Using their own staff as guinea pigs, National Australia Bank, Telstra and Visa have joined forces to launch a trial of their new ‘contactless mobile payments system’. Around 200 staff at the companies’ Docklands offices will be given new mobiles that will effectively allow them to pay for goods worth up to $35, all with a single swipe.

NAB spokesman Anthony Wheaton, who will participate in the trial, believes the new system is best suited for fast moving people who purchase low-cost goods like coffee and lunch on a regular basis. Using this system, consumers will not have to carry a wallet, but rather just take out their mobile and swipe it across a reader, saving a lot of time. With the system it seems everyone is a winner, from the consumer to the retailer.

Twelve retailers have agreed to trial the system, which will require the installation of a special credit card reader. The ‘contactless’ system works by using ‘near field communication’ (NFC) technology, a wireless technology that allows various electronic devices to talk to each another.

Juniper Research claims that early adopters will start to buy NFC devices as early as the beginning of 2009. By 2013 they predict that one in five phones around the world would carry NFC technology.

The system does require each customer purchase a new phone, which may be a giant factor in Australian consumers picking this up right away. Although this does sound kinda cool, I personally wouldn’t be forking ot a load of money to buy a new phone, especially considering I like using cash at coffee shops, because how else are you supposed to give tips?

The new application won’t have full image-editing features per se, but it will let designers organize and easily upload their camera phone creations to Photoshop.com for the purpose of sharing and editing. The beta Mobile Photoshop will be out late September, across the world. It will be available only for the Motorola Q9 Music and Q9 Global; Samsung’s Blackjack I and II; and several members of the Treo 700 series.

Personally, the thought of web designers getting freaky with their photos on the train is kinda creepy.

Adobe, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Systems, Blackjack, CNET, Mobile Photoshop, Motorola Q9 Global, Motorola Q9 Music, Photoshop.com, Treo 700, Web Designer, Windows Mobile]]> http://www.mobgizmo.com/2008/08/28/adobe-photoshop-on-mobile/feed/ http://www.mobgizmo.com/2008/08/27/optus-tops-85/ http://www.mobgizmo.com/2008/08/27/optus-tops-85/#comments Wed, 27 Aug 2008 04:38:44 +0000 Chris Fox 20083GAussieAustraliaCoverageMaha KrishnapillaiNetworkOptusTelecommunications SummitTelstra http://www.mobgizmo.com/?p=9431 The Optus 3G Network now covers 85% of Australia!

“We are very pleased to announce we hit 85 per cent as of today in terms of 3G availability across the country,” Maha Krishnapillai, director of government and corporate affairs, said while speaking at the 2008 Australian Telecommunications Summit today.

This bold statement basically means that for the first time in Australian history, Optus will be going head-to-head with Telstra. By December 2009 Optus plans on covering 98% of Australia.

If you trust T3, then you are looking at the future in mobile, if not, then you’re probably looking at a creative hoax thought up by T3 to get them global media attention. Interestingly enough, the infrared projection keyboard was actually conceptualised back in 2002 and procured by Siemens, but nothing ever stemmed from it.

So, do you believe?

Although the call made it through, it was soon cut off by interference, but the pilot was able to transmit a distress message. The Irish air traffic controller then started using SMS to relay landing instructions to the pilot. After receiving the instructions, the pilot manually lowered the undercarriage landing gear and performed a fly-by so the control tower could see if the wheels were lowered properly. Shortly after the plane landed safely and both the pilot and air traffic controller received much praise for being “positive and proactive”.

The new mobile game ties in with the upcoming release of Hellboy: The Science of Evil on PS3, X-Box 360 and PSP. Hellboy 2, now showing in cinemas around the globe, will obviously catapult this game to the top of mobile charts. This marks the first major deal that has been announced by Connect 2 Mobile since it opened its doors for business as a multi-platform content provider last week!

I can’t think of a better way to open then by letting Ron Perlman blast its doors down.

Sony fanboys and fangirls can even build their own playlists and personalise their VidZone experience, to create a totally unique environment for every user! This mobile service is just the beginning as Sony also has plans to launch a massive “comprehensive film, TV and music download service at a later date”.

What does this app do? It displays a glowing ruby red gem in the middle of the screen. That’s all!

FsG writes:

“In the first 24 hours that it was available, eight people bought a completely useless iPhone app for $1,000 a pop. This app does nothing except alert onlookers that you have a lot of money. The developer priced it at $999.99, which is the most you can charge on Apple’s store. Apple has since yanked the app (without explanation as usual), while the inventive programmer walked away with $5,600.”

One unlucky (possibly stupid or stuck-up) user (Lee5279xx)  writes:

“This is not a joke.I need someone from Apple to help me with this scam. I saw this app with a few friends and we jokingly clicked ‘buy’ thinking it was a joke, to see what would happen. I forgot my wife had ‘iclick’ activated on my laptop, and it really bought it for $999.”

Specifications:

• 512 MHz Processor
• 256 MB onboard flash memory
• Hot-swappable microSD slot
• 480 by 360 high-res HVGA+ display
• 3.2MP camera
• Micro USB charging/syncing port, w/ high speed data

Despite the apparent lack of 3G support , I still hope RIM kick some ass with this phone and price it reasonably, so the average mobile consumer can afford it. The BlackBerry Javelin, or BlackBerry Bold for that matter, represent good choices for mobile users who don’t want to look like another one of those ‘iPhone sheep’ who follow whatever phone is deemed ‘cool’ by the media.

When I think of the typical iPhone user I see that annoying party guest who arrives early and then spends the whole time running up to people, iPhone in-hand, screaming ‘Check out my new iPhone! Watch this, it looks like I’m really drinking water, but I’m not’. I hate those people. The typical BlackBerry user, on the other hand, sits back at the party, quietly puts their BlackBerry Bold on the table and waits for people to go ‘Wow Chris! Is that the new BlackBerry Bold? I’ve heard a lot about that’. I love those people.