Urgent update for Vodacom customers

fringsters,

Urgent news: It looks like Vodacom has changed the proxy on their internet access point so when browsing on your mobile handset all websites will have a Vodacom banner.

As a result, fring is not working properly on Vodacom handsets.

The solution is to take off the proxy settings in the access point and it should work again:

Tools > Settings > Connection > Access points > Vodacom > Options > Advanced Settings > Remove the Proxy server address.

After doing this, exit and everything should be working again. If it’s not working on your handset drop us a line and we will try and find the fix for your handset, or try a good old Google search.

iPhone 3G now available for pre-order in South Africa

The iPhone 3G a handset that is probably the most talked about handset on earth is finally coming to South Africa and after much speculation locally Vodacom is now also offering users from any network the ability to pre-order the handset via their website.

Pre-ordering though does not guarantee you will receive a handset but it does give Vodacom an idea of how rapidly this handset will be taken up by the South African market. Although very popular in America the iPhone has not seen huge interest in the local market as many people where unhappy that Apple snubbed South Africa with it’s previous iPhone. It’s going to be interesting to see how the market reacts to the shiny new iPhone 3G.

Lets hope Steve Jobs idea of a $199 iPhone lives on when the iPhone finally lands in South Africa in a few weeks time.

Thanks to Rafiq Phillips for bringing this juicy info to my attention: gmaps.co.za

German fring Blog celebrates 1 Year on the air

My good friends Sebastian over at the German fring blog, today celebrated his 1st year of fring blogging.

Reportedly since it’s introduction back in 2007 the German fring blog has kept readers informed and entertained with more than 100 posts. During this time Sebastian also received 194 comments and Akismet blocked 1091 spam comments. This is a great accomplishment for Sebastian and for the German fring Blog.

On the 18th of July your very own South African fring Blog, the blog that has been speaking your language for just under a year now will also be celebrating it’s 1st year anniversary. It’s a milestone I am looking forward to seeing. See you there.

We want it all fringing green: Hybrid Solar Charger

Wouldn’t it be great if the entire planet made a concerted effort to use less power and we all made the move towards going green. At fring we believe that going green is a great idea and the sooner the better.

Over the next few weeks I will be therefore be reviewing a few products that I think will help fringsters make fring a lil’ greener.

If you happen to spot a product you think can help in this going green drive, please be sure to drop me a line.

Todays green product of the week is this the Portable Hybrid Solar Charger. What makes this charger particularly nice is that it can work using either the sun or a USB port on your PC.

The unit makes a great emergency power source and works using interchangeable power tips which allow you to easily power multiple gadgets with a single charger.

Power from either the sun or USB charge is stored in an inbuilt 2000 mah Lithium ion battery, which usually takes 8-10 hours of sunlight to charge. Although not being the cheapest solar product around this unit sure looks like a great way to start moving in the green direction. For more info or to purchase this charger follow this link.

Digg-ing fring?

Mashable.com along with Ayelet Noff aka Blonde 2.0 recently embarked on a media tour of Tel Aviv, there was no bypassing fring on this tour and with a just little help from the fring team Ayelet compiled the interview below.

As you can see Ayelet really Diggs fring!
If you also fringen Digg us, please show your support by following this link and Digging us today.

fring talks about their API

Roy and Sagi talk about the new fring API.

On a personal note: I can’t wait to see what the local talent can develop using the fring API in South Africa.

fring API fresh from the oven

Whether it’s a fun game, a clever service or a way of taking an existing web site mobile, developers can now easily add their unique service to fring using our newly launch fring API.

The newly opened developer zone is where you can play with all the funky features of fring’s always-on, always-connected mobile internet platform and all of the device functionality fring uses (camera, speakerphone, keyboard, screen etc) so give it a bash and see how easy it is to come up with your very own fringAdd-on.

Developers can now deliver thier applications free of charge to the growing worldwide community of fringsters, giving them a new way to enjoy the mobile internet on top of fring’s core communication features.

To learn more and start getting your hands dirty with your very own fringAdd-ons™, access the developer site where you’ll find the API documentation and a simple fringAdd-on™ example. All you need to get started is a working knowledge of XML and basic server-side language (such as PHP, JSP, ASPX)

Important! in the coming weeks we will release several examples of fringAdd-ons for users to play with, the full catalog with all the newly developed fringAdd-ons will become available around end of July (meaning any add-on you develop from today will be available for all the fring community for end of July).
The fringAPI is also currently only available for the fring client on Symbian S60 9.2, more platforms to come shortly.

It’s easy, its liberating and its fringing fun!

Good luck! Go mobile! See you on the other side!

The fringTEAM

Turning your brain into mobile popcorn

Came across this interesting video and although many think it’s fake, it got me thinking. So to quell the thoughts racing through my head I decided to put it to the test, after a few fruitless attempts I decided it must be fake, unless I did something wrong? Has anyone else tried this? If yes, please send me the Youtube link.

You thought PC viruses were bad - Think again

Our Australian blog recently ran this video, I now wash and disinfect my handset once a day

Olympics fringentators WANTED!

Ever wanted the whole world to hear your sports play-by-play?

Ever thought of being a commentator but your tongue gets twisted when you try to talk that fast?

Now’s your chance to jump straight to the Olympics no less, even without a Sports Channel CV!

If you’re already booked to go to China to either participate (good luck!) or watch The Games (good for you!), then we may have an offer you can’t refuse. We’re looking for fringsters at the Olympics to share their experiences with the rest of us less-lucky folks who won’t see it live and who can’t be glued to our TVs while at work or running around all day!

We will happily provide the fring Olympics commentators with a 3.5G mobile phone with GPS, camera, local SIM card and (almost) unlimited data plan. In return, the ‘fringentators’ will regularly micro-blog with quick updates & pictures (the winner, the loser, the cutest flag-bearer, the poor girl who lost her swimsuit, the poor guy who dropped the baton in the 4×100 meter final… you get the idea). If you’re a real sports enthusiast you may focus more on the records; if you’re more of a night owl, we may all live vicariously through your night-time escapades in the Olympic village - pics & videos most welcome!

Interested fringentators should apply here with a quick intro why you’d like to play and why you can share regular captivating microblogs from China with other fringsters worldwide. Remember to include your fring ID so we can discuss details.