Innovation rules at Singapore expo
Urip Hudiono, The Jakarta Post, Singapore
In the future, the world we know might no longer revolve around the sun, but instead, around the cellular phones that we carry around in our pockets.
That is, of course, if the cutting-edge technologies that were recently displayed at Asia's largest mobile communication technology exhibition -- the CommunicAsia 2005 -- get their way in becoming ubiquitous in our everyday lives.
With these technologies, mobile phones will be the "super gadgets" of tomorrow, as their ever-increasing embedded functionalities enable us to do almost everything -- from paying for our groceries to watching live broadcasts from across the world.
So essential will they be that our lives may well be cast into a complete disarray without them.
Even today, such a trend has already become apparent, as more and more people cannot do without their cell phones to keep in touch with each other, either through voice calls or SMS text messages.
At this year's annual CommunicAsia expo, among the hottest mobile technologies being showcased was the "FeliCa Mobile Wallet" technology from Japanese telecommunications company NTT DoCoMo.
With FeliCa, one of NTT DoCoMo's "i-mode" 3G mobile services, we can bid farewell to our wallets -- with their coins, paper bills, membership cards and credit cards -- as our cell phones will take over all of these functions.
Using a contactless technology, paying for our groceries will be as simple as swiping our cell phones over the barcodes of the items that we want to buy -- their prices being automatically deducted from our online account.
The same goes for paying fares, buying tickets, and checking in on a flight -- all within an instantly-processed swipe at an online counter, without the hassle of queuing.
In its presentation during the expo, NTT DoCoMo was upbeat that its "i-mode" services would be tomorrow's norm. Indeed, as of today, subscribers of the company's 3G service -- which it launched in 1999 -- number 43 million people in Japan alone.
NTT DoCoMo plans to spread its services throughout Asia this year, starting in Singapore, with its recent signing of a licensing scheme for the service with one of the city-state's largest telco firms, StarHub, a subsidiary of Singapore Technologies Telemedia (ST Telemedia).
Next generation 3G mobile technology was indeed the buzz at the expo, with experts agreeing that telco firms will inevitably have to adopt the technology in the future to provide better services to their customers.
Another technology on the expo's top list was WiMAX (World Interoperability for Microwave Access), a state-of-the-art wireless communication technology.
Officially called the 802.16 standard, WiMAX is an extension of the 802.11 Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) Internet connectivity technology.
Speaking at the expo, vice president of WiMax Forum's marketing working group, Mohammad Shakouri, explained that the WiMax technology would in Asia focus on complementing fixed-line broadband technology over copper wire or fiber optic lines, particularly in countries lacking such infrastructure.
"To ensure the spread in the Asia Pacific region, the Forum will soon establish a certification agency as well," he said.
Also noticeable at the expo was the upcoming trend of "camera- phones" -- the convergence of mobile phones with digital cameras -- from major mobile phone makers.
Finnish mobile phone manufacturer Nokia, for example, showcased its Nokia 6111 triband handset, which slides up into a nifty soap-bar-shaped 2-megapixel digital camera.
The Nokia 6270 quadband and 6280 3G slider handsets, meanwhile, are set to appeal to mainstream consumers with its ease-of-use interface, onboard FM radio, music player, and two onboard camera's -- one 2-megapixel and one VGA resolution.