AOL MyMobile, Device News

I’ve been touting Yahoo Go, and haven’t yet mentioned AOL’s MyMobile, which is somewhat similar — a free application that gives you handy access to a range of Internet content. So I thought I’d cover it this week, along with news and reviews about new devices.

AOL MyMobile

Last fall AOL announced a forthcoming free mobile application that would create a convenient interface for their offerings, including AOL Mail, AIM instant messaging, maps and directions, search, news, weather, photos, and movie listings and reviews. And in April a beta version was finally launched. You can read a helpful press release posted by Reuters.

Like Yahoo Go it uses a carousel that scrolls horizontally. The home screen toggles news and weather and includes a local search function. The settings let you choose which services appear in the carousel, which is useful if you don't use AOL e-mail, for example, bur would still like the more general services such as news, weather, sports, and maps.

Download it by pointing your mobile browser at wap.aol.com/mymobile and then clicking “Get AOL MyMobile BETA.”

If you simply want to use AIM and aren’t interested in the other services, AOL has just recently released AIM for Windows Mobile, which is a separate application. Note that the free Palringo, which we mentioned in a past column also lets you access AIM and has many other features, including voice messaging. Also, be aware that if you have a Smartphone, AOL MyMobile uses your data plan in place of SMS. You can read more on WindowsForDevices.

New Devices: News and Reviews

Perhaps the biggest news last week as that a CDMA version of the HTC Touch Diamond will be released in Canada this summer. One can only hope that a U.S. version will soon follow. The price is $150 Canadian on a three-year contract. And there are rumors that Sprint will soon be offering the Touch Diamond in the U.S. and that AT&T will be offering the Omnia.

If a phone camera is important to you, you may be interested in a comparison of the cameras in the four new devices that are expected soon and have been getting a lot of buzz: the HTC Touch Diamond, the HTC Touch Pro, the Samsung Omnia, and the Sony Ericsson Xperia X1.

At a glance, the 5-megapixel camera of the Omnia seems to take the best photos.

Also, Brighthand has reviewd the HTC Touch Diamond. Slashgear has a hands-on video of the Touch Pro, which is like the Diamond but with a slide-up keyboard. MobileBurn compares the keyboard on the Touch Pro with that of the Xperia X1. And Engadget has a gallery of photos of the X1.

YouTube has a short video of the Omnia’s web browser, and the::unwired has two videos about the Omnia, one on the software and the other on the hardware.

Another strong competitor among the new touch devices is the Toshiba Portege G810. Instead of developing its own touch interface, Toshiba has chosen to use the suite from SPB. The thorough review on MobileTechReview includes a helpful video of the touch interface, not only giving you a sense for what this device offers but also your option of simply buying the SPB software and putting it on your current device.