Author Archive
by Darla Mack
July 17, 2008 at 2:09 pm · Filed under Mobile messaging 2.0, Apple, MobileMe
In an effort to fix the delayed and proper workings of MobileMe, Apple has offered a 30 day extension to existing users of .Mac. They also have re-defined their use of the word “push” in the MobileMe syncing process.
I received this via email and I’m sure many existing .Mac users have seen the same.
We have recently completed the transition from .Mac to MobileMe. Unfortunately, it was a lot rockier than we had hoped.
Although core services such as Mail, iDisk, Sync, Back to My Mac, and Gallery went relatively smoothly, the new MobileMe web applications had lots of problems initially. Fortunately we have worked through those problems and the web apps are now up and running.
Another snag we have run into is our use of the word “push” in describing everything under the MobileMe umbrella. While all email, contact or calendar changes on the iPhone and the web apps are immediately synced to and from the MobileMe “cloud,” changes made on a PC or Mac take up to 15 minutes to sync with the cloud and your other devices. So even though things are indeed instantly pushed to and from your iPhone and the web apps today, we are going to stop using the word “push” until it is near-instant on PCs and Macs, too.
We want to apologize to our loyal customers and express our appreciation for their patience by giving all current subscribers an automatic 30-day extension to their MobileMe subscription free of charge. Your extension will be reflected in your account settings within the next few weeks.
We hope you enjoy your new suite of web applications at me.com, in addition to keeping your iPhone and iPod touch wirelessly in sync with these new web applications and your Mac or PC.
Thank you,
How nice of them to clear all that up for us, but answer me this… why does one need to pay $99 a year just to have an email address? Can’t they just omit all the rest of the add-ons that people chose not to use and offer a nice basic email address for free? It’s not like they can’t afford it.
by Darla Mack
July 11, 2008 at 7:37 am · Filed under Mobile messaging 2.0, iPhone, iPhone 3G
Anyone who has children or can remember their youth on Christmas day can understand where I’m getting at with this.
On Christmas day the adrenaline is pumping. You eagerly get ready to tear apart those gifts. Nothing else matters… no breakfast, still in pj’s, making a mad dash to the Christmas tree to claim what’s yours and once you’ve unwrapped everything and sit in a huge pile of glittery paper admiring your treasures the high seems to die down. Why? Your task is accomplished. You play around with some of the items and then push them to the side to move onto the next one and so on and so on. Then the unexpected happens… you return to your room where your old toys are and begin to play with them. That my friends, is the Christmas affect. I’ve seen it happen, and I remember doing it myself.
I can see the same thing happening on Friday. You wait on that long line and share in the enthusiasm of your new found friends to the left and right of you (depending on how the line is formed). You share stories of last years iPhone triumphs and plan on the accessories that you will by and what you would like to see from the App store. Then it happens. The doors open. The flood rushes in. It’s your turn on line. You look at the sales rep in total excitement hoping to see a glimpse of the same in return. (Hey the guy/gal is just there to do his/her job)
You’ve picked your rate plan!!! You’ve made your purchase without any kinks during the process!!! You celebrate your new purchase by maybe buying an accessory. Then your off to examine your treasure!! You turn it on and begin to explore. If this is your very first iPhone your explore time will take longer than those existing users. You seem to grasp the hang of it a bit. You call your friends, family, other iPhone users. You HAVE to check out the video voicemail just to see how it works. Then suddenly things began to die down a bit.
You get home and start setting it up so that you can sync your info, download your music, etc. The adrenaline is wearing off. You try and get some sleep… but wait, the internet awaits you. You have to see how others experiences went. So that’s about another 2-3 hours of surfing, responding to message boards… blah blah blah.
A few days goes by and the excitement has worn off… your left thinking to yourself “what was all the excitement about”.
Notice any similarities to the Christmas affect?
by Darla Mack
July 8, 2008 at 11:52 pm · Filed under Mobile messaging 2.0, MMS, mobile social networking, Messaging, Mobile Research, Social Networking
The most portable device in todays time is the cellphone. For basic everyday non-professional photography the cameraphone has been the most popular choice amongst young adults
In a survey compiled by Wirefly 45% of adult cell phone users report using their mobile cams at least once a week with many snapping shots ever day.
Young consumers ages 18-30 make up 63.8% that use their at least once a week, with 26.3% also snapping shots daily. Those figures fall to 40.7% and 13.2%, respectively, for consumers over the age of 30.
The survey also states that 73.5% adults age 18-30 assign photo IDs to people in their address book, while just 47.4% of the over-30 crowd do the same.
What message should this send out to handset manufacturers? Make better cell phone cams!! It’s clear that the demand is there.
Other interesting results from the full pool of respondents include:
96.3% of adult cell phone owners report that they have a cell phone with a camera.
19% of adults prefer to use their cell phone as their primary camera for all photography.
77.2% of photos taken remain stored in the phone, 45.4% are used as wallpaper and 38.6% are sent to friends via MMS.
20.2% of respondents say they have snapped a photo of an attractive man/woman, and 7.5% have photographed an unsuspecting stranger.
46.4% of all adults and 2/3 of adults age 18-30 say that they use their cell phone to snap self-portraits.
19.8% say they have snuck a picture while pretending to do something else.
13.9% of adults report that they have sent a flirtatious, suggestive, or nude photo - a figure that rises to 28.1% of respondents age 18-30.
via: Cellular-News
by Darla Mack
July 1, 2008 at 1:09 am · Filed under Mobile messaging 2.0, Messaging, T-Mobile
T-Mobile users will be in for a surprise coming this fall. SMS overage chargers will be increased from 15 cents to 20 cents. To grandfathered BuddyTime customers and those on unlimited message plans this means absolutely nothing, but to others you need to start regulating your monthly messages.
The change will take effect August 29.
[via: BGR]
by Darla Mack
June 28, 2008 at 9:35 pm · Filed under Devices, iPhone, ATT, Apple
According to Engadget, if you purchased your 2G iPhone after May you can trade it in for the new 3G model. How nice of AT&T and Apple.
So if I bought an original iPhone, I can trade it in for an iPhone 3G?
Yes, but only if you bought it AFTER May 27th, 2008. Anyone who bought theirs before that has to live with their purchase — not that anyone can stop you from showing up to your local Apple store and raising a ruckus.
Engadget also confirmed my suspicions on the dissappearance of the current iPhone plan. Rumors speculated that the plan would be discontinued, which didn’t make sense to me, but I’m happy to know that it’s being kept.
by Darla Mack
June 24, 2008 at 6:50 pm · Filed under Mobile messaging 2.0, Usage + Usability
Cellular-News reports that residents in Sacramento might have to pay taxes on their text messaging.
Voters living in the Californian city of Sacramento will be given the opportunity to vote on a measure which will extend an existing utility tax to include SMS messages. Currently the tax is applied to voice calls from mobile phones, along with electricity, gas and television services but does not include text messages.
Lobby group, the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association is opposing this new tax and has previously sued stating that tax on cellphone bills is illegal.
“The city is packaging an increase as a tax reduction,” said Timothy Bittle, from the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers’ Association. “Communication is a basic human right. It’s a constitutional right. It’s free speech. Why do we have to be taxed?”
While I agree with Mr. Bittle’s statement I’m curious to understand just how text messaging is considered a utility? It isn’t something that is stand-alone such as power or water, but a feature that is incorporated in carrier service plans… which are already being taxed.
Voters will be able to vote on the tax change this coming November. Under California’s Proposition 218, voters have the right to vote on all local taxes, and requires taxpayer approval of assessments and property-related fees.
by Darla Mack
June 22, 2008 at 10:17 pm · Filed under Mobile messaging 2.0, Twitter, mobile social networking, Jaiku, Messaging, LinkedIn, Social Networking
One of my mobitopia buddies, Sir Erik Thauvin (lol that’s not really his name but I like calling him that) introduced me to Hellotxt awhile back and my initial thought was this is the place to be for updating all of your social media networks simultaneously… especially via mobile.
You know who you are… you Twitter, Jaiku, Pownce, Bebo, Facebook and so on people that bounce from spot to spot in order to make sure all of your locations are updated.
That’s where HelloTxt comes in.
HelloTxt is an aggregate of microblogging services through which the user can insert their messages on all main microblogging services in a simply and simultaneous way.
Now although it is web-based, it still offers the solution of multi-service update in a convenient way. Updates can be sent via email gateway, sms gateway or through the users dashboard.
There is a mobile web version of hellotxt (m.hellotxt.com) that does the same thing, however I think it would be much better to have a real mobile client than just having to use the mobile browser all the time. But its still a good solution for quick multi-service updates.
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by Darla Mack
June 22, 2008 at 9:54 pm · Filed under ATT, Apple, iPhone 3G
The truth has somewhat been revealed regarding AT&T’s pricing of the upcoming 3G iPhone. According to Gizmodo, ineligble customers won’t be able to benefit from the $199/$299 pricetag that was announced by Apple. Didn’t you kind of figure there was a catch of some sort?
The 3G iPhone pricing of $199/$299 with AT&T will only be for: A) Existing customers who qualify for an upgrade. B) New customers. C) Existing iPhone customers who purchase an new iPhone and extend their contract for 2 years.
So that means that there will be an unsubsidized price for those who don’t fall into that category, however, the price hasn’t been mentioned.
What I find odd is that before the iPhone left the shelves of AT&T, customers didn’t have an upgrade option… or so I was told by my local store. So why have one now?
Am I Eligible for an AT&T Cell Phone Upgrade?
Not all Cingular/AT&T customers may qualify for a cell phone upgrade. At this time, AT&T Mobility allows these customers to upgrade with no upgrade fee when they commit to a new 2-year contract:
* AT&T customers who have had 24 months of cell phone service since activation of their cell phone or since their last phone upgrade.
Certain AT&T customers may be eligible for a cell phone upgrade even if they have been in their current plan for less than two years (24 months), if they commit to a new 2-year contract and meet these eligibility requirements:
* Customer has had a standard calling plan plus data services costing at least $68.99 a month but no more than $98.99 a month, and who has been in contract (and not had a phone upgrade) for 21 months or more,
or
* Customer has had a standard calling plan plus data services costing $99 a month or more, and who has been in contract (and not upgraded) in the last 12 months.
A customer with a calling plan and data services of less than $69 who is 21 to 23 months into contract may upgrade for a fee and a commitment of an additional two-year service contract extension. No upgrade fee is assessed for any customers who are on a month-to-month agreement.
Note that AT&T upgrade eligibility may be further limited based on customer’s usage history, payment record, previous phone replacement, etc. Upgrade eligibility is solely determined by AT&T Mobility at its discretion. [via: Wirefly]
by Darla Mack
June 9, 2008 at 3:43 pm · Filed under iPhone, Apple, WWDC
Ok so I’m not a complete Apple fanboy yet. But like many others who have virtually been attending the WWDC this morning (afternoon in my case) we have just been graced with the news that we have heard in rumored blogs across the net. The 3G Apple iPhone.
Of course 3G network being AT&T here in the US. With compared speeds of the Treo 750 and Nokia N95, the 3G iPhone ranked in at 36% faster. The battery life is said to offer 5 hours of 3G talk-time, 300 hours of standby, 5 to 6 hours of high-speed browsing, 7 hours of video, 24 hours of audio, and 10 hours of 2G talk-time.
GPS has also been built in to the new model. As well as support for third-party applications. Looks like Steve has given the people what they wanted.
Paying close attention to the live stream on MacRumors, the announcement brings relief to new users. Apple’s job this time around was to make the iPhone more affordable. Something they should have done in the first place. When researched as to why consumers didn’t purchase an iPhone, price was the number one factor.
The good news is that Apple learned from their initial mistake. The new versions of the iPhone to be released July 12th nationwide will be much more reasonable. The 16GB version (which will also be available in white) will retail for $299. The 8GB version (in shiny black) will retail at $199. Now that sounds more like something consumers can afford.
by Darla Mack
June 4, 2008 at 2:19 am · Filed under Studies + Research, Usage + Usability, mobile data statistics, Facebook, Research, Mobile Research, Social Networking, M:Metrics
In a release published by M:Metrics last month, a study shows that the American population spends over 4.5 hours browsing on their smartphones.
Looking at the trend it seems the most popular site visited by US users was Craigslist. To me, that’s surprising… then again I’m not a big Craigslist user. UK consumers favored Facebook, which was also another site visited by US consumers.
What is interesting is the time spent browsing. According to the data collected in March, US users spent an average of 1 hour and 39 minutes out of the month browsing Craigslist, while UK users spent an average of 1 hour and 45 minutes of their time browsing Facebook.
Not to take away from web browsing, but I hope developers are paying some attention to these trends. This would be the opportunity to create dedicated applications instead of having to rely on the browsers themselves. I know I’ve become a happy person since the Ebay application came out.
“People are becoming increasingly engaged in the mobile medium,” said Mark Donovan, senior analyst, M:Metrics. “Among smartphone users in the United States, mobile browsing has increased 89 percent year over year, and pageviews have increased 127 percent. Consumption is quickly evolving from brief transactions, such as checking the weather or flight status, to time-intensive interaction with mobile Web sites—even without an iPhone.”
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