iOS App Spotlight: Try This App – It’s A “Cinch”

Here’s a pretty cool app for iOS devices called Cinch. It’s a great app for sharing audio, text and photo updates via your iPhone or iPod Touch. You can easily broadcast your information via Twitter, Facebook, CinchCast.com and more! Pretty cool, eh? Current version is 1.6. Let’s take a look at Cinch.

You can either sign up at CinchCast.com or authorize your Facebook and/or Twitter account to post via the app. Just hit the “Record” button as shown above (you’ll have about 3 seconds before recording) and speak your peace. Once completed you’ll have the option to send to CinchCast.com, Facebook or to Twitter. You even have the option to post to your own personal blog if you have one.

You can see above that you can add pics to your recordings, tag your current location and announce what you are saying before sharing. Checking the CinchCast.com website you can find various people to follow and those will be synced to your app as well. I gave the app a good workout and I’m really pleased with it.

You can read much more at the CinchCast site here.

What’s New in Version 1.6
● Simplified recording, adding pictures and text, and publishing.
● iOS 4 support.
● Multitasking support (fast app switching and background completion of recording and publishing).
● Retina display support.

You can’t pass this up since it’s FREE!!! Doesn’t get any cheaper than that, eh? Here’s the iTunes App Store link.

Give it a shot…you’ll be glad you did. Hit us up with a comment if you give this app a go.

BBM for The Rest Of Us

Before switching to my iPhone 4 a couple months ago, I was a long time BlackBerry user. I briefly switched to Android, but returned to BlackBerry in a matter of months. Why? I missed BBMing. Now that many people are switching to Android and iPhone from BlackBerry there are a number of cross platform applications that try to imitate that beautiful BBM experience. Today we will be looking at the two most used: PingChat! and Kik Messenger. They are both available on BlackBerry, iOS and Android. Note: This is from an iOS point of view. Feel free to shoot off in the comments on how these apps work for your platform.

App Spotlight: Pill Prompter For iPod/iPhone From Pinch Studios

Hey folks! Matt from Pinch Studios was kind enough to give me a review copy of their iPod/iPhone app, Pill Prompter. Pill Prompter is a simple tool to gently reminds you to take your medicine each day. If you choose to snooze the alert, it will remind you again later based on your adjustable snooze length. This great little app also advises you if you’ve missed taking a pill. Pretty nifty, eh? You can choose from a wide variety of sound reminders such as an alarm sound or even a dinosaur sound. Nothing like T-Rex letting you know to take your meds. The countdown timer is so convenient as it reminds you to take your pills at the same exact time.

This is a great application and well worth the price. It’s available in the iTunes App Store for only $0.99 through 10/15/10 at this link. Get it while it’s hot and cheap! You can check out the company blog here and any support questions can be sent at this link.

Thanks again to Matt and Pinch Studios for allowing me to showcase their application.

BigTechTony

Device Review: AT&T Blackberry Torch From Research In Motion

The good folks at RIM were generous enough to allow The Sauce Report to receive the Blackberry Torch as a review device. Excitement was the word when it arrived on my doorstep. I was stoked to see if RIM had really stepped up their game with this device and OS 6 implementation. This is a review from my point of view so I understand if you have a different opinion than mine. A touchscreen along with a physical QWERTY keyboard were very enticing and I was wondering which I would prefer to use.

Here are a few of the major specs of the device:

- Blackberry 6 OS
- 624 MHz CPU speed
- 512 MB internal flash memory
- 4GB built-in storage memory
- 4GB microSD card included
- Supports up to 32GB microSD card
- 5.0 MP camera, flash, auto focus, face detection, image stabilization, scene modes, 2X zoom, video recording
Integrated GPS with A-GPS (assisted GPS) ready
- Wi-Fi Band: 802.11b/g/n, support for UMA (carrier-dependent)
- Bluetooth v2.1; Mono/Stereo Headset, Hands-free, Serial Port Profile, Bluetooth Stereo Audio (A2DP/AVCRP) and Bluetooth SIM Access Profile supported Headset

The device upon first unboxing felt solid in-hand and a little on the heavier side which is fine by me. The sliding action is smooth, perfectly balanced in the amount of effort it requires to shoot the screen up over the keyboard. It takes a push, and then it zips along the track until it clacks, satisfyingly. And it feels like you can do it a million times. The rippled back is the right amount of rubbery, not so much it makes you hands feel weird, but textured enough the phone will never slip from even gross, clammy hands. The Torch feels more like a quality tool in-hand versus a smartphone. I absolutely love the horizontally-ribbed battery door cover which feels just perfect in the hand and reinforces that quality tool feeling. It’s very pocketable as well.

Physical Keyboard

It felt very much similar to the ergonomic 9700 keyboard and typing on it was a breeze. Pounding out several emails, BBM’s, text messages, etc. was easy as 1-2-3. I was drawn to try the physical keyboard first as I currently use a Blackberry Bold 9650 with the physical keyboard.

Touchscreen Keyboard

I knew a very serious learning curve was in store for me as I hadn’t used a touchscreen keyboard since my Windows Mobile days. Devoting some time to using the touchscreen is necessary. I quickly became acclimated to using the touchscreen without many problems whatsoever. No Surepress clicking on the keyboard is required which was a plus for me. All in all…I had a preference for the physical keyboard over the touchscreen keyboard. I believe my experience with my current Blackberry Bold 9650 leaned me in that direction. RIM has obviously overcome the touchscreen hurdle with BlackBerry 6 and the Torch delivers a very smooth user experience, including support for gestures including tap, pinch, slide, touch and hold and double tap. The swiping and flick scrolling is predictable and the tapping experience is natural – I haven’t found myself opening apps or links by accident.

Memory

You can see that the Torch bring plenty of memory to the average user. 512mb of internal device memory should be more than adequate for the Blackberry fanatics out there. RIM has also included 4GB of built-in (non-removable) storage space for files such as pictures, music, movies and podcasts and a 4GB microSD card is included bringing the storage space out of the box up to 8GB (hence when you plug the Torch 9800 into a computer two drives pop up).

Battery Life

Need I say more? RIM (as usual) knocks it out of the park when it comes to battery life. I easily made it through a full day of heavy usage with about 20% of battery life remaining which included browing on the new Webkit Browser, utilizing Twitter for Blackberry, etc. Great battery life is one area where I will never worry of a problem with RIM. The BlackBerry Torch 9800 gets its power from the new F-S1 1270mAh battery and you’ll be quite impressed. RIM gives the following specs on the battery:

* GSM Talk Time: 5.5 hours, GSM Standby: 17 day
* UMTS Talk Time: 5.8 hours, UMTS Standby: 13 days
* Audio Playback: 29.8 hrs
* Video Playback: 6 hrs

Phone Quality/Sound Playback

The Torch was a joy to use. All calls were clear and crisp and many of those I spoke with advised me that it sounded like I was in the next room talking to them. Kudos to RIM here! Voice quality did not change whether the slider was open or closed. Vibration rings really fit the bill as well. It provided a good combination of vibration and being very quiet at the same time. No iPhone antennae problems here for sure. Lol!

Camera

The BlackBerry Torch 9800 is the first BlackBerry to make the jump up to RIM’s new five megapixel camera that features continuous autofocus, face detection and geotagging. The new camera is a welcome upgrade to BlackBerry. For the most part you’ll be able to simply leave the camera in Autofocus mode and take good pictures, but spending some time getting to know the different scene modes will help you take better pictures. I did find switching between camera scene modes can make a big impact to the photo – so it’s obviously doing something magical to adjust for specific conditions. Also fitting to the Torch name, the camera flash is incredibly bright. I suggest you really check out the features integrated into the camera. You can (without a doubt) take some quality photographs with the Torch.
I also loved the integration RIM provides where you can share images via email, Twitter, Facebook, etc. A few clicks and you’re sharing with others which was a very smooth transition.

WiFi – Like the BlackBerry Pearl 3G, the BlackBerry Torch adds the n standard to b and g and as we observed on the Pearl 3G, it definitely offers an improved WiFi experience compared to devices like the Bold 9700 and 9650 which don’t have the updated WiFi. No ability to create mobile hotspots yet either, but we’ve seen that this should be coming to the Odin (Storm2) refresh later this year. Hopefully that’s a sign most BlackBerry device models will offer it in the future.

GPS – The GPS performance on the BlackBerry Torch 9800 seems up to par with other devices. RIM has been putting a lot of work into improving the BlackBerry platform for location-based services. They’re using more cellular tower data to augment the GPS experience, and have made the cell site / geolocation api available to developers. The useful estimated time of arrival module is supported. While cell tower location is fast and pretty accurate (depending where you are), it still takes longer than I’d like for GPS location to hone in. It’s not bad, but I’d love for that to be instant.

Bluetooth – There’s no real need to mention this one, but just like other BlackBerry Smartphones today the Torch is Bluetooth 2.1 compliant. You should be good to go for using it with most Bluetooth headsets, speakerphones or other Bluetooth accessories you want to pair the Torch to.

Speakers – It could be in my head, or ears rather, but I don’t think any new BlackBerry has quite matched the BlackBerry Bold 9000 for speaker loudness and clarity. Not having a Bold 9000 handy to compare to as I type this but rather a Bold 9700, I can definitely say the Torch 9800′s built-in speakers trump those in the Bold 9700. With the volume cranked, the Bold 9700′s speakers tend to get a little tinny/twangy on the higher notes which forces you to turn the volume down, but the Torch 9800 seems to always keep the sound in check even with the volume turned to max. In other words, you won’t get annoyed listening to the Torch if you sit it on your desk for an afternoon and play some background tunes for everyone in the office.

User Interface

BlackBerry operating system 6 isn’t an overhaul of the BlackBerry OS, and while it brings a couple API-level changes, it’s mostly top layer UI modifications. For starters, BlackBerry 6 brings modal popups, press-and-hold gestures, multitouch gestures like pinch to zoom and two finger select, and drum roll please… a WebKit-based web browser with tabs.

In addition to the above, there are a bunch more enhancements: universal search, multiple contact lists (sadly you can’t link duplicate contact entries), a social networking application that can aggregate all your social networks/accounts in addition to posting simultaneously to them, redone multimedia applications, a new camera interface, kinetic scrolling (though we would have liked to see even more of this), a notifications drop down menu, and much more. I was very impressed with the UI as a whole. All functions flowed smoothly together. You will enjoy this as well.

Something I’m excited to see in BlackBerry 6 is faster application downloading/installation. Previously it would take forever to download apps (or anything for that matter), but in BlackBerry 6 the progress bar zips along just fine most of the time, and this is a welcome improvement. The phone also boots much, much quicker (everything is relative, it’s still a good minute or two) and I was quite happy with it.

Browser

I was very excited to try out the new Webkit Browser and it didn’t disappoint. In terms of rendering, web pages actually display as if they should on a desktop — correctly and formatted properly most of the time. Pinch to zoom is a go, and while it’s not as fluid as some other platforms out there, it does get the job done. Mobile websites rendered even more quickly which is a huge plus as I have quite a few mobilized versions of websites bookmarked on my device. Tabbed browsing and thumbnails in browser history are also a nice touch. Browsing on Wi-Fi was a most pleasurable experience as well. I suggest using Wi-Fi to save battery life but battery life is stellar as usual via RIM and shouldn’t be a concern.

Conclusion

The AT&T Blackberry Torch from RIM is a welcome addition to the Blackberry family. It combines a sleek-looking device with a fluid user interface. It’s easily pocketable and a breeze to use. The touchscreen has a little bit of a learning curve to it but you’ll catch on in no time. The one thing I do wish was that the device was released across multiple carriers which would’ve truly increased the sales of the device. Kudos to RIM on a device well-crafted!

Grab yourself a Torch if you’re on AT&T. Thanks to Research In Motion again for allowing The Sauce Report to review this device.

Thanks

BigTechTony

Review: Calendar Pro For Blackberry From SBSH Mobile Software

Hey folks! Amit from SBSH Mobile Software gave me a copy of their stellar calendar application for Blackberry, Calendar Pro. This is the app you need on your BB if you’re looking to keep your reminders and tasks on point.

Turn your BlackBerry into a powerful time management system. Enjoy innovative and compelling tools far beyond the default BlackBerry tools that will help you manage your busy schedule. Advanced calendar views, dedicated tasks manager, powerful recurring items engine, category coloring and icons and much more!

Here, you can choose which calendar you’d like to start out with…whether it’s daily, weekly or monthly view. You can also choose your Tasks as you can see in the lower right corner.

The Settings page is shown above where you can set default views, Tasks by color choice, font sizes of your choice, etc. You name it…this application has it! You can also set database colors by default, for Facebook, your personal email and even your Blackberry Messenger groups. Nifty, eh? SBSH didn’t hold anything back when developing this bad boy!

You can see in the Month View above that I have reminder set up for August 6, 13 and 20. When you scroll over a date with a task or appointment in the slot the self-titled reminder/task will show up at the bottom of the screen. Very nice touch if I do say so myself.

I could go on and on about this application but I think you all need to check it out for yourselves and give it a shot on your respective “Berries”. Check out this link to get the full scoop on the application.

It’s available for $14.95 which may seem a little pricey, but once you have this app you’ll understand why. You can download it as a trial, and if purchased, you have a 30-day money back guarantee. You can get the app for $10.47 (30% savings) if you register at the SBSH forum. You can do just that here. Support questions can be submitted here.

What ya waiting for???!!! Give it a shot…you will be glad you did. Thanks again to SBSH for allowing me the opportunity to review this great app. Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Thanks…

Tony

Accessory Review: OtterBox Commuter Series Case for Motorola DROID

I want to thank the fine folks at OtterBox for allowing me to review one of their Motorola DROID Commuter cases, they have been wonderful to work with over the past few weeks.

If you have never purchased an OtterBox case for any of your devices, you are missing out. I started using the Commuter Case for my Motorola DROID a few weeks ago, and I love it. I’ll give you a little information on OtterBox as a company, the cases that they offer, some details about the case that I used, and then I’ll give you my opinion on this particular case. Hopefully it will help anyone that is in the market for a new case for their device with their decision-making.

OtterBox was created back in 1998 as a company built upon fundamentals of hard work, creativity and perseverance. They are known as innovators of protective solutions for the leading global handheld manufacturers, wireless carriers and distributors.

Our cases are dedicated to all the klutzy, spontaneous, chaotic, graceless individuals who have broken a device or valuable due to their active lifestyle and like our customers, we’ve been there too!

The “innovative spirit” of founder and CEO Curt Richardson has promoted the development of our product lines from waterproof boxes into four lines of device-specific cases for today’s hottest technologies.

Similar to an otter’s fur, our original line of cases is waterproof. So to incorporate that element with the fun and playful disposition of the animal our CEO and his wife came up with the name OtterBox while brainstorming company names during a drive to Denver, Colo.

Like the animal that is our namesake, we’re a fun, creative bunch that likes to work hard and play hard too. We have in-house sales, customer service, accounting, engineering, public relations, marketing, web design, graphics, supply chain, human resources and our own warehouse.

After reading this, how can you go wrong. They obviously love what they do, and love technology. So, let’s talk about what devices they offer cases for:

• iPad
• iPod
• iPhone
• BlackBerry
• Google
• HP
• HTC
• LG
• Motorola
• Nokia
• Palm
• Samsung
• PDA
• Trimble
• Waterproof

So, as you can see from the above list, they pretty much cover it all. Pretty impressive, if you ask me.

Now here is some information on the particular case that I used, the Commuter Case for the Motorola DROID:

Don’t fret! You don’t need “The Force” to keep your phone safe. The OtterBox Commuter Series for DROID by Motorola is an advanced, stylish case that provides protection plus full access to all of this smartphone’s amazing functions.

About our Commuter Series: Three slender, yet sturdy layers offer tough protection in a sleek package. With a slim form factor and smooth outer layer, this DROID case slides easily in and out of a pocket, purse or bag.

Compatible with:

• Motorola DROID
• Motorola Milestone

Features:

• Screen protector
• Access to touchscreen, buttons and features
• Silicon plugs provide coverage for ports

NOTE: Case provides added protection against bump and shock. Case is NOT protective against water.

Cost: $34.95 HERE

Here are my thoughts on this case:

I knew about the commuter case, but had never owned one. I was pleasantly surprised by what I was greeted with. Number one, it had a screen protector, just like the ones that you can buy at Verizon Wireless, but it has FULL coverage, it goes from the top of the glass screen, to the bottom, not just over the part of the screen that you use. So, it’s complete coverage. You never even notice that the screen protector is on there and no touch screen activity is hindered by having it on.

Also, the silicon plugs for the USB port and headphone jack were a nice touch. They easily fit inside the ports while the case was on, and easily popped out when removing the case (which I do daily to use the multimedia dock that I have at work for my DROID). These plugs got a lot of wear and tear from me since as I stated, I removed the back of the case daily, and they held up just fine. You would really have to work at it to tear them off or damage them in any way.

The case itself comes in 2 pieces, one for the back and one for the face of the device. Both were easy to pop on, the back being easier to remove than the front, but that’s normal for most cases for the DROID, the front is a bit tricky when it comes to cases.

The case itself is smooth plastic on the outside, and there is a thin layer of silicone that lays in the back of the case, and nicely hugs your device, the silicone ports are attached to this silicone layer, as well. The silicone can easily be removed from the back for easy cleaning, if necessary.

The Commuter Case did not seem bulky to me at all, it fit easily in my jeans/shorts, or in my bag. There was never any difficulty removing the device from my jeans once it was in the device, the smooth plastic made it so any friction was not an issue. Also, I should note that even with the case on, you could still easily access the top line of keys on the slide out keyboard. The way that the OtterBox case was designed, it has a bit of a bezel so that it doesn’t cover those keys.

Though not waterproof like some of the OtterBox cases, I must say that this case provides excellent coverage for the Motorola DROID and is WELL worth the cost. I would highly recommend this case to anyone looking to protect their device, and think that you would too after using it yourself. The only thing I would recommend is a tweak to the case to allow for compatibility with the navigation dock for the DROID. Other than that, this case gets two thumbs up from TSR and again, I want to thank the folks over at OtterBox for allowing us to review their product.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask below in the comments section, and if I don’t have the answer, I will work hard to get it for you.

Device Review: Microsoft KIN One and KIN Two

I was given the opportunity by Verizon Wireless to try out the KIN One & KIN Two devices recently, and I wanted to do a quick write up on my thoughts of these two Microsoft devices. Touted as social networking smartphones, Microsoft has managed to pull off just that….a smartphone for the social networking butterfly.

I will start right off saying that this device will be suited with the younger set, I don’t think we’ll see too many professionals toting around these devices, they are mainly marketed to younger teens, possibly using their first device. Perfect for them, and chances are they’ll probably love it. For what I need out of a smartphone, it just isn’t for me.

That being said, let’s talk about the KIN One first:

Size: 2.66″ x 0.73″ x 3.31″ – the KIN One has a squarish-ovalish design to it, and it fits easily in the palm of your hand. You can easily slide this device into your pocket and it will not be uncomfortable. It weighs 3.90 ounces, so it’s not overly hefty at all.

Battery: the KIN One comes equipped with a standard Lithium-Ion battery (1240mAh), which boasts up to 340 minutes talk time and up to 210 minutes stand by time.

Screen Display: 2.6″ High res TFT, QVGA (320×240)

Included Accessories: When you open the box, you will be greeted by:

• Stereo Headset – 3.5mm
• Standard Lithium Ion Battery
• Wall Charger
• Micro USB Cable
• Zune Pass (free for 14 days)
• Quick Start Guide
• Product Safety & Warranty Guide

The KIN One has a slide out keyboard, just simply push up the screen, and you will find the keyboard tucked nicely underneath, it’s small and compact and like I said, it fits nicely in your hand.

It has a pretty decent camera on it, a 5.0MP camera, in fact. In my experience, it took nice pictures, and everything seemed to be quick and easy.

Here are a few of the other features of the KIN One:

• Windows Phone OS for KIN
• Push Exchange Mail and POP3/IMAP pull (up to 10 accounts)
• 4GB storage (does not support and expandable memory port)
• Screen lock
• English or Spanish UI
• 40 Polyphonic ringtones
• Phonebook, messages, photos and videos automatically synced to a secure service and thus virtually unlimted
• TTY compatible

Currently you can pick up the KIN One through Verizon Wireless for $149.99 with an instant $100.00 online savings, making the device $49.99.

Now let’s take a look at the KIN Two:

In comparison, the KIN Two looks more like your standard bar smartphone, and is much bigger. Here are the specs:

Dimensions: 2.36″ x 0.64″ x 4.38″

Weight: 4.70 ounces, this device is more hefty than the KIN One, but it is still pretty light.

Battery: standard Lithium Ion (1300 mAh), and boasts up to 365 minutes of talk time and up to 232 hours of stand by time.

Screen Display: 3.4″ High res TFT, QVGA (320×240)

You will see the same accessories as the KIN One when you open up the box, so we won’t get into those at this time.

Here are some of the added features to the KIN Two:

• Windows Phone OS for KIN
• Push Exchange Mail and POP3/IMAP pull (up to 10 accounts)
• 8GB of storage (does not support and expandable memory port)
• English/Spanish UI
• 40 Polyphonic ringtones
• TTY Compatible

Currently you can pick up the KIN Two through Verizon Wireless for $199.99 with an instant $100.00 online savings, making the device $99.99.

Wait, what’s my actual opinion of these devices you ask? Well, out of the two devices, I would have to say that the KIN Two is more my speed. It’s more of what I’m used to out of a smartphone and gives me the size that I need. However, there does not seem to be any type of calendar on either of these devices, so if you’re someone who lives and dies by your schedule, you’re going to be late to a lot of appointments if you rely on these devices to remind you.

I have to say that I am not a fan of the OS, it just seems chaotic to me. I never got the hang of using the KINs in the few weeks that I’ve used them. The browser does what it needs to do, but it’s no frills, which is fine. It’s not really a power-device so no worries there.

The homescreen is just far too cluttered, and honestly I could never find my way around it. However, these devices are not going to be for everyone, as I stated at the beginning of this post. There are people out there that are going to really enjoy these devices and love everything about them, and what they can do.

You will need to add the data plan onto your bill to utilize these devices, which will run you $29.99 through Verizon Wireless. Keep that in mind when purchasing either of the KIN devices.

All in all, I’m thrilled I got the chance to try out these devices, because I was highly curious about them. I just don’t see them coming home with me from the Verizon Wireless store. Nor do I see them lasting long in the line-up.

Device Review: HTC Droid Incredible

Most of you are already pretty familiar with the HTC Incredible, and I think this was a device that many people were waiting for for quite some time. Well, as you know, it’s finally here, and after a few weeks of owning one, I’m here to offer my thoughts on this new Android device, currently being offered by Verizon Wireless. You can pick one up currently for $199 with a new 2-year contract.

I went back and forth on whether I was going to get this device, or just wait and see what else Verizon Wireless had up their sleeves. As it was, I had just picked up the Motorola Droid a few months back, I wasn’t ready to purchase something new. Or was I. I can blame this on my brother, who made it abundantly clear that he would be trading in his Moto Droid for a new HTC Incredible, in fact, he had ordered it online and was just waiting for it to arrive. The day before the Incredible dropped, I had finally made up my mind……I ordered it. It was due to come in the next day.

We have all seen the leaked photos of the Incredible and knew prior to it being released that it was going to be QUITE the device. Some might call it an INCREDIBLE device (sorry, couldn’t resist). So, I was prepared for this, at least I thought I was. There were a few people that stated that the Incredible got so hot that it could fry bacon. I wasn’t scared. I knew this was something I had to experience for myself. In case you’re wondering…..my device has never gotten unusually warm, unless I’m outside with it in the hot sun. In fact, it reacts like any other device. However, I am sure there are some out there that do heat up alot. Just not mine.

First thing you notice is the red accents on the device. Especially under the hood….the battery cover. I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about the blazing red on the Incredible, but I have to say, it’s pretty slick.

I plan on doing a comparison review on the Motorola DROID vs HTC Incredible, so I’ll just briefly touch upon the comparisons here in this review. I was coming from the Moto DROID to the Incredible, and there are a few differences, in weight, size, and UI (User Interface).

I had the chance once to try the HTC Eris, and I loved the UI on that. I was happy to pick up the Incredible, knowing it would have the Sense UI as well. I am not disappointed. I love the Motorola DROID, but I must say, I like the UI on the Incredible more than I liked the Android UI. it just seems more polished, focusing more on widgets and appealing extras, like Peep (HTC’s on board Twitter app), Friend Stream (which allows you to see your Facebook & Twitter updates on your screen), and quite frankly the calendar widget is that much better. I’ll get into that more as we go along.

There are not many buttons on this device, you get the standard four Android “buttons” along the bottom of the screen: Home, Menu, Back, and Search. There are NO buttons on the right side of the Incredible, normally there’d be a camera button there, but the camera operates with the touch of the optical track pad. You can also use the optical track pad to navigate between homescreens, as well as swiping your finger across the screen.

Along the left hand side of the device, you have your volume buttons, and at the bottom left hand side, the micro-USB connector for your charger. In my opinion, this is a poor place for the USB port, it makes using the device while plugged in pretty awkward. Maybe it’s because I’m a lefty, not sure. I am most used to having the USB port on the bottom of the device. Alas, I’ve made it work just fine.

Along the top of the device you have the power/sleep button and your headphone jack. Pretty standard.

The battery cover is pretty tough at times to snap off of the Incredible, but truly you should never have to get in there for anything besides replacing your battery or SD-card. I would rather a somewhat easier way to get to the battery, but again, it’s not something to be concerned with as you don’t have to do battery pulls on this device!

Here’s the spec sheet that BGR managed to get their hands on before the Incredible was released, and I think it nicely sums up the details on this device:

As you can see, this device comes jam packed! Some highlights:

* 1GHz Snapdragon QSG8650 processor

* microSD support for up to 32GB

* 8 megapixel camera with auto-focus and video capture

* 3.7″ WVGA OLED capacitive display

* Pre-loaded with Google Calendar, Gmail, Search, Maps, Latitude, Navigation and Talk

* 512MB ROM / 512MB RAM

* Android 2.1 “Eclair” with Sense UI

* 4.63″ x 2.3″ x 0.47″, 4.59 oz.

* 3.7″ WVGA OLED capacitive display

Now let’s take a deeper look into some of these specs:

Camera

I have to say that this camera takes some great pictures. Here is ONE example of the detail that this camera picks up:

Not too bad, huh? I have found that the camera works best outdoors, some pictures taken indoors can come out blurry and not  quite as sharp as this particular picture. Definitely not complaining though, this camera takes a great picture! Bravo, HTC.  You got it right with this one!

Screen

The screen on the Incredible is great. It’s not as sharp or vivid as the Moto DROID, but it’s nothing to shake a stick at. As with the DROID, you do have problems with visibility outdoors in bright sunlight. However, not AS bad. You can also adjust the brightness when outside, and it makes it much easier to read. There is still a glare, but it’s not impossible. This is one area that I think Android devices need to work on. I never had an issue using a BlackBerry outside in even the brightest sunlight. Time will tell if they address this or not, I certainly hope so.

You have 7 homescreens on this device, all yours to load up with widgets, shortcuts, and bookmarks. Go nuts! I have only managed to fill up 6 screens, so I have one hanging out just waiting for things to be placed there.

Hardware

There is some speculation that the Incredible feels like a hunk of plastic in your hands. Well, compared to the Moto DROID, there is a bit of difference between the two. However, it does not feel as though it’s going to snap in your hands. It’s sturdy, but at the same time, I wouldn’t want to drop it from too high without cringing.

It’s small enough that it fits nicely in your hand, much more comfortable than some other devices I have owned or used. You can navigate easily with one thumb or finger. Not quite as small as the Eris, but certainly not as beefy as the Moto DROID.

Battery

Well, as most of you have probably already heard, the battery on this device is NOT that good. This is another area that needs to be addressed with Android devices. The batteries are just plain horrible. You should get into the habit of having to charge your device overnight, and be prepared to give it some juice at some point during the day. Especially if you are trapped indoors in a big concrete building or somewhere where it’s going to fight to get a signal. Change to wifi if you can to save your battery. Yes, using wifi takes up less juice than trying to find a good signal over and over all day.

Speed

This device is screaming fast, in my opinion. I never had any issues with the Incredible tripping up or not being able to keep up with me. There is no lag in changing from homescreen to homescreen, and unless a website is graphic-heavy, there is really no waiting for a website to load. Two thumbs up for the speed!

Those are just a few things that I wanted to point out about the HTC Incredible. I have really enjoyed using this device, and I am happy to say it’s my favorite device that I have owned personally. I’m glad that Verizon Wireless opted for the HTC Incredible over the Nexus One. I am not sure what will be next on the horizon for us, but I can only hope that they will jump forward with these Androids, and never take a step backward.

I hope this review has given you some insight to the HTC Incredible. Please don’t hesitate to ask if you have any questions. I will try my best to answer them for you!

Until next time…

Device Review: Palm Pre Plus

I recently had the opportunity to test drive the Palm Pre Plus device from Verizon Wireless, and wanted to write up a review on what I thought of the device. I am hoping that this will help potential customers figure out if this is the device for them. Please let me know if you have any questions, and I’ll try to answer them as best as possible!

The Palm Pre is a webOS device, with a sleek look and packs alot of productivity inside it’s little frame! When this arrived at my doorstep, it was the first time I had seen one in person, and I instantly loved it. It’s sleek, it’s shiny, and it fits great in the “palm” of your hand 

It’s slow to boot up, but once it does you are looking at a gorgeous screen. At first glance, it’s hard to find all the buttons, but they’re there, flush against the top and left side of this device. At the top, you have the vibrate switch + the on/off putton. Along the left side, you have your volume buttons. The hardest to find? Along the right side of the device, is a port for the charger. Took me awhile to figure out how to make this work, but once I got the hang of it, it was second nature.

The keyboard is tucked underneath the screen, and you have to slide the screen up to showcase the keyboard. It’s your standard QWERTY keyboard, the buttons are raised slightly and are rounded square buttons. Slightly smaller than keys that I’m used to, but again I got used to them pretty quick.

Once you set up an account on the phone, it will store all your personal information for you. NOT on the device, but in a remote spot so that if you do lose your phone, none of your credit card information (for the App Catalog) can be found. This is great added security, and gets two thumbs up from me!

I chose to use a gmail account with this device, and was amazed at the ease of set up. Once I plugged in my user information, it pulled over my calendar(s) and contacts. Super easy, super fast. Again, two thumbs up. After that, I was ready to go!

Along the bottom of your screen, you have a few static buttons. Phone, contacts, email, and calendar. These make it easy to stay productive. As you can tell, this is a device that will keep you on top of things while you are on the go.

There is also a circle with an arrow on it, and when you push that, it opens up the app drawer, which has a few pages of icons. Some you set, some are standard. You can find pretty much everything you need with that one circle button.

Once again, I was impressed with the calendar on this device. It’s great for those of you who live and die by your schedule. It’s easy to use, and offers reminders that suit everyones needs. You can also add participants.

Below the icon shelf, there is a notification panel, somewhat like on an Android device. Little icons will show up there and all you have to do is click on whichever one you want, and it’ll take you to that particular notification. Makes it easier than searching for whatever notification just sounded on your device. It’s all right there at your fingertips.

I have to say that the screen is great on this device. I never had an issue with reading anything on the Palm Pre Plus. The screen is super bright, and very sharp. In low lights or in bright lights, there was never an issue for me. They did a great job with the screen for sure.

Something that I didn’t try out but found great is the fact that this device offers the Mobile Hotspot, which allows you to set up a mobile network with up to five devices! That’s great for folks who are on the go and need to communicate! There is a cost associated with the Mobile Hotspot, but for folks who need this, it’s something that is great to have. If not, you’ll never notice it.

The battery life on the Pre Plus is to be expected. This is one area that I think companies need to work on, and this is no different. I wouldn’t go too far without your charger if you plan on putting this device through the paces, although there are definitely worse batteries on the market, don’t get me wrong. I certainly got a full day out of this, but wouldn’t go much further than that.

Here are some specs on this device to help you with your decision!

Color: Black

Operating system: Palm webOS™ platform

Network specs:
Verizon Wireless – Dual-band CDMA2000 3G: EvDO Rev A
AT&T – Dual-band UMTS/HSDPA (850/1900 MHz) Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)

Display: 3.1-inch multitouch screen with a vibrant 24-bit color, 320×480 resolution HVGA display
Keyboard

Slide-out physical QWERTY keyboard

Email: Microsoft® Exchange email with Microsoft Direct Push Technology
POP3/IMAP (Yahoo! Mail, Gmail™, AOL, Hotmail®, etc.)

Messaging: Integrated IM, SMS, and MMS

GPS: Built-in GPS

Digital camera: 3-megapixel camera with LED flash, extended depth of field, geotagging, and video capture

Sensors: Accelerometer, ambient light, and proximity

Media formats supported
Audio formats: MP3, AAC, AAC+, eAAC+, AMR, QCELP, WAV
Video formats: MPEG-4, H.263, H.264

Wireless Connectivity: Wi-Fi 802.11b/g with WPA, WPA2, WEP, 802.1X authentication;
Bluetooth® wireless technology 2.1 + EDR with A2DP stereo Bluetooth support;
Wi-Fi router functionality for up to five devices using Palm mobile hotspot.5 (Verizon Wireless only)

Memory: 16GB (~15GB user available) USB mass storage support

Dimensions
Width: 59.5mm (2.3 inches)
Height: 100.5mm (3.9 inches)
Thickness: 16.95mm (0.67 inches)
Weight: 138.5 grams (4.89 ounces)

Amazingly powerful.
Surprisingly simple. Using a phone should be easy, intuitive, and even fun. Most of all, it should connect you to what’s important. That’s why we designed the Palm® webOS™ platform around web-based information, which is where so much of your life resides. Palm webOS helps you stay connected to all of it, so you don’t miss a thing!

All in all, I have to say this was a great device to try out. I could see myself purchasing this device with no regrets. It does everything I need it to do, and more. It would definitely keep me on track and on the go.

I hope to see more great devices from Palm in the future! Once again, thank you Verizon Wireless!

Device Review: Motorola Droid

Are you on the fence trying to figure out whether to get a Motorola DROID vs a different device? Well, hopefully this review will give you a bit more information to work with and will help you with your decision. The Droid is available through Verizon Wireless.

I have been a Moto Droid owner now for a few months, and I have to say, I love it. There is nothing about it that doesn’t make me smile! I was a hardcore BlackBerry user, and thought I would never say goodbye to my BlackBerry device. Until I set my eyes on DROID. That made me 2nd guess my rule.

Here are a few points about the Droid that I absolutely love:

- Touchscreen works flawlessly, coming from a BlackBerry Storm to this, it was like night & day. I have had zero problems using this touchscreen. If you do feel like you might have a hard time with it, you have the physical keyboard to fall back on. I have to admit, I don’t use the physical keyboard 99% of the time, but there have been times that I have had to bust out the physical keyboard, and it works great. I have small hands, and after a few days with the Droid, the d-pad didn’t get in my way too much. You will adjust!

Here’s a shot of the device with the physical keyboard showing. Otherwise, it slides nicely under the touchscreen.

- Browser. The browser is super fast, and nothing stops it. You can pull up virtually any website and you will see it in full color with all the graphics included. The speed that it loads even the most graphic-heavy sites is amazing. You will not be disappointed!

- Haptic feedback. This is something I didn’t have on my Storm and is an option that I do like. Alot of times I am typing while not looking at the keys or vice versa, and I need to know that I actually hit a key, vs just empty space on the keyboard. The feedback is spot on and is completely optional. You can turn this feature off.

- Android Market. This is where you will get 99% of the apps for your device. I only say 99% because you may find other ways to put the apps on your device, but for the most part, you will access them through the Market. It’s jam packed full of apps, and at last count, I believe there were over 30,000 apps/games in the Market. That’s quite impressive!

- Email. If you are a gmail user, this is by FAR the device for you. The set up via your gmail account is completely plug and play, and it pulls over all your contacts from your address book on gmail. The sync between device and pc is perfect and I never have an issue with having to read emails in both places. If you archive it on your device, it archives on your PC and vice versa. Easy! A slight CON is any non-gmail email accounts you may have. It’s easy to set these accounts up, but the connection between the two is not as flawless as it is vs a gmail account. It’s not enough for me to say no to this device, but it is something to keep in mind if you run a business or rely heavily on your device for non-gmail accounts.

- Customization. The Motorola Droid homescreens are completely customizable. The 2.1 OS that is now on the Droid allows for 3 homescreens that you can swipe to get to, and you can set them up exactly how you want….filled with widgets, icons, convenience icons for emailing, calling, texting, etc. The options are endless.

- Camera. The Droid features a 5.0 megapixel camera and takes great pictures and video. Share them instantly on apps such as Twitter, Facebook, and also via email, text, or instant messaging.

- Google search by voice. Just say what you want to search for. If you say a name, it will give you options from your address book, and also the web. This takes a little getting used to, but in no time you will be a pro with your speech for this feature.

- Notification panel. Got a text message? A missed call? An email? Want to know what the weather is? Just pull down on the notification panel at the top, and all of these and MORE are at your fingertips. No more searching for the right app to see what is going on. If anything new came in, you’ll see it on your screen and in the notification panel.

- Navigation. This is unbeatable. Hands down. The turn by turn navigation that Google offers on the Motorola Droid is amazing. It also offers street view to help you with your arrival. Pair this with the navigation dock and you’ve got yourself a nice GPS device for your car.

Those are just a FEW of the features that the Droid offers that have won me over. What more can be said for this device? It’s just amazing. I think that Android devices are going to give BlackBerry a definite run for their money.

This device is great for people of any age or any one with ANY smartphone background. It’s so user friendly and easy to use that I don’t think anyone would have a hard time utilizing this device. This includes grandmothers, teens, and folks just coming from non-smartphone devices.

Now let me give you some specs, so you can add this to the decision making. But before I do, please let me know if you have ANY questions regarding this device. If I cannot answer your question, the wonderful Droid owners that are here on SPA will surely be able to jump in to help:

Physical specs:
DISPLAY TYPE: TFT
COLORS: Licorice w/brown sugar accents
DISPLAY SIZE: 3.7-in.; WVGA (480 x 854 pixels); 16:9 widescreen
WEIGHT: 6 oz.; 169 grams
SIZE (H X W X D): 2.4 x 4.6 x .5 in.; 60.00 x 115.80 x 13.70 mm
ANTENNA TYPE: Internal

Camera specs:
CAMERA: Image stabilization, real-time color effects, scene modes, location tagging
MEGAPIXELS: 5 MP
DIGITAL ZOOM: 4x
FLASH: Dual LED
FOCUS: Automatic
IMAGE EDITING TOOLS: Cropping, rotating, Geo Tagging

Music & Video specs:
MUSIC ENABLED1
MUSIC PLAYER: Yes
VIDEO CAPABLE
VIDEO CAPTURE
PLAYABLE FORMATS: AAC, H.263, H.264, MP3, MPEG-4, WAV, WMA, eAAC+, OGG, AMR WB, AMR NB, AAC+, MIDI
STREAMING MEDIA: Audio, Video
VIDEO CAPTURE RATE: DVD quality (720×480 resolution) up to 24 fps capture; up to 30 fps playback

Battery power specs:
USAGE TIME (CONTINUOUS): up to 385 min.
BATTERY TYPE: 1400 mAh Li Ion
STANDBY TIME: up to 270 hrs.

Messaging specs:
EMAIL: Corporate (Exchange 2003 and 2007), Gmail™, IMAP, POP3, Attachment and browser document viewer (Microsoft Office® and pdf)
MULTIMEDIA MESSAGING (MMS)
PREDICTIVE TEXT
TEXT MESSAGING (SMS): Yes
INSTANT MESSAGING (IM): Google Talk™
IMAGE FILE FORMATS: BMP, PNG, GIF, JPEG
VOICE MAIL: Standard voice mail, Verizon Visual Voice Mail™ (capable)

Connectivity specs:
WEB BROWSER: Webkit HTML5 with geo location and multiple windows, Adobe with Flash Player 10.1(TM) Ready (for release date see Adobe.com)
BLUETOOTH® TECHNOLOGY: Stereo Bluetooth® technology v2.1 + EDR (profiles supported: HFP, HSP, A2DP, AVRCP, PBAP, and OPP for video/still images)
SYNCHRONIZATION: Support for Corporate calendar, email and contacts (Exchange 2003 and 2007), Google contacts, calendar and Gmail™, Facebook™ contacts
WIFI: 802.11 b,g
DATA ACCESS: Yes
CONNECTOR TYPE: Micro USB
DATA TRANSMISSION RATE: USB 2.0 High Speed
GPS AND LOCATION SERVICES: aGPS (assisted), sGPS (simultaneous), Google Maps™, Google Maps™ Navigation (BETA), Google Latitude™, Google Maps Street View, eCompass
HEADSET JACK: 3.5 mm

Google services:
GMAIL™
GOOGLE CALENDAR™
GOOGLE CONTACT SYNC™
GOOGLE LATITUDE™
GOOGLE MAPS STREET VIEW
GOOGLE MAPS™
GOOGLE MAPS™ NAVIGATION BETA
GOOGLE QUICK SEARCH BOX™
GOOGLE TALK™
GOOGLE™ SEARCH BY VOICE
YOUTUBE™

Included Apps:
ENTERTAINMENT: YouTube™, Amazon MP3 Store™
LIFESTYLE: Google Search™ by Voice
MAPS AND GPS: Google Maps™ Navigation (BETA)
SOCIAL NETWORKING: Facebook™

Technology specs:
MEMORY: 16 GB microSD pre-installed
ACCELEROMETER: Yes
NETWORKS: CDMA 1X 800/1900, EVDO rev A
PROCESSOR SPEED: Arm® Cortex™ A8 processor 550 mHz
REMOVABLE MEMORY: supports up to 32 GB microSD
SENSORS: Proximity, ambient light and eCompass