Posts tagged features

What does the Nexus One update mean for the future of Android?

Feb 7th

Posted by Alberto Vildosola in 1

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droidvsnexusThis Tuesday, Google announced that Nexus One users would get an over the air update. The announcement surprised everybody. What was supposed to be an update to fix the Nexus One’s 3G issue turned out to be much more important: it finally brought pinch-to-zoom functionality to an Android phone in the U.S. (I know HTC’s Sense has multi-touch, but it was added by HTC). Pinch-to-zoom has been one of the most requested features by Android users, dating back to the G1’s release. Nobody knows for sure why it took this long for Google to finally add pinch-to-zoom. Theories range from a conspiracy type backroom deal with Apple (if true might have ended with Jobs’ recent comments) to simply Andy Rubin, Android’s head honcho, not liking multi-touch gestures. Whatever the reason, pinch-to-zoom was turning into the equivalent of iPhone’s MMS support: Something so basic and obvious nobody could explain why it was taking so long to be implemented.



After the dust settled from the excitement, the obvious questions followed: Well, what about the rest of Android phones? Why is Google showing favoritism towards the Nexus One? Some people (PCWorld too) were quick to call out Google on its “evilness.”  I share their sentiment that Android is being split up by manufacturers and carriers and that Google must do their best to keep the platform together. However, I disagree with the notion that it’s Google’s fault that the Droid and others phones don’t have multi-touch or are stuck with 1.5 and 1.6. Every single Android phone out there must be updated by their respective manufacturers. They’re the ones that create and test new builds for their phones. In fact, apparently one of Google’s spokesperson contacted one of these journalists and said, “…it is not at Google’s sole discretion to issue software updates. Our partners, such as OEMs and operators, decide in the majority of cases when and what updates to issue to their customers.” So there you have it, straight from Google itself: There’s not much they can do with respect to updating these phones. Underneath this whole “who updates what” issue lies a much bigger issue with Android, and that’s how much control can Google have over the ecosystem without driving partners away – a topic worthy of a whole another article.

How is the Nexus One different?

Google’s plans with the online store and the Nexus One were not very clear January 5th when they announced it. Pundits (and myself) were quick to call it somewhat of a letdown: It was just a regular Android phone, the fastest mind you, but nothing groundbreaking. There was no mention of VoIP, no cheap data-only contract, no subsidy by Google. In fact, it was very similar to the Droid. Fast-forward to Tuesday, close to a month later, and the almost newly released smartphone gets its first significant OS update and the difference between the Nexus One and the rest of the Android pack becomes clear as water. Every Android enthusiast knows the nightmare that is waiting for your carrier and manufacturer to get together and push an OTA update to your phone. There’s no financial incentive for either of them to do so, hence the many months of lag time between Google’s release of the source code and the actual OTA update. It’s now that we see the genius behind Google’s approach; the Nexus One is Google’s answer to this whole ordeal: there’s no OEM to talk to, even though HTC builds it. Google has absolute control over its software. Also, there’s no carrier to coordinate the OTA update with since the phone is unlocked. Google can update the Nexus One as soon as it finishes the latest OS build; there is no six months of waiting for OEMs and carriers to agree whether it’s financially worthy to update each smartphone. Consequently, it’s unfair to point fingers at Google for trying to take control of something that OEMs and carriers have turned into a headache for consumers and developers; hopefully they’ll take the hints from Google and fix the updating process.

Another issue Google’s online store might fix in the future is fragmentation, though not as bad as some would want you to believe, it is starting to create some problems. It’ll be easier to tackle this issue before there are hundreds of different Android phones and ten different OS versions. Right now, Google’s online store is not very diverse; they only sell one phone for one carrier, the Nexus One for T-Mobile – a very high-end phone for the smallest U.S. carrier, hence the very low sales numbers. Now, bear with me for a second and imagine that in a few months Google learns from these “baby steps,” as Rubin called the Nexus One, and they start selling several different “superphones” from LG, Motorola, Samsung, etc., ranging from free (with contract) to high-end, different form factors, with support for most 3G bands; basically, anyone could find a phone that fits their needs and wallet. If OEMs and carriers don’t take notice that consumers want the latest Android version as soon as possible, they’ll eventually lose customers to Google’s online store as users realize that buying directly from Google guarantees up-to-date software. In theory, they could inundate the market with these “Google phones” that are always updated with the latest Android version, thus keeping the OS fragmentation at bay.

I can promise you that in the future you will see many more updates coming to the Nexus One several months before they make it to other Android smartphones, you’ll also see many people blame Google for pushing the Nexus One instead of the whole ecosystem, but after all it’s said and done, consumers will have the final vote, and it’s my belief that they’ll eventually realize that buying directly from Google is the only guarantee that they’ll always have the latest OS and features.

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Nexus One Gets Pinch-To-Zoom

Feb 2nd

Posted by Dustin Earley in 1

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nexusone1-300x232


Nexus One owners will see an OTA update rolling out very soon with some really great changes inside, changes you’ve all been waiting for. Starting today, the Nexus One will be able to fully utilize multitouch in native apps. The multitouch support will include web browser, picture gallery, and Google Maps for starters. It gets even better. The update will also include fixes to Google Maps, Google Goggles will now be built in, and all those 3G problems you’ve been hearing about will also be addressed. So how about that Nexus owners, feeling a little more proud to be a supporter of Android today? Be sure to let us know when you guys receive the update in the comments, and be on the lookout for videos and pictures to come.

Via HTC , Google Nexus One Board

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What iPhone 3.2 for iPad has, and TiPb wants for iPhone Actual ASAP!

Jan 28th

Posted by Rene Ritchie in Mobile

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iphone_3.2_teaser

The brand new Apple iPad is running iPhone 3.2 and has several features we’ve wanted on, you know, the actual iPhone device for a while now. Never mind that the iPhone 3.2 SDK is iPad-only, just like the features. And never mind that the iPad might still be waiting for iPhone 4.0 to get it’s full functionality in place. TiPb wants an iPhone (and iPod touch) version of iPhone 3.2 while we’re waiting, and we wants us some of those features!

Our list after the break!

Home Screen Wall Paper

We noticed it the moment Steve Jobs pulled out the iPad. It had wallpaper behind the Home Screen app grid. And he said users could customize it. Sure, the iPhone has a denser grid (the icons are closer together and would blot out more of the background), but it would be nice to have a background we could blot out. Also, we couldn’t help but see that the iPad could go landscape with the homes screen. Flipping back and forth would probably annoy us too much to want that, however, at least for the current 3.x home screen…


home_screen_20100127

iBooks App/Store

Is it strange that iTunes Store and iPod are separate apps, but the iPad iBooks app spins around from reader to buy’er? Maybe, but since we already have iTunes Store, App Store, and iPod on our iPhones, we’d like iBooks as well. As with many of the other items to follow, the UI will obviously need tweaking (as apps taken from the iPhone for the iPad have already been tweaked) but we want it and Apple is going to want the whole platform to have it. Oh, and something akin to Kindle-like “WhisperSync” would be nifty for all our media, so where we finish reading, listening, or viewing on the iPad is where we pick up on the iPhone (or iTunes, or Apple TV, get the idea?)

ibooks_20100127

Calendar Week View

The lack of a week view on the iPhone calendar is something we’ve complained about since the original iPhone 2G launched in 2007. And now the iPad gets it? Fine. Whatever. We’re just happy it’s finally here and we’d like it on our iPhone now-ish as well. And landscape mode to make it more useful. Please.

calendar_20100127

Enhanced Photo App

The new scrubbers shown off on the iPad are hawt. iPhone iPod app lets us scrub quickly through audio and video, and while the thumbnail line probably wouldn’t fit on the smaller screen, just the ability to quickly fly through photos with a standard scrubber would be great. One. By. One. Flicking. Can. Get. Tedious. After. All. Syncing Faces, Places, and Events from iPhoto is also want-worthy, as are the new slide transitions.

photos_20100127

Drop-down/Pop-up Menus

Probably the biggest system-wide eye opener for iPhone 3.2 on the iPad was the use of drop down and/or pop up menus. The way they’re implemented on the iPad wouldn’t work on the smaller iPhone screen, but the idea behind them — to allow quick access without moving up or down a set of screens — would. Let us tap the top corners to get quick access to radio settings, for example. It may sound all Android/Windows Mobile, but Apple could make it work. SBSettings already does…

mail_20100127

Mechanical Keyboard Support

iPad gets both dock-connected and Bluetooth keyboard support at launch. We’ll forgive not getting it in three versions if you give it to us in an iPhone 3.2 update post haste. Many people might never use it, or want to, but for some road warriors it would be just what their productivity ordered.

accessories_20100127

Mobile iWork

3rd party apps shows it’s possible to do office suites on the iPhone and iPod touch. You’re Apple and you figured it out iWork for the iPad. You could figure it out for the iPhone too.

iwork_20100127

What Else?

That was just TiPb’s quick take, did you see any other iPhone 3.2 features on the iPad that you want for your own, more mobile, device?

This is a story by the iPhone Blog. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

What iPhone 3.2 for iPad has, and TiPb wants for iPhone Actual ASAP!



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10 Fun iPhone Apps for Beer Lovers

Jan 14th

Posted by Jeana Lee Tahnk in Social

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href=”http://api.tweetmeme.com/share?url=http://mashable.com/2010/01/13/iphone-beer-apps/&service=bit.ly”> width=”51″ height=”61″ src=”http://api.tweetmeme.com/imagebutton.gif?url=http://mashable.com/2010/01/13/iphone-beer-apps/” align=”right”/>

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/iphone-beer.jpg” alt=”iphone beer image” class=”alignright size-full wp-image-143936″/>Ales, stouts, porters, pilsners… so many beers, too little time. To help you navigate this vast and varied world of beer, you can always turn to your iPhone. There are plenty of beer apps available on iTunes — everything from beer games to reference guides — even apps that attempt to measure your levels of drunkenness.

iPhone wielding beer enthusiasts can rejoice over the following apps to satisfy your malty, hoppy and lager-induced desires.  After all, there’s nothing like cracking open a frosty brew at the end of a long day –- or simulating it.

1. href=”http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ibeer-5-drinks-more-gags/id283914070?mt=8″ >iBeer />

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/iBeer.jpg” alt=”ibeer image”>

iBeer is one of those fun apps that doesn’t really do anything but entertain. It simulates a pint of beer that you can jostle and drink. With five different beers to choose from, the visual of tipping the glass (iPhone) back and seeing the liquid disappear is strikingly real. The loud burp at the end is an added bonus. No beer-related apps list would be complete without this popular one.

Cost: $0.99

2. href=”http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/gallaghers-beer-guide/id334678647?mt=8″ >Gallagher’s Beer Guide />

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/GallaghersBeerGuide.jpg” alt=”beer guide image”>

This app is a fantastic resource for a beer novice or one who wants to learn more about different brews. Divided into 12 categories, including brown ales, stouts and porters, and IPAs, Gallagher’s Beer Guide provides you with information on taste characteristics, popular choices within each category, and related styles.

Cost: $0.99

3. href=”http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id328010253?mt=8″ >Guinness Pub Finder />

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/GuinnessPubFinder.jpg” alt=”guinness image”>

There’s something unmistakably refreshing about a nice, cold Guinness. The dark, chocolaty and rich beer has its devout following, enough to spawn an iPhone app dedicated to finding exactly where this draught is served. Another fun feature of this app is its “Six Steps to Creating the Perfect Pint” lesson.

Note: Unfortunately, residents in AK, AZ, GA, HI, IN, KT, MO, OH, PA, TX and WV will find that this app does not work due to specific state laws related to alcohol advertising.

Cost: $1.99

4. href=”http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ibeers-pro-2700-beers-at-your-fingertips/id295196547?mt=8″ >iBeers Pro />

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/iBeersPro.jpg” alt=”iBeers Pro image”>

With more than 2,700 varieties listed in this app, iBeers Pro is like a who’s who of beer. Each beer lists the country of origin, brewer, type of beer and bottle size, as well as user ratings and an ability to add it to your favorites list. This is a good app to have for adventurous beer drinkers who like to go beyond the brews they’re familiar with. This app also comes in a Lite version for $1.99 and the regular iBeers version for $2.99. 

Cost: $3.99 

5. href=”http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/beercloud/id338600739?mt=8″ >BeerCloud />

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/BeerCloud.jpg” alt=”BeerCloud Image”>

If $3.99 is a little too steep and you’d rather get the information for free, BeerCloud is a good alternative. Although not as comprehensive as iBeers Pro, BeerCloud does offer the ability to search for beers, as well as determine where, via GPS tracking, a particular beer of choice is available near you.   

Cost: FREE 

6. href=”http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/beer-match-beer-food-cheese-pairings/id326255719?mt=8″ >Beer Match: Beer, Food & Cheese Pairings />

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/BeerMatch.jpg” alt=”Beer Match Image”>

Do you know what kind of beer goes best with Cajun food? How about lamb chops? If not, Beer Match can help you. By pairing 31 styles of beer with more than 500 different kinds of foods (including cheeses), you can instantly find out if the pale ale or the stout is the better choice when planning your menu. 

Cost: $0.99 

7. href=”http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/drinkfit-beer-cocktail-liquor/id323133419?mt=8″ >Drink Fit />

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/DrinkFit.jpg” alt=”Drink Fit Image”>

They don’t call it a beer belly for nothing. As tasty as it is, you can quickly pack on the pounds if beer is consumed in excess. Drink Fit is a great app that provides users with full nutritional information for more than 1,600 drinks (including beer, cocktails, wine) and also offers a “My Night” feature where users can tally their caloric consumption for one evening of drinking. It’s a great app for anyone who is conscious about their dietary intake. 

Cost: $1.99 

8. href=”http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/find-craft-beer/id340206461?mt=8″ >Find Craft Beer />

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/FindCraftBeer.jpg” alt=”Find Craft Beer Image”>

If big name beers don’t do it for you and you seek more of an off-the-beaten path microbrew, then this is a perfect app. Find Craft Beer uses GPS tracking to locate brew pubs, breweries, beer bars, beer stores and homebrew stores near you. The settings function enables you to select from any or all of these types of locations to identify the nearest locale to get a tasty microbrew. 

Cost: $0.99 

9. href=”http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ibrewmaster/id315820829?mt=8″ >iBrewMaster />

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/iBrewMaster.jpg” alt=”iBrewmaster image”>

For more ambitious beer drinkers who like to make their own brews, iBrewMaster is a comprehensive app that takes home brewers through the whole process. The app comes with 50 recipes and also enables users to keep thorough track of multiple batches that are being brewed at the same time. 

Cost: $4.99 

10. href=”http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/happy-houred/id326120518?mt=8″ >Happy Houred />

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Happy-Houred.jpg” alt=”Happy Houred Image”>

Who doesn’t like a good Happy Hour? This app scours local bars in your area to find any happy hour specials near you. Happy Houred currently offers search functionality in approximately 700 cities in the U.S. but is predominantly user-generated, so new bars and happy hour specials are constantly being added.

Cost: FREE

More iPhone resources from Mashable: />

- href=”http://mashable.com/2009/11/06/iphone-apps-wine/”>5 Must-Have iPhone Apps for Wine Lovers /> – href=”http://mashable.com/2009/12/07/iphone-dating/”>10 Essential iPhone Apps to Avoid Dating Disasters /> – href=”http://mashable.com/2009/12/20/iphone-avoid-work-disasters/”>10 iPhone Apps to Avoid Work Disasters /> – href=”http://mashable.com/2009/10/10/iphone-apps-parents/”>20 Fantastic Free iPhone Apps for Parents /> – href=”http://mashable.com/2010/01/03/iphone-cat-lovers/”>9 Essential iPhone Apps for Cat Lovers /> – href=”http://mashable.com/2009/12/27/10-iphone-apps-dog-lovers/”>10 Best iPhone Apps for Dog Lovers

Image courtesy of rel=”nofollow” href=”http://www.istockphoto.com/mashableoffer.php”>iStockphoto, rel=”nofollow” href=”http://www.istockphoto.com/user_view.php?id=1134574″>rjp85

Tags: href=”http://mashable.com/tag/beer/”>Beer, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/food/”>Food, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/guinness/”>Guinness, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/iphone/”>iphone, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/iphone-apps/”>iphone apps, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/list/”>List, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/lists/”>Lists



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6 Foursquare Apps We’d Love to See

Jan 11th

Posted by Shane Snow in Social

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href=”http://api.tweetmeme.com/share?url=http://mashable.com/2010/01/11/foursquare-apps/&service=bit.ly”> width=”51″ height=”61″ src=”http://api.tweetmeme.com/imagebutton.gif?url=http://mashable.com/2010/01/11/foursquare-apps/” align=”right”/>

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/foursquare-logo.jpg” alt=”foursquare image” class=”alignright size-full wp-image-143936″/>Foursquare is one of the crucial new social networks to keep tabs on, and for entrepreneur types, the recent href=”http://mashable.com/2009/11/16/foursquare-api/”>release of its open API is big news. It may be time for developers to start shifting away from Twitter and start tinkering with something a bit more Square.

Here are 6 Foursquare apps we’d like to see developed. What other location-based apps would you like to see take advantage of the Foursquare API? Let us know in the comments.

1. MenuSquare />

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/menu.jpg” alt=”menu image”>

When you check in at a restaurant on Foursquare, you can see what feedback your friends and others have left. Usually it’s recommendations –- “Try the lobster ravioli!” –- or warnings –- “The green curry is wicked hot!” But wouldn’t it be great to be able to see the actual menu from your phone? We’d love to see an app that allows the crowd (or zealous programmers) to add a list of every menu item, perhaps even with prices, to every popular venue. Want to plan your meal while waiting for a table or a slow waiter? Maybe you’re just trying to decide where to eat? Just fire up “MenuSquare.”

2. OrderSquare (a la SeamlessWeb) />

Building on the aforementioned menu idea, how about being able to order food from your smartphone, using Foursquare as the backdrop? The API makes it easy to grab all the nearby restaurants’ info, which will give this app a leg up in a lot of areas. The app could also be used to broadcast to your Foursquare friends what you actually ordered, leaving a record for everyone’s sake and encouraging reviews on individual dishes.

3. TextSquare />
/>

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/texting.jpg” alt=”texting image”>

Not all our friends are on Foursquare, and many of yours probably aren’t either. Could be they’re just not hip, but it’s also likely they just don’t have the right smartphones. How about an application that allows you to send selected check-ins as text messages or e-mails to non-Foursquarers that you’d like to meet up with. Invite those technoramuses to the party, too.

4. SquareDeck />

We don’t generally sit around tapping refresh on our phone to see where everyone’s at on Foursquare. We’d like to see a desktop application or widget that shows a feed of friends’ announced Foursquare coordinates and shouts. This way, we could see what we’re missing out on while we’re at work, or what gig we should get to. Integrate this app with Twitter and the rest of our social networks, and we’d never be lonely again.

5. EventSquare />
/>

src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/concert.jpg” alt=”concert image”>

Teens and party-going twenty-somethings have plenty of disposable income to make this app worthwhile. Build them an application that shows where the nearest parties, concerts, or events are going on at any moment, based on their location. Great for those bored Friday nights, this app could really help you find something to do any time you want.

6. GroupSquare />

Sometimes you may check in and only want certain friends to know — you can’t always invite everyone. That’s why we’re proposing an app (or a built-in feature) that lets users categorize their Foursquare friends and then choose which ones to alert upon check in. It shouldn’t be so hard to implement (says the writer to the programmers), and it would definitely enhance the experience.

Conclusion />

Foursquare’s API makes it easy to tap into location data for virtually every venue in most big cities, and now that Foursquare has href=”http://mashable.com/2010/01/05/foursquare-anywhere/”>opened up globally, this information will start flooding in from smaller locales as well. Developers: Now’s the time to get in on the app-building action early. With the right foresight and a bit of ingenuity, the possibilities are endless.

More Foursquare resources from Mashable: />

- href=”http://mashable.com/2009/12/10/fourquare-tips/”>6 Tips for Getting the Most out of Foursquare /> – href=”http://mashable.com/2009/12/25/foursquare-gowalla/”>Foursquare vs. Gowalla: Location-Based Throwdown /> – href=”http://mashable.com/2009/11/19/twitter-foursquare-2010/”>The Twitter of 2010: Foursquare as Next Year’s Breakout Hit /> – href=”http://mashable.com/2009/12/31/2010-location-predictions/”>Location, Location, Location: 5 Big Predictions for 2010

Images courtesy of rel=”nofollow” href=”http://www.istockphoto.com/mashableoffer.php”>iStockphoto, rel=”nofollow” href=”http://www.istockphoto.com/user_view.php?id=614330″>photoposter, rel=”nofollow” href=”http://www.istockphoto.com/user_view.php?id=455509″>dwphotos, rel=”nofollow” href=”http://www.istockphoto.com/user_view.php?id=898682″>macroworld

/>Reviews: href=”http://www.blippr.com/apps/494047-Foursquare” >Foursquare, href=”http://www.blippr.com/apps/336651-Twitter” >Twitter, href=”http://www.blippr.com/apps/393797-iStockphoto” >iStockphoto

Tags: href=”http://mashable.com/tag/android/”>android, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/api/”>api, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/apis/”>APIs, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/apps/”>apps, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/blackberry/”>blackberry, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/foursquare/”>foursquare, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/geo-location/”>geo-location, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/geolocation/”>geolocation, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/iphone/”>iphone, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/list/”>List, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/lists/”>Lists, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/mobile-applications/”>mobile applications



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The Top 10 Most Watched Web Series, December 2009

Jan 8th

Posted by Samuel Axon in Social

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href=”http://api.tweetmeme.com/share?url=http://mashable.com/2010/01/08/top-10-web-series-december/&service=bit.ly”> width=”51″ height=”61″ src=”http://api.tweetmeme.com/imagebutton.gif?url=http://mashable.com/2010/01/08/top-10-web-series-december/” align=”right”/>

href=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/retro-tv.jpg”> src=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/retro-tv.jpg” alt=”" title=”retro-tv” width=”262″ height=”225″ class=”alignright size-full wp-image-179873″ />Each month we track the href=”http://mashable.com/tag/monthly-top-webisodes/”>top ten web video series with our partner href=”http://www.visiblemeasures.com/” >Visible Measures, and this time we have good news for fans of web TV. December saw the top web series bounce back in popularity after a two-month slump. Actually, they did more than that.

The highest peak recorded since we started our monthly series was 93 million views in September. It dropped all the way to 73 million in November. Last month? 106 million. That’s despite the href=”http://corp.visiblemeasures.com/news-and-events/blog/bid/11502/Santa-Beats-Boyle-How-The-Holidays-Affect-Online-Video” >tendency for online viewership to drop while people visit their families during the holidays.

Key of Awesome has made its chart debut in 7th place. The top two from November — Fred and Happy Tree Friends — have kept their spots with record numbers. Relative newcomer to the chart Elevator and old standard Smosh have swapped places to 3rd and 4th, respectively. College Humor’s two shows on the chart (Jake & Amir and Hardly Working) have both lost a few rungs on the ladder.

/>

The Chart: December 2009

/> class=”powered-by-vm”> href=”http://www.visiblemeasures.com/mashable” > src=”http://feedproxy.google.com/wp-content/themes/v5/img/visible-measures/powered_by_vm.jpg” alt=”visible measures logo” title=”visible measures logo” width=”164″ height=”40″ />

class=”mmtop” width=”648″ border=”0″ meebo:notSharable=”true” id=”visible-measures”>
colspan=”11″ height=”48″ bgcolor=”#2898d2″ class=”mmtop-heading”> height=”48″ bgcolor=”#1089ca” class=”head”> width=”6″> width=”30″>Rank width=”30″>Last Month’s Rank width=”130″>Title width=”80″>Studio width=”90″>Genre width=”100″>True Reach View Count width=”26″>% Change in Views width=”144″>Sample Episode width=”6″> width=”6″ class=”mmleft”> colspan=”8″>
class=”mmlist” width=”635″ border=”0″>
height=”92″> width=”30″>1 width=”30″>1 width=”130″>Fred width=”80″>n/a width=”90″>Comedy width=”100″>34,242,533 width=”26″>87% width=”144″ class=”preview”> class=”wrapper”> src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/fred.gif”/>
href=”http://cdn.visiblemeasures.com/youtube/chromeful/mashable-popup520×400.html?video=WPVNvJoljD0″>Play
height=”92″ class=”even”> width=”30″>2 width=”30″>2 width=”130″>Happy Tree Friends width=”80″>MondoMedia width=”90″>Animation width=”100″>20,704,049 width=”26″>23% width=”144″ class=”preview”> class=”wrapper”> src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/happytreefriends.gif”/>
href=”http://cdn.visiblemeasures.com/youtube/chromeful/mashable-popup520×400.html?video=lw_Y8QBW6Ts”>Play
height=”92″> width=”30″>3 width=”30″>4 width=”130″>Elevator width=”80″>Break width=”90″>Comedy width=”100″>16,333,962 width=”26″>80% width=”144″ class=”preview”> class=”wrapper”> src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/elevator.gif”/>
href=”http://cdn.visiblemeasures.com/youtube/chromeful/mashable-popup520×400.html?video=ITlcT0-49aQ”>Play
height=”92″ class=”even”> width=”30″>4 width=”30″>3 width=”130″>Smosh width=”80″>Deca TV width=”90″>Comedy, Sketch width=”100″>11,640,168 width=”26″>8% width=”144″ class=”preview”> class=”wrapper”> src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/smosh.gif”/>
href=”http://cdn.visiblemeasures.com/youtube/chromeful/mashable-popup520×400.html?video=kKO-7dLqDWA”>Play
height=”92″> width=”30″>5 width=”30″>5 width=”130″>The Station width=”80″>The Station width=”90″>Comedy width=”100″>5,704,512 width=”26″>1% width=”144″ class=”preview”> class=”wrapper”> src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/thestation.gif”/>
href=”http://cdn.visiblemeasures.com/youtube/chromeful/mashable-popup520×400.html?video=pz-cxjFKUUQ”>Play
height=”92″ class=”even”> width=”30″>6 width=”30″>7 width=”130″>Seth MacFarlane’s Cavalcade of Cartoon Comedy width=”80″>SethComedy width=”90″>Animation, Comedy width=”100″>5,472,233 width=”26″>70% width=”144″ class=”preview”> class=”wrapper”> src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/sethmacfarlanescavalcade.gif”/>
href=”http://cdn.visiblemeasures.com/youtube/chromeful/mashable-popup520×400.html?video=deppIzXmmY4″>Play
height=”92″ class=”even”> width=”30″>7 width=”30″>New width=”130″>Key Of Awesome width=”80″>Barely Political width=”90″>Comedy width=”100″>5,185,183 width=”26″>New width=”144″ class=”preview”> class=”wrapper”> src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2003/01/Key-Of-Awesome.jpg”/>
href=”http://cdn.visiblemeasures.com/youtube/chromeful/mashable-popup520×400.html?video=-GB-MnrQJYE”>Play
height=”92″> width=”30″>8 width=”30″>10 width=”130″>The Guild width=”80″>n/a width=”90″>Comedy, Gaming width=”100″>3,860,439 width=”26″>42% width=”144″ class=”preview”> class=”wrapper”> src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/theguild.gif”/>
href=”http://cdn.visiblemeasures.com/youtube/chromeful/mashable-popup520×400.html?video=24OPgmdeI9g”>Play height=”92″ class=”even”> width=”30″>9 width=”30″>8 width=”130″>Jake & Amir width=”80″>CollegeHumor width=”90″>Comedy, Sketch width=”100″>3,096,508 width=”26″>-2% width=”144″ class=”preview”> class=”wrapper”> src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/jakeandamir.gif”/>
href=”http://cdn.visiblemeasures.com/youtube/chromeful/mashable-popup520×400.html?video=B5crks3U4EM”>Play height=”92″> width=”30″>10 width=”30″>6 width=”130″>Hardly Working width=”80″>CollegeHumor width=”90″>Comedy width=”100″>2,704,501 width=”26″>-18% width=”144″ class=”preview”> class=”wrapper”> src=”http://cdn.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/hardlyworking.gif”/>
href=”http://cdn.visiblemeasures.com/youtube/chromeful/mashable-popup520×400.html?video=DAFtGk_oiTc”>Play width=”6″ class=”mmright”>

*The Visible Measures Top 10 Webisodes Chart focuses on digital studio-driven Web series that appear on Internet video-sharing destinations. Each Web series is measured on a href=”http://corp.visiblemeasures.com/true-reach/” >True Reach™ basis, which includes viewership of both studio-syndicated video clips and viewer-driven social video placements. The data are compiled using the href=”http://corp.visiblemeasures.com/viral-reach-database/” >Visible Measures Viral Reach Database, a constantly growing repository of analytic data on more than 100 million Internet videos across more than 150 video-sharing destinations.

Note: This chart does not include vloggers, interviews, how-to series, news shows, or product review shows. View-count results are incremental by month.

To notify Visible Measures of an upcoming Web series, or for an end-to-end assessment of your campaign’s overall performance, please href=”http://corp.visiblemeasures.com/contact-us/tell-us-about-your-online-video-campaign” >contact us directly.

If you’re interested in exploring this data further, go to href=”http://www.visiblemeasures.com/mashable” >visiblemeasures.com/mashable. />

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High-Pitched Teens and Violent Cartoon Animals

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href=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/happytreefriends640.jpg”> src=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/happytreefriends640.jpg” alt=”" title=”happytreefriends640″ width=”640″ height=”359″ class=”aligncenter size-full wp-image-179967″ />

Fred and Happy Tree Friends are hanging around the top of the chart for the third month in a row. Fred is #1 and Happy Tree Friends is #2, just like November. The chief observation to make here is that these are two markedly different shows.

You would expect the former to appeal to a younger audience — “ href=”http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/webscout/2008/06/freds-youtube-c.html” >by kids, for kids” was part of the original pitch. It’s known for goofy, fast-motion antics and relatable parental drama, but you’ll be surprised to hear that its typical viewer is just over 24 years old. Fred achieved 36 million views, beating the September record of 21. His “Christmas is Creepy” and “Christmas Cash” music videos have each been viewed over six million times, accounting in part for the December success.

The latter is an uber violent cartoon for adults, featuring cute animals regularly dismembered in anatomically correct ways. Clearly that one’s not for kids, but its age demographic lands at 21 — less than that of Fred! Happy Tree Friends grew 23% in viewership over November.

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New on the Scene: Key of Awesome & Elevator

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href=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Key-Of-Awesome.gif”> src=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Key-Of-Awesome.gif” alt=”" title=”Key Of Awesome” width=”240″ height=”132″ class=”alignleft size-full wp-image-179963″ />

Elevator isn’t brand new; it was on last month’s list. But it’s climbed from #4 to #3, bumping established performer Smosh down a step. It grew 80% in December, reaching a very impressive 16 million views.

Absolute newcomer Key of Awesome is an over-the-top music video series that pokes fun at other web videos and popular culture in general. You know those music video digital shorts by the Lonely Island that are now prominently featured on Saturday Night Live? It’s similar to those, but it feels fresher because it can strike for a more niche, in-the-know audience.

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College Humor Missed a Beat

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In October, College Humor became the only studio to land three places in the top ten at the same time. It still has two, both have fallen from 8th and 6th to 9th and 10th. While all the other series saw viewership go up at least a little bit in December, Jake & Amir slipped slightly by 2% and Hardly Working dropped 18%.

You could make the joke that College Humor isn’t as funny (or at least doesn’t get around as easily) to students who are spending the winter at home with their parents, but it’s still impressive that the studio is the only one with two series on the list.

Tags: href=”http://mashable.com/tag/monthly-top-webisodes/”>monthly top webisodes, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/video/”>video, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/visible-measures/”>visible measures, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/web-series/”>web series, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/web-tv/”>Web TV, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/web-video/”>web video



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How Social Media and the Web Helped Avatar Make $1 Billion

Jan 8th

Posted by Samuel Axon in Social

No comments

href=”http://api.tweetmeme.com/share?url=http://mashable.com/2010/01/08/avatar-social-media-web/&service=bit.ly”> width=”51″ height=”61″ src=”http://api.tweetmeme.com/imagebutton.gif?url=http://mashable.com/2010/01/08/avatar-social-media-web/” align=”right”/>

href=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/avatar160.jpg”> src=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/avatar160.jpg” alt=”" title=”avatar160″ width=”219″ height=”160″ class=”alignright size-full wp-image-178883″ />The Simulcam and Fusion 3D camera inventions were not the only technologies that made James Cameron’s Sci-Fi epic Avatar a massive box office success. While smaller films have used social media to spread the word guerrilla-style, no other major blockbuster has employed a full-on social web marketing assault quite like Avatar.

The results in its case were a href=”http://mashable.com/2009/12/21/avatar-earnings/”>$232 million opening weekend, a total of href=”http://mashable.com/2010/01/04/avatar-billion/”>one billion dollars in revenue by year’s end, and the rank of href=”http://perezhilton.com/2010-01-07-avatar-becomes-the-2-all-time-grossing-movie” >#2 highest grossing film of all time. Cameron’s $500 million act of hubris has paid off. Here’s an outline of the social media moves Avatar’s team made to achieve success.

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The Basics: Facebook, Twitter, MySpace

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href=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/avatarfbfans.jpg”> src=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/avatarfbfans.jpg” alt=”" title=”avatarfbfans” width=”133″ height=”160″ class=”alignleft size-full wp-image-180027″ />Avatar has its own href=”http://mashable.com/category/facebook”>Facebook, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/myspace”>MySpace, and href=”http://mashable.com/category/twitter”>Twitter pages. That’s getting to be standard these days. The 18,000-follower href=”http://twitter.com/officialAVATAR”>Twitter account has tellingly not been updated since a few days after the film’s theatrical release; once the word was out, the job was done. While it was active, though, its followers would retweet updates to their followers, who (if interested) would do the same, spreading the word all over the web. The href=”http://www.facebook.com/officialavatarmovie?v=wall&ref=search” >Facebook Page is even more impressive, with over 700,000 fans.

Facebook’s updated Page features make it href=”http://mashable.com/2009/03/19/new-facebook-brands/”>the place to be for brands seeking exposure. The site allows brands to push updates to fans. Those fans see the updates in their personal news feeds, and they can then share them with others, just like on Twitter. Avatar’s Facebook Page is also where the MTV-hosted live webcast was hosted — more on that later.

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Reinventing the Movie Trailer Online

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href=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/avatarinteractive.jpg”> src=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/avatarinteractive.jpg” alt=”" title=”avatarinteractive” width=”640″ height=”409″ class=”aligncenter size-full wp-image-180025″ /> /> Granted, Avatar wasn’t the first film to take its trailer in a new direction for the web. It actually wasn’t first at any of these things, but an expansive strategy combining many of the best existing ideas was what made the film’s social media campaign a success.

It started out with something a lot of movies do now: an href=”http://mashable.com/2009/08/20/avatar-trailer/”>Apple trailer debut, announced on Twitter. Anticipation was high enough that the servers struggled to get the video out to everyone who wanted it. A href=”http://mashable.com/2009/10/29/new-avatar-trailer/”>second trailer rolled out a month later. The web trailers gained additional buzz when fans remixed them and href=”http://mashable.com/2009/12/09/avatar-mashup/”>mashed them up with other movies, something that the folks behind the Avatar marketing machine smartly didn’t interfere with.

It was yet another trailer that impressed us the most, though. An href=”http://mashable.com/2009/11/24/avatar-interactive-trailer/”>interactive trailer was presented as an href=”http://mashable.com/tag/adobe-air”>Adobe Air application. It required a download, but it was worth it for Avatar fans. They could see featured content and they could read the latest social media updates about the movie from within the trailer. The stunt got press coverage and word-of-mouth buzz.

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The Facebook and MTV Webcast

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href=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/avatarmtvfb.jpg”> src=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/avatarmtvfb.jpg” alt=”" title=”avatarmtvfb” width=”640″ height=”442″ class=”aligncenter size-full wp-image-180049″ /> /> On December 3, MTV.com put together an Facebook-hosted, LG-sponsored webcast called “Avatar Live.” Director James Cameron, producer Jon Landau, and stars Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana were interviewed by MTV News’ Josh Horowitz, but the questions were submitted by fans in the days leading up to the event.

The 30-minute interview might have been the most glamorous webcast to date; you just don’t see that many huge Hollywood names sit down to take questions from Internet fans all at once. Though community engagement from a director at that level is quite rare, we were reminded of Peter Jackson’s almost-daily video updates from the sets of The Lord of the Rings.

In both cases, people who didn’t know much about the films tuned in and were sold on them. Existing fans became more passionate about spreading the word and showing up on opening night.

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Broadcasting the Premiere Live On Ustream

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href=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/avatarustream.jpg”> src=”http://mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/avatarustream.jpg” alt=”" title=”avatarustream” width=”200″ height=”160″ class=”alignleft size-full wp-image-180065″ />The red carpet premiere of Avatar was href=”http://mashable.com/2009/12/14/avatar-red-carpet/”>broadcast live to web audiences on video streaming web site Ustream. Apart from the tech media coverage this got, we’re not sure how much this helped put bums in the seats, and the Twilight saga’s New Moon had already done the same thing, but it was neat. Any way you can expose audiences to your film certainly helps.

The broadcast’s sponsor was MySpace, so it reached an audience that might have been missed on Facebook. Fans could watch the video on the film’s MySpace page in addition to the Ustream website. The red carpet premiere came a week before the film hit theaters, so this was just one more way to generate buzz and get press in the final days leading up to the movie’s release. /> /> Do you have any insights about promoting films and other media on the web? What are the best practices? Let us know in the comments.

/>Reviews: href=”http://www.blippr.com/apps/336650-Facebook” >Facebook, href=”http://www.blippr.com/apps/336652-MySpace” >MySpace, href=”http://www.blippr.com/apps/336651-Twitter” >Twitter, href=”http://www.blippr.com/apps/428084-adobe-AIR” >adobe AIR, href=”http://www.blippr.com/apps/478089-twilight” >twilight, href=”http://www.blippr.com/apps/337076-ustream” >ustream

Tags: href=”http://mashable.com/tag/3d/”>3D, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/adobe-air/”>Adobe Air, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/avatar/”>avatar, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/facebook/”>facebook, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/film/”>Film, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/films/”>films, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/james-cameron/”>james cameron, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/marketing/”>MARKETING, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/mtv/”>mtv, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/myspace/”>myspace, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/social-media/”>social media, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/trailer/”>trailer, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/trending/”>trending, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/twitter/”>twitter, href=”http://mashable.com/tag/ustream/”>ustream





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