How to back up your mobile contacts online
In case you’re in danger of dropping
your mobile down the toilet, this excellent website backs up your mobile numbers
for free – www.zyb.com. Register on it and it will send you
a text message.
Summer lull in gaming industry: bring out the babes
I know this seems like a cheap post to get some hottie image on the blog, but there is an actual purpose behind it. There's a lull in up-coming games launches for the next two months. That is, except in one area: 'top 10' lists of video game babes. Everyone's at it, it seems, from IGN to Stuff and even Playboy, which is preparing its specially commissioned 2008 list as we speak (no insider information on who's in it, by the way). Ayane (pictured left) from Tecmo's popular Xbox game Dead Or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball is one of those who regularly makes the list.
Docklands wi-fi: a rip-off
Here's a development that seems to hark back to the bad old days worst of the current wi-fi overcharging. The Dublin Dockland Development Authority has been telling the media for the last two years that it would be rolling out "free" wi-fi. Now it has done so -- and limited it to 10 commercial websites.
Anyone wanting access to normal websites, like Google, will have to pay the astonishing sum of €70 per week (or €20 per day or €6 per hour). Sorry, DDDA, but this is a complete rip-off.
For the record, here is the press release:
The Docklands Authority has today (June 26 2008) launched a Wi-Fi network for the area providing mobile high-speed broadband access for anyone working, living or visiting the Docklands.
Developed in conjunction with 3PlayPlus, the service, called DockNet, will transform Dublin’s Docklands into a giant Wi-Fi broadband hotspot and is the first of its kind in Dublin.
DockNet will provide high-speed broadband to Dublin’s Docklands via wireless technology enabling thousands of residents, business owners and visitors to experience a rich Internet experience without being tied to their desk.
Users of the service will be able to access ten websites for free. These websites include dublindocklands.ie, sports.ie, phantom.ie, and dublinbus.ie. Users accessing websites outside the ten free sites will be charged at rates starting at €6 for one hour.
The first phase of the service covering the Grand Canal Dock area went live today with Wi-Fi being rolled-out in other areas of the Docklands over the coming months. It is anticipated that the entire Docklands area will have Wi-Fi coverage by mid-2009.
Donal O’Connor, Chairman, Docklands Authority, said, "The Authority believes that the delivery of Wi-Fi for the Docklands is an important investment in the infrastructure required to enable the area’s continued regeneration. Broadband Internet access is now vital to the economic and social development of any community and we are delighted to be able to provide anyone living, working or visiting the Docklands with the opportunity to utilise Wi-Fi."
Commenting on the new service, David Higgins, Director of Finance of the Docklands Authority, said, "Securing the provision of broadband communications in the Docklands will put the area at an advantage as it will facilitate new ways of working, opportunities for education, training, and new home and leisure activities. Wi-Fi has become a necessary service and we are delighted to be the first area network established in Dublin."
Terry Crowley, Managing Director, 3PlayPlus, said, "3PlayPlus is delighted to work with the Docklands Authority on this project, bringing our experience in broadband and multimedia service provision to the Docklands.
We look forward to delivering broadband to the area and empowering the region with world-class Internet service."
DockNet will be one of the largest wireless hotspots of its kind in Ireland. DockNet will have the capacity to fully support advanced digital services such as VoIP, Broadcast TV, CCTV security and video applications, enriching the digital experience throughout the whole area and delivering broadband connection speeds.
Fixed Wireless Access is among the fastest-growing Broadband access platforms and according to ComReg’s annual report, April 2008, it is presently realising a 56% year-on-year growth. Fixed Wireless Access is a proven technology and capable of delivering faster speeds than traditional copper-cable based systems.
The ten websites that can be accessed for free via DockNet are:
www.dublindocklands.ie
www.sports.ie
www.welfare.ie
www.met.ie
www.chq.ie
www.ifsc.ie
www.dublinbus.ie
www.itsyourmoney.ie
www.dubsimon.ie
www.phantom.ie
The schedule of rates for accessing websites outside of the ten free sites are (as of 23 June 2008):
1 hour - €6
4 hours - €10
24 hours - €20
7 days - €60
NTL's 20Mbs, no-limit, €40 broadband from July 1st
Is this the advent of 'real' broadband in the country? Here's today's press release:
"UPC, parent company of cable operators Chorus ntl, has today announced that it is introducing radically higher broadband speeds of 20Mb for Irish customers. This will be the fastest and best value broadband service available in the Irish marketplace and will propel Ireland from 25th to 10th place on the OECD broadband speed league.
"UPC will roll out the new 20Mb broadband service from July 1 to over 422,000 broadband enabled homes in areas such as Dublin, Galway, Waterford, Limerick, Cork and all other major cabled towns. The new 20Mb broadband service has been introduced by UPC to meet the increasing demand for higher speeds to support on-line applications such as video streaming and the sharing of multimedia files such as photos, films and games.
"UPC is offering 20Mb broadband for just €40 a month, making it the best value offering in Ireland. This is 8Mb quicker and substantially cheaper than the nearest equivalent service provided by Eircom, who can currently only offer a top speed of 12Mb to business customers for the significant sum of €204.49 per month.
"From July, all new UPC customers who sign up for our €40 service will receive a market leading downstream of 20Mb. Customers who sign up for our €30 product will get 10Mb and for €20 will get 3Mb. Our commitment to deliver real broadband isn't just about downstream speed. Our upstream for the 20Mb tier will be 1.5Mb and we are removing our download caps on both the 10Mb and 20Mb services. This gives the improved UPC broadband offering clear advantages right across the board."
Comments? Views?
Emmet Ryan killing a laptop
This is good stuff from ENN -- a live laptop destruction demo. Kudos to Lenovo for being good sports about providing the kit.
Some notes about Vodafone's new fixed line broadband service
1. Its three free unlimited calls to Vodafone numbers are only free up to 59 minutes. According to Fionnuala Coburn, head of fixed line services in Eircom, you have to hang up and redial once an hour to derive the free call benefit.
2. You can't get just one bill for your mobile and fixed line Vodafone services, a deliberate move, according to Coburn: "we looked at our research and found that people regard their mobile phone service as a personal thing, separate from their fixed line". Hmmm…
3. What advantage does a Vodafone customer have in opting for a 2Mbs broadband product over a (putative) 3.6Mbs mobile broadband service? Coburn suggested that "heavy downloading" is better facilitated by fixed line broadband. When asked about the higher stated speeds for its own mobile broadband service, she said: "my understanding is that the mobile broadband experience does vary. I'm not sure what the average speed there is." That's code, really, for 'mobile broadband is not reliably close to 3Mbs'.
4. Am still a little baffled as to why Vodafone is going into this fixed line market. It can only be a long term strategic decision not to be excluded from the main infrastructure (as a stakeholder), if there's ever a massive carve-up of the network.
The 'free phone' era in Ireland has begun
And it's about time. Vodafone leads the way, with a whopping 18 mobiles 'from free' with a monthly contract (including Motorola's K1, left). 3 Ireland comes next with 11 phones 'from free' and then O2, with four 'from free models'. This has been the norm in Britain for years and is a sign that ordinary competition is arriving in Ireland.
Irish Army's software choice: Microsoft v Novell
Apparently, the Irish Defence Forces (army, navy, overseas peacekeeping missions) currently relies on a mix of Novell Netware and Microsoft Server 2003. But it wants to switch to one or the other for the entire force. As per today's tender:
"The Defence Forces now requires a single software reseller to supply all its standard software requirements and assist in managing its licencesing infrastructure. A framework contract with the successful bidder will be put in place for 3 years and should be comprehensive enough to cover all future software requirements."
More ancient state-funded websites
This one is fairly unfortunate: the Irish Council for Science, Technology & Innovation.
'Latest news' is from 18 May, 2005.
A state website not updated in nine years
Is this the oldest, most neglected state website still drawing taxpayer funds for hosting and other costs? As far as I can see, 'Employment Initiative' was last updated in 1999! (It also appears under the 'links' section in Irlgov.ie.)
Silly website disclaimers
I've seen some interesting disclaimers on websites before, but this one on Irishstatuebook.ie (put up by the Office Of The Attorney General) is up there with the silliest. Basically, it asks you to accept a disclaimer acknowledging that their content may be bogus or inaccurate:
"Whilst every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information/material contained on the web site, the State and Attorney General, its servants or agents assume no responsibility for and give no guarantees, undertakings or warranties concerning the accuracy, completeness or up to date nature of the information provided on the web site and do not accept any liability whatsoever arising from any errors or omissions."
Next from O2 Ireland: the 3G iPhone
The operator has finally followed its British counterpart (and other operators around Europe) in dropping the price of the 8GB model -- from €400 to €300 -- to make way for a 3G version, expected in June. Incidentally, a fairly senior Apple Ireland source indicated to me that it wasn't wild about O2 launching the old iPhone so close to the 3G debut.
PR firm's over-exuberance
There is one PR firm which seems to be unaccountably hyper in all correspondence. I think they must have a stash of this stuff in their canteen cupboards...
New EEE PC
Asus's follow-up to its massively successful Eee PC 701, the cheap 7 inch Linux laptop with few frills, is the 900 model. Interestingly, it can't resist adding more features (see below). Which brings it much closer to a normal laptop price. Will this dilute its appeal? Here are the specs available on the laptopsdirect.ie model (€417 plus delivery):
Mobile broadband speeds
I don't always see eye-to-eye with Damien on broadband take-up in the country, but he does have a point when it comes to mobile broadband services not being what they're made out to be. (As does Michele.) Vodafone sales clerks, for example, tell their customers that it's up to 3.6Mbs. "That's all of Dublin and anywhere there's good 3G coverage, which is 75 per cent of the country," one told me over the phone just this morning. In fact, it's never 3.6Mbs. Or anywhere near it. It rarely reaches even 1Mbs in my experience.
More of the hard/soft sell
This time with model Pippa O'Connor. The launch is for Mario Kart Wii.
New service launches
With new models. (This is for a new company called Eight:Twenty, which specialises in 'interactive advertising'. The model is Vogue Williams.)
Yourtech-orrah
I don't usually do this but these Perlico shots -- sent out today -- must be in the running for the 2008 'Lovely Girls Of Tech' PR awards.
Illegal slots in Dublin: now a tourist attraction for US airlines
Here's what American Airlines, in its 'where-to-bring-the-kids-in-Dublin' guide, says about the seedy, 'over-18s', O'Connell Street arcade (emphasis added by me):
"If arcade games and amusements are your idea of fun, than look no further than the bizarrely named Dr Quirkey's, which features a bewildering array of amusements: from spectacular aircraft simulators to highly addictive slot machines. Due to its central location on O'Connell Street, it can occasionally get a little overcrowded and boisterous, but Dr Quirkey's is a lot of fun and is popular with both children and adults."
Slot machines, of course, are illegal in Dublin.
Ireland.com -- <10k subscribers
Interesting to hear Geraldine Kennedy on Marian Finucane at the weekend. She was asked how many subscribers Ireland.com had and replied that it was "between eight and ten thousand". She also said that the site struggles to break even. Not a very hopeful sign for Ireland's true web economy.
Reports: Toshiba to abandon HD-DVD, Blu-Ray crowned official winner
According to this Engadget piece, HD-DVD is now on official death-watch, with Toshiba rumoured to be about to pull the plug. Game, set and match to Blu-Ray? And how will Xbox 360 owners feel about this?
Reports: Toshiba to abandon HD-DVD, Blu-Ray crowned official winner
According to this Engadget piece, HD-DVD is now on official death-watch, with Toshiba rumoured to be about to pull the plug. Game, set and match to Blu-Ray? And how will Xbox 360 owners feel about this?
Wifi cafes -- return to the pits
What is the ugliest, smelliest, most unhygenic wifi cafe in Dublin?
Right now, I'd say it's Cafe Kylemore in the Stephens Green Centre. As I write, I'm surrounded by filth, scum and a collection of other bits and pieces of detritus. My window seat is adorned with stains and some black substance, while the grouting between the floor tiles looks like it's a scientific experiment.
The icing on the cake?
€3.70 for a small hot chocolate.
What a rip-off.
Apple after-sales service: let the fun begin
An impending nightmare with my week-old Apple MacBook looms. The right side of my spacebar isn’t working. This is a bit frustrating since I’m right-handed. The thing is, I bought the laptop in an Apple Store in the US. Everyone from the head of Apple Ireland to sales reps in Irish Apple retailers to the sales clerk in the Chicago Apple Store said that there was a global warranty. I’ve just called Apple support here in Ireland: they said it’s not their problem. They told me to call the Apple Store in Chicago. As I write, that store is closed. I’ve a feeling when I call them that they’re going to tell me that it’s not their problem either, since I’m in a different country to the one I bought it in. Should be interesting to see how this pans out…
