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Posts tagged Push
iPhone App Review: Boxcar, Notifications With Love
May 14th
I, like many smartphone users, belong to many social networks. I’m not nearly important enough to demand instant updates for the networks I subscribe to, but at the very least, I’ll know exactly how unpopular I am. Yes yes, I don’t get wall posts or @replies often, so when I do, I’d like to know when they happen. Since there are dozens of Twitter apps, multiple ways to get to Facebook and several other things I’d like push notifications for, make it all inclusive so I will not need a dozen applications to keep track of all my services. This is where Boxcar really takes the cake.
Boxcar is a multi-client, multi-service push notification application for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. Boxcar works by setting up an account where every setting are can be saved (should a new phone be purchased or restored). This account has your list of services and the specific actions desired for each notification. Boxcar stays logged into all applicable services in the background and will send a notification when the pre-determined action is triggered, then the appropriate action is executed. For example, I have Tweetie as my Twitter client. When I get an @reply, I have Boxcar play a bird tweeting sound. Upon unlocking the device, Boxcar will automatically open Tweetie instantly (taking about one second in between for Boxcar to make the pass). Boxcar supports nearly every Twitter application in existence including many I’ve never even heard of (so don’t worry about it). It also has some interesting actions, like the ability to open the Facebook web site instead of the iPhone application.
Boxcar comes with one service to push at no additional cost. New services can be added for $0.99. What good would adding new services be if what is pushable is lame? Don’t fret, Boxcar supports several services: Twitter, Facebook, Email, RSS/Atom Feed, Twitter Search, Growl Notifications, Twitter List, and Twitter Trends. Twitter is obviously pretty dominating here, but keeping tabs on this stuff can be important. Twitter just happens to work really well for pushed data of quick updates. Like @ComcastCares searching for “Comcast Sucks!,” it would be important to be on top of that. Email push is useful for those with non-exchange email accounts. Facebook is already push enabled, but for no apparent reason, the real Facebook application doesn’t make a sound or vibrate the iPhone. Growl Notifications usefulness is apparent immediately to anyone that uses Growl. Then again, it could be pretty spammy depending how you have Growl configured. The rest make enough sense on their own.
My person setup includes the following:
- @replies/DMs to my Twitter account - Open Tweetie 2
- Twitter list (a list of about fifteen people and their tweets that I just do NOT want to miss) - Open Tweetie 2
- Facebook notifications - Open Facebook
- A non-push email account - Open Mail
All in all it works pretty swell. Some quick tidbits: Boxcar takes security very seriously, so I wouldn’t let that concern an average user. Although it is probably not a good idea to DM your bank account number anyway. Each notification can have its own unique sound, and it comes with several. Finally, they are overwhelmingly responsive to customers via email or Twitter. Ultimately, I can’t recommend this application enough. Fine tune controls, multitude of client and service support make this application a must get.
Boxcar
Disclaimer: Boxcar was paid for by GuruClark
iPhone App Review: Bills ~ On Your Table
May 7th
We can safely assume that most iPhone owners have at least one bill. It’s a fact of life that most adults have multiple bills. Chances are, it’s easy to forget when everything is due now that almost all bills are digital…, no reminders (however daunting) in the mail. Now more than ever, staying on top of bills is incredibly important. The concept behind this app is simple: a beautiful way to enter, track payments, and most importantly, remind the user that bills are due.
Much like Outside, which was designed to feel like the user was looking out the window, the “Bills on your table” metaphor is supposed to be literal. Also like Outside, it fits the iPhone well, and does its best to be really integrated into the iPhone experience. The effect is noticeable. While the application’s most glaring fault is a lack of instructions, figuring it out shouldn’t take an incredible amount of effort as the application is as intuitive as any other iPhone app.
Upon opening Bills (which I’ll call it from now on), a list of all the entered bills and their payment status is listed. Overdue, due today, bills with alerts and bills due within thirty days are the types. Tapping any of them will take you to the bill’s page where, hopefully, it will get marked as paid.
Bills are divided into categories with the name and cute little icon of your choosing to represent them. I chose a mortarboard icon with the name “College” to represent school bills. If your heart desires to put a phone icon and to name it “Rhombus,” Bills allows it (just make sure you pay your Rhombus on time!). Under each category, multiple bills can be entered. So under “Credit Cards,” Visa and Mastercard bills could be added. Under each bill, an amount, date due, notes and other information can be added.
Push notifications can be set to a predetermined time period in advance, which is the application’s key feature. The notifications work well with one caveat: I get a random notification at different times a day about one bill being overdue, even when there is nothing. Maybe it’s just a fluke. Anyway, it is totally possible to do notifications in Calendar, why get a second application? The application has some rudimentary stats built in along with a web version of the application to view bills (which is required to set up upon launch of the app). Oh, it accepts multiple currencies, partial payments and has a passcode lock. That’s about it. Which is okay, the application does look good and function very well…, it’s certainly more powerful than the calendar. It is more than just notifications.
This application will mean different things to different people. If the user has auto-pay on all their bills, then this might not be the app for you, you’ve already got things under control. For those of us, teetering on the edge that need a helpful reminder, this might be up your alley. I wouldn’t use it unless I had to keep track of at least three bills, so keep that in mind. The application is $4.99, and it depends on what your money means to you: One $5 fee for infinite reminders, or a smattering of expensive late fees?
Bills ~ On your table by Powerybase.
Outside, a Simple, Pretty, Push-Enabled Weather App
May 5th
My mother loves her weather. Her favorite thing to do when she’s at someone’s house with cable, is watch the Weather Channel. Seriously. I am not my mother, but I do have an interest in knowing if it’s going to rain. After moving out of the home several years ago, I found I never was taking the time to check the weather as my mother would graciously tell me herself. Enter Outside, a weather app with push notifications, but more on that in a bit.
Upon launching Outside, users are presented with a closed window that opens up when the weather data has finished being retrieved. This is the metaphor Outside works on, as if you just looked outside.
There is, however, a bit more to it than that. Temperature data is smack dab in the middle. It is the application’s approach to other basic weather patterns that is the most fascinating. If it will snow, then the earth will be white, the tree, lightly covered and snowflakes will gently fall. Rain has dark clouds and falling drops. The animations are subtle, and very charming.
Then, look up towards the sky (swipe down to pull the sky towards the bottom of the window) and get all the other information: sun up/down, humidity, UV index, cloud cover, and wind speed. By swiping left and right, weather data for the next few days is available. Quick tip, your first screen is the current weather, swiping will give you the weather for the current day, but later. This is useful for when it’s not raining now, but might later on.
Speaking of rain. Outside can send push notifications for preset weather conditions: High UV, T-shirt weather, Rain and Cold weather. These settings are adjustable based on what one might think T-shirt weather might be, they can also come at any specific time. These updates have been useful, when I actually am able to get them.
Now comes the matter of price. $2.99 for a weather app is high, especially when it doesn’t provide radar or even weather alerts, like tornados. On top of this, the push alerts are 99¢ for 30 days and $1.99 for 300. This application gets very expensive, very quickly. For this reason alone, I cannot recommend Outside. Pretty and simple is great, when the price is right and it’s so wrong here. There just isn’t enough function to warrant the purchase for everyone.
Outside by Robocat.
UPDATE: I woke up this morning and downloaded the most recent version. It adds a complete forecast mode (swipe right), multiple location support and an interactive cup… Let me quickly explain the cup first, it changes based on the temperature, lemonade for hot weather, coffee for cooler. This is apart of the charm of this application. As for multiple locations, it takes a few too many taps to get everything going, and notifications can only be sent for one location. The most thankful addition is the forecast although it won’t say anything different than the built in weather app. My recommendation stance doesn’t change, but maybe your decision will.
iPhone Notifications: This Has Got To Stop!
Apr 30th
I, like many, were saddened to hear that absolutely no changes were announced to the iPhone’s notification system during the iPhone OS 4.0 keynote. Push notifications themselves are fantastic, and a great workaround for multitasking (despite OS 4.0 finally getting it) at the time. However now that I have just over a dozen push enabled applications, plus text messaging, I’m starting to realize that the honeymoon is quite over. The pop-over just doesn’t work. My complaints breakdown into three categories:
- Interruption
- Stacking
- Missed notifications
See what I mean, after the break.
Interruption
I’m right in the middle of playing a fast paced round of Bejeweled 2 when I get a notification from Facebook telling me that “Becky has written on my wall.” If I’m right in the middle of something intense, the notification may or may not pause my game (depending on how the developer set it). This leaves me quickly smashing the “Close” button to try and recoup my lost time. Alternatively, it could pop-over just a second before I tap where the “Open” button resides. My intention was to slide that blue jewel but instead, my progress is lost and I’m being taken away to Facebook.
Stacking
So I’m on the phone with my mother, we’re talking about my new apartment, the cat, and my plans to visit next. *boo doo doo!* I get a text message. *boo doo doo!* *boo doo doo!* *boo doo doo!* *boo doo doo!* *boo doo doo!* *boo doo doo!* *boo doo doo!* *boo doo doo!* *boo doo doo!* *boo doo doo!* *boo doo doo!* I get a dozen more messages from my brother, spamming my phone while I talk to our mother, on purpose (to annoy me). The prank continues until I cannot take it any longer, I must hang up the call and get back to her when my brother stops being a doofus.
I pull my phone from my face and see the text message alert. I hit close. The next alert pops up. I hit close again. Rinse and repeat until I’ve cleared all the messages. The pop-overs prevent me from clicking “End Call” for as long as I have a notification available. The same would be said for putting a call on hold, or changing to speakerphone. Talk about annoying.
Missed Notifications
This is probably the biggest point. Since notifications are one-off pop-overs, they get cleared if another notification pushes them out. If the notifications had a place to go, then this would be a problem. There are some notifications that I rely on that I’m missing because a robot on Twitter @replied me, pushing it away. Android has the shade, webOS has that pushy-screen thing. Never would I suggest that Apple blatantly copy one of these implementations, but iPhone users need something.
It is probably a pipe dream to hope that Apple will pull a fast on us before OS 4.0 is officially released. Currently, this notification Disastrophe is the only kink in my iPhone experience. I suppose there’s always next year, with OS 5.0…
BlackBerry Roundup: March 19, 2025
Mar 19th
Welcome to his week’s BlackBerry news and rumor roundup!
Let’s start with the most important news of all - CBS Sports has a March Madness app for BlackBerry.
And the best part? It’s free! The only bad part? (ok there’s two) 1) It’s US only and 2) You have to get it in App World. But, if you’re as big a March Madness fan as I am, it’s worth dealing with RIM’s app store.
Push-to-Talk Services for BlackBerry on Verizon
For $5 per month, you can now contact all of your other coworkers, friends, etc. with just the push of a button. If this is something you need, $5 is definitely worth it.
BB Slider available in April?
Ok, this definitely falls into the “rumor” category, but all of you looking for a BlackBerry Slider (are there any?) could get your dream phone as early as next month.
WordPress and Tumblr Apps for BlackBerry
All you aspiring bloggers can now share your thoughts with the world from anywhere in the world - provided you blog with WordPress or Tumblr. I’ve never used either of these, but if they’re as nice as the Android WordPress app, you’re in for a treat.
Xobni Mobile for BlackBerry now available
In what will soon, and easily, become one of the most popular apps on your phone, Xobni is a great tool to make your Contacts list, well, badass. With features like moving your most-used contacts to the top of the list and linking them with LinkedIn and Facebook profiles, this is a great addition for any user - and well worth the $10.
Opera Mini 5 is now out of beta
I honestly thought this would never happen, but the Opera Mini browser is finally out of beta and available for download. Just point your browser to m.opera.com to download.
BIS 3.0 rolls out, without 2-way Gmail sync
In very surprising news, BIS 3.0 rolls out lacking a 2-way Gmail sync. I, like most of you, was shocked to find out RIM and the internet giant still aren’t playing nice. Luckily, the guys over at CrackBerry found out that the Gmail sync is still coming, but will be rolled out gradually.
RIM offers Push API’s to developers
Looks like @BritishTurbo‘s Tweetissimo app has sparked some interest from RIM. While he wasn’t mentioned in the articles, the TBZ founder is the only person I’m aware of who currently makes use of Push in a third-party app.
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