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Strut app tasks you with exploring the planet, ranks your worldliness
Google's Ingress can turn your walk to work into a virtual battlefield, but not every augmented reality fan wants to spend that stroll reinforcing portals. The Strut app from Thickpolicy, which launched on iOS today, offers a different spin on GPS-based gamification. Users unlock achievements ("tiles") for logging their travels (both around the neighborhood and around the globe), and covered ground is displayed on a personalized world map. The goal, mind you, is to "uncover the map of the earth" by unlocking every tile, but there are also leaderboards -- on the city, state, country and world level, no less -- and medals for collecting a certain number of tiles (à la Foursquare badges). Social media tie-ins include the ability to share maps via Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Strut is a free download in the App Store (there's no Android version, at least for now) -- hit up the source link to check it out.
Samsung Strut still coming to Verizon?
We're hearing a couple interesting tidbits of information from the same ultra-reliable tipster with regard to the Samsung Strut -- an LG Lotus-esque QWERTY clamshell that would fill a form factor gap in Verizon's lineup (albeit a form factor that didn't really exist a few months ago). First off, the tipster tells us that he's starting to see accessories flow in that specifically list Strut compatibility; this doesn't necessarily mean anything since none of the accessories are exclusive to the Strut, but it's interesting nonetheless. On the flipside, he also tells us that the Strut firmware in Verizon's system is nearly a frickin' year old, which is pushing the boundaries of a phone that the carrier would still be planning to release. At this point, it's entirely possible the phone got canned at some point along the way -- but it's also possible it'll launch any day now. Anyone super excited about it either way?
Samsung Strut is Verizon's version of the Cleo?
If you're a Verizon loyalist pining after the likes of the LG Lotus and the Samsung Cleo, great news: we think your savior is on its way. We're hearing rumors that the u440 Cleo will launch as the "Strut" on Big Red's airwaves before too long, a move that was probably necessitated (or at least expedited) by Sprint's recent launch of the Lotus. We still think this form factor looks a wee bit odd -- especially when closed -- but if there are two things Americans like, it's flips and QWERTY keyboards, so the trend was probably overdue anyway.[Thanks, anonymous tipster]
