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beta posts

iPhone OS 3.1 beta now available for developer community

by Ross Miller, posted Jun 30th 2009 @ 7:22PM

Your fancy new iPhone OS 3.0 starting to look a bit long in the tooth? Heads up, Apple's now sending out the beta OS 3.1 and its SDK to the developer community to finagle with. We're still looking to see what's been changed here, so for now, if you're someone who needs the Latest and Greatest and happens to have the right access, download away!

Update: Still tinkering, but we've seen a new "Save a Copy" option for 3G S video editing that lets you retain the original film while saving an edited clip (picture after the break, thanks Kevin), as well as some reports of MMS being activated, but it seems to stall before actually being sent out over AT&T's network.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

Continue reading iPhone OS 3.1 beta now available for developer community

Flash 10 for smartphone beta coming this October

by Ross Miller, posted Jun 22nd 2009 @ 6:44PM

It's been a while since we've heard a peep about Adobe's Flash 10 for smartphone initiative, but according to a slide from its Q2 Fiscal Year 2009 earnings presentation, the platform's on track for a beta release this October at the company's MAX conference. Prime mobile OS candidates for the beta include those from Adobe's Open Screen Project, which at last count included Nokia, Palm, Google, and Microsoft -- and unless there's been some behind closed doors meetings, the two glaring omissions on that list are still gonna be bugging you come this Halloween.

Microsoft's beta My Phone service for Windows Mobile now free to all

by Thomas Ricker, posted May 19th 2009 @ 4:18AM

Go 'n get it! Microsoft's My Phone service is now ready for all Windows Mobile users to test. The beta service syncs any Windows Mobile 6+ phone to Microsoft's 200MB per person cloud. That includes contacts, calendars, tasks, photos, text messages, music, videos, and more. In essence, anything on the My Phone website is on the phone and vice versa. Hey free is free and this is a goodie.

[Via SlashPhone]

iPhone OS 3.0 beta 5 now available

by Ross Miller, posted May 6th 2009 @ 11:16PM

Looks like Apple's just released iPhone OS 3.0 beta 5, a little over one week after its last revision. That's about half the time they've put between the previous updates -- seems the boys in Cupertino are really starting to churn these things out. You know the drill by now, we don't know yet what the update entails, but we'll tell you when we find out. Oh, and just like last time, it appears iTunes 8.2 is required.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

Update: We can confirm that MMS "support" can no longer be turned on in Settings (in quotes because we could never get it working in previous betas anyhow), and we're hearing that trickery that allowed tethering to be enabled with the previous iTunes 8.2 build has been patched. Aww, you're no fun, Apple... thanks, Rene!

REDFLY Mobile Viewer removes the need for Mobile Companion

by Darren Murph, posted Apr 1st 2009 @ 1:34PM

Given that REDFLY can't sell its Mobile Companion for free-after-rebate, we're not at all shocked by this move. If you'll remember, we actually heard that Celio was looking to dabble in software back at CES, and now the company has selected CTIA to showcase its REDFLY Mobile Viewer. Available as a free download today in beta form, the Windows-only program essentially turns any PC into a Mobile Companion by blowing up smartphone applications on a bigger screen. The software works with all current REDFLY-compatible handsets, and it gives users the ability to surf their WinMo desktop at 800 x 480, 800 x 600, 1,024 x 600 or 1,024 x 768 resolution. We're struggling to see how Celio is going to monetize this, but who knows, maybe it's just in it for the fame.

Nokia's Point & Find service makes reality better

by Thomas Ricker, posted Apr 1st 2009 @ 6:46AM

Nokia just tip-toed out for a glimpse at innovation with the beta release of its new Point & Find application and service. Simply aim the camera of your Nokia phone at any object in meat-space and the Point & Find application will access relevant data off the Internet. Ok, not any object as the beta only recognizes movie posters at the moment, but that's the long term plan. Point & Find uses real-time image processing to recognize real-world objects in a Nokia database of virtually tagged items using the phone's camera, Internet connection, and GPS data. The software also recognizes bar codes and supports category-specific text-entry search. The beta software is a free download for Nokia owners in the UK and get this, the US too. Man, Nokia's getting serious about US market share.

Gallery: Nokia's Point & Find service makes reality better

Fennec Beta 1 goes live on Maemo platform

by Darren Murph, posted Mar 22nd 2009 @ 5:33AM

Naming confusion aside, we're just stoked out of our gords right now to see that all of this is progressing along so quickly. Out of nowhere, we're being hit with news that Fennec Beta 1 (that's the mobile flavor of Firefox, by the way) is now live on the Maemo platform. The only tough news is that said platform is just used on Nokia's Internet Tablets, so you'll likely have a tough (read: impossible) time loading this up on S60, Windows Mobile or any other mobile OS. That said, we are told that the first beta includes "greatly increased zooming speed and panning smoothness," and on the feature front, devs have enabled plugins so users can easily watch videos from their favorite sites. Hit the read link for all the nitty-gritty, and for you lucky N810 users, give it a download and report back.

[Via phoneArena]

Continue reading Fennec Beta 1 goes live on Maemo platform

iPhone prototype surfaces on eBay, aims to fetch a pretty penny

by Darren Murph, posted Mar 9th 2009 @ 7:42PM

Okay, so we'll go ahead and crush a few dreams up front -- there's nothing here that proves this isn't some funky KIRF iPhone or just an ad hoc or jailbroken app making things look completely funkadelic. Now that our skepticism is out in the open, we'll be honest and say we really, really hope this is legitimate. According to the eBay description, this here iPhone prototype was constructed a few months prior to the real iPhone's release, and it actually powers on, makes calls and receives SMSs. It sports a totally beta plastic matte screen, and the software is obviously pre-release. Oh, and the best part? The auction winner also scores a second beta phone that won't turn on (yet), but we're sure the right tweaker could fix it up into the most amazing secondary phone the world has ever seen. Forget all that bad economic news you've been hearing -- you best bring the bring the bank if you're thinking seriously about claiming this.

[Via iLounge]

New Storm OS 4.7.0.90 leaked, includes QWERTY keyboard in portrait mode

by Joseph L. Flatley, posted Jan 22nd 2009 @ 11:42AM

As you know, a new beta OS for the Storm has made its way into the wild. Although we haven't had a chance to give OS 4.7.0.90 the what-for ourselves, those of you who have certainly have a lot to say. The big news for both 9500 and 9530 users is that there is now a QWERTY keyboard in portrait mode -- no more flipping the phone around just for an ill-advised late night tweet! Besides that, users have noted an increase in overall stability (unless you're trying to listen to music -- more on that in a moment) and some visual enhancements (including the older-look application folder and fonts that are slightly larger). Additionally, when the device is locked, the screen doesn't light up every time you bump it -- good for battery life. And as one user noted, the charging issue "which plagued OS version 88" has been resolved. Unfortunately, there has also been plenty of chatter about buggy multimedia players -- at least on the Storm 9500. Users have complained about music and video playback crashing the phone, fast forward not working, and an overall video performance decrease. Brave Blackberry fans can hit the read link to browse the forums and maybe even download the new OS for themselves. More images after the break.

Continue reading New Storm OS 4.7.0.90 leaked, includes QWERTY keyboard in portrait mode

4.7.0.85 leaks for the Vodafone BlackBerry Storm 9500

by Jacob Schulman, posted Jan 7th 2009 @ 5:43AM

If you're one of those people who likes to live on the bleeding edge of BlackBerry software updates, head on over to CrackBerry to get your latest fix. General consensus in the site's forums seem to indicate that the 9500 Storm for Vodafone is faring a bit better after the update than the identically-labeled Verizon counterpart that leaked a bit back. Unfortunately, from the looks of things, RIM hasn't hit every bug on its first "netbook," but if 4.7.0.83 or 4.7.0.78 just ain't cutting it, be sure to head over to CrackBerry for the full lowdown on how to score another .02 (or .07).

Read - CrackBerry Blog post
Read - CrackBerry Forums thread

SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry loosed in public beta form

by Darren Murph, posted Dec 30th 2008 @ 11:08AM

Now this is what we like to see, a company keeping promises. Sling Media promised that we'd see a public beta release of its SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry on December 30th, and sure enough, we're seeing a public beta release of its SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry on December 30th. As of now, select BB owners -- Pearl 8120, Pearl Flip 8220, Curve 8320, 8820, Curve 8900 and Bold 9000, officially -- can point their browsers here in order to get the OTA install going. At least for now, this is the only method of procuring the software (should cut down on support issues, we hear), but it's not like you can't handle that. Give it a go and report back, won't you? Full note is after the break.

Continue reading SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry loosed in public beta form

Enhanced Calculator for S60 updated and archived in one fell swoop

by Darren Murph, posted Dec 24th 2008 @ 7:57AM

Remember that super swank number cruncher that Nokia was working up for the Symbian S60 platform back in August? Welp, she's reached the end of her road, as they say. According to an update on the Beta Labs website, the Enhanced Calculator for S60 has seen its final wave of tweaks which make it fully compatible with the N96 (among other things). Curiously, Nokia is also announcing that the project is being archived (though it's still available for download), noting that it learned that "it wasn't feasible to productize." Instead, Nokia has enlisted a proper R&D team that will eventually "result in an improved built-in calculator for future Nokia devices." Hmm, maybe they're referring to something such as this?

Nokia's Handwriting Calculator makes math cool again

by Darren Murph, posted Dec 23rd 2008 @ 4:51AM

Be honest with yourself -- you loathe math. We mean, you're totally kosher with counting ohms and watts when dealing in DIY projects, but you'll gladly pay a certified accountant to handle your taxes. Chances are, though, that Nokia's new Handwriting Calculator will have you doing calculations you never thought you'd do once you nailed that Calculus IV book shut with a completely respectable B-. It's designed to operate on Nokia's "latest touchscreen devices (read: S60 5th Edition), such as the N800 and the 5800 XpressMusic," and it's being delivered free of charge from the always inventive Beta Labs operation. The greatest part about this is its ability to understand unorthodox symbols such as square roots and the like; too bad most professors outlaw cellphones during testing periods, huh? Video demonstration is after the break.

[Via MobileSyrup]

Continue reading Nokia's Handwriting Calculator makes math cool again

Nokia's Mail on Ovi email beta now live worldwide

by Darren Murph, posted Dec 22nd 2008 @ 3:10PM

For Nokia handsets not quite fancy enough for Email, there's Mail on Ovi. The application, which was developed for low(er)-end S40 mobiles, is expected to give many individuals in developing nations their very first email address and internet identity. In theory, these people will use their phones to access email more than a PC, thus the newest public beta enables users to setup their accounts right on the handset with no PC required. There's a ridiculously long list of compatible handsets in the read link, so hop on down if you think you're interested.

Skype launches v2.5 Beta for Windows Mobile

by Darren Murph, posted Dec 11th 2008 @ 12:39PM

If you've been stuck in 2.2.0.45 land wondering when Skype was ever going to be more stable and easier to hear, well, so have lots of others. Available now, the v2.5 Beta promises "improved sound quality" and "better stability" to go along with a "familiar Skype design," though details beyond that are being kept under wraps. Both the smartphone (2.5.0.109) and Pocket PC (2.5.0.108) versions have been updated, so why not tap the read link and get your upgrade on? Unless everything's working just fine for you -- you know what they say about fixing things that aren't broken.

[Via mobilitysite]