Dec 22

Video of Next Android OS Shows On-Screen Keyboard

Posted in: Android, cellphones, Google, Phones, t-mobile, Today's Chili, top

Anticipating a selection of QWERTY-less handsets to run the platform in the near future, the next version of Android will have an onscreen keyboard, among other things. Here’s what it’ll look like.

The two most notable aspects of the keyboard are its style and its method of feedback, which are both slightly derivative. You may recognize the keyboard styling from HTC’s TouchFlo 3D handsets, which are skinned very similarly, albeit with an inverted color scheme. It diverges, however, in its visual feedback; instead of simply magnifying the key around your finger, Cupcake displays a disembodied duplicate at a fixed distance above the original key, for an effect not unlike the iPhone’s onscreen keyboard.

Not shown in the video are some of Cupcake’s meatier features, namely the video recording and browser find functions. The robust, if unrefined, preview of this keyboard serves to show that developers are taking Android dev seriously, and that the platform could well turn out to be the evolving OS that we originally hoped for. [MomentaryLapseofReason via ModMyGphone—Thanks, Neerhaj]

No Comments | Tags: ,
Dec 15

New “Nova” Palm OS Confirmed for CES 2009

Posted in: cellphones, os, palm, Smartphones, Software, Today's Chili, top

A scheduled Businessweek feature broke at midnight about Palm OS, and the subhed confirms that it will be shown at CES. The facts are thin, but they’re below.

• “the goal is to create products that bridge the gap between Research In Motion’s (RIMM) BlackBerry devices, oriented to work and e-mail, and Apple’s iPhone, oriented to fun.”
• The article implies that the platform would be capable of acting as an OS for not only smartphones, but gameboy like consoles and e-book readers.
• Palm believes they can grab 2% of the market; that RIM will dominate the majority of share and the iPhone will have 10%.
• The OS would also help phones make “smarter use of data about you. For example, your smartphone could send you an e-mail the day before your next business trip, advising you on the weather conditions in your destination city.”

[Businessweek via Engadget]

No Comments | Tags:
Apr 09

Gizmodo’s Long-Ass Nokia N95 Review: Why it Rocks, Why it Sucks [Cellphones]

Posted in: cellphones, feature, nokia, Today's Chili, top

Nokia’s N95 superphone is complicated, taking days for even the most experienced gadget journo to digest. That’s why lots of reviews I’ve seen so far are either extremely light or 10,000 word stunners: This is one of those long ones. It’s likely easier to pore over the phone yourself in our hardware and software gallery walkthroughs, and come up with your own opinion. But If you want the text heavy version, here’s what’s great and terrible about this phone. More »

No Comments | Tags:
Apr 08

Nokia N95 Superphone: 50 Screenshot Walkthrough Next Best Thing to Owning It [Cellphones]

Posted in: cellphones, feature, nokia, Today's Chili, top

Yesterday, in the dead of the night, Nokia launched the N95 superphone in its Chicago and NY Stores. I celebrated by giving you a tour of its hardware, as if you just plucked it from the box. Today, I ditched the Easter bunny to give you a rundown of the entire N95’s complicated and rich inner workings. That’s love. More »

No Comments | Tags:
Apr 04

Random Van Halen Video: Sony Ericsson’s TrackID Can Name That Tune [Cellphones]

Posted in: cellphones, feature, phone, Sony Ericsson, Today's Chili, top

I just won’t shut up about Sony Ericsson’s new phones, so friends at Dynamism sent me a W880, their flagship Walkman. The best thing? Not the slim case, but the extremely useful TrackID system. Basically, you can play this phone a song, and it’ll take a sample by microphone, compare it to digital signatures on Gracenote, and come back with track, artist, and album info that you can save for later or send to friends. This phone can name that tune. And, it works well. More »

No Comments | Tags: