Top keywords: "droid medical apps" and "medical apps for droid"

Over the past few weeks, the top keywords that have caused people to visit MedicalSmartphones.com include:

1.  droid medical apps
2.  medical apps for droid
3.  medical droid apps 

Notice a theme? All these Android users are searching for useful medical apps for their Droid smartphone. I'm sure some are using the HTC Droid Eris or a different Android device like the Nexus One, G1, Hero, or Devour.

Right now, if you type any of these keywords (phrases) into Google, you'll see that this MedicalSmartphones.com comes up as #1. Search engines are dynamic and this keyword listing/ranking could change in a few weeks. Recently, the top keyword used to be "Android vs iPhone" but I guess that debate has been answered by most people.

Advanced Task Killer (ATK) for Android - great little utility

If you're using an Android smartphone like the Motorola Droid, the HTC Droid Eris, the HTC Hero, or the Google Nexus One, make sure you install Advanced Task Killer or ATK. It's currently listed as one of the most popular free apps on the Android Market (app store).

What's so great about Advanced Task Killer? It's a great little utility that allows you to close (or kill) apps running in the background. On smartphones running Android, if you switch from one app to another app, the first app still runs in the background. If you're not rebooting your smartphone on a regular basis, then you may notice that your device is getting slow and sluggish. Advanced Task Killer allows you to effectively close some of those apps running in the background so that you can have access to more memory for your current app.

HTC Releases Widgets for Android

According to AndroLib.com, HTC has released some free widgets for its Android smartphones (HTC Droid Eris and HTC Hero). These widgets include:

• Dice
• Today in History
• Tip Calculator
• Battery

It seems a bit strange to think that Android needs a separate widget for battery. I'm still waiting to see more robust medical apps for Android. Until that happens, the medical smartphone space will be dominated by other systems like the Apple iPhone and the RIM BlackBerry. I'm sure it won't take long before Google catches up with Android and Microsoft will be left in the dust if they don't significantly revamp Windows Mobile 7.

Drug reference guides for Android

If you're using an Android powered smartphone (such as the Motorola Droid, the HTC Hero, HTC MyTouch, or the HTC Droid Eris), then you may be wondering when Epocrates will release drug reference software for your operating system. You can access drug information via your mobile web browser (m.epocrates.com) or you can purchase drug reference medical apps from Unbound Medicine (such as Drug Facts or Davis's Drug Guide). MobilePDR will also be available for Android in 2010 and I'm sure Epocrates will have some Android software in 2010.

If you have a subscription to UpToDate, remember that you can access that via a mobile web browser and look up drug info (powered by Lexi-Comp). Finally, you may be glad to know that Skyscape now offers an Android Reader for their titles.

Are you getting excited about Droid?

Verizon Wireless is doing quite a bit to promote their upcoming new Google Android-powered smartphones. They're putting almost all the emphasis on the Motorola Droid and practically ignoring the HTC Droid Eris (yes, the name "Droid" will carry through on all the Android smartphones carried by Verizon Wireless). The Eris is really a Hero, but they're calling it an Eris. Confusing, right?

Well, I think it's great to see Google's smartphone operating system finally reaching other major carriers. Maybe we'll see so many loyal Android users that when Verizon finally gets the Apple iPhone, few people will get excited about that.

I love droids. R2-D2 is my favorite droid. I'm happy with my current HTC Touch Pro2 running Windows Mobile, but I think that I may someday become an Android user before I become an iPhone user.

Samsung Moment (Google Android) now at Sprint

The Samsung Moment is now available from Sprint. It's Sprint's second smartphone to run Google's Android smartphone operating system (the HTC Hero was the first). It's great to see a smartphone that has a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and an AM-OLED screen.

Although this device comes with Android 1.6, let's hope that it will soon get the upgrade to Android 2.0.

As we see more Android smartphones emerge, let's hope that all those medical application providers are quickly cranking out software that will be compatible for Android. At the end of the day, everything may turn into web-based software services and we may no longer need standalone apps that reside on a handheld. Once that becomes the norm, we won't worry about smartphone operating systems. You'll simply need a mobile web browser to access your medical references, calculators, etc. It will be cloud computing on a mini (or nano) scale: on your smartphone.

HTC Droid Eris (Hero) for $99

The HTC Droid Eris (Hero) will be the most affordable Google Android-powered smartphone this fall. You'll get this new smartphone for $99.

Why am I calling the Eris a Hero? Well, according to several rumors, the Eris will be the CDMA version of the Hero, which is a GSM smartphone. When HTC makes the same phone for CDMA and GSM networks, they often rename them even though most of the hardware specs are virtually the same. You may find some subtle nuances, such as the location of a headphone jack, the location of the memory card slot, some internal RAM, etc.

Sprint HTC Hero running Google Android is now on sale

If you're new to the Sprint network, should you get a Palm Pre running webOS or the HTC Hero running Google's Android?

There aren't many medical apps for either webOS or Android, so you won't gain much in terms of medical software. On webOS, you could run an emulator and still use some older original Palm OS apps.

Let's take a step back for a minute. If you had to rate your level of confidence in Google vs. Palm, how would you rate them? I think Palm used to be a major smartphone player in the medical community, but they lost so much ground that it's going to be a difficult battle to compete against the Apple iPhone, BlackBerry, and Android. I don't think they'll have too much trouble beating Windows Mobile. 

I think Google has the infrastructure and resources to make Android a dominant smartphone operating system. If you believe that too, then you may want to get a taste of the future by selecting an Android smartphone. That's what I would do if I were on the Sprint network. But, since I'm on Verizon Wireless, I'll stick with Windows Mobile for now.

The HTC HD2 has a huge multi-touch screen!

The HTC HD2 will be the first Windows Mobile 6.5 smartphone that has a multi-touch screen. On this smartphones, you'll get to use multi-touch gestures and the HTC Sense user interface that was first seen on the Android-based HTC Hero. The HD2 also has the largest screen of any Windows Mobile smartphone (or just about any smartphone for that matter). A 4.3" screen will look HUGE compared to the old 2.8" screens found on most older Windows Mobile smartphones. Even the 3.6" screens found on the new HTC Touch Pro2 and the HTC Touch Diamond2 will look small compared to 4.3 inches.



The HTC HD2 also has the fastest processor of any Windows Mobile smartphone. The Qualcomm 1 GHz Snapdragon mobile processor will blaze, but will it also drain the battery? The HD2 is slim, but maybe the battery is slim and wide. The HD2 is so slim that it lacks a hardware QWERTY keyboard, but who needs buttons when the screen is this big?


This may be the ideal medical smartphone for older healthcare providers who have difficulty reading small text. Will a large screen = larger text size? Let's hope so.

Is the HTC Touch Pro2 coming to Verizon this month?

There are so many circulating rumors about the possibility that the HTC Touch Pro2 may be coming to Verizon Wireless this month. Along with those rumors, people are saying that this new Windows Mobile smartphone will be priced at $199. That would seem like a reasonable price if you look at some of the other popular smartphones such as the Apple iPhone, the Palm Pre, and the HTC Hero. Will the HTC Touch Pro2 be the most popular Windows Phone this fall/winter? I think that will depend on when Samsung launches their line of smartphones.

I plan to stick with my current HTC Touch Pro. I just got this phone a few weeks ago! I could theoretically return it since I'm still within the 30 day return period, so maybe I'll change my mind if the price is right. However, I'd rather stick with a free phone for now and then upgrade in a couple of years when Windows Mobile 7 comes out (maybe by then it will be 7.1 or 7.5).

HTC Hero may be Sprint's first Google Android smartphone

According to many circulating rumors, the HTC Hero may become the first smartphone on Sprint's wireless network to run the Google Android operating system. This appears to be a really nice phone with a large screen. No hardware keyboard buttons, but this may become the norm rather than the exception. On-screen keyboards are getting quite sophisticated and we quickly see more smartphones eliminating keyboard buttons to place them on the screen.

I've always been a fan of HTC phones. I think they make excellent products. You'll see high quality and innovative engineering in the designs of these phones. Google Android is still a "primitive" operating system for healthcare professionals who want a robust selection of medical software for their devices. However, I'm sure this trend will change quickly as more software developers release titles for Android. If you wish to be an early adopter, then go for the HTC Hero. Otherwise,

HTC Hero reviewed on Engadget

The HTC Hero running Google Android as its operating system (OS) has been reviewed by Engadget. What's the verdict? They think that the HTC Hero represents the best Android phone (for now), but the hardware is disappointing. HTC has made some incredible refinements to the Android OS, but the hardware isn't able to support everything in an optimal way.

Well, that's a bit disappointing. I wasn't planning on switching to Android because of the paucity of medical software that's currently available. However, it would be nice to expand the smartphone space with additional options. I'm a big HTC fan. I've owned several phones made by HTC and I think they do a great job designing their devices.

To read the review on Engadget, click here.

HTC Hero - the "best" Android phone yet

It appears that the HTC Hero is being called the "best" Android phone yet. Considering that we've seen so few phones running Android, I'm not entirely sure what this means. However, I do know that HTC makes some fantastic phones that always seem to get rebranded (some examples of that type of rebranding include: Palm Treo, T-Mobile Dash, and Verizon Wireless XV6800).

When I hear the word "Hero," I now automatically think of a martial arts movie titled, "Hero." That movie stars Jet Li, Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung, Donnie Yen, and Zhang Ziyi.

HTC TouchFLO and HTC Sense

HTC is a leading mobile phone manufacturer based in Taiwan. They create many phones running Windows Mobile and they have a unique interface called TouchFLO (which almost eliminates the need for a stylus since you can navigate using your finger instead). It appears that TouchFLO might soon get replaced with HTC Sense, another user interface which is going to appear on the HTC Hero (running Google Android).

HTC Hero will run Google's Android

The HTC Hero is another phone that will be running Google's Android. However, it will run a new user interface called HTC Sense. Here's a quote from Brighthand: "HTC Sense is a distinct experience created to make HTC phones more simple for people to use, leaving them saying, it just makes sense," said Peter Chou, CEO, HTC Corporation. The HTC Hero will be the first Android phone with Adobe Flash support. My prediction is that most phones will eventually support Flash. The big question is: when will that "someday" arrive?