Today we’re announcing that we’ve chosen the latter path and have made significant investment to bring out Vlingo 3.0 with a great deal of new functionality including hands free support. This also means that we had to make the business decision to charge for some of this enhanced functionality. The full feature set will be available for a fee, but we will continue our tradition of offering most of the functionality as a free version of the best speech recognition software in the mobile industry. The free version of Vlingo 3.0 includes everything except the full ability to send text and email messages. See the matrix below.
Now…what can you do with Vlingo? Below is a matrix to help you see the functionality between both offerings.
Vlingo 3.0 adds support for lots of corporate BlackBerry accounts as well as more devices including BlackBerry® Storm™, BlackBerry® Bold™, BlackBerry® Curve 8900 ™ and BlackBerry Pearl Flip.US, Canadian and UK users can get Vlingo on BlackBerry App World™ or on the Vlingo website.
And we have good news for existing users: if you already have Vlingo 2.0, you can keep using Vlingo 2.0 for free for the life of your device. Of course, if you want to stay on Vlingo 2.0, you’ll miss the new hands-free features. But it’s up to you!”
As always, we will continue to post news, tips & tricks on the Vlingo blog and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Vlingo. We want your feedback. Let us know what you think!
-Erin Keleher, Senior Marketing Communications Manager, Vlingo
Posts
59 comments:
looking forward to it - but how about ping.fm integration? That way I can post to just about every social networking site with status & blogs and do it once. that would be my ultimate feature and worth 20 bucks big time
@John - I suggested ping.fm integration months ago... I got a DM via Twitter saying that would be a good idea, but haven't seen any development around that idea :/
Question for the vlingo team... Just for clarification, my girlfriend already has the most recent version installed on her Bold (whatever is previous to v3.0).
Will she still be able to SMS via vlingo to ANYONE? Or will she be forced to buy into 3.0 if she wants to keep that feature?
When you have the free version, how does vlingo know if the contact you want to SMS also has vlingo?
I really want to use this software. I have tried it in the past, but privacy concerns scare me. I keep several passwords in my memopad files, and as I understand Viigo can access those files and send them back to their servers. Please help me alleviate this concern. Booyaacpn@yahoo.com
it doesnt. ive had vlingo on my phone for a long time now and can already send/forward/reply text messages and email no matter if the contact even has a bb or not. new features or not????????
@John and @Josh.hofer, thanks for the ping.fm suggestion. We continue to consider it a great idea but haven't had time to pursue it yet.
@josh.hofer your girlfriend can continue using Vlingo 2.0 to send SMS to anyone
@Luciano Tourn - Thank you! Good to hear.
Looking forward to a new version for my iPhone, hopefully OS v3.0 can expand what vlingo can do :)
@Anonymous question was: When you have the free version, how does Vlingo know if the contact you want to SMS also has Vlingo?
When a user downloads Vlingo, they become part of the Vlingo network. We do this based on an encrypted version of the phone number of the device. To avoid privacy concerns we make sure we don't transmit or store any information which can be used to identify users or their phone numbers.
I would be willing to pay for any update that would allow my 8350i work in a full capacity with vlingo.... will 3.0 let me now send text using vlingo?
@Anonymous we don't store or send to our servers any passwords that you have in your memopad files. I am not sure if Viigo does it, but certainly not Vlingo!
From our FAQ. I already have Vlingo 2.0 or 2.1 on my phone. Why would I want to upgrade to Vlingo 3.0?
*Adds support for the BlackBerry Storm, including full integration with the Storm's keyboard.
*Adds support for the BlackBerry Pearl Flip (8220) and Curve II (8900).
* Adds support for many Bluetooth headsets.
* Allows you to send emails from any email account on your phone, rather than only from your default account.
* Web search is much faster and requires fewer steps, as a result of using an embedded browser.
* Allows you to speak action commands such as 'Call' and 'Send' as well as pressing a menu key.
* Adds support for the + character in phone number fields for dialing international phone numbers.
* Fixes a number of issues that users had reported in version 2.0 and 2.1. For example, you should consider upgrading to Vlingo 3.0 if you've been experiencing any of the following issues:
o Problems setting Vlingo's permissions or running in a corporate (BES) environment.
o Occasional Request Timeout or Can't Connect errors.
o Vlingo stops responding when you press the side key to speak.
o Vlingo doesn't recognize some contacts in your Address Book.
Can I go back to using V2 after downloading V3 if I choose?
@Stoney Sorry but we don't support the 8350i. Check the list of supported devices in our FAQ http://bit.ly/YgRCB
@Anonymous yes, please fill out this form and indicate you want to move back to Vlingo 2.0. Note: this is only available for original 2.0 users only.
http://vlingo.com/vlingo/contact_support.jsp
Vlingo has been great on my Storm. Even though I don't really need many of the new features, I will be upgrading to 3.0 just to show my support for the Vlingo team. I know you guys will continue to add great new features. Thanks.
Wow, I state my feelings that there is no reason to upgrade to 3.0 and my comment gets deleted? Good damage control.
I was excited to read more about this great sounding app, then I saw that the 8350i isn't supported. Any plans to do so? LVS
@Anonymous: No comments were deleted from this blog. We publish everything. Your opinion that for you there are not enough reasons to upgrade to 3.0 is perfectly valid. Expecting that some people would feel this way is that we decided to allow everyone to keep 2.0 as long as they want.
@Anonymous: Sorry but we have no plans to support 8350i
What a great product, I used it all the time on my Curve and World Phone. I do have a suggestion though: Make the app $10, and I am willing to pay for it. At $18, it is a little to expensive for me. I don't have any apps on my Storm that cost more than $10. I think this is a more reasonable price point more most people.
Thanks for providing a great product!
Rob
does vlingo support operating system 5.0?
im running a beta os, and i get an error when i try to upgrade to vlingo plus
I have a storm, but when I try to download it says that it does not support my device or operating system. Is there a specific operating system that vlingo supports?
One question I am desperately trying to get answered... Using Vlingo, how do you lookup a contact in the address book so as to see their addresses, notes, phone numbers, etc...? Example: "Lookup contact Bill Johnson".
Just my $.02 ....
$18 is too high. I will stick with Version 2.
I would pay for this if it could work with the Blackberry Messanger.
I downloaded Vlingo, interested to try it, and immediately deleted it when I realized I had no choice but to sacrifice one of my side keys or it wouldn't even let me install the app.
I had no intention to program Vlingo to a side button and I am certainly not going to put up with being forced to use the app in the way someone else thinks I should use it. Between that and the security concerns and several other negatives I've heard about the app, it soured me on the app completely.
But the biggest turnoff by far was trying to force me to use a key I didnt want to use, not even allowing me to skip that step during the setup. No thanks. I'll use it the way I want to use it, or I won't use it at all.
I have the same opinion as some of the others that $18 is too much. I have not installed any programs more then $10 on my phone. I have 2.0 now and it works well. If it was $5, $7, and maybe even $9 I would have likely updated even without many more features just to support the great project. Not at $18 sorry.
Why not still offer version 2.0? Seems like a bit of a bait and switch to talk up 2.0 and then remove FREE features in the next version. Might want to revise the copy on the front page to reflect an accurate product description. I also agree that $18 is TOO HIGH. Guess the developers will see if the market agrees.
Having dropped down a few hundred on a Storm, and struggling with the keyboard, I am fine paying $18 to have a tool I can use.
Vlingo certainly makes less typing errors than I do!
I would love to see expanded support for 3rd party apps - Garmin Mobile support would truly rock.
Or a direct URL interface : Go to www.yadyada.com
Thanks for the great app!
Whoa. I just got an 8900 and now I can't use 2.0 I loved 2.0 on my 8310 Curve. I'm not ready for any new bells and whistles in 3.0, but I can't seem to download the 2.0 anymore.
Is there any way I can get my 2.0 off of my old Curve and put it on my new 8900?
Thank you for any help.
Erin,
Thank you so much for the quick response. The download link worked fine on my 8900. It is just like it was on my 8310. Thank you!
You said that if we had not previously run Vlingo on the phone it would disappear in a few days. Even though I was a Vlingo 2.0 user, since I was on another device, it will dissapear in a few days. Is this correct?
If so, this makes me a little sad as I had no problems with 2.0 Thanks again for a great product.
Hi Justin
Please email me with your contact information if you have additional comments/questions on your 2.0 usage on your new device. My email is erin@vlingo.com
Thank you for your note. Since you previously had Vlingo 2.0 or 2.1 installed and running on your BlackBerry and you can revert back to that release.
I did want to take this opportunity to reiterate what Luciano had posted 2 weeks ago. Upgrading to Vlingo 3.0 (free version) without realizing that SMS and email now require a paid upgrade to Vlingo Plus, you might not necessarily have seen its new benefits either. The new capabilities and benefits of Vlingo 3.0 (free)
* Support for several new BlackBerry devices, including:
* Storm… including full integration with the Storm's touch keyboard
* Curve II (8900)
* Pearl Flip (8220)
* Improved hands-free capability
* Support for many Bluetooth headsets
* Allows you to speak action commands such as 'Call' and 'Send' instead of pressing a button
* Supports sending emails from any email account on your phone, rather than only from your default account
* Speed improvements
* Quicker response time than Vlingo 2.0… up to 30% improvement on the Bold, Storm, and Curve II
* Embedded browser for web search virtually eliminating browser startup delay and requires fewer steps
* International dialing: adds support for the ‘+’ character in phone number fields
* Stability improvements
* Users will no longer experience difficulty setting Vlingo's permissions or running in a corporate (BES) environment
* Request Timeout or Can't Connect errors will occur less frequently
* Vlingo occasionally stopped responding, or would hang while waiting for results. This has been fixed
* Vlingo should no longer get out of sync with contacts in your Address Book
* And other smaller fixes that people had reported in 2.0 and 2.1
Vlingo 3.0 retains all of the features and benefits of 2.0 and 2.1, with the exception of SMS and email. These are still available by upgrading to Vlingo 3.0 Plus.
To revert back to Vlingo 2.0 or 2.1:
1. First, delete Vlingo 3.0 (on most phones, go to BB Options -> Advanced Options -> Applications -> Menu -> Delete). Vlingo does not support downloading 2.x to a phone already running 3.0.
2. Reboot your phone by removing the battery.
3. Determine the operating system (OS) version of your BlackBerry. This can be determined by clicking on Options -> About. The first entry will show your phone model and operating system version. For example, “BlackBerry 8130 smartphone (CDMA) v4.3.0.60”. In this case, the operating system version is 4.3 (note that not all 8130s are running 4.3).
4. Download the appropriate version of Vlingo 2.0/2.1 directly to your BlackBerry (not to your desktop) from one of these links:
a. OS 4.7 (Storm) & 4.6: http://www.vlingo.com/apps/vc_oldclients/2.1.0/4.6/vlingoForBlackBerry_en.jad
b. OS 4.3 & 4.5: http://www.vlingo.com/apps/vc_oldclients/2.0.1.19585/4.3/vlingoForBlackBerry_en.jad
c. OS 4.2: http://www.vlingo.com/apps/vc_oldclients/2.0.1.19585/4.2/vlingoForBlackBerry_en.jad
I just downloaded 3.0 it I have Black Berry Storm .. it slowed it way down and I wont pay the price they want for it ..I had the earlier version and it worked great .. so if you have the early one .. KEEP it ... this one will sow every thing down
Hi Mike
Vlingo 3.0 should actually be significantly faster on the Storm than 2.0 was. From your comment, it appears that your Storm is behaving sluggishly overall – as opposed to simply Vlingo taking a long time to respond to your commands. If this is what’s happening, here are a few things to try:
BlackBerry applications don’t exit when you click the End Call (hangup) key. If you had started a number of applications without properly closing them, that could be causing slowness. To see which applications are running, go to your main applications screen and click Menu -> Switch Application. You should see maybe 4 or 5 applications at most. Close any applications that you don’t need to have running. In particular, applications which do a lot of graphics, networking, or audio will tend to slow the Storm down. When you stop using an application, make sure to exit with the Esc (Back) key rather than the End key.
If you have lots of media such as pictures or video, move them to a memory card to free up device memory for your applications to run.
Delete some of the BlackBerry’s many pre-installed applications that you don’t ever plan to use. This is less likely to be an issue on a Storm since it has more memory than earlier models, but if you’re running low on memory, freeing some up can make a big difference.
Reboot the phone by pulling the battery.
The BlackBerry is actually a surprisingly complex computer, and the Storm is not one of the speedier models. There are many other settings and factors that can affect performance. There's a good article at http://www.cio.com/article/338863/BlackBerry_How_To_Free_Up_Device_Memory that contains several more suggestions.
We hope this helps!
Any idea when support for Blackberry OS 5.0 may be forthcoming? BTW, have Vlingo 3.0 Pro and love it. Worth every penny.
@maxpugsby, Vlingo 3.0 supports the latest officially released OS version from RIM, which is 4.7.1 (on the Tour). We are always looking ahead at upcoming OS versions, however, and 5.0 is definitely on our radar.
If I may, my workplace upgraded to OS 5.0 and I am desperately missing VLINGO. It was quite handy. I know its on your radar but please hone in on it as soon as practicle so I can utilize it once again.
Thanks for listening,
Matt
I got upgraded to Vlingo 3.0 on my blackberry, is there anyway to get the old version 2.0 back?
Please get back to me asap
Hi Jeffrey, we do allow former 2.0 users to redownload that version if they download 3.0 by mistake. Shoot me an email at hadley at vlingo.com and I'll reply with the instructions.
Cheers,
Hadley
I have already tried emailing Vlingo to try to get my old version 2.0 back for my Blackberry. No one has gotten back to me yet.
The Storm 2 with 5.0 is coming out next week and 5.0 will be offered to Storm 1 owners this weekend. Can we count on a patch for 5.0?
Verizon just released 5.0 and recommends ALL users upgrade to it. When will VLingo support 5.0?
Hi Dave & MCE
We’re working hard on getting support ready for 5.0 and will announce its support here. Stay tuned!
Are they going to support the new 5.0 on the Verizon Black Berry Storm 9530
Hi Mike
We’re working hard on getting support ready for 5.0 and will announce its support here. Stay tuned!
I bought the full version of Vlingo a couple weeks ago and loved it. A couple days later I upgraded to 5.0 because I thought I was supposed to. Now VLingo doesn't work so I had to uninstall it. When support does come out for 5.0, will I be able to get the full paid app back somehow? I did not receive any information about registration or anything after I bought it. I do have a receipt through paypal though, but that's it. Will I get VLingo back?
I am in the same boat. I was told to upgrade to Blackberry OS 5.0 by Verizon to fix a few software issues. Now I am without Vlingo, my favorite app. I paid for the full version when I got it a few months ago. I hope Vlingo will honor my previous purchase when it is ready to support the new OS.
Hi,
If you purchased Vlingo, you'll be able to reinstall it once we have OS 5.0 support. Your license will be valid on the same BlackBerry where you purchased Vlingo or on a replacement BlackBerry of the same model.
Luis Rivero, Vlingo Technical Support
I would have thought that Vlingo - an awesome app - would be right on top of 5.0. Sadly, I've been w/o it for months and admit that the "support for 5.0 coming soon" is beyond "not soon enough". Get the lead out, Vlingo! Loyal users are getting restless!
I bought Vlingo for my storm. It worked fine for a day, and now when I try launching the app it says: "please wait.. Making sure you can reach the Vlingo server..." It hasn't launched successfully since! So let me get this straight... Vlingo advertises charges for this app, a customer or user buys it from them, but it doesn't work? So Vlingo gets their money and the customer gets what? Pretty much a lessoned learned and if this how your business operates then I want no part of it. How do I get a refund?
I'm so sick of businesses ripping me off. Every month I pay on time, every time. Yet some BS one hit wonder like Vlingo knows exactly how to ruin someone's day.
muthfkrs!!!
Good luck getting a refund from vlingo since it does not work on your blackberry with 5.0 os. I contacted vlingo for a refund because the same thing happened to me, and they said "oh sorry you have to contact the vendor you bought it from", which happened to be blackberry app world. They forwarded me to their site, where I was faced with a sea of f.a.q's and self help options and absolutely ZERO ways to contact a human about getting a refund on an app through app world. I tried to email them with the one email I found and got an email back that said- sorry your email wasn't answered. Please go to our website and find the right channel for your request. I figured my time not being invested in trying to get a refund was worth more than the 20 bucks I spent on the app in the first place. Which I wont be getting a refund for, and won't be getting the new app because I bought it on the storm 1 which I then sold and now I have the storm 2. So now that I have a new phone I won't be getting the app back even after I paid 20 bucks for it to work for a couple days.
I just don't understand how Vlingo can live with themselves knowing they have been ripping customers off. How can you put a product on the shelf that doesn't work properly? This should be illegal to do!
Yeah - I am not buying anything else EVER from the app world again. It's to much of a hassle to contact whomever is responsible for the app if something goes wrong with it.
When on when is vlingo going to support bb os 5.0 for the Tour. I see posted for months regarding this issue but still not available. What is the point of having this great application of it requires it's users to use old tecnhology in order to use your application? I see posts that you are working on it but that was many months ago. How long is this going to take
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