We reported on this a couple of weeks ago, and it looks like Cisco's new WiFi phone, the 7290, is finally out. Although it's aimed at companies with voice over IP phone systems and meant to be used on "coroporate campuses," eventually you should be able to use the 7290 anywhere there's a WiFi hotspot:

[D]own the road Cisco wants to build a virtual private networking capability into the handset so that the phone will work at public hotspots. Using a VPN lets you connect back to your corporate network over any Internet connection while encrypting the traffic to prevent eavesdroppers and network snoops from seeing your data. What it would allow in this case is the potential for the Wi-Fi network at an airport to become a connection for a Wi-Fi handset--again allowing you to make and receive calls as though you were at your desk.

6:10:27 PM     comment []     

You can finally listen to satellite radio on a PC now. XM has come out with its XM PC Receiver, which connects to a PC over USB.
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6:10:05 PM     comment []     

It's sorta like Friendster, but in the real world: electronic name tags that can store personal information and wirelessly share it with other people around you. The nTag, as it's called, has 128K of memory, a two-line display, and built-in infrared. The idea is that besides just putting your name and where you're from you could also list your hobbies or favorite movies or whatever, and so that people with similar interests could automatically find each other:

When two attendees come within 3 to 5 feet and their nTags are facing each other, information is shared between the tags, using invisible infra-red beams of light. George Eberstadt, an nTag company co-founder, says the system uses advanced software to figure out what information to show on the tags' displays. And the algorithms aren't looking for just 'matching' information, but for topics that would hopefully 'break the ice' and generate social interaction."

6:05:22 PM     comment []