Best Phone Blog

September is just a few months away and so is the launch of Windows Phone 7 (if earlier rumors are to be believed). The new platform from Microsoft is quite different from the previous Windows Mobile operating system and so is the target user base.

WP7’s main focus is on social networking, and while some users might appreciate the new approach, other could say that Microsoft has taken it too far.

There is nothing wrong about social networking on a smart phone; in fact, one can pretty much expect it. Integrated features for Facebook and Twitter are so commonplace that some smart phone buyers already consider if a basic feature. However, Microsoft has taken it one step further by choosing to replace certain aspects of the handset with social networking features –namely, the contact list.

This is where Microsoft might have stepped on a proverbial landmine. For most people, the friends list on Facebook is a collection of friends, family and “random acquaintances that would really help boost the number of people you get to play with on Facebook’s gaming applications”. That said; it is common that a mobile phone would have a more personal list of contacts. Microsoft takes away that distinction by placing everyone in a linked Facebook account into the smart phone’s contacts page.

Since the process is automated and there is no way of preventing it, the only other thing that people can do is to not associate a Facebook account in the OS.

Still, the OS manages to shine in many other aspects. The new UI design is both unique and impressive. But most old school users might not be able to adapt to the bleeding effect of the cut off text on top of the pages. The large empty space on the side might also throw off some users –especially those who want to fill up the entire screen with content.

Now, if there is one form of electronic communication that people use, and more often than not, trust, it is Email. Email alone was enough to push mobile phone technology to develop better handsets and eventually smart phones (it was the need to have access to email that made RIM, Palm and Microsoft focus so hard on making pocket PC technology and later, smart phones).

Apparently, some folks at Facebook do not share the same idea, people like Sheryl Sandberg for example is one of them. Sheryl is chief operating officer for Facebook (though we now wonder how long she will be holding that position). According to her, Email is going away.

Now, the reason she states for this is mostly due to the fact that the ‘younger’ generation prefers to use the internal messaging and chat options of Facebook as opposed to having to open another browser window and sending an email (or opening up email software like Outlook). In this regard, yes, it is true; private messaging is becoming the favorite tool of choice for casual conversations.

However, email is also the individual’s private address on the internet, it is where information about banking details, account registrations, forum tracking, personal subscriptions and other such content are sent and stored. People even use an email address to sign up for Facebook as well.

So no, there is no need to shut down one’s email address today or even years from now.

Email will be around for a long time, it may take on a different form, hosted on a new server, or even start allowing users to send email content using various media (as opposed to simply attaching a file). In that regard, there is no way that a social networking site would ever be able to phase email out.

It seems that the famous social networking tool (or to be more technically correct, micro-blogging device) Twitter has been having a few technical problems recently.

According to reports, the system was having availability and refresh issues on various areas and territories with the new features being added in as well as the improvements in Twitter’s overall performance. Despite the many complains that went up over the weekend, the micro blogging company says that everything is fine now and users can go back to their daily tweets.

Come to think of it, a slight performance hiccup over the weekend is not really a serious issue, particularly, when the symptoms were more of intermittent issues as compared to actual service removal. Yet, many people were reacting so quickly to it. It appears that our society is far more reliant on Twitter than originally thought. In fact, if Twitter can get a reaction like this, who knows what will happen if Facebook stays offline for about three full days?

In other Twitter news, it seems that mobile phone users who are fond of location based services such as Foursquare and Gowalla would be happy to know that the micro blogging site is about to launch their own Twitter Places function. The service will be combining both the phone’s GPS data with the Twitter app allowing users to add a location tag to their tweets.

While many are excited at the great possibilities that can be done with their new feature, there is concern as to what Twitter will be doing to the GPS data. While it is presumed that the feature will not automatically get user info when not allowed, there is always the possibility data mining.

In any case, the Twitter service has already been restored and according to the latest updates, users should no longer have any issues to deal with.

Chances are, you have already heard of Foursquare, a smart phone application that lets people log in their attendance or presence in establishments all over the world. The point of the app is simple: check in enough times and earn badges. These virtual badges commemorate many visiting highlights –such as the 20th time a user has checked in to a bar.

It’s a basic concept, but some establishments are now rewarding users depending on the number of badges they earn for that place. More often than not, Foursquare users have to ask the staff if they have earned anything for their badges. Of course, in order to do this, a user must have a smart phone with GPS capabilities.

Now, another location based service is also promising actual rewards for checking in and these promises are actually constant. Looptstar is a new location based service that works pretty much like Foursquare, but has official industry partners; which means that the rewards are already stated beforehand.

These real life incentives come in different forms, visiting the Gap store twice will grant users a purchase discount on the second visit. Checking in other locations will net users free downloadable content (usually music MP3s and other similar media).

While Looptstar promises plenty of actual rewards, some locations still have virtual bonuses –Starbucks grants an Honorary Barista title to the one with the most Looptstar check-ins; similar to the Mayor badge of Foursquare.

For now, the presence of these location based networks is still a novelty for many users. Even with their growing influence, Foursquare and Looptstar are still far from the industry giant Facebook. But if this trend keeps up and more and more businesses start recognizing the value of these location based services, it is not too hard to imagine that these apps will someday become the pioneers in the new frontier of social networking.

In what might have been one of the scariest weeks for millions of addicted Zynga games players, there is no longer any need to worry about the closure of Farmville, Café World, Mafia Wars and the many other Zynga game apps on Facebook.

Last week’s news that Facebook would be changing its developer policies did not seem like much of a big deal until Zynga started complaining about the 30% price cut for Facebook. With the implementation of the new Facebook credits system, the social network will have full control and records of any and all online transactions done within their system. While some users have been worried that Facebook will be tracking their purchasing preferences (and they certainly will in order to build an even more thorough customer profile for advertisers), the real big issue came when Zynga announced that they are considering to leave Facebook unless the new policies are either dropped or altered.

Many industry experts however, failed to see the value of Zynga’s bluff. The game developer had no social network of its own, even if they can easily set up their own gaming network site and carry over all user progress from Facebook users, they will not be able to import the Facebook network itself –and the presence of that network is what makes playing Facebook games so addictive.

At the same time, Facebook also owes a lot to Zynga games, their addictive and gameplay nature often requires a user to log in several times each day in order to make a good progression –increasing the amount of time users access the social networking site. It is believed that Facebook managed to surpass Google in terms of web use and access because of this.

So far, Facebook and Zynga are keeping quiet about the new terms of agreement that the two companies have settled in their recent meeting, though it has been let known that the two parties are now part of a five year strategic partnership.

Considering that almost everyone has a smart phone and a Facebook or Twitter account these days, it is practically a given that anyone knows how to get online. However, getting online is just the first part, actually knowing what is safe to do on the internet however, is a completely different matter.

Fending off scams and phishing attempts is one thing but being able to determine bad user policies is the other. This is the current case that many people are having with the famous social networking website, Facebook (though you probably already know that).

What you may not know however, is that Facebook has the right to share your username, profile details and even friend lists on any site they wish to disclose the information to, and according to recent reports, Facebook is about to actually put that right into play. There will be predetermined web sites that Facebook allegedly trusts and will be sharing user information with.

For many, this may not seem like a big deal, but in fact, it is a threat to security for many users. Being able to control the privacy of an account within Facebook is already difficult, as figuring out whether how much visible you want to be can be quite the dilemma. Now, Facebook is adding in a new factor: external websites that would be given your data as long as you are still logged into Facebook.

The only way to deal with this now is to manually log out of Facebook before visiting other websites –a serious hassle for anyone used to checking Facebook while browsing other sites. With many of the current users already protesting this change in policy, we can expect to see a reaction from the social networking site within the next few days.

Read more about the new privacy policy at Bernama.

No matter how we look at it, being online is going to be a crucial part of day to day existence.

Already we can see the difference with people who have access to online resources to those who do not. Manufacturers are able to stay on top of business trends and have a more in depth look at the market to predict possible needs. Obtaining resources such as information is faster and more convenient online than having to go out and research at a local library. Even the simple act of getting in touch with friends and family has become something we rely on Facebook and email for.

The integration of the internet to our daily lives has been helped by computers and net books, but if there is one device to blame as to why we rely so much on online access, it is the smart phone.

The average smart phone these days has WiFi, 3G or both. Missing these features turns any smart phone into something undesirable. The mobile phone which we carry with us everyday has become not only a device for calling and messaging, but a way to get online anytime and anywhere.

Better technology has also encouraged going online as well.

Touch screen display has made using the phone easy and fun. Bigger and better resolutions are also one reason why most people no longer consider using the humble computer for going online –especially if all they want to do is check Facebook and send a couple of Tweets.

Speaking of which, it is the prevalence of social networking tools that has made everyone such online addicts. Many prefer to interact with others through their online profiles than in real life.

Get to know more about technology changed the way we live and learn at Pocket Lint.

Apps can certainly burn a hole in your pocket and so many developers have popped up hoping to make it big (aka: filthy, stinking, rich) in the iPhone scene. That said, it is always a treat to find practical apps that give back to the community and cost zilch to download.

Meet the Brizzly. If you cannot stand the thought of not being able to Tweet constantly but find existing Tweet apps too expensive to buy, then the Brizzly team has you covered.

Since their launch, Brizzly has been a popular web-based Twitter app. It allows the use of multiple Twitter apps, has integrated Facebook support and provides streamlined link and photo viewing. The team has been in hibernation for quite some time but they just recently popped up bring a gift to the iPhone-owning Twitter community.

The team acquired the rights to fancy Twitter app Birdfeed. Birdfeed is a Twitter app for the iPhone that was known for being lean, fast and having dazzling visuals. The Brizzly team bought the Birdfeed, simplified it (goodbye pretty interface) and launched it anew dropping the price to nothing.

The original developer, Buzz Andersen has been working closely with the Brizzly team however, so you can still expect the best feature of the app to be there plus having the ability to display Facebook feeds, albeit in a plain package.

To access it, a user is required to sign up and log in to a Brizzly account. That is it, there are no gimmicks and it gets the job done. The Birdfeed UI was tweaked and a standard icon row has been added to give access to its features. A News tab has been added for trending feeds and it features a pull-down feed refresh similar to another iPhone Twitter app called Tweetie. It does not have push notifications built in however but that is precisely why there are push apps available.

The verdict: If you Tweet a lot and you like freebies, get it. Actually, you may want to start Tweeting and get this app anyway, it is definitely worth it.

Head over to Gizmodo for more information about Brizzly.