Verizon Wireless is tapping Payfone, an emerging mobile payment platform, to offer its customers a way to pay for online items via their cell phone bill. The deal follows up on an investment Verizon made in Payfone and should help merchants and consumers warm to the idea of using Payfone for ecommerce payments.

Payfone works by offering consumers a way to complete their online transaction by entering in their cell phone number and having the purchase placed on their carrier bill. Verizon users will be able to conduct their purchases through smartphones, tablets and PCs. They will also be able to link their Payfone account to a credit card or debit card for larger purchases that exceed transaction limits set by carriers or regulators. And the service will have a way to intelligently route payments to the right funding source based on rules and preferences. The partnership expands the way Verizon users can pay via carrier billing following a previous deal the carrier had with BilltoMobile.

Payfone continues to emerge with key partnerships that give a glimpse of the promise it brings. In April, it announced it was partnering with American Express’ new Serve payment service, providing a carrier billing component to Serve’s platform. It also raised million from American Express , Verizon Investments Inc., Rogers Communications, Opus Capital, BlackBerry Partners Fund and RRE Venture after raising million last year.

Payfone is becoming an attractive option because of its deep integration into the SS7 signaling layer that cell phone carriers use to communicate between networks. By leveraging the existing cellular infrastructure, Payfone is able to offer added security, payment authentication and one-click payments. And it means less billing disputes and charge-backs for operators, which lowers the cost of the service for merchants.

And now, by being able to not only offer a secure system but also multiple options for payment beyond just a carrier bill, it can use rely on intelligent routing to ensure that transactions are converted. So if a user can’t or won’t pay with their carrier bill because the purchase exceeds preset limits, Payfone can offer to complete the transaction with another linked account.

That makes Payfone potentially a more flexible option for merchants, who won’t lose out on as many transactions that get abandoned for payment reasons. Merchants will have different rates on transactions with fees higher for carrier billing though much lower than traditional premium SMS payments. They’ll have also have different, likely lower, rates for credit and debit purchases.

Payfone, right now, isn’t attempting to tackle offline payments, something many are looking to NFC to help facilitate. Verizon is also pursuing NFC with its Isis venture with AT&T and T-Mobile. Rodger Desai, co-founder and CEO of Payfone said he’s hoping to bring that same simplicity of NFC to online payments through a variety of devices using a cell phone number as the key.

“The ultimate form of acceptance should be a phone number,” Desai said. “With the right security behind it, it can be the easiest way to buy something.”

Desai said Payfone is in the process of lining up big merchants and brands to carry the Payfone payment option. He expects some of the earliest companies to offer it will be ticketing and travel companies. In the coming weeks and months, Desai said Payfone will be announcing many more carriers, merchant and financial institutions as partners. Keep an eye on this company. It’s taken a while to get its product out but it’s done a lot of the quiet work to build a very robust system that could be an important piece of the puzzle as ecommerce becomes mcommerce.

Related content from GigaOM Pro (subscription req’d):

• Mobile Q1: All Eyes on Tablets, T-Mobile and AT&T
• A 2011 Mobile Forecast
• Is There Any Money for Carriers in the Mobile Wallet?

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GigaOM — Tech News, Analysis and Trends

The use of the iPad by mobile workers is on the rise, and that brings with it both boons and challenges for worker productivity. Here’s how you and your remote staff can stay on top of iPad usage, lest iPad usage controls you and your organization instead.

1. These Are the Apps You Need; These Are the Apps You Don’t

Keep your productivity and entertainment app worlds separate on your iPad. I know it’s too much to ask that workers who are mostly using their own personal devices in the work place to use them strictly for work purposes, but everyone will be happier and better able to focus on getting work done if you keep your fun and games-related apps in a separate folder or folders. Keeping the productivity and work-related apps out in the open on the app’s home screen will give them priority seating when it comes to your attention span, and the distractions will be left just a little bit beyond finger’s reach, where they’ll be less of a temptation.

2. Carry a Keyboard

The iPad is a great consumption device, but as we’ve seen, people aren’t crazy about using it for data input. Having a Bluetooth keyboard handy makes working on the iPad exponentially better. You have a few choices when it comes to which keyboard to carry. I’m personally a fan of the ZAGGmate keyboard/hard case combo, which comes in both original iPad and iPad 2 flavors, but the official Apple Wireless Keyboard is an attractive option, too.

3. Have a Wireless Strategy

If you want to use the iPad to make mobile working easier, you’ll hit a wall pretty fast if you don’t have access to a reliable data connection. For users with a 3G-capable iPad, this means checking to make sure you have an active plan ready to go with the carrier of your choosing, and ensuring that your carrier offers service in the place you intend to use your iPad. If it doesn’t, shop around for a temporary carrier/SIM card for your working destination.

Verizon iPad owners will want to make sure that they have something other than a simple SIM switch in place for most international destinations, which largely use GSM technology to power their networks. Finding a provider that offers a pay-as-you go mobile hotspot solution might be a good workaround. Companies can help by issuing globally-compatible mobile hotspot hardware to remote employees who travel internationally.

4. Have a Battery Backup

Battery backup offerings for the iPad are many and varied, but carrying a reliable one that has enough juice to give your iPad a decent bump is a good idea. You never know when you might lose your power cord, or forget to secure an adapter before a quick stopover in an international destination. Check out Dave Greenbaum’s roundup of iPhone and iPad battery backups for a good look at some of the better options out there.

5. Enable Find My iPad

Losing an iPad really sucks. But what’s worse is losing your iPad having not enabled Apple’s free Find My iPad service. Through MobileMe, Apple can help you locate a lost iPad if it’s enabled, or at the very least, you can use the service to remotely wipe your device, thereby protecting sensitive personal and work-related data. Enterprise is already nervous about the potential security hazards associated with consumer devices in the workplace; help make them less so.

6. Lock It Up

It may seem obvious, but even more important than enabling Find My iPad is setting up your device to require a passcode upon waking. You can do this in the iPad’s Settings app, under General > Passcode Lock. By default, the iPad will use a simple passcode consisting of a 4 digit number, but you can turn this off, which will let you set a longer password that can combine both letters and numbers. If you’re storing sensitive information on your device, you’re better off using a complex passcode lock.

7. Invest in a Good Headset

The iPad truly can be a communications hub — even for voice chat and phone calls. But it’s not perfectly suited to that task out of the box. If you get yourself a decent headset, however, you can better make and take phone calls on your device using VoIP apps, and you’ll even be better equipped for using the many video conferencing options available for the iPad 2, like that provided by Cisco’s WebEx.

Share your tips for more effective iPad working in the comments.

Related content from GigaOM Pro (subscription req’d):

• The Future of Workplaces
• Connected Consumer Q1: The Over-the-Top vs. Pay TV Battle Heats Up
• Mobile Q1: All Eyes on Tablets, T-Mobile and AT&T

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GigaOM · Tech News, Analysis and Trends

The PlayStation 3 Slim officially shipped last September 1. Owners of the original PlayStation 3 should be content with what they already have. For those who want to buy their first current-generation gaming console, or are looking to play PlayStation 3 games, the new PlayStation 3 Slim is a good choice.

Size-wise, the PlayStation 3 Slim isn’t really a revolution compared to its predecessor—despite the 33% profile reduction, both consoles are meant to stay stationary for most of their operational lives anyway. The Slim is still a more attractive option though because of its roomier 120GB hard disk, a definite step up from the original PS3’s 20 & 40GB default offerings. You basically get more hard disk space per dollar from the get-go.

Other advantages include significantly lower power consumption, made possible through a processor redesign that provides the same computing power through a smaller chip and thus less heat. The PS3 Slim also supports the BRAVIA Sync interface, which allows remote control via the console’s HDMI port.

The PlayStation 3 Slim is available from NewEgg for $299. Each console comes with one Wireless DualShock 3 controller, so you may want to buy an extra controller while you’re at it. Shipping is free.

How to Get a PlayStation 3 Slim and an extra controller:

• Visit the Wireless DualShock 3 Controller ($42.99) product page at NewEgg
• Click on Add to Cart
• Visit the PlayStation 3 Slim 120GB ($299.99) product page at NewEgg
• Click on Add to Cart
• Click on View Shopping Cart
• If you’re satisfied with the total (it should read $342.98, unless you already have items in your NewEgg cart), Click on Checkout

Post from: The Gadget Blog

For quite some time now there has been a good deal of conjecture as to when, exactly, Amazon might release its Kindle reader worldwide. The original Kindle was launched in November 2007 with the Kindle 2 and the large screen Kindle DX being released in February and June of 2009 respectively.

Eighteen months and 2 hardware releases later there seems to be no sign of any imminent worldwide launch in the offing. US sales of the reader are strong – demand often exceeds supply and the device is out of stock quite often. Kindle book sales are also excellent (accounting for 35% of total sales when there is a Kindle edition on offer alongside the conventional printed versions) and the market for Kindle accessories is growing on a daily basis.

However, as impressive as current sales numbers are, it seems improbable that a company like Amazon would be satisfied with dominating the North American market whilst ignoring the possibilities on offer in the global arena. The fact that the Kindle’s main rival, (for the moment at least) the Sony PRS reader, is available worldwide and is enjoying an opportunity to establish brand loyalty in countries where the Kindle is unavailable must be a matter of some concern for Amazon.

Part of the problem seems to be the method of connection to the Amazon store. In the US, Amazon furnish a fee free 3G download service – by the name of “Whispernet” and provided by Sprint. It’s an attractive option for customers who perceive themselves to be less committed – albeit the cost of this service is reflected in the initial price of the hardware, the reader itself.

Recent discussions between Amazon and European telecoms service providers – T-Mobile and Vodafone – ended with Amazon suggesting that the service provider’s demands were “unreasonable”.

Considering that Sony have recently partnered with Google to make the search engine giant’s huge collection of public domain electronic books available free of charge to Sony PRS customers, and also bearing in mind that Apple will be releasing a tablet based notebook (perfect for reading ebooks) – it does seem reasonable to wonder how much longer Amazon can afford to wait before entering the global arena with its Kindle ebook reader.

On the other hand, it’s probably worth remembering that the Kindle was a pretty late edition to the ebook reader scene – the devices have been available since 1999 in various formats. It doesn’t seem to have done Amazon any great harm thus far and they may be confident that the time will be right when they say so and not before.

Apple Macintosh laptops  are now faster than ever making them an attractive option for someone looking for a way to transfer files, applications and music in fashion.  These laptops sport an Intel core processor and come with high levels of memory as standard ram for all models.  As appealing as they are they carry a high price tag that is not affordable for alot of consumers, however you can work around this by buying a used or refurbished laptop.

A reconditioned, sometimes known as refurbished, laptop means that the computer has been purchased in the past and used by someone else for a maximum of three months (though often less). For some reason the customer has returned the Apple notebook computer to the store, which leaves the store unable to resell the product as new. Laptop stores will then return the laptop to its manufacturer, in this case Apple, where they will make sure it is in perfect sellable ‘as new’ condition. This is what you are getting when you buy a reconditioned laptop.

The reconditioned Apple laptops cannot be sold as new even though they are practically identical to a new one.  They contain the latest technology, newest programs, high speed processors and large memory capacity but with the added draw of being less expensive.

The reason why reconditioned laptops are so much cheaper than new laptops is due to the fact that most people prefer that their laptop be brand new when bought, and as such it takes a lot more incentives from the manufacturer to sell them. However, for people that realize these laptops are in great shape, reconditioned laptops can provide a real bargain when it comes to getting a new machine

Apple takes pride and great care in the production of all their products and it is the same with a reconditioned Mac laptop. The technicians revamp and reconfigure each computer with the highest quality parts and accessories to rival any brand new product on the market.

Now that you know the facts behind refurbished Mac laptops you can start to benefit from this by picking up some real bargains. There is no doubt that you will be getting a quality machine that will have had to pass numerous tests before being sold to anyone. Reconditioned laptops are a popular choice for many who want to benefit from huge savings when buying a new laptop. They are the perfect choice for those who want portability in a computer, but don’t want to fork out the money that most brands require. Simply do some research on the cheapest laptop computers and the brands you want and find out whether your local store, or manufacturer, has any reconditioned Mac laptops on offer

Solid state drives (SSDs) are becoming increasing popular, especially as prices drop.  Super Talent now joins OCZ in leading the movement toward affordable solid state drives.  Super Talent’s MasterDrive LX is available in 64GB and 128GB capacities in a 2.5" form factor.  As with other SSDs, the MasterDrive LX offer about five times better resistance to shock and vibration, support a wider range of operating temperatures and altitudes, consume less energy, and are absolutely silent.

To ensure the highest level of reliability and compatibility, the MasterDrive LX underwent SuperTalent’s formidable arsenal of validation tests. The SSD is completely interchangeable with mechanical hard disk drives since they use the same SATA-II 3Gbps interface. Built with NAND flash, these SSDs provide read/write speeds that max out at 100MB/s and 40MB/sec accordingly. The lifespan of the SSDs are significantly lengthened by the integrated ECC, bad bit management, and wear leveling systems.

The 64GB model costs around $179, while the 128GB SSD is priced at the bargain value of $299. The drives a certainly an attractive option for the stocking of a tech-savvy individual this holiday season!