Oftel names and shames the telcos

Oftel has published a complaints charts for the fixed line, mobile and broadband providers. An Oftel spokesperson said that the regulator's consumer representation section makes a record of each complaint and can help direct them to the right people. He said they regularly meet with companies to see how they are dealing with any issues, too. ...more

Bluetooth technology ready for the big time

It's been a long time coming, but analysts at the In-Stat/MDR research group predict Bluetooth is about to explode onto the mainstream market, with shipments of devices offering the wireless technology rocketing 60 per cent every year to more tha 700 million by 2008. 'Most of the end-use markets for this technology seem to be making significant headway,' said Joyce Putscher, Director of the high-tech market research firm's Converging Markets and Technologies Group. In particular, ever more mobile phones are integrating the technology along with accessories such as wireless headets. ...more

Intel, ATI adopt Apple standards

Intel and ATI today jointly announced their support for IEEE 1394, better known as FireWire, as the standard for 'multimedia device connection to the personal computer'. Intel's decision to embrace 1394 comes as something of a surprise, as it is a mainstay of USB. Though USB - at 12Mb/sec - is too slow to match FireWire's 400Mb/sec for the moving of high-bandwidth data such as video, USB 2. ...more

Google readying PayPal rival

Google is to start an online payment service to rival PayPal, according to reports. The New York Times (NYT) says it has heard from an online retailer claiming to have been approached by Google to participate in the scheme. It also claims another industry insider reported having heard of such a service under the moniker Google Wallet. ...more

FWB ditches SoftWindows

The PC emulation package SoftWindows 98 has been discontinued by its developer, FWB. It seems the software has been unable to compete successfully with the Virtual PC system. FWB will continue to develop Real PC. ...more