for developing cancer in the brain or central nervous system than people who don't use mobile phones. The study has been published in the British Medical Journal. The finding is no doubt… Read More

Phone manufacturers will have to add GPS capabilities to every phone model by 2018, according to the FCC (via TechCrunch). While those of us with smartphones already have GPS, many feature phones do not, instead relying on cell-tower triangulation and other methods to determine location at any given time. While Assisted GPS will still be usable, actual GPS functionality will be required for all phones in seven years time. The FCC is also quick… Read More

For years, debate has raged as to whether the electromagnetic fields and radiation emitted by mobile phones pose a health risk to humans—not so much because the levels are all that high, but because untold millions of individuals spend hours a day holding these radiation-emitting devices as close to their brains as is humanly possible. Although research is still ongoing and scientific studies so far have generally been regarded as… Read More

“I was itching, like a crackhead, because I could not use my phone.” That's how one college student described an attempt to go 24 hours without accessing any sort of electronic media. The student was one of a 1,000 college students who, as part of an international study, were voluntarily attempting to abstain from media for a full day and then record their experiences. The trial was conducted by the University of… Read More

Wonder how many mobile phones are floating around your country? Well, Nokia has taken official numbers from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and plotted them on a big, colorful world map. Unfortunately, the Finnish handset maker didn't translate the numbers to make sense to anyone outside of the industry, but hey, that's what we're here for. Europe and the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) are the most… Read More

Science is always marching forward, but does it need to carry a human-shaped phone in its pocket? Yesterday, Japanese researchers at Osaka University announced that they have created a human-shaped mobile phone with an outer coating that feels like skin, reports the AFP. The goal: to let you “feel closer” to those you're talking to on the phone. We wonder, do Japanese men and women often touch faces as they talk to their… Read More

Prisoners should face steeper penalties if they are caught with a cell phone, says one California lawmaker. State Sen. Alex Padilla plans to introduce a bill (Senate Bill 26) in the coming weeks that would add 2-5 years onto the sentence of inmates in state prisons if they are caught using the phone “to facilitate a crime.” The bill would also make smuggling a cell phone to an inmate a misdemeanor for guards and visitors, with a… Read More

Sony filed a civil suit yesterday with the ITC in an attempt to block LG Electronics from shipping cell phones into the US on the basis of patent infringement. Bloomberg reports that Sony argues LG products such as the Lotus Elite, Neon, Remarq, Vu Plus, LX370, Rumor 2, and Xenon are just some of the devices that utilize patented Sony technology and do so without the electronic giant’s permission. Sony also claims LG (the world’s third largest… Read More

IBM has released its fifth annual “Five in Five” forecasts, illustrating five technology innovations it believes will come to pass in the next five years. And while each of the predictions is intriguing, one is certainly capturing a lot of attention: mobile phones with built-in holographic projectors so users can get a 3D view of the people with whom they're speaking…and maybe cute little blue-and-grey robots too.… Read More

Dialing 9-1-1 in an emergency is about to get easier. The FCC is looking to revamp the life-saving rescue service by adding text messaging and live video streaming capabilities, reports Wired. 70 percent of the service's 230 million calls each year come from mobile phones, but it is only able to support voice calls. “The technological limitations of 9-1-1 can have tragic, real-world consequences,” an FCC press release said.… Read More