Up Close and Personal with the LG IQ

Last night I was invited by LG to take a look at their new device line-up, which included the brand new LG IQ, better known under the code name Monaco. While the IQ is not currently on sale, it will be available from Telus before the end of the year. If you consider that it would be incredibly stupid to release a phone 1 week before Christmas and miss the majority of holiday shoppers, then you could assume that the phone would be available in the next couple weeks. LG would not confirm anything more than “before the end of the year”.

So what’s so special about the LG IQ? Well, it’s running Windows Mobile 6.5 and sports LG’s S-Class user interface, which made for a really nice and finger friendly navigation. The S-Class interface was fully customizable allowing you to change which icons are displayed along the bottom and appear in the expanded menu. LG also allows you to turn this off and use the standard Windows Mobile 6.5 interface if you would rather use that. The device has a 1500 mAh battery, 5 mega pixel camera, MicroSD, and a Snapdragon 1 Ghz processor. The finger scanner on the front of the device works as your navigation and authentication to unlock the device. When it comes to navigation, I found the finger scanner worked really well. It was very much like a touch pad on a laptop. Swiping your finger from top to bottom would cause the page to scroll. The S-Class home screen allows you to swipe left and right to alternate “desktops”.

[ ..Read More.. ]

Megalith-Systems releases DynaInk

My good friend Gabor has created yet another wonderful program to add to the list:

 

Megalith-Systems (the original publishers of the popular GPS Tuner 4.x / 5.x series) has announced the release of DynaInk, a new and exciting drawing application for Windows Mobile devices.

 

DynaInk is a simple yet revolutionary new drawing application, which simulates real drawing experience on a touch screen mobile device.  Thanks to it’s patent pending technology, DynaInk can react your drawing dynamism, automatically changing the line width and line color accordingly.  The result is a rich and eye-pleasing picture.

Top Features

• Natural Drawing Experience (Patent Pending)
• Dynamic line width and color
• Vector based, Scalable Graphics, EPS export
• Instant E-Mail with picture attachment
• Unlimited Undo with thumbnail images
• Works with Integrated Camera
• Manually Tracing Photos
• Markup your Photos
• Stylish notes and messages

With DynaInk, you can brush-up (pun intended) on your drawing skills, or quickly create a masterpiece!  Kids love it too!

For more info, please visit dynaink.com

Rogers Gets its Hand Slapped

In a mirror image of what is happening in the US, Rogers has been told to stop making claims of being the “most reliable’ network in Canada. Rogers has been making this claim for a long time now but Telus has finally taken them to task on these claims.

What I’m really surprised at is Telus’ slightly between-the-lines assertion that this has actually been true until November 6th when they rolled out their HSPA network. If you think about that, this claim isn’t actually saying that Rogers’ network is inferior now but that there is simply no basis, or no third-party data to assert this claim. In other words, it’s actually possible that Rogers’ network is the more reliable but they need the backing of a third party in making this claim.

The flip side of this could very well be that Telus and Bell may actually have the more reliable network but they too would have to have confirmation to make that claim. At this point they don’t seem to be making trying to lay claim to these bragging rights, they simply want Rogers to stop their advertising campaign.

I’m personally a Bell user and find their network to be as close to rock solid as wireless can be. Their HSPA network actually gave me better signal strength than their own CDMA network.

My First Podcast

On the weekend Simon Sage of IntoMobile.com invited me to be on their podcast, The Signal and I jumped at the chance. We recorded it on Thursday and since I’m a mobile geek I just HAD to use my phone to do it. I used the Windows Mobile version of Skype and it worked out allright; not great, but alright. I’ve never done one before and wanted to see if I was up to the challenge. I’ll let you decide whether I was or not.

IntoMobile.com covers the mobile industry on all platforms and do a great job. Check out their site when you get a chance and subscribe to their podcast. Simon covers mainly the Blackberry platform, which is why he asked me to come on to speak about Windows Mobile. You can find Simon on twitter at twitter.com/SimonSage

It was a pleasure to be on the cast and I hope I didn’t get too much wrong (be gentle!!). Thanks to Simon and the gang at IntoMobile.com for having me on the show.

You can listen to the podcast here. There’s also links to download it.

Experimenting with Something New

I’ve been using a mobile device of one kind or another since around 1994 or so. From Palm and Handspring, to Pocket PC and Windows Mobiles, to today’s Windows Phones. It wasn’t until Microsoft released their Windows Mobile Smartphone based OS that I really found something that I connected with. While I enjoyed using the different versions of the OS and the ever changing technology there was something about the touch screen devices that just didn’t work for me. I often felt that touch the screen was slower and more cumbersome than using a non-touch device. Windows Mobile Smartphone / Standard devices excelled in one-handed operation. There was no fiddling around with a stylus to tap around the screen in the same fashion as Pocket PC / Professional based devices.

I still use Professional for work and supporting customers, but my primary device, day in and day out, over the last 5 years has been a non-touch Windows Mobile Standard based smartphone. That was the case up to this past weekend when I added a new device to my collection.

After picking up a HTC Hero smartphone running Google’s Android operating system, I finally realized what was missing from my touch experience over the years – finger friendly interface. Everything I have done on this device has been very easy to do without a stylus. It’s still early but, for one-handed operation on a touch screen device, the HTC Hero running Google’s Android is the first device I have used that could be as easy to operate as a Windows Mobile Standard device.

The bottom line is this – Mobile Jaw will have a lot more Android content to come. It looks like this device will be my primary device for the foreseeable future.

Market Place for Mobile Makes its way to Windows Mobile 6.0 & 6.1

On October 6th, Microsoft launched their new Windows Phone running Windows Mobile 6.5 One of the many features is the addition of a market place for mobile devices. At the time of launch, this was only available for Windows Mobile 6.5 devices. This week, Microsoft has made Market Place for Mobile available to all Windows Mobile 6.0 and 6.1 based devices.

To install the Market Place for Mobile application, go to http://mp.windowsphone.com on your device. From there, you can download and install the market place on your device. Once installed, you will be able to browse applications targeted for your region and device type.

It’s great to see Microsoft has made their market place available for older devices as this allows developers to target a much larger install base. However, the cost of entry for developers is prohibitive. As well, the cost of listing applications for multiple regions in the market place can add up very quickly. It’s a significant step forward for developers and the community but until the cost is addressed, I don’t see the market place being a serious contender. Check it out on your device and let us know what you think.

Taking a Closer Look at Samsungs Jack Smartphone with Windows Mobile 6.5

Last week, Samsung released Windows Mobile 6.5 for their popular Jack Smartphone. Microsoft claims that the Windows Mobile 6.5 update is all about touch. It offers an improved home screen and today menu for touch screen devices, as well as an updated version of Internet Explorer Mobile, Market Place for Mobile, and a number of more finger friendly enhancements to the general user interface. But the Samsung Jack does not have a touch screen. So is there any reason to apply this update?

Samsung offers the following list of enhancements and additions that Windows Mobile 6.5 brings to the Jack:

• Internet Explorer Mobile 6
• Windows Market Place for Mobile
• Modified UI with updated text & icons in several areas
• Enhanced, Java platform
• Battery optimization
• Radio signal optimization
• Fixed, T9 predictive logic (able to use z character)
• Added, RNDIS bypass support (Settings>Connection>USB) for simpler desktop connectivity
• Added, AT&T WiFi and Mobile Share
• Added, Vlingo for Windows Phone for improved voice recognition

The two big things that you’re going to see after upgrading to 6.5 are an improved web browsing experience thanks to Internet Explorer Mobile 6 and the new Market Place for Mobile. I’m sure that Samsung has done some tweaks to the battery life, but it’s nothing ground breaking. I haven’t noticed an extra day or power or anything. As for the modified UI, take a look at the pictures below and you be the judge if there’s anything there that is so over the top you just have to have it, because, frankly, I don’t see it.

While the market place is a welcome addition, it has yet to receive the praise or attention that it needs from developers to make it worth while. Many developers still see developing for Windows Mobile as a costly endeavor and that hasn’t changed with 6.5.

[ ..Read More.. ]

The New Cellular Competition in Canada

FINALLY there is some competition happening in Canada. Unfortunately it isn’t a new cellular provider but at least there are some new and decent things happening. How does some competition for Rogers stranglehold on GSM and iPhone sound?

I’m referring to the launch of the new HSPA network by Bell and Telus. Ok, ok, I suppose its technically “networks” but there is so much sharing going on with these two companies we really have to call it a single network. That’s not really a bad thing as it means exceptional coverage for Canadians; up to 93% of the population of Canada according to Bell.

While we are on this topic I should mention that coverage will continually improve over the next short while. Bell and Telus are both in the process of identifying coverage gaps and applying to use each others towers for those gap areas.

Since I’m a Bell customer I’ll let you know my experiences with their network. I’d rather give more print time to Bell right now anyway, because their data plans are fairly decent. More on that in a bit.

Bell’s HSPA network went live on Wednesday, November 4th, well ahead of their original schedule. The plan initially was to launch in early 2010 which was then bumped to late November. Bell moved that date to Friday the 6th and just a week before launch bumped it again to be on the 4th. I like that! I don’t remember the last time Bell was aggressive with a roll out. Maybe spells a new mindset at Bell? I hope so.

Bell’s real motivation for rolling out in November was to be all set for the Olympics in Vancouver in February 2010. They even signed a sweet roaming agreement with AT&T to snag all the roaming iPhones when they visit.

Being the cautious Canadian that I am and in showing great restraint I didn’t run right out and hook my plan to Bell’s new network at the time of launch. I waited a good and proper 4 hours…then ran in! I had an unlocked AT&T Fuze (aka a GSM version of the HTC Touch Pro) burning a hole in my pocket.
[ ..Read More.. ]

Samsung Releases Windows Mobile 6.5 Upgrade for Jack

Samsung has released their ROM upgrade to Windows Mobile 6.5 for the Jack Smartphone. Now, to be clear about which Samsung Jack we’re talking about; If you have a Rogers or Fido Samsung Jack, then this upgrade is not for you. If you have an AT&T Samsung Jack, then this is your path to Windows Mobile 6.5. The full details and installation instructions can be found on Samsung’s website. And just like with past upgrades, Samsung has made it as difficult as possible to upgrade your device. There’s numerous steps and hoops that you need to jump through, but in the end I think the result will be worth it.

Before performing this upgrade, be sure to backup any personal information you might have on the device. The upgrade will wipe the device and restore it to factory default settings. If you don’t have a backup procedure in place, I highly recommend you install Microsoft’s My Phone service and backup all your data to the cloud for free. You can sign up here, or read more about it in my review – here.

I’m off to upgrade my Jack. If you have any problems or questions about the upgrade process, just post them in the comments here and I’ll do what I can to help. I’ll post my thoughts on the new ROM once my device is flashed and I’ve had a chance to play around with it.

Update: It looks like the update will not run on Windows 7, even if it’s run under compatibility mode as an administrator. You’ll need a machine running Vista or XP in order to do this upgrade. When I launched the installer on Vista, it failed the first time. I had to run the installer as an administrator in order for it to work.

Setting up Windows Mobile Device Emulator

When you’re developing for Windows Mobile, you need to think about the various flavors and screen sizes that the platform is available on. If you’re not able to stock each of the possible configurations for testing, then you might want to consider using an emulator. By installing the standalone device emulator, you can easily test your application across various flavors of Windows Mobile without the large investment in purchasing devices.

For many, the issue with emulators is how to get your data or application on to it. So I thought I would run through installing emulators as well as how to copy your applications to the emulator. Before we begin, you’ll need to download the following things:

• Microsoft Device Emulator 3.0 – Standalone Release (Download here)
• Windows Mobile Emulator Images – Pick any 1 or all of the following:
  • 6.5 Standard and Professional (Download here)
  • 6.1 Standard and Professional (Download here)
  • 6.0 Standard / Professional (Download here)
  • 5.0 Smartphone (Download here) / Pocket PC (Download here)

Once you have the emulator and all the images downloaded we can begin the installation. The first thing you need to do, is install the device emulator. Once that’s installed, you can move along to installing the emulator images that you want to use. I have found that installing 6.5 over 6.1 tends to break the emulator image. This can be fixed by running repair on the 6.1 image. If you’re only installing 6.5 images then you don’t have to worry about that.

[ ..Read More.. ]

Next Page »