CoolGorilla, whose free Java talking phrasebooks we reported a month ago, have now managed to shoehorn the same audio/text functions into a mobile-focussed web version, ostensibly aimed at the iPhone but which works perfectly in all recent S60 smartphones, for example. Type www.coolgorilla.com/iphone into your smartphone's web browser.
The W3C Mobile’s Web Initiative is here – the standards body are hoping to put together an Open Mobile Web Test Suite, which will be used to measure how effective the support for certain technologies is in various mobile web browsers. It’s an open call for submissions on their website .
Rafe Blandford exercises his editorial overview privileges and provides the back story and possible future for the Moto Z8, the kick-slide smartphone that he reviewed in detail recently (links below). Did you know that the Z8 was developed in secrecy in Birmingham?
Just in case anyone reading this doesn't already own several Bluetooth GPS accessories, news has filtered through that the FCC has passed the 'Nokia LD-4W', a TomTom lookalike...
Great reading over at Carnival of the Mobilists, number 84, and I'm not just saying that because the compilers liked one of my AllAboutSymbian features.... Recommended, as always.
Steve Litchfield has been getting twitchy feet over his reliance on Outlook as the PIM partner to his smartphones and he's overjoyed to find a Web-based PIM that's totally cross platform, that supports just about every smartphone ever made and which is completely free! In this walkthrough, he explains how to set Mobical up and start syncing.
My (well, 'our' really, since Rafe provided both review machines and all the direct bandwidth!) Smartphones Show 39 is now online, with hands-on video reviews of the Nokia 6120 Classic (the 'smallest smartphone in the world') and the brand new Sony Ericsson P1i. Here's the direct MP4 link, the YouTube link and the RSS feed if you decide you like the show etc.
It's..... the daily E-series blog link, this time highlighting the fact that there's a whole new version of Yahoo! Go on the loose. It's a 700K Java applet that's RAM intensive, alas, but that not withstanding it does give complete access to all your Yahoo! stuff and has weather and maps as well, with full GPS integration (on the likes of the Nokia N95). Worth the RAM hit? Here are the Yahoo! Go write-up and links.
Fortune (via moconews) is reporting that Nokia may shortly be launching an online music store and downloading service similar to Apple's iTunes. The service is based around technology gained with the acquisition of Loudeye is expected to be announced at an upcoming Nokia event in London. It is also likely the event will also be the venue for the launch of the latest in the Nseries range of phones. Read on for further information and analysis.
Following the EU announcement that they “officially favour” the use of the DVB-H standard for mobile television throughout all of Europe (in a similar vein to their decision that we should all use GSM for digital mobile phones many a moon ago), Virgin Mobile will be stopping the broadcast of Mobile TV through their Lobster handsets.
Is it going to be too little too late? Announced at the start of the week is the joint program by Sony Ericsson and Orange to use music smartphones to promote unsigned bands in a traditional ‘Battle of the Bands’ voting experience. And while it will promote both the audio and video capabilites of (I’m assuming) the W960, it’s going to be attempting something else.
In this editorial Ewan looks at 3's recently launched Next Portal. The portal lists products in two categories: mobile site and mobile applications. The idea is to make these mobile services easier to find for the average consumer. Ewan takes a first look at the portal and finds promise, but also has concerns over longer term health.
A timely reminder from Scottish Games Developers Black Company Studios about how important the UI is on both a mobile device and in applications . It's an area that is getting more and more attention in the mobile market, partly because with the hardware specs of mobile phones becoming similar by the day, how people interact is becoming a major selling point.
Rafe Blandford exercises his editorial overview privileges and provides the back story and possible future for the Moto Z8, the kick-slide smartphone that he reviewed in detail recently (links below). Did you know that the Z8 was developed in secrecy in Birmingham?
