Aircell unveils Android in-flight phone

By Eric Brown
2011-03-24

Article Rating:

/ 0

Rate This Article:

Add This Article To:

Inflight telephony vendor Aircell announced its first Android-based phone, designed specifically for business aircraft. Due later this year, the Aircell Smartphone offers a 3.8-inch screen, said to be the largest available in the aviation telephony market.

In-flight telephony appears to be the latest niche market to fall before the Android onslaught. Aircell, which calls itself the world's leading provider of inflight connectivity, is upgrading its line of business aircraft cabin phones with its Android-based Aircell Smartphone, starting later this year.

This "next-generation cabin handset" features a 3.8-inch screen that appears to have a high vertical to horizontal ratio. Like a typical aviation phone, the handset offers an exposed keypad, and is designed to fit flush into seat-backs, cabin walls, bulkheads, or drink rails.

Aircell Smartphone
(Click to enlarge)

The device can be used as a wired handset, or wirelessly for roaming around an aircraft, says the company. No processor details were offered, but the company says the phone offers Bluetooth for hands-free operation, as well as an audio jack.

The Aircell Smartphone also offers the best voice quality in aviation, claims the company. However, Aircell offered no more details on the "embedded technologies and design features" behind this claim.

Although relatively average compared to today's smartphones, the 3.8-inch size is said to be larger than all other aviation phones. That may be true among business aircraft phones, but Thales announced an Android-based 3.8-inch phone (right) for the commercial aviation market back in September.

The Thales TouchPMU phone is built on an ARM Cortex processor and designed to be both a stand-alone media access handheld device and a controller for Thales' seat-display TopSeries in-flight entertainment and connectivity (IFEC) systems. At the time, Panasonic also said it was developing an Android-based IFEC phone.

The Aircell Smartphone will be backward-compatible with all Aircell Axxess communications systems currently in production, says the company. It will also be available as a drop-in replacement for the company’s tethered Aircell Axxess Flush-Mount Handset (pictured), making it easier for aircraft manufacturers to upgrade.

The new Android handset will also be compatible with the company’s forthcoming Gogo Biz Voice service via Aircell's ATG 4000 and ATG 5000 systems. Also announced this week, Gogo Biz Voice is based on Aircell's Gogo Wi-Fi hotspot service for commercial airplanes.

The high bandwidth and very low latency of the Gogo Biz Voice technology will enable a high level of voice quality and clarity, says Aircell. The service will also support several simultaneous voice calls and Internet sessions, while preserving this quality, says the company.

The Aircell Smartphone phone is said to be "fully certified," presumably complying with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations. Aircell is said to be the only U.S. company authorized by the FCC and FAA to use frequencies in the 800MHz band for inflight communications. Aircell also successfully bid $31.3 million for EV-DO-ready 3MHz air-to-ground spectrum in an FCC auction in June 2006.

Stated John Wade, Aircell's Executive vice president & general manager, Business Aviation Services, "The Aircell Smartphone epitomizes the notion of next-generation inflight communications. It gives passengers exactly what they want -- the best-sounding, best-looking and easiest-to-use handset in aviation."

Availability

Shipments of the Aircell Smartphone are scheduled to begin in late 2011, and pricing will be announced prior to that time, says Aircell. More information should eventually appear at the Aircell site.

Related Stories:

	Discuss Aircell unveils Android in-flight phone

	>>> Be the FIRST to comment on this article!



	>>> More News Articles >>> More By Eric Brown

Email Article To Friend ♦ Print Version Of Article ♦ PDF Version Of Article

FUEL Database on MontaVista Linux
Whether building a mobile handset, a car navigation system, a package tracking device, or a home entertainment console, developers need capable software systems, including an operating system, development tools, and supporting libraries, to gain maximum benefit from their hardware platform and to meet aggressive time-to-market goals.

Breaking New Ground: The Evolution of Linux Clustering
With a platform comprising a complete Linux distribution, enhanced for clustering, and tailored for HPC, Penguin Computing¿s Scyld Software provides the building blocks for organizations from enterprises to workgroups to deploy, manage, and maintain Linux clusters, regardless of their size.

Data Monitoring with NightStar LX
Unlike ordinary debuggers, NightStar LX doesn¿t leave you stranded in the dark. It¿s more than just a debugger, it¿s a whole suite of integrated diagnostic tools designed for time-critical Linux applications to reduce test time, increase productivity and lower costs. You can debug, monitor, analyze and tune with minimal intrusion, so you see real execution behavior. And that¿s positively illuminating.

Virtualizing Service Provider Networks with Vyatta
This paper highlights Vyatta's unique ability to virtualize networking functions using Vyatta's secure routing software in service provider environments.

High Availability Messaging Solution Using AXIGEN, Heartbeat and DRBD
This white paper discusses a high-availability messaging solution relying on the AXIGEN Mail Server, Heartbeat and DRBD. Solution architecture and implementation, as well as benefits of using AXIGEN for this setup are all presented in detail.

Understanding the Financial Benefits of Open Source
Will open source pay off? Open source is becoming standard within enterprises, often because of cost savings. Find out how much of a financial impact it can have on your organization. Get this methodology and calculator now, compliments of JBoss.

Embedded Hardware and OS Technology Empower PC-Based Platforms
The modern embedded computer is the jack of all trades appearing in many forms.

Data Management for Real-Time Distributed Systems
This paper provides an overview of the network-centric computing model, data distribution services, and distributed data management. It then describes how the SkyBoard integration and synchronization service, coupled with an implementation of the OMG¿s Data Distribution Service (DDS) standard, can be used to create an efficient data distribution, storage, and retrieval system.

7 Advantages of D2D Backup
For decades, tape has been the backup medium of choice. But, now, disk-to-disk (D2D) backup is gaining in favor. Learn why you should make the move in this whitepaper.