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Yahoo! Messenger on the new Helio Ocean device

May 11, 2007 on 11:21 am | In Mobile | 9 Comments

There’s a slick new integration of Yahoo! Messenger on Helio’s latest device (I’ve been told I shouldn’t just call it a “phone” ), The Ocean. One of the most talked-about features is the dual QWERTY and numeric keyboards that pop out from the main handset. So already we’re talking about a phone that makes messaging easier.

If you’re into mobile messaging, the Helio Ocean will be hard to resist. Unlike traditional mobile phones that require you to sign into each service when you want to email or IM, the Ocean integrates all your options into a single messaging hub. “Just start typing a name from Ocean’s idle screen and the Helio Smart Dialer searches the address book by first and last name and pulls up full contact information, complete with icons to show if a person is logged in to Yahoo! Messenger, AIM or Windows Live Messenger.” And when a new IM message comes in, you get an alert on the screen which you can click to respond or ignore.

There are other Yahoo! services integrated into the phone including Yahoo! Search, Yahoo! Mail and Yahoo! Address book, which gets synced automatically with your contact list. The wondrous thing about the Helio is the online services are seamlessly integrated into the Ocean’s features. For example, when you do a web search, you get results from Yahoo!, Google, Amazon and Wikipedia, all in separate tabs for the choosing.

In addition to the cool messaging integrations, the Helio Ocean offers an array of multimedia features like external stereo speakers, Bluetooth, a 2.0 megapixel camera, plus support for music storage and playback (or other files). And soon after launch, they’ll offer a custom MySpace application that lets you add, edit and view photos and profiles.

I don’t have a Helio Ocean in hand so I can’t give you intimate details, but head over to Slashgear for a great hands-on review of the device. The Helio Ocean is priced at $295 and is available at Helio stores or online at http://www.helio.com.

Sarah Bacon
Product Manager

9 Comments »

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  1. Gah. I can’t go anywhere without escaping the Helio Ocean it seems. Hopefully it will be mine soon, all mine!

    Comment by Bobby — May 11, 2007 #

  2. Nice Product.

    Comment by Piper — May 12, 2007 #

  3. That’s nice. I like that you’re constantly “signed in” because I’ve seen a lot of bugs with sign in/off. That gets rid of one problem.

    Oh, and on an unrelated note, are there plans anytime soon to add more downloadable skins? I like all the extra interactive features on Y Messenger, but the interface just seems a little bland, lol.

    Comment by dudette — May 14, 2007 #

  4. Hi dudette,

    No plans at the moment for more downloadable skins that I know of. Some clever people create their own though – this one skins Messenger to look like another IM service:

    http://tech-buzz.net/2007/04/25/how-to-make-yahoo-messenger-look-like-google-talk/

    ;)

    Sarah Bacon

    Comment by Administrator — May 14, 2007 #

  5. Also, it’s really not that hard to make skins. I’ve made several skins for Yahoo! Messenger v8.1 including an orange cream skin that I’m quite proud of.

    Screenshot (edited out buddy list and name, screen shot also a part of my name. Click on my name here if the link doesn’t appear below):
    http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/7324/orangecreamdx7.png

    As you can see, it’s pretty nice. My newest “project” is a skin based off the new Web Messenger.

    Comment by Venom — May 14, 2007 #

  6. Very cool Venom! Thanks for sharing,

    Sarah Bacon

    Comment by Administrator — May 14, 2007 #

  7. You can create your own skins in seconds with the push of a few buttons:

    http://tiny.wackyb.net/nz/SkinMaker

    :-$ Why wait for the Vista messenger for custom skins including wood, metal, and grass…

    If you want to customise the skins further then check out our comprehensive Yahoo Messenger Skins articles (currently on the front page here: http://www.wackyb.co.nz ). Start at the first page here:

    http://www.wackyb.co.nz/Yahoo!_Messenger_Skins

    Most skins available to download are not fully compatible with v8 and above (including the additional skins Yahoo! provide). If you want check out some of the best and unique skins compatible with the latest messenger version (v8.1) then start here:

    http://tiny.wackyb.net/nz/YahooSkinLibrary

    B-)

    – Andy

    Comment by Andy — May 14, 2007 #

  8. iWe need to start boycotting yahoo messanger, They are refusing to listen to the chatters who are tired of the bots in the rooms… Move to google talk…… it nice,,, no bots,,,

    So just boycott yahoo in general,,,,and all there advertisers……………….

    Comment by den — May 14, 2007 #

  9. :”> Looks like the URL for the skins tutorial above got chopped a bit short at the exclamation mark… Oooops!

    I’ve made a smaller link for the page:

    http://tiny.wackyb.net/nz/YahooSkinsInfo

    (WackyB has a loads of new skins available for download with new and original skins added all the time, so check back often! The link below has a sneak peek of some of the new skins available soon for download in WackyB’s skin library:

    http://www.wackyb.co.nz/vb/showthread.php?t=1081 )

    Comment by Andy — May 15, 2007 #

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