mip's scan

A Quick Look at the iPod Touch

So for the past while I've been enjoying the use of the iPod Touch.  There have been numerous reviews of this device and so I'm not going to do an exhaustive review of every little feature here.  Suffice it to say that the iPod Touch lives up to the hype.  Often with new technology, the hype around a new product grows so large that when the device is finally released it has no chance of living up to the hype surrounding it.  The iPod Touch (and first the iPhone) had a lot of hype.  I'm happy to say though that it all works as advertised.  Dive into the video review I've got below; there I'll step through some of some of the smaller, not often mentioned aspects of this device.  It is the little things, the small attention to detail that Apple gives it products, that really enhance the ongoing use of a product.

Opera Mini 3 Released

I spent some time today using the new release of Opera Mini on my Blackberry 8700. Opera Mini is the mobile version of the Opera browser and this release made me particularily happy because it allows me to subscribe to RSS feeds. Yup. That's right...I finally have a way to track RSS feeds again while on the go. If you will recall, I left Bloglines and started using the terrifc RSS reader Newsfire. The one drawback was my inability to now easily read my blogs while on the move via my Blackberry.

The Opera Mini 3.0 browser allowed me to subscribe to my favourite blogs and read them on the move. In addition to the RSS feeds, it also has some good photo tools (especially if you have a camera on your phone) and the added security makes web banking all the better (and safer). If you've been using Opera Mini, good release to upgrade to. If you haven't used it, this is a good little browser that just gets better with each release. Check it out.

5 Days with The OQO

A co-worker of mine who recently acquired the OQO was kind enough to lend it to me.  I've carried it around for the past 5 days and here are my thoughts on this little device.  You can see me showing it off in the video clip below with my post continuing after that.

The OQO is a wonder in engineering devices that are small.  It is amazing how they've packed so much into this little device.  Despite that, there are some problems I find with the device but overall I was surprised by how much I enjoyed using it and found it an effective way to augment my computing use.  Let's look at the pros and cons that I found over my 5 day trial.

Good Little Video of the Sony mylo

This is a follow up to the post I did this morning on the Sony mylo.  The gang over at Gizmodo seem to have gotten their hands on one and given us a little video (see below).   I like how they seem to have borrowed the great user interface design that Sony created for the PSP.  The icons, graphical layout and navigation are very similar.  I find the PSP interface to be excellent so seeing it on the mylo is awesome.  The slide out keyboard is what the PSP is missing to make web browsing a joy on the device.  Of course, the PSP doesn't come bundled with the great communication apps that mylo does like Google Talk, Yahoo Messenger and most importantly Skype.   Can you imagine how great a device like this would be once the Toronto WiFi project is completed by Toronto Hydro! 

Enjoy the clip below....boy...I sure hope they make this device available in Canada otherwise I'm going to need to drive to Buffalo to find one!

TubeSock - YouTube to Go

I was just saying yesterday how much I enjoy end-user created content.  I find so much stuff on YouTube and I'm not alone, with a hundred million downloads happening each day.  I often will see something on YouTube and then email it or bookmark it so I can share it with other people.  That is why I really like this excellent tool called TubeSock that allows you to rip YouTube videos to your iPod or PSP.  That rocks!  The more you set content free, the father it travels, the greater its worth becomes. 

TubeSock grabs YouTube videos from the web and copies them to your video iPod, Mac, or PlayStation Portable. TubeSock knows how to convert the video using the codecs and bitrates best for each device. It can even add the video to iTunes for you.

Awesome awesome tool!  Unfortunately if you are Windows user....you're out of luck.  TubeSock is a Mac-only tool currently.

Sony Introduces mylo

Wow!!

Now this was the kind of device I was expecting Apple to announce yesterday...but nooooo, they didn't.  Instead, Sony did and I think it shows real promise.  I love the fact that it takes many Internet communication tools and makes them available like Yahoo Messenger, Google Talk, and Skype.  Skype!  Wow, this could be the wi-fi device everyone has been waiting for.  Check out this site for an excellent animated introduction and then a great Flash-based site that allows you to explore the device.  Make sure you checkout the features...I love the visual way you can see 'what's up' and see who is online.  Now this is a device that looks exciting.  Can't wait to see what this is like when it launches in the fall.

Sony UX50 Handheld PC

I was talking a little while back with an old friend who said that his business partner was really into Sony gear when it came to laptops.  I mentioned that Sony had announced a new device that at the time, the exact name and details escaped me.  Here now is some info on the Sony's handheld PC, the UX50.  The first thing is that the UX50 was the same label they applied to the once availbale Clie UX50.  Remember that?  I do.  I own one (still have it kicking around my home office as well...not bad for Wi-Fi surfing of the web).  The thing that bugs me is that they killed off the Clie-UX50 and now seeing the UX50 label applied to this handheld PC leave a bad feeling in my stomach, but of course that is a purely emotional response. 

The new UX50 looks like a slick device.  I like the form factor and love the slide and reveal keyboard.  I obviously haven't been able to type on this (since it isn't out yet), but they keys look a bit odd to me.  A tad small compared to the hand in the picture.  The device itself seems a tad underpowered to me as well from the specs listed in the review I read.

So is this a device I would run out and get?  I know it would turn heads, but no...I'm not a huge fan of what I see coming from Sony in the laptop / computing department.  If it's a laptop you want - go for a Macbook or Macbook Pro.  If it is the portability you want in a handheld PC...well, my advice would be....wait and see what Apple comes out with first.

Google Maps on Your Mobile

Thanks to Martin for pointing this out to me.  I knew this was in the works but hadn't realized it was released yet.  You can now get Google Maps right on your web-enabled cellphone.   Here is the list of phones you can download the app for.  Sadly, there is no support for the Treo (what else is new....sigh).

I saw this working on Martin's Blackberry and it is really slick.  If you have one of the supported phones you should go grab this app.  Google Maps is an excellent tool - putting onto a mobile device just made it better.

Get all the details here.

Free SkypeOut Calls

This is great news. 
Skype is offering until the end of this year, free SkypeOut calls in Canada and the US.  SkypeOut is the ability to make a call from your PC to someone's actual phone.  PC to PC calls have always been free, but PC to Phone required you to purchase time.  It was normally about 2 cents / minute for me to make a call anywhere in Canada for example. 

Offering it for free is an obvious way to try and penetrate the market.  I think it'll work.  People will try the service, enjoy the service and then in the future continue to use the service.  At 2 cent / minute it was already worth using so at $0.00 - well, it's a no brainer.

If I can make one request of Skype though, it is this, bring SkypeIn to Canada.....pleeeeaaaasssseee!  SkypeIn gives you an acutal phone number, for able a 416 or 905 number.  Then when someone from a home or office phone dials that number, your Skype application on your PC starts ringing.  They offer SkypeIn in a lot of countries but alas, not Canada.  Hopefully that isn't too far off.

Welcome the Palm 700P

Yes, you read correctly.  I said P.  As in P for Palm.  Remember when I wrote Back from The Dead?  which was a look at the not-so-successful implementation of Windows Mobile on the Treo in the form of the 700W.

Well, it's another "I told-you-so" moment here at mip's scan.  Palm has indeed announced the Treo 700P that comes all loaded up as follows:

• All-in-one smartphone with Palm’s world-class ease of use
• Fast EvDO network access2 
• Palm OS platform 
• 128MBmemorytotal, 60MBnonvolatile memory available to user 
• Wireless access to Outlook®email1 
• Wireless access to AOL, Gmail, and Yahoo! email1 
• Fast mobile web browser2 
• Functions as a high-speed modem for your laptop2,3 
• Integrated Contacts and Calendar 
• Create, edit, and view native Word and Excel files 
• View native PowerPoint and PDF documents 
• 1.3 megapixel digital camera also captures video 
• Rich media capabilities for music, pictures, and video 
• Built-in Bluetooth®wireless technology

Nice to see Palm holding its own.  Now I can only hope they don't just stand around and actually evolve the platform....AND, I really hope they've improved VersaMail which is terrible on the 650.