I'll add my 'thanks' for this post. As a long time WiMo user, the lack of love for it (and some of the really stupid comments that show people really don't have a clue) has been disappointing.
There are thousands and thousands of WiMo apps out there.
@mullingitover: WM has been doing Google Voice for a while now with some XDA developed apps.
It only got popular due to Apple blocking it, and the official release by Google for BB/Android.
Just wanted to clarify from Skyfire -- We’re still in the Private Alpha phase for BlackBerry. Last week, we distributed the third release to our BlackBerry Bold alpha participants.
We appreciate all of the interest and requests from BlackBerry users dying to get a Skyfire browsing experience, but right now we have all of the alpha users we need.
Of course, eventually, we will expand the program, but in the meantime we are focused on iterating with this alpha community on the BlackBerry Bold. Stay tuned and know that we’re working hard to get to an Open Beta for the BlackBerry as soon as we can.
Skyfire makes windows mobile a competant web browsing machine, so its good that blackberrys get in on the action too. This is literally the most important app on my windows phone.
it's the "best BlackBerry browser ever", which frankly isn't that hard to believe
As my son would say, "I am feeling some negativity here". But, yes - they could have it be nothing but blank the screen on the Blackberry and it would be an improvement over the built-in offerings for web browsing.
IDK the hardware that has been coming out has been pretty boring lately and kind of sucky since most don't support any kind of US 3G. My first "handset" was a Psion and I have been using Symbian for a while but I am thinking of jumping ship over to Android. I have an N82, which is one of the best phones I have used but connecting via EDGE is so-so. Looking into getting an E71 but if I don;t like it I will get the G-1.
@Kaiser-Machead: LOL! I guess I was a bit too vocal in the smartphone comparison chart that it's left a lasting impression..
Thanks John. I've only used a few of these apps. OperaMini is excellent on both the N95 and 5800XM. Google Maps, in my opinion works better than Nokia Maps on both of the above mentioned phones at least. It loads up and locks in much faster. I use the Internet Radio app(which is no longer available at Nokia's site for some reason) over Mobbler. Youtube and GMail apps both work great on the N95 however the newest version of the YT ap just released a couple of weeks ago won't even install on the 5800XM. GMail 2.00 works good on the 5800XM. Haven't tried it on the N95 yet (still using version 1.00 on that one).
QuickOffice works similarly on both phones. You can view office files with the free version but you'll need to buy the upgrade in order to edit documents. Another good app is Photo Flow for browsing photos on the 5800XM. By far one of the best apps I use is Handy Shell. It replaces the main active standby screen and has more configuration options than the default standby screen has. It's not a free app but well worth it, especially on the 5800XM since there's more screen real estate to work with. Handy Weather is a separate app with comes free for one year with the purchase of Handy Shell. It's nice having weather updates on the standby screen but not so much that I would have paid for this. Mobile Weather and WeatherBug (available both as a widget for the N95 & a widset for the 5800XM) are two free alternatives which do the job adequately.
There's plenty more freeware to browse from over at Symbian Freak.
@Jrsy Devil's Food Cake®: No way Jrsy, I couldn't help but think the same thing after reading the smartphone comparison chart they did a while ago. I don't even know what to make of the comment "We've even gone so far as to declare it too marginal to include in our smartphone OS guide" in the article above when it's preceded by a statement like, "Symbian is the planet's most popular smartphone OS-everywhere except the US, that is." I guess, some how a objective fact based statement followed up by subjective and biased opinion is somehow meant to re-affirm the reasoning and logic for their disregard of the Symbian OS in prior articles?...
I traded in my N95 8GB a while ago for a SE X1, and am so miserable now. :( Symbian, from my personal experience, has been great for me, and even plays nicely with my Mac (using iSync to sync calendar and contact info wirelessly using only bluetooth, and the Nokia Multimedia Transfer Software for the rest)! Depending on what Apple announces about there new iPhone this upcoming summer I may finally be forced to get one, or the forthcoming N97 from Nokia. As of now I'm leaning more towards getting a unlocked N97 and keeping my Tmobile plan, instead of paying through my nose monthly with AT&T for a iPhone...
@Ambiguous Blob 2.0: I've been thinking about the N97 as well. Having not used a touchscreen phone for more than say 30 to 45 minutes at any given time I decided to get my feet wet with the 5800XM first. Frankly this was because it's available now and a cheaper alternative to what the N97 will reportedly retail for.
After the first two days I did not like it. Well, that is to say, I liked everything except for the touchscreen. Now though after a week and a half of use it's grown on me quite a bit. I find that I still like buttons but this is a solid phone. Using the full qwerty is still a challenge because I have big hands. I found going with the T9 keyboard to be easier since that's what I am already used to. I can type without thinking just based on the number of taps to get to the desired character. The 'keys' are bigger so I can fly across them pretty good. I did switch back to the qwerty though to force myself to learn how to use it properly instead of taking the easy way out. I still cheat by typing with one hand which, for me at least is amazingly fast and accurate. I have a few days left so the jury's still out on whether or not I'm keeping it. My only real gripes at this point is that it's a tad small and the camera is nowhere near the quality of my N95 (I can't really consider that to be a gripe though since I knew this was going to be the case before I even bought the phone). I'm sure I will like the N97's physical qwerty over the touchscreen version but I don't know if I'd be any happier since it doesn't appear to be much bigger than the 5800XM.
Sometimes Gizmodo seems to be very well paid by Apple. Even here, in a post that is suposedly pro WinMo, you talk about it like its crap, and how to make it less crappier.
don be such Fanboys, how about hiring some pro WinMo writer.
Been using it since 2003, and theres nothing compared to the power it gives me to do WHATEVER I WANT with it. And thats something no other platform can give me (maybe android in the future, but not yet)
Gah! My Q! It weeps, it cries. Please, give it some nice implants or something. I can see the design from the back -- the Verizon Q design -- that is...the ATT one is even worse.
Anything said on this site about phones, regardless of model or OS, is said to the people who can't or don't want to bother "Hacking" their phones.
If you can jailbreak an iPhone, you can Cook (or load a premade) ROM to a WinMO phone and get significantly increased functionality. HTC TouchPro w/Custom ROM on VZW makes for a pretty shiny iPhone alternative that has native ActiveSync.
08/10/09
There are thousands and thousands of WiMo apps out there.
08/09/09
08/09/09
It only got popular due to Apple blocking it, and the official release by Google for BB/Android.
07/13/09
We appreciate all of the interest and requests from BlackBerry users dying to get a Skyfire browsing experience, but right now we have all of the alpha users we need.
Of course, eventually, we will expand the program, but in the meantime we are focused on iterating with this alpha community on the BlackBerry Bold. Stay tuned and know that we’re working hard to get to an Open Beta for the BlackBerry as soon as we can.
07/16/09
07/13/09
07/13/09
Can you tell I'm hungry?
Seriously, how awesome would an app be that would cook you up delicious fresh pastries on demand via your phone?
07/13/09
04/23/09
As my son would say, "I am feeling some negativity here". But, yes - they could have it be nothing but blank the screen on the Blackberry and it would be an improvement over the built-in offerings for web browsing.
04/07/09
::Looks at her Moto Q with shameful resentment::
Gah.
04/07/09
04/07/09
04/07/09
04/08/09
Thanks John. I've only used a few of these apps. OperaMini is excellent on both the N95 and 5800XM. Google Maps, in my opinion works better than Nokia Maps on both of the above mentioned phones at least. It loads up and locks in much faster. I use the Internet Radio app(which is no longer available at Nokia's site for some reason) over Mobbler. Youtube and GMail apps both work great on the N95 however the newest version of the YT ap just released a couple of weeks ago won't even install on the 5800XM. GMail 2.00 works good on the 5800XM. Haven't tried it on the N95 yet (still using version 1.00 on that one).
QuickOffice works similarly on both phones. You can view office files with the free version but you'll need to buy the upgrade in order to edit documents. Another good app is Photo Flow for browsing photos on the 5800XM. By far one of the best apps I use is Handy Shell. It replaces the main active standby screen and has more configuration options than the default standby screen has. It's not a free app but well worth it, especially on the 5800XM since there's more screen real estate to work with. Handy Weather is a separate app with comes free for one year with the purchase of Handy Shell. It's nice having weather updates on the standby screen but not so much that I would have paid for this. Mobile Weather and WeatherBug (available both as a widget for the N95 & a widset for the 5800XM) are two free alternatives which do the job adequately.
There's plenty more freeware to browse from over at Symbian Freak.
04/08/09
I traded in my N95 8GB a while ago for a SE X1, and am so miserable now. :( Symbian, from my personal experience, has been great for me, and even plays nicely with my Mac (using iSync to sync calendar and contact info wirelessly using only bluetooth, and the Nokia Multimedia Transfer Software for the rest)! Depending on what Apple announces about there new iPhone this upcoming summer I may finally be forced to get one, or the forthcoming N97 from Nokia. As of now I'm leaning more towards getting a unlocked N97 and keeping my Tmobile plan, instead of paying through my nose monthly with AT&T for a iPhone...
04/09/09
After the first two days I did not like it. Well, that is to say, I liked everything except for the touchscreen. Now though after a week and a half of use it's grown on me quite a bit. I find that I still like buttons but this is a solid phone. Using the full qwerty is still a challenge because I have big hands. I found going with the T9 keyboard to be easier since that's what I am already used to. I can type without thinking just based on the number of taps to get to the desired character. The 'keys' are bigger so I can fly across them pretty good. I did switch back to the qwerty though to force myself to learn how to use it properly instead of taking the easy way out. I still cheat by typing with one hand which, for me at least is amazingly fast and accurate. I have a few days left so the jury's still out on whether or not I'm keeping it. My only real gripes at this point is that it's a tad small and the camera is nowhere near the quality of my N95 (I can't really consider that to be a gripe though since I knew this was going to be the case before I even bought the phone). I'm sure I will like the N97's physical qwerty over the touchscreen version but I don't know if I'd be any happier since it doesn't appear to be much bigger than the 5800XM.
There's always the E71 though...
01/16/09
01/15/09
don be such Fanboys, how about hiring some pro WinMo writer.
Been using it since 2003, and theres nothing compared to the power it gives me to do WHATEVER I WANT with it. And thats something no other platform can give me (maybe android in the future, but not yet)
01/15/09
01/15/09
My Omnia i910 has a lot of this already.
I did a little messing with it though.
Great stuff!
01/15/09
01/15/09
If you can jailbreak an iPhone, you can Cook (or load a premade) ROM to a WinMO phone and get significantly increased functionality. HTC TouchPro w/Custom ROM on VZW makes for a pretty shiny iPhone alternative that has native ActiveSync.
01/15/09