After years of hype, wireless users in the United States are waiting for all the technology pieces to come together to make surfing the Internet from their handsets as easy as it is on their PCs at home. So how close are we to simple and robust Web surfing from a cell phone? The answer depends on whom you ask. Some experts say the mobile Internet is already here. Some people say an entirely new domain name, called “dot-mobi,” should be used for Web sites that are optimized for mobile surfing. Still others propose using intelligent browsers to turn traditional Web sites into something that can be viewed on a small handset.

Cingular Wireless, Palm, and Research In Motion announced availability of BlackBerry Connect for the Palm Treo 650 smart device. With BlackBerry Connect software, Cingular customers now can enjoy the feature-rich Treo 650 with the BlackBerry service for a robust and secure solution on the nationwide Cingular EDGE wireless data network. BlackBerry Connect for the Treo 650 enables users to benefit from many popular features of the unique “push”-based BlackBerry architecture via BlackBerry Enterprise Server.

Palm announced that the Treo 650 smartphone is now available in Peru from Claro, one of the country’s leading cellular operators. Available in Claro’s retail stores throughout Peru with a variety of voice and data plans, the Treo 650 is an all-in-one quad-band smartphone specially designed for working with EDGE (Enhanced Data for Global Evolution) networks. It combines a compact full-featured mobile phone with email, a Palm OS organizer, messaging, Internet access and a digital camera, enabling users to organize and simplify their personal and professional lives in just one device.

An industry group of wireless networking companies said Tuesday it will start certifying next-generation routers and network cards in 2007, a year before official standards are expected. Frank Hanzlik, managing director of the Wi-Fi Alliance, said that without a certification program, the market could have been fragmented by the growing number and variety of pre-standard “Draft N” or “Pre-N” products claiming faster speeds and greater range. The products take their names from the 802.11n standard.

Japanese authorities reported Tuesday the first case of an Apple laptop catching fire in Japan and ordered the U.S. company to investigate the trouble involving the faulty Sony batteries and report back within a week. A laptop made by Apple Computer overheated and caught fire in April, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said. The user sustained minor burns after the iBook G4 computer caught fire, according to Apple spokeswoman Michiko Matsumoto, who confirmed the case.

ActiveSync 4.2 is the latest sync software release for Windows Mobile powered devices. ActiveSync acts as the gateway between your Windows-based PC and Windows Mobile-based device, enabling the transfer of Outlook information, Office documents, pictures, music, videos and applications to and from your device. Changes in ActiveSync 4.2 help resolve connectivity related issues with Microsoft Outlook, proxies, partnerships, and connectivity.

Alienware, manufacturer of high-performance desktop, notebook, media center, and professional systems, is making the lives of its mobile customers even better. The company is equipping three of its most popular notebooks with ultra-powerful Intel Core 2 Duo processors. Now available on the 17-inch Area-51 m5750, 15.4-inch Area-51 m5550, and 14.1-inch Sentia m3450, Intel Core 2 Duo processors power the latest line of Intel Centrino Duo based laptops enabling doubled performance and enhanced battery life by decreasing power consumption up to 28 percent compared to previous Intel Centrino based systems with Pentium M processors.

AOL’s free Internet client software has earned the company a slap on the wrist from StopBadware.org, a consortium set up to combat malicious software. In a report released Monday, the group advises users to steer clear of the software because of its “badware behavior.” The report blasts the free version of AOL 9.0 because it “interferes with computer use,” and because of the way it meddles with components such as the Internet Explorer browser and the Windows taskbar. The suite is also criticized for engaging in “deceptive installation” and faulted because some components fail to uninstall.

Students losing study notes, final papers, and essays have almost become a cliche; and as Professors won’t accept excuses, it’s up to each student to back up their work and prepare for the worst. As such, student’s need a back-up system in place at all times to save their hard work and Data Deposit Box is a comprehensive online PC backup solution enabling everyday PC users to easily backup, restore, and share information online–because it isn’t a matter of IF students will lose their files, but WHEN. “Data Deposit Box will ensure the safety of the files on your child’s computer. Whether they use a laptop or desktop, in a dorm room or at home, they won’t have to do a thing–this is an automatic system,” explained Peter Carroll, CTO, Data Deposit Box.

SKTools version 3.0.60, from SK Software is a powerful maintenance toolkit for your Pocket PC. Is designed to clean the registry and the file system, and free up RAM, as well provide other types of system maintenance.