Tag: bandwidth

And over here, a voluntary tax on your smartphone apps

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I’m looking at the Verizon announcement that you can “boost” the bandwidth used by your smartphone’s applications with a mix of amazement at a crazy idea (Ben Smith covers this bit far better than I could), but I’m also nodding in an evil Leonardo Leonardo way at the finances. With the rise of smartphone applications, the network portals have been sidestepped by a significant proportion of users, with the income going to the developer and the handset app stores. It now appears Verizon have a funky way of adding a voluntary user tax to the app experience. Well played, Clerks…

The Fringe by the numbers, for Saturday 20th August

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Podcast sites which needed a lot more bandwidth because it was too popular: Just the one, but it was my one! Tricks that I’ve seen Ian Kendall do before: 9. Tricks where it doesn’t matter that I’ve seen Ian Kendall do before because it’s a great show: 9. Moments where an interview threatened to turn into a rowdy edition of Question Time: 1. And that was Saturday at the Fringe!

Google Maps now lets you pre-load data to save on data charges.

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Finally! Although it’s only in the early stages (hence being a Lab product) Google Maps on Android will allow you to download map data for local caching in advance. …while you still have access to WiFi or data coverage, you can open up any Places page in the world, click “More” to get the Place page menu, and download Google’s maps for a 10-mile radius. This download stores only the base map tiles and the landmarks on the map, so you still need a data connection to see satellite view and 3D buildings, search for Places and get directions. It’s