Posts filed under 'Tools'
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Have you ever wondered about the nutritional value of the meal you were about to order? Now there’s a text messaging service that sends you just that.
A friend of mine forwarded me a note about the Diet to Go text message service from Diet.com. By sending a text message to DIET1 (34381) with the restaurant name, followed by the menu item, you will receive back the basic nutritional information for that item.
The service works best when you text only the restaurant name and menu item – do not include words like “the” or “and”. (They also say not to include your signature line — who has a signature line on their text messages?)
Let’s look at a quick example. We compared the Wendy’s Chicken Sandwich (Grilled) with the Sonic Grilled Chicken Wrap. My guess was that the Wendy’s sandwich would probably have more calories and more grams of fat. Let’s see the result below:
Sonic Grilled Chicken Wrap
Calories: 539
Fat: 27g
Carbs: 40g
Protein: 29g
Wendy’s Grilled Chicken Sandwich
Calories: 300
Fat: 6g
Carbs: 36g
Protein: 24g
Obviously, I was way off. I would never have imagined that the Sonic wrap would contain almost 4 times as much fat as the Wendy’s sandwich, and the calories are significantly higher as well. Maybe that wrap includes Ranch dressing or something?? Maybe one of our readers can validate those counts.
In any case, this is a neat service that I intend to use. It’s quick and easy, and really provides valuable information. Test it out for yourself and let us know what you think.
Mobile Service:
www.diet.com/mobile
March 24th, 2008
While the talk of Google’s Android mobile platform continues, OpenMoko has one of it’s own that’s worth a look. Not only does OpenMoko provide a mobile development platform, they’ve also opened up the CAD files of the phone case design, allowing industrial designers to customize the actual hardware. Now that is different.
Now you have no excuse not to go build your bright yellow, tiger-striped phone with GPS and voice recognition software for your kid.
OpenMoko Mobile Platform:
http://www.openmoko.com
March 20th, 2008
If you’ve ever wondered how to get your mobile application on the deck of one of the big wireless carriers in the U.S., know that it will not be easy, and that it will take time. Then, go read this excellent write-up by Ofir Leitner.
Leitner, founder and CTO of mobile content startup GamearraY, provides a detailed analysis of the caveats and restrictions inherent in working with each of the four major wireless carriers. If you’re working on a mobile app, or are considering it, I consider this a must read.
March 3rd, 2008
Some of you may have noticed I am testing out a social networking tool from Clearspring. It’s a customizable, widget-like tool that lets users take content and share it, bookmark it, and add it to their desktop.
I try to be subtle and unobtrusive when testing new things, so for now you will notice it at the bottom of each individual post. If you have any feedback, good or bad, please do comment!
February 19th, 2008
Just a quick note to let you know we’ve added two more wireless carriers to our free text messaging tool – US West and Comcast.
Here is the full list of carriers supported:
Alltel
AT&T
Boost
Comcast
Cricket
Nextel
Sprint
Suncom |
|
|
Sprint
T-Mobile
US Cellular
US West
Verizon
Virgin
Voicestream
|
So what are we missing? Let us know what carriers YOU want in a comment on this post, and we’ll add ‘em!
February 13th, 2008
If you do not use a Windows Mobile phone or a BlackBerry, then you need to be aware of a free service that lets you send and receive emails on your regular mobile phone. Their tag line is, “Just the emails you want, sent as text messages.”
Think You Need a Blackberry? Try TeleFlip First
TeleFlip lets you set which emails you want forwarded as text messages to your phone. The emails can come from just about any type of email account (work, Yahoo! Mail, GMail, etc.), and the only thing you pay for is the text message fees from your wireless carrier. While you’re thinking about it, check with your carrier about changing your text message (SMS) fees. Many carriers are offering more flat rate options that are cheaper for those that do a lot of text messaging.
TeleFlip is better suited for those who simply want to stay on top of certain emails while they are away from their computer. It is certainly not practical for a salesperson, for example, that goes through 50-300 emails per day from the road. Those high volume users should stick to their smart phone or BlackBerry.
Has anyone else tried TeleFlip? What do you think?
Website:
http://www.teleflip.com
January 3rd, 2008
Have you ever been about to make a large purchase at Best Buy or Target, and were worried you might be overpaying? I know I have.
Fear no more — the fine folks at Barcle offer a mobile website that lets you search prices based on the SKU number (or product name), so you’ll know whether or not you are getting the best price. It is very good for in-store comparison shopping in real time, and the ability to search by SKU is a dramatic improvement over other similar services, as it improves accuracy.
Here is an excerpt from Barcle’s website regarding what they offer:
Barcle is FREE for American consumers and focuses on products in the American stores. Barcle allows the shopper to utilize the product name, category or UPC/SKU (by typing or scanning) to search the net for best prices, coupons, rebates, and pertinent product information from their web enabled mobile handheld device.
Take it for a spin the next time you are out making a large purchase.
Mobile Website:
http://mobile.barcle.com
Desktop version:
www.barcle.com
December 31st, 2007
Need to double check the spelling of a word from your mobile phone? I got a note from Christopher at Spellboy today, and they have the answer.
Their mobile website provides a spell checker that will list any misspelled words from a message you enter in a text box, and will offer a drop down list of suggestions for the correct spelling of each misspelled word. I tried it out and it worked on every misspelling I entered.
Mobile Website:
http://m.spellboy.com
December 26th, 2007
I’d like to wish all our readers around the world a safe and happy holiday season. Now is the time to eat, drink, and be merry with family and friends. So be safe, enjoy it, and don’t leave your mobile at Grandma’s house.
And stay tuned for some year-end posts on mobile websites – you won’t want to miss them!
December 23rd, 2007
One of my older brothers was in Ireland a few weeks ago (that’s also where he got engaged), and I called him from my mobile phone here in the states. But I did not call him directly — I tried out a new service from Gorilla Mobile, and I must say it was much cheaper than any other alternative I’ve tried.
Using my current Sprint phone, I dialed Gorilla’s access number, then the country code (353 for Ireland) and phone number where my brother was staying. There was no additional charge from Sprint since I was within my minutes, and Gorilla’s charges showed up right on my credit card.
Here’s how it works:
1. Sign up for Gorilla Mobile with your existing mobile phone number (they actually let you register up to 10 mobile phone numbers and 10 land line numbers).
2. When you’re ready to call, call Gorilla’s access number, and when prompted, enter the country code and phone number of the person you are calling.
3. That’s it. You’re connected.
What I like about this is that I do not have to memorize a PIN, and unlike most mobile services, there is no monthly fee. Gorilla charges an annual fee of $5.95, which I can deal with.
If anyone calls internationally from their cell phone, I highly recommend using a service like this. What about you – has anyone else used Gorilla?
December 19th, 2007
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