Canadian cell phone consumers now have a hot new acrynim to learn, HSPA.
Following in Rogers footsteps, this week both Bell and Telus will launch thier own HSPA network.
HSPA which stands for High Speed Packet Access, allows mobile phones to download data at speeds up to 21 megabytes per second — speeds which are faster than many home connections.
Canada’s three large wireless ISPs are all now on board this new technology which promises to make smart phones more exciting and powerful.
“The future of wireless begins [Thursday],” said Joe Natale, senior vice-president at Telus. “If you look at the capabilities being offered to Canadians, it’s quite significant.”
Under ideal conditions, an mp3 file and can be downloaded almost instantly, a video can be played continuously without interruption and a heavy file, like a movie, is downloaded quickly.
The HSPA is not new, as Rogers (TSX: RCI.B), like other companies in the world, has had its network in service for some time.
Bell (TSX: BCE) and Telus (TSX: T) have however decided to launch their own HSPA network, enabling them to sell the popular iPhone device from Apple and other similar phones.
The new Bell network was put into operation Wednesday and that Telus will be Thursday.
Each of these companies now trying to convince the public that its HSPA service is the best.
Rogers says they offer the largest selection of phones compatible with HSPA on a network that has been proven.
“Rogers customers can select from an even greater [italics added] lineup of the latest wireless devices — the widest selection by far in Canada — with the introduction of new smart phones designed to keep Canadians connected on Canada’s most reliable network,” the company said in a released statement Wednesday.
Bell is promoting an option for video calls, which takes advantage of the high-speed connection, including an exclusive Facebook application that enables video calls between a user and a user cell phone.
Telus claims about it that its broad offer HSPA network for the first time Internet access to many residents of rural communities not served previously.
Personal computers and laptops can also connect to an HSPA network to enjoy high speed, but it is a more expensive option, especially for users who download lots of data and use lots of bandwidth.
Bell and Telus this week will launch new HSPA wireless networks. Both companies are proud to announce they will be launching four months earlier than expected.
Bell and Telus, increasingly inseparable, pass international standard HSPA +, fully compatible with GSM networks in over 200 countries. This is a first for them since they had until now favored the established systems from the CDMA standard, popular in North America, but virtually unknown elsewhere. This puts Bell and Telus in direct competition with Rogers and new players such as Videotron, which will launch its new network next spring. This migration also allows Bell and Telus to sell the hugely popular iPhone to their customers because this device is only available in HSPA.
Bell and Telus probably wanted to take advantage of the holiday season to offer the iPhone to their customers and retain them for the duration of the three-year contracts that accompany the purchase of this device. Bell and Telus also hope to take over all new consumers who are preparing to compete with established companies in the coming months. Bell will also benefit from the visibility it has as a sponsor of the Olympics in February to promote his new offer and take advantage of all the calls that will be between Vancouver and other countries.
All this is fine, but one thing eludes me entirely. Bell and Telus have chosen to offer tomorrow access to the network almost anywhere in Canada except Quebec and the Ottawa area to be served until the first quarter of 2010 by a slower HSPA network. The remote parts of northern Alberta or the coast of Newfoundland have access to the new ultra-fast network, but not us. I believe that it is precisely in Quebec, where competition is most intense with the arrival of Videotron in this market.
Since the appointment of George Cope at the helm, Bell seems like a player less lethargic and less defensive than with Michael Sabia. Bell became the owner of The Source stores and 750 stores will cease from January to sell subscriptions for Rogers and Videotron terminals in 150 branches in Quebec. They bought the half that did not belong to Virgin Mobile in Canada. Bell TV – formerly ExpressVu – I think also more dynamic in this market. In short, the old lion roars yet.
The old lion still must deal with a poor image. It’s clients made 1239 complaints last year to the Complaints Commissioner, substantially more than Rogers and Telus. Videotron, which makes life hard in Quebec has in turn generated only 72 complaints. Besides quality and network performance, it is here that early 2010 will be the tough battle to win the heart of Quebec.
Putting Quebec and Ottawa in the bottom of its priorities for the establishment of the new network does not appear to me a sign in the right direction.
The date is now set, it is Thursday, November 5 that Telus subscribers can opt for a 3G package and get an iPhone from Apple.
Connected to a three-year contract, the smartphone will be priced the same as Telus Rogers: $99 for the 8GB iPhone, $199 for the 3GS 16 GB and $ 299 for the 32GB of 3GS Prices packages have meanwhile not yet been disclosed.
On October 6, Telus and Bell, who share their infrastructure since 2001, had announced the arrival in November of smart phones from Apple in their windows. At the same time, the two operators had announced the deployment of HSPA (High Speed Packet Access) specific to the GSM network, joining the mobile network from Rogers.
Although adopting the 3G network across the Canadian Mobile progresses, it still has long lagged behind many countries where the fourth-generation LTE (Long Term Evolution), is already set.
The U.S. space agency NASA has released its first mobile application on the Apple iPhone and iPod Touch, bringing a wealth of information on current missions and future countdowns.
In some cases, such as the ISS (International Space Station), it is possible to see its path around the Earth (at time of writing this news, it was over the Indian Ocean). You can find data on missions around the Earth, Moon or images of Mars missions, all of which can be exchanged with friends via email.
The app also alows you to access the countdowns for NASA, a photo gallery and videos, and many other information uploaded by the agency.
“Making NASA more accessible to the public is a high priority for the agency,” said Gale Allen, director of Strategic Integration and Management forNASA ’s Exploration Systems Mission Directorate in Washington in a prepared press statement. “Tools like this allow us to provide users easy access toNASA information and progress at a fast pace.”
The application, free for download from the Apple store, was developed by NASA’s New Media Team at the Ames Research Centre in Moffett Field, California.
“We’re excited to deliver a wide range of up-to-the-minute NASA content to iPhone and iPod Touch users,” said Gary Martin, director of the New Ventures and Communications Directorate at Ames. “The NASA App provides an easy and interesting way for the public to experience space exploration.
Since Wednesday is the frenzy in Quebec. Everywhere on the web, Facebook and Twitter, people wonder if they recognize their home, their apartment on Google street wiew is now available. Is this an infringement on individual freedom?
In Canada, the online application is available in the cities of Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton, Halifax, Calgary.
When this feature of Google map, which allows you to see a place like if you were there and to recognize, was released, it was controversial. For people thought at first that the images were real-time. What was worrying, let’s face it. Then people were caught in uncomfortable situations: post a video store for adults, urinating (why do it in the street?), Tanning, picking his nose, etc.. The law protects privacy in Canada is very useful.
The images are taken by car with Pascal Forget Google took a photo and several others when strolling the streets of Montreal last spring.
The functionality of Street View is really impressive. With the mouse or keyboard, you can forward, backward (arrows lower back), swing left or right (left-right arrows), up or down to zoom (+ or – keys).
Faces and license plates of vehicles are scrambled by the computer system — house numbers are not hidden.
Street View is a Google service has experienced the highest growth of use in 2008, said the head research and development of Google, Luc Vincent.
Launched in 2005 as an experiment, Street View only covered five U.S. cities in early 2007. Since the service was implemented in 14 countries.
No income
The service is not yet generating revenue for the Web giant, he said. “The Google model is to first create a unique and useful tool to many people. Once we have this product and we see if it has a good attendance, we will start to think about monetization. This is not our main concern at present. “
In early October, Google and the U.S. cell phone operator Verizon announced a partnership to support the mobile platform Android. Pending the arrival of the Motorola Android Droid under 2.0 on their network operator pokes fun of the iPhone in a campaign.
The new TV spot points out all the things that Apple’s iPhone is unable to do including the issues of not running multiple apps, no 5mp camera, not customization and no widgets.
While pretending to continue to negotiate with Apple to try to get the right distribution of the iPhone when the exclusivity period of AT & T comes to an end by 2010, the U.S. operator Verizon has confirmed its commitment to Google Android earlier this month by signing a partnership with Google.
This involves a co-development of several models Android, with the imminent commercialization of several smartphones including the Motorola Droid (codenamed Sholes) in November. Verizon could not stand up now that the distribution of terminals blacberry and Windows Mobile and is therefore an extension of its support for major mobile platforms.
According to preliminary information, this new version should redesign the interface but also integrate inbox emails unified native support for Exchange, and a new version of Google Maps. In contrast, no sign of support for Flash 10.
Finally, it seems likely that the Motorola Droid, scheduled for release in October or November in the United States, will be the first Android mobile equipped with “Lightning” 2.0.
Google wants to better blur faces and plate numbers in its Street View service, but refuses to reduce the height of the camera that takes pictures. The company is responding to certain recommendations of the Federal Data Protection.
To improve the process of anonymous faces and vehicles, Google will use a new version of its software, the company said. Currently, Google Street View automatically blurs faces and license plates, but the system does not always work.
The American company refuses cons of reducing the height of the camera that takes pictures of streets of Swiss cities. The camera is currently set on a pole placed on a car.
Google hopes to continue photographing buildings and signs so that we can recognize them. “Reducing the height of the mast would also bring the camera in the faces of passersby,” the firm wrote.
The Federal Data Protection had requested that the camera is set so that it can not photograph the gardens or private lessons.
Google Street View was recently launched for 11 cities in Canada. The Canadian government has been very public about their apprehensions with this new technology. They have expressed their concern for the privacy of citizens and their homes.
Google has blurred all faces and license plates in order to ensure the privacy of any individual who may have been included in a photo. Google has explained the views are all taken from public streets, and do not violate anyone’s privacy. Google has included links for reporting any concerns a person may have. Any concerns that are reported will be reviewed. If they are found to violate a persons privacy, they will be removed.
The Street View technology is available on iPhones. Simply enter in an address, and you will get a clear view of the building or landmark you are looking for. Street View uses images that are patched together from several different angles. The Street View, gives a user a 360 degree view of a particular street address. This application was first launched in the United States in 2007. It is currently available in 10 countries.
A few local residents are a little embarrassed about the pictures that were taken during the garbage workers strike. Several of the local parks were filled with garbage and those are the pictures that appear in the Street View. Mayors of these particular cities are hoping to increase tourism with this latest technology.
The Canadian cities that are included in the Street View thus far are as follows; Halifax, Toronto, Quebec City, Calgary, Montreal, Squamish, Whistler, Waterloo, and Ottawa Kitchener.
Google Launches Street View for 11 Canadian Cities
Google has just added Street View for 11 cities in Canada. A few of the cities included are Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, and Vancouver.
The Street View application was first released in May of 2007. There are now 14 countries included in the system. The US was the first country to get Street View, and back then there were only 5 cities available.
Google Street View has recieved a significant amount of controversy.
In the United States in 2007, people complained of being photographed without their knowledge.
Others criticized Google for showing images where you could see inside their homes.
The Canadian government has expressed their concern over the privacy violations that may occur with this application. Google assures people, that the views published, are views that can be seen from any street. Google has blurred people’s faces and license plate numbers, that appear in the images. They have also included a link for people to report any issues they may have with the application.
These applications are available on the iPhones in the maps area. The views are taken from the street, and allow a user to see a panoramic view of a specific area. The views are not in real time. The images were taken over a period of time and patched together.
Users can view landmarks, city parks and other buildings by entering in an address. Several mayors of these particular cities, are excited to have the application go live. The mayors hope to increase interest in their cities, and draw in more tourists.
Google Street View is available in 14 countries.
At a time when Ontario is trying to attract tourists, surfers from around the world can now sail the streets of several cities in southern Ontario from their personal computers with Google Street View.
Google’s Street View feature for Google Maps, enables users to see certain parts of several big cities through panoramic images,
Google Street View is available in many Ontario cities including, Toronto, Hamilton, Kitchener-Waterloo and Ottawa.
In Canada, almost 50 000 kilometers of streets can be virtually furrowed: in addition to Ontario cities, the service covers the cities of Vancouver, Whistler, Squamish, Banff, Calgary, Montreal, Quebec and Halifax.
The launch was done in conjunction with various tourism agencies and property, as Heritage Toronto, Montreal and Tourism Tourism British Columbia.
Google promises that other Canadian cities will soon be added to its service.
When it comes up on a Google Map, users need only click a character yellow and drag to the place he wants to see. A photo of the street at 360 degrees, appears.
In response to concerns in regard to privacy, Google said that the faces of people in these pictures are blurred.
Google began in 2007 to take images of the Canadian cities placed online Wednesday.
Google Street View is currently available in 14 countries: Australia, Canada, Spain, the United States, France, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Netherlands, Portugal, Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and Taiwan.