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We need to break mobile operators' grip on device functionality
Last summer I got interested in purchasing a new mobile phone. Seeing all the new features, including cameras, ringtones, color displays, speakerphones, music players, gaming, etc., made me feel like a Luddite with my antique fiveyear-old Motorola StarTac. While this phone had served me well for its intended use-i.e., making phone calls-some of my co-workers had threatened me with an "intervention" if I didn't replace it with a shiny new one.
The new feature I got most excited about was wireless Bluetooth connectivity. I was contemplating Bluetooth in the car for hands-free phone use, and my laptop computer already has Bluetooth built in. I was looking forward to Bluetooth synchronization of address book information, the ability to dial through the mobile phone for Internet access when broadband was otherwise unavailable, and the capability to exchange music and camera phone photo files with my laptop.
Being a longtime customer of Verizon Wireless-the only operator whose signal reliably reaches inside my house ("Can you hear me now?") - I was encouraged to learn that Verizon last summer was to release its first Bluetooth-compatible phone, the Motorola V710. This phone, while relatively pricey at more than $300, promised to do everything. So I eagerly awaited it.
When the V710 finally arrived in August, imagine my surprise (and that of many others) to learn that Verizon had purposely crippled the phone's Bluelooth capability. Bluetooth has 13 different "profiles" in the Blugtooth 1.1 standard, and while Verizon made it possible to use the headset profile for hands-free phone operation, the profiles that would have permitted file transfers and synchronization were all missing or disabled.
Public reaction was swift. Disappointed Verizon customers returned their new phones during their trial period, and where they could, many Switched carriers to obtain phones with real Bluetooth functionality. There was a buzz on the blogs and message boards, and the story got picked up by general business press like Forbes. A website even raised money-a bounty - for the first software configuration or hack that would re-enable the missing Bluetooth profiles. (As far as I know, no one has succeeded.)
Some workarounds are possible. Through added expense and inconvenience, it's possible to use a USB...