ITTOMP, the lovingly-anacronymed picture-sharing service, announced an update at WES, including geotagging support. Although not new, it was news to me that the service supports video sharing too, which is pretty awesome considering how impressed with Qik I was. Geotagging is getting increasingly popular, with whole apps like GPSed revolving around it, and even becoming integrated into the BlackBerry 9000. You can nab the latest version of iTookThisOnMyPhone for free right over here.
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iTookThisOnMyPhone gets geotagging update
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In the spirit of WES 08 Hangover Week, we’re going to start running down all the releases that happened at WES that we were way too busy to cover. The first in a long list, is Flowfinity’s announced upgrade to 5.5 in Q3, which will include support for attaching pictures to their task management system. Lots of BlackBerrys have cameras now, and believe it or not, they can be used for work as well as play. It wasn’t long ago that they announced GPS support, which will likely mesh nicely with photos. In fact, I think one of the Innovation Awards winners at WES won for being able to geotag photos of graffiti and assign clean-up personnel to the location… Sounds very much like something Flowfinity will be able to pull off.
A recent video tour of the BlackBerry 9000 shows off the few new features in OS 4.6, including launching streaming video in the BlackBerry Media Player, geotagging right from the camera app, and a new Clock feature. The improved browser was nary to be seen, and BlackBerry Maps wasn’t included yet (likely due to tweaking needed for the new assisted GPS technology that the 9000 is packing), but the software will likely get all its gaps filled before release. Hardware-wise, the 9000’s keypad is significantly improved over the 8800’s, has a bigger battery (and extra weight to go with it), and is packing an uber-bright LED.
Hoo-ah. A Spanish blogger by the name of Luis Rodríguez has been playing around with a 9000 and let slip that the as-yet-unreleased device will have a front-facing video camera. Up until now, the BlackBerry 9000 has generated some ho-hum reactions, boasting an amalgam of features peppered across the BlackBerry lineup (3G, camera, Wi-Fi, GPS), but nothing new outside of the higher-res screen. It hasn’t been stated that this new camera will be in addition to the rear-facing still camera, or if it will be a subsequent 9000 model touting the video camera. In either case, file this one under rumor for the time being. If RIM can deliver reliable video call capabilities over HSDPA, the BlackBerry 9000 could really make a splash. Thanks Josep!
Some fresh screenshots of OS 4.5 have emerged for the BlackBerry 8100. The audio equalizer is conspicuously absent from this version, but stereo Bluetooth and folder creation are both a go. Office document support is well on its way, with both PowerPoint and Word editing functioning nicely. The camera’s got a bit of a tweak, now offering some blur detection. On the whole, it looks like this OS is standing nicely on the shoulders of 4.3.
Scanbuy has announced that their 2D barcode scanning app for cameraphones is now available for BlackBerry. Using their software, you can now take pictures of particular barcodes similar to those being worked into airports with your Pearl or Curve to access related content like music, pictures and information. They’ve already got a bunch of partners doing some pretty interesting things with the technology, such as the Paris Metro which delivers point of interest and transit information using the barcodes, and Codilink who’s using it to deliver and redeem coupons. There are a lot of great opportunities for this kind of stuff, that’s for sure.
So that shot from the other day was, in fact, legit. Leaked Vodafone docs show that this new device due out in May will be packing quad-band GSM, HSDPA, GPS, Wi-Fi, a 2.0 megapixel camera, a 624 MHz processor, a 480 x 320 screen (up from the current 320 x 240 standard), and a 1500mAh battery (up from the 8800’s 1400 mAh). As for carrier, the Rogers logo has been spotted on it, so we can expect it in Canada soon, too. The stats match up previous 9000 series info. Based on these specs, the only 8800-series device that might survive is the 8830 for those who happen to hop on CDMA networks – GPS, Wi-Fi and a camera all in one device really does blow everything else out of the water. In fact, if we’re just running on the slideshow, the possibility of this one being an inaugural 9000-series device still seems entirely possible. What do you guys think? The BlackBerry 8900 or the 9000? One way or the other, this thing is sounding pretty sweet.
Josep’s been testing out the beta for a new geotagging project called bbPlaces, which lets you directly upload pictures taken on your BlackBerry to Google Maps, where your GPS unit will place the photo where you took it. bbPlaces even provides a rating system for when you visit photos of places uploaded by others, as well as directions on how to get there in the first place. Although it might be pigeonholed to the 8310 and 8130 (the only BlackBerrys with both camera and on-board GPS), and the app is natively written in Spanish, it’s still great to see stuff like this getting developed. The site includes English instructions, so give it a shot and let us know how it goes.
Canadians rejoice! Telus has opened up the BlackBerry 8130 for sale, $199.99 with a three year hook in your cheek. Side-loading microSD slot, 2 mpx camera, EVDO compatibility, GPS, A2DP, and comes bundled with not only the lovely new Facebook app, but also Pocket Express. A solid release combined with Telus’ generally rosy third quarter report paints a pretty picture for this carrier’s near future. Props to BlackBerry Sync for nailing the dates and deets.
UPDATE: With a bit of smooth talking, yours truly got the Telus folks here in Ottawa to crack open their shipment early. The rep I talked with hadn’t touched a BlackBerry before, so she was just about as excited as I was to give it a shot.
Pics, video and impressions behind the jump!
Some bold souls have taken the iWhatever moniker to a new extreme with iTookThisOnMyPhone, a free photo-sharing service recently announced as a member of the BlackBerry Independent Software Vendors Alliance. The gist of the program is anyone on a major U.S. carrier can have the photos they snap with their BlackBerry Pearl or Curve automatically uploaded to iTTOMP’s web service, letting you share your pictures immediately and leaving the memory on your BlackBerry for other things. There’s no limit to how many pictures you can upload, but you better believe that you’ll be seeing it on your bill if you’re on anything short of an unlimited data plan. iTTOMP seems handy for the folks who take a lot of pictures, but I think I’d stick with the new Facebook photo sharing for now. Thanks for the heads up, Ronen!
