PluginBuddy Mobile is a premium WordPress plugin from PluginBuddy, a division of iThemes, best known for their top selling BackupBuddy plugin.
This review is focused on the PluginBuddy Mobile WordPress plugin and I used Safari’s developer tools to render the theme using the Iphone, Ipad and Ipod mobile client.
PluginBuddy Mobile Requirements
PluginBuddy Mobile requires WordPress 2.9.0 or newer. Custom menus are available from WordPress 3.0+
PluginBuddy Mobile Features
Mobile from PluginBuddy has four mobile themes to choose from, supports a wide range of devices and allows you to apply a different theme to each device, giving you the flexibility to customize the user experience for specific users.
Installation is easy and once the Mobile plugin has been installed the options can be accessed from the Mobile panel in the backend.
PluginBuddy Mobile themes
Pluginbuddy Mobile comes packed with four mobile themes to choose from:
- PluginBuddy Mobile – Banner 1.0.1
- PluginBuddy Mobile – Starter CMS 1.0.1
- PluginBuddy Mobile – Timber 1.0.1
- PluginBuddy Mobile – Typewriter 1.0.1
Each Theme allows you to upload your own custom header.
Banner Theme Full screen
Timber Theme Full screen
Typewriter Theme Full screen
The themes are partly responsive and the Style Manager allows you to customize the colors of various elements in the Body, Navigation, Headlines, and Footer areas of the theme.
Partly Responsive Mobile Theme
PluginBuddy Mobile Style Manager
Devices Supported
Android Devices
Apple iPad
Apple iPhone
Apple iPod, Touch
BlackBerry Device
LG Phones
Motorola Phones
Nintendo DS
Nintendo Wii
Nokia Phones
Opera Mini Devices
Palm Devices
Sony Ericson Phones
Samsung Phones
Sony Playstation Portable
Sony Playstation 3
Windows CE Device, Mobile IE
Apple Safari (desktop; for development)
Google Chrome (desktop; for development)
Microsoft Internet Explorer (desktop; for development)
Mozilla Firefox (desktop; for development)
Opera (desktop; for development)
Mobile Settings
The Mobile Settings allow you to toggle on and off the display of the link to the non-mobile site on your mobile theme.
Here you can also add additional HTML to your Header, such as your Google analytics tracking code.
PluginBuddy Mobile Settings
Support
Mobile from PluginBuddy offers support documentation contained in the iThemes codex with information on Theme creation, customization and known Plugin conflicts
Conclusion
PluginBuddy’s Mobile WordPress plugin offers a lot of room for customization across devices and the ability to offer unique mobile experiences to different device users. I personally found the amount of choices bewildering and the ease of use pales in comparison with other mobile plugins such as WP Mobile Detector. The Responsiveness of the themes also leaves a lot to be desired.
However, if your audience is largely mobile and you want to deliver a unique and varied experience to each different segmentation of mobile device users, Mobile from PluginBuddy could be the mobile plugin for you.
