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So I’m making this post directly through an iPhone application that was just released today. The photo (if this worked) is the view of downtown from my office.

Did it work alright? Who knows… Who really cares eh?

For quite some time I’ve been looking and pondering over the best solution to get my music playing on my computer throughout my house and away from my PC speakers.  I’ve looked at the SqueezeBox (by Logitech) and the SoundBridge (by Roku) for a while now…  They are both very cool devices, but they cost more than I wanted to pay and did things that I didn’t really need/want.

Since the 2.0 firmware came out for the iPhone and the “Remote” application that Apple released that allows you to remotely (and quite beautifully) control your desktop iTunes, I’ve re-looked at how to get my music to play through my surround sound system in my front room, or through my TV in my bedroom.

Enter Apple’s Airport Express.  It’s $99 and works beautifully.  It behaves just like a wireless access point, but it’s got this simple audio out jack that will let you plug any set of powered speakers or speaker system into it.

It was so simple to set up and use it actually took me a long time to do it because I just assumed it’d be like setting up any other Windows/PC based wireless access device.

Anyhow… here’s what you need for it to work. 

• Wireless router (if you have the Internet at your house, then you most likely already have a router… if it’s not wireless, then you can spend $50 to get a wireless router instead).
• Airport Express
• 3.5 mm to RCA (red/white) audio cable (like $10)

Now where I currently live, I can spit from one side of my place to the other but that’s besides the point!  If I ever have to move back into my condo up north (where there’s three stories) then this will work even more brilliantly.  I can now (from my iPhone) walk around my place and have my music playing in every room.  I can turn any individual room on/off (all on the fly and all from my pretty little iPhone).  I can change tracks, adjust the volume, everything… 

Maybe I’m just enamored by the novelty of it all, but it’s like the coolest thing ever.

When analog TV converts to all digital in less than a year portions of the wireless spectrum will become available.  As such, the FCC just concluded an auction of this spectrum (the most valuable portion referred to as the 700 MHz C-Block) with Verizon being the big winner, and AT&T being the second in bragging rights.

Verizon paid nearly $10 billion for the largest piece of the pie and just released their plans to use it…

Below is their footprint/penetration prior to auction…

Here is what their footprint/penetration is POST auction…

Both Verizon and AT&T have announced plans for “open access” to their networks (which was also a requirement brought to the table by Google and forced by the FCC) which means that you’ll likely see many more very cool handsets.  Verizon has traditionally been the worst at allowing/preventing unlocked handsets to access their network.  That will all change by 2010 when their 4G (LTE, Long Term Evolution, supported by GSM governing body) network rolls out based on this new spectrum acquisition. 

No longer will you be tied to a specific provider because you want a specific phone/device.  You’ll see a lot more sophisticated gadgets which can connect to these new networks coming to the market.  In Asia their mobile handsets are much more advanced than ours because they aren’t restricted to getting the support of a service provider PRIOR to hardware manufacturing due in large part to a global wireless standard/protocol (GSM) which allows any handset to work with any service provider.

With wireless penetration like this, ambient devices which rely on always on, always connected technology will proliferate.  GPS and location based devices and applications will dominate the marketplace.  Imagine Internet connected cars able to stream your music from your home PC to your mobile handset… to your office computer… without interruption.  Internet connected cars which will alert you when you come within a barrier or trigger of 1 mile of the least priced fueling station… or your favorite ice cream is on sale at the grocery store you’re driving towards, or there’s a coupon for happy hour at a restaurant you’re approaching…  When everything can be connected, the possibilities are endless for what can be broadcast and received by anyone, anywhere, at any time.

The Department of Justice, Antitrust division, after a YEAR, finally released a statement that they find no objection to the merger of the only two satellite radio companies.  It’s now up to the FCC to approve.  This has been a huge challenge since they announced plans to merge a year ago.  Terrestrial radio lobbyists are tremendously threatened and have tried to strong-arm legislation to prevent this from occurring. 

The merger should be approved, for sure.  Neither company will survive alone and if they aren’t allowed to merge, one will cease to exist and there will only be one left anyhow.  I have Sirius and love it… I haven’t listened to terrestrial radio in about a decade anyhow.  90% of the time I listen to CDs in my car, the other 10% is with Sirius.  I don’t know who would put up with 20 minute blocks of commercials on the radio anymore.  Who cares that it’s “free”

Doubt anyone really follows this but the FCC is auctioning off the last available piece of wireless spectrum.  Why it is relevant to everyone is because Google lobbied hard to get the FCC to adopt “open access” requirements to how this spectrum is used by the winning bidder.

“Open Access” would mean that the owner of the spectrum would have to allow any device at any time access to their network or likely Internet  (at wholesale pricing).  The FCC auction price must reach $4.7 billion to adhere to the rules outlined for “Open Access”.  It’s currently at $4.29 billion so it looks like it’ll make it.

It’s a closed auction so no one knows who the bidders are (to prevent collusion) but I imagine Google is forcing the price up.  Speculation says Google want’s the open access requirements but doesn’t really want to own the spectrum as that’s really not their cup-of-tea… hard infrastructure.

Anyhow… what this could potentially mean if Google wins and builds out an infrastructure is a rapid deployment of Wi-Fi across the nation at a cost to consumers of nothing or next to nothing.

If metropolitan areas are suddenly blanketed with Wi-Fi and I can go from my house to my work without an interruption in connectivity… that means handheld wi-fi devices will replace mobile phones.  Apple already makes one, it’s called the iPod Touch.  Come February when Apple allows native apps to run on their devices, expect a widget from Skype.  If I can run Skype on my iPod Touch then I can make phone calls for nothing, or next to nothing.  This whole concept threatens the very infrastructure of mobile phone operators.  They’ve spent hundreds of billions of dollars on cellular tower based infrastructure and Google stepping in and getting the FCC to adopt “open access” requirements and/or becoming the owner of the spectrum. 

I dunno… I’m ill informed for sure, but I see this as fundamentally changing the landscape.  (In February 2009 that is, when the spectrum is abandoned).  Google’s Android initiative, Open Social… everything… it all points to the ubiquitous access and portability of information. 

Admittedly I’m not well versed on the battle, but if the news of today and and article from a few days ago are any indication I think the format war is all but over… or at least will begin a rapid unraveling soon.

A guest blogger for c|net recently wrote a post about his “roadmap for ending the high-def format” wars…  Whether you agree with him or not (he’s advocating a roadmap to get Blu-Ray to win) if his statistics are/were true then HD-DVD lost.

In the article he says that Blu-Ray has roughly 49% market share.  Market share is defined as studios which release DVDs I imagine.  HD-DVD is seeing a more widespread adoption from consumers because hardware and DVDs themselves are priced well below that of Blu-Ray.  Had things continued, you’d see more and more studios who saw that consumers were buying HD-DVD and therefore many which support both formats would defect to the ones that are lining their pockets with money and not dead weight.

P.S. This format war has nothing to do with how superior one format is over the other.  That fact is pointless.  It’s only about the benjamin’s. 

Anyhow… Warner Brothers announced today that while they have previously straddled the fence in the format war supporting BOTH standards, they will now be in the Blu-Ray camp exclusively come Q2 of 2008.

Again, going back to the blog article.  The “roadmap” cited the suggestion a week ago that the Blu-Ray camp (i.e. Sony) court Warner Brothers to get them exclusively to their side which would put the market share of studios who release DVDs on Blu-Ray at 70%.  Since Warner Brothers announced today they’ll be doing just that it seems just a matter of time before those who straddle or exclusively support the HD-DVD format will switch sides.

So what to do?  Nothing.  I have an HD-DVD player but likely won’t buy Blu-Ray for a very long time, if ever.  Watch CES over the next few weeks for products which will support the recently ratified UWB (Ultra Wide Band) wireless frequency.  By this time next year, Internet, cable, PVR and set-top box high-def delivery will be the vehicle of choice.  Netflix just announced they’re working with LG for a set-top box to deliver movies.  Cox Communication will soon support VOD services and Verizon will push out FIOS (uber-high speed Internet) in more markets so that Internet delivery of High Definition programming will be the de-facto standard, not a paltry DVD player.  Just my ill-informed two-cents.

Before all the good ones are gone…  (Make sure you sign-out of all Microsoft stuff first)  Get your account now.

Not that you need need another email account and not that I have any belief Microsoft’s “live” concept will go anywhere (cause it’s highly likely it won’t) but it’s good to claim your name, right?

Give this random phrase a search on Google “if i live in tolleson what should be my private phone call number”….  My site comes up as the very first result.  How random is that?  I don’t expect many people to read these ramblings… its more a way for me to organize my own thoughts than anything else, but the people that DO find it (and aren’t doing it on purpose) seem to come from some odd connections.  55% of traffic is from referring or search engine results, 51% of those who stumble upon it, its their first and last visit… inhabitants from 24 countries have happened upon it, average time on the site is 3 minutes 58 seconds (seems wayyyy too long), 4pm is when most people hit it, and on and on.  Night night.

In a clear indication that there is something to loose, Verizon Wireless files suit over the open-access standards in the upcoming 700mhz spectrum auction.  Considering that the top four carriers hold a collective market share of roughly 85% and 200 million subscribers, they should be nervous about any open-access standards.  Verizon’s legal counsel drummed up the following choice ramblings saying that the open access standards proposed by the FCC;

“Violates the U.S. Constitution, violates the Administrative Procedures Act … and is arbitrary, capricious, unsupported by the substantial evidence and otherwise contrary to law.”