(Credit: Google)Last December we showed you how Google refined its search results for iPhone and Android. The change loaded pages faster and fit the results to the screen width for searches generated from Google.com (plus for the specialized Google widget on Android and the search box on Safari.)
On Wednesday, Google began supporting these optimized results for feature phones--essentially handsets that are not smartphones or PDAs--in 38 languages and in more than 60 countries. The project to revamp search results builds on a March 2009 initiative that included iPhone and Android phones in about 20 countries. After that, it expanded to feature phones in the U.S. and Japan.
The optimized result is a listings page very similar to what you would see on your desktop, that is populated with image, blog, video, news, and product entries that are relevant to your search, often as the first result. An image showing the local weather forecast is one common example; a thumbnail of a Google map or movie showtimes are two others.
The language support includes English (U.S. and U.K.), Spanish, Japanese, Polish, French, Dutch, Korean, Turkish, Italian, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Portuguese (Brazil and Portugal), Thai, German, Russian, Tagalog, Swedish, Vietnamese, Bulgarian, Slovenian, Finnish, Indonesian, Croatian, Catalan, Danish, Czech, Lithuanian, Latvian, Greek, Slovak, Ukrainian, Romanian, Norwegian, Serbian, and Hindi.
You can read the Google Mobile blog for more details.
Skype shucked the beta tag on Monday to reveal version 3.0 of its VoIP application for Windows Mobile phones. Skype 3.0 for Windows Mobile (download CAB) is nearly identical to the beta build that preceded it, but mobile Skype users graduating to it from version 2.5 will notice some major feature additions--notably the capability to transfer files and to send SMS messages.
Initiate transfers and texts from the buddy list.
(Credit: CNET/Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt)File transferring and SMS are carryover features from desktop Skype and are initiated via relatively small buttons on the mobile interface that you can access from the contact list. Click the dark, round icon to send an SMS using Skype Credit, and select the gray drop-down arrow to select "send file." You can also initiate either from the Menu options.
While transfers and SMS worked well both ways with domestic contacts, we hope Skype adds a caption or note field.
Other features new to Skype 3.0 from Skype 2.5 for Windows Mobile include a wizard to help add new contacts, a tool to help place a call, and a new interface for the status, history, and chat tabs. If you're feeling feisty, you can also block certain users from your search results.
Overall, we found Skype 3.0 for Windows Mobile to work smoothly and retain the feel of the desktop original. It's just a shame the interface buttons and tabs appeared so small on our test device, a Palm Treo Pro--just as they did when we tested the beta version on a much larger-screened Samsung Omnia. That won't deter avid Skype users, who should find in this release gratifying features that allow for two-way file transfers and messaging with both desktop and mobile users.
Read the full release notes for more details about the update.
We've been eagerly awaiting developments to Fennec, the project name assigned to Mozilla's mobile version of its Firefox browser. We took a look when Fennec Alpha 1 came out for Windows Mobile phones. Late last week Mozilla released updates for Fennec on both its available platforms: Fennec 1.0 Alpha 2 for Windows Mobile and Fennec 1.0 Beta 2 for Maemo, the platform used on the Nokia N810 and N800 Internet tablets.
With the exception of some work on the interface theme and in the add-ons module, most alpha testers of Fennec for Windows Mobile won't notice drastic visual or feature changes. However, Mozilla hopes that you will see improvements to the browser's panning performance and add-ons support. (To get started with add-ons, swipe the screen to the right and press the gear icon (Settings) to arrive at the add-ons view. As before, this page lists your installed extensions and lets you search or browse to find and add new ones.)
In addition, Mozilla has added a JavaScript error console into Fennec 1.0 Alpha 2 for Windows Mobile, which will relay browser errors to Mozilla.
On the Palm Treo Pro's screen, you can't scroll down to see the Settings menu.
(Credit: CNET/Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt)We had no trouble installing and using the Windows emulator, but we could only get Fennec 1.0 Alpha 2 to load onto one of two Windows phones. While it looked good on the Palm Treo Pro, Fennec is still firmly in the alpha testing stages. Panning is better, but not ideally responsive. On its mostly square screen, we could not scroll the controls on the right to access the add-ons gallery. To be fair, the Palm Treo Pro probably isn't the testing device Mozilla had in mind. Fennec's emulator assumes a wide-screen browsing orientation.
Fennec 1.0 beta 2 for the Maemo platform also sees the theme upgrade, add-on support, and JavaScript error console that were added to the Windows Mobile build. You can download it for the Nokia N810 Internet Tablets, or for Windows, Mac, and Linux.
The latest alpha for Fennec (Windows Mobile) is available as a CAB file for the Windows Mobile 6 platform, but also as an emulator for Windows, Mac, and Linux.
As usual, we'd like to hear your thoughts on either of these prerelease builds. Share your experiences in the comments.
The WildCharger is one of those products that creates a problem that you didn't know you had. Though the product is certainly innovative and it succeeds at charging your cell phone without a wired connection, we never really thought that we needed to do so. What's more, unless you're charging more than one handset at a time, we don't consider it a practical purchase.
Yet, WildCharge (the device's manufacturer) continues to surprise us. In April, it greatly expanded its list of supported phones beyond the now ancient Motorola Razr V3. And on Tuesday, the company expanded that list even more when it announced a charging "skin" for the iPhone.
The skins, which will be available in July, are $34.99 each. You'll also need to buy the WildCharger pad ($49.99), but if you ever wanted a cell phone charger with "wow" factor, you can't go wrong.
Energizer's SP2000 solar charger.
(Credit: Energizer)Through a partnership with XPAL Power, Energizer has expanded its Energi to Go line of portable battery packs in a big way. The newly branded chargers run the gamut from an iPhone 3G/3G S battery sleeve to a couple of solar chargers to a larger lithium ion charger that can juice up to three devices at once, including a laptop.
Most of the chargers include cell tips for various makes and models of cell phones, and you can get free new tips online as future phones come out.
Many of the battery packs are available already under the XPAL brand, but the new packaging should be appearing very soon in stores.
Here's a look at the line and check out the slideshow above: ... Read more
(Credit: Google)This past weekend, Google introduced a new version of its glossy Maps application for Android phones. Version 3.1.0 brings with it several new features, including voice search to go with its text search field and transit and walking directions to go with step-by-step driving directions.
In tests, Google's voice search on Android was fairly consistent with other voice search apps we've tested. That is to say, a skosh inconsistent. Most searches for banal items of daily life like "shoe repair shop" and "coffee" plotted the sought-for neighborhood responses on the map. Once or twice, even in a quiet house at a quiet hour, did a phrase like "sushi" yield "nc," with the map racing off to North Carolina.
The trip planner in particular worked extremely well for San Francisco. As with the online version, Google's Transit works in 250 cities. Indeed, Google Maps quickly and accurately planned and timed my commute, providing options for other routes in the near past and future. To get directions with public transit, tap "Directions'" from the menu, select the middle icon, of a bus, and enter the end point, which can be an address or a business name. You're also able to set a specific departure time or arrival time and day. For city-dwellers, accurate walking and transportation directions are a necessity.
Rolled into the release is an experimental feature. Updates, which is connected to Google Latitude, lets you actively change your Latitude status for friends to see--so long as they're also using the latest version of Maps.
The erasure of Street View as its own map mode is another change you'll see. Instead, it has been integrated into any search result where the view is applicable. Pressing a point on the map will also bring up a Street View thumbnail if there's an available image.
For a change, Google Maps 3.1.0 isn't being automatically pushed to new users. To get it, download it fresh through the Android Market on your phone. The application is compatible with Android platform 1.0 and 1.5, so G1 and HTC Magic users can fire it up alike.
If you're one of the Opera Mini users who had noticed some mildly strange behavior in the Opera Mini 4.2 browser for Java phones, you'll be happy to know that Opera quietly fixed the bug.
Users reported a problem, Opera said in a blog post, that reverted sites to Desktop mode even if the preferences were marked for Mobile view. The display error occurred after users had accessed their RSS feeds.
Opera Software rolled out a minor server upgrade on Wednesday--version 4.10.422--that resolves the issue.
You may now resume browsing with abandon in Mobile view.
We knew that Opera Mobile 9.7 beta was on its way (in fact, we expected it in May,) but the build released to Windows Mobile consumers on Monday morning isn't exactly what we had anticipated given certain hints in the business build that support for Flash video was on its way. We should say, the inclusion of Opera Turbo was dead on. What we hadn't expected was a separate widget gallery to replace the one built into Opera Mobile 9.5 beta, the previous version.
More on Turbo and widgets in just one moment, but first the answer to what we think you really want to know--should you upgrade? Based on our tests of the preview build Opera let us test the Friday before the release, here's our take: While it won't slow you down if you do upgrade to Opera 9.7 beta from Opera 9.5 beta, and while it may even help you in a pinch, those with reliable fast coverage who don't plan on using more than Opera Mobile's core browsing features won't have much cause to reinstall.
Turbo-charged Opera Mobile 9.7
Enable Opera Turbo when you've got a weak connection.
(Credit: CNET/Screenshot by Jessica Dolcourt)Now back to your regularly scheduled review. Opera Turbo is the by now much-touted compression and proxy engine used in Opera 10 beta (review), the desktop browser version released the first week of June. On Windows Mobile phones, Turbo also makes browsing faster for data connections below 3G speeds--in other words, EV-DO, EDGE, and other 2.5G connections. When Turbo's revved on the phone, it sends the page data to Opera's servers for proxy rendering. The servers then send a lighter version of the page back to the phone. While that makes Turbo much faster on data- and image-rich Web pages over slow connections, it also predictably slashes image quality.
Turbo's implementation in Opera Mobile 9.7 beta is (disappointingly) unchanged since we got a demo at CTIA in early April. Though automatic detection is enabled in Opera's version 10 beta desktop browser, beta testers will need to manually switch it on and off each time. It's easy enough to do in the Advanced portion of Opera Mobile's settings menu, but there is a detriment to letting Turbo slave away. If you're on Wi-Fi or 3G, you could experience more lag time while Turbo sends your data to Opera's servers and back. Also, your image quality will suffer. This will be the singlemost challenge for 9.7 beta testers.
... Read more
Warning: This is not its actual size.
(Credit: RIM/BlackBerry)It's only been about a month and a half since RIM released the last update to Facebook for Blackberry (and then a fix to that update just after that), and BlackBerry's maker has already come out with a more streamlined version of the popular social networking app it codeveloped with Facebook's help.
Facebook for BlackBerry 1.6 folds its status feed content, originally in its own screen, right onto the home page. The result is immediate access to view your friends' status update, and a slightly quicker way to update your own status message. The same goes for poking a friend or commenting on their photos.
Use the pearl to scroll through friends' photos.
(Credit: RIM/BlackBerry)In addition, the app update removes some of the hassle in the previous version of getting to your pal's Wall. Instead of having to switch to the mobile site to view it in its glory, a click to your buddy's profile picture shows you their wall within the application itself. Facebook for BlackBerry 1.6 also shows photo albums in a modified slideshow ticker format. In the past, you needed to click on each thumbnail to see the image; now you can scroll.
The final change is added support for Thai, Indonesian, and Portuguese (European) languages.
Get Facebook for BlackBerry 1.6 for free on your BlackBerry--running version 4.2 of the operating system or higher--by pointing the mobile or desktop browser to www.blackberry.com/facebook.
We were struck by Gwabbit for BlackBerry's utility for the business set. Few could fail to miss the significance on your typing fingers of a program that scans your incoming e-mail for new contacts and automatically adds them to your phone book.
So, now we're back with a video that shows off the handy contact manager in real life, including what to do those times when the application doesn't quite work as promised.
