Read this post in Urdu Have you heard the one about the Norwegian, the Arab and the Chinaman? Unlike the many fables of the Englishman, Irishman and Scot, this one hits closer to home and includes special mention of a confused “American-Pakistani turned Egyptian-Pakistani turned Russian-Egyptian-Pakistani” and a Pakistani-Emirati. Now the tale could begin with the customary “Once upon a time” line, but that would [...]

Having remained a topic of discussion for a few years now, 3G continues to provide enough fodder for many in-depth debates within Pakistan’s telecommunication industry. Briefings to the President and Prime Minister to showcase the dependence of growth within the industry, and possibly the country, with the licensing of extra bandwidth to cellular service providers have fueled the prediction workshop. Many are wondering when and [...]

Around 2025, a new book on the history of the world will be written to include the Information Age as a changing time in human development. There is little doubt that leading the pack of revolutionaries on the list will be the man who co-founded the fruity icon in 1976, and returned in 1997 to revive and take the company to stratospheric heights; Steve Jobs. [...]

As each day passes, smartphone manufacturers aim to one-up each other with some form of innovation or litigation. This arena of communication remains a dominant battleground for major corporations, and with Apple leading the front, old players have had to hone their proactive skills. On the OS front, Google’s Android has used the power of multiple manufacturers to take a stranglehold of the market. However, [...]

A few years ago, a report in Newsweek analyzed Pakistan to have the largest WiMAX footprint in the world. This was the era of the Wateen push, with its devices landing in every nook and corner of the nation. PTCL jumped on the bandwagon, as did other smaller operators like WorldCall. Then it was wi-tribe, Qubee and Infinity, making the nation an army of wireless [...]

Another month goes by and the debate over the sale of 3G licenses gets a headline. For a country that led the region in terms of GSM implementation, we have taken our usual approach to life by settling into a silo and remaining comfortable with what is there. Across the border, 3G will celebrate a year of operation by the time the clock strikes 2011 [...]

Malaysia played host to a two day conference and workshop program called ‘Mobile Data 2011’ on 19 July. Organized by the International Quality & Productivity Center, the discussion at the heart of the conference was the innovative approaches and drivers in practice by various operators across South East Asia in enhancing data usage on the mobile platform. Pakistan, for one reason or another, gets classified [...]

The common phrase is ‘too little, too late’. In the smartphone world, this appears to be the key facet when assessing any device. From the looks to the features, each aspect has become a mini battleground. But the actual war is not of hardware; it’s the software oiling the chips and giving users an experience, instead of convenience. And on this end it is Apps [...]

The unprecedented popularity of smartphones caught everyone by surprise; from the handset makers to the giants of the technology world. While mobile communication possessed the potential of being the next ‘big thing’ for a long time, it was only the last decade which brought a sharp spike in consumer interest for devices and services across the world. The basic premise of mobile communication remained its [...]

The spring of change in the Middle East appears to have followed through in the smartphone arena, according to Japanese market analysis firm Nomura. The 15 year reign of Nokia seems to be on its last legs, as sales forecasts predict it being dethroned in worrying fashion. According to the numbers crunched by Nomura, Samsung will become the world’s largest smartphone maker in the coming [...]

It was three years ago that the American retail market experienced a change designed to drive more attention to the small businesses: the entrance of Groupon, a web-based company collaborating with the retailers to offer consumers discounts on various products. The timing suited all players in light of the financial crunch and rising unemployment. For all those who follow the business world, the recent announcement [...]

To make websites more interesting, make them interactive, there is no further pleasure than having some control over the content in some manner, be it playing around with a logo. Google’s tradition of incorporating variants of form for their logo has evolved in recent times, with the company bringing human interaction components to give the web populace some fun, even at the workplace while researching [...]

The local cellular industry seems filled with ‘Oohs’ and ‘Aaahs’, thanks to beautifully crafted advertisements. Each week the consumer finds a new jingle, with value of usage costs as cheap as candy, or at least how cheap candy used to be back in the day. In fact, the words ‘unlimited’ and ‘free’ have become the common catchphrase for each cellco to push its old product [...]