Filed under: Mobile Minute

In case you're wondering why your RSS reader has gone into overdrive, it just so happens to be Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas this week -- and that means that all the mobile companies bar one (Apple!) are announcing their new devices and software. Today's turn is underdog Palm, who've been outlining their plans for the webOS platform.

[Images courtesy of our brethren at Engadget]

It's been just over a month since Palm last updated their webOS devices, however today the Palm Pre has seen webOS 1.3.5 released (well, at least in the US). The update is notable, albeit for the items that the update does not address: video recording is still missing, and there's no sign of the Pre's iTunes syncing being re-enabled with this new release either.

That said, if you're sporting a Pre the update is probably one you'll want to apply to your device. Here's the notable changes in this update:

• Users can now store more applications on their devices, with the artificial limit on installed applications removed.
• Improved battery life (especially when in 'marginal coverage areas')
• Support for audio and video when received via MMS
• Data detectors to launch either Google Maps (or Sprint Nav) from Address Book contacts' addresses

The update is now available for download via the Pre's built-in Updates application, although devices will try to download the update over the coming days if you're connected to a high-speed data connection.

[Via Engadget]

Oh my... not content with finally being at the stage where they're ready to release a working version of their 'Fennec' mobile web browser (albeit only for the Maemo based Nokia N900 initially), Mozilla seem to be on something of a mad world-domination-power-trip at the same time.

Why? Well, Mozilla have declared that Firefox Mobile will render all existing device application stores redundant as developers shift to developing applications which simply run in your mobile web browser.

Although this is probably the millionth time I've read that web applications will make client applications completely redundant, I'll explore their asseration for the benefit of you, dear DLS reader.

Vice President of Mobile at Mozilla, Jay Sullivan, spoke to PC Pro about application development and raised some valid points. He talked about the relative simplicity of developing in JavaScript and HTML and the benefits of not having to learn the development platform required for a specific mobile or desktop OS. It is valid to say that, featuring the fastest Javascript engine of any mobile browser, some great experiences will be possible with Firefox Mobile.

But I see a problem -- two, in fact.

In a move that marks a change of direction for the device manufacturer, HTC have just released four additional Hero / Droid Eris widgets for download in the Android Market.

The initial release offers 'Battery', 'Dice', 'Tip Calculator' and 'Today in History' widgets for download free of charge, though it should be noted that the widgets are Sense UI widgets rather than standard Android widgets, which means they will only work on the aforementioned HTC devices. This also means that other HTC manufactured devices such as the G1 or MyTouch 3G are also excluded.

It will be interesting to see whether HTC offers additional software in the Market going forward and whether the releases will remain limited to HTC devices - users of other Android devices would love to have the ability to use the excellent Sense UI or perhaps the HTC designed software keyboards - even at a cost.

Would this be a good opportunity for HTC to earn additional revenue or would it be a danger to the unique selling points of their devices? What happens over the coming weeks and months will likely reveal HTC's thoughts on the matter. What are yours?

If you're currently a user of Evernote, the awesome note storing solution AND you're packing an Android device, then today is the day to finally rejoice as the Evernote client for Android is available now, free, on the Android Market!

Comprehensively featured (yet with 'big plans for 2010'), the new client allows you to collect text based notes, camera images or audio clips for synchronisation to the Evernote cloud. Free users can also upload PDF, text, audio or image file attachments while premium users can upload absolutely anything provided it is under 25MB in size. The user can specify note attributes can at creation time as well as selecting the notebook to upload to.

Unlike some lesser clients, Evernote for Android provides native viewing of content within the application - it doesn't bounce you off to the Evernote webpage to view your notes. The application's interface is straightforward but fully featured and it looks and feels like a proper Android application, while still remaining familiar in look and feel to anyone who has used Evernote on another platform.

Of course, the beauty of Evernote is the fact that whether you create a note on your device, the web or your PC / Mac it is accessible everywhere and this applies to the Android version too. Upon synchronising your newly created content to the Evernote cloud, you can then take advantage of the services offered online such as OCR (which I find great for meeting notes). An excellent search function allows you to find content both on your device and in the cloud.

Using the location functionality of your device (either network based or GPS), notes can be geotagged. After allocating a note to a particular location, you can view the 'Notes Near Location' menu to view nearby content, a neat feature for segregating work and personal notes for example.

Evernote is available free from the Android Market now. The Evernote service is free for a basic subscription with 40MB storage or $5 per month / $45 per year for a premium account offering an enhanced feature set and 500MB storage.

Interestingly, while the Evernote client for Android gets a full release, the Windows Mobile client remains in Beta and it's features pale in comparison.

The SEVEN Beta setup is an interesting one.

As a company, Seven (enough capitalising already!) sell their excellent push e-mail products only via mobile operator channels, however their Beta program is an excellent way for users on unsupported carriers (that's likely you and I) to enjoy their software.

Available in a variety of editions on a variety of platforms, Seven's software allows you to receive push mail on your device from a variety of services - Exchange, Yahoo, GMail, AOL Mail, HoTMaiL and standard POP and IMAP services are all supported. A Beta release it might be (with the usual associated disclaimers), but the application is a supremely useful piece of software that i've been using for many years to push synchronise GMail with my Windows Mobile devices.

I happened to visit the Seven Beta site earlier today to download the latest Windows Mobile client and I was intrigued to notice that an Android download option had appeared. Obviously I had to download the application and take a look!

As expected, it's a Seven client for the Android OS that includes all of the goodness that i'm used to - push mail across a host of platforms, 'quiet times' when push can be automatically disabled, multiple accounts, server contact search, customisable notifications and more! Although the currently version of the software is missing a few features i'd like to see (primarily HTML mail), for Android users it can often be a trying task getting mail set up and working as desired if you are using something other than GMail, and Seven is making that story easier. I've been pushing an additional e-mail account and a HoTMaiL account all day without any issues!

If you'd like to try out Seven on Android (or indeed any of their other support platforms, which include WinMo Standard / Professional, Symbian S60, Palm OS and even J2ME!) then head on over to the Seven Community Forum to sign up for an account.

Over the past few years, Opera Mobile has become the browser of choice for the majority of Windows Mobile users. Shipped as the default browser on many devices and available as download for others, Opera Mobile addresses the many failings of the preinstalled IE browser with better performance, variable zoom and text reflowing as well as a polished and intuitive UI.

Pushing the mobile browser closer to a desktop grade experience is the promise of Opera's latest release, Opera 10 Beta for Windows Mobile.

The Opera Mobile 10 Beta overhauls the look and feel of it's predecessors and is similar in design to the Opera 10 desktop browser as well as the Java based Opera Mini 5 beta. The UI overhaul brings Opera's offering across all of it's platforms in line, as well as providing a great range of features from the desktop platform including Speed Dial, tabbed browsing, a password manager and Opera's server side compression technology, 'Opera Turbo'.

I've had a try of the new browser and it does indeed feel more consistent in style with Opera's Java based offering, no bad thing as Opera Mini has always made excellent use of the available screen real estate. Performance seems great and the UI seems intuitive. Some features found in previous releases don't seem to have made it into version 10 yet - we spotted a lack of device rotate support and no support for multitouch zoom on the HTC HD2, but Opera does look set to maintain it's class leading position on the Windows Mobile platform.

The Opera Mobile 10 Beta is available for free download now from the Opera website.

If you're one of the folks sporting a Palm Pre, it's time to check for updates as you'll want to grab the WebOS 1.3.1 update that dropped over the weekend (at least for Sprint customers in the US).

Whilst there's no new applications, the update (which weighs in at 126MB) packs a tonne of features and improvements that you'll probably want add, including support for Yahoo! as a synchronization account.

That's not all, either, as PreCentral has discovered a list of extra undocumented changes that are included in release - and Facebook have launched an embarrassingly barebones application for the Pre that requires the 1.3.1 update.

If you're elsewhere in the world, the launch of the 1.3.1 update will depend on your carrier - in the UK, where I'm based, O2 are reported to be launching the update towards the end of the month.

[Via Engadget]

Not being pretty and white, nor slender, shiny and fashionable, the BlackBerry devices don't get as much attention as its SoCal sister the iPhone.

But that doesn't mean the clever folks over at RIM aren't busy developing and releasing exciting new technologies for their latest OS 5.0 devices! You just don't hear about them quite so often, which I hope to rectify with this little bit of news. As covered by our clever cousins over at Engadget, you can expect the following additions and changes to soon become available:

• Open GL ES support -- this is the big one. This is the single change which will see the BlackBerry shift away from the black-straight-edged-suits and more towards the cool-chic-students. The developer kit is already out, so games makers should really get on to that right now...!
• Extensive Adobe technology support -- not only will we be seeing great Flash support (as covered by Engadget Mobile previously), there will also be more integration with rest of the Adobe Creative Suite.
• And much more -- the BlackBerry Payment Service, Theme Studio, and Advertising Service will all make an appearance at the end of 2009 or beginning of 2010.

These changes should cover all Storm and Curve owners, along with anyone that's lucky enough to own a Storm2!

So what does the iPhone do that the BlackBerry devices don't?

Does RIM really have to release a white-plastic-and-aluminum BlackBerry...?

Sometimes I'd like to see what new apps are available for my iPod Touch on the App Store on a system that doesn't have iTunes installed. In their infinite wisdom, however, Apple has decided that this just isn't the way things work on the desktop. You'll use iTunes and you'll damn well like it, buddy.

Palm Pre owners (and curious types) can now enjoy a bit more open experience. As it turns out, Palm thinks it's a great idea for people to be able to see what apps are out there. Not on some new-Pre-app blog. Not in some bloated desktop app. Right on Palm's web site.

What an amazingly simple idea! Now, prospective (and current) Pre and Pixi owners can take a look at all the cool apps they can install on their devices. It's not perfect by any means - I'd love to see a bit more detail about the apps and some more screenshots - but at least it's there for all to see.

Apple, you're paying attention, right? Enough with the "iTunes link" stuff. It's annoying. And not everyone wants to install 100+Mb of software just so they can browse your virtual shelves. Palm beat you to the punch, but you can still prove you're the king of the app store and get something similar online for us.

After that earnings report, you should be able to pay one or two extra web devs to get to work immediately. We'll expect results soon.

In the meantime, well done, Palm!

[via PhoneScoop]

It's amazing how expensive cradles are for mobile devices. Most users realize that there is a big premium being charged for what amounts to a formed piece of plastic, and it makes them less likely to pony up the big bucks for a device that holds their phone. Luckily, this is an area where a little DIY creativity can help.

A Download Squad tipster pointed us to their YouTube video describing how to take a cardboard coffee cup sleeve and with a few careful cuts, turn it into a perfectly serviceable cradle for holding a mobile device in landscape orientation. The video could have been shorter, but it is very well put together. I've embedded the video after the jump at the end of this post.

Alternatively, there is an iPhone dock papercraft project that Lifehacker pointed to that is a little more complicated, but results in a cradle that can hold an iPhone in landscape or portrait orientation, and allows you to plug in your iPhone's sync cable while in portrait orientation.

Is it worth skimping on a cradle and trying to make it yourself, or are you willing to pay the premium that hardware makers charge for their sturdier versions? Do you know of a different set of DIY cradle plans? Let us know in the comments.

When it comes to anonymous browsing on a desktop PC, getting set up is pretty straightforward. The widely used Tor Network provides a software bundle to install on your machine which allows you to connect via a virtual proxy to their network, which reroutes your traffic between constantly varying nodes. This makes it impossible for you to be traced as you go about your business on the web and it also makes it exceptionally difficult for anyone snooping on network traffic to determine which sites you are visiting.

Mobile anonymity is historically a lot harder to achieve, however if you're an Android user, there's now a nice simple solution.

If you are a HTC Hero owner, you've likely been waiting with baited breath for the device software update that has been widely publicised as giving the Hero a much needed speed boost.

Wait no more, it's finally here!

Wearing version number 2.73.405.3 (in line with the leaked version that surfaced last week) for the WWE region (an Asia release will follow), the update adds also adds a new radio layer for improved reception and will require a wipe of your data to install. The update can only be installed via a Windows PC.

If you are lucky enough to have a Hero, there is absolutely no doubt you should install this update to significantly improve the performance of your device - grab it from the HTC support site.

The update does also flash a new bootloader which makes 'rooting' the phone for full unrestricted access slightly more difficult, but due to HTC failing to patch a vulnerability in the kernel, it can still be done!

Online music streaming / discovery site Pandora have released their 'Pandora Mobile' Android application in the Android Market (for U.S. users).

Pandora Mobile allows you to create a personalised radio stream to listen to directly on your device. Simply enter an artist name, track name or a classical composer and Pandora will create a virtual 'radio station' that plays matching music and music that it deems fit for your tastes.

If you already have stations set up via the Pandora website, they will also become accessible on your device. The application includes a homescreen widget for convenient control of your playback and convenient 'thumbs up' and 'thumbs down' of the current track.

As mentioned above, Pandora Mobile -- as with the web based version -- is only available to U.S. users at the time of writing. If you're in other countries and you're looking for an alternative, check out imeem or last.fm (also free on the Android Market) or the recently launched Spotify streaming service (premium subscription required).

The application is enjoying a very positive reception from users - the current rating on the Android Market is '4.54 out of 5' - a positively glowing recommendation! Have you installed? Tell us what you think!

Yesterday Android devs got a little treat in the form of a video demonstrating some new features in the upcoming Android Market, for version 1.6 of the Android platform. Hey, and guess what? It looks shockingly similar to the iTunes App Store as seen on your iPhone or iPod touch.

Similar as in it now has reviews and product shots IN the market ON your phone.

Oh, and subcategories and shiny big buttons to buy things and so on. Given the App Store's straightforward and logical design, it's only natural that the Android Market would end up looking pretty similar, isn't it? Check out the video for more.