Here’s a bold statement: Symbian S60 is simply not good enough. I’m sure that many Nokia owners and analysts who know that Symbian currently holds around 50% of the smartphone OS marketwould disagree. But I’ve saidit before, and I’ll say it again: the new generation of smartphones – primarily Androids, the iPhone, and webOS based devices – are simply better than Symbian S60 and Windows Mobile (up to) 6.5 when it comes to doing what the users today want from a smartphone: browsing the web, using Facebook and Twitter, gaming, and finding simple apps that will satisfy their specific needs. And now, at the official N900 meet-up in London, Nokia has pretty much admitted it. Nokia’s NSeriesdevices – i.e. most of their high-end smartphones – will all be powered by Linux-based Maemo by 2012. While this doesn’t mean that Symbian is going away completely, it’s a major focus shift from a platform that Nokia has been pushing for so long. They’ve probably recognized that Symbian will not be able to compete with Android and the iPhone in the foreseeable future, so they’ve decided to build their own Android (Maemo, just like Android, is Linux-based) and push their flagship devices on it, while Symbian will probably keep powering the video and photo focused X and E-series devices. Furthermore, Nokia will first run its Maemo app portal, Maemo Select, alongside Ovi Store (Symbian app store), but plans to merge them into one later on. While we’re thrilled to see more Nokias on the powerful Maemo platform, running two mobile smarpthone OSs and two separate app stores will definitely cause confusion to the customers. Reviews: Android, linuxTags: Maemo, N900, Nokia, Symbian
Social network Bebowhich has seen a rapid decline in popularitybut is still one of the biggest such services around, has added a tiny but important new feature: a button that helps children report abuse or bullying.The button is called the CEOP Report button, (CEOP stands for UK’s Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre), if you click on it, you’ll get advice and help about issues such as child abuse (but also viruses and hacking), as well as details on how to inform the police and CEOP. While all that sounds nice and dandy, there’s always the problem of abusing the abuse button. If you make it easy for people to report a site or an individual as a child abuser, simply by clicking a button, some users could become trigger happy and do it even when it’s unwarranted. In any case, Bebo isn’t the only social network where child abuse and bullying are common occurences; we can remember several examples on other major social networks such as MySpaceand Facebook. We’d like to hear your opinion: do you think that Bebo’s “panic button” can really be helpful? And if so, do you think that Facebook and MySpace should take similar action? Please share your thoughts in the comments. Reviews: Bebo, Facebook, MySpaceTags: bebo, facebook, myspace
A couple of weeks ago, Opera released the latest beta version of its mobile browser, Opera Mobile 10, but only for Nokia’s Symbian phones. Now, the same beta is available for Windows Mobileusers, too. A short digression: I own a Sony Ericsson P1i, once the company’s flagship smartphone, that’s based on a now abandonded strain of Symbian: UIQ 3. And while I know that things change fast in the mobile industry, I still use the device, and it’s not very pleasant to see that no one cares about it anymore – the handful of apps that are available for the device will remain a handful. If you plan to use your smartphone for over a year or two, you would do well to choose a platform that’s not likely to disappear within that time frame. Luckily, Opera also develops Opera Mini, which works on most Java-enabled smartphones, including my P1i. Back to Opera 10 Mobile Beta: what we said about the Nokia/Symbian version, stands for the Windows Mobile version. The new version brings a better, finger-friendly keyboard, tabbed browsing, a redesigned speed dial, faster operation, and of course, support for Opera’s Turbo mode which speeds up browsing by compressing web pages on Opera’s (Opera) servers.You can download Opera Mobile 10 Beta here. Reviews: Opera
This post is part of Mashable’s Spark of Genius series, which highlights a unique feature of startups. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, please see the details here. The series is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark.Name: MobBaseQuick Pitch: MobBase is a new service for musicians that makes it easy for them to create, launch and manage their own, custom iPhone applications.Genius Idea: MobBase lets musicians and bands create their own iPhone app to connect fans with upcoming shows, music, news, Twitter feeds and videos.The iPhoneapp is quickly becoming a common tool that bands and music artists use to promote themselves and their music. Death Cab for Cutie, Snow Patrol, Lady Gaga, T-Pain, Wilco and countless others have apps — both free and paid — available for fans who want to stay abreast of the latest band news and show information plus access video and song discographies.MobBase lets smaller artists take advantage of the platform and build customized apps that offer social features and integrate with existing channels, all for a low price.The app can be customized, but the basic idea is that a band or artist plugs in the details and MobBase uses a pre-created app template if you will, to create an app that can be submitted to the App Store.You can provide music tracks that can be streamed from the app, connect your YouTube channel, put in news and blog RSS feeds, show off your Twitter account and input show and ticket information so that fans can buy tickets or find out when you’re playing next. You can also show off photos, merchandise and discographies. Paint-by-numbers iPhone apps don’t make sense in all cases, but for something promoting a band or artist — I can see this as being very beneficial, without requiring the full investment that larger-scale custom iPhone apps can require.MobBase lets you create your app for free but if you want to activate the app, it’s $20. Free apps then cost $15 a month for the first 500 installs, with additional 1000 installs priced at just $5 a month. If you want to charge for your app, MobBase charges $20 a month for the first 500 installs and $6 for each 1000 installs thereafter.You can make updates to your app, often without requiring the app to go through the resubmission process. MobBase handles the listing and submission aspect, which cuts down on the dev time for groups just starting up.As mobile applications become more common, it’s only natural for some types of apps to become more commoditized. For the musician just starting out, we think MobBase is a great concept. What do you think about mobile app creation services?Spark of Genius Series Sponsored by Microsoft BizSparkBizSpark is a startup program that gives you three-year access to the latest Microsoft development tools, as well as connecting you to a nationwide network of investors and incubators. There are no upfront costs, so if your business is privately owned, less than three years old, and generates less than U.S.$1 million in annual revenue, you can sign up today.Entrepreneurs can take advantage of the Azure Services platformfor their website hosting and storage needs. Microsoft recently announced the “new CloudApp()” contest– use the Azure Services Platform for hosting your .NET or PHP app, and you could be the lucky winner of a USD 5000* (please see website for official rules and guidelines).”Reviews: App Store, PHP, Twitter, YouTube, iPhoneTags: app store, bizspark, iphone, mobbase
Who needs modern, new-fangled amenities like powerful processors and Adobe Air platforms when you can tweet right from Macintosh System 6? If tweeting from the command linejust isn’t quite geeky enough for you, the Grackle68k Twitter clientcan have you sending status updates from your ancient old Mac.This is true no-frills Twitter for the die-hard geek, which will allow you to update your Twitter status from Macs running System 6 through OS 9 — nothing more, nothing less. If you’re one of those packrat types who has a closet or attic full of old machines you can’t bear to part with (you know who you are), perhaps this app will inspire the setup of a living, Twittering museum. Be sure to clear it with your significant other first.[via Gizmodo]Reviews: TwitterTags: mac classic, macintosh, twitter
We caught wind of some sort of Facebook integration coming to Sony’s flagship Playstation 3 console last week, and now the news is official. Facebook support will be introduced to the console in the next firmware update, version 3.10, and Sony provided some details on what that will entail in a short video preview (embedded below).Once you link your PlayStation Network account to your Facebook account, you will be able to turn on options to automatically update your Facebook profile in 3 different areas: trophy information, purchasing information, and game event information. You’ll have tomanually sync your Trophy Collection to send the information to Facebook, but when you do your PS3 will update your Facebook profile with any of the new trophies you’ve earned since your last sync.Enabling the second option will update your Facebook profile when you make purchases from the PlayStation Network, while the latter option will vary by game. Sony left it up to game developers to enable support for Facebook updates and determine what game events qualify for a post, whether it be specific in-game accomplishments, stat milestones, or other event. In each case, you’ll always be presented with the option of declining any particular Facebook update if for whatever reason you don’t want to make it public to your contacts.Sony also made some improvements to the built-in web browser to render Facebook profiles more accurately, and helpfully reminded users they can access their Twitter accounts from the browser as well. And yet, considering that today Microsoft launched a more thorough Facebook integrationas well as significant Twitter and last.fm support, it’s hard not to read the PS3 social network integration news as weak by comparison. On the other hand, support for Facebook updates from within games is something the Xbox 360 doesn’t offer (yet — although Microsoft has indicated that will be coming in a future update). Not to mention that Microsoft’s console doesn’t even have a built-in web browser.At the end of the day, it will still be a nice bonus for PlayStation 3 users on Facebook when it launches, on a date we only know will be “soon.” Check out the video below and let us know your thoughts: will you be excited to generate Facebook updates from your gameplay and PSN purchasing activities on the PS3?[via NewTeeVee]Reviews: Facebook, TwitterTags: facebook, playstation 3, PS3, PSN, trophies
At the end of Octoboer, Facebook announced that it was revamping its privacy policy. The change, sparked by the intervention of the Canadian government, simplified the new policy, stripped the legal jargon, and put the document up for a comment period by the Facebook community.That period ended two weeks ago. And because of the positive response (and the fact that there were less than 7000 comments), the new privacy policyis officially in effect. If there had been over 7000 comments, the company would have put the policy up to a vote by the entire Facebook user base.The new policy is the same as the one proposed in late October. It discusses third party advertising, the right of users to delete profile information, the information it collects, and the rules on sharing information with thirdparties. Overall, it addresses the Canadian government’s concerns while making the policy easier to understand.If you want to read the new document, you can find it here. If you take the time to read it, let us know what you think about the simplified document in the comments.Reviews: FacebookTags: facebook
Yesterday we reported on the collaboration between MySpace and Ustream to exclusively live streamthe Twilight Saga: New Moon red carpet for the movie’s premiere last night in Westwood.We knew the live broadcast would be huge given that, within the first minutes, the viewer count shot up to 100,000 viewers, but even our expectations were exceeded. MySpace just released their data and as it turns out, the stream garnered over 2 million uniques, and almost 3 million total viewers.According to MySpace press materials, “It was a huge success breaking the record to become the highest amount of viewers to tune in to a Ustream red carpet live webcast. It also set the record as the farthest reaching webcast for Ustream with over two million uniques.”Clearly the cross-promoted webcast was a huge success for both Ustreamand MySpace, and points to the voracious appetite of younger audiences who can’t get enough of New Moon. For Bing’s sake, we hope that this audience is more web savvythen the saga’s superstar icon.We’ve included archived footage of the event below.The Twilight Saga New Moon Red Carpet PremiereNew Moon Premiere| MySpace VideoReviews: MySpace, ustreamTags: myspace, new moon, Twilight: New Moon, ustream
One of the most commonly repeated phrases in the era of the social web is that you don’t control your own message, your customers do. While those of us working in the social arena can cite a number of examples where this has proven to be the case, more traditional brands can be reluctant to embrace this ideology. However, some interesting new search data from 360imight convince them otherwise.In the company’s November whitepaper, which looks at the landscape of natural search, 360i purports that a majority of social media search listings that appear for brand-related queries are created by individuals not affiliated with the brand. In fact, “77% of YouTube, Twitter and Facebook listings that appeared for brand searches were controlled by a party other than the marketer.”Essentially what customers, fans, and detractors are posting to social media sites are dominating the brand name search experience over social media content created by the brands themselves. This data clearly creates a legitimate reason for brands to be proactive with their social media presence, as participating in the exchange about their brand should improve the quantity and quality of customer-created social media content that searchers will happen upon.360i also recommends that brands “cross-link owned domains and social media destinations. This creates a search ecosystem that will allow PageRank, domain history and strength to permeate.”We’ve embedded the entire whitepaper below if you’d like to further dive in to 360i’s search findings.360i_SearchWhitePaper09_111709Reviews: Facebook, Twitter, YouTubeTags: Search, social media
In October, Adobe demoed Flash Player 10.1, which included smartphone support for all major platforms — with the exception of the iPhone. It’s all part of Adobe’s Open Screen Project, which is aiming to make Flash support more usable and perform better on mobile devices like cell phones and netbooks.Today, Adobe released the prerelease version of Flash Player 10.1for computers and netbooks running Windows, Mac OS X and Linux. Adobe has also updated some of its mobile demo videos and documents and it looks like a beta of Flash Player 10.1 for the Palm Pre is right around the corner.Flash Player 10.1 utilizes GPU and hardware acceleration for H.264 and AAC media whenever possible. The big hurdle with Flash on mobile or low-powered devices is that Flash isn’t compiled to offload the decoding tasks to the graphics processor, which can often do the heavy lifting with better performance with with less power consumption. One reason the iPhone plays back YouTube video so well is that it is automatically hardware decoded using QuickTime and the iPhone’s H.264 hardware acceleration. By supporting hardware acceleration for video, audio and animation playback, Flash can become a much better performer.Look at this video demo of Flash Player 10.1 for the Palm Pre:Even if you aren’t running a netbook or lower-powered system, you might just benefit from downloading Flash Player 10.1 prerelease. Mac OS X users have had a lot of issues with Flash slowdowns — even on the fastest machines. My own iMac with an Intel i7 and 8 GB of RAM still suffers more slowdowns than it should. The prerelease reduces CPU usage to a significant degree, according to AnandTech’s benchmarksand I saw immediate improvements in Hulu full-screen playback.What do you think about the future of Flash on mobile devices?Reviews: Hulu, YouTube, linuxTags: adobe, flash player, flash player 10.1, mobile flash, Palm Pre
More bad news for T-Mobile and its customers. The wireless company is on a bad run of late, first telling Sidekick users that their data was lost forever, and more recently a nationwide outageleading to lengthy network downtime. Now, BBC Newsis reporting that T-Mobile has confirmed that millions of UK customer records were sold to third party brokers (albeit apparently without the company’s explicit knowledge) and ultimately ended up in the hands of cold callers.T-Mobile staffers are suspected of being the culprits in this case, and passed along customer data to other phone companies, “who then cold-called the customers as their contracts were due to expire.” Christopher Graham, the Information Commissioner in the UK, is outraged by the matter. He is formally investigating the case and has said, “We are considering the evidence with a view to prosecuting those responsible and I am keen to go much further and close down the entire unlawful industry in personal data.”Graham is also seeking to increase the penalties for egregious data privacy violations, and we hope he is successful in that initiative. It is an absolutely unacceptable practice, and one that will no doubt upset the millions of affected T-Mobile customers.Image courtesy of iStockphoto, NiseriN.Reviews: iStockphotoTags: tmobile
Megan Berry is an evangelist for Mobclix, the industry’s largest mobile ad exchange, working on social media and marketing. She also blogs at The Huffington Post and the Mobclix blog. You can follow her on Twitter as @meganberry, or through the @Mobclixhandle.My iPhone is my baby, my constant companion, and I think it’s safe to say it turned me into an Apple fangirl. However, I find that the iPhone generally adds to the stress in my busy life. Now anytime can be work time; there are always emails to respond to, the Twittersphere to catch up on, and blogs to read. Instead of reaching the, perhaps obvious, conclusion of putting my iPhone away occasionally, I set out to see if the iPhone could actually help me relax. Here are the best apps out there to de-stress with your favorite mobile device — of course putting the iPhone away may actually be better for your mental health.1. Yoga RelaxI’ve long heard that yoga is great for relaxing, but have never made it through more than one class. This iPhone app is great for those who’d rather try out yoga in the comfort of their own home. For one, the sequence included in this app is actually possible for the yoga novice (i.e., me) to accomplish and did help me to relax at the end of the night. The visuals are beautiful and the audio explains what you should be doing so you don’t have to always be looking at the screen. Furthermore, the sequence is customizable so you can change around the order or number of poses you’d like in your session. You can also play your own music instead of the default, but I found that feature to be a little buggy. Overall, while the audio isn’t perfect, Yoga Relax is the best yoga app out there right now.Cost: $0.992. iZen GardenI have to admit when I first saw this game I thought it would be lame. I was pretty sure any relaxing elements of a zen garden could not be transported to the iPhone. However, I have to admit I was wrong. It’s surprisingly satisfying to virtually rake my zen garden and reset by shaking my phone. iZen Garden has all the benefits of a zen garden with no sand on your desk; it’s clearly a win-win situation. I also love how incredibly customizable this app is – you can change rake width and depth, rock shape and size, and add other elements to your zen garden. Personally, I found that the lite version has plenty of features, but if you just can’t get enough, you can upgrade to the full version for $2.99.Cost: Free / $2.993. Gratitude JournalOkay, so I know keeping a gratitude journal sounds incredibly cheesy. But, scientific studiesshow that people who are grateful and/or keep gratitude journals are less stressed, happier, and more likely to achieve their personal goals. With results like those I’m willing to put up with feeling a little silly. The Gratitude Journal app is the perfect thing for the beginning journal keeper. I’ve been keeping one for three months now, and its bullet point format makes being grateful easy to fit into a busy schedule. Also, you can add a picture to your entries and export them. Of course, you could always decide to forget about being positive and keep a journal of grudges instead (I won’t tell).Cost: $0.994. iBonsaiThis app is a work of art. After a stressful day at work there’s nothing like watching bonsai trees grow before your eyes. You can also “train your bonsai” to grow a certain way, but this isn’t the app’s strongest feature (as it’s almost as hard as training a real bonsai).You’re better off just sitting back and enjoying the show, which comes complete with relaxing music. You can also shake the iPhone to make all the leaves fall off the tree, if you feel like your ticket to stress relief is destruction.Cost: $0.995. AmbianceMuch like the name implies, the Ambiance app allows you to play ambient noise, which can be useful as white noise to drown out annoyances (such as that incessantly barking dog next door, your cubicle mate, or the construction outside). The sound is very rich, and the app is pretty simple to use. You see descriptions of all the sounds available and choose which ones to download. The best sounds in the app are the ones focused around nature, but it has a big selection. There’s a lite version of the app you can use to try it out – you’ll just be limited to 5 sound downloads. My only regret is that Apple doesn’t allow apps to run in the background, so you can’t use anything else on your phone while listening to the sounds.Cost: Free / $0.996. MyMeditationBoth yoga and meditation have been shown to actually change our genes’ response to stress(in a good way). You certainly don’t need an iPhone app to meditate, but I found MyMeditation helpful even if simply as a reminder as you’re looking at your iPhone screen. MyMeditation has a timer, so you can set how long you’d like to meditate for and also has background sound that’s aimed at guiding your breath. It’s relaxing, simple, and a no-brainer as the lite version is free. If you’d like more control over breath counts and music you can upgrade to the paid version for $2.99Cost: Free / $2.997. ZenBoundIf you’re not really the meditating kind, this game is the next best thing. Despite playing in my loud office, I was instantly transported to a world where for some reason my goal was wrapping rope around objects. The concept sounds silly, but once you try the app, you’ll understand why I’m recommending it. I have never seen an iPhone app that was so suited to the iPhone itself. The game looks beautiful, the sounds are immersive, and the gameplay is seamless — it fires on all cylinders to deliver an amazing, and relaxing experience.Cost: $4.99Honorable MentionsThe apps that just missed our list included, Pret-a-yoga(Free / $0.99), a good yoga alternative, Koi Pond($0.99), a delightfully relaxing and beautiful koi pond right on your iPhone screen. And White Noise(Free / $1.99), which is another app that offers a way to play ambient sounds.What other apps are you using to help yourself unwind? Let us know in the comments.More iPhone resources from Mashable:- iPhone TV: Top iPhone Apps for Live Streaming Television- Top 10 iPhone Apps as Judged by Mashable Readers- 7 iPhone Apps That Can Save Lives- 5 Must-Have iPhone Apps for Wine Lovers- 20 Creative Apps For Your iPhoneImage courtesy of iStockphoto, og-visionReviews: iStockphoto, myMeditationTags: iphone, iphone apps, List, llsts, relax, relaxing
Last month, we wrote about Coca-Cola’s Expedition 206 campaign, in which the company uses social media to pick three individuals to travel the world in 2010, who in turn visit all 206 markets where Coca-Cola has a presence. Along the way, the “Happiness Ambassadors” will take photos, make videos, send out updates on Twitter and Facebook and connect with individuals around the world.Yesterday, at the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta, GA, Coca-Cola announced the winning Expedition 206team. Online voters from all over the world picked Tony Martin, Kelly Ferris and Antonio Santiago — Team The MIX — to go on the remarkable trip. Coca-Cola invited Mashable to the event and we got a chance to talk with the winners and some of the Coca-Cola team members who put the whole campaign together.Big Brands Go Big With Social MediaWe’re constantly seeing new examples of big companies — and big brands — embracing and using social media to connect with customers. Still, it’s impressive to see a company the size of Coca-Cola, not only talk the talk, but actually follow-through. At lunch yesterday, we got a chance to hear about the origins for Expedition 206 and it became very clear that Coca-Cola gets social media.The idea for Expedition 206 was kick-started by Clyde Tuggle, the senior vice president of Global Public Affairs and Communications for Coca-Cola. This is interesting for two reasons: 1) this initiative started from the top — the higher-ups didn’t have to be convinced of the power of social media and 2) this blurs the traditional lines and roles that exist between PR and marketing teams.Tuggle made it clear that Coke knows that they don’t own the brand — the consumers own the brand. Thus, who better to trust to spread the message of happiness than those consumers? Mr. Tuggle reiterated the importance of authenticity, accountability and transparency when communicating with customers and is committed to making sure those are key parts of the Expedition 206 adventure.The WinnersTeam The MIX, Tony, Kelly and Antonio come from different backgrounds but are ready to work together to share the message of “Open Happiness” with the world. Tony is from Washington D.C., but has lived in Germany for the last two years, working as a kindergarten teacher. Kelly is a university student from Brussels who was born in South Africa. Antonio is a university student from Mexico City and has also spent time in Peurto Rico. Between the three of them they speak eight languages — which should come in handy when traveling around the world.All three winners are already well versed in social media. The team utilized Twitterand Facebookto garner votes for their team. It paid off too — 75% of the votes came from outside of the United States. Tony told me that they really want to push the boundaries of what they can do with the social web. Using video, photography, blog postings, Twitter, and social networks, the three will be sharing their adventure with the world as it happens.After the media blitz ends, Tony, Antonio and Kelly will head back home to tie-up loose ends and will meet in Madrid on January 1, 2010 to start their 365 day journey around the world.The TripWith Expedition 206, Coke is really doing something unique. Not only are they letting the winners travel the globe to visit all 206 markets, they are going to utilize the social web along the way.This is how it works: other than airfare, the team members will have to make their own way across the world. They have a schedule of stops, but they have to get their own food, find their own places to stay and meet up with the locals themselves. The team is going to be given per diem for food and local travel, but what they do and where they do it is pretty much up to the team members — and the people at home interacting with the Expedition 206 team online.The team will be visiting the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics, the FIFA World Cup in South Africa and the World Expo in Shanghai. They will be sharing their updates on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, and other social networking sites. You can follow the progress on those channels or see the real-time lifestreams at Expedition206.com.Along the way, people at home can recommend places to stay or must-see attractions, restaurants to definitely visit — or avoid — and more. Who knows, if the team happens to be in your area — you might even want to meet up for a Coke or show them something cool in your area.The whole trip is all about interacting with people around the world and sharing the idea of happiness and connecting on a personal level and making connections that can exist beyond just language.The FutureAre campaigns like Expedition 206 the future of social media? We hope so. Although the scale of Expedition 206 is obviously larger than what most social campaigns can be, the idea of connecting people globally using social media and real-life contact is something we hope other companies embrace.What do you think of Expedition 206? Will you be following the team’s progress as they make their way around the world?Reviews: Facebook, Flickr, Mashable, Twitter, YouTubeTags: coca cola, Coke, expedition 206
We’ve been covering the impending social integrations with Facebook, Twitter, and last.fm on Xbox Live since Microsoft first announcedsocial networking support would be coming to the console back at E3 this June. If you’ve been waiting to check out social networking on your Xbox 360, today’s the day it’s rolling outto everyone (well, everyone except teens under 18, at least temporarily).After installing the new Xbox 360 system update, you’ll find Facebook and Twitter in a new My Community channel on your dashboard. You can check out the last.fm integration under the Music Channel. If you don’t see the new options right away, sit tight for a few hours as various regions will be receiving the update in a staggered rollout.Everything works smoothly in all fronts, much like we saw during the previewand early accessrollout of the services. Although the Twitter client is fairly simple, it gets the job done and gives you access to post status updates, see updates from your followers, and also perform searches and see trending topics. The Facebook integration features a notably excellent photo browsing interface, as well as a uniquely useful feature that lets you find out which of your Facebook friends are on Xbox Live that you might not already know about. Facebook has some more detailsabout specific functionality on their blog.Do you have the new social networking integrations live on your Xbox 360 yet? When you have a chance to check out the new features, let us know your impressions in the comments.Reviews: Facebook, TwitterTags: facebook, Last.FM, twitter, Xbox 360, XBox live
