CellSpin posts multimedia tidbits online
Note: Article updated on 4/15/08 to correctly note where posts default.
CellSpin is the easiest multimedia blogging platform for smartphones I've seen to date. Similar to Utterz and Trutap, CellSpin lets people post photos, videos, text, and audio clips to various online profiles--in CellSpin's case, Picasa Web photos, Flickr, LiveJournal, Blogger, eBay, YouTube, and Windows Live Spaces. Of course, you can't post text to YouTube or video to Facebook, but CellSpin keeps it clear in a convenient chart.
Posting is fairly simple from the downloadable app. You click one of four large icons corresponding to the type of media you'd like to post, and then begin composing. CallSpin launches the cell phone's camera, video camera, or audio recorder, but you can also import media from your device memory or storage card. In addition to uploading to one or more of the sites you've already selected online, each post is also recorded on your CellSpin account. Users can also create clogs (community blogs) or follow a clog that aligns to their interests.
(Credit: CellSpin)I mentioned that I thought CellSpin is currently the easiest to use, but perhaps what I really mean is that it's the most conventional. Utterz and Trutap also post to quality sites, with some overlap, but each effectively targets a different user set. Utterz is the most open setup, since it relies on users to e-mail or call in their media, something they can do from nearly every phone. However, there's no app client for generating a cohesive feel; all the software is on Utterz's server end. Like CellSpin, Trutap uploads media posts from an application interface, but it's not yet compatible with all U.S. carriers, so if you're on AT&T, Sprint, or T-Mobile, you're out of luck. (The service is in beta, however, so this could change in the near future.)
In rare instances, CellSpin suffers installation woes. On a T-Mobile BlackBerry, for instance, the carrier and device had failed to communicate. With a few manual changes to the TCP settings, all was dandy.
CellSpin is free, but ad-supported, with a current campaign focusing on social awareness. You can download CellSpin for BlackBerry, Symbian, and Windows Mobile phones or sign up online from your desktop or mobile browser.
