AgileMobile has come out with a mobile Java app to send recorded IM voice messages.

Sheesh! Yet another source of messages to check!

See:

News article

Not sure if this one is really going to be useful.

This is pretty nuts. A woman in Washington D.C. was arrested yesterday for talking too loudly on her cell phone. (Oh, by the way, she is also pregnant).

"Freeze! Drop that cell phone! You're under arrest!"

See:

News article

See. If she were using IM or SMS text messaging via a simple J2ME MIDlet instead of talking on her J2ME technology-enabled phone, this would never have happened. ;-)

Ever wonder how you do something with J2ME technology? A good place for developers is wirelessdevnet.com.

Here's a good article on how to do networking using J2ME technology on a cell phone.

See:

Web article

It's a quick and easy read with programming examples. Nice site!

Lots of reviewers are saying that the Nokia 6820 is a bodacious new J2ME phone. It replaces the klunkier Nokia 6800.

The bat-wing flip-open full keyboard seems to win users over. Users can type like on a regular computer keyboard (especially when doing e-mail or IM), yet have the size (folded) of a regular sized cell phone when not using that feature.

See:

New phone

More phones will probably do the same in the near-future: Flip and flop and you got yerself a full keyboard.

Big brother is watching you now. A new Nextel J2ME app running on a cell phone can report GPS location points to someone watching whereabouts of certain cell phone users.

Pretty good for tracking your kids.

See:

New J2ME tracking service

Now your boss will know if you are at Fry's Electronics when you should be working. :-)

France Telecom and Esmertec are teaming up to deliver Java into the home.

Maybe some type of home gateway that can deliver movies, music, news, etc.? I'm not sure exactly what "infotainment" really is.

See:

Business report

Either way, the home is the place to be. Downloadable content is the stuff to have.

Can't switch to a 3G phone yet? The next wave in Japan will be 3.5G phones. So, just catch the next wave.

Video, remote robot control, muscic downloads, e-wallet, advanced games, etc.

See:

News report

It'll all be there for 3.5G. Just you wait... :-)

I saw this on thefeature.com where Mobile TV is starting to catch on in Malaysia.

Of course their wireless networks are faster over there (compared to the U.S.) and more people have cell phones.

See:

News article

But, will enough people want to watch "Last Comic Standing" on a 2-inch screen? I think you'd miss out on the visual humor. :-)

Handmark recently won the DEMOGod award at the DEMOmobile 2004 conference for their J2ME-based mobile Express browser.

Their Express mobile browser can receive news, sports, stocks, weather, maps, etc. on a device like the Treo 600.

See:

Handmark Express - Mobile delivery

Pretty cool stuff. Especially since it's a lot cheaper than the MSN Direct watch (which is a piece of garbage). Who needs a Microsoft watch do the same stuff when your cell phone can be a news/stocks/sports/maps/info/etc receiver, a PDA, a Gameboy, and a cell phone all in one?

This recent OnLamp article about Rolling Your Own Series 60 Phone Applications is not totally correct.

John Littler writes:

For beginning developers who'd like a crack at these devices while developing on Linux, Java is certainly an easier alternative than C++, but you lose in power what you gain in ease. Specifically, MIDP cannot exchange data with other applications, can't deal with cameras, and doesn't know about TCP/IP. If you're thinking about something like a simple, nonnetworked game, Java might be appropriate.

MIDP does allow network gaming on certain phones. You just need to know how to use Generic Connection Framework (GCF) correctly to do it.

See:

OnLamp article

The author might not be using GCF with the socket: or http: connection right, I bet.

Toshiba and Fujitsu-Siemens will be added along with Sony to the growing list of PDA manufacturers pulling out of the U.S. market for PDAs.

They'll let HP have the shrinking PDA market. But, don't bet on PDAs anymore. It's the smartphone (PDA/cell phone combos) that will continue to grow as people ditch their PDAs.

See:

News article

Throw out your tired PDAs and go with a J2ME smartphone instead.

J2ME MapMe app from Bell Mobility in Canada is one cool app.

You can use your phone to find out where the heck you are, get a map to show you what's around you, then get directions to where you're trying to go.

See:

MapMe description

No more having to stop to ask for directions. But... guys don't do that anyway, right? ;-)

J2ME Wireless App Development is way up. Evans Data Corp. reports that J2ME dev is up 33% in the last 6 months.

It's mainly because J2ME is on so many darn cell phones now. So, where is your J2ME app? Have you posted it on the Web or made it available at handango.com?

See:

Tekrati article

The market is growing and is a big opportunity for anyone to get into.

Mobile text using SMS is still by far the leading driver of Web-service based technology on cell phones. It outleads enterprise apps, games, photos, and mobile commerce. It's something that some companies like ILoop Mobile are concentrating on.

They were the implementors of the DemoMobile 2004 Mobile Quiz Game. Games like this are easy to use and more in touch with what current customers are doing with their phones.

See:

DemoMobile 2004 Mobile Quiz Game

The companies that figure out how to evolve SMS into more advanced fun games and apps will do well in the mobile market.

Yes, Mobile Services will be coming at us from all different directions. It's good to see there are mobile tool developers trying to make mobile app development easier for mobile services. That will be key in getting the market seeded.

See:

DemoMobile 2004 conference

Isn't it true that the ones selling the picks and shovels always make the most money? ;-)