BluePhoneMenu is dead, long live BluePhoneElite

i don't do it often, but today i rebooted my powerbook (yes, it was a software update). that's not exciting. but was exciting is that when BluePhoneMenu went to check for an update, i was notified that it has been discontinued in favour of BluePhoneElite . So, naturally, I had to download and install it. here are some initial reactions:

• the new icons suck. (ok, so it's just a beta, and graphics are listed in the TODO).
• the "call center" has been redone, with apparently much better AddressBook integration. i don't know if i just wasn't doing it right with the old version, but i could never seem to dial someone from my address book that wasn't in my call history. the call center now also shows the address book icon for the person (a nice touch, though, i've got a lot of sunflowers and dragonflies in my address book).
• you can have it "speak" the name of incoming callers. (so, if i'm currently looking at my linux box - i don't even have to look up i guess)
• you can also have it set your iChat status on incoming calls - very cool. although, i use enough IM systems apart from AIM that I don't actually use iChat these days. i'm hoping tiger's version of iChat changes that with jabber support.

also, while not a new feature, i just need to say publicly that pausing iTunes on incoming calls is a really nice touch.

if you've got a mac (with bluetooth) and a bluetooth enabled phone, i totally recommend this toy.