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Archive for the 'Wi-Fi & networking' Category

April Fools or not, Boingo giving $2 mill worth of Wi-Fi if you get tattooed

April 1st, 2010, 3:58 pm by

It sounded like a unique marketing gimmick — get Boingo Wireless’  logo tattooed permanently on your body and you’ll get 1 million credits to get Internet service at any of the company’s 125,000 hotspots worldwide.

But of course, this being April Fool’s Day, it was all a big joke.

Or was it?

I asked the company what if someone did it anyway? Will they get the 1 million credits? The company’s response: “Yes, they will if somebody actually gets a permanent Boingo logo tattoo,” said Cheryl Cink, with Boingo.

Wait a minute! 1 million credits? One credit gives a user one hour of wireless Internet access. Each credit costs $1.99. If you were to buy 1 million credits, you’ll pay $1,990,000 or nearly $2 million! As my editor John Dunphy points out, 2 million hours of internet access is equivalent to more than 228 years.

That makes a tattoo seem like a good investment.

The credit program launched Monday and gives iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch users Wi-Fi Internet access at any of the company’s wireless hotspots.

Recent Gadgetress stories:

How to access your files from anywhere

March 13th, 2010, 8:34 am by

Stump the PC Club is a free tech-advice column written by members of the North Orange County Computer Club, which has been in existence since 1976. Visit the club’s site at noccc.org. And don’t forget to stop by the Gadgetress’ home for the PC Club, at ocregister.com/link/pcclub, to find out how to ask a question and read past answers.

QUESTION: Occasionally when I’m traveling I’d like to have access to a file on my home PC. The file could be a picture, a Word document or a PowerPoint presentation. What do you suggest?

PC CLUB: Fortunately, there are several options for making files on your PC available to you when you’re away from your desktop provided that you have Internet access. Also, some of the solutions require special hardware including a router.

Here are several options: Read the rest of this entry »

Want to ditch your cable TV service for $19.99/month?

February 19th, 2010, 5:02 pm by
Sezmi's set-top box and antenna

Sezmi box and antenna

For those tired of an ever-increasing TV bill, it’s Sezmi to the rescue.

The Belmont, Calif.  company launched its hybrid TV service in the Orange County, Los Angeles area this week with service plans between $4.99 to $19.99.

The lower price includes stuff that is mostly free already, including local TV channels and Youtube videos, plus access to on-demand movies for an extra fee.

The higher-price subscription adds access to 15 cable channels, including CNN, Nickelodeon and Discovery (see chart on lower right). The company has contracts with Turner Broadcasting, Discovery, Viacom and NBC Universal.

Users must invest in a $299 box and have high-speed Internet at home. The box mixes free over-the-air local TV channels with on-demand movies and videos and the cable channels.

Now, Sezmi calls the box, which includes a 1-terabyte DVR, a hybrid model of broadcast and broadband. It’s not a souped-up digital converter box that millions of analog TV users bought last year in order to watch local channels. Read the rest of this entry »

Cable TV (really) does want to offer multi-room DVRs

February 12th, 2010, 6:42 am by

Broadcom MoCA chipChances are high that your next TV set-top box will have features like a multi-room DVR, Internet access and home networking — even if you’re a cable TV customer, says Michael Inouye, a TV industry analyst with ABI Research.

In a new report, Inouye projects that there will be 15 million next-generation set-top boxes in the market by 2014. These 15 million boxes will have MoCA, a technology that uses existing coaxial cables to send video to devices throughout the home. While other home networking technologies like Powerline (uses electrical lines)  and HomePNA (uses phone lines), are gunning to be in the next set-top box, Inouye said that MoCA is attracting the TV companies that actually provide the hardware to consumers.

My first thought? Cable companies have long offered set-top boxes with advanced features. But they haven’t enabled them. The USB and eSATA ports on my cable TV box don’t work so I can’t add a hard drive to store more TV shows or view photos. I asked Inouye to tell us what really might happen with future set-top boxes.

“Indeed, you are spot on in regards to cable providers’ previous practices of limiting STB (set-top box) functions. But in many cases just because it’s not ‘active’ doesn’t mean it’s not there, so when we established the forecast we focused on estimating the number of boxes that could support MoCA (e.g. hardware in place) but not necessarily active,” Inouye said in an e-mailed response.

Ahh… so, no MoCA features for cable customers. No, not quite, Inouye said. Read the rest of this entry »

Changes at D-Link bring pebbles, boxes and a doorbell

January 29th, 2010, 3:30 am by
D-Link 3G doorbell
D-Link’s 3G door bell, actually called the D-Link Door Phone, is a home security system with a camera built inside the bell. When someone pushes the bell, the camera starts streaming video online, which can be viewed by a 3G wireless phone so owners can see who is at the door even when not home. The door phone comes out in the second quarter of 2010 for $199.99.

At the recent Consumer Electronics Show, D-Link Systems showed off its core product: a wireless router.

But then the Fountain Valley firm pulled out a device mixing Web TV and social networking. And an eReader. And a … doorbell!

There have been major changes inside the company. Last May, it reorganized, letting go of CEO Steven Joe, who has since resurfaced over at Irvine’s hot HDTV company Vizio (read earlier story: “D-Link replaces president, announces reorganization“). Nick Tidd, pictured below, stepped in as vice president of marketing. This week, Tidd was named president of D-Link North America.

Tidd answered some questions to give readers insight into what D-Link is all about today.

Question: With some major management shifts behind it, how has D-Link changed as a business?

Nick Tidd, named president of D-Link North America in Jan. 2010.D-Link’s Nick Tidd: The most significant changes have come since last May when we had a complete reorganization of our North American and Pan American operations. We’ve made a number of changes to the organization in order to optimize and leverage resources across North America. We’ve built teams and budgets for areas which were lacking and built structure and systems so we’re better equipped to compete in a fast and dynamic marketplace. But overall, we’ve tried to instill the sense of fun and empowerment among our employees needed to achieve the next level of success as a company. We are aggressively driving into new markets, while solidifying our presence in existing markets where we have a very compelling value proposition to companies with constrained budgets and consumers looking to get more out of technology and their connected devices. Read the rest of this entry »

Free Wi-Fi Internet at McDonald’s begins January

December 16th, 2009, 8:50 am by

McDonald's offers Wi-FiNoted: If you need to surf the Web while eating a Big Mac, you’ll soon be able to surf for free. McDonald’s is lifting the regular $2.95 fee for two hours of web access beginning in mid January.

There will be no hourly limit. And you don’t even have to buy any food. The Register’s Fast Food Maven has the scoop about Orange County McDonalds: “Local McDonald’s to offer free wireless access soon.”

“We’re not just about hamburgers,” Dave Grooms, chief information officer for McDonald’s USA, said in an Associated Press story. “We are about convenience and all kinds of value.”

Not all the fast-food joints nationwide will offer free access to customers, notes the Dallas Morning News. Only 11,000 out of the 13,000 are going free. Fast Food Maven notes that Southern California locations are participating.

AT&T owns the wireless Internet network offered at McDonald’s, following last year’s acquisition of Wayport Inc. Terms for the free Wi-Fi deal at McDonalds were not disclosed.

AT&T already lets iPhone and its Internet customers access the company’s massive Wi-Fi hotspot network for free.

On Tuesday, Verizon Wireless added its mobile broadband customers to the group of Verizon customers who can now use its Wi-Fi network at no extra charge. They join Verizon FiOS Internet and certain DSL customers. T-Mobile also lets some of its Google Android customers access T-Mobile’s hotspots at no extra charge.

There are dozens of McDonald’s in Orange County that offer Wi-Fi. You can use this restaurant locator to find places near you: Find a McDonald’s with Wi-Fi.

More free Wi-Fi stories:

Verizon begins offering free Wi-Fi to its mobile broadband users

December 15th, 2009, 12:30 pm by

Free Wi-FiIf you’re a Verizon Wireless customer who pays a chunk of change each month for mobile broadband, Verizon is now tossing in access to its 11,000 Wi-Fi hotspots for no extra charge.

Verizon already offers free Wi-Fi to its FiOS subscribers, plus its DSL customers who spend $30 a month on service. See the earlier story, “Verizon offers some customers a bonus: Free Wi-Fi.”

Verizon hotspots include some Starbucks stores, Barnes & Noble bookstores, several hotels and more. There are nearly 1,000 places within 50 miles of The Register’s headquarters that offer Verizon Wi-Fi service. Here’s a link to Verizon’s hotspot finder: verizonwireless.com/wi-fi

To qualify, you need either a monthly Mobile Broadband account or a GlobalAccess plan. You also need a Verizon-supported device, which is either a USB modem, PC Card, ExpressCard, the Verizon MiFi portable hotspot, or a netbook or notebook. Here is a list of qualified devices: www.vzam.net.

Verizon isn’t the only one offering free Wi-Fi to its customers.

AT&T has been a leader of free Wi-Fi for its customers. It offers free Wi-Fi access at its hotspots to iPhone customers and home broadband users. It recently added 25,000 more hotspots around the globe. See the earlier story, “25,000 more places for Wi-Fi (if you’re with AT&T).”

AT&T also offers free Wi-Fi to anyone at Barnes & Noble stores. See earlier story, “Free Wi-Fi at Barnes & Noble for everyone!

T-Mobile also offers certain customers free access to its Wi-Fi network.

Recent stories on free Wi-Fi:

D-Link boxes in Web TV’s Boxee

December 7th, 2009, 4:52 pm by

Corrected, 12/8/09: D-Link plans to launch the box in second quarter 2010 (not 2009)!
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D-Link Systems is jumping on the two hottest tech trends of social media and Web TV with … a box.

Not just any box. The Fountain Valley company is teaming with Boxee, an open-source software developer of free software that lets computer users watch favorite Web TV shows and videos on their home TV —  and share what they’re watching with friends online.

Here it is, the Boxee Box by D-Link:

Boxee Box by D-Link

Boxee Box by D-Link, backThis little black box — about 5 square inches — will let Boxee subscribers forgo connecting cables and laptop to a TV. Instead, the box sits next to the TV and pipes in Internet video to the TV. No need to remove it when done, as one would a laptop. Click photos on right to enlarge images.

A lot of geeks like Boxee because it lets them watch only the TV they want to watch via sites like Hulu.com, CBS.com, Netflix, etc.

Boxee adds a simple directory so it’s easier to browse what TV shows are available online. Also, since the box lives on the home computer network, Boxee can build a digital library of digital movies and music found on any computer connected to the same network. Read the rest of this entry »

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