Hasta La Gadget!

Mango developers across the globe now have reason to hunker down and bring their apps up to snuff for Windows Phone 7.5. Microsoft has released version 7.1 of its SDK, which means no more coding with beta tools. In addition to the handful of bug fixes and a final spit-shine to the tooling experience, coders will discover the software has been localized to support nine languages, which includes English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Spanish and Traditional Chinese. Redmond is also taking the opportunity to remind programmers that now is an excellent time to check into the App Hub and cross-submit applications into any additional markets where you wish to sell their wares. You’ve got the tools, folks, now it’s time to make it rain.

Windows Phone SDK 7.1 goes gold, seven new languages in tow originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Sep 2011 18:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Without a dedicated app, iPad users have had to use Facebook’s iPhone app on the iPad. Image: Facebook

We’ve been without an official iPad Facebook app for so long it has seemed as if it would never arrive. But rumor has it we won’t be waiting for it much longer.

There’s a chance Facebook’s iPad app and an HTML 5-based mobile platform (rumored to be codenamed “Project Spartan”) are ready to hit the prime time, according to multiple reports. Both could be introduced at Apple’s iPhone event this Tuesday.

We first got a sneak peak at what looked to be Facebook’s iPad app in July. It was tucked away inside Facebook’s iPhone app and could be accessed by tweaking a setting when running it on your iPad (until the hack was removed). News of the mysterious “Project Spartan” also showed up this summer. The project was rumored to “use Apple’s own devices against them to break the stranglehold they have on mobile app distribution,” according to technology blog TechCrunch, but it could instead be used to demonstrate iOS 5’s HTML 5 capabilities at Apple’s upcoming media event.

The news about “Project Spartan” was discovered on a Facebook mobile developer’s page that has since been taken down.

If Facebook’s iPad app and Project Spartan don’t end up taking the stage at 1 Infinite Loop on Tuesday, the two products may be unveiled at Facebook HQ on a later date.

via TechCrunch and Mashable

While you’re undoubtedly aware that the PlayBook will gain the ability to run Android apps at some point, RIM’s come clean with specifics as to which ones will run on the biggest BlackBerry. According to Thinq, engineers from the Canuck company confirmed that the upcoming compatibility layer will not support apps written with the NDK — you know, wares written in C instead of the typical one-two Java / Dalvik punch. Also on the chopping block are those that incorporate Google Maps, in-app billing or Mountain View’s text-to-speech engine. Similarly, live wallpaper and applications that use VoIP or have more than one activity linked to the launcher are also on the outs. It’s been decreed then: don’t expect a fantastical bevy of apps to make the jump sans elbow grease, which if we’re honest, is about right given the other news out of Waterloo.

RIM details Android compatibility, apps written with NDK see Canadian visas declined originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Sep 2011 02:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s pronounced “twerp,” but don’t mistake TeamWin’s Recovery Project for a run-of-the-mill chump. The software is intended as a touchscreen replacement for ROM managers such as TWRP 1.0 and ClockworkMod Recovery. In addition to the all-important backup, restore and install functions, the utility now provides a full GUI for touch input that’s fully customizable with XML themes. As a particular boon, developers will have the option to design custom installation processes unique to their particular ROMs, which is a lovely (though very metaphorical) cherry on top. As you’d expect, the software supports both phones and tabs, and if you’re interested to see more, just check the full demo video after the break. According to the developer, the utility still needs some work before it’s ready for prime time, but it’s rather nice to see the group stay productive as it matures.

[Thanks, Ian]

Continue reading TeamWin demos TWRP 2.0 recovery manager for Android, scoffs at your volume rocker (video)

TeamWin demos TWRP 2.0 recovery manager for Android, scoffs at your volume rocker (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 27 Sep 2011 22:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Search, browse and buy. Traveling by train is now as easy as buying a song

In the U.S, the only people to ride railway trains are hobos, and tree-hugging hippies taking the Caltrain into San Francisco to work their tech-industry jobs. In the UK, trains are a much used (and outrageously overpriced) way to get around.

The new Train Tickets app from CrossCountry Trains won’t help with the prices, but it makes finding routes and buying tickets a lot easier. You can search on any train journey in the UK and view timetables. You can buy tickets from within the app, and depending on what kind of train you’re taking, you either get an “m-ticket” or you can print a paper ticket using machines at the station.

You don’t even have to sign in to use the app, meaning that you can buy tickets with some amount of anonymity.

I think the idea is fantastic, and all rail networks should do something similar. Unfortunately you can only get the free app from the UK App Store, which cuts out all foreign visitors — people who would surely appreciate such a thing.

And presumably Apple gets its regular 30% cut of ticket prices, which pretty much proves that the existing ticket prices really are too high. I have a request for Gadget Lab readers over in the UK: If you buy a ticket with this app, check your iTunes Store receipt and see if it has any details of your journey on there. It would be ironic indeed if the rail company didn’t have your ticket details, but Apple did.

Train TicketsBy by CrossCountry Trains [iTunes. Thanks, Stephanie!]

Our Train Tickets app [CrossCountry Trains]

See Also:

• Crowd-Sourcing iPhone App Live-Tracks NYC Subway Trains …
• Free WiFi comes to British Trains
• Amazing German Bike-Carrying Train
• Bikes on a Train: Station Dock Vends Folding Bromptons