It’s been a while now and we all WinPhans or WindowsPhone users have had enough of patience as far as app updates are concerned and in some cases even a decent workable app, which is slowly but surely becoming a threat and WindowsPhone as people are slowly shifting to other OSs than getting another WindowsPhone. So we decided to compile the apps which are desperately needing an update on the WindowsPhone Store. Continue reading and you would surely agree that yes these apps are dated now and need a new life.
TWITTER
Earlier in July this year when Twitter updated the it brought lot of excitement in the community and the app was greeted and applauded for because it provided WinPhans a new way to use twitter which was updated with a host of features. Sadly the app fails in most of features which were added to it like the notification aren’t accurate now, the photos do not appear in the timeline anymore and many more issues. On the other hand the same app on Android gets updated every week which definitely adds some valuable feature and bug fixes. So Twitter for WindowsPhone needs a desperate update.
FACEBOOK
The Facebook app from Microsoft is worst compared with the one on Android or iOS, it doesn’t allow you to wait a post or comment, doesn’t allow to post photo on a page. The cover photo cannot be changed using this app, doesn’t allow to comment on a note and many more shortcomings. This app was recently updated during the last week but nothing essential came in and just gotta some bug fixes and usuals. We wish that it gets updated soon so that we don’t have to always switch to android or PC to use Facebook as we want to.
INSTAGRAM BETA
Being a photography hobbyist I love sharing photos on Instagram but this app for WindowsPhone has never got updated since it made its way to the store in layer March, 2014. This app lacks way behind 6Tag which is a third party app available to WinPhans to use Instagram with enhanced functionality. Compared with android and iOS this app is just elementary which savor be used for advanced functionality like regraming or direct messaging or editing the captions or even copying them. Instagram is in desperate need of an update to even make it workable.
VINE
I don’t remember when was the last time I saw Vine getting updated on WindowsPhone. It hasn’t got any kind of support since December last year whereas the app on Android and iOS rocks with host of new features. Vine for WindowsPhone is just the basic app, where you can only upload the videos made on vine and not upload videos which are created and then edited from hard disk, you cannot tag anyone (it doesn’t work) hash tags don’t show suggestions, notification is very poor. The third party app 6Sec works pretty well but lacks those features too. Vine deserves a full fledged update soon.
WHATSAPP
Undoubtedly Whatsapp is the only app which is almost on par on WindowsPhone when compared to Android & iOS but it still lacks some features related to audio, like we cannot send an audio file other than directly recording nor can we save one, which is pretty frustrating at times & this definitely needs to be fixed. This issue isn’t only with Whatsapp, it continues with all the messengers on the store and needs to be fixed.
YOUTUBE
The world famous video sharing and streaming service from Google has an app on the WindowsPhone store, but which just works as the bookmark our shortcut to the mobile site of YouTube and isn’t an app in real as on Android & iOS and this definitely needs to be fixed because it is not the way an app should look or work. It’s a shame to even call it an app. WindowsPhone deserves a much better app which goes well with the experience than the mobile site.
TUMBLR
This app just take forever to open on WindowsPhone. Also it fails to show the notification which gets irritating while we use it. Tumblr on Android is much better with the UI and functionality. The WP app is a pain, be it anything it at times even fails to load the app and the posts, hence it seriously need to be updated.
EMAIL
The email client on WindowsPhone is sharp and clean which works well but attaching multiple files other than media is just not possible. The only way out is to send separate mails for every additional attachment be out Word document or excel or even PDF file. This needs to be fixed so that the experience to users is enhanced.
FILES (MANAGER)
After a long long wait WindowsPhone got a complete manager, but in true sense it is not a complete file manager, still doesn’t show a lot of files and formats. For instance a video file received over Bluetooth, which is not in .mp4 would not be displayed, likewise a PDF file if opened with Adobe Reader does not show up in the files app, so these should be worked on so that the user gets a holistic view of the files saved on the device. The file saving system needs to be updated so that the user gets an idea of where the file is saved and can be located.
DIALER
There is no native smart dialer, an essential these days on the smart phones, though Cortana & third party app comes in handy here but not always. It gets difficult to look up for a contact on the phone. Forget Android or iOS, this feature was even available of Windows Mobile 6 and onwards so this isn’t anything new which we require but which had evolved over the years.
VIDEOS
This all needs a serious update not only to improve the functionality with support for various video codecs but also for the way files are saved on the phone. Even though there is a video folder all the videos captured or saved are found only in the pictures folder and this needs to be fixed.
There are many other places and apps which needs an update but this process is rather very slow on WindowsPhone and which is surely frustrating the users and might go against Microsoft if the continue to ignore the need to get these fixed at the earliest. Hope the officials at Microsoft take things seriously since it’s not just the camera or photos or videos which are important but these apps are essential too and need to be updated at the earliest.
Let us know in the comments below what you feel and which other apps still needs to be included to this list.
Disclaimer: This list isn’t exhaustive, it is just indicative.
Stay tuned for more updates and tech buzz.
The Samsung Galaxy Note Edge has arrived and so far we are impressed with its unusual design and certainly a first in Mobile devices with the curved screen on the right hand side.On handling the device first it does feel somewhat strange but you can quickly adjust to the feel within a few minutes of using the device.
The Note Edge still has a premium feel to it been housed in plastic (back cover could have been better) rather than the metal housing on the Note 4 and it does feel a tad lighter too,apart from that there is not much else different apart from the power- on/off key which is placed on top of the device rather than the side which obviously would not go there due to the curved screen so for the extra buck you will pay for the Note Edge especially sim free i do not see the justice in the high price even though its quite unique and nothing quite like it on the market today.
This will of course appeal to some who like their high end devices like me and will be more of a curious matter for others to see just how technology is changing in the world today.They are available in Ireland via Vodafone and only on contract and limited to 500 which was reported earlier on last month so if you want one you will need to get your skates on as im sure that 500 will sell rather quickly
Check out the gallery and unboxing of the Note Edge below and if you have any questions do ask us in the comments or email us or get us on twitter.Ignore that I called the earphones speaker’s, been a long day.. Enjoy.
Packaging includeds the Note Edge,instruction leaflets,Tip replacements for the S-pen,Battery,Earbuds,Plug and a nice lenghty USB cable..
Unboxing the Galaxy Note Edge.
If you have not been following the latest from Vsenn we have you covered,for those who have not Vsenn is a Finnish smartphone startup dedicated to create the worlds best mobile user experience, through the most secure and regularly updated Android OS platform using modular hardware.
What is Vsenn about..
Global Availability
With a lower price than the charged by the current market leaders in the industry. Without any of the nonsense region locks and specific hardware specs for different global areas. We are a truly global brand and we invite everyone to join us.
Modular hardware
Allows you to upgrade your smartphone when you want. We use only the best and fastest hardware in our modules. There are three modules that you can upgrade and replace: Camera, Battery and Processor/RAM.
Proper mobile security
All the data on the phone is protected using triple layer encryption. For your safety and protection we provide free access to a VPN network and secure Cloud. Preserving data integrity and your privacy is our main priority.
Regular and fast Updates
Keep your phone running smooth, fast and perfectly optimized. We know how it is important to take care of our customers, that is why we offer pure Vanilla Android with guaranteed updates for the next 4 years.
Customizable looks
With back covers that can be changed easily and fast. You may choose from a variety of offers that look and feel just perfect. Durable and stylish to suit your lifestyle. Your imagination is the only limit that applies here.
Todays press release.
OS alternatives – in your hands
Oulu, Finland, December 9, 2014 – Vsenn aims to work with the online developer community in bringing other OS choices to its devices. Our customers have the power to influence and participate in the worlds first community developed mobile brand.
Bringing multiple OS support is something that the online community has been asking us to do, and so, we deliver. We have extended and detailed the ARP program benefits to communities that wish to port and develop roms based on other operating systems.
Vsenn will officially support and help in the development process all the ARP program members. On our social channels, people can voice their favourite OS choices to be part of the ARP program.
The only condition we request from any ARP is a stable and high performance rom. All members of the ARP will have equal benefits:
Full Independence
We will never ask or demand for exclusive features like other brands have done in the past, and we wish that our partners keep working as they have been doing so far.
Technical Support
Straight from Vsenn, we will provide a direct contact to help the members of the ARP program in their development process.
Unlocked Bootloader
It will be an exclusive feature only available to the members of the ARP program, in order to guarantee ROM quality and stability.
Financial Support
Vsenn will officially provide monetary donations, test devices, server space and bandwith for the Vsenn devices ROMs.
So as you can see Vsenn are offering some pretty great stuff of the shelf here going fowrad and we look forward as to what is coming later down the road and we will of course have the news to share..Vsenn want this device to be your device..
About Vsenn
We believe that technology exists for the sole purpose of making our life easier and better. Being good listeners, we will always keep improving to deliver exactly what the market expects from us. Your opinion, ideas and wishes are our compass, because there is no Vsenn without you.
Thanks to Helder Vicente once again for keeping us in the loop.
If you are a die-hard fan of the Star Wars movies and you’re more than excited for the upcoming new movie! Well This may be can calm you down a bit.
The guys from ThinkGeek came out with this little surprise for us, this bluetooth speaker may well not give a super hi-def audio but if fine for hear in a room with some friend to show how cool you are for having your own “Death Star”.
The iconic artificial planet comes with an stand made of acrylic, auto-link button for easy pairing, AUX input and PC cable “all-in-one, a rechargeable battery (up to 8 h with full charge), and 3W of power.
Here are the complete Spec list (and I have to say this guys have a great sense of humor)
Death Star Bluetooth Speaker on acrylic stand
Officially-licensed Star Wars merchandise
Wirelessly stream music from up to 30 ft. away
Compatible with Bluetooth 1.1, 1.2, 2.0, and 2.1+EDR enabled devices
Auto-link button for fast, easy Bluetooth setup
Also plays audio from devices equipped with 3.5mm headphone jack (cable included)
Frequency Response: 100Hz to 16Khz
Power: 3W@1%THD
Speaker lights up when in use
Mono
You can charge the speaker while listening
LED charging indicator light
Batteries: Rechargeable lithium-ion battery (a charge lasts up to 8 hours)
Charges via micro USB (cable included)
Dimensions: 6″ tall x ~ 4 1/2″ wide x ~ 4 1/2″ deep
Weight: 7 lbs.
Note: Does not include Concave Dish Composite Beam Superlaser
Here you can see it working and a really funny Darth Vader
The “Death Star” Bluetooth Speaker is priced at 70$ but it’s out of stock, although you can take a look HERE and grab one for you when they are ready to go again.
Let us now if you are going to get one in the comments and stay tuned for more Tech buzz
Source: ThinkGeek
The transport business in Ireland is a very cut throat game today and has been for some years now due to the recession and competition,and i myself is involved in this business around 20 years now along with mobile tech.
The days of using an atlas is long gone and i remember them so well and its now moved to a digital era.
We now have sat navs,and mobile phones which can offer us turn by turn navigation at ease but even today these are still not 100% fully efficient although they are a great benefit for the consumer,personally myself i dont really use them much as i have my own sat nav mind with 2 decades of hard real time travelling and seeing probably every road there is,but i do like to test maps and products to see how far we have come.
We now have come into an era where on-line shopping is king,its killing retail (bricks and mortar stores) mainly due to less cost,less overheads,but people still like to go and physically shop,i like to myself but been honest i buy mostly from the internet.But there will always be people that like a hands on experience,again i like this but tend to avoid ques and shop online.
Open website-shop-click on buy-pay-deliver…
Yes that’s how it works but what happens after this?
We get a tracking number in most cases,some don’t offer,some charge extra for this and some companies more expensive than others but going forward tracking is king we want information that we can keep an eye on.
After this we can log onto the respective couriers website and get some info,again some can provide more than others but we are not certain as to what time the package arrives at,this can be an issue for some and not for others,but Xpreso is here to alleviate this,How?
What is Xpreso?
Xpreso solves the “sorry we missed you” problem by connecting couriers and consumers in real-time; putting consumers in control with precise delivery alerts, rescheduling and re-routing options.This saves courier companies money while providing a Hailo-like delivery experience for on-line consumers.
We are the first in Ireland to test this new product and had CEO Eamon Keane with us and gave us a full demonstration on how it works and i myself have been putting Xpreso to the test and it just works..
How does it benefit the customer ?
You are given a time window,this is a great way for you to organise things in advance and you can talk to the courier.
Track the courier in real time.
How does it all happen?
Most if not all courier company’s now use handheld terminals which run again mostly windows mobile embedded which i dont know why as its clunky and can be slow,Xpreso runs on Android and have also mentioned they are not ruling out windows products(tabs) yet,there is just no product that’s commercially viable yet to use and cost effective in the tablet range for just yet.
The courier scans the packages as per schedule and The Xpreso servers pull the information and it syncs to your tablet,this gives an identical list as per the drivers physical hard copy that he needs for a P.O.D (Proof of delivery)
As pictured above is an example of what the driver sees on the screen.A time window,distance and directions,also the option to call the customer from the tablet by tapping one icon.
Also what happens here the Xpreso app gives you the location of the next delivery and also a suggested route to take if you need so,Also you can call the customer from the tablet which will be in your vehicle placed in where suits you best,of course it runs via a sim card and data to work.
Naturally when it comes to properties in the countryside there may not be a location provided due to our current postcode system,or simply not mapped, this is an anomaly any maps based app struggles to provide but you can get an estimation.
So this is where geo tagging comes into place,when the courier has located the customer its saved in the system,this is huge benefit to the customer and courier company alike,for an example if you have a regular driver on the run and he is out sick or on holidays this data is there already saved building up a data base of customers for the future.
Another thing is if you need to change route you simply continue on as is and select next delivery on screen and it will continue on as normal so you just can not go wrong here,i have personally put this to test and tried to trick it,it didn’t work im pleased to say,it beat me.
So that’s how Xpreso works and its a great idea and i think this can be a success with other possibilities down the line.
Who runs Xpreso.? You can click the image to see LinkedIn profile.
Xpreso solves the last mile problem in eCommerce by delivering to people, not places. Xpreso’s SaaS solution allows delivery companies to increase first-time success rate by offering online customers dynamic tracking and accurate arrival times. This is complemented by re-direction options to fit parcel delivery around consumers’ busy lives. Xpreso’s communication platform uses an intuitive Android tablet interface for the parcel delivery driver and requires no upfront capital to deploy. Xpreso’s solution also works across courier companies, allowing consumers to have one place to track all their parcels and store their preferences.
We would like to thank Eamon for his time and giving us the opportunity to be part of testing this app and also giving suggestions over the last few months and wish Xpreso the best in the future.Its also worth a note that Xpreso have now also brought HERE maps on board this app which is excellent for offline use..
Congratulations on winning the #IBYE award too..
Check out Xpreso
Noreve who is a bespoke quality case maker has just sent us out the new case in a very nice cobalt color for the Samsung Galaxy Note 4,this is not a cheap phone so a case/cover would be a must for this device,having said that some like the naked feel of a phone including myself but i also like to have it well protected when outdoors or travelling,check out the image gallery and review below..
While this case will offer full protection for your device it does add some bulk and it may be awkward to use especially for small handed folk,for me its not much of an issue due to having big hands and im use to big devices that is my personal choice but i also use much smaller devices,however it was not really an issue but you would see some discomfort as to holding and using it compared to a gel case for example but this is a wallet type case and this is a characterisitc of such a case similar to what flip cases would have,it does add size to your phone,having said that the Note 4 is a big phone so using these kind of cases is unavoidable regardless,but i always say prevention is better than cure and i always advise buying a case no matter what..A screen for this device would be a very costly accident should you let it drop,the Note 4 having an aluminium frame might offer more security over the typical plastic frame but again its pot luck on how the phone lands,this goes for any phone not just particular to the Note 4.
Noreve case characteristics..
Elegant case conceived in top quality handcrafted leather
– Hand-crafted manufacturing quality
– Practical thanks to its magnetic closure
– Slim and padded design
– Protects the device in an optimal manner
– All sides protective case
– Access to basic functions (multiple openings on the leather)
– Camera lens & flash access
– Two business or credit card slots
– Headphones and headset jack access
– Charging and synchronization cable access
– Cut to shape for the LED
– Easy access to stylus
– Beautiful interior lining embossed with the Noreve logo
You can look at this case and more over at Noreve ,this case will set you back €54.90 it may be expensive compared to other cases but its bespoke,super quality and durable..
We would like to thank Noreve once again for sending us the latest case.
We all love Cortana, the personal assistant on WindowsPhone which was made available to users along with Preview for Developers in the USA and later to China and UK with Lumia Cyan update. Today Joe Belfiore announced on Twitter with his tweet reading “Hey Italy, France, Germany, Spain … Cortana says “hello!””
This means that slowly Cortana is getting more regional support, it is now made available to Italy, France, Germany & Spain though in Alpha.
What is Aplha?
Alpha means that Cortana is new to the countries, most of the features in the beta version are available but some are missing or coming soon. For example, flight tracking is not available at this time for alpha. Transit data is currently limited to larger cities and will expand as we have more data. Additionally, reference data (e.g. “How tall is Mt. Everest”) is also not available – but MS is working hard to enable this soon! MS have also worked hard to tailor Cortana’s personality in each language (with local chit chat and jokes) to make her more locally and culturally relevant (i.e. make sure she fits in!). Cortana will also show European football (or as we Americans call “soccer”) league data, including Bundesliga, Serie A, Ligue 1, and La Liga. (Source: Windows Blog)
To know in detail about today’s announcement please visit here.
Stay tuned for more updates and tech buzz.
Finally after long wait and hundreds of rumors the famous portable, free and open-source, cross platform media player VLC has silently made its way to WindowsPhone Store, though in Beta. VLC media player is very popular as it supports many audio and video file formats.
Not much to celebrate as it is available to only a few registered Beta testers, like how BBM was made available earlier, right now. It looks like soon we might have VLC for WP for every WindowsPhone user.
The UI is typical WindowsPhone styled with flat tiles and pivots room left to right. The player though looks sleek and is responsive. We will keep you updated once the app is made universal.
This is available only to WP8.1 users. Check the app coming from VideoLabs on WindowsPhone Store here.
Stay tuned for more updates and tech buzz.