For those of you who like a downloaded tune or two you may be interested that you can now collect nectar points when you do! Buy enough tunes and you'll be able to get some shopping at Sainsbury's too
Here's what they say
"The best digital jukebox and music download store. Purchase music for as little as 79p per track. There are thousands of tracks to get your iPod / MP3 player jumping.
Collect 2 Nectar points for every £1 spent at iTunes on any Top 50 song or album."
Click the headline to take you to the nectar page.
Due to a trademark dispute (still ongoing apparently - and I imagine they'll win eventually) Google have renamed their "beta" email service googlemail in the UK. Anyone want a collectors edition @googlemail.com address? I'm open to offers ;)
Here's their explanation;
The story behind the new "Google Mail" name You may have noticed the Google Mail logo. We are changing our service's name in the UK. Starting October 19, 2005, all new accounts will have @googlemail.com addresses. Don't worry, though – all messages are being sent and delivered as before.
Why the name change then? We have been involved in a dispute regarding the Gmail trademark in the UK. Another company has claimed rights to the Gmail name. We have tried to resolve this dispute through negotiations, but our efforts have failed.
We are still working with the courts and trademark office to protect our ability to use the Gmail name, but in the meantime, we want you to have an email address you can rely on.
The Gmail Team is dedicated to offering the best email service to our users. Our email service stays the same no matter what the logo is or what follows the @ symbol. This change lets our team focus their time on continuing to bring you excellent service.
What this means for our users? Do I need to do anything? No. Although the name is changing, your email service remains the same. To sign in, you can go to the same page as before, or you can now also visit: http://mail.google.com/mail.
When will you start offering Google Mail accounts? When will this change take place?Starting October 19, 2005, the Gmail service will be renamed Google Mail in the UK. We will no longer issue new @gmail.com addresses. All new addresses will be @googlemail.com addresses.
What if I invite someone? Will they also have to create an @googlemail.com address?That depends on where your invitation recipients are located. If they are in a country where we issue Gmail accounts, then they will be able to create a Gmail account. But from the UK, you will only be able to send Google Mail invitations. If your recipient is also in the UK, he or she will only be able to create an @googlemail.com account.
What if I'm a UK user who already has a Gmail address? Will that address ever change?Unfortunately, we don't know. We would love to say that your address will always remain the same. But the trademark issue is still unsettled, and unfortunately, we cannot predict what the other party or the courts might do here. You can always use your same username with an @googlemail.com address to avoid this issue later on. But trust that we will do the best we can to make sure your email address won't ever have to change.
What if I'm a UK user who already has a Gmail address? Will I also need to change that address?No, this change doesn’t affect existing Gmail addresses. For now, our plan is only to issue @googlemail.com addresses to new users. Trust that we will do the best we can to offer all our users a reliable and consistent email experience.
All intersting stuff eh?
Hopefully my next phone....
.... the SPV M5000 is coming soon according to Orange (Probably October but we can dream that it may be September)
You can see their details
here and read a hands on review of the HTC Universal, the unbranded version
here.
Oh I know what your thinking it's big. Well yes it is but think of the fun - movies on its beatiful screen, video conferencing from the train, word / blogging on the go and proper internet wherever you are.
Practically eliminates the need for a laptop at all and with a bluetooth headset you won't look odd by having to hold it to your ear!!
Anywho, best start saving as I doubt it'll be free on a £30 contract!!
Edit Really best had start saving - Expansys have the univeral as the iMate JasJar (dodgy name!!) now listed on their site as coming along in the next couple of weeks see here - The JasJar
As you can see it aint going to be cheap (£500 with a contract!) but you do get quite a lot for your money I s'pose
I think this'll mean (hopefully) that we see the Orange version in September too.
...... SUDOKU!!!
A great litte bit of alpha software I've just started to test is this Suodku generator. Perfect for those anonoying train and bus journeys we all have to make now and again.
V small, simple programme for those of us with Windows Mobile's but there must be a java equivalent for those readers with "normal" phones!!
Via
Coolsmartphone
..... into a mouse?!?!?
Check out
this crazy bit of software which turns your Windows Mobile into a Bluetooth mouse!! A bit pointless but I'm going to trial it anyway! Watch out for a review!
You never know! Just think - you're on the train and the trackpad on you bluetooth equipped laptop breaks and you don't have a mouse handy - panic not, just whip out your phone!!
Well stranger things happen......
This is not good news for Blackberry!
Microsoft are apparently going to announce the holy grail of mobile email today - push email (and contacts, calendar and tasks for that matter). This is the sort of thing that RIM and Blackberry have been doing so well for a couple of years now but it won't require a separate server from your Exchange2003 box (which I know you all have in the cupboard under the stairs!)
Read more via engadget
hereThis is great news for large charities with a mobile workforce and a direct link with a network carrier!! I couldn't possibly comment though....
Podcasting - Apple styleeee
Steve Jobs has apparently
announced today that the next update for iTunes will allow you to easily subscribe to podcast feeds and have them seamlessly moved to your iPod.
Now I don't particularly want to listen to Tom, Dick and Harry's homemade reviews of the latest mobile phones or Game Boy, but I think there is great potential hear to be able to listen to radio programmes when you want to.
The BBC is running a trial of this at the minute and I have been downloading episodes of the Saturday morning 5live show Fighting Talk to listen to on the train to London. Great stuff! Try it out by downloading the file
here and imagine how cool it will be when you just have to type this in once and then every week iTunes goes off and gets the new one. (Broadband of course is essential!)
