Month: June 2010

I've rumbled before about the size of the 3GPP 3G Radio Resource Control Specification TS 25.331 here when I noticed the significant size difference to the much more lightweight brother specification for LTE. You can feel the whole weight of it when you try to open it and search for something specific. Without a mainframe computer it's impossible to browse it efficiently anymore and converting it to PDF to make it a bit more manageable is a night time task while you sleep. So hey, guys over there in RAN, how about splitting this document up in several parts!? It's been done before for other specs, ask the RAN4 people and have a look at the split test specs documents 🙂

I have just arrived in one of the few cities in this part of the world in which the metro (underground, tube, whatever you call it) is not covered by mobile networks. It's a sad state but maybe the mobile gaming industry is rejoicing as I noticed a lot of people this time using their mobile device, which has become utterly useless once they stepped into the underground for one of the few things that still work without the network: Offline gaming. But one could also turn the stick around and ask: As more people go online on their mobile devices, will mobile gaming revenues decrease due to people preferring to do things online rather than playing a game while commuting?

It's been a while since I last wrote a post on Bluetooth because the latest and greatest version that has been in use now for a number of years is still 2.1. Last year, however, the Bluetooth SIG finalized version 3 of the standard which includes the use of a Wi-Fi radio as a high speed option to transfer data. And just a couple of weeks ago, the Bluetooth SIG finalized version 4 of the standard for ultra low energy data transmission.

So are you aware of any Bluetooth v3 devices that will appear on the market anytime soon? I can imagine a couple of applications such as transmitting pictures quickly from the mobile phone to a Bluetooth / Wi-Fi enabled photo printer or to a PC but I haven't seen any announcements yet!?

And what about Bluetooth v4? What's the likelihood of devices using the low energy option in the next couple of years and which applications will be first?

I'll keep looking!

P.S.: For those with an appetite for the details, you can download all versions of the BT core specifications here.

One of the things that keep me from upgrading to an even more Internet connected device (or devices…) are the still very expensive roaming charges for Internet access. As I travel a lot I don't want to use my gadgets differently at home vs. when I travel abroad and there is sometimes just no time to buy a local prepaid SIM for Internet access.

However, I wonder if the trend to more connected devices will eventually bring a change here!? These days, smartphones of all shapes and forms are selling like hotcakes, mobile Internet use is growing strongly and new kinds of devices like tablets with built in 3G connectivity are also becoming popular.So I guess pressure from customers will rise once they discover how much it costs to use the devices they have integrated into their lives while on vacation or business abroad.

With voice and SMS, users can easily keep track of charges when abroad as the use of these service is charged by the minute or by the message. But with Internet connectivity, users have no idea how much data is transmitted by the e-mail client and other applications in the background. Widespread use only became popular once flatrates, potentially with a speed cap after a certain volume, where introduced. To me, it looks like the mobile Internet international roaming situation is at the same point as national use was a couple of years ago. Consequently, I hope international data roaming will also take a different direction than voice roaming did.

Maybe it will be seen as an incentive for some network operators to join forces and finally make data roaming affordable!? What do you think?

Some shameless self-advertising today: Intel has just included my book 'Beyond 3G – Bringing Networks, Devices and the Mobile Web Together' in the telecoms section on their recommended reading list. It's a great list which includes lots of books that I have in my bookshelf as well so I feel even more honored. If you'd like to take a look, here's the link.