INQ Mini First Impressions
@3mobilebuzz has given me an INQ Mini to look at. Cheers guys!
My first impressions are that this handset is a refined and updated release of INQ1. The hardware is fairly solid. I took the back cover off and there’s 1150mAh battery inside, so I’m expecting similar life to the INQ1. It’s red and shiny, but more importantly INQ+Art has spilled onto the Mini’s software much more than before, so the quirky box and packaging design feels like a theme rather than an addition.
The most noticeable change to the software (which seems faster at switching between apps) is the addition of a Twitter application. It was the first place I headed on the switcher and turned out to be a huge disappointment. The Twitter app only allows you to browse your entire feed and post an update. There’s a TON of functionality missing here. I was hoping that my friends/followers on Twitter would integrate with my phonebook as they do with Facebook and Skype. But where are my @replies, where is my message inbox, and how do I post photos and videos? - Move over, I’m using dabr.
More soon…
An evening with @3mobilebuzz
I went out last night with the team from 3mobilebuzz
Check out the hashtag #3ukspotifyparty for the highlights
We were there to celebrate the coming together of Spotify, 3 and Android on a HTC handset that I got a brief play with
@reyes had some good insights, preferring Spotify’s ability to run in the background - multitasking isn’t possible on his iphone thanks to Apple’s “one app at a time” philosophy to solving life’s problems
The Spotify app for Android is available to all pro subscribers, and works offline - a discovery made as we partied to Queen on the tube
I finally met @liamgh! I’ve been reading his very excellent greenhughes.com blog for aaages and chatting all things linux/open source with him on Twitter. It’s always nice to put a face to a name, making those connections forged online that bit more real
Anyway, with any luck, I’ll be getting my hands on an INQ Mini next week courtesy of 3mobilebuzz and reviewing that here… watch this space
Very many thanks to the 3mobilebuzz team (1000heads) for organising the event
RT @inqmobile Facebook update for the INQ1 released today, more information here - http://ow.ly/jfHx, works great! Syncing details now…
… awesome!
On the left: INQ Chat 3G
This is the exact phone I’ve been hoping for. It has a full QWERTY keyboard and a Twitter client. I’ve had a quick look around the net and found these reviews on it:
From ElectricPig, the Telegraph, Pocket Lint, Engadget, Slashgear, TechRadar, WhatMobile, and TrustedReviews
All saying much the same things - it’s an impressive offering. Although it’s worth pointing out that Pocket Lint has had a hands-on play with it, so there are some decent photos.
There are a few things I really want to know, and I’m going to have to wait for some video reviews (#reallymobile - hint hint) or someone’s going to have to send me one for review (pretty please):
- What exactly does “push Gmail” include that Email on 3 didn’t?
- Does the Twitter client beep or vibrate when you have a new mention, DM or keyword/hashtag search entry?
- Have any advances been made with the calendar app? I’ve said before - I’d really like Facebook events and/or Google Calendar invitations integrated into the calendar
- How intuitive is the new media syncing/playing brought to INQ by doubleTwist, and do we still have Last.FM scrobbling?
On the right: INQ Mini 3G
This is a smaller, keyboardless version of the Chat 3G. Browsing the bullet point lists of specifications, the only performance differences that leap out at me are:
- 20mb less on-board memory
- 2 megapixel camera instead of 3.2 on the Chat 3G
- No GPS
So there we go. I’m looking forward to trying this out, writing a review on ThinkAboutTech and seeing what others have to say!
Email on 3 upgrade
I just upgraded Email on 3 to version 16.2.32.2887
That’s one hell of a version number!
Other than the application’s icon changing slightly, I’ve not yet figured out what the 5mb download has added.
I’m going to give my hotmail account another try. I was struggling to make the login stick. Every 48 hours a red error “!” would appear next to the account and I’d be asked to re-enter my username and password.
Check back in a week, there might be more to report.
Phones with keyboards
Last Thursday I attended the 3 mobile quiz. This isn’t like your average pub quiz because mobile phones are allowed and their use encouraged. The aim of the game is to Google for answers faster than anyone else, or just know enough to be able to put together a search term.
I took a Windows Mobile 6 handset along to the event instead of the INQ1 because I thought a device with a keyboard would be of more use in a quiz-type situation. And I was right.
Gordon Kelly joked that I must have picked up the Windows mobile handset from a museum, or even excavated it from a chunk of ancient rock. Sadly that’s true, it is an old handset, but it still works fine on 3G.
I don’t like the trade off I am forced to face. The INQ1 software is fantastic - it’s fast, light, simple to use, and the integrated nature of the applications is superb. I’m still waiting to see another handset that has a converged contact list.
One INQ1 battery is equal to three Windows Mobile 6 handset batteries!
But INQ1 doesn’t have a full keyboard. I am on my emails and Skype text chat all day, every day. A full keyboard would be really helpful and much quicker to use.
If the INQ software can be put on a device similar in style to a Blackberry or Nokia E71… in fact, who cares - ANYTHING with a full keyboard - I’d be the happiest man alive.
Tried to export contacts to Memory Card - superb. Importing them into Gmail - not good, lot of contacts lost phone numbers. Wrong structure?
WLM update is less reliable than before. Disconnects more often. It just crashed & restarted the phone :(
I have a facebook friend request stuck in the requests folder. I accepted on pc, but it’s stuck on INQ1
Purely for interest, switched to latest skype on WM6 using wifi. TERRIBLE quality. Constant disconnection. Moving back to INQ1 right NOW.
