Tired Of Sharing Your Lifestyle In 30 Second Bursts? Turn Them Into 30 Minute Experiences With Thwapr

Cameras on cell phones were a hit, and video capturing on mobile phones was even bigger. However, it became a social-networking gateway once users could transfer those images and videos to their computers and through channels like email. The method of sharing our lives in full animation is only getting bigger. Unfortunately, SMS, Twitter, and even Facebook are a bit limiting. That's where Thwapr is looking to shine. I feel, the best way to think of Thwapr is an enhanced MMS, or maybe a MMS of this decade. The idea is to share interesting and heartfelt moments with friends and family using a much more immersible means: video. Describing a sunset at the beach, a wicked cannonball, a child's first words, etc just can't be properly done with words or sometimes even a photo. There are already apps out there to share videos, but so many are limited to a dozen or so seconds in length. Others, like YouTube, are designed for mass distribution. Thwapr combines the quality and compatibility level of YouTube with a MMS-like experience. Just share one moment at a time or even have a conversation by sending photos and videos back and forth. To those prepping their rants, Thwapr isn't meant to replace live chatting any more than instant messaging replaced texting; both have different purpose. As smartphones become the standard and video that can truly show the elements of events is available in the palm of your hand, the channels to share that must get enhanced as well. Anyway, let's get down to business. Thwapr support all iDevices -- technically -- but is really designed for the iPhone and 4G iPod touch. Video quality can be set to low, medium, or high. When using Wi-Fi, it's possible to send a 30 minute low quality video, 10 minute medium quality video, and five minute high quality video. On a 3G connection, it's possible to send a 10 minute low quality video, five minute medium quality video, or one minute high quality video. While Thwapr does support photo sharing, images are restricted to 640 x 640 for the fastest uploads and compatibility. Capturing and uploading a video is pretty straightforward. On Thwapr's main screen tap New, then tap New again, record your action, trim the video (if necessary) using the same technique as the Camera app, enter a title and description, choose your recipients and share. Thwapr provides automatic geotagging when used on iPhone 3G, iPhone 3GS, and iPhone 4. As always, you can choose to not allow this feature when the app is first launched, but location information can be prevented from transfer by disabling Thwapr within the Settings app --> General --> Location Services before capturing and uploading a video. I'll admit, Thwapr isn't perfect but the direction they're taking is admirable and could possibly be the successor to texting on mobile devices. The company is working to improve the video quality and length but keeping compatibility as wide as possible is the trick. The truth being that the app and service are free and it's usually good to help back these sorts of projects with constructive feedback and signs of interest to help them advance. Feel free to check out the frequently asked questions section and full device compatibility list before getting involved. Thwapr is designed for iPhone and iPod touch running iOS 3.0 or later, and available in the App Store as a free download. iDevices running iOS 4.0 or later can utilize background uploading. [gallery link="file"]

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