Skype Should Give Me A Free Phone Number

Image via CrunchBase

Skype should give me a free phone number like Google Voice does. And then they should get into a race to give me limitless voice calls over those numbers over data and WiFi. To kick the carriers out. They charge too much.

Skype already has great sound quality over long (read international) distances. A number would be nice to have unpaid for.

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Wireless Broadband's Big Appetites

spectrum (Photo credit: Free Press Pics)

It is good news that the bad news is not all that bad. There will not be a spectrum crunch. But there is one now. The possibilities have not been realized.

The Spectrum Crunch that Never Really Was

Cisco estimates that mobile data traffic will grow by a factor of 18 by 2016, and Bell Labs predicts it will increase by a factor of 25..... when wireless networks are overloaded, the real culprit may be inefficient use of existing spectrum rather than a fundamental shortage. ..... "We don’t have a spectrum crunch so much as we have a spectrum policy crunch .... The so-called ‘spectrum crunch’ really reflects artificial spectrum scarcity" ..... “The challenge now is to extend those proven successes to enable wider-area broadband access using other underutilized portions of the spectrum.” ... such strategies could increase wireless capacity by thousands of times...... half the new demand through 2015 would be handled by small cells—Wi-Fi plus cells handling frequencies used by 3G and 4G networks ...... it might be possible to increase capacity tenfold even without spectrum sharing. ..... rigid regulations don’t allow the use of flexible new technologies like cognitive radio ...... “Right now, we have a 15- to 20-year backlog of new technologies and architectures, including sharing and small cells, which can take us a long way into the future.”

Related articles

• The Spectrum Crunch That Never Really Was
• White space broadband moves a step closer
• Lowenstein's View: The state of mobile broadband
• FCC Dishes Dirt, Talks Up 3.5 GHz
• AT&T execs want more spectrum, lighter regulation
• FCC Dishes Dirt, Talks Up 3.5 GHz
• Verizon promises 4G wireless for rural America
• FCC Chairman takes the hot seat at wireless gathering
• Jarvinian Innovation Helps Globalstar Turn Satellite Spectrum into an Abundant New Source of Mobile Broadband Capacity
• White Space Broadband and Communications Given the Nod From Ofcom

Google And The Stagnant ISP Space

Image via CrunchBase

I have long advocated Google go into the ISP space, strong and sturdy.

The economics of Google Fiber and what it means for U.S. broadband

this network isn’t a charity case .... goal is to bring the same efficiencies that have helped create cheaper, smaller and more powerful computers and create a cost and improvement curve for broadband access that resembles the curves for compute storage ..... what Google has done here has fundamentally lowered the cost of building and deploying a network ..... it will pummel existing ISPs on price and service ..... From the infrastructure on the back end to the TV and Wi-Fi routers in the home, Google has built its own stuff. .... taking the most basic elements of a network and assembling them into custom gear, much like it does on the data center side. ..... Google has built its own hard drive to act as a DVR, a TV box to provide channels and a network box that acts as a modem and provides Wi-Fi connectivity in the home ...... a QR code that a technician will scan. ..... Eventually consumers will be able to do this for themselves, perhaps after they order a box on Google’s Play store. .... “Why are the Comcasts and AT&Ts of the world complaining about how much it costs to serve up broadband when Google can deliver 100 times the traditional ISP’s top speeds for the same or a lower price.” .... “This is a beginning.”

Broadband speed has been the laggard in computing.

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• The economics of Google Fiber and what it means for U.S. broadband
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• Google shows ISPs how to build a superfast network
• Google shows ISPs how to build a superfast network | Internet & Media - CNET News

Wi-Fi, Tablets And Smartphones

iPad 3G and iPad Wi-Fi (Photo credit: Yutaka Tsutano)The Next Web: New Wi-Fi roaming initiative could soon allow your smart device to connect to hotspots automatically

... could see billions of smartphone and tablet owners effortlessly switch between mobile and Wi-Fi networks, without the hassle of locating hotspot hosts and keying in passwords....... a technical and commercial framework for Wi-Fi roaming, which will use a device’s SIM card to authenticate a device on a Wi-Fi hotspot without any input from the user ...... the initiative could offload mobile data to a residential or business-owned wireless network

And while you are at it, why not also extend this to laptops? Smartphones make sense, tablets make sense. But if you keep the laptop out, the iPad will have even more of a field day.

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• New Wi-Fi roaming initiative could soon allow your smart device to connect to hotspots automatically
• Roaming: The Missing Piece To The Smartphone-WiFi Puzzle

• GSMA initiative to simplify wi-fi access (mobile-ent.biz)
• Cell-to-Wi-Fi roaming on the way -- but may come with a price (infoworld.com)
• Cell-to-Wi-Fi Roaming Is on the Way, but May Come With a Price (pcworld.com)
• The GSMA wants to make sure you're using a WiFi hotspot whenever you're near one (intomobile.com)
• Mobile biz bigwigs crack heads over Wi-Fi roaming charges (go.theregister.com)

White Space Revolution

Image via WikipediaThe real question is why does broadcast television have a-n-y spectrum? Why is it not all going to wireless broadband? But until we get there, this small development is small solace. This development taken to its logical conclusion will finally turn the smartphone and the tablet into the laptop. In that I mean connectivity will cease to be an issue. For a flat monthly fee you can have as much of it as you want.

Business Insider: The Next Billion Dollar Wireless Industry Has Officially Launched

White Spaces has been called "WiFi on steroids" and has been championed by the likes of Google and Microsoft...... White spaces brings with it tons of potential for new devices and applications. It is faster than WiFi so it can handle more data. It can bring (nearly) free Internet access to the most remote areas of the country, places that can't get WiFi. ......... Because it uses broadcast television signals, any place that can pick up a broadcast TV signal should be able to tap into White Spaces. A large range of wireless frequencies have always been reserved for broadcast television, much of it unused

Republic Wireless, Galaxy Nexus And Tardiness

I have a laptop I bought a few months back for 330 dollars after the rebate. I think I want a $79 Kindle to borrow books from the New York Public Library. And I think I have decided on Republic Wireless to be my first smartphone. And that is it. That will be enough gadgets. I am a Dell, Walmart kind of guy.

They said they will be out. But then you go to their website and they say sorry, get in line, we will email you when we have more. So no soup for you this year.



No Republic Wireless phone in sight. $19 a month is cheaper than even the prepaid basic phones. For me it is the wifi part that gets me. A smartphone is a small computer. It needs to be running on wifi. What I would have really liked is a Galaxy Nexus on the Republic Wireless network. But if it is between the phone and the network I am going for the network. Only the line is so long. Take that iPhone.

Why don't they just manufacture more phones? I mean, if they are making money when they sell phones. Why not just make more of them and make more money?

Galaxy Nexus Has Competition

Galaxy Nexus Has Competition

Galaxy Nexus has competition in my world now.

GigaOm: Republic Wireless to launch $19 unlimited voice, SMS and data service: Republic Wireless ..... will launch a hybrid cellular voice and VoIP service on Nov. 8, 2011. ..... The service, which costs $19 a month, will allow you to make VoIP phone calls over Wi-Fi and will switch to cellular-based calling when a Wi-Fi network is unavailable. Text messages can also be sent via Wi-Fi or cellular networks. The service does require a special Android handset. The plan includes unlimited voice and text messaging. It also includes unlimited data without any bandwidth caps. ...... no different from the Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA)-based service bundled in some T-Mobile BlackBerry devices. T-Mobile also has UMA available on some Android phones. ...... When inside the office or your home or inside a Wi-Fi hot-spot, all phone calls and text messages are sent and received via the Internet. ...... like Kineto Wireless’ UMA that is used by T-Mobile, Republic requires you to buy a special phone that can handle this hybrid calling. The company has built this hardware based on Google’s Android OS. ...... also attractive to those who travel internationally and want to save on calling back to the U.S. ...... the idea of unlimited 3G data with the service for $19 a month

TechCrunch: Republic Wireless: An Android-Powered, VoIP/Cellular Hybrid Carrier That’ll Cut Your Phone Bill In Half

Republic Wireless, a new mobile phone service from Bandwidth.com that will be launching on November 8, and could truly be the phone carrier you’ve always wanted. ...... an alternative to the likes of Verizon and AT&T. ..... Users will not have to manually switch between Wifi and cellular — the phone will figure it out automatically ..... New phones are required because the Hybrid Calling relies on both hardware and software ....... You won’t need to sign up for a contract, so there aren’t any termination fees. No overage fees, either. ..... $19 a month, which will include unlimited voice, text, and data.

Also the Galaxy Nexus has been taking too long to show up.

Towards A Secure Twitter Experience

Hack Of A Job

Cheaper iPhone: Way To Go

Image via CrunchBase

Forbes: Apple: Cheaper iPhone Could Expand Addressable Market By 6x: expand distribution to more carriers .... add the 8 largest carriers that do not currently offer the iPhone .... address the mass market by offering a reduced price version of the iPhone ..... the company is considering doing just that. The new version of the phone would have a much smaller screen size, and be sold to carriers for about half the price of the current iPhone ...... Apple’s move downscale would involve a non-data plan phone. ..... iPhone 5 .. to arrive in June ...... an iPhone without a data plan. “Like the iPod Touch, this device would be able to handle music, movies, Internet (via WiFi or cellular), and third-party apps” ..... such a phone could sell for $149 and $199 at retail and require only a voice plan

An iPhone actually costs as much as a cheap Dell laptop. Think about it. That is ridiculous. You feel like you paid $200, when you actually paid more like $500. They put you on a monthly plan. Every month you pay a little bit for two years. It is like buying a house. The house takes 30 years, the iPhone takes two years. That is ridiculous.

Apple should try but I believe the mass market already belongs to Android. The neutered iPhones that Apple intends to serve for lower prices will be matched, have been matched by fully functional large screen Android phones in those same price ranges. Why not buy a full phone for cheap? Why buy an iPhone?

A $50 Smartphone Running On Free WiFi

Image via WikipediaThis is what I am waiting for: a $50 smartphone running on free wifi. You pay for the hardware, you of course keep it charged up, it comes with a charger, and there is no monthly fee to any carrier after that. In a big city like New York, there is free wifi everywhere. And where there is no wifi, you say hello to people. You actually value face time. Hi, my smartphone is not working, let me just have a moment with you.

Bruce Willis tried that on two young women fans in an elevator when they asked for his autograph, and they ran away. As in, forget the autograph, let me just have a moment with you. Let me just say hello.

So careful how you do it though.

xMax

WiFi was wireless but not broadband, and not large area. Broadband over power lines was broadband but not wireless. WiMax was both: wireless and broadband. And today I read about xMax. It is wireless broadband without the WiMax hassles, it seems like. It looks like power to the people to the power of x. This is delightful. This is real good news. The basic thrust is towards wireless broadband. For a city in a wireless broadband soup, cellphones should become free. Cellphones that are ad-based. This is a brave, new world.

• XMax aims to spark low-power wireless revolution Globe and Mail, Canada
• xMax ™ Demonstration Sets Higher Bar for Broadband ClickPress (press release), United Arab Emirates
• Could xMax change the world of broadband? ZDNet UK, UK
• xMax sparks low power wireless revolution Techworld.com, UK
• XMax in pictures ZDNet UK, UK
• xMax - is it real? Techworld.com, UK
• xMax's First Long-Range Field Test A Success LinuxElectrons, TX
• XG Technology conducts first public demonstration of xMAX MRT (subscription), IL
• New Broadband Standards Set CCN Magazine, CA
• First public demo of 'disruptive' wireless broadband ZDNet UK, UK