02:50 PM by Alexander Turcic in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

A day after its No. 2 client, Sony, delivered bad news, PalmSource announced that two Chinese companies may license the Palm OS. PalmSource said on Wednesday it is talking with mobile phone maker Ningbo Bird and an arm of TCL about licensing its Palm operating system for handheld devices.

According to research company Gartner, handheld computer sales in China were forecast to hit 475,000 units this year, up from an estimated 442,000 last year. The forecase, an almost-10% increase in sales, doesn't sound dramatic, but it might be the best kind of market PalmSource can come up with for now.

02:45 PM by Alexander Turcic in Miscellaneous | Lounge

British-based Aventure Mail offers a 2Gb (Gigabyte) free email service with quick signup, no advertisement, no attachment restriction sizes, spam and virus protection, and soon also with SSL encryption.

I already signed up and saved an email address for myself. I am not sure for how long they can offer free signups, so better hurry - it is still free!

01:34 PM by Colin Dunstan in Archive | Portable Audio/Video

According to AppleInsider's most reliable sources, the 4th generation iPod is due September 2004. Rumored features:
- 2-inch color LCD screen
- dock connector with video-out capabilities
- an improved operation system
- 50Gb hard-disk

Today also spread another news, namely that Toshiba is planning to launch a 60Gb version of its 1.8-inch hard disk drive in the coming months and has already received an order from Apple.

60Gb of MP3s - is it even possible to listen to that much music??

08:54 PM by Colin Dunstan in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

Cliesource.com and Palmonecity.com have merged to become 1src.com. 1src.com brings news and discussion of everything that is Palm-powered related.

Good luck, guys!

06:26 PM by sUnShInE in Miscellaneous | Lounge

Imagine this:

You're shopping at your local grocery store. You walk in, with your handy little shopping cart. You walk over to the info kiosk and grab a small handheld. You scan a barcode with the handheld from a card in your wallet, unlocking it for use, and you're off.

You begin shopping. As you pull items off the shelf, you scan them with the handheld and plop them into your cart. If you decide against the item, you delete it from the unit.

Suddenly the unit beeps, alerting you that if you buy the larger size box of the cereal you just put in your cart, you'll save $2. As you're deciding on whether or not you'll eat that much cereal, and you start scrolling through your itemization on the handheld to see how much you've spent, you get a message that your prescription is ready at the pharmacy for pick up.

Not sure where the pharmacy is located? No problem. The handheld has a map to direct you. But first you want to grab some specialty cheese, and you wonder if the store carries it. You type your search into the handheld, and it pops up the product information, pricing and location for you.

After you pick up the prescription, you head off to the check out. You opt for the speedy aisle. You place the handheld into a machine, swipe your credit card, and walk out the door.

Sounds pretty futuristic, huh? American grocery chain Food Lion will be testing this wifi-based system in five pilot stores in the Charlotte, N.C. area by the end of the year.

04:04 PM by Alexander Turcic in Miscellaneous | Lounge

International Herald Tribune via Bloomberg News writes today how cooperate missteps cost electronics giant Sony $100 billion in market value.

The article cites Al Ries, an Atlanta-based marketing strategist, saying Sony's problem is that it is too big and too unfocused. The electronics unit makes everything from image sensors for digital cameras to CD players, personal computers and headphones. The entertainment side creates movies, music and video games. The financial arm houses two insurance companies and an Internet bank.

Related to Sony's dismal performance, PalmSource shares fell as much as 16% after Sony said it scrapped plans to introduce new models of its Clie handheld computer in the U.S. this year.

02:45 PM by Alexander Turcic in E-Book General | News

BBC News runs a great story how there has been a tremendous boom in the consumption of online newspapers.

According to Timothy Balding, director general of World Association of Newspapers, web audiences for newspapers have grown by 350% over the last five years.

07:51 AM by Colin Dunstan in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

Facer Launcher V2.0.6 is out and available at a 15% discount ($16.10 USD) until June 20, 2004.

The best thing about Facer is the plug-in system which allows for other third party applications (beside datebook and to-do list) to be integrated to Facer's Today page.