Does your 'smart' phone know plastics?

I confess, I still have an old-fashioned "dumb" cell phone. But with the pace of change in smart phone technology, it could be my last one. Just today I've seen announcements of two cool new products for mobile phones -- and I'm sure Plastics Blog readers can suggest some of their own favorites. First up, today MultiView Inc. announced that it has launched an iPhone mobile app for the Society of Plastics Engineers. The SPE Mobile app is designed to help SPE keep its members connected to the association anytime. Using the app, SPE members can access the association's web site, where they can find member information, search for industry products and services, and get information on upcoming events. The app is available for free. The second cool mobile phone product is from Plastics News -- it's a new tool developed to keep readers up-to-the-minute on news from the K 2010 trade fair in Germany, but it will have a shelf life long after the show is over. PN has developed a mobile K show website, where we will post short news alerts throughout the Oct. 27-Nov. 3 show in Düsseldorf. Like the SPE app, this is free -- anyone will be able to go to http://m.plasticsnews.com/k to view the most current news happening at the show, or to sign up to receive twice-daily e-mail K news alerts. Showgoers in Düsseldorf will be able to use the booth number look-up feature on the home page of Plastics News' K mobile site to navigate the show. Plus, Blackberry users will have the option to add a Plastics News K show mobile icon to their home screen that instantly launches the site -- while Android and iPhone users can use built-in bookmarks. While PN developed the mobile site for K 2010, the publication has already launched a mobile version of its main website, PlasticsNews.com, for smart-phone users. That link is http://m.plasticsnews.com. PN sister publications European Plastics News (http://m.europeanplasticsnews.com) and PRW (http://m.prw.com) also have launched mobile versions of their websites.