On Thursday, Kadoink, an audio-messaging service, officially announced its beta Web site. The audio-delivery service, summarized at the Under the Radar Conference, sends MP3s, and voice and text messages to individuals or groups from your phone or the Web, harnessing one of seven widgets to automate updates.
Kadoink's phonecasting audience takes in social butterflies, particularly the party-going set. Ka...doinkers (?) are encouraged to send voice and music clips from gatherings, concerts, and other too-cool-to-be-true events. It does require an initial time investment to create friend groups online or by phone, the latter method that requires texting-specific messages to Kadoink's shorthand code.
Like Utterz and YouMail, Kadoink is a mix of Internet management with voice activity initiated from your cell phone. For instance, the service's music-sending, group call, birthday widgets, and so on, you create online within your Kadoink account, then can publish to one of many social networks and blogs.
(Credit:
CNET Networks)
I quick-published a birthday widget on my Facebook profile from Kadoink.com via the MyStuff application. Then, I entered my cell number into the Facebook widget to leave myself a birthday greeting. A few seconds later I received the call; Kadoink's automated voice service prompting me to leave a birthday greeting. A text message then graced another phone, informing me of the birthday greeting that I can collect on my actual birthday.
The system appears to work more or less seamlessly, though some functions seem more useful than others. Gloating to five friends at once about a great concert I'm attending is a worthy application. If I want to leave a friend a birthday message, I'm more likely to call her up myself.
Verizon, Sprint-Nextel, and AT&T/Cingular users can text Kadoink's code--33033--to send messages. T-Mobile and Alltel users will find limited functionality while Kadoink continues negotiations.
New social networks are born each day, and at the Under the Radar conference (see all posts) a new batch is on display. Most are in early funding stages, and one is so new it's still in closed beta. The other three are ready for a try-out.
I'll give Frengo this--it's certainly different than most mobile chatting services. Case in point: Neither of Frengo's main competitors, Twitter and Jaiku, asks users to vote, compete in contests, or earn points. In that sense, a bit of the social-discovery element of social networks creeps in. Except, of course, the goal isn't necessarily to become friends with other users. Frengo is more interested in social collision--sort of a tamer, more innocent Hot or Not. Example? The Flirtable Facebook application launched last Thursday.... Read more
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