Category Archives: Business Apps and Productivity
Flipboard For Android Officially Released
The long awaited flipping news reader made famous on the iPlatform and first released on the Galaxy SIII, is now available to one and all right from the Play Store.
It doesn’t seem all that long ago the App was calling for Beta Testers, but no more Beta testing, we are now Gold and Live!
Flipboard has to be the most eagerly awaited App release on Android and is a gorgeous and stylish way to read your favourite news and Social Media sites on your phone or tablet.
So what are you waiting for, get downloading or hit the scan below.
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean Leaked Prior to I/O 2012
Well there you have it, straight from the, err, Android’s mouth! As snapped by an avid Android fan on Google’s very own hardware site is a Galaxy Nexus soon to be sporting Jelly Bean.
In typical Android fashion, the Galaxy Nexus will be the very first to don the latest clothes from Google (still makes us want a Nexus dammit!).
One thing that is a little odd though, is that Google have not made an entire version jump with Jelly Bean. One would have expected Jelly Bean to be Android 4.0, as in previous iterations of the popular mobile OS.
Although, Eclair was 2.0 and Froyo 2.1 and Gingerbread 2.3. It wasn’t until Honeycomb (tablet only) that Android made the jump to 3.0 then Ice Cream Sandwich saw the leap to 4.0.
Details are not yet clear of what to expect from Jelly Bean as leaks have been pretty well contained this time round, however we don’t have long to go as we would anticipate Jelly Bean to be released at Google I/O 2012, this time next week!
There have also been suggestions that Google I/O could also see the launch of the Android/ Google Vanilla tablet codenamed Nexus Tablet. Nexus is widely rumoured to be a Vanilla Jelly Bean 7″ Tablet, manufactured by Asus.
And don’t forget, the only way to follow all the very latest news from Google I/O 2012 is with its very own app, available from the Play Store, or scan below.
Source: Ausdroid, Redmond Pie, Google I/O
Facebook Opens App Store, Mobile Included
Facebook have finally taken the wraps off its long awaited App Store, and is ready with open arms for all web and mobile users to dive right in start clicking.
Accessible via your Web Browser at https://www.facebook.com/appcenter, you are greated with a familiar (to anyone who has used the Google Play Store or iTunes) layout of the most popular highest paying Apps at the top, then a long menu of Genres down the left hand side.
You can choose to then install your App on Web or Mobile, or Play the game live in your browser. You can also filter the lists to your Preference.
When browsing through Mobile Apps, choosing a new game for your phone is as easy as clicking on Send To Mobile
At which point in time a message appears on your mobile Facebook app, advising there is a new App available and it is then installed.
We have had the embarrassing occurrence a couple of times though where the App has only been available on iDevices only – woops!
The Facebook App Store has been in the works for some time, and is the first step in Facebook turning their immense mobile market into actual Commercial dollars and cents.
How long before we start seeing paid apps is anyone’s guess, but for now, go forth and discover, there are over 600 apps available right now!
Look for the dedicated app soon in the Play Store.
Instapaper Hits Android Play Store
The gap between our iSheep friends and our shiny Droids is ever tightening, with news today that the wildly popular “read it later” app, Instapaper, has now launched on the Play Store.
Instapaper now joins those other two iMoguls, Flipboard and Instagram on the other side of the fence and is finding the grass is just as green here too.
Filling a niche perfectly, Instapaper is all about capturing the busy Blog or Website reader at a busy moment, don’t have time to catch that story now, no problem, share it with Instapaper and read it a very non-fussed manner, with nice big, always perfect clear font. No need for squinting or resizing. Instapaper always knows exactly the right size for your story, your device and your eyes.
Instapaper creator Marco Arment was none too fussed about creating his masterpiece on Android though, so he entrusted this to Tumblr creators Mobelux with the project, citing they were “a great fit with a compatible heritage’.
So go forth and download, available right now on the Play Store for only AUD$3.07/ USD$2.99.
Source: The Verge
Flipboard For Android Calling All Beta Testers
The App all ‘Droiders have been waiting for is finally here – almost!
For those lucky enough to have a Galaxy SIII, you will find it preinstalled, and there have been ways and means of obtaining the leaked version for a while now, however we can now confirm the Beta version is now officially available to those that just can’t wait for the delicious app’s arrival in the Play Store.
We have had it running for some time now on our in house Galaxy Note with TouchwizUX, and call upon it every day.
If you, like us, just can’t wait for the final product and want to jump in, go right ahead and grab it here or hit the scan below.
Put Your Android To Work With Connect2Field
So you carry your mobile phone with you everywhere, so do you workers. Why not connect your office to your mobile workers, with a streamlined app available in the Play store?
Connect2Field is a relatively new player on the Cloud scene in Australia with a passion for streamlining the processes of service businesses. With workers out in the field and maybe a small but busy team back in the office trying to keep it all together, a typical day in a small/ medium service business is hectic to say the least. Most revolve around perhaps an Outlook Calender of some description and a large Jobs Board that the Service Co-Ordinator scantily attempts to keep under control.
Getting your workers to the correct job site, on time, and well informed is one thing, but knowing exactly how long they were there, how long it took them to travel to site and getting around to doing the invoicing is another story all together!
So what if there was something simple that could run on your HTC, Samsung, Motorola, or dare we say it, your iPhone? And that the back end didn’t require thousands of dollars worth of difficult, poorly coded software that doesn’t communicate as it did in the pre-sales process? That you could log on from anywhere and check where your workers are and how their jobs are going?
Well we have the answer. Our Consulting Partners at Axis IT Consulting brought us in to demonstrate Connect2Field running on their fleet of Android devices, and we have come away very impressed.
The process begins as soon as the job comes in via either telephone or email.
Instead of entering the job into the Calendering program of choice, we open Google Chrome (our Browser of choice of course), log into Connect2Field via the web and instantly we are presented with a dash board view of our current jobs, clients we are dealing with and current rate of work and income. Nice! From there, we simply Click “Add Job”, select the client, enter the job details, address, date and start time and a few notes to let the worker know what to expect when he/she gets to site. From there we save the job, which does three things. 1) The job is entered into our system and logged with a job number, 2) A job confirmation email is sent to the client with all the details including a job number and 3) Our assigned worker is sent an SMS straight to his mobile phone. That is where the magic begins.
Once our Worker accepts the job, it is entered into the Schedule on their phone, as well as the Calendering app. Reviewing the Connect2Field Android app on the phone gives the Worker all the necessary information, ie Job Number, Address, Name, Start Date and Time, and Notes about the job. There is even a Map to graphically display where all your jobs are on at, to better organise your day! When the Worker starts to drive to the job, they bring up the job in the mobile app and click Start Travel, this counts the travel time. Arrive at site, click Arrived, and update the Job from Accepted to Started. This then starts the billable hours clock against the job. Once the job is finished, you mark the job as Finished and can even capture the customer’s signature against the job (which is instantly uploaded back to the server and stored against the job).
The job can then be marked as Completed, at which time, the invoice can either be raised and emailed on the mobile phone, or back in the Office. Easy.
Connect2Field is not a bookkeeping program though, however, there is no re-keying of data required by your Bookkeeper, as Connect2Field can transfer information to most popular accounting programs, such as Reckon’s QuickBooks, MYOB, Xero, and more. We are told Connect2Field will soon integrate with the online QuickBooks Hosted as well.
What it is though, is an extremely simple, extremely powerful and cost effective field worker/ service business solution, that requires no powerful hardware apart from an internet connection and some mobile phones, preferably Droids! For a small monthly fee, imagine the time and stress something this accessible could save you.
Why wait? There’s a free 14 day trial available on Connect2Field’s website and the App is available free on the Android Play Store.
Oh, if you would like a more personal demonstration of Connect2Field in action, contact Nathan at Axis IT Consulting for more information.
