Electric Pocket today announces the launch of PhotoDial, a speed dial application for Treo 650 smartphones or Bluetooth-enabled PDAs that enables users to place photographs of their most commonly dialed contacts directly on the Applications Launcher. By enabling users to dial numbers with a single tap on a photo or other image from the Applications screen of their handheld, PhotoDial provides easy access to commonly dialed numbers and increases the personalization options of smartphones.

PhotoDial works by enabling users to add photos or icons to a PhotoDial group in the Applications menu–the central activity hub of Palm OS handhelds. The application enables users to browse the list of contacts in their handhelds' Address Book and select the people they call most frequently. Users can pick any photo or graphic image to represent the contact, or they can take a picture with the device's camera.

Contacts are created and grouped together in the PhotoDial group for easy, one-tap access by the user. Once the PhotoDial group is set up, it is simply a matter of tapping once on the photo of the person the user wants to call in order to begin dialing the number. Users can even use their handhelds' Preferences option to assign a caller to one of their devices' "hard buttons," including the Treo side-button.

PhotoDial replaces TapDial, one of Electric Pocket's original "smartphone applications" that enabled users of Palm OS smartphones to tap on icons in the Launcher screen to place phone calls. PhotoDial retails for US$9.95.