Facebook for BlackBerry 1.5 zips together contacts

With products like the Outlook add-on Xobni relying on Facebook to give Outlook contacts a Facebook face to go with the name, it was only a matter of time before a mobile app started doing the same

On Tuesday, RIM released the latest edition of Facebook for BlackBerry, version 1.5. In it, the BlackBerry-maker loads on new features to integrate your BlackBerry contact information with that contact's Facebook photo. If you choose, the app will update the existing photos in your BlackBerry contact list with your Facebook friends' profile photos, an association you can also create manually in Facebook, by clicking a friend's name. From that screen, you can request a friend's phone number, and view their BlackBerry contact information. Your friend's photo shows up in the address book along with their Facebook name. You'll still be able to click their number to call, or to utilize a shortcut to poke a buddy or open Facebook for you to draft a personal message or wall note. In addition, the new Facebook for BlackBerry will also plot birthdays and events onto your BlackBerry calendar. RIM has also integrated messages and status updates into the BlackBerry. Conversations will now show up as an IM thread in the application, and as a message in your phone's message list. We tried it out with a direct message, and minutes later the message showed up in our Message in-box, along with a cursor blinking in a blank field to facilitate a quick reply. RIM tells us in a press release that the latest update adds support for French, Italian German Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, Polish, Russian, Czech, Traditional/Simplified Chinese, Japanese and Korean. Facebook for BlackBerry is available now from mobile.blackberry.com via the mobile browser or from www.blackberry.com/go/facebook from the desktop. If you can wait a day, downloading the app through the BlackBerry App World program on your phone (running version 4.2 of the operating system or higher) is the best way to get the app--if you change phones or accidentally delete the program, you'll be able to re-download it hassle-free.

Read More

Vodafone snags Android-powered HTC Magic

HTC Magic

(Credit: HTC)

To our disappointment, there hasn't been a ton of Google Android news to come out of GSMA Mobile World Congress 2009 so far. Huawei announced on Monday that it plans to start selling Android devices later this year, but other than that, we didn't see a T-Mobile G2, and Samsung already said it would not show its Android phone at the show and that it has been delayed till the second half of 2009.

However, we did get one device announcement. The bad news is that it's not for the U.S. market. On Tuesday, Vodafone said it will bring the HTC Magic to market this spring, the first Google Android device for the carrier. The Magic will be a Vodafone exclusive in the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, and France and will be available on a non-exclusive basis in Italy.

The HTC Magic features a 3.2-inch QVGA touch screen and trackball navigator but doesn't have a slide-out QWERTY keyboard like the T-Mobile G1. The quad-band smartphone will offer various e-mail options, including Gmail (of course) and POP3 and IMAP accounts, and support Google applications like Google Maps and Google Search. Vodafone customers will also have access to Android Market where they can download more applications and games for their smartphone. Other goodies include a Webkit browser, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, HSDPA/WCDMA (900/2100MHz), and a 3.2-megapixel camera.

The HTC Magic will come in multiple colors: white for United Kingdom, Spain, and France; black for Germany; and both colors for Italy. Exact release dates and pricing schemes were not released at this time, though there was mention that the Magic would be "available from free on various price plans." Vodafone also plans to release the HTC Magic in other markets over the next few months.

Read More

Samsung's Blue Earth solar phone is ultra-green

I have a few friends (who shall remain nameless) who are often unreachable because they don't charge their phones when they should. These same friends should look into the new Samsung Blue Earth, which is to be unveiled in a couple days at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. 

The phone is green, despite its blue color, and it's not just the integrated solar panels that make it so. The Blue Earth is made of recycled plastic, features a pedometer, and even software that reaffirms just how much you're helping the planet by using it. If Al Gore had one of these mobile devices in hand, it would likely explode. 

Besides being handy and eco-friendly, the phone appears to be gorgeous. The solar panels reside on the back, and the front is a full touch screen. Despite the new technologies, it should fit nicely in your pocket. We should know more about pricing and availability next week. 

Another group that might find this phone attractive would be those crazy outdoorsy types: campers, hunters, fish enthusiasts, and other sportsmen could extend their trips into the wilderness while remaining in contact with the outside world in case of emergencies. We'd like to see other phones with practical solar panels just for this.

Read More