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Tuesday, April 23, 2013

NASA PhoneSat project puts three Android-powered smartphone satellites in space

US space agency NASA has launched three smartphone-powered satellites into orbit around the earth. Each satellite uses a standard HTC Google Nexus One handset, which runs the Android operating system, although they’ve been given an external battery and a more powerful radio.

This project, known as PhoneSat, has been created to see if consumer smartphones can be used as the main flight avionics of an inexpensive satellite. The total cost of components for the three ‘nanosatellites’ - so-called because each one is a cube that’s just 4 inches square - is less than $7,000.

All three satellites are now sending information about their health back to Earth via radio and are also set to take pictures of Earth using their cameras. Data can be received by amateur radio operators using the 437.425MHz band.

Michael Gazarik, NASA’s associate administrator for space technology in Washington, said “It’s always great to see a space technology mission make it to orbit - the high frontier is the ultimate testing ground for new and innovative space technologies of the future. Smartphones offer a wealth of potential capabilities for flying small, low-cost, powerful satellites for atmospheric or Earth science, communications, or other space-born applications. They also may open space to a whole new generation of commercial, academic and citizen-space users.”

Alexander, Graham and Bell - the three satellites - are expected to remain in orbit for up to two weeks.

Earlier this year the University of Surrey’s Surrey Space Centre and Surrey Satellite Technology Limited launched a similar device into orbit, combining a smartphone with a separate Linux computer for its STRaND-1 CubeSat.

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Opinion Articles

Will LG buy webOS from HP?

Mark Bridge writes:

Google and Motorola. HP and webOS. Each apparently heading in opposite directions when it comes to strategy.

However, although HP has pretty much pulled the plug on making webOS devices, it's not calling time on the webOS platform.

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Didn't predict the recent events at Google, Motorola and HP? Don't worry about it

Mark Bridge writes:

Let’s face it, last week’s Google/Motorola deal wasn’t widely predicted. Stasys Bielinis of Unwired View deserves a round of applause but I don’t remember hearing anyone else suggesting this radical move.

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This week at The Fonecast: 20th August 2011

Mark Bridge writes:

Welcome to this week's UK mobile industry news summary from TheFonecast.com. After a week's holiday on the scenic north coast of Norfolk, which not only lacks cellsites but also hills to put them on, it's good to finally see the '3G' indicator reappear on my phone. My week off may have been relatively quiet - but the last few days have more than made up for it.

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Ian Hook from Compliant Phones talks about mobile phone call recording

Mark Bridge writes:

Recording a phone call made by a mobile phone isn’t particularly difficult – it's something we do regularly for our podcasts – but recording every call made and received by a mobile phone isn't so easy. It's even more of a problem for companies with dozens or even hundreds of employees using mobile phones... and yet, for many organisations, this type of thing will soon be a legal requirement.

To learn more, I've been talking to Ian Hook, vice-president of marketing at Compliant Phones. I started by asking Ian why companies would want to record all their mobile phone calls.

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Vopium puts a friendly face on mobile VoIP

Mark Bridge writes:

Voice over IP – the ability to make phone calls over the internet - is a topic we covered in our first-ever podcast five years ago. At times it promised to change the way we used mobile phones... so what's been happening?

I've been talking to Tanveer Sharif, CEO and co-founder of international call service Vopium, to learn more.

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Recent Podcasts

Reviewing our 2015 mobile industry predictions... and looking forward to 2016

Podcast - 15th January 2016

Iain Graham, James Rosewell and Mark Bridge return to review their mobile industry predictions from last year. Which mergers, partnerships and developments did they forecast correctly... and which didn’t work out as planned?

Later in the programme, the team anticipates some of the topics that will be hitting the headlines during 2016.

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Podcast from Mobile World Congress 2015

Podcast - 6th March 2015

Mark Bridge learns about the mobile technology trends at Mobile World Congress 2015 by chatting to James Rosewell of 51Degrees, Dr Kevin Curran from the IEEE and Chris Millington of Doro.

They talk about wearable devices, wireless charging, mobile operating systems and much more... including some of their favourite products from the exhibition.

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Looking back at February: from security scares to multiple MVNOs

Podcast - 27th February 2015

We're taking a look back at the biggest mobile industry news stories from February 2015, including allegations that the UK's security service tried to breach SIM card security by hacking into one of the world's biggest SIM producers.

We also talk about the planned BT and EE merger, the creation of two new UK virtual networks, some acquisitions in the mobile payment arena and a new Ubuntu smartphone.

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Interview with Chris Millington of Doro about mobile retailing, wearables and technology for older consumers

Podcast - 24th February 2015

In today's programme Mark Bridge talks to Chris Millington, who's Managing Director for Doro UK and Ireland.

They discuss the state of mobile retailing in the UK, the future of wearable devices and - as you might expect - smartphones for seniors.

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A month of mobile: O2 counts on 3, Microsoft counts to 10 and Apple counts its profits

Podcast - 30th January 2015

We're back with a month of mobile industry news, including takeover talks and takeover rumours. O2 and Three are said to be discussing a merger... but is there any truth in the suggestions that BlackBerry could be up for grabs?

We also discuss Apple's record-breaking quarterly figures, the highlights of CES and the launch of Microsoft Windows 10, as well as saying farewell to the current version of Google Glass.

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