Useful apps:
Clap Phone Finder - Just like the Clapper you use to turn on lights in your home (does anyone actually do that?), this is a more useful application of that technology. If you misplace your phone, simply clap and it starts ringing. Cost: 99 cents. I use Where's My Droid? when I misplace my phone, but with that app you need someone else with a phone so that you can text your secret message to your phone so that it rings. The advantage to Where's My Droid? It's free.
iTriage - Very useful and easy to use app that everyone should have...just in case. iTriage was created by doctors to give you many resources to research health conditions, find emergency medical treatment, locate a doctor, learn about procedures and much more. The perfect app for hypochondriacs. :)
Just for fun apps:
Guns 'n Glory - Travel around the Wild West and ambush gringos, attack stagecoaches and blow stuff up with dynamite. Slow fun moving around the screen, but a reasonably decent time killer. Played it once and uninstalled. I give it 4.938 on a scale of 1 to 7.946. (Hey, it's my scale, I'll use whatever numbers I want.)
Yahtz Me - It's simply Yahtzee with a slightly different name to throw off the trademark law suits probably. Very addictive. My high score is 532. As far as Yahtzee goes, it gets 9.45 stars out of 9.45 stars in my book.
When I upgraded from the original Droid A855 to the HTC Thunderbolt 4G (review here), I gave my daughter my old device. Since I had reluctantly switched from Blackberry to Android, I assured her that once she adjusted to the change from BB she'd never look back. In order to properly activate it with her number, it was recommended that the phone be reset to factory defaults. Even though I wanted to leave a few of the apps on there that I thought she'd like, no big deal, we could just go to market and download the apps again.
One of the first apps I wanted her to have was PDANet. PDANet allows you to connect your Android device to your laptop via a USB cable, and connect to the Internet through your Droid (or iPhone, Blackberry, Palm, etc.). I went to the Android Market to download it for her and it had disappeared. Apparently some carriers have removed it from the Market because they want you to grossly overpay for a service that should be included in your already overpriced equipment and data plan. But fear not, where there's a will there's a way.
One of the apps (really just a message) that came up in the Market after searching for "PDANet" was from the good people at June Fabrics (the creators of PDANet) explaining that you can still get the app, but after 3.5 million downloads and a 4.5+ rating, some carriers have blocked it in the Market.
There are a number of ways that you can still get the app:
One, download it on your computer from JuneFabrics.com and transfer it to your Droid. Another method (which I have not tested) is to put your phone in airpland mode, enable wifi and then try to search in the Market. Supposedly, it will be back and downloadable (because you are no longer on your carrier's data plan).
HBO GO is here. Their ads claim that you can watch HBO anywhere. On your computer, your iPad or Smartphone. Since I now have a 4G Android phone on Verizon (my HTC Thunderbolt - review here), I figure I can provide an objective review of the app and program on both 4G and 3G.
Being an HBO subscriber, I had seen some of the promotions for HBO GO, but I wasn't compelled to look into it until I saw the HBOGO Twitter account as a (paid and promoted) suggestion for me to follow. It worked. I follow. They are really doing aggressive marketing to get this app in users' faces. They've even offered episode 7 of "Games of Throne" on HBO GO a day before it is aired on television.
So, okay, time to load the app and see if I can actually just log in and watch HBO on my Droid.
I went to the Android Market and searched HBOGO. There it was. Downloaded quickly.
I then launched the app and it first asked for me to choose my cable provider from a dropdown list. I'm currently with Comcast/Xfinity. I proceeded and was asked to log in with my Comcast/Xfinity username and password, then to set up an HBO GO account. Only took a couple of minutes and I was ready to pick a show for my viewing pleasure.
I did the first test on 4G, so I had to first turn 4G service. Why? Because if you have a 4G phone and don't turn it off when you don't need it, then your battery will be dead and you won't be able to watch HBO or do anything on your dead Droid. If you have a 4G phone and don't know how to turn off 4G, here's a little tutorial.
The opening screen offers all of the latest hot shows, movies and specials. The menu allows you to choose from a list of categories including movies, series, comedy, sports, etc. You can also set up a Watch List of shows you want to add to your queue for easy access later. Pretty slick.
I chose to watch an episode of Entourage for my test. When I clicked, it asked me to sign in. I did, then clicked on the Entourage episode again. It said:
"The GO ID is playing video on another computer or device. Please stop the previous video stream or try again later."
That wasn't the case as far as I knew (since this was my first time), but I think because I tried clicking on the same episode twice I screwed things up. So I logged out, then back in and again went to the Entourage episode. Everything loaded quickly and the streaming was excellent with no buffering. Not happy that you can only watch on one device at a time, but I guess it makes sense since people could share their usernames and passwords so that non-subscribers could watch.
Now, let's try the same thing with 3G. (Used this method again to switch my device to 3G). This time I logged in and clicked on the movie "All About Steve." Honestly, it seemed to load as fast and stream just as well as on 4G.
In a nutshell: very, very, very, very cool app. I have spent a lot of time figuring out ways to watch movies and TV shows on my devices, and HBOGO is probably going to be my first choice because of it's easy interface and a pretty damned good selection of stuff to watch.
A friend asked me if I had an advertising deal with Square. What? I had no clue what he was talking about. He said there was an ad on my Hooked On Droid web page and it looked like amazing technology for small businesses and individuals if it actually works as well as is claimed. I try to stay up on all the latest technologies and apps, but damn, there are so many.
Square up is a free app for Android and iPhones which allows the user/account holder to accept credit cards with no monthly fee or equipment to lease. Plus they'll send you a very small little magnetic reader that plugs into your earphone jack and allows you to scan Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover credit cards.
I've used PayPal for many years to great success, and after just a little research had no qualms about sharing my most intimate information with this innovative company.
After setting up my account and downloading the app onto my HTC Thunderbolt I was informed that my credit card reader will be shipped in two to five days and once received I'll be able to accept credit cards and will only pay the small fee of 2.75% when I use it. No cost for the account. No monthly fee. No equipment to buy or lease. Wow! This could be a major breakthrough for small business people (and probably scam artists) everywhere.
Of course there are a few unanswered questions: 1) How long will it REALLY take for them to ship my free credit card reader? and 2) Can this really work as well as their website attests?
So, the wait began. Then ended abrubtly. A mere four days after setting up my account, I received the card reader.
Okay, so I've got an account, I have the app loaded on my Droid and the little magnetic reader. Let's test it out (see video below for actual blow by blow of my first transaction).
In a nutshell: Square is AMAZING. What a major breakthrough Square is for small businesses, enabling them to accept credit cards without having to pay a monthly fee or lease or buy equipment for processing. All with no contracts or committments. Square just takes 2.75% of the transaction only when you use it.
For my test run, I thought I'd use my PayPal debit card (still amazed that PayPal didn't pioneer this technology first) and see if I could process it as a Visa and pay myself ten bucks.
So, I attached the reader to my Thunderbolt, opened the Square app, keyed in ten dollars and put TEST in under description. The screen then indicated that it was authorizing, then asked for a signature. I used my finger on the screen and signed. The next screen asked where the customer wanted the receipt sent (either SMS text or email), and that was it.
Square took 28 cents, and deposited the other $9.72 directly in my bank account.
Square doesn't save any of the credit card transaction info (including mobile and credit card numbers). When I logged into my Square account after executing the transaction, I was able to view my receipt (with only partial info on the card number and mobile number) and was able to view a map which showed exactly where the transaction occurred.
On a scale of one to ten, the Square credit card processing program is a 27. If you're looking for a way to more simply and cost effectively process funds and keep accurate records, Square is a great way for you to square up.
Note: you do need to set up an account on your desktop/laptop as well as download the Square app on your device.
I needed to call Verizon with a very minor billing question. The nice man on the phone seemed quite knowledgeable and we started talking about 4G and the HTC Thunderbolt. It was like some sort of addiction took over and I blurted out, "Just send me one." Okay, it was after I finagled him into giving it to me for the two-year discount instead of the one-year upgrade (supposedly a fifty dollar savings to me), and he waived the $20 activation fee (I don't think I've EVER actually paid an activation fee), AND he threw in a free accessory (a $24.95 value which I could probably buy on Ebay for six bucks and free shipping). So, the impulsive part of me is saying, "Woo hoo! You just saved a bunch of money."
The sensible part of me is thinking, "WTF. You haven't even done any research on this device. You don't know anything about how well 4G is working in my market. You don't have an extra $250 to spend on the latest-and-hopefully-greatest." But, oh well. What's done is done and I had already received the email saying the equipment was shipped.
After having already made the commitment, I started doing the research on the phone that I should have done before committing to two hundred and fifty bucks and two more years of my wireless life. Luckily, the reviews were all quite good. The cons (and I have a few of my own now) were little, almost insignificant things. And the pros were really positive from a variety of sources (PC Magazine, cnet, etc.). All in all, to sum up the reviews I read: Normally, you shouldn't buy any technology when it's the first thing to come out, but in the case of the HTC Thunderbolt 4G that wasn't the case.
What I hadn't considered was the initial problem might not lie in the equipment, but instead in the network. Verizon is highly respected for their reliability, but less than a week after receiving my Thunderbolt, their entire 4G network went down and took 3G with it in most cases (only for 4G users). I was pissed, but it's back and I've gotten over it. All in all I can accept some growing pains.
Now, on to my first impressions:
Packaging: Very cool. All black box with black embossed type. Matters mostly to the design guys who conceived it, but cool nonetheless. (How come "nonetheless" can be one word when, really, it's three words just strung together?) Simplicity of activation: Since the Verizon people are notorious for efficient, courteous customer service, I decided to call them and have them walk me through activation rather than reading the little Get Started booklet. After removing the SIM card from it's packaging (yep, Verizon has a mainstream phone with a SIM) and inserting it and the battery into the Thunderbolt (after some hassle getting the kind of cheap, plastic back cover off) I powered up and began the activation. The screen said that activation was in progress and that it could take up to 2 minutes. Eleven minutes later we were still waiting. That gave me the opportunity to really get to know the Verizon customer service rep. Nice guy. No pets. Favorite color is blue. He doesn't have a Thunderbolt.
Finally, I suggested we just shut it off and turn it back on (thanks Bill Gates) and see what happens. Upon powering back up, it was all good. Except trying to get the damned back cover back on and having the whole thing snap in place simultaneously. Finally got it, but Motorola wins the back cover easy removal and attach contest.
Then, I asked the nice gentleman on the phone if all of my apps will magically reappear as they did when I got a replacement for the original Droid A855 that I accidentally dropped in the toilet...um, I mean the sink. He said they wouldn't. Just my contacts. Lucky for me, he was wrong. Once I added my main Google account, all of my apps magically returned (along with the ones pre-loaded on the Thunderbolt which, much to my dismay, cannot be uninstalled). The only app I noticed that didn't automatically re-install was a silly, but fun game called Spider Man where you swing from building to building trying to land on a target. After intensive investigative research I discovered that the game name has been changed to Stick Swing (probably a violation of copyrights and Stick Swing makes more sense since it's really nothing more than a stickman swinging).
Speed: Luckily, I live in a 4G market, so I was able to fully experience the blazing speed of 4G...and the rapid rate at which it drains your battery. HTC neglected to include a toggle switch so that users can switch from auto 4G to 3G. So, out of sheer necessity, I had to find a way to turn off 4G for my day to day activities. For the most part, the only time I turn on 4G is when I want to download something rather large, to watch streaming video or to connect to my laptop with PDANet tethering.
Some minor things that I don't like about the HTC Thunderbolt:
The home button is on the left, making it difficult to do a one handed set to main screen mode unless you do a little-finger reach around.
No HDMI jack. No biggie, but I guess other 4G phones have one.
You can't just plug in your audio cord into your car radio and talk on the phone. The microphone won't work. I found lots of discussions about how to resolve this and it seems that you need to get a 3.5 mm to 3.5 mm (seems redundant) with three rings (instead of the two that all of my cords have), and MAYBE it will work. I just ordered a cable on eBay, which has a microphone as part of the cord. I'll let you know how that works out on Twitter. I'm thinking this is another oversight on the part of HTC...or they want us to be less safe while driving.
When charging it doesn't tell you the percentage charged. I need my device to hold my hand when monitoring charging levels. Sometimes the bar looks fully charged, but the yellow light hasn't turned green yet. :)
I moved some of the movies and videos from my old Droid to the new 32 gig, pre-installd SD card on the TB. (Click here for my piece about how to watch movies and TV shows on your Smartphone.) In the middle of the first movie I was watching, I got the error message that this movie can not be watched on my device (the same movie I've been watching). Opened it back up, it played for a while longer then the screen mysteriously went back to the my Gallery video menu. Opened it again and played again and all seems fine. Possibly a problem witht the movie file. Or another HTC glitch.
For the most part, the Verizon's HTC Thunderbolt is a great phone, even though 90% of the time I don't need the 4G capabilities. My main criticism is that if you want to fully utilize what this device can do (and get rid of the annoying apps that they have preloaded) you need to Root the phone. And, I don't really trust me to do that.
On a scale of one to 43.78 I'll give it a 39.764. Hey, it's my damn scale.
If you like Angry Birds, I'm thinking you'll love Stupid Zombies. As far as Android games go the simplistic object of the game is to shoot stupid zombies. What makes them stupid? They just stand there waiting for you to figure out how shoot them, either directly or by ricocheting your bullets or blowing up something else that falls on them or something. There are explosive containers, boxes, beams, planks and other objects that you can use to kill the stupid zombies for those times when you can't get a direct shot at them.
You don't move. They don't move. You just set your crosshairs where you want your bullet to go and blast away. You get five bullets for each level and bonus points for any bullets you have left after re-killing the undead.
This game has four stages and sixty levels in each stage. And the whole damn thing is free.
And I don't know about you, but I'd rather shoot a zombie with a gun than try to kill little birdies with a slingshot.
