Case in point: Today, mobile VoIP startup Fring is adding some new features to its mobile application, including file-swapping.
The SDK, which will be free for developers, will work for nearly any sort of mobile application, including things like games, entertainment apps, productivity apps, personalization apps, and more.
The phone runs Windows Mobile 5.0 and can handle most Windows Mobile applications, including Media Player 10 Mobile for music and video playback.
Apple now builds it into its Safari browser, Amazon uses it in the Kindle, and it is built into several mobile applications, including Flipboard, Pulse and Reeder.
For example, the T20 that I tested has a new array of color-coded buttons just above the keyboard that trigger specific mobile applications, including a ThinkPad button that automatically connects the user to an Internet-based service center, assuming the laptop is connected to a network, of course.
Other new mobile applications include a tool called NOAH that lets you take cellphone pictures of bugs and trees and then sends back an identification of the exact type in as little as 24 hours and one that provides a similar service for historical landmarks, a result of a partnership between the History Channel and Foursquare.
"There's no doubt that mobile applications, including Yelp's, give consumers the ability to bypass the major search engines and go directly to the best provider of the service they're looking for," said Vince Sollitto, vice president for government relations at Yelp.
Mobiata creates a number of travel mobile applications including FlightTrack, TripDeck, HotelPal FlightBoard and FareCompare.
Behind all that usability, however, Apple has also packed in a real operating system powerful enough to let developers create the next generation of mobile applications, including cutting-edge GPS-aware cloud services like Google Maps.
Shout'Em is planning on launching several other mobile applications, including a Java application for users without an iPhone or Android phone.
