If you are involved in the east coast tech scene, I urge you to see http://nytechvision.com for the call to action and how to vote.

You can choose ‘Maps’ and tell it to search for a place. Choose ‘Search’ and ask Google or Yahoo a question. Choose ‘Phone’ and have it search your contacts by name. Choose ‘Social’ and have it update your Facebook or Twitter status. Or just choose ‘Home’ and have it search what it guesses you’re after.

Unlike voice search in Google Mobile App, with Vlingo you must press a button and speak into the phone’s mic rather than simply lift the phone to your head to start and remove from ear to end. But unlike Google mobile app, Vlingo works astoundingly well! It had much better comprehension much more often for many obscure tests that I ran. And it works very fast. And is free.

If you have an iPhone or Blackberry I highly recommend checking it out. The iPhone version is available on the App Store (pending notoriously flakey app release schedules), and the Blackberry version is at http://vlingo.com

It’s very good: you don’t have to press any buttons, lifting to your ear starts it and removing from ear stops it. But it only works w/ straight-up search, not maps or contacts. And its success rate at understanding clear spoken English is not too stellar.

I’m jaded because I’m testing another app, which so far kicks the G-app’s butt. Will write (rave) about it as soon as the embargo lifts.

What’s w/ the term ‘embargo’, anyway? Thought that was for rogue countries…

-Groucho Marx

MS DOS was nothing until spreadsheets and word processing ran on it.
Apple was nothing until home publishing ran on it.
Heck, even the TV was of questionable use until a killer app showed up: The Milton Berle Show.

Not sure if this belongs in the same exact category, but SHAZAM for iPhone and Android G1 is MIND-BLOWING.

When you hear a song you like but can’t identify, you launch the app, point the phone’s mic at the nearest speaker for less than a minute, and it identifies what’s playing. The album cover appears on your phone, along w/ artist, song, and album info. It also points you to related YouTube videos, and to iTunes where you can buy the track and related songs. Not a bad business case.

The server seems to have an uncanny knack for getting it right, no matter what part of the song, and a deep rich database that recognized some obscure tunes.

You also become a walking evangelist for it when people give you the puzzled “what are you doing?” as you’re standing there at a cafe pointing a device upward like you’re reading a meter or something.

My question stems from the big obvious drawback to “open” here: that as with the iPhone, this product is stuck to one carrier. However, once the platform actually goes open source, we could look forward to seeing entire new devices that work on other networks. Engadget talks a bit more about this: they expanded upon my question in private afterwards, and got a more encouraging answer. I’m still dubious as to how other carriers may take to this or fight it, but this is a big start.

Also to note: The word “iPhone” must be taboo amongst the companies involved. In the response to my question, where I mention iPhone by name, he says “the device you mention”.

Re the device itself, I don’t have much more than what’s already been said. I’m definitely impressed that for something that came out so relatively quickly, and it being just the 1.0 version, it’s a very slick-looking and -feeling gadget. Not quite as sexy as iPhone’s screen and pinch functions, but it’s close and adds a real keyboard.

Also, re core PIM apps and messaging: At the moment, I love Windows Mobile, mostly because since I’m already bought into the Microsoft vertical (Exchange), it’s a seamless experience. Similarly, the G1 launches really optimized around gmail, gCal, etc, and for now your experience will likely be dictated by how tied your life is tied to the Google vertical. But give it a chance to launch and attract some developers (Good Technology-type outfits, and indy developers) to write Exchange clients etc, and this platform could be promising long-term.

Finally to the rescue: Apple’s new Genius feature, which I put to the test. The functionality centers on basically being Pandora for iTunes (this concept agreed to by Apple people I spoke to during the launch).

When you first activate Genius in iTunes, it takes a while for your entire library to communicate with the server. I imagine this is because your songs now get some sort of dna-type tag so iTunes can identify them by genre, feel, etc.

You can then ‘Start Genius’ based on any song in your library you choose. I chose “Us & Them” by Pink Floyd, assuming I’d then have a solid stream of dreamy yet strong tunes for when I’m motorcycle cruising around in the mountains.

Well, the list was interesting and entertaining. But oddly curious. Not really sure how the list it generated was really “songs that go great together”, and whether simply hitting the ‘random’ function would fare much better. Smart list? It didn’t suggest any real oddballs, but I’d hesitate to call it ‘genius’. Still, an interesting feature, fun to use, and I was entertained on this weekend’s Pocono Mountains ride.

One thing to note, the way I used it was to open iTunes, generate the Genius playlist and copy the list to the iPod. It is killer to have this on the go, but that is only available on the new Nano and 1 or 2 other brand new models. The 1-year-old Classic can NOT be upgraded for this. And the richness of the list is certainly affected by the depth of your collection, so small hard-drived iPods like the Nano will be challenged.

This takes care of two issues I have as a NYC frequent traveller:
1. Far and away the fastest, most flexible, cheapest way to get to and from the airport.
2. Solves where to keep my scooter when I’m gone, since I normally park on the street.

I checked it out today and it’s legit.

View Larger Map

To get there, get to Lefferts Blvd from Nassau Expressway/S. Conduit. As you approach, you won’t miss signs that say “Kiss & Fly” (cute too) and “long-term parking”. You’ll then see clear signs that add “motorcycle parking” to Kiss & Fly, leading to the small lot (as pictured in the embed above). There’s about 15 spaces. No time limits. The AirTrain to all terminals is directly above and is free too. A variety of bikes made it seem safe: some hi-end sportbikes, some covered, some locked, but some just sitting exposed. There’s also a 24-hour security booth right there, though of course parking is at your own risk.

From now on, as long as it’s not snowing and I only need 1 carry-on or large backpack, this is the way I’m gonna fly.

PS: tomorrow’s trip will be largely 2-wheeled for me. Once I arrive in downtown San Francisco, I’m renting a bike to get around town to conferences and meetings in the City.