IFONZ updated to version 0.8.8!

There is a new IFONZ update. Yipeee! The author has done a lot of improvements on the application such as-

1. Program the Calendar Button to show the actual DAY.
   
2. Program a Button to show number of uncompleted TASKS.
   
3. Program the speed of the SLIDE animation.
4. Bottom Bar ICONS are editable- change icon and/or change assigned PROGRAM.
5. Animated Button Press- the Button Icon zooms out when pressed.
   
6. New ICONS to download. You can now choose to have the IPHONE look or VISTA look.
   

And many more improvements while maintaining the 2mb program footprint.

Many thanks to Simon for bringing out this AWESOME program! His url site is www.thedogcorner.blogspot.com. You can download the program from http://www.freewareppc.com/utilities/ifonz.shtml or http://www.freewarepocketpc.net/ppc-download-ifonz-v0-7-6.html.

Great Programs to use with IFONZ.

If you have decided to use IFONZ as your WM Interface, here are some suggested applications to program for the buttons-

• Clock- WorldMate free edition. Just make sure if you exit WorlMate it is in the Clock View.
• Weather- WeatherMate 3.2 will give you detailed weather for more thatn 50000 locations.
• Calendar- Pocket Informant 8 is your best bet. This version uses the Touch interface to scroll through your Appointments. Just exit the Program either in 1 or 7 day view.
• Images- use either S2V or PictureViewer. Both uses the Touch interface to scroll through your photos, zoom in/out and exit.
• Navigator- Google Maps or Google Navigator.
  
• Videos- TCMP or CorePlayer.
• Finance- SPB Finace or CashOrganizer.
• Calculator- HiCalc or Omega One 1-Calc.
• Notes- Free Notes is a small program that instantly runs on your WM Device. You can draw, write or type on the Note. The beauty of this program is its ability to save your note on a per day basis just like a daily journal. You can write a note on a past or future date. Notes are saved on your My Documents folder. And organized on the basis of Month. If you require a simple note program, without saving on a day to day basis, Touch-Notes or PencilBox are the best applications. They are small, open up instantly and runs fast on any WM device.
• SMS- you can use your Device default SMS application or us FlexMail.
  

Don't forget the Qtopia platform. ....

Yup. Yup. Yup. We have Palm, Wm, Symbian, Blackberry, and Android. Not enough? How about Qtopia? A linux based platform said to provide unmatched freedoom to customize your Smartphone. And claims to be the first new platform with a Smartphone device out in the market! Hurry-up Google. The market is getting more crowded.

Coming soon...the Android Phone Platform.

The Android phone platform, lead by Google, is taking aim at capturing a sizeable chunk of the Smartphone market. Their website http://code.google.com/android/ states that all applications are equal. The platform is free and has no restrictions unlike WM or Symbian. The question remains- is there room for the Android Platform? Will developers make money with so many phone platforms? Will any platform disappear because of the competion? Only time can tell...but one platform is dying! The granddaddy of the PDA- PALM. They once had the market to themselves. And their failure to innovate will soon kill them. They are close to becoming a Polaroid in the past.

Waiting for a Blackberry Touch Smartphone...

The internet is abuzz with news of an upcoming Blackberry with touch screen. If true, it will enable Blackberry to gain market share from the giants- Microsoft, Nokia, Samsung, Motorola and Apple. The current Blackberry platform is good- very stable, does not consume much memory and fast. And its push email is unequaled. It reminds you of what Palm was in the early PDA days. And more developers are creating software for the platform.

The lack of a touch screen limits its market to users used to typing on a keyboard. A touch screen plus a keyboard will enable Blackberry to get a bigger slice of the market pie. And will future proof the device against competitors. :)

Sony Xperia- a new WM xperience !

For WM lovers, Sony will soon market the Xperia! And as the saying goes "better late than never!". Finally, a WM device to love provided the pictures on Sony's website are to be believed. It has the Touch and Feel of the IPHONE. And I do hope that Sony has enhanced the WM programs such as Internet, Mail, and Documents. It runs on a Qualcomm Arm processor running at 52omhz- enough juice for fast processing of programs. And has a 3.2 megapixel autofocus camera, agps, wifi, bluetooth, querty keypad, optical joystick, memory expansion and 4 way navigation. To cap the list of features- a 800 x 480 picsel 3 inch LCD Screen! Wow! The only mystery- how much is the device??? One thing is for sure- I will start saving-up to get an Xperia! And hope I won't get frustated owning the device.

More Iphone like software for your WM device.

A flood of programs are filtering on internet sites which gives users of WM devices the Touch Feel and Visual Graphics of the IPHONE. Some of these great programs are:

1. PocketCM- a Contact program that allows you to scroll through your contacts with a flick of a finger. You can edit, add notes and send SMS at a touch of a button. The URL of this program is http://www.pocketcm.com/index.php.
2. S2V- a stylus free picture viewer. The URL site to download the software is http://forum.xda-developers.com/member.php?u=392886.
3. Picture Viewer- another stylus free picture viewer. The URL site is http://forum.xda-developers.com/member.php?u=510170.
   
4. Picsel- a all in one program to view websites, photos, documents, pdf, and spreadsheet. It was one the first programs to incorporate the touch feel on WM devices.

If you have downloaded IFONZ, you can configure the buttons to directly run the programs on your PDA!

A touch of IPHONE-NESS on WM Devices

Pointui

IFONZ

For users wishing to have a touch of IPHONE-NESS on their WM device, there are 2 free software you can download.

The first is IFONZ, with URL address http://thedogcorner.blogspot.com/, which mimics the look and feel of the IPHONE. Users can change the graphics and program that runs on each button. You can add as many buttons and pages as you like with memory the only limiting factor. The main program requires 2MB of free RAM on your PDA. You are able to configure the program to slide the pages, randomly move the buttons as the page slides, and change the wallpaper in portrait and landscape mode. To complete the IPHONE look you can download the SLIDER program from URL address http://www.freewareppc.com/utilities/iphoneslider.shtml. This is the lock program of the IPHONE. Just configure one button to serve as the LOCK key.

The second is Pointui , with URL adress http://pointui.com, that offers a unique Touch Interface to your PDA. You can slide the Today Screen to show a large CLOCK, see your Appointments and Tasks. Touch another button to Touch scroll on all the programs loaded into your PDA. The program requires 3MB of free RAM on your PDA.

I prefer using the IFONZ on my WM Device. It's simpler to use. More stable. Faster to access Programs. Less demanding on your PDA Resources and Memory. And minimal Battery usage. Maybe that's the reason why IPHONE garnered a sizeable market share of the IPHONE market!

Hurray! Blue-ray Wins!

With the withdrawal of Toshiba from the HD-DVD consortium and Warner's defection to Blue-ray- it looks like the DVD battle is over. This time SONY wins! Hurrah! Now I can purchase a PS3 with Blue-ray Disc.

Future Smartphone Trends.

1. A continued divergence in Smartphone devices- pim, wallet, phone, camera, music player, gps, and game machine.
   
2. A continued emphasis on the feel, look and simplicity of the IPHONE.
3. Bigger and sharper LCD screens.
4. More new Platforms to choose- Linux, Android, Trolltech and etal.

Apple lead in Innovation...the rest follows!

Yup.  There is no doubt that Apple is the leader in Product Innovation!  You may like or  hate the Company.  But one thing is sure- the rest follows.  It's a me-too or die in the market ideology.

When the first IPOD came out of the market, it was such a great hit!  Users embraced the simplicity of the IPOD.  And made other Brands simply obsolete.  Now you can see major Brands such as Microsoft or Samsung rush out me-too devices that mimic the simplicity and look of the IPOD.

Then came the IPHONE.  And it WOWED the MARKET!  Nothing on the Market can compare with the speed, beauty, feel and simplicity of this Smartphone.  And again the likes of Microsoft, 
Samsung, Nokia, Motoral, HTC and other Brands are in a mad rush to bring out Smartphones
that mimic the IPHONE.

And the lastest from Apple is the MacBook Air.  A laptop so thin and light that users can carry it around with ease.  Despite its limitations this product will prove to be a great hit for Apple.  And are other Brands worried? You bet.  They are now racing against each other to market a product similiar to the MacBook Air.

Why is Apple the leader?  Apple can be viewed as a Small Company with minimal bureaucracy.  A Company were Innovation thrives with less interference from the upper Echelons.  A velociraptor among T-rexes of the Modern World.  

A NEW BLOG ABOUT TECHNOLOGY!

On this site, I start a new blog on anything about Technology- trends, new gizmos, computer, pda's, smartphones and etal.  Any opinions published on this blog iare all based on my Personal Views.  Please fell free to express your comments.