If you’ve used the dedicated Youtube application for the Ocean at all today, you may have noticed that it was asking you to update to the newer 1.1 version. Oh, but what could be better in this so called new version you ask? How about lightning fast buffering speeds and improved quality? Why yes! Now you can watch this video with a buffering speed of less than 3 seconds, and improved streaming quality. Bravo, Helio. Bravo! As always, you can download the application by opening your Youtube app and downloading the update when it prompts you, or by heading to the Apps section of the WAP store on your device.

And don’t worry, for those of you with a different Helio device, you can still experience the fun through the http://m.youtube.com website.

Oh heeeells yeah.

Back in July, Helio flipped the switch that enabled Push e-mail support for Helio Mail, Yahoo, Windows Live, and AOL.

Gmail has now received the same treatment, making Helio the first carrier to support Push Gmail. It’s available now on any device with Ultimate Inbox. If you already have Gmail configured on your device, all you have to do now is hit “Send/Receive”, and it’ll ask you if you want automatic notifications enabled. Blam - Push Gmail support.

Update: Not just Gmail! All POP inboxes have gotten the option to receive automatic notifications!

Update #2: IMAP, Too!

TeaShark Beta with the Tabs drawer open

It goes without saying that we heart Opera Mini. It generally goes unchallenged as browser of choice; the only browsing experience that can compete (mobile Safari) is only available on the iPhone/iPod Touch, so Opera Mini rules the J2ME world. Being the only good, solid product on a platform has its downsides, though: Without any competition, the drive to progress and innovate is dampened.

Fortunately, that may be about to change. TeaShark, a new free J2ME browser, has come along to light a fire under Opera Mini’s pants, Aiming to bridge the gap between the mobile and desktop browsing experience, it sports many of Opera Mini’s most notable features (Full HTML browsing, Zoom navigation, RSS feeds, etc) while bringing a number of features over from the desktop browser world, including: Tabs (Whoo!), Highlight based searching (Highlight a word, hit 1, and you can search for the phrase on a few different search engines), and a really crafty address completion feature.

TeaShark is currently in beta, and is still very much a work in progress. The tabbing system is a bit broken, QWERTY input isn’t mapping properly (See bottom of post for help with QWERTY.), and things are generally just a bit off at the moment - but it’s an outstanding start, and will certainly make the free mobile browsing market a lot more interesting.

You can send TeaShark to your Helio over at myHelioApps (High fives to djayc for his outstanding work on that site, and emgator for uploading the package).

Play with it a bit, then shoot a message over to info@teashark.com to show’em some love and to let’em know how great it’d be to see improved support for Helio devices.

Update: Turns out, QWERTY can be mapped properly! Hit the Left softkey, go to Tools -> Preferences, and check “Use phone’s editor”. This hinders the usefulness of the awesome address completion system, but allows for proper QWERTY input. (Thanks for the tip, djayc!)

Back in December, we reported on a new trademark that Helio registered, going by the name “AnyLang Messenger”. Although we haven’t had a lot of time to test it out, it seems like it would be very useful to a number of Helio’s members.

AnyLang Messenger allows for texts and one on one chatting to be done in Chinese, Korean, Spanish, or English, and it’s stated that more languages are coming. As of right now, this service is only available for Helio handsets or devices supporting the AnyLang Messenger application. We aren’t sure if there is an equivalent in Korea or China, but we will look into that. AnyLang Messenger also runs at $2.99/month, which doesn’t seem too bad for the ease of texting in a foreign language without actually having to have a handset from that country.

I wish I knew Chinese or Korean to actually have a use for the application. Here’s to hoping that Helio adds ancient runes support or the written language of the Ewoks (Both of which I fluently can write in).

Back in August of ‘07, we managed to get unsupported J2ME applications to run on Helio devices. From day one, Opera Mini has shown to be the most popular application by far; across the download sites that offer it, it has been downloaded tens of thousands of times.

We weren’t too sure how Helio would react to the community offering Opera Mini. Would they react negatively, and try to block the download somehow?

Turns out, quite the opposite. Rather than trying to resist the community’s desire for Opera Mini, they’ve embraced it. As a direct result of its popularity as a homebrew download, Opera Mini has made the jump to being downloadable directly from Helio.

If we’re not mistaken, this makes Helio the first carrier to officially support Opera Mini as an alternative to their own browser. They haven’t made an official announcement, so we’re not sure how they’re positioning the download. However, it’s available now via jump code.

How to get it:

1. From the idle screen, type the jumpcode “67372” (OPERA).
2. Hit the flamekey
3. Download, and enjoy!

The version offered by Helio is a bit newer than what is otherwise available, and a few minor changes have been made for this build.

This is something everyone involved should be proud of. Our collective goal as a community is to make the experience better for as many Helions as we can - looks like we’ve done just that. This is an awesome act on Helio’s part, and a step in the right direction. High fives and fruit snacks for everyone!

Update (3/19/07): Official word in the form of a press release just made its way down the wire.

Key points from the release:
- Helio is the first U.S carrier to sign a deal with Opera
- Newly released version is tailored specifically for Ocean.

“We’re always looking to give our members their choice of great applications so we’re excited to be the first service provider in the U.S. to make Opera Mini an on-deck option,” said Doug Britt, Vice President of Service Management at Helio. “Opera Mini is a tremendous mobile browser. Optimized for Ocean and running on a nationwide 3G network, its a combination that’s tough to match.”

“Offering Opera Mini underscores Helio’s insight into how the mobile industry is evolving,” said Rod Hamlin, SVP Sales and Marketing Americas, Opera. “Helio understands their customers’ desire for innovative and engaging mobile experiences and answering this demand with a choice in browsers explains why Helio selected Opera Mini.”

Read the full press release.

Within a week of Buddy Beacon 2.0’s launch back in the middle of February, Helio came to the community to get some feedback on the application. What did people like? What could be done better?

One hundred and three responses later, one issue was popping up in nearly all of the feedback: Buddy Beacon 2.0 wasn’t doing too well at figuring out where you were. In its first release, it estimated your position off of the location of the nearest cell towers. This detection method was notably quicker to load than satellite based GPS, but this speed came at the expense of accuracy. Sometimes it was dead on; other times it placed you three cities over.

With today’s Buddy Beacon update (2.0.5) , we’re stoked to say that Helio’s request for feedback wasn’t just for show.

Changes in Version 2.0.5:

• Now uses GPS rather than cell tower positioning. This requires a short startup screen at application launch, but improves accuracy by leaps and bounds.
• No more “You might be somewhere in this general location” red circle. Your location is now marked by a specific pinpoint.

It’s awesome to see improvements to an application come directly from user feedback. Big ol’ thumbs up to Helio for that! Hopefully it becomes a trend - no one knows how to make a product better than it’s end users

Update: We forgot to mention - the Buddy Beacon team let us know that they’re hoping to roll out the next update in about 3 weeks. We’ll keep you updated as we find out what this update might bring.

When Buddy Beacon 2.0 was released, reactions were mixed. Some loved it, while others… weren’t quite as fond of it. Everybody had something to say, and most were more than anxious to say it - but unless someone over at Helio was listening, it would be about as effective as discussing philosophy with a house plant.

Turns out, someone over at Helio is listening. In fact, a number of people are - and they want to hear more. After a bit of discussion with’em on the matter, we’ve set up a feedback thread over in the forums to help round up all the feedback in one place. People involved with the Buddy Beacon 2.0 project will be checking the thread regularly, using the feedback to help refine the application.

What we know so far:

• Although uLocate owns the Buddy Beacon brand, Helio is actively involved with it’s implementation on the Helio platform.
• Due to its browser based design, the application is flexible to change. Nearly every aspect of the design is open to refinement, except for its Web 2.0 style implementation.
• Patches should roll out every 2 to 4 weeks, with the first one already in the works.

Be sure to get your feedback in and have your voice heard.

Back in January, Helio sold the Buddy Beacon trademark to uLocate for an undisclosed chunk of change, under the agreement that they’d work together on the service.

This afternoon uLocate utilized the trademark with the release of Buddy Beacon 2.0. Unlike past versions, this release is browser based (via uLocate’s WHERE widget engine) rather than a standalone J2ME application. While this required a few design changes, it allows for one important feature: Buddy Beacon will now be available across additional carriers (Sprint, Boost, Alltel, and MetroPCS), as well as the iPhone.

While it’d usually be a bummer to lose exclusivity, it’s exactly what Buddy Beacon needed. As a social application, its usefulness is determined by how many people can use it. The more the merrier.

The application’s new browser based design makes it a whole lot prettier, allowing it to run on in either landscape or portrait mode on the Ocean. Unfortunately, a few things fell off the truck during the move: you can no longer add people via contacts, and the “Switch to Google Maps” button is gone - so while you can find out where your friends are, it’s not anywhere as easy to find out how to get there.

The new release also includes a Facebook application, which was a welcome surprise. It’s packed with features that just make sense. It digs through your friends list and displays others who have the Buddy Beacon application installed, serving as a quick and easy way to find more people to add. You can also pre-select a list of friends who, from your profile, can request that you update your location.

While we hope the absent features show up eventually, the potential for using the application with friends on other carriers is great in the meantime.

Update: We’re seeing some posts on the forum saying this new Buddy Beacon is a bit less accurate GPS-wise than previous versions, claiming discrepancies of a good number of miles. It’s putting us about 500 feet from our location. What are your experiences?