by Klotar on Wed Mar 10, 2010 11:12 am
This is a tough question.
VT has a lot of functionality in one package; some of which are unique, some of which can replace an existing application, some of which are convenient but other applications out there do. Before I can think of what I'd like VT to do in the future, I look at what it does now.
While I'm no BB expert nor can I possibly know all the applications out there; I look at VT sort of in this way:
Auto Reply: there is only one other major auto responder out there, but it only works on emails, not SMS. There is another auto responder out there that has all but faded away that did act on SMS and emails, but it had no filtering ability. IMO, this makes VT's unique.
Run on Start / Schedule / Event: I know of only one Run on Start type app out there, but Event and Schedule I don't know of any offhand. Backlight Off being the only option in Run on Event is a bit limiting but I'd guess API's might not allow much more. On Receive New Message, On Incoming Call, etc. might be more useful but I guess most 3rd party apps have their own listeners, and schedulers for that matter but these make VT unique that it can launch other apps. I like the Scheduled Reboot ability, as there is really only one app out there that does this (not that either it nor VT works for me on my current OS). There are a few apps that turn WiFi off and on, but VT can replace that for me too.
Just Take the Picture: great and unique idea!
Convenient Keys and Popup Menu's: also a great idea/feature although I haven't had a chance to play with them much, I have read up on what they can do. These make VT unique also.
Home Screen Bookmarks: there are a couple of these apps out there but the inclusion with VT is great and can replace those other apps.
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Alarms, Flashlight, Tip Calc, Unit Conversion, Weather: these all have a plethora of apps out there that do the same thing. That said, not many will buy an app for Tip Calculation or Unit Conversion as stand alone apps, so these being included make VT convenient (although currency conversion with dated data may be a concern).
The ability to move these apps to the homescreen as shortcuts as a bookmark is pretty cool.
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Okay. So I've assessed the personal value of VT to me (basically in the order I listed them), realizing that of course everyone's needs are different. Part of it is based on apps I already have, apps that I don't have that VT does, and applets that I am indifferent to. So what would I like to see VT do?
Scheduled Profile Changer? There are three major players out there, but none can overcome the locked /holstered keystroke injection limitation yet. Can VT do it with a work-around? e.g. if VT cannot actually change the profile from Normal to Quiet, could it instead programmatically mute the speaker and suppress the vibration, thereby "simulating" the Quiet profile? If so, it'd be a winner.
LED Notification? In the last couple of years, the market went from having one app to now having at least a dozen. That said, if you use the same filtering techniques as with Auto Reply, VT would be in there with the best of them and would be a fine addition, even though I personally already have almost every one of these apps out there, hehe.
Call Blocker? Like LED notification, there were only one or two out there two years ago, but now there are at least thirty similar apps.
HoneyDew: I am indifferent on this one, as I bought both VT and HoneyDew already.
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My suggestions / wish list?
I'd still like a selective database backup to SD card, which can be restored from on-the-fly. By selective I don't mean certain messages from a message database (I know that it's all or none basically on database restores), but what I do mean are, my top 3: Profiles, Service Books, Contacts. Profiles because occasionally we bork them up, Service Books because sometimes resending them without wireless service is a pain, and Contacts as a last resort restore for those that don't sync or backup through DTM. There are now a bunch of apps that back up contacts, calendar, tasks, etc. out there, wired and OTA, but not many, or any, that save the actual database(s) on-device and less that can do a restore (overwrite current) that I know of.
Spam Filter? There is only one on-device email spam filter on the market now, oh and it's $50. I already purchased that one but I think it'd be a nice addition for VT. By incorporating filtering code used in Auto Reply, you can create rules based on your existing contacts, domain names, address black/white lists. No need to get fancy with heuristic engines and such; just basic filtering, some basic logging of what's been filtered, and a small size-configurable self-cleaning database of filtered messages.
Those are my top two. Probably not for everyone, likely not viable for inclusion with VT even (the Spam Filter might be better off stand-alone), and maybe neither are worth the cost/benefit/need/effort to program.