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NEWS ABOUT: cell phones

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Texts, Tweets Have Roots on Typewriter

German chose character length by writing random messages

(Newser) - The man who chose text-messaging’s magic number—160 characters—did so in a decidedly low-tech way, the Los Angeles Times reports. In 1985, German Friedhelm Hillebrand typed message after random message into his typewriter, and found that 160 was “perfectly sufficient,” he said. And now sufficiency is... More »

Cell Phone Ban May Follow Mass. Trolley Crash

(AP) - The head of the Boston-area transit authority said today he'll ban all train and bus operators from even carrying cell phones on board after a trolley driver told police he was texting his girlfriend before a collision yesterday. About 50 people were hurt in the underground crash in downtown... More »

20% of Americans Drop Landline for Cell: Study

20% of households only use cell phones

(Newser) - As Americans trim their spending, more are getting rid of landlines. In the second half of last year, 20% of households had only cell phones, outnumbering for the first time the 17% who had just landlines. The 3% jump from the first half of 2008 is the largest increase since... More »

Hackers Bidding 5 Figures for Old Phone Raises Eyebrows

(Newser) - Phonemaker Nokia is flummoxed as to why hackers are offering more than $32,000 in underground forums for old handsets, NetworkWorld reports—though bank fraud is a distinct possibility. “We have not identified any phone software problem that would allow” misuse, the company said. But a 2003 model manufactured... More »

Vermont May Legalize Sexting—Between Teens

Bill moving through legislature to legalize sexually explicit teen communications

(Newser) - Vermont’s state government is in an awkward position. Current law has the state prosecuting teens who send sexually explicit pictures of themselves to each other—sexting—as sex offenders. The state Senate has passed a bill to exempt an exchange of images between people between 13 and 18 years... More »

Police Hunt Silicon Valley Phone Vandals

50K lose service in attack that highlights systems' vulnerability

(Newser) - Authorities in Silicon Valley are hunting for saboteurs who cut fiber-optic telecom cables, leaving more than 50,000 customers—including police and hospitals—in parts of three counties without phone and internet service, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Ten cables were severed, crippling 911 operations, cellphone service, and businesses depending... More »

Miley Spies on Boyfriends

Singer cops to snooping through cell phones

(Newser) - Miley Cyrus is an admitted boyfriend stalker, she tells Tyra Banks. “I go through their text messages,” says the tween phenom, who admitted she would stalk her boyfriend for a day if given the chance, People reports. She also looks for clues in the way boys treat their... More »

Subway Groper Nabbed After Victim Snaps Cell Phone Pic

(Newser) - A cell phone photo of a groper on a New York City subway snapped by his victim helped nab him two days later, according to police. He harassed a woman again yesterday and she recognized his picture from news reports and called 911, reports the New York Daily News. Turns... More »

New Google Voice Offering a 'Dutiful but Klutzy Secretary'

Features like voicemail transcription are great, but far from flawless

(Newser) - Google’s Voice feature, offered in free beta for now, bundles all your phone numbers into one “Google number,” and records, transcribes, emails, and archives voicemails, allowing you to respond via texts sent from your computer. It “has some brilliant features,” Courtney Banks writes in the... More »

Dad 'Blackmailing' Britney, Court Told

She sneaked star a secret cell phone

(Newser) - Chafing under her dad's control, Britney Spears wants to hire her own lawyer, People reports. The sister of Spears' former manager, Sam Lutfi, told an LA court yesterday that she recently sneaked the singer a cellphone so she could call Lutfi and ask for help without her father knowing. "... More »

BlackBerry Users Get an App Store

RIM hopes it'll draw more customers

(Newser) - RIM's latest effort to quench their Blackberry users' iPhone envy is an application store, the Wall Street Journal reports. The company expects about 1,000 applications to be posted at the new App World this week—still a trickle compared to Apple's 15,000. Those now available include apps for... More »

Skype Expands to iPhone, iPod Tomorrow

Internet phone service plans May Blackberry launch

(Newser) - Skype is launching service for the iPhone tomorrow, expanding its popular internet phone operation from computers to the lucrative mobile market. Users of iPhones as well as iPod Touches—which have wifi but no cell connection—will be able to make free calls to fellow Skype users and pay for... More »

Madonna's Phone Hangups Irk Boytoy Jesus

She can still take calls, though

(Newser) - Madonna has decided to let Jesus Luz use his cellphone around her—but only in emergencies. The unlikely pair had a fight when Madonna walked in on her 22-year-old beau on a family phone call, and “she told him it was rude for him to take a phone call... More »

Google Voice Buggy but Brilliant

Impressive new VoIP service could soon sideline Skype

(Newser) - Google's new VoIP service could be more of a "life-changing experience" than a mere Skype substitute, Larry Magid writes in CNET. Google Voice—currently only available to former GrandCentral users but expected to soon cause sleepless nights for the whole telecom industry—offers users a single number to which... More »

Battery Breakthrough Could Recharge Phones in Seconds

Scientists believe super-fast ion transfer will let technology charge ahead

(Newser) - MIT scientists have developed new battery technology that could potentially recharge a cell phone in seconds and an electric car in minutes, the Boston Globe reports. The researchers, who say the breakthrough could revolutionize technology and even lifestyles, have created a coating that speeds the transfer of ions into and... More »

Spokane School Jams Cells During Class

District consulting with FCC on legality of jamming

(Newser) - Students in Spokane, Wash. couldn't could call or text during class for 3 whole days, KHQ-TV reports. A school there recently tested a cell phone jammer to get kids focused on academics, but admitted the move may not be legal. They're checking with the FCC. "We just thought it... More »

'Twitter Rescue' Fails Snowboarding Music Man

Twitter leads to two men missing in Alps whiteout, one dead

(Newser) - The first-ever "Twitter rescue" saved the life of a snowboarder in the Swiss Alps, but failed a 29-year-old British music entrepreneur whose body was found at the foot of a 66-foot cliff, reports the Daily Telegraph. Cheery "tweets" from a female companion noting "am having the best... More »

Free Market Rings Up 4B Cell Phones Worldwide

6 in 10 connected, thanks to private biz

(Newser) - The global explosion in cell phone use is a timely reminder of what free markets can achieve, David A. Gross writes in the Christian Science Monitor. There are now more than 4 billion mobile connections worldwide, two-thirds of them in developing countries, according to a new UN report. This leap... More »

Universal Phone Charger Coming

(Newser) - This should make it easier to charge your phone: Most of the big players in the industry said today they will work toward a universal charger by 2012, Wired reports. That means a standard USB cable will do the trick, no matter the brand. However, Wired notes one notable absence... More »

Microsoft Muscles Into Cell Market With New OS

Firm will offer Windows Mobile on 50 smartphones

(Newser) - Microsoft is pushing deeper into the cellphone market with a deal to put a new operating system on 50 LG smartphones, the New York Times reports. The company unveiled a more user-friendly OS—"We were dinged for not having a friendly consumer interface," an exec says—and... More »

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