It’s been confirmed that yesterday Smart Communications has bought Chikka.com for some undisclosed amount. Two top executives from Chikka Asia Inc. posted updates on their Twitter account about this development.

This has long been rumored but we’ve finally gotten word that they’ve both signed off on the agreement yesterday.

Dennis Mendiola is the Founder and Chief Imagination Officer of Chikka:

Gio Bacareza is the Business Development Director of Chikka:

I’m still getting some more details and will update this post as I get them.

Chikka Asia, Inc. is a wireless application service provider, better known for creating the world’s first instant messenger to fully integrate mobile features via SMS, the “Chikka Messenger.” It has about 38 million registered users, including mobile subscribers from network operators worldwide and is interoperable with Google Talk .

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That’s the best price of the Nokia Booklet 3G we’ve heard so far. That doesn’t include customs and VAT so I’m guessing that will be the lowest figure when it officially gets here in the Philippines.

This is from a Hong Kong supplier of @artsamaniego who originally got it for Php45,000.

The Booklet 3G is Nokia’s first introduction to the netbook market.

Nokia Booklet 3G Specs:
10.1″ @ 1280×720 pixel resolution
Intel Atom Z530 1.6 GHz
1GB DDR2 RAM
120GB HDD
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
3G Modem (data only, no voice)
Integrated GPS and A-GPS
1.3MP camera
HDMI port
3 x USB 2.0 ports
SD card reader
1.25kg

What do you guys think? Is Php39k worth it to have the first Nokia netbook? If people thought the Nokia N97 was worth it for Php34k, I’m sure an additional Php5k for a Nokia netbook is a deal.

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I already saw this coming but didn’t thought it will be this soon. Email from AdMob (biggest mobile ad network in the world) states that they have reached an agreement with Google for a buy-out.

This is the full text from Omar Hamoui, founder of AdMob.

Today we announced that AdMob has signed a definitive agreement to be acquired by Google for $750 million. We are extremely excited about this new partnership and what it means for our publishers.

AdMob’s people, products and tools will continue to work to effectively monetize your mobile traffic – no interruptions. Our product and engineering teams will keep building great products for our customers. Our sales team will keep working with our thousands of advertisers to deliver successful campaigns.

After our deal closes, AdMob will work with Google to accelerate the pace of innovation in mobile and do an even better job for you. We believe this deal will benefit our developer and publisher partners by:

* Building even more powerful technology and tools to monetize mobile traffic.

* Increasing the effectiveness of display advertising on mobile devices by leveraging Google sales team, infrastructure and relationships.

* Improving the already high level of service and support we deliver to our publishers.

You can read more about this deal at www.admob.com/google.

Omar

AdMob is like the AdSense for mobile sites serving billions of mobile ad impressions per month. Google AdSense for Mobile has also been recently introduced by Google but hasn’t really taken off. Acquiring AdMob is the next logical step. I just didn’t image how much that traffic acquisition is.

I’ve been doing some consultancy for a number of start-ups for some time now and one of my biggest advise to them is to invest in the mobile web this early. Just last week, I told one of them that AdMob could be Google’s next target. I’m just surprised my prediction happened this soon.

According to AdMob, the Philippines ranked #5 on their mobile web ad traffic report, up from #9 or #10 a couple of years ago. And for the last 2 years, I’ve been trying to get hold of them so we can have them talk on our annual Search Engine Marketing Conference about the mobile web and advertising.

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Quite a number of Nokia chargers have been found defective (or have not passed quality control) today and phone owners are encouraged to have them replaced under the Nokia Charger Exchange Program. Check out below the announcement sent out today.

During a routine quality control process, Nokia identified a potential product quality issue with certain chargers manufactured by one of its third-party suppliers. The plastic covers of the affected chargers could come loose and separate, exposing the charger’s internal components and potentially posing an electrical shock hazard if certain internal components are touched while the charger is plugged into a live socket. Nokia is not aware of any incidents or injuries related to these chargers.

Only a limited number of chargers of certain model types manufactured by a single third-party supplier during a specific time period are within the scope of the exchange program. They are the AC-3E and AC-3U models, manufactured between June 15, 2009 and August 9, 2009; and the AC-4U model, manufactured between April 13, 2009 and October 25, 2009.

For more information, including how consumers can check to see if their chargers are part of this exchange program, Nokia has established a website.

Consumers are asked to visit http://chargerexchange.nokia.com or send an sms with the following format “charger model, manufacturer name, 26 digit charger serial number” to 0905-3224923 (for Globe subscribers), 0920-2678978 (for Smart subscribers) or 0922-8589360 (for Sun subscribers) so they can be assisted. Or they may call the Nokia Careline at (632) 886-1234 between 8:30am – 8:30pm from Mondays to Sundays.

Nokia recommends consumers with chargers within the scope of this exchange program to stop using the charger and exchange it for a free replacement.

Affected chargers are manufactured by a 3rd-party for Nokia, namely BYD. This label is found in the sticker of the charger itself. A production code is also included — they should be between 925 and 932. These are the ones that are eligible for free replacement.

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Filipino Efren Peñaflorida made it to the finals of the 2009 CNN Heroes. He is vying for the top spot and online voting is ongoing. Help Efren by voting for him here. There’s an event today at the SM Mall of Asia Music Hall to kick-off the campaign.

Efren leads the 10,000-strong Dynamic Teen Company — a group of volunteers that spent the last 12 years teaching basic reading and writing to 1,500 children in slum areas using its “kariton klasrum” (pushcarts with books, pencils and educational materials).

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During the public launch of Windows 7 yesterday, we threw some pretty important questions to Microsoft executives about the new operating system.

Q. How many versions of Windows 7 are available for the Philippines?

A. There are five versions of Windows 7 available in the Philippine market — Windows 7 Starter, Windows 7 Home Basic, Windows 7 Home Premium, Windows 7 Professional and Windows 7 Ultimate.

Q. Are customers who bought computers lately able to upgrade to Windows 7 for free?

A. Microsoft now allows up to N-2 for the free upgrades if you bought your computer after the October 22 global launch of Windows 7. That means systems with Vista and XP can avail of the upgrade. There are some exceptions, of course.

Q. How about the Family Pack? Is it going to be available in the Philippines?

A. The Windows 7 Family Pack is a promo Microsoft is doing in the US. It is still in test phase and Microsoft is studying its viability in the Philippines. It is not currently available for the Philippine and there’s no exact date when it will become available. You will need at least 3 computers at home to be able to qualify for the Family Pack if ever it becomes available.

Q. How about Student or Academic pricing and discounts?

A. Microsoft has discounts for students and the academe. This will be handled by the respective schools and universities for easy verification/implementation for those who qualify.

Q. Can I upgrade my old Windows XP directly to Windows 7?

A. No, you need to do a fresh install. You can only upgrade to Windows 7 if you currently run Vista.

Q. How about those who have Windows 7 RC pre-installed? Can they upgrade to RTM directly?

A. Unfortunately there is not an easy upgrade path from RC to RTM. Microsoft recommends a clean install with Data Migration of Windows 7 RTM. Read more about the upgrade scenario at http://blogs.msdn.com/e7/.

Q. Until when can I use my Windows 7 RC?

A. The RC will expire on June 1, 2010. Plan ahead for when the RC expires. You’ll get two weeks’ notice, and then beginning on March 1, 2010, your PC will start shutting down every two hours.To avoid interruption, you’ll need to rebuild your test PC to replace the OS with a valid version of Windows, and reinstall all your programs and data before the software expires.

Q. What are the minimum system requirements for Windows 7?

A. RTM Hardware requirements are as follows: 1 GHz 32-bit or 64-bit processor, 1GB of system memory, 16 GB of available disk space, support for DirectX 9 graphics with 128MB memory (in order to enable Aero theme).

Q. What’s inside the Win7 DVD installer?

A. Two DVD disks — one for 32-bit and one for 64-bit.

There are some promos and discounts as well at the Microsoft 7 event. On November 7 and 8 (that’s until today only), check out the CyberZone Activity Hall at SM North EDSA Annex for some discounted Windows 7 DVD installers.

Here are the promo prices (save between Php1,500 to Php3,000 from SRP):

Windows 7 Home Basic: Php6,500
Windows 7 Home Premium: Php7,000
Windows 7 Professional: Php14,500
Windows 7 Ultimate: Php15,500

Buyers also get a free high-end webcam with every purchase of Windows 7.

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Yesterday, Sony-Ericsson Philippines officially launched their new flagship phones — the Sony-Ericsson Satio and Sony-Ericsson Aino.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to attend and took pictures but according to Calvin over at PTB, here are the suggested retail prices of both phones:

Sony-Ericsson Aino

3.0″ display screen @ 432×240 pixels
8.1 MP camera w/ autofocus, IS, LED flash (3264×2448 pixels)
55MB internal, up to 32GB on microSD
WiFi 802.11 b/g w/ DLNA
FM radio with RDS
Accelerometer Sensor
HSDPA, 3.6 Mbps
GPS with A-GPS support
Bluetooth with A2DP
Remote play for Playstation 3
Price: Php23,950

Sony Ericsson Satio

3.5 inches display screen @ 360×640 pixels
12.1 MP @ 4,000×3,000 pixels autofocus camera
Xenon flash, video LED flashXenon flash
Accelerometer Sensor
128 MB internal storage
256 MB RAM with microSD support (up to 32GB)
16GB on microSD
Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g, DLNA
HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps; HSUPA, 3.6 Mbps
Stereo FM radio with RDS
GPS with A-GPS support
Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP
Price: Php32,500

Not bad at all. I was expecting them to be much more expensive. Hopefully, we’d be able to get some review units to feature here.

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Due to insistent demand and because we just can’t resist the temptation of comparing netbook performance, I purchased the HP Mini 311-1001TU. See unboxing video and photos after the jump.

For complete specs, check here. For details on how much and where to buy, check here. For a side-by-side comparison between the HP Mini 311 and the MSI Wind12 U210, go here.

The HP Mini 311 looks real cool so far. Been in the box for a couple days now since I was searching for my old tripod for the video unboxing. As mentioned earlier, the DVD+RW drive comes with the box.

Now, we can do some real-world performance comparison with this one and the MSI Wind U210. If you have suggestions on which benchmark tools I’ll use, please let me know in the comments.

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I got this DVD installer in the mail last week for PLDT WatchPad. Been seeing the ads as well on TV lately and was wondering if this is a free or paid service from PLDT to all its myDSL subscribers.

Are there other PLDT myDSL subscribers getting their DVD installers in the mail too? I read that this is available if you subscribe to myDSL Plan 999, 1995 and 3000. This is streaming video so only makes sense for PLDT to offer it to high-bandwidth plans.

Available channels include PBO, CNBC, MTV, GO, Animax, CNN, GMA7, Cartoon Network and National Geographic (provided by Cignal TV). Anyway, I tried installing the application on my Windows 7 desktop but it kept on crashing. Will try this on an XP PC and see if it works.

Anyone else got this running on their system? How is it?

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I’ve seen this new privilege card some time ago but didn’t really bothered until I was recently told it came with an iPhone App. The guys at Enjoy Philippines sent me a membership kit a couple weeks back and I’ve no downloaded the iTunes App.

The membership card offers various discounts in top restaurants, hotels, shopping stores and other shops between 10-50%. It also includes a booklet of coupons which gives you additional perks and discounts.

Although the kit included a thick booklet of directory and map of participating establishments (Manila, Boracay and Cebu), you can ditch the heavy booklet and just download the free iTunes App on your iPod Touch or iPhone since everything’s in there as well.

Of course, the card is not free and costs $31 via Paypal but if you’re curious you can just download the free App here. At least you get to see what kind of offers or discounts they have that might fit your shopping/dining habits or lifestyle. I think the card in itself is well worth it but the iTunes App makes a big difference with the added value of convenience, IMO.

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Olympus has been known for some time to focus a line of range finder (PnS) cameras dedicated to rugged/rough environments. The new Olympus Tough 8000 is one of the latest in its Tough Series.

The only other point-and-shoot camera I can think of that has almost the same features as the Olympus Tough 8000 is the Canon Powershot D10 we saw back in March.

The Tough 8000 looks practically like your regular PnS camera only that it is housed in a solid stainless steel case all around with additional screws to re-enforce the solid construction. As such, you can sit or step on this camera without worry of breaking it apart (can support 100 kilos of pressure). That, and you can actually drop it over a height of two meters (6.6 feet) and will still work fine.

The battery compartment, card slot and USB ports are sealed tight with a plastic and metal latch coupled with rubber padding to keep water out. That way, you can bring this camera to the beach and take shots underwater up to a depth of 10 meters or 33 feet.

A couple of weeks back, Olympus reps brought us to a Subic Bay trip for a media challenge using the Mju Tough 8000. Using the camera, we shot our trip over at the Tree Top Adventure Park and the Ocean Adventure. Here are some of the sample photos we took during that trip.

The lens has a 3.6x optical zoom, 288mm wide (5.0-18.2mm, f/1:3.5-5.1) and has maximum a 12MP resolution.

The Mju Tough 8000 has a built-in photo-stitching feature that allows you to compose a wide panoramic picture using a series of stitched shots, all done but the camera automatically. Unfortunately, our camera ran out of juice halfway the challenge so we had to borrow units from the other teams to complete the other shots (underwater with the dolphins).

We were able to do some drop test and bathtub test before the event, just to make sure it worked as claimed. Here are some of the short clips I uploaded on YouTube.

Was also able to borrow a review unit later so I did a lengthier underwater video to show the recording quality. This is just a shot from inside our aquarium at home with a yellow lamp for lighting. The video is only VGA resolution at 640×480 pixels but still takes some pretty decent footages.

The camera can also withstand cold temperatures so if you’re shooting in cold or icy weather (down to negative 10), it will still work. The only way we can simulate that is by dunking the camera in a bucket of ice or putting it inside the freezer. Only problem is the fog accumulating outside the lens that blurs all your shots.

The Li-Ion battery is rated at 925mAh and could get easily drained within half a day on heavy use. Storage is via an XD or microSD card (adapter included) that’s also tucked inside the battery compartment.

The Olympus Tough 8000 is not your regular point-and-shoot camera. It’s more like a specialized one for rugged and wet shooting environments — one that you cannot bring your old, trusty PnS. Suggested retail price is around Php25,000 in stores.

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There were a lot of comparisons between the HP Mini 311 and the MSI Wind12 U210 when both netbooks came out in stores just weeks apart. Let’s put them side by side and do a specs comparison so people get a better picture.

In this comparison chart, we will pit the two units with the model that has a pre-installed OS. That way, it’s easier to see between the two which one is more affordable or cheaper for the specs out of the box.

HP Mini 311 vs. MSI Wind12 U210

The external DVD drive from HP comes inside the box so there’s no way to opt out of it. As for the MSI Wind12, the 9-cell battery is just a limited promo. Default battery is also 6-cell.

The Php23k price of Wind12 U210x has no operating system so buying a Windows XP license will set you back about Php4,000 as well. I’d say it’s a neck and neck fight between the two.

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I already noticed this last week but didn’t post about it because I thought it was an old feature that I only recently noticed. Paypal sent in a press release today confirming that transactions can now be made in Philippine Peso.

“PayPal’s goal is to provide our members with a secure, fast and convenient way to pay and get paid online,” said Mario Shiliashki, General Manager of PayPal Southeast Asia and India. “The introduction of the Philippine Peso will make domestic ecommerce easier and more convenient for buyers and sellers in the Philippines and is well timed for the holiday season!”

Good news to a lot of merchants that make local transactions in peso. This skips the usual issue with US dollar exchange rates when sending or receiving payments.

Paypal still uses its own foreign exchange rate schedule which is a little lower than the going rate (my last check, it was around 2% difference). In a way, that standardizes the forex rates for Paypal transactions that the buyer and merchant can stick with.

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The guys behind Twitter thinks their service will become so mainstream that people will be willing to buy a gadget specific to just “tweeting”. That’s how TwitterPeek was conceived.

This mobile device is a collaboration between Twitter Inc. and Peek Inc., thus the name. Imagine a Blackberry phone and service just for Twitter.

So what can it do? Well, it can do everything you can do on a desktop Twitter client (e.g. TweetDeck) but all embedded into a wireless device as shown above.

How much? The TwitterPeek sells for $99 with a $7.95 monthly fee or $199 with a lifetime of service.

That means it will be tied up with a telco. Don’t think this will be a hit in the Philippine where data charges are still expensive. The cheapest unlimited rate on Twitter is Php20/day or Php600/month using Globe Super Surf {via WSJ}.

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Now that didn’t took so long — the HP Mini 311 is now available and selling for Php28,990 in Complink and eHub stores. This according to a couple people who bought it this week-end and left comments here.

So I called up two branches of Complink (SM North EDSA and Park Square 1) to confirm this and they indeed have it on stock.

At 0% interest for 12 months installment, the HP Mini 311 has the ff. specs:

HP Mini 311
11.6″ display screen @ 1366 x 768 pixels
Intel Atom N280 1.66GHz
NVidia Ion LE
1GB DDR3
160GB SATA HDD
WiFi 802.11 b/g
HDMI port
5-in-1 card reader
Altec Lansing speaker
6 cell Li-Ion battery

What’s a bit confusing is that the sales ladies both quoted me a different model. One said it’s 1001 while the other said its 113. The official SKU is 311 on HP’s website. They were correct with the 11.6″ and the Php29k price though.

Will be dropping by one of the stores to check it out and probably get one for review. Hopefully, they have options to upgrade the HDD and the RAM.

Updated: Forgot to include the external DVD+RW Drive that comes with the package price.

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Microsoft is set to launch their new operating system, Windows 7, to the public this November 7, 2009 at the CyberZone of the SM North EDSA. However, local retailers have already started offering the OS to consumers.

Here are the current price list of the various versions of Windows 7 (based from a the price list of PC Gilmore on October 24):

Windows 7 Home Premium – Php6,050
Windows 7 Professional – Php8,100
Windows 7 Ultimate – Php11,500

No price for the Home Basic yet but it should be just under Php5,000.

{Thanks to reader Jan Lorenz for the tip.}

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So curiosity got the better of me and I bought the new MSI Wind12 U210x that day I found out about its local availability. Turns out this model is selling like hot cakes and I got the last unit of the batch.

This thing is already big to be called a netbook at 12.1 inches.

MSI Wind12 U210x
12.1″ screen @ 1355×768 pixels
AMD Athlon Neo X2 L335 1.6GHz Dual Core
2GB DDR2 RAM
ATI Radeon Xpress 1270 128MB
250GB Toshiba SATA HDD
WiFi 802.11 b/g/n
1.3MP webcam
4-in-1 card reader
3 USB 2.0 ports
HDMI port
9-cell battery

The unit sells for Php22k for cash or straight charge (Php23k for 6 months 0% installment). They’d install Windows 7 RC for you if you like. The model with a licensed Vista OS costs Php26,500 (Php27.5k for installment) at Villman stores.

The AMD Athlon Neo dual core processor performs really well. Will post a full review and some benchmarks comparing it to the Intel Atom by next week.

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The new Magic Mouse took the center stage among media people yesterday as Apple showcased their new lines of iMacs, an upgraded Mac Mini and a white Macbook.

The Magic Mouse is a wireless pointing device with a multi-touch surface. It comes standard along with the wireless keyboard on all new iMacs.

Mac Mini
Intel Core 2 Duo 2.53GHz
4GB RAM
320GB HDD
8x SuperDrive
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
₱ 44,990

Apple Macbook 13 White
Intel Core 2 Duo 2.26GHz
2GB DDR3 RAM
250GB HDD
8x SuperDrive
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
Built-in 7-hour battery
₱ 54,990

21.5-inch iMac
1920 x 1080 resolution
Intel Core 2 Duo 3.06GHz
4GB RAM
500GB HDD
8x SuperDrive
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
₱ 65,990

27-inch iMac
2560 x 1440 resolution
Intel Core i5 2.66GHz Quad Core
4GB RAM
500GB HDD
8x SuperDrive
ATI Radeon HD 4850 graphics with 512MB
₱ 108,990

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