Network coverage in the UK has never been uniform across the country. There have always been gaps where the signal is weak or non existent. To assess this, the BBC has decided to conduct its own survey with the help of an Android application. The reasoning behind this is to get an accurate and independent map of the situation. Each network has its own maps, but there is no single independent survey.

As with all surveys carried out by the BBC the broadcaster wants as many people as possible to help.
The application was developed by Epitiro, a network analyst organisation, and it can be downloaded from the Android Market. It maps the signal strength in the local area from street level.

Speaking with knowyourmobile.com, the Chief Executive Officer of Epitiro said: “Our coverage app will provide the information consumers need to see if 3G services are available and from which mobile operator. As mobile broadband is important to many of us, we hope people volunteer and make the project a success.”

The major problem with the current situation is that it is generally impossible to find out whether a particular road or district has a decent signal. While a general area may be mapped as being strong, there could be pockets where the signal is weak or is lost completely. Ofcom agrees, and is supporting the BBC project. A spokesperson for the regulator said that more information is needed so that operators can be compared and consumers are able to make informed choices.

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No, the Apple iPad itself isn’t on trial. Well, not exactly. What the BBC is trialling are new ways to eliminate paper waste, increase efficiency, and eliminate the dependency on desktop machines when working remotely. The tablet – specifically the iPad – is one of the first in line to be considered as a possible solution.

To test the idea, employees within the BBC’s production, location, and technical departments have been given an iPad and asked to use it when they are working away from their desks. If successful, use of the iPad (or another tablet device) will not only decrease the amount of paper used, thus further facilitating an eco-friendly workplace, it will also increase productivity by facilitating away-from-office work and decreasing dependence on desktop computers.

The first news on the idea came when BBC CIO John Linwood said in an interview with Computing Magazine, “If a support engineer gets called into a studio, it would be handy to have a [iPad] device where you could look up circuit diagrams or software help files.”

While the iPad is the primary device in the BBC trials limelight, a spokesperson for BBC confirms that there are other tablets being tested. In the end, if the tablet trials come to a successful conclusion, which type of tablet chosen will depend upon BBC’s ultimate goals; do they go with the iPad for creativity and simplicity or is a Windows 7 device preferable for supporting external storage and providing the user experience more of their staff are accustomed to?

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Despite the recent problems and bad publicity surrounding Apple’s new iPhone 4, the BBC has woken up to the fact that the handset is a potential money spinner.

The broadcaster has produced a new news application which both iPhone and iPad users can download. It will be available on other platforms at a later date.

Speaking with mobilenews.omio.com David Madden, the BBC’s application director said: “[the BBC} aim[s] to put the latest news from BBC journos into the palm of your hand.”

The application itself comprises news from the world of Business, Health, Politics, Education, Technology, Science and Environment and Entertainment as well as top UK and International stories. It will also cover features and analysis from correspondents around the world.

The application will allow users to skim through the headlines without having to read everything that’s sent to the handset. They can also pass on anything read to their favourite social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook or just the items via email.

Although BlackBerry and Android users may be feeling a little left out, the BBC has assured mobilenews.omio.com that it is only a matter of time before they too will be offered the application.

However BlackBerry 4.3 users can download a number of launcher applications giving access to BBC News, BBC Sport and BBC Mobile websites. You can get these from BBC website initially with the apps being uploaded to BlackBerry App World over the coming weeks.

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The BBC was due to launch two new sports and news applications for download to Apple iPhones, however the BBC Trust has asked for a delay.

The reason: a market assessment. It seems representatives form the media industry suggested that allowing the go ahead would distort the market.

In an interview with the Daily Telegraph, Eric Huggers, the BBC director of Future Media & Technology believes the Corporation shouldn’t delay the launch. He said: “I think, from my point of view, the BBC wouldn’t have been as bullish as it was about the developments of these apps if it didn’t think they were within the remit of the corporation.

“I look at it from the consumer’s point of view – when using a small form factor, like a mobile phone screen, a browser is not the best way to display information – whereas apps work much better and have created a new user paradigm. The BBC has always over the last 10 years repurposed the same content to suit different devices in the best way. This is no different.”

A spokesman for the BBC Trust did emphasise that a decision will be made within weeks and not months.

David Newell, director of the NPA (Newspaper Publishers Association), told the Telegraph: “It is vital that these proposals are scrutinised properly to avoid any adverse impact on commercial media organisations.

“We are pleased that the BBC Trust has listened to the industry’s concerns and acted to delay the planned April launch.

“We hope this will enable a thorough assessment to be undertaken.”

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If you’ve ever been irritated beyond belief by people using mobile phones to chat incessantly on buses, trains or even in the cinema, your annoyance could soon become a thing of the past. A German company claims to be in the process of inventing new technology that will allow customers to use their mobile phones to talk to their friends and relatives without making a sound – by lip reading.

Unveiled at German electronics fair Cebit, the device uses the measurement of electrical signals produced by mouth muscles during speech to sense what a person is saying – even if they’re not saying it aloud – and then transmit a synthesized version of the speech to the person on the other end of the conversation.

Professor Tanje Schultz of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology told BBC News that she was inspired to come up with the idea by her own irritation at people’s use of mobile phones on public transport. “I was taking the train and the person sitting next to me was constantly chatting,” she says. “I thought, “I need to change this”.”

Electromyography is the system used for the technology, which is still in its basic state – requiring nine electrodes to be stuck to the face of the user – but Schultz believes it could ultimately end up in mass use via mobile phones. Electromyography is currently used in the diagnosis of nerve damage, though if the technology can be sufficiently refined, it could also assist in the process of instant translation, those who have lost their voice… and make those train journeys a whole lot quieter.

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Have you ever been irritated by someone sitting next to you on a train or bus by constantly chatting on their mobile? If so, there could be a solution on the way.

New technology being developed in Germany could make the silent conversation a reality, with a handset being able to lip read.

Seemingly, the device works by measuring the electrical signals produced by the muscles used for speech. Known as the Cebit, the device uses electromyography, a technique normally used to diagnose nerve damage. When used in this way it requires nine electrodes to be stuck to the user’s face.

However, by adapting this technology to mobile phones, Professor Tanja Shultz of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology hopes to develop a new type of handset that allows users to have a conversation without irritating other people around them.

In an interview with the BBC, Professor Shultz said: “I was taking the train and the person sitting next to me was constantly chatting and I thought ‘I need to change this’.”

The research to date looks promising as researchers have been able to use the new device  which can record what a person is saying, even when a people is not speaking but just mouthing the words .

While the initial idea came as a result of a normal everyday occurrence, the technology could have wider implications This could include helping people who have lost their voices to immediate language translation of a conversation.

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