Last week’s announcement of AT&T buying long term partner Wayport for $275 million cash illustrates the increased strategic role of Wi-Fi for service providers as they push out media-centric services to users.  With today’s robust Smartphone market and increasing consumer data usage, carriers are looking for way to offset huge cellular investments and pushing out longer term 4G deployments like LTE and WiMax.  Wi-Fi can provide excellent coverage indoors and in congested areas as a complement to cellular, at a lower cost of carriage.  Moreover, Wi-Fi provides a high-performance, low cost network connection for many different types of device and applications.

Much like the AT&T acquisition is a solid proof point to the co-existence of 3G and Wi-Fi, Devicescape has also experienced increasing consumer and OEM demand for Wi-Fi on handsets.  As more and more service providers embrace Wi-Fi in their strategies, the requirements are flowing down to handset vendors to integrate Wi-Fi and supply devices with both types of radios.  Importantly, the Wi-Fi has to be extremely easy to use and integrate tightly with the operators networks, as well as the traditional Wi-Fi locations of home and office.

This is all happening at a great time for Devicescape!  Our Easy Wi-Fi for the iPhone has been available for a few weeks at the iTunes App Store, and is generating a lot of interest among service providers and handset vendors.  The application has held the number 1 position for several weeks as the most popular paid Wi-Fi application at the store.  We’re seeing demand for versions of Easy Wi-Fi which integrate with one operator network exclusively, simplifying use for those users who only care about fast access to one network.

Yesterday AT&T finally announced the free Wi-Fi access for their iPhone customers in the US. That opens up the Wi-Fi networks in Starbucks, McDonald’s and many other places to iPhone users, giving them high speed access from their phones while they sip coffee or enjoy a their lunch. Using Wi-Fi is much better than EDGE (as those of us with first generation iPhones, or who live in areas that don’t yet have 3G coverage can confirm), but it is also usually faster and more reliable than the 3G network as long as you have a strong signal.

Unfortunately, the official AT&T way to get this free access involves jumping through hoops each time you want to connect in a new location. Assuming you have the attwifi SSID already in your preferred networks list (i.e. you’ve connected to it once before, and not told the iPhone to forget the network), then you will need to do this:

1. Fire up mobile Safari and load a page so that you get the special iPhone captive portal page.
2. Enter your 10-digit mobile number and check the box to agree to the Acceptable Use Policy. Tap ‘continue’.
3. Wait for a (free) text message from AT&T containing a link that is only valid at your current location for 24 hours.
4. Switch to the SMS app, and view the link in the text message from AT&T (which will close the SMS app and take you back to Mobile Safari.

That’s a lot of steps just to get some Wi-Fi access! Luckily, Devicescape’s Easy Wi-Fi knows how to get you online using your phone number too. For a simple one-time setup, you get much faster access to the AT&T network:

1. Install the app, tap the ‘My Wi-Fi’ tab to get to the Wi-Fi accounts panel, tap ‘+’ to open the search.
2. Search for iPhone.
3. Choose ‘AT&T Wi-Fi (iPhone)’ from the results and enter your ten digit phone number.

Now, each time you want Wi-Fi at an AT&T location, simply tap the Easy Wi-Fi icon on the iPhone and you’ll be logged in within a few seconds in most cases. No need for SMS messages, no need to enter your phone number each time.

If you have an iPod touch too, then sign up for a Devicescape account, register both devices to it and you can use your iPod touch instead of your iPhone when you’re in the hotspot, leaving your phone free for making calls while you surf (just remember that you can’t connect both at the same time - the accounts only allow a single device to be logged in at a time, and even after logging out on the AT&T network it can take up to 15 minutes for them to allow a different device to get online using the same user name & password).

Hello Everyone,

Those of you with mulitple devices using Devicescape may have noted some inconsistency in our naming convention.  When we first started with the Devicescape automated login product we wanted simply to have the product and the company name be completely consistent.  Hence, “welcome to Devicescape” and “Download Devicescape onto your device”, etc.

Unfortunately we faced naming issues, first on the Nokia devices and next on the iPhone, and ended up deciding to use the “Easy Wi-Fi” product name for those platforms.  Now, with the Easy Wi-Fi application the most popular WiFi app on the Apple App Store (!) and just about every Nokia N and E series phone showing “Easy Wi-Fi” we’ve decided to rationalize all of our products under this name.

It’ll take a month or so to make it through all of our clients and web site, but expect to see Easy Wi-Fi being the consistent name.  Hope you like it!

So, while we’re on this topic, we made a few other changes too.  In line with this mission of making Wi-Fi, well, easy, we’ve decided to consolidate all of our various technologies into one product.  We haven’t yet released it, but this 3.0 version of Devicescape is primarily targeted at our OEM customers: the makers of PCs, handsets and new WiFi capable devices (that’s when the bulk of Devicescape’s business comes from).

We feel that mobility is critical for these types of products, and WiFi will be used in the office, at home, and of course at public networks.  Therefore, our OEM version of Easy Wi-Fi, version 3, will include:

* Our enterprise-class security supplicant
* Optional Cisco CCX support
* Our home consumer oriented, “push-button” Wi-FI Protected Setup
* The automated hotspot login and provisioning system
* A framework to allow integration into the device’s connection manager

There are a bunch of other great enhancements we are making in 3.0, but we’ll disclose those later.

I’m excited to announce the availability of Devicescape for iPhone and iPod Touch on Apple’s App Store.  Thanks to all of our users out there who have been so patient: it took us a lot longer than we thought to figure out how to make this release!

As you can see in this screen shot, the new version looks quite a bit different.  Because of Apple’s current limitations on running in the background you need to launch the app to login.  But you can manage your account and check your usage history directly, which I think is quite handy.

If you’d like to check out the application, search for “Easy WiFi” on iTunes  or download it directly from the App Store.

Wanted to keep you all posted that we’re working hard on an official release of Devicescape for Apple’s App Store.  All being well this will make it out there in the very near future.  The exact acceptance process and timeline is a little bit unclear.

I’m very excited about the new application as it’s much improved, with plenty of handy new features which improve usability.  The team here has done a very nice job.  The current limitations of Apple’s SDK don’t allow us to work in the background so you need to start the application and hit “login”.  Still, that’s a lot nicer than wrangling with Safari and tedious login pages.

Many thanks to the hundreds of thousands of you with the current “hacked” version, for your enthusiasm and patience.   Watch this space!

If you haven’t been swept away by the flash flood of green tech and green groups sprouting up these days, you must be living under a rock. Everywhere I turn, there is a new green company and a new green trend. Just last week at the Connections Digital Living Conference, a company that shared the stage with us was successfully touting it’s eponymous Green Plug technology. That same week I was invited by Premier Power to a party at a green bar, the Temple, where, according to the invite…”Green is Glamorous.”

Is it a bubble? Almost certainly there are bubblicious aspects to what has been happening - lots of money flowing into an unproven and low P/E industry, but greener technology is an essential ingredient in the future of technology if not the future of the entire planet.

I’ve heard some great ideas - and my favorites so far are the ones that are simplest. Easier ways to recycle. Solar powered NOCs. Universal plugs for devices and gadgets that save waste (and the amount of weight I have to pack when I travel). Solar powered device chargers. Solar powered Wi-Fi access points. And just so I don’t focus exclusively on a theme of devices and Wi-Fi here - I must admit to be a fan of the green bar

Here’s a short list of companies and blogs I consider worthy of your consideration:

Green Wi-Fi
Solio
Premier Power
Temple
Vertography
Green Plug

Check these out and let me know your favorites too.

All this week, at the Connections Digital Living conference we’ve heard about how seamless connectivity is de rigeur for making digital living in the home and on the go a reality. Phil McKinney from HP projected that this would be ubiquitous by 2010 - and I suggested that Devicescape had a way to get us there.

The attached connections-digital-living-devicescape presentation, given on stage at the conference yesterday by Simon Wynn, VP Products at Devicescape, goes into more details of our role in making access seamless - and driving value for you.

Devicescape is showcasing our technologies this week at the Connections Digital Living Conference in Santa Clara, CA. This is a great location for us, since nearly ever session, at some point, discusses how essential “seamless connectivity” is to growing the digital living business - and hey - this is what we do.

Yesterday, we announced our essential role in enabling seamless connectivity and how we are constantly advancing our technology to improve ease of use and access for consumers. Access to services on the internet is the driving force behind device uptake - but what is holding growth of this industry back is that access is still too hard.

In the home, people need one touch set up. In the office, secure and fast connections. On the go - access everywhere. In essence, people want magic in the background - everywhere they go for everything they do.

That’s a tall order - but we’re working on it. And with our partners and all the big brains like these with us here at this conference, we’ll be getting there soon.

Are you connected? Do you stay connected to the internet, your work, family and friends via your laptop, mobile phone or iPod touch? Do you watch digital TV? I bet you do – and about 1000 people in Santa Clara today bet you partake of this digital life and will do more of the same in the very near future. In addition, analysts and industry pundits here at the Connections Digital Living Conference predict that you will be joined in your digital life by many, many more people.

While predictions are flying and new technologies being celebrated and bandied about –one thing from day one of this show sticks with me:

Phil McKinney, VP and CTO of the Personal Systems Group at HP predicts that by the year 2010 consumer and business alike will expect and demand seamless access from all their devices. Phil talked for a while about how consumers will demand the “perception” of always-on connectivity.

Imagine if you really could get connected to the internet as easy as dialing your cell phone. Imagine that information and data was able to easily stream back and forth between you and whatever internet site held the key to your desire of the moment – wherever you go. How much more could you do in a day? This could touch every aspect of life: work life, home life and even your leisure.

The Valhalla of always on is definitely not with us yet. There are still islands of Wi-Fi, GSM is still too expensive and getting connected is still to hard – but things are getting better all the time. Here at Devicescape, we’ve long been an advocate of seamless connectivity. Getting connected – especially when you are on the go – is just too damn hard. This holds us back. Not only the business of devices, services and operators – but as consumers. We’ve made some improvements already by bringing our Devicescape Connect solution to you. Now you can get quickly and easily connected at work, home and hotspots worldwide.

But more advances are needed - and more advances are coming…stay tuned and stay connected.

One of the things that always frustrates me when I travel is the high cost of Internet access, especially at hotels. Oddly enough, it seems to be the premium hotels that charge extra for access, while the lower end chains give it away for free. I checked into a hotel near Heathrow Airport in London a few weeks ago and noticed that they had an “Executive Upgrade” which included Wi-Fi access and breakfast for $20. When I asked about the costs for Wi-Fi alone they told me it was $30. I guess the thinking there was that executives would be so dumb they’d need big help figuring out which one to choose!

Anyway, I went with the upgrade, but amazingly they warned me that I likely wouldn’t be able to actually access Wi-Fi from my room but I could certainly use it in the lobby. Now that’s great service. At least breakfast was ok.

It’s long been a bone of contention for many road warriors to pay high access fees when traveling. The all you can eat cellular data and Wi-Fi plans we have enjoyed at home suddenly rack up enormous roaming fees, and we encounter high price “session islands” like these hotels. Most of the time you don’t need access for long periods of time: just a quick sync of email, a VoIP call to the office or home, or wrangling with your flight operator’s website for non existent upgrades. To pay $10, $20, or $30 for that privilege is just plain maddening.

Recently Devicescape started a field trial of a new service we’re calling Devicescape One. It allows you to get access at a wide range of commercial Wi-Fi networks and pay by the minute. Devicescape One isn’t meant to replace your existing subscriptions or change your belief that Wi-Fi should be free. It’s there as a complement and an alternate to buying expensive session passes that are more than you need.

I had the chance to use Devicescape One on my last trip across Europe and a week later in Asia. It gave me access to several large networks which weren’t handled by roaming arrangements with my home Wi-Fi subscriptions. Even better I avoided using cellular data, where you pay by the KB instead of by the minute (one Outlook sync contained a 7MB Powerpoint presentation but it transferred in less than a minute!) For me, the minute by minute approach has broad appeal.

We’re running this Devicescape One field trial to check out the technology and assess the usage patterns and interest. There’s no guarantee that we’ll actually turn this into a real live service that costs our members anything, but it seems clear that this kind of scheme has its place and a partner of ours may like to use the capability.

Right now, we’re offering the trial to a limited set of Devicescape members. When you sign up we give you up to 120 minutes of Wi-Fi time. There is ZERO cost involved and no obligation. If you’re interested in joining the trial, you can sign up here. Note: you need to be an existing Devicescape member first.