Last year I took a look at the Fritzbox router. It’s expensive, but an incredibly versatile piece of kit and great for making calls over the internet using ordinary phones, either plugged into the back or wirelessly using DECT.

Now it looks like the final kind of phone in the home, the mobile, is going to be added to the Fritzbox fold. AVM has announced the Fritz!App (scroll down to the bottom), which will be available for iPhone and Android. It will allow the smartphone to connect to the router and then use the landline or access the built in answer phones. Incoming calls can also be routed to the smartphone.

All sounds quite impressive so I’m hoping that this will be available for current models like the 7270 and not just the new ones announced at Cebit.

Posted by Tim Smith on February 2, 2010 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Apple has released an update for iTunes 9. It should come through on Apple Software Update, otherwise you can download the iTunes installer.

Here are the release notes from the Apple Software Update utility (I couldn’t find them on the Apple website.)

iTunes 9.0.1 provides a number of important bug fixes, including:

• Resolves issues browsing the iTunes Store.
• Addresses a performance issue where iTunes may become unresponsive.
• Fixes a problem where iTunes may unexpectedly quit.
• Fixes a problem syncing Podcasts in playlists to iPod or iPhone.
• Fixes a problem sorting albums with multiple discs.
• Improves application syncing for iPod touch and iPhone.
• Genius is now automatically updated to show Genius Mixes.

(I still have no idea why the Update utility is anxious to install the iPhone Configuration Utility, given that I’ve never plugged an iPhone or iPod into my computer.)

Posted by Tim Smith on September 24, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (2)

The National Rail website is rather good. In the old days of Railtrack it was quite hard to get any useful information on train running times from the web, but the current site, which is run by train operators' group ATOC, is easy to use and well designed.

Now, it's not too hard to access the site from a phone, particularly as newer phones have full HTML browsers that can cope with the design. But ATOC has released an application for the iPhone and iPod Touch that makes it even easier.

It's been quite a PR success - there's been plenty of good coverage for the app on the web.

The problem, though, is that the application costs £4.99, quite a lot by App Store standards, where many titles cost just 59p. We wouldn't go so far as to use the phrase "rip off", but the program is going to have to do quite a lot to justify that kind of cost, particularly when it's only a couple of clicks on the phone to get into Mobile Safari and browse the main site.

Admittedly the app makes use of the phone's location finder to offer relevant information, and admittedly we haven't used the app (we're too cheap to stump up the fiver), but we're not convinced.

We asked ATOC's press office what the justification was for the cost. Its representative said: "The price justifies both the development cost and the application's functionality," adding that updates, adding functions, would be free to buyers.

Posted by Anthony Dhanendran on March 17, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (6)