Mobile News

Telus keeps building momentum with more phone offerings. The latest Android phone to hit the Telus stores is the Motorola Backflip. This joins the Motorola Droid and the HTC Hero both which are popular phones amongst web savvy Canadians. Expect to be locked in for a 3 year contract.

The Canadian Nokia Ovi store now offers billing straight to your carrier. Definitely handy when you spot something on the store that you just have to buy.

Bell is set to offer the Motorola Dext on a 3 year contract for $80. Not a bad price. I actually prefer this phone to the Backflip, which seems kinda gimmicky. What ever way you cut it Android is the up and coming mobile OS you should invest in. Open platform, opposed to Apple’s closed OS and multiple developers working on new apps every day.

Here come the clones

Supposedly available 3 months ago the China clone dubbed “aPad” is yet another cloned product. 7″ screen, WiFi, Android 1.5, does not work with iTunes (which is a plus for me), AND only $210US.

While hackers continue to rip apart the Apple OS and work on a China version it is only a matter of time. Is there anything the Chinese can’t make a cheap copy of? Better features but certainly not equal quality so buyer beware. If you’re not faint of heart hit up the local shops in Shenzhen and remember to haggle, always haggle.

The delay of international shipments from Apple should only boost the demand for other products from competitors. The Nook and Kindle are both moving to better integrate an all around entertainment device to better serve their customer base in hopes of satisfying those staring longingly at the iPad. So long as both devices remain a true ebook reader then their fans should be happy.

Android news

It looks like some Canadians are getting Android love, at least the Motorola Droid owners on Telus that is. Reportedly OS 2.1 is available via download directly from the Motorola site. Updates include: multi touch Google maps, Facebook widget, and more Android goodness. Rogers Wireless customers will just have to glare enviously at Telus Mobility users.

I know Android 2.1 is soooo yesterday. OS 2.2 is in the wild and should be released to the masses sometime in May. So what exactly does the updated OS entail? FM radio support, more free ram, better flash support, JIT compiler, and more. Canadians will just have to wait a year or so.

Got a Nexus One? Too bad. Google has decide to give up on the phone and turn it resources to other areas. Does your reception suck? Is your phone buggy? Don’t expect fixes coming any time soon. Enjoy your $529 brick.

Data Center Usage

Probably one of the largest expenditures companies are making these days involve data storage in one way or another. Storing corporate data, user, and customer information securely is becoming a priority at the company board meeting. A couple of problems arise: keeping costs low, and developing a scalable solution.

Given the recent economic troubles Dell decided not to spend more money on servers and simply make better use of what they had. While 65% of their customers had outgrown their storage capacities there certainly was a need for off site solutions. Going to a virtualization model Dell saw it’s 12% server usage go to 42%. Increasing the workload without having to spend another dime. Making use of the resources at hand.

Proposed efficiency requirements have raised the ire of technology companies in this predicament. Placing an outdated standard on current technology would seriously hamper future innovation, not to mention force large expenditures on infrastructure. One thing is certain, the cost of storing data is going up.

Starcraft Scandal

Do you know there are people still playing Starcraft? I’m not talking about the lucky bastards who got a beta key and are playing Starcraft II, I’m talking about the original. It’s huge in South Korea and it even spawned a pro league. Yes, it’s got fans, sponsors, television coverage, I guess you could call it a sport … if you’re Korean. With any sport comes gambling and a scandal threatens to rock the “sport” to its very core.

It’s reported that various gambling sites influenced high stake matches and many of the top players were involved in throwing matches. The league includes several players who have won at BlizzCon. sAviOr! Say it ain’t so! Well I sure hope it was worth it because INC BAN!

In other news South Korea is also trying to curb it’s online gaming habit by imposing a curfew. The ban is aimed at younger players susceptible to addiction problems which could lead to bigger problems later on in life. *cough, LOSERS! Anyhoo midnight curfew for the young ones while the adults stay up all night drinking redbull farming minerals.