Want to catch up with what happened in the digital world this week? Our weekly Cheat Sheet fills you in on everything you missed while you scrambled to meet deadlines and put out fires.
Read about an app-only horror movie, Wikipad finally being released, Amazon’s new grocery service, how Walkby helps users track products based on fashion trends and Audioboo enabling audio to be played directly on Twitter.
1. An app-only horror film that will make you jump
“Haunting Melissa” is Hooked Digital Media’s new twist on traditional filmmaking. Exclusively for iPhones and iPads, this horror film delivers piece-by-piece episodes that viewers can watch simply by downloading the free app. Creators also developed technology that enables viewers to have a different perspective when rewatching an episode. Essentially, viewers can see and/or hear something that wasn’t there before. While a season pass costs $6.99, the company allowed viewers to watch Episode Two for free if they agreed to share it on Facebook. With Hooked Digital Media planning to launch more app-only films, it will be interesting to see how consumers engage with this platform.
2. Wikipad: Android’s gaming tablet making its debut
After a delayed launch last year, the Wikipad, Android’s gaming tablet, is finally hitting the market this month. The redesigned tablet is 7-inches with 1280 x 800 displays and features a removable, stand-alone tablet, Tegra 3 processor and Sony PlayStation mobile support. The controller is set up like a standard game controller that has its own speakers. The Wikipad is unique in that it slides into a U-shaped controller for gaming but can also be detached and used as a stand-alone tablet for non-gaming use. It will be available at BestBuy.com, TigerDirect and Walmart.com on June 11 for $249.
3. AmazonFresh to bring groceries to your home
AmazonFresh is an experimental service by Amazon that delivers groceries to consumers’ homes. The service ran tests in Seattle for the past five years, and because of the positive consumer response, Amazon plans to expand the service to cover Los Angeles later this week and San Francisco later this year. Based on the responses from these major cities, AmazonFresh may roll out to at least 20 additional major U.S. cities by 2014 and a few outside the States. Online grocery shopping remains a largely untapped market, so Amazon’s service can potentially threaten grocery chains such as Kroger, Wal-Mart and Whole Foods, which rely heavily on traditional brick and mortar stores to sell groceries.
4. Walkby helps users track hard to find fashion apparels
Currently operating only in Chicago, Walkby is a free application that notifies users when local boutiques receive new inventory, as well as specific items of interest. Consumers can use this platform by following select brands, stores and items. The application finds matching products located at nearby venues, as well as inquiring of surrounding stores to see if they have similar items. This platform allows customers to be more efficient with their time and encourages users to engage in a unique shopping experience.
5. Audioboo launched tool to play audio on Twitter timeline
This week, Audioboo has upgraded its services on Twitter, allowing users to listen to audio clips directly within a tweet. Without being directed to another site, Audioboo has optimized the user experience by simplifying the listening process. Users no longer have to take unnecessary steps when listening to an audio track on Twitter. Hopefully, this new feature will encourage users to share more content when sending their next tweets.
