Being multi-platform is a must for Mobile apps these days. And, it's interesting to note which platforms big companies like Google choose for the mobile versions of their apps like for Orkut Mobile. Hmmmm... iPhone: check, Nokia Series 60: check, Java ME: check-er-oonee... Uh, Android? Android? Hello? No, Android? I guess Java ME technology is more important than Android to Google. As should be!

See:

No Android for Google Orkut Mobile

Here's a quote:

 The adoption of the cutting-edge 
 Google Web Toolkit platform and 
 the evolution of the interface 
 come after a series of innovations
 and improvements on Orkut through 
 the year which include features 
 such as built-in simultaneous 
 chat,  photo tagging with 
 automatic face detection, private 
 sharing of photo albums, safety 
 features, and Orkut for iPhone, 
 S60 and J2ME-based mobile phones. 
 Google sees this as the beginning 
 of a new direction for Orkut...

Hinkmond

Vodafone promises 700+ apps for their Vodafone 360 (App Store) launch. That's pretty nifty. Ready your Java ME games and eat hearty, for tonight we dine in H*LL!

See:

Vodafone's 700+ for 360

Here's a quote:

 Even those which cover its location 
 based (LBS) and billing apps. That’s 
 [quite] unusual. The company is also 
 promising spiffing SDKs, too. The 
 claim is that Java J2ME apps will be 
 easy to port, too. The biggest shock 
 [isn't the] cross handset platform but 
 cross network, too. Vodafone seems 
 to have kept that one quiet as well.

Hinkmond

Here's a story from The Register about the Java Store. There's some good questions raised and interesting guessing by the reporter. The important part is that there will be an alternative to the Apple App Store. Thank G*d!

See:

What's in store for Java ME?

Here's a quote:

 Java Store is the planned front-
 end to the Java warehouse, a 
 repository where Sun hopes it 
 can convince some six million 
 Java developers to post 
 applications.

 Sun wants partners, such as 
 telcos, to then customize their 
 own Java store fronts to the 
 warehouse. Verizon in June 
 announced it will also roll-
 out its own store for mobile 
 apps built using Java.

Hinkmond

New iDont Care TV Commercial

It's fun what you can do with video these days. :-)

Some mobile developers like using a Windows PC to develop their apps. Some like using the (ahem) Mac. Since a Mac is not a real development computer, but still very popular with all those who are fashion-conscious (see, I'm just kidding and seeing if I can rile the Mac users out there) Sun has decided to release an early access version of the Java ME SDK 3.0 on Mac OS X.

See:

Develop Java Mobile apps on a Mac

Here's a quote:

 Sun Microsystems has released 
 an early access preview of the 
 Java Micro Edition Software 
 Development Kit (Java ME SDK) 
 3.0 for Mac OS X. This means 
 that developers who work on a 
 Mac will no longer be excluded 
 from developing mobile Java 
 applications.

Hinkmond

In the latest Wired Magazine, Nov 2009 issue, pg 104, they have the Amazon Kindle 2 as the Mobile Device of the Year, in the Fall Gear section.

See:

Wired Magazine's Mobile Device of the Year

Here's a quote:

 Only a true icon makes every 
 other product in its category 
 seem chintzy and dated, if not 
 totally obsolete.

Hinkmond

See:

New Java ME CDC-based Samsung Instinct HD

Woo-hoo! HD format video recording on this puppy. Although all the iPhone fanboys would probably disagree, I think this is a good competitor to the iPhoney. At least, it's a lot of fun to play with and people are buying it... and, it has Java. :-P

Here's a nice line-up of Java ME games from Sony Pictures for next year (2010).

See:

New Java ME Games for 2010

Here's a quote:

 The newly-announced titles include:
  James Bond: 007 mobile game
  Wheel of Fortune (February)
  JEOPARDY! (March)
  The Three Stooges (May)
  The Karate Kid (June)
  Salt (July)
  The Joker's Wild (September)

 All SPHE mobile games are available 
 on Android, Blackberry, BREW, J2ME, 
 iPhone, Palm and Windows Mobile 
 devices.

Hinkmond

The new Bolt Browser written in Java ME technology, now bursts out of beta.

See:

Bolt Browser a Blast of Bodaciousness

Here's a quote:

 As before, Bolt streams video 
 from sites like YouTube, which 
 still eludes the otherwise 
 excellent Opera Mini 5 (Beta).

Hinkmond

Amazon announced they launched the new Amazon Mobile Payments Service which allows the Amazon processing tool to work inside today's Java ME tech-enabled cell phones. Cool! Feel like downloading that Amazon MP3 music file. It's just an Amazon 1-click away...

See:

Amazone Mobile Payment w/Java ME

Here's a quote:

 One of the first companies to 
 launch the Amazon MPS is 
 Handmark, a mobile content 
 store where customers can shop 
 for games and applications 
 across a number of platforms 
 including Android, Blackberry, 
 iPhone, Palm OS, Windows Mobile, 
 Symbian, and Java devices.

Hinkmond

T-Mobile in the U.S. and Flurry have teamed up to provide analytic data for mobile apps for their mobile developers, including Java ME app developers.

See:

Mobile Analytic Data from T-Mobile

Here's a quote:

 According to Flurry, more than 
 5,000 Android, BlackBerry and 
 J2ME developers have signed up 
 for its analytics service since 
 the solution launched in Jan. 
 2009. Flurry now tracks over 
 200 million end-user sessions 
 per month...

Hinkmond

Here's an article how Java ME tech-enabled cell phones are big in Africa, even in countries with lack of infrastructure.

See:

Java ME popular in Africa

Here's a quote:

 Free and open source software, 
 such as Java, continues to be 
 extremely popular in Africa, 
 with the number of paid app 
 downloads also slowly 
 increasing.  Companies that 
 hope to work in Africa, 
 however, routinely must 
 provide their own 
 infrastructure... 

Hinkmond

Did you ever get p*ssed off over dropped calls or a weak signal area caused by your wireless carrier? Well, fret not. Get this Java ME tech-enabled phone which happens to be a dual-mode satellite mobile device as well.

See:

Dual-mode Java ME satellite cell phone

Here's a quote:

 As the world's smartest and lightest 
 dual-mode satellite mobile phone 
 (170g), Thuraya SG-2520 offers 
 dynamic performance, inimitable 
 style, and innovative features 
 surpassing all other available 
 satellite-based products.
 ...
 Supports a variety of applications 
 based on Java (J2ME)

Hinkmond