There’s quite a collection of good and colorful blogs that track iPhones, Android devices, BlackBerries and other smartphones and no shortage of overlapping coverage among them (How many different “scoops” on the Android-powered Motorola Devour phone did I come across today?).
Some are written by professional reporters, others by unapologetic geeks and others by thinly-veiled marketers. Here’s a spin through 50 of these mobile phone blogs, excluding more general gadget sites and including a few from my employer, IDG:
General smartphones
BGR (Boy Genius Report): The mysterious Boy Genius and friends blog about mobile gadgets from Apple, RIM and others, and more often than not, are the first ones out with the information. Blog posts cover everything from the latest device rumors to straight financial news. One sign that this is a go-to site: The hundreds of comments posted by readers on the site’s blog entries.
Cool Smartphone: Tackles Windows Mobile, iPhone and Android happenings. Refers to Windows Mobile as WinMo, and suggests Microsoft needs to make Windows Mobile cool by exploiting the goodwill from the Windows 7 rollout.
EngadgetMobile: Zeroes in on the most mobile of the gadgets that the broader Engadget website covers.
iFixit:This blog comes from a company that helps people fix their Macs and other Apple devices, but the highlight of the blog is the posts about hot new devices like the Nexus One smartphone from Google/HTC that they tear apart and look at from the inside.
IntoMobile: This blog is handled by a crew of 7 editors and has been around since 2005. IntoMobile’s coverage spans all of the major wireless device vendors and carriers, features a slick system for navigating by vendor and boasts a page with financial information on key players as well. Video and audio content round things out on this site.
Know Your Cell: Technically, the site has less of a blog feel and more of a news site feel, with an emphasis on carrier offerings, devices and mobile apps, plus lots of How To pieces.
MobilitySite: A little less bloggy feeling than some of the others, covers the gamut from Windows Mobile to iPhones.
pdaBlast: Branches off into a bunch of more specific “Blast” sites, focused on BlackBerry, iPhone, Palm, Symbian, Windows Mobile, Android, etc.
Tell it like it is: The very opinionated Andrew Seybold doesn’t blog much more than a couple of times a month, though also mixes in commentary via an email newsletter. Topics range from Google Nexus 1 to wireless auctions, a particular hot button of his.
Google Android
Android Angle: Mark Murphy’s weekly Network World blog includes topics such as hitting Android developers upside the head to get them to be more self-reliant and the latest on the Nexus One phone.
Androinica: One nice feature is a beginner’s guide to Android.
Android Authority: Reports on everything from the latest phones to new Android collectibles. Not much action on the comments/community front.
Android Central: Part of the Smartphone Experts family of sites, this blog breaks news (such as on Google hiring a phone support team) and features hands-on reviews of the latest Nexus One, etc., products.
AndroidEverything: Usual collection of Android, Nexus One, etc., tidbits, plus an active forum community. Part of a blog network that includes less active Windows Mobile and BlackBerry sites.
AndroidGuys: The bloggers here (who keep their identities relatively discreet, but say they are not complete Google fanboys/fangirls) focus squarely on Google’s Android mobile platform, covering carrier, handset and software news, dishing rumors, providing reviews and offering access to products for sale. The blog got going in 2007.
Google Mobile Blog: As far as vendor blogs go, Google’s got it down pretty well, featuring a colorful collection of posts about new features.
Phandroid: Android phone fans: Claims to be first documented site (est. 2007) reporting exclusively on Android news.
RIM BlackBerry
Barack Obama’s BlackBerry’s Blog: Politics aside (and it’s pretty hard to put them aside when reading through this anti-Obama blog), it is maybe the most creative approach to a smartphone-themed blog. The blogger goes by the handle “BlackBerry-1” and posts such sentiments as: “I have supplied the spiritual strength for Big-O since he first picked me up.”
BBgeeks: A steady stream of BlackBerry news, complemented by a slew of carrier, hosted exchange and software reviews.
BlackBerry Cool: Around since 2005, this blog bills itself as the voice of the BlackBerry community, focused largely on apps and useful tips, including how to move from an iPhone to a BlackBerry.
BerryReview: Specializes in useful tips for casual and hardcore BlackBerry users, from wireless rate plan comparisons to app reviews, including the latest data on which paid and free apps are most popular. Most posts are short. Like CrackBerry, this blog is part of a broader site that includes reviews, forums, a store, etc.
BlackBerry Sync: Features a launcher to get access to the site from… your BlackBerry. It’s “proudly owned by Canadians,” though isn’t affiliated with RIM, also based in Canada.
Celebrity BlackBerry Sightings: Candid pictures of Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, Hilary Duff and many more with their mobile devices. Also, the ever-popular Guess Who photos quizzes of celebs with their BlackBerries.
CrackBerry: This site promotes itself as “The #1 site for BlackBerry users (and abusers!).” Its bloggers find no detail too small to examine, from videos of the bypassed BlackBerry “Magnum” to news on dot releases that extend way beyond one dot. The blog is part of a broader site that includes forums, reviews and shopping. CrackBerry is part of a network of Smartphone Experts web sites, along with those focused on iPhones, Windows Mobile, etc. It has also featured posts from CIO.com’s crack BlackBerry reporter Al Sacco.
Inside BlackBerry: The Official BlackBerry blog from RIM. As you’d expect, a fair amount of corporate stuff, from helping them pick out their Twitter background to promotions for contests.
RIMarkable: Latest BlackBerry news, plus a free software resource.
Apple iPhone
Apple Enterprise Now: Apple coverage with an enterprise IT bent from IDG’s CIO.com.
AppleInsider: Technically, the blog portion of this website is much less frequently updated than the general news page. Focus goes beyond iPhones to include general Steve Jobs whereabouts, Mac and iTunes coverage.
EverythingiCafe: Wide selection of Apple hardware, accessory, software posts, plus a very busy forum area.
iPhone Download Blog: Tagline is: Liberate Your iPhone. As you might expect, good dose of jailbreaking, unlocking info, plus a sort of travelog of Sebastien Page’s experiences using mobile devices around the world (in Bali when we last checked).
iPhoneFreak: Part of the YulMedia blog network that also includes the Andronica Android blog. They’ve already got an iPad tab on the site.
iPhone Hacks: Features sections for iPhone “jailbreakers” and unlockers, including hacks and tricks.
iPhone Spies: Seriously focused on the iPhone, though not above touching on the iPad. Includes reviews of iPhone apps, iPhone hacks and more. Like many of these blogs, iPhone Spies has a colorful cast of characters writing for it, including a “bad ass” and a “jailbreak extraordinar” .
iPhone Therefore I Blog: Chicago Now’s Scott Kleinberg sets himself apart by being a journalist first/blogger second (in other words, he actually reports, doesn’t just re-report others’ stuff) and responding to every comment (test him!).
IOnApple: Yoni Heisler typically blogs a couple of times a week for Network World, on news (such as the iPad), legal and other topics regarding the iPhone and Apple.
iSmashPhone: Hacking, jailbreaking, news and some nicely presented feature pieces on topics such as phone comparisons and top sites to discover iPhone apps.
Just Another iPhone Blog: Emphasizes they don’t accept payment to review apps. Founder Patrick Jordan also runs the more general Just Another Mobile Monday website.
Krapps: Toilet humor anyone? This site specializes in spotlighting the latest but not necessarily greatest iPhone apps, including such selections as one that helps you have undisturbed sex and another that measures how long it takes to chug liquid. And they get worse from there…
Macworld’s iPhone Central: Includes iPhone, iPad and other Apple tech coverage, including that produced by Network World and other of Macworld’s sister publications within IDG.
The iPhone blog: Everything iPhone, including news on the latest ads to the latest apps. And they’re on the prowl for more bloggers if that’s your game.
The Unofficial Apple Weblog: They cover the iPhone and its apps, but also offer a search tab for non-iPhone news.
Today’s iPhone: Part of the Phonedog network of mobile phone websites, TiP offers news, tips, tricks, video tutorials (including those from readers).
Microsoft Windows Mobile
Microsoft Windows Team Blog: Microsoft folded its Windows Mobile Blog into its overall Windows blog in July 2009 (hmmm, what does that tell us?) The company still offers a dedicated Windows Mobile Developer Blog, but it isn’t updated frequently.
MS Mobiles: Describes itself as “The Fox News of Windows Mobile.” Has an insider, sometimes cheeky tone. Features annoying little flashing comments icons.
WMPoweruser: With Windows Mobile 7 around the corner, the staff at WMPpoweruser is keeping busy. The site features the latest on apps, rumors and Windows Mobile news.
Symbian/Nokia
Darla Mack (Days in the life of a mobile diva and friends): Specializes in Nokia S60-related items, and the posts are sporadic, so you won’t get overwhelmed if signing up for a feed.
The Symbian blog: Lest we forget about that little old mobile OS that’s so popular outside the United States and is the most popular mobile OS in the world. This is “the official mouthpiece of Symbian.”
Palm
EverythingPre: Part of Smart Phone Resources website network, featuring news on Palm devices, carriers, accessories. Active forum area.
PalmAddict: Covers the Palm, but strays into the rest of the smartphone space as well.
Palm Infocenter: Like PalmAddict, around since 1999, so both are grand-daddies of the smartphone blog/website set.
Thanks to IDG Enterprise colleagues Al Sacco, Matt Hamblen and Mikael Ricknas for their input.
Follow Bob Brown on Twitter at www.twitter.com/alphadoggs.
Source: CIO.com
