Virgin Atlantic OKs Cellphones In-Flight ...Sometimes

Making her virgin mobile call on a Virgin Atlantic flight.

Bad news for people who enjoy quiet flights.

Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Atlantic Airways will be the first UK carrier to allow personal cell phone use, in-flight. All passengers will be free to make or receive calls except at takeoff and landing, or when otherwise directed by the crew*. The plane's onboard network works throughout the cabin -- no restrictions.

Best (and perhaps most surprising) of all, there's no extra cost. Just sit down, buckle up, then start gabbing.

Easy peasy, right? Still, if only to show that you're a smart consumer, you might want to ask MobilePhonesFan if there's a catch...

T-Mobile Doubles Your Fun Next Week

When T-Mobile offers a deal like this, jump on it.

In the market for a new phone?

How about two phones, one for you and one for a special someone? Let's say you're a happy T-Mobile customer whose contract is nearly up and you need a second line. Or maybe your current plan is with a 'top 3' US mobile carrier, but for some reason -- your meds ran out?* -- you'd like to sign with T-Mobile...and add another line?

MobilePhonesFan suggests you think, uh, twice. A hot deal's coming up, next weekend...

Verizon Skips HTC 'One'-Series Phones ...for Now

At CTIA, HTC said Verizon Wireless won't sell HTC's 'One'-series phones, as "currently announced".

MobilePhonesFan would like to point out the extra-careful wording...

Microsoft Supports New BitTorrent Killer

Would you buy an operating system from this man?

Can "Pirate Pay" stop BitTorrent sharing at the seeding server?

Engineers from the Russian start-up say they can do just that. Now they have funding -- including $100,000 from Microsoft Seed Finance -- to aid them in further developing their methodology.

Whether they can or can't, the claim raises two questions that could be even more important : (1) How does their system work? (2) Is it legal to block BitTorrent, whether in this manner or any other?

Android Game Dev: "We Like Fragmentation"

At Animoca, we eat fragmentation for breakfast...

That's right: at least one games developer likes Android fragmentation.

First off, let's note that the following info (and images) came from Animoca, a Hong Kong developer of mobile apps for Android, iOS and other platforms. From a look at the website, their product portfolio consists mostly of inexpensive games.
 
That's the 'who' in this story. But after reading the title ("We like fragmentation") and seeing our lead photo, you're probably more curious about 'why' they said it and exactly 'what' was being discussed. Let's start with the rest of that quote...

Flipboard Updates Ripped Android App!

Just our way of saying, "Thanks for stealing our app!"

Official Flipboard app now available! See 22 June update, below.

Less than 48 hours after learning their 'exclusive' new Android application had escaped into the wild, the folks at Flipboard hurriedly rushed to deliver...a free update.

Quelle panache!

For those coming in late, here's the story.:

Video History of Windows OS ...in 77 Min.

Let's all be thankful that he skips 'Windows ME'

Ah, Microsoft's Windows™ -- love it or hate it, we've all been forced had occasion to use it. If you're older than the age of consent, then you likely grew up doing 100% of your computing in a Windows PC environment. Even after Apple Computer entered their renaissance period, anyone engaged in serious commerce -- anywhere in the world -- still needed ready access to the Windows Office™ Suite, on occasion.

Of course, nothing lasts forever. MobilePhonesFan kicked the Microsoft habit a few years back, after a disturbing experience with the black sheep of the Windows family, Vista. Still, we do have fond memories of PCs past. Assembling your first Windows box from scratch is a character-building experience. And we were plenty excited about the release of Windows 95, especially after the Rolling Stones commercials.

So this YouTube "History of WIndows" video by thePatrickMonroe takes MobilePhonesFan back...

XDA: Get Any Android App in Any Country

XDA: ...for when an app absolutely, positively has to be there, overnight right now.

A new, modified version of Google's Play Store lets you install any Android app in any country. You read that correctly: get any app, regardless of the country in which your Android phone was sold. No more annoying "This application is not available in your region" messages...

Vintage Cell Phones, from Cool to Crap ...

Yes, kids, once there were giant mobile handsets. And pay phones.

...a photographic tour through 20 years of portable cellular mobile phone history.

You'll see a mixed bag of phones, phone users and use-cases, many of which older readers are bound to recognize. MobilePhonesFan's reactions ranged from warm nostalgia to abject horror ('People actually paid money to carry that hideous...thing!?').

Good times.

The overall effect is very entertaining, with enough factual content in the captions to qualify for continuing education credits. Once you forget that you're watching yet another !@#$% Web slideshow, you'll have a ball. Hit the source link (below) or click here.


via: TPM

Apple 3D Navigation App Replaces Google?

Here it is, gentlemen, your target for tonight...

One thing MobilePhonesFan knows about tech: Apple, Inc., makes a lot of money.

A big part of why they're so profitable is that they hate paying others to do work they could do as well, in-house. Ok, sure, they'll pay outside vendors to make stuff that could explode. Just about everything else gets done by trusted Apple employees.

And then there's Google. Under a longstanding deal, they work with Apple to produce a custom Google Maps app for iPhone. But for some reason -- arguably, due to Apple's jealous control of the iOS platform -- iPhone has no Google Maps turn-by-turn navigation.

Which brings us back to money...

Socialmatic: Instagram for an Analog World

Looks familiar and yet it doesn't...

This my friends is 'Socialmatic', the as-yet-unreleased creation of Italy's ADR Studios; certain to delight the eye and tantalize the senses, as well as maybe giving your brain a wedgie. Oh, I know what you're thinking; you've never before seen or heard of this pretty thing and yet it seems so very, very familiar...

Want Free WiFi with That? (War-Driving Tips)

...in which our intrepid correspondent shows road warriors how to get free WiFi just about anywhere. It's a fun video with lots of tips, but we have doubts about the concept as well as some of the methods on display. Watch it for yourself, after the break.

Wait ...Google Cares About Web Design? :sigh:

Not pretty, but memorable.

With all the reports about Google's new focus on design and user-friendly appearance, we are oddly comforted by obsolete examples like the one shown above. It's a good example of those classic Googley webpages where the design is what you might call 'low-concept'. Ok, maybe the 'design' is simply non-existent.

Or just downright fugly.

So, let's celebrate how Google pages looked, back when User Experience Group (UX) didn't fuss over every pixel. Sure, we're talking about pathetic zombies, shambling toward deprecation. But knowing they haven't long to live intensifies our nostalgia. It's like saying goodbye to an old, faithful (and homely) friend...

Smart Car Co. Has Smart Twitter Ad

You've got to see the brilliant tweet-stream advertising by the smart folks at SmartCar of Argentina.

Think 'flip card animation'. Try it for yourself, right after the break...

APK Rip: Google Play Store 3.5.19

Here it is: Google Play Store 3.5.19

APK is freshly ripped from a donor-phone. No word on what's new, but some users (including us) report marginally faster loading and operation...