Next Mobile Web is a company that wants to change this experience and as such they have a product called Dial Zero which contains a database of various workarounds on hundreds of companies. Instead of listening to annoying recorded voice, the application helps you to cut through directly to the person.

Dial Zero contain over 600 companies on their database which allows you to click on the company, display its main phone number, description of how to reach an operator or agent directly, and comments from other people as well. These comments include tips on refunds, canceling of subscription, account verification, etc. Dial Zero would allow you to dial in and go directly to the operator or agent.

This application is available on three platforms namely iPhone, Android, Blackberry. Next Mobile Web would also be offering this application on your desktop soon.

Below is how the tool looks like in iPhone:

This is how it looks like in Blackberry:

Lastly, this is your Dial Zero desktop application:

I think this is a very cool and handy application to have that could help boost your productivity by getting what you want in a shorter time period. Also, the tips on getting refunds and other perks from other users can prove useful in this economic state we are in.

Go ahead and download your Dial Zero application here – Dial Zero from Next Mobile Web.

Image from Next Mobile Web.

Post from: EveryJoe

Quick and Fast Way of Dialing Customer Service

Image courtesy of Rowmote.com

The first one is Rowmote Pro from Evan Schoenberg. It’s a remote for the Mac and Apple TV. What I really like about this is that it adds a wireless mouse and keyboard functionality. You can press a button that toggles it from a simple application remote to a wirless mouse and keyboard. There’s a virtual trackpad that you can use as mouse and when you want to start typing, shake the iPhone/iPod Touch and the keyboard pops out. You can start typing away.

In remote mode, the Rowmote functions the same way as the Apple remote (hardware) in apps such as iTunes, DVD Player, Finder, VLC, etc.

There’s the non-pro version which is basically just the remote sans the wireless mouse and keyboard. That’s only $.99.

You’ll need to download the companion remote software for your Mac. This runs in the background and it’s unobtrusive.

Cost: $4.99

Image courtesy of Hobbyist Software

My next favorite remote app is the VLC remote from Hobbyist Software. I watch a lot of videos on my computer. Most of the time I do this while eating lunch or dinner. Since I don’t want to eat very near my laptop this remote app comes in really handy. I could live with Rowmote but the VLC remote is such a great app that I find that I use this a lot more for watching videos on VLC.

I like the fact that I can browse through my folders and look for the file I want to view using this app. Adjust the volume, scrub the timeline of the video, toggle full-screen on and off and other features. This is truly an essential app for someone who uses VLC a lot.

Cost $2.99

Image courtesy of On One Software

The third remote on my list is OnOne Software’s DSLR Camera Remote Professional Edition. I’ve been looking for a good wireless remote setup for my DSLR. Due to certain restrictions, I find it hard to handle an SLR and I want to learn studio photography so this is a good solution.

You hook up your DSLR to your laptop and the Camera Remote uses WiFi to control your camera’s shutter. Depending on your camera model it can be as simple as a remote shutter which lets you preview the image on your iPhone or iPod Touch or as much as getting a live preview of your shots as well as the ability to adjust settings on your camera. It’s truly a great piece of software. There are some bugs and kinks but I trust that it will be remedied in the coming versions.

It is quite expensive and probably not for everyone. There’s a lite version that’s a lot cheaper but as the saying goes “Go for broke!”. That’s what I did.

Cost $12.99

Turning your iPhone or iPod Touch to a remote of sorts is definitely fun. It’s great to have this much power over your gadgets on the palm of your hand.

Post from: EveryJoe

Remote, Remote, Remote

But I had a different perspective when I first held an iPhone in my hand, deep inside I wanted to have one but didn’t go ahead and get myself an iPhone because after much research, I could not use .NET to program in iPhone.

The gate seemed to open when Novell announced on Monday about a kit for developers that would allow them to build Apple iPhone and Apple iPod touch applications using Microsoft .NET skills. The current programming language of iPhone is C or Objective-C language.

Novell has a technology called MonoTouch 1.0 which is a commercial software development kit which allow developers to utilize codes and libraries written for .Net and programming languages such as C#.

Miguel de Icaza who is the vice president of the developer platform at Novell says that both C# and .Net are more productive development environments than the native language of iPhone, Objective-C.

Novell expect that applications that would be developed using their platform would range from productivity applications to LOB, health care, and games. Developers and software vendors would be able to sell their product line into the iPhone market.

MonoTouch is a powerful platform which include compilers, libraries, and tools which integrate with the Apple iPhone SDK. Novell’s product uses the “Ahead of time” compilation approach instead of the widely known Just In Time Compiler (otherwise known as JIT).

The MonoTouch definitely brings a huge set of developers to the iPhone phenomenon especially when .NET developers are in the 5 million population range.

Everything looks good on the MonoTouch and this would definitely convince me to buy an iPhone; there’s one problem though, the MonoTouch Enterprise Edition is priced at $ 999 USD for a one-year subscription. That is huge and given that the MonoTouch is way too late in the game since thousands of applications have already been built, 999 USD is huge. If you are a software company that is fine but if you are an individual developer, you better have the time to create a kick ass application to get an ROI for the subscription.

Image from Ultra-Case.

Post from: EveryJoe

.NET Development for iPhone, At Last

In the “yes” column: iTunes 9.0. Full-length album download format. Facebook & Twitter integration in iTunes. Lower iPod prices. Whole new iPod Nano with built-in video camera, FM radio tuner, microphone, speaker, pedometer, available today.

And all this under the long-awaited return of Steve Jobs.

Let’s break it down.

iTunes

iTunes got a major upgrade today in the form of iTunes 9.0, which sports a clean, fully redesigned interface and tons of enhancements both big and small:

• The big news is iTunes LP (the project formerly code-named Cocktail), a snazzy new format for downloading entire albums. Purchase a full album that’s LP-enabled and in addition to all the songs, you get full lyrics, photography, liner notes, videos, and other “extras” similar to what you might get on a DVD.
• Similar to iTunes LP is iTunes Extras, additional interactive content and “DVD Extras”-style features for downloadable movies.
• Greatly hyped was the new ability to manage iPhone/iPod Touch Apps from inside iTunes. This is something users have been begging for, for years: the ability to reorganize how Apps are displayed on your home screen.
• Genius Mix is a new function that culls together music from your playlist in a never-ending stream of like-minded songs, like your own personal radio station.
• Home Sharing lets you copy any media from one version of iTunes in your house to any other version of iTunes in your house — on up to 5 computers.
• Twitter and Facebook have been integrated with iTunes at last, thanks to little arrows next to the “Buy” button on each song, that let you do more than just buy: you can add a song to a wishlist, gift a song to someone else, or microblog about a song on Facebook and Twitter.

iPod

There was less unveiled here than everyone seemed to be hoping for, with the biggest news being the new model iPod Nano. The Nano, which Apple says is the “most popular music player in the world,” now comes with a built-in video camera, a built-in FM radio tuner, a pedometer that can be synced to Nike’s popular workout software, a microphone, and even a speaker — a first for a non-Touch iPod. Two models are available: an 8GB version for $149, and a 16GB version for $179. They come in nine high-gloss colors.

The iPod Touch saw no major enhancements, but got a price drop down to $199 for the 8GB version, $299 for 32GB, and $399 for the new 64GB version.

The iPod Classic did not get discontinued, as some had speculated it might. Instead it also got a bump up in capacity, from 120GB up to 160GB, but the price remains the same: $249.

The iPod Shuffle was another device some thought might end up on the chopping block, but it ain’t so. The device itself got no major improvements but Apple announced that new and different kinds of headphones will soon become available for the Shuffle, all with the Shuffle’s controller built into their connector cord. Five new colors were introduced for the Shuffle, which sells for $59 (2GB) and $79 (4GB). A special edition brushed stainless steel version was also shown off.

iPhone

Not to be left out, the iPhone got a little love today as well, in the form of iPhone OS 3.1, which adds the Genius function to Apps, to recommend Apps you’d like based on ones you’ve already bought. Also included is the ability to buy and download Ringtones right from your iPhone for $1.29 a pop. Apple claims to have 30,000 Ringtones available from all four major record labels. OS 3.1 is a free download that’s available today.

Looks like that’s about it, kiddies. The fabled iPad tablet remains exactly that: a fable. The Beatles catalog won’t see the light of day for a while, if ever. But we have a whole new iTunes and some mild upgrades to the various iPod models.

So are you excited by what Apple showed off today? Or was it too much hype and not enough action?

Images: Apple Inc.

Post from: EveryJoe

Apple lowers iPod prices, unveils iTunes 9

What you’re looking at is an alarm clock, digital photo frame, and iPod/iPhone dock all in one oh-so-sleek package. It sports a 7″ color LCD screen, 1GB of memory, and a retractable iPod/iPhone dock. (That last bit seems strange — an Apple-products dock, from Sony? don’t they remember they make their own media players and smart phones? — but I shan’t argue with such a handsome package.)

Sony’s ICF-CL75iP (yuck, what a mouthful) will display images culled from a USB connection, or via whatever’s stored on your docked iPod/iPhone. It will play both music and video, it comes with a built-in FM/AM tuner, and customizable options for whatever kind of sound you want it to wake you with.

Sadly, it’s not a touchscreen, but then again, I can see that going bad if you wanted to hit the snooze bar and the snooze bar was part of the touchscreen. Most of us would destroy the screen after a single night. Instead, there’s a nice, big snooze bar up on top, and about a dozen other buttons sprinkled throughout to take care of all your tasks and settings. Plus, there’s that awesome retractable iPod/iPhone dock that sliiiiides out on the right side, or disappears back in if you don’t need it.

The ICF-CL75iP is expected to arrive around the beginning of October with a pricetag somewhere in the $200 range. I can’t imagine ever spending that much money on an alarm clock, but then… when I stare lovingly at this thing and the drool slips past my lips, my wallet seems to want to open all by itself…

Source: Sony Insider.

Image: Sony Electronics Inc.

Post from: EveryJoe

Best. Alarm clock. Ever.

Image: Apple

If you use either, you’ll want to get a few accessories so you don’t damage your phone along the way.

First, a screen card is a must. This helps prevent scratches and cracks. Of course, it isn’t full proof but you will have more leeway in banging your iphone or rubbing it against a metal bar.

Second, you need workout headphones. The default iHeadphones just don’t do the job. They fall out of your ears all the time.

Third, you need a rubber skin for your iPhone in case it falls. This will stop too much shock from a long fall.

Fourth, get an arm band or some way to secure your phone while you workout so it doesn’t drop while you’re on the bench or moving around.

Both the iPhone and iTouch work great for workouts, but you do need to be diligent in handling them – especially the phone. The benefit of the phone is that you can connect to the web while working out and access any song on YouTube. On the other hand, a touch is better suited for a workout as you won’t receive any interruptions in the way of phone calls or texts while working out.

Post from: EveryJoe

iPhone While Your Workout?

iPhone 3GS

One of the web sites I currently read with regularity is Smashing Magazine. I must say that I enjoy this site a lot and have been learning a lot of things. They recently published an article by Jen Gordon of Clever Twist. The article is entitled “How To Create Your First iPhone Application”. It lists the steps that you need in order to create your first iPhone application.

With the iPhone’s rising popularity, applications for this device are rapidly gaining market share. The great thing about the iPhone is that for the first time there’s a great mobile platform that people really want to use. I’ve been using mobile devices for a long time and I haven’t really seen a great platform that made me want to use my mobile device. In fact I think the Palm OS was the closest thing that did it for me. The sad thing is Palm’s development stagnated until recently with the introduction of the Palm Pre. We’ll see how that goes.

As of now the iPhone/iPod Touch is the mobile device to beat. So more and more people are getting interested in developing for it. I’ve read the article and here are some of the things pointed out.

A great idea is the most important aspect. No matter how good a designer or developer you are without a great idea your skills will just not be enough.

Assemble the things that you need to build the application. This goes both for the hardware and the manpower. Ask yourself, “What am I good at? What can I bring to the table?” and based on that assemble the other pieces that you need to build the application. Apart from the manpower you’ll need the tools such as a membership to the iPhone Developer Program, an iPhone or iPod touch, software such as Xcode, etc.

Learn the iPhone/iPod Touch OS and UI. There are a lot of great reads at the Apple Developer web site. This requires a membership though.

Other things that you need to do are upload it to iTunes and have your app approved and a have marketing plan to promote your app.

Like I said, the iPhone OS is a great platform that will surely become more popular in the years to come. More and more people are using it, the apps are getting better and better. So if you think you have that next great idea that you think will make for a good application get started and make it happen. Who knows, it might be your ticket to fame and fortune.

Read the complete article here.

Post from: EveryJoe

Steps To Creating Your First iPhone App

The need for processing power, more robust applications accessible at the fingertips is becoming a norm and recent data from Gartner proves this point. In the second quarter of this year it is reported that smart phone sales has increased by 27% percent totaling 40 millions sales while celfone sales have decreased by 6.1 percent totaling 286.1 million units. While smart phone sales are still far from the total celfone sales, the considerable difference in increase and decrease percentage shows a lot of promise for manufacturers gearing into bringing the computer to the palm of users.

The Gartner story is found here — Gartner Says Worldwide Mobile Phone Sales Declined 6 Per Cent and Smartphones Grew 27 Per Cent in Second Quarter of 2009.

Image from Gartner.

Post from: EveryJoe

Phones Turning into Computers

One of the things that I’m regularly experiencing is that I get teased about the size of my phone. I have been using a PPC-6700 with Sprint for the last three years or so now. I have credit to get a new phone and have no real desire to change devices.

My wife has a Palm Centro and she’s the one that regularly teases me about my phone. I decided to find out what’s the real difference between phones. Below is a comparison of a couple of phones that I found on the PhoneScoop website and reviewed on EveryJoe.

The challenge I get is that my phone “looks” larger than it is because it’s a square block. Unlike the other devices above which have tapered edges that make them appear smaller. The trade-off in my mind is that I have a huge screen and full-slide-out keyboard. The only real difference in size of all these phones is the weight, and the difference is about 2 oz. Sorry folks, but that’s not going to strain my back.

I’ll take the two ounces in exchange for the features I have that my wife doesn’t and the size of screen I have to use with the full keyboard. The size doesn’t really matter to me.

Post from: EveryJoe

Mobile vs. Portable – Does Size Matter to Everyone: Part I

I have to say, it’s really fast. The apps are much more responsive. It really helps the UI. The only problem I saw was when I was exiting from the video camera application, it took a few seconds from pressing the home button to getting it to the home screen.

From the outside it looks every bit the same as the iPhone 3G. For the untrained eye, it’s almost indistinguishable. There’s a subtle difference as to how the text on the back is treated/rendered but it’s hardly noticeable if you don’t really compare it. Is having the same design good or bad? Well Apple really evolves their products rather than changing them drastically. A product goes through several cycles and improvements before a major design change is actually done. Even with the 1st gen iPhone, compared to the 3G and 3GS it is different but you can see the evolution of the design. I like the design of the 3G/3GS so I’m not complaining that they look similar. It’s what’s under the hood that’s important.

I can give you the specs but why waste my blog entry on that. You can just click here to see the full specs as well as a comparison to the 3G.

I love the new camera application. The 3MP camera isn’t the best in class, it’s so so but the ease of use of the application plus the tap to focus makes it an excellent app. I also love the video camera. The editing feature as simple as it may be is great. I’m amazed at how easy Apple makes it. It’s also a great space saver since you can trim video straight from the iPhone.

The compass is a nice feature but I don’t think I’ll have much use for it yet. However that being said, when developers start rolling out augmented reality applications such as this one (via AppleInsider), things will get pretty interesting.

The iPhone 3GS, like it’s predecessor is a solid phone. The 3.0 version of the software makes it even better with copy and paste, MMS support, landscape keyboard and a whole lot of other features. However it’s not with out flaws.

The biggest complain I have is it’s crappy battery life. At least for some people, my brother included the iPhone 3GS has dismal battery life. Now whether it’s a hardware flaw or software, the jury is still out on that one. That being said a phone that can’t hold a charge for one day of use is severely lacking in my book. Good thing the 3GS has a lot of great features that just slightly edges out this problem.

Another is what some people report as excessive heating. I haven’t seen this in the brief time I spent with the 3GS. So this might be dependent on use and the unit. The jury is also still out on that one.

Summing it up, I like the 3GS. If Apple comes up with software or hardware fixes to improve the battery life, I’m getting one. I think I’ve reached a point wherein an iPhone makes sense to me. This coming from an Apple fan boy. I’ve loved the iPhone before but not enough to ditch my iPod Touch/Nokia e71 combo. I think I’m ready to ditch the touch and most likely use the e71 as a backup once Apple addresses the battery issues.

Post from: EveryJoe

iPhone 3GS Impressions