Just realized that the google folks just made their free navigation application available to android 1.6 users. That means G1 owners can now get in on the action! This means Christmas just came a few weeks early for some folks who were thinking that they were going to need some xda action to get there navigation on. I did a video on it and it works great. Here are a few tidbits:
Its a little slow on the G1
Don’t get me wrong here. It works and quite well at that, but it could stand to be a little snappier. However, I’d have to say that beggers can be choosers on this one. Its a free navigation app, with street view and voice prompting.
Different Layers
I liked this part. They offer different layers such as satellite, transit lines, traffic, latitude. They may add more layers in the future, but I’d say they already have a pretty useful bunch to work with as is.
Street View With Compass Mode
Yup, you can see your next turn in google’s street view so that tricky slight left turn that you have to veer to the right for is suddenly not so tricky. You see it coming miles away and can prepare for it. Its also got compass mode, so you can see what your turns look like in real-time as you drive. However, I recommend you keep your eyes on the road, but thats just me.
All in all, I loved it, and can’t wait to test it out for real. Stay tuned for video.
So we were able to secure our tickets to the Engadget Show and it was a lot of fun. Joshua Topolsky has a wicked sense of humor, and it was jokes the whole time. Drew Bamford from HTC had some interesting things to say, and Chris Grant from Joystiq knows his games. Below is a quick synopsis and photogallery.
First up was Drew Bamford from HTC who was dual-weilding the HTC Hero (European version) as well as the HTC HD2. Must be nice! He went through some slides detailing how HTC got the idea for the “Sense Philosophy”. We kinda like the term because it denotes a concept and not just a singular instance in phone interfaces. Rather, Sense will grow as phones do. He also mentioned that HTC are willing to work with other companies to make the “Sense” experience more robust. Topolsky tried to corner him on the rumored “Dragon” Handset which should basically be the HD2 running Android, but Bamford was mums on the subject espousing some rhetoric about him not having heard of the device. He did, however, say that we should expect “Sense” running on phones with “bigger screens, and faster processors” which should really erase all doubt about the “Dragon’s” existance.
One thing Drew said that kinda rubbed us the wrong way was that HTC doesn’t feel like the American consumer is all that interested in smart phones with higher-end tech, which was such a let down. Itl like our carriers just say that nonsense and these international companies just eat it up while no one really consults with us. So in the end, we are just left groveling for whatever the big three give us. Such a shame really, but we digress.
Chris was really cool, and brought lots of goodies with him. They demoed Tony Hawk’s new game, which was pretty cool, as well as DJ Hero, which was interesting. However, we just couldn’t justify forking over money for those scratch pads which didn’t seem too authentic. But the guys seemed to have a great time battling it out over who was the illest DJ!
All-in-all, really enjoyed the show. They should have the show in it’s entirety sometime tomorrow on engadget.com.
So, I am really looking forward to The Chrome Operating System. It looks really nice and fresh smelling and clean. Here are some videos to help explain what it is and how it works…lets check it out:
Ok, wait…did that man just talk to me like I was stupid? ” abrowser, you know that thing with the back button” what!? The Google folks don’t know me that well to be talking to me like that! Ok, ill calm down a bit. But yeah, most people do go on the internet, but there are alot of folks who dont. Also, what about folks with crappy internet? Or what if I’m late that month with the bill? You mean, Google now has control over my machine to the point where if I’m not on the internet, my computer won’t work? Hmmm, I’m not sure I’m with that.
Last Point,
What if I work with programs that are not web-based. I like to play around with music programs every now and then, as well as graphics etc. So now I need the internet to operate them? I like to have have enough storage storage on my own device to do what it is I need to do. Perhaps I’m an old fogey, but I still like my data tangible if you know what I mean. Yeah, I still have CDS…Bah Humbug.
Ok, this guy is nicer, but still…looks like everything revolves around the assumption that I have friends that I want to talk to, and that I actually have and want to stay on the internet for vast quantities of time. It also assumes my internet doesn’t act wonky and conk out on me at times. But at least it will restart where I left off. I also like how you can move things to the side. I’ve actually been waiting for that piece of functionality for a while. The interface looks real slick, and user friendly, as well as intuitive. Guess I have to wait till it comes out to give it a proper review.
so lets just get down to business here. If you are a guy (or gall) who is busy, and needs to stay connected business-wise as well as socially we would definitely say this phone is for you. Its not the perfect phone, but it will definitely suit your needs. So lets get to it!
Hardware:
We like the way it feels in hand. Its sturdy enough to be launched as a projectile while staying true enough to the course to hit its target. However, since it’ll run you over 300 smackers on a 2 year contract, we doubt you would let it leave your person that easily, but we’re just sayin’. Anyway, the highly glossy resistive screen is much nicer in person than in picture. It’s also a lot more responsive than you would think. We’re suckers for capacitive screens, but we’d make the switch with all this phone has to offer. The silver lining is something that AT&T hasn’t x-nayed from its version of the Touch Pro2 and we like it. It ads a certain amount of class and sex appeal that the modern man should have. Definitely turns heads in the board-room or at the coffee shop. In a perfect world it would be a little thinner, but we will survive.
Its running a 528Mghz processor which is definitely noticeable. There is barely any lag in normal tasks. We had lots of different programs running at the same time, and things still seemed nice and zippy fast. The 3.6 inch screen is great and loading internet pages is great. I also love the zoom bar at the bottom. True, you probably won’t use it all that often, but the option is there…and that’s what we really want isn’t it?Also the tilt feature, though nice…is a bit over-rated. After having it for a little while, the mechanism is still sturdy, but a little looser than it was out of the box. Its great for avoiding glare but not too much else in our opinion.
Keyboard:
Everything you’ve heard about the keyboard is true. We really can’t think of a hard keyboard on any other phone that beats the one on the TP2. It’s as close to perfect as we can tell. Little touches like the lighting for the Alt Keys and the extra spacing set this keyboard ahead of the pack.
Software:
It’s Windows 6.5, but you don’t have to know if you don’t want to. That’s the beauty of HTC’s Touch Flo 3D with “Sense.” Now we all know that Window’s mobile platform isn’t exactly easy on the eyes, and HTC fills in the gap almost flawlessly. In the video you will see how snappy the skin is, as well as beautiful. It makes normal tasks that much more interesting. You scroll through the main nav-bar with a swipe of the finger or stylus and which takes you to the main areas of interest such as stocks, contacts, weather, and internet. All and all, we’d say its HTC’s best performance yet.
Overall:
The overall consensus is not surprising. Its a well-rounded and extremely functional phone. The little things such as speakerphone by turning the phone on its face, and the zoom bar are what really sets this phone apart from other smart phones. It makes the experience that much better, and we applaud you HTC. Again, it could be slimmer,(Droid anyone?) but we’ll definitely take it as is. Check out the video for more tid-bits and a view of the phone in action. Special shout out to Joel for the vid
Remember we wrote an article about Tony Hawk’s new video game called Ride? We barely do too, but its coming out soon, and we got a chance to check it out briefly.
To be honest, its one of those things where you know its a hot concept, but your iffy on real-life use. Don’t get us wrong, we think it’ll be tons of fun for the true gamer and/or skater – as well as the posers. However, it seemed little cumbersome… seems like it takes lots of activity to pull off tricks, and personally, I’d rather be in much more relaxed position whilst wasting time playing video games. Also, the board felt a little less sturdy then we would have liked. But to be fair, the board we checked out wasn’t production. Still, we just aren’t too sure we are willing to mack out $120.00 bucks for the bundle. We’ll probably step in when it gets below a hundred. Let us know how you feel in the comments section.
I’m actually a T-mobile lover myself…Hey Mrs. Jones ;). However, I’ve got to say I am really pleasantly surprised at these Verizon Commercials. Very clever, and funny appealing to the Tekki in all of us. This commercial is probably my favorite so far…well besides the misfit toys that is. But take a look. If your a wuss, I’d be cautious here!
So on my way home, I manage to snag a seat on the normally crowded train home. I noticed the lady next to me swaying a bit, but figure she’s just sleepy and wants to get as much shut eye as possible before her stop. Let me spare you the details by saying this story ends up with vomit…alot…and some on my coat. I suspect she, and a few others have the dreaded flu, or as I like to call it…the plague.
Here are a few things that you should do to stop this plague before it hits.
#1 WASH YOUR DANG HANDS!!!!!!
I dont know how many times I’ve seen nasty grown men come out of the bathroom without as much as looking at the sink. Nasty Bums. We spoke about this in our awkward work scenarios article. So no need to repeat.
#2 Shun others you suspect as culprits
No really…the cdc recommends you avoid others you suspect as sick. So its a perfect excuse not to feel bad about talking to that person with terrible halitosis, or the person you just don’t like for no particular reason that you care to think of.
#3 Stay healthy and keep immune system strong
This means taking vitamins, ingesting lots of garlic and fruits. Whatever it takes to make sure your natural defenses are manned and ready. Don’t let the influenza make a laughing stock of your punkish T-Cells!
Now in case you get the flu, and you are like me and just dont like doctors cause they look at you funny…we have some natural ways to combat sickness.
#1Lemon and or Garlic…
I’ve been using this since I was a kid…hasn’t failed me yet. Garlic for stronger immune system…slows down growth of viruses, and lemon to cut mucous. Squeeze lemon juice on minced garlic and ingest the resulting “juice” for best effect.
#2 Vitamin C
…lots of fruits kiddies
#3 Stay hydrated.
helps regulate body temp and keeps everything in working order
