Rated: Eight new technologies from DEMO 07

Palm Desert — Wednesday morning’s Demo sessions spanned the usual startup gamut from the useful to the useless and a few in-between.

In order of appearance here’s what the demos in the desert had to offer today.

Ferran Moreno, CEO and founder of Whisher.com hopes to bring some order to the chaotic world of free Internet access where users freely share their Wi-Fi connection with other users.

With the Whisher client installed, when a user finds a typical list of available networks Whisher adds its logo to those networks that are accessible.

Even though the network indicates that it is locked, the Whisher logo indicates that someone on that network is willing to allow the visitor to essentially use their user name and password to hop on board.

The actual log on details are not revealed, rather the Whisher software takes care of the log on in the background.

The software also allows users to exchange files–using drag and drop, in the Whisher environment– as well as see a list of local users willing to chat.

It also can create message boards for user comments like rating the quality of the coffee in the cafe you may be sitting in.

MY TAKE: if in a perfect world there were millions of Whisher-enabled Wi-Fi networks this would be extremely useful. However, its survival depends on whether or not it can indeed market well enough to accomplish that goal.

Nuvoiz, says founder and CEO Chong-Jin Kah, is Skype for the enterprise.

“Skype is a wonderful consumer software but it is also a nightmare for IT managers. It is non-standard and has no management system to provision users.”

Nuvoiz sits both on the client device, on a server platform and is connected to the IP-PBX system in the office.

It offers the typical call control buttons like chat, call recording, call hold, mute, call conference and call transfer.

The provisioning server can monitor and configure users among its many management features.

It also connects to standard SIP and Java servers on the backend.

MY TAKE: Nuvoiz has the right idea. Either a large company will buy Nuvoiz and use the technology or create their own.

In either case, I think Nuvoiz as a brand name will not exist for too long.

The timing for the introduction of Boston-Power’s new battery for laptops couldn’t be better considering the promise that its batteries won’t explode or catch fire in your lap.

Introduced by the other Woz, John Wozniak, Master Technologist in Hewlett-Packard’s Personal Systems Group, Wozniak said HP is very excited about Boston Power’s Sonata product.

[By the way, I asked John Wozniak if he was related to Apple’s creator and he said no.]

The competitive differentiator for this battery is the fact that it gets an 80 percent capacity charge in only 30 minutes and the fact that the battery will operate without fading probably as long as you would want to keep the laptop, three or four years.

However, battery life per charge is no better for this Lithium Ion battery than the ones being shipped today.

MY TAKE: after what will probably be a long testing period, you can expect notebook OEMs to adopt the Sonata as the standard device, with one proviso.

Marketing principles say if a device adds as much as $5 additional dollars to the system it will not fly.

Buzz Interactive allows users to combine music with a voice message, dial any phone and the system leaves the message.

My thoughts: I am afraid this technology will get lost in the crowded market of content providers trying to find space on the sales shelf for cell phone services.

Inilex is one of those control your car from afar technologies. Plug the ViM card into the appropriate spot on your car and it taps into the vehicles’ electronic computer system.

Once in, using a phone you can start car features like heat or air-conditioning, or actually start the car and set the speed limit for younger drivers in the family. The GPS system also lets you know where they are going.

If the car is stolen it will send an alert to your phone and track it on a map.

MY TAKE: while consumers may not be bowled over, it might work for fleet managers and rental car operators. Just don’t count on the police to drop everything and chase after the car thief when you call them.

Brevient Technologies’ Jyngle offers a way to send and receive phone messages to and from designated affinity groups.

Users create the message with Brevient’s service and with a click that voice message is sent out to the entire group at the same time.

Not unlike sending a fax to a group.

MY TAKE: this product may have legs for consumers. Think of car pools, bowling nights or other times when you need to get out a change of plans message quickly.

For business, retailers can also use the “join” feature to send out notices of sales to customers who opt in.

Iqzone wants to be the Craig’s List for cell phones.

It is a service that delivers classified advertising via a mobile device. Like Craig’s list users download photos and add text and ads appear on the site.

MY TAKE: I would expect Craig’s List to offer a mobile version for viewing and why won’t users just wait until they get back to a more convenient device to place an ad?

Mobio Networks offers pre-packaged mashups that adds some depth to the usual consumer services like restaurant reservations and movie schedules.

Built into the Mobio client software are 50 applications and widgets. For example, if you pull up a movie guide there will be a mashup with a map, a movie rating service, a payment service and a click to call phone service.

One of the templates is called Panic Kit and includes details on local hospital, pharmacy, towing,taxi services, and local locksmiths, again with the appropriate mashups.

If an ambulance service is added that happens in the background without user intervention.

MY TAKE: by aggregating services into mashups it really makes those services far more useful.

I expect that Mobio’s technology will be licensed by numerous carriers.