We’re big fans (and users) of übersimple microblogging service Posterous here at TechCrunch, and I’ve been eagerly awaiting the day that the young upstart would finally come out with an iPhone app. Frankly, needing to go to the camera roll on my iPhone and e-mailing in pictures I wanted to post on my Posterous blog every time had become a little tedious.
Now Posterous co-founder Garry Tan just checked in to let us know the iPhone app that had been submitted about 15 days ago has finally been approved by Apple and live in the App Store (iTunes link).
Unfortunately, it’s a bit underwhelming.
It’s not that the app, dubbed PicPosterous, doesn’t do what is advertised on the product website, it’s just that I wish it did a little more. Billed as ‘Your iPhone Instant Camera’, you can basically use the iPhone 3GS’ camera to shoot both pictures and videos, which you can subsequently add to virtual albums and upload directly to your Posterous blog.
When you log on to the app using your registered Posterous account (which you don’t necessarily need to have to use it), you can manage multiple sites, create private albums and auto-post whatever you upload to your Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and FriendFeed stream.
The app is capable of geo-tagging photos and videos, so you can switch on a location map online next to each album. The nice thing about it is that you can add a first picture to an album and then simply keep uploading photos to that album for as long as you like, so the pictures are not each posted as a separate blog post when you send them in.
A couple of gripes though. First, when you send pictures or videos to your Posterous blog, it’s impossible to add any kind of text or link to the body of the post from within the app (something I was able to do when I simply e-mailed in photos I took with my iPhone camera using the mail application). Second, when you add multiple pictures to one album you can’t delete individual pics afterwards, leaving you only the option to clear the entire album and start over. Third, you need to use your iPhone camera in landscape mode when you want your pictures to come out right on your blog, something that’s not indicated anywhere and you need to find out yourself (update: apparently, it auto-corrects but only after you sent the link to the badly oriented photo to your Twitter, FriendFeed etc. stream). And finally, while you can turn off the auto-post feature, it would be nice if you could get the option to send it to e.g. only your Twitter or Flickr account rather than all or nothing.
Great to finally see Posterous come out with an iPhone, but I sincerely hope they keep improving it based on my and other users’ feedback to make it as satisfying an experience as the actual web service.
First.
Never heard of posterous but I’m going to check it out
It is not that worth hearing about considering the app they have created.
The app is just an add-on to their service… not their core service.
I LOVE posterous and use it quite often. It’s an awesome service.
I hate you.
+1
*grabs your ass*
yes definitely
Wow, sounds awesome! now all I need is an iPhone…
This is a great step for Posterous. Seeing as the Posterous team is constantly making the service better (like making videos playable on the iPhone), I’m sure they’re working on updating the app already. Nice job guys.
1. when you send pictures or videos to your Posterous blog, it’s impossible to add any kind of text or link from within the app
>>> The MOST absurd thing. Whenever we send pic/vid, we would like to comment on it. Else, there is no point in sending/uploading.
2. when you add multiple pictures to one album you can’t delete individual pics afterwards, leaving you only the option to clear all your albums and start over.
>>> I would rather not create an album.
3. finally, while you can turn off the auto-post feature, it would be nice if you could get the option to send it
>>> This all-or-nothing helps us in no way. I would prefer an option to choose where to post. I think anyone would.
Shame that it doesn’t have Facebook Connect login (I’m lazy and can’t remember password)
I’ve built a posterous robot for Google Wave
check it here:
http://posterou...bot.appspot.com
I’m gonna go ahead and call my new band Posterous Robot… if that’s OK with you.
Awesome! havent used posterous for awhile and this might re energize my posterous account!
Posterous is doing great, I am listening some good news very week, but posterous is still a time pass platform, it could not make its identity as a core blogging platform till now. People use it for posting RSS, photos and short updates.
The app will get better, what are “versions” for after all
Was having weird issues with the photos: I’d take them in portrait mode, Posterous would switch it over to landscape.
Strange.
Better than nothing…
I hate everything.
But I love Posterous.
Yellow is strongly associated in my mind with Posterous as it seems to pervade the website. I find it curious they’ve isolated the app from this experience by making the icon blue as well as the banner on PicPosterous sub-page.
the portrait vs. landscape auto-rotation issue seems to fix itself on the website after a few moments of waiting
Huge bummer. I love posterous and have been waiting for this app and checking the app store every day for it. I’m sticking to email updates for now.
I use posterous a ton and it’s made updating all my profiles incredibly easy. I however use a BlackBerry as the iphone camera is a junk (imo).
Posterous doesn’t have a client for BlackBerry but the company i work for makes a complementary BlackBerry app called vPost that lets users compose & send emails with multiple pictures, GPS location, audio notes, and video. The guys at Posterous have been great in ensuring that all the formats work. If you have a BB i suggest you (techcrunch included) check it out at getvpost(dot)com
Hey guys, thanks for the comments. We tried to do something a little different with the Posterous iPhone app. Of course Posterous already works well with email, so how can this app add value?
I wanted all the photos I take to be uploaded as I take them, into sets, without having to worry about it after the fact
This review is wrong on a few counts:
1. Yes you can add text. You name the album whatever you want, and that text is put on the post and tweeted out
2. You don’t have to clear all albums. You can clear individual albums as well (swipe to delete). Individual photo delete coming soon
3. Of course you can shoot in landscape or portrait mode. We always orient correctly
I guess everyone is too used to single photo/single video, no in app viewing twitter apps…
Lame. Should have taken more cues from Tumblr’s app.
Tumblr’s app adds no value over emailing posts to Posterous. There was no reason to do an app like that given you can post so well via email.
So I took a different approach entirely and solved a problem I have with posting quickly and easily
You’re mixed up – the Posterous app adds no value over emailing to Posterous. The Tumblr app does a good job of simplifying a lot of advanced publishing controls from the iPhone.
Also, what does updating the same Posterous post with multiple photos do to people subscribed to my RSS feed?
If their web service is any indication, the iPhone app will have more improvements than you can handle. Sachin and Garry are a couple of robe-wearing, fast-running, building-leaping wizards who laugh in the face of death and mediocre coding.
They’ll release updates faster than a speeding bullet. They will help us save the princess. They will help us retrieve the ring. They will rid this Muggle world from Dementors. And when they do, we will be able to photograph it and share it with the world from the palm* of our hand.
*Note: Not implied as a reference to the (inferior) Palm Pre.
not lately: http://blog.posterous.com/
Not lately? They just released an iPhone app, no?
What is different with Posterous? The ONLY advantage is easy setup through email. Otherwise, there are almost zero configuration/customization possibilities compared to the father of micro-blogs; Tumblr.
you should register for an account and then see what option you have on the site. there are plenty.
we make it much easier to post rich media with no limits, and we’ll autopost to the other services you use
enjoy the short appsto.re URL: http://appsto.re/PicPosterous
whats the point when all you need to do is email a photo to your posterous account?
Seems a little redundant to me.
I really like the idea of the Posterous iphone app and will use it when one new feature is added:
* the ability to select where you want the photo autoposted rather than having the current all-or-nothing autopost.
I’m a big fan of Posterous and will continue to use it and promote it.
I’m going to hold off on this app and continue sending photos via email from my iPhone.
Has anyone figured out how to delete a Posterous account yet? I have one that I was experimenting with that I’d like to erase (so I can use the email I registered with to update my new blog).