9/19 Mobile Magazine

PSP Minis Get Confined with Restrictive Restrictions September 18, 2009 at 4:11 pm When I was over at the E3 Expo in June, I had the opportunity to see the new Sony PSP Go for the first time. I thought it could represent a major boon for the company, breathing all kinds of new life into the aging platform of the PlayStation Portable. Since it lacked the UMD drive, it meant that everything would need to be downloaded and saved to internal memory. This opened up a world of possibilities. Just as the Xbox 360 as the XBLA and the Nintendo Wii has WiiWare, the PSP Go would gain access to the portion of the PlayStation Store with what Sony calls PSP Minis. These smaller games could be a great way to approach the more casual market, just like DSiWare for the Nintendo DSi. That’s on paper. Unfortunately for developers hoping to cash in on this new platform, Sony has placed all sorts of restrictions on the creation of PSP Mini applications and games. Namely, the apps cannot use any network or online features, effectively eliminating the possibility of developing an app for Facebook or Twitter. It also means that there is no online play whatsoever. Going even further, it is not possible to tack on any downloadable content (DLC) in the form of expansion packs and that kind of thing. DLC has become the norm for so many games across so many platforms and this includes the smaller XBLA/PSN/WiiShop games. That’s strike two. And strike three? No peripheral support. If you’re hoping to be a little more creative with the use of an external keyboard or anything like that, you won’t be able to do it with a PSP Mini. You’ll need to develop a full retail release instead. To make matters even more frustrating for developers who were hoping to get in on the PSP Mini action, Sony isn’t allowing any developed app or game for the platform to exceed 100MB. This started out as one of the biggest hurdles for developers who want to make something fuller and better, but I think the lack of DLC and online support is even worse. No online multiplayer? Seriously? Just when I thought the PSP Go with PSP Minis could be viable and fun, Sony smacks all the developers in the face. That’s not how you beat Nintendo in the portable game, Sony. Source: Kotaku HTC Imagio with WM 6.5 to Hit Verizon October 6th September 18, 2009 at 3:57 pm If you’re growing a littel weary with the number of Windows Mobile 6.1 phones on the market, next month could be a huge cause for celebration. Windows Mobile 6.5 is set to hit the stage at that time and one of the first handsets to officially tout the updated operating system is the HTC Imagio, a touchscreen smartphone on its way to Verizon Wireless. Previously known by its Whitestone codename and even mistaken for the Touch Diamond2, the HTC Imagio is an all-new handset for Verizon Wireless that will get its juice from the newest Windows Mobile 6.5 stack. You get a large 3.6-inch WVGA touchscreen display, an adequate 528MHz Qualcomm processor, 512MB ROM, 256MB RAM, an autofocus 5-megapixel camera, and GPS. In addition to the CDMA/EV-DO stuff to handle the Verizon network, the Imagio is actually a world phone with GSM connectivity too. This way, you can plunk in an international SIM card and go traveling through Europe and Asia while maintaining your emails and contact lists. Moving a little further into the future, Verizon Wireless is also set to get its hands on another HTC-sourced handset in the same month. Closer to the end of October, you can expect to get the HTC Predator with Google Android. Details are slim on that handset, but it’s good to see some ‘droid love head to the red checkmark. Source: BGR The Snuggie for Gadget Geeks September 18, 2009 at 3:47 pm By now, you’ve surely heard about the Snuggie. It’s that crazy blanket with sleeves that is supposed to be great for keeping you warm while you watch television or curl up with a good book. Among the many problems with this idea is the lack of love for the gadget geeks in the audience, so someone has come up with a Snuggie alternative that better suits our infatuation with technology. You don’t want to hold your iPod while you are listening to it, right? That’s where this new travel blanket seems to come into play. It seems to be a similar idea to the Snuggie, except it has pockets built into it for holding MP3 players, cell phones, and other kinds of portable electronics. From what I can gather, this travel blanket is being designed largely for people on commuter flights and the like, but there’s no reason why you can’t use this from the comfort of your living room or even on the bus if that’s what you want to do. You know, aside from the very real possibility that you could be teased, abused, and ridiculed for traveling around wearing a blanket with sleeves and pockets. Just put on more clothes, won’t you? The pocket-touting blanket sells for $28. Source: GeekSugar More WinMo with AT&T Tilt 2 Next Month September 18, 2009 at 3:39 pm Everyone else may be getting pretty excited about upcoming Google Android phones, but AT&T still knows how to kick it with the boys in Redmond. Windows Mobile 6.5 is just around the corner, but my gut instinct is telling me that the upcoming AT&T Tilt2 won’t be getting newest WinMo treatment right out of the box when it ships on October 18th. That release date puts the new AT&T Tilt 2 just a few days after the official Windows Mobile 6.5 launch, so that doesn’t provide AT&T and HTC with very much time to update the ROM. My guess is that an update will be provided shortly thereafter to give users the new OS, but you’ll probably be stuck with Windows Mobile 6.1 in the interim. This would be in line with the HTC Touch Pro2, the phone that has already launched in some form through Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile. As you may already know, the Tilt2 is really just AT&T’s branded version of the Touch Pro2, reverting back to the Tilt naming scheme that it used some time back. Assuming that the specs on the AT&T Tilt2 will be identical to the versions being sold elsewhere, we can expect to find Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, a 3.6-inch resistive touchscreen at WVGA resolution, quad-band GSM, dual-band HSPA, TouchFlo 3D, GPS, five offset row QWERTY keyboard, Bluetooth 2.1, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 3.2 megapixel camera, and a secondary front-facing VGA camera for video calls. No word on price, but I guess we’ll find out by next month when this phone launches. Source: Intomobile