The Four-eyed Journal

Despite the negative feedback, qualms and criticisms on the iPhone 3G from its price and cut-throat contract to its technical specs, I’ve read that some experts say that it will perform well and rake in more money for Apple. Why so? It’s from Apple, it’s an iPhone. Somehow, Apple has managed to imbued it with a tiny parcel of Steve Jobs’ reality distortion field that it makes consumers shell out huge wads of money and surrender their souls to the devil, as some would say.

Love it or hate it, the iPhone is here to stay and make its huge mark in our times. It already has.

Fortunately, there are lots of other alternatives to the iPhone, from the well-known mobile giants like Nokia, Sony Ericsson and others. Each has their own loyal fan base and so far, the principles of the free market economy are keeping things from being a complete anarchy.

But here’s one particular iPhone alternative that would appeal to a special fan base. The Linux zealots.

Enter OpenMoko’s open-source smartphone: Neo FreeRunner

The FreeRunner is based on a GNU/Linux, and it will initially ship with basic software to make calls, send and receive SMS, and manage contacts. But the company is encouraging users to write and install their own applications. (InformationWeek)

It’s technical specs are:

Size and Weight

• 4.75 x 2.44 x 0.73 inches
• 6.5 ounces (185 grams)

Display

• Touch Screen
• 2.8″ VGA (480×640) VGA Screen

Speed

• ARM9 @ 400 MHz
• 2D/3D Graphics Acceleration

GSM

• Tri band 850/1800/1900 MHz
• Tri band 900/1800/1900 MHz

Power

• Removable 1200 mAh battery

Memory

• 128MB SDRAM
• 256MB NAND Flash
• microSD Slot

Input and Output

• Input and Output
• 2.5 mm audio jack
• GPS external connector

Hardware Highlights

• Wi-Fi (802.1 1b/g)
• AGPS
• GPRS (2.5G not EDGE)
• Bluetooth 2.0
• 3axis Motion Sensors (2)

Software Highlights

• Openmoko GNU/Linux-based
• 100% FOSS on CPU
• GNU/Linux development tools

For now, it’s only available, or will work in US networks and is selling at $399 unlocked. It’s basically a smartphone platform for Linux fans and the open-source community to play around on or seriously develop applications that would further create tons of potential for the mobile platform and even the Linux desktop as well.

I wonder though, if and when would this be available here in the Philippines? I’m sure local Linux fanboys would love to tinker with this new phone.

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Two years ago, I blogged about the growing concern about e-junk: old computers, hardware and other gadgets being thrown in landfills by the tons each year. Well today, the issue remains to be of a growing concern as two stories in the Inquirer brings to mind this issue.

The first one, is about achieving a landmark, a record of some sort as the number of personal computers have, according to research firm Gartner, gone beyond one billion units being used all over the world today.

The number of personal computers in use around the world has surpassed one billion, with strong growth in emerging markets set to double the number of PCs by early 2014, research firm Gartner said on Monday.

Mature markets accounted for 58 percent of the first billion installed PCs, but would only account for about 30 percent of the next billion, Gartner said.

“Rapid penetration in emerging markets is being driven by the explosive expansion of broadband and wireless connectivity, the continuing fall in PC average selling prices, and the general realization that PCs are an indispensable tool for advancement,” George Shiffler, research director at Gartner, said.

Gartner expects more than 180 million computers will be replaced this year, with some sold to second owners through various channels, some broken up and recycled, but many simply dumped directly into landfill.

“We estimate … some 35 million PCs will be dumped into landfill with little or no regard for their toxic content,” said Gartner analyst Meike Escherich.

First it was Firefox 3 achieving a Guinness World Record, now it’s the PC. However, the last paragraph I quoted proves that it’s a good thing Firefox is a software, an intangible piece of technology so widely used today.

If it had been another physical gadget, Firefox 2 would’ve easily filled up many landfills once users have replaced them with Firefox 3. Experts say that the number of PCs would continue to grow as more households in developing countries could afford them while others continue to upgrade their existing machines. Where does the old ones go? It’s clear that more and more solutions to handling e-junk must be put in place otherwise, junk PCs could replace junk vehicles in dump sites, junk shops and landfills.

If one billion PCs are causing this much concern about waste disposal and environmental protection, how about three billion mobile phones being used world wide? That’s the focus of the second story also found in the Inquirer; old mobile phones are now becoming a health and environmental hazard.

The fate of the more than three billion of the gadgets in use today will be discussed by more than 1,000 delegates from 170 countries at the meeting on the Basel Convention in Bali, a statement said.

Delegates to the conference will discuss new guidelines for disposing of the phones, which have grown from technological obscurity into a household essential — and a major waste challenge — in a matter of years.

The conference would “consider adopting new sets of guidelines for the environmentally sound management of used and end-of-life mobile phones,” a statement from the organizers said.

“The use of mobile phones has grown exponentially from the first few users in the 1970s to … more than three billion in April, 2008. Sooner or later these phones will be discarded, whole or in parts.”

In all my years of being alive, I’ve used only five mobile phones so far; my very first was a Siemens C-something back in 2000. The second was a Nokia 3210, handed down to me by my grandpa, which was replaced by a Nokia 3310, also handed down by him in 2004. It was in turn replaced by a Nokia 3530 and by May last 2007 it was replaced by a Sony Ericsson K800i. Each phone servicing my needs for an average of two years at the most.

Most of my friends on the other hand had a new mobile phone at least twice in half-a-year. Some even having a new one every three months! While my old phones were either lost or handed over to my other relatives, I still use that relic Nokia 3530 as a secondary phone, my friends simply threw away some of their replaced phones while the others were traded in for the new ones.

Now this is just in my circle of friends. What about the billions of other people who also use mobile phones and replace them in even faster rates? How many phones end up landfills world wide? What are we doing to minimize or eliminate their impact on our environment?

It’s fun, cool and productive to have modern tools, but why does it have to come at stiff price on our health and environment? Surely, we could do better.

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This blog has been consistently showing up hits for the question/search term: “How to globe share load.” Since I don’t have a post that answers this query I’m going to do it right here.

To all Globe subscribers here’s you can share your load/credits using Globe’s Share-a-Load service:

1) Text-in amount. (from Php1.00 to Php150.00)

2) Send the text to “2″ plus your friend’s 10-digit phone number (P1.00 per send).

Example: 2917xxxxxxx

3) You and your friend will receive a message confirming the successful reload.

4) After the first load, you will receive a text message prompting for a 4-digit PIN. Use it to protect your phone against unauthorized loading.

5) Starting with your next load, text in amount and 4-digit PIN.

Example: 5 1234

Update: You can now use Share-a-Laod without using your 4-digit PIN. Do this by texting:

OFF to 2916

This is useful if you have trouble in remembering your PIN or in emergency cases wherein someone else has to do the transaction for you using your mobile phone.

Each transaction will cost you Php1.00 + the amount of load you shared. You could always text HELP to 2916 for assistance or more information.

*no, this is not a paid post if that’s what you’re thinking.

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The day before I succumbed to the flu, a package arrived for me and it was something I almost forgot about. It was the Invisible Shield protective film I ordered for my Sony Ericsson k800i last December 9, 2007!

First heard about it from Jaypee, was impressed when I checked out their site and decided to try it on, if they had one for the SE K800i. They did of course and so with some extra funds in my PayPal account, it was just $9.95 after all, I ordered for one and had to wait for more than a month for the Invisible Shield to shipped all the way from Salt Lake City, Utah were ZAGG was based.

Geekiness has taken over ever since I got the package as I stopped everything that I was doing just so I could install the Invisible Shield on my phone and see for my self what was all the buzz about.

What’s the Invisible Shield?

The box, dvd-casing-like packaging for the Invisible Shield hinted at how serious the product was in its claim to be the “the ultimate gadget protection” money can buy. Well, according to their website;

The invisibleSHIELD is the toughest, most durable gadget scratch protection film available on planet Earth. The film has its origins in the U.S. military, where it was used to protect the leading edges of helicopter blades from wear and tear while traveling hundreds of miles per hour. Our proprietary film is a clear, urethane plastic (invisible, invincible) with unique properties that allow it to provide self-healing qualities and unparalleled abrasion resistance.

The film itself was just an ordinary-looking film that was wrapped in plastic and stuck to its paper backing. In the kit were two tools to help in the installation of the Invisible Shield; a bottle of SHIELDspray and a Install Squeegee.

The SHIELDspray was some water-based liquid which would be used to facilitate the application of the Invisible Shield. Sort of like an adhesive that would help the film to stick to the LCD screen and eliminate imperfections like micro bubbles and wrinkles. To further smoothen the application of the film, the Install Squeegee was there to smoothen things out, make sure the film sticks and snugly fits the screen of your device. It also squeezes out the excess liquid from the SHIELDspray which must be quickly dried-off with some lint-free cloth. You don’t want your device to be ruined by liquids spilling in the insides and damaging the circuitry would you? Besides, it would defeat the purpose of the Invisible Shield if this were to become true.

Installation for me was quite easy, it was just like returning that original protective plastic film that covered the K800i’s screen when it was totally brand new. The instructions printed in the box was simple and easy enough to follow and in less than half an hour, my phone was now protected by the Invisible Shield.

The final look and feel?

At first it was a bit of a let down, as the brightness of my K800i’s screen was diminished by some 10%, plus some pockets of air and debris was still present at the top most portion of the film but the box reminds me that this will work themselves out in 24 hours. It has been more than 48 hours after I’ve installed the Invisible Shield and though I haven’t really tried to scratch it just to see if it would really work, I feel much safer now that I could put the phone in my pocket without worries that the screen would be scratched by a coin or something else. The phone may have lost some of its shine and glare but it’s a bit a trade-off for the protection it now has.

Over-all, I’m satisfied with the Invisible Shield. It does provide some serious level of protection for the screen but since it diminished my screen’s brightness and the phone’s over-all look and glare, I cannot agree wholeheartedly that it is truly an ‘invisible’ shield.

Below, is a slideshow of the photos I took when I installed the Invisible Shield on my phone.

Anyone else who ordered the Invisible Shield? How is it doing so far?

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Too good to be true? Well it’s not yet a real gadget but I just read from Game News that an executive from Sony Computer Entertainment has strongly hinted that SCE will team with Sony Ericsson to create a PlayStation Phone.

Speaking to the Economic Times, Sony Computer Entertainment co-chief operating officer Jim Ryan hinted that a PlayStation Phone could be on the way.

“The PlayStation is a proven success and so is Sony Ericsson. Convergence with the two arms working together is definitely plausible,” he said. “What has been done is finding a match between a camera and a mobile phone, and that has been done wherein the mobile phone features are not reasonably inhibited and the camera is also a reasonably competitive product. It is hugely intellectually seductive to have a console-oriented phone.”

Unlike camera phones, however, where the camera is sort of an add-on onto the phone – something that doesn’t provide great picture quality – the idea for a PlayStation Phone may be more rooted in the console side than in the phone. According to the report, the phone would be “superimposed on the console.” Could this be the new PSP in a few years?

Would this be the real ‘iPhone killer’ or something totally new and awesome in its own right? Or has SCE and Sony Ericsson has finally learned enough from the tragedy of Nokia’s N-gage that they feel and think they could prove that this concept can be a real success story.

They succeeded in combining the Walkman and Cyber-shot brands with phones so it’s much closer to reality than if other companies would take a shot at it.

What would it looke like? Would you get one?

And I wonder what’s next, camera phones + photo printers? (WTF?!)

All in all, it would be something definitely to watch out for.

Update:

CVG has been told that Sony is not working on a PlayStation Phone. (bummer!) And again I quote:

“Jim Ryan was in fact misquoted by the Economic Times of India about this issue,” a Sony UK spokesperson told us moments ago, adding, “We do have talks with other arms of the Sony family about various topics but I can confirm we are not currently working together on the creation of a PlayStation Phone.”

The power of the rumors being spread over the internet.

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This morning, I recieved an SMS alert from Globe announcing an update to their GCash service. The message is in full below:

GCash now made easier! No need to text when you reg[isgter], send money or buy load. Just remember you PIN and navigate the GCash menu. To download the menu for FREE, go to Globe Svcs+ > myFavorites > Add Favorites > What’s Hot > GCash. Available for 64k SIMs and up.

For once they sent me a useful sms alert instead of tempting me to get those daily ring tones and stuff I really don’t need. Anyways, I tried it when I got back from school and it worked! GCash is now in my Globe Svcs menu making it a lot easier and faster to use GCash.

Another benefit from this is the added security. In the old way, you have to create an SMS message in a pre-formatted way which really was cumbersome and annoying at times. Plus, with the ‘Sent Items/Messages’ folder standard in almost every mobile phone model nowadays, the message containing your GCash PIN is stored and can be easy pickings for evil-doers.

Now that the GCash menu is available, no more security threats to your PIN and no more using hard-to-remember SMS formats. My only problem now is, funding that GCash account of mine because if it’s empty, the menu is all but useless.

Nonetheless, it’s a great upgrade overall. Try it out, whip out your Globe phones and add the GCash menu to your Globe Services.

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