smartphones

smartphones - News, Features, and Slideshows

Features

  • BlackBerry: Saving Heart-Attack Victims with Handhelds

    Modern medicine and technology go hand-in-hand. For years, we've come to associate a hospital not only with the patients it houses and medical professionals who work there, but also the machines and gadgets that aid doctors and nurses in our care. As we see in person, or on episodes of ER, we recognize the blood-pressure sleeves, the beeping heart-rate monitors, and IV machines.

    Written by Al Sacco28 Aug. 09 07:37
  • RIM BlackBerry Smart Card Reader Gets Security Makeover

    Research In Motion (RIM) has been serving up new BlackBerry smartphones like French fries at a small-town fast-food joint in recent days, but its next new product doesn't come with a QWERTY keyboard or a blinking new-message LED. Today, RIM announced an updated version of its BlackBerry Smart Card Reader, a small thin-plastic security card reader that attaches to a lanyard and employs Bluetooth to grants users' proximity-based access to specific machines and systems.

    Written by Al Sacco18 Aug. 09 03:57
  • BlackBerry App World Offers Software Update Notifications

    Last week, Research In Motion released an update to its BlackBerry App World mobile software store, v1.1. With the new App World release, RIM announced a variety of details about the app store's new features and enhancements. But one valuable tidbit seems to have been overlooked: BlackBerry App World v1.1 sends users notifications via BlackBerry message, App World itself and a home screen icon whenever updated version of applications obtained through App World become available.

    Written by Al Sacco07 Aug. 09 04:47
  • RIM's New Curve 8520 Has Nine Unique BlackBerry Features

    The BlackBerry Curve 8520 hit U.S. shelves earlier this week, and though it certainly won't send hard-core CrackBerry addicts rushing to T-Mobile stores to scoop one up--it's an entry-level device, meant for new smartphone users--the handheld actually has more "new" BlackBerry features and hardware tweaks than any other device Research In Motion (RIM) has released in a year.

    Written by Al Sacco07 Aug. 09 03:53
  • Why BlackBerry Curve 8520 is First to Get Trackpad

    Today, Research In Motion (RIM) launched the new BlackBerry Curve 8520 smartphone, an evolution of the Curve 83xx and Curve 8900 families of BlackBerry devices. Though the new Curve's really nothing groundbreaking--it's basically a combination of the two earlier Curves--the device features one brand new BlackBerry component that could prove to be quite significant: the trackpad. But why would RIM ditch its traditional track ball now and release the trackpad on its cheapest, lowest-end BlackBerry ever? Keep moving for an official answer from RIM, as well as my own "unofficial" opinion.

    Written by Al Sacco06 Aug. 09 04:50
  • BlackBerry Desktop Software for Mac: Four Things To Know

    Research In Motion (RIM) recently announced that it will finally release Macintosh-compatible desktop management software for BlackBerry handhelds this fall. I was lucky enough to get a quick hands-on demonstration this morning from RIM Product Manager Andrey Feldman at an event in New York City, and I dug up a few previously unannounced tidbits about RIM's upcoming software release for Apple computer users with BlackBerrys.

    Written by Al Sacco05 Aug. 09 03:39
  • iPhone Tips: How to Clean and Care For Your iPhone

    It's a wonder Apple sales folks aren't dressed up like storks when they sell you an iPhone. The storied device has taken on a life of its own, and iPhone owners cradle them like newborns.

    Written by Tom Kaneshige30 July 09 07:10
  • Why Palm Needs To Ditch iTunes and Create a Media Sync

    Yesterday Palm released an update to its webOS mobile operating system for the Pre, v1.1.0. The new webOS packs a handful of enterprise-oriented features, like the ability to remotely wipe the Pre, along with a number of maintenance fixes and more. But perhaps most interestingly, webOS v1.1.0 also "re-enables" the iTunes sync feature that Apple blocked via its own software update earlier this month.That's good news for Pre users, since it's remarkably simple to use iTunes to sync media libraries to the Pre. However, it'll no doubt be short-lived and Pre owners will soon find themselves in the same iTunes-sync-less position they did last week, when Apple released iTunes v8.2.1, which blocked Pre syncing.

    Written by Al Sacco25 July 09 02:02
  • iPhone Battery Life: 3 Tips For Getting More Juice

    The new iPhone's battery life, or lack thereof, has been a growing concern for users in recent weeks, leading to a smorgasbord of "tips" on how to breathe more life into the misbehaving battery. Sure, most of the tips will save juice-but some solutions don't prove too convenient.

    Written by Tom Kaneshige22 July 09 04:11
  • BlackBerry App World: 9 Must-Do Fixes

    2009 is the Year of the Mobile App Store. Apple started the movement with the launch of its hugely successful iTunes App Store for the iPhone in 2008, then all the handset heavies followed suit. Today, Nokia operates the Ovi Store; Microsoft's got the upcoming Windows Marketplace for Mobile; Google runs Android Marketplace; and Research In Motion (RIM) runs BlackBerry App World.

    Written by Al Sacco02 July 09 07:18
  • Is a better screen next up for the iPhone?

    With last week's launch of Apple's latest iPhone, the iPhone 3GS, the rumor mills are running in low gear on what the secretive computer-maker might be planning for its next cell phone.

    Written by Martyn Williams22 June 09 11:29
  • Are you ready to ditch your laptop for a smartphone?

    Have you ever wanted to ditch your clunky laptop? Perhaps you were meeting a client for dinner or friends at a bar after work. Or you were trying to catch a flight in the morning and had to fumble with your laptop at the airport security check.

    Written by Tom Kaneshige19 June 09 07:14
  • Picturing the Future of Office Technology Today

    We all have a tendency to only look directly at what we're doing today, and not step back and say: "What do I, what does my company, need to be focusing on now, for the future?" Taking that step back is the step toward innovation and away from stagnation.

    Written by Jeff Hutchinson16 Sept. 08 15:01
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