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a few great non-app mobile services

// March 18th, 2009 // No Comments » // applications, cellphones, mobile

For anyone who hasn’t opted for an iPhone, or other mobile that features downloadable apps, there’s quite a few services out there that you can use simply by calling or texting keywords. I have an iPod Touch for using Apple apps, but I haven’t yet upgraded to a smartphone (mostly because AT&T service in VT is horrible where I am, making the iPhone pretty useless). I currently use many of the following services to get information or make updates from my basic Samsung Alias.

Update Blogs/Social Networks:

  1. Facebook Mobile – Update your status, send photos, poke, send messages, and get phone numbers via email/SMS
  2. LiveJournal – Update your blog via email/SMS
  3. Twitter – Send tweets, see tweets, send replies and direct messages via SMS
  4. Posterous – Update your Posterous blog via email/SMS/MMS
  5. TwitPic – Share photos on Twitter
  6. Twittermail – Email updates and photos to Twitter.
  7. Twitxr – Update Facebook, Flickr, Picasa, Twitter, etc.

Get Weather, Sports Scores, etc.:

  1. 4INFO – Get weather, stock quotes, sports scores, news, diet tips, etc.

Voice-Automated Services:

  1. Dial2Do (Fav. of Mine) – Amazing service. You simply call your given number, say a command, and follow it with what you need to do. Examples of available services include writing emails, listening to your emails being read to you; updating Twitter, Facebook, FriendFeed, etc.; keep notes or send notes to Evernote or Remember the Milk; have news read to you from TechCruch to LifeHacker, etc.; post to your LiveJournal, Blogger, WordPress blog, etc.; Get weather, update xpenser (see below), etc. The list literally goes on and on.
  2. Reqall (Fav. of Mine) – Similar to Remember the Milk or Jott. Let’s you call and send in notes, to-do’s, dates to remember, etc.
  3. Jott – Voice to text notes and to-do’s. Email and text message reminders.
  4. GOOG 411 (Fav. of Mine) – Free 411 service. Call for “pizza” in a city and it returns all listings. Or call with a business name in a city and get back the number with options to text it, send it, or connect to them for free.
  5. Tell Me – Especially works well with Blackberry. Get movies, stocks, weather, etc.

Keep Checkbook, Schedule Tivo, Add to Netflix Queue, Manage To-Do’s:

  1. Remember the Milk – Get email, SMS, or IM reminders, manage tasks, share tasks, etc.
  2. XPenser – Manage a check register. Text in withdrawals/deposits or set up voice activation with Dial2Do (mentioned above). Check your entries/enter entries online and export data for use in spreadsheet applications.
  3. Google Mobile – Offers everything from SMS, Blogger, Calendar, Docs, Reader, Notebook, Photos, News, iGoogle, Sync, YouTube, Gmail, Maps and Search.
  4. Kwiry – Update Netflix and Tivo, search Amazon, check email, update Facebook and Twitter, get Yelp results, etc.
  5. Quicken Beam – Check balances via SMS

Voicemail Services:

  1. Message Sling – Get messages, see missed calls (even when your phone’s off), use custom greetings, listen to your messages online, etc.
  2. YouMail (Fav. of Mine) – Get messages, see missed calls (even when your phone’s off), use custom greetings, listen to your messages online, etc.

Miscellaneous:

  1. Text Marks – Choose what message you want to display when people text a term to 41411. For example, when someone texts ‘mepriestley’ to 41411, they get a text message sent to their phone with all of my contact information.
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