Wee-Fi: Your Brain on Wi-Fi; Zipit Offers Free SMS; Wi-Fi Alliance Model Trade Group

Cell phones interfere with brain waves? I often write about studies that show no connection between electromagnetic radiation and health, so it’s only fair I highlight credible ones that suggest a connection. In what appears to be two well-conducted and well-controlled studies, cell phones appeared to affect alpha waves (related to one’s focus on external v. internal stimulus and sleep), and delta waves (related to deep sleep). While no particular health result was measured, both studies, Scientific American explains, demonstrate a connection between EMF and mental behavior.

Zipit gives away text messaging for a year, changes prices, options: The Zipit Wireless Messenger 2 (Z2) was introduced in Dec. 2007 with a number of interesting features for a messaging appliance targeted at teens—and their fretting parents. With no Web portal, the $150 device included unlimited Wi-Fi on Wayport’s McDonald’s network (now nearly 10,000 locations), and support for popular IM clients. It also included SMS with major cell carries, charging $5 per month for 1,500 incoming and 1,500 outgoing messages. Uptake must have been poor, as the manufacturer announced today that purchases until 31-July-2008 would include a year of free text messages. The company also modified its plan without noting that fact, increasing messages to a “reasonable personal usage” of 5,000 incoming and 5,000 outgoing messages per month. There are no overage charges. The service will now cost $30 per year instead of $5 per month for new purchasers starting 1-August-2008. That’s a 50-percent price reduction (over $5 times 12), but it’s often much cheaper to bill annually in advance.

Wi-Fi Alliance cited in WSJ as model for multipartner alliance: An interesting analysis in the Wall Street Journal’s Business Insight section points to the Wi-Fi Alliance standards based, no-company-on-top approach as one that led it to win out through both technology and organization over other standards that might have taken precedence. I’ve been stunned over the years how a group that has a board comprised of the most powerful and competitive interests in this market segment, and which has hundreds of much smaller members, has managed to keep alive the notion of interoperability for the greater good of the industry and customers. 802.11n’s long delay certainly threatened harmony—especially with some ugly proprietary slap-ons to 802.11g—but the alliance continues to keep the technology in equilibrium, while still allowing individual companies to differentiate their products with little difficulty.

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