If you're itching to get your hands on the new BlackBerry Bold 9790, head to Jakarta, Indonesia. Research In Motion is hosting a huge consumer event on November 25th with a ton of entertainment lined up. If you do plan on attending, you should make sure to get there early. The first 1,000 buyers will get 50% off their purchase of a Bold 9790, and if this is anything like the grand opening of the BlackBerry Lifestyle store in Indonesia earlier this week, it's going to be packed! The BlackBerry Bold 9790 goes on sale across Indonesia November 26th.
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Research In Motion hosting a huge party for the BlackBerry Bold 9790 in Jakarta November 25th
Friday, November 18, 2011
Reading Light for your BlackBerry device
With the holidays fast approaching, I'm sure a lot of us will be in the car at some point for a long stretch of time. I love to read in the car while my husband listens to his talk radio. I use my BlackBerry PlayBook to read e-books here and there but I really prefer holding the actual book in my hand. This causes some issues when in the car after dark. Enter Reading Light by Mindivia. This simple app uses actual images of natural light sources on your BlackBerry device to cast a subtle yet effective glow on whatever it is you may be reading.
Features include:
To acheive optimal lighting on your BlackBerry device:
This app works remarkably well and is much better then using one of those flashlight apps currently available. It's important to remember to TURN OFF your device's "Automatically Dim Backlight" feature to maximize the app's brightness. Reading Light is available for $0.99 in BlackBerry App World on most devices (all carriers) running OS 4.2.1 or higher. All countries supported except: Bahrain, Joedan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea & the United Arab Emirates.
More information / purchase Reading Light
Quick Review: BHive Tasks 4.0
My day job mandates that I be productive and organize my bosses to the best of my ability. While I may be able to keep track of their to-dos and schedule, when it comes to my own, however, I'm literally a mess. This stems all the way back to college when I was known as the post-it note queen by my roommate. I just couldn't bring myself to use an organizer which gathered dust in the corner. I'd put them everywhere: on the TV, on the wall, and even on my laptop. Same goes at work too, stickies everywhere including on the case of my beloved BlackBerry. I realized I needed to wean myself off my paper addiction and to go cold turkey I decided to check out BHive Tasks by High Velocity IT Inc.
BHive Tasks is a productivity application available for BlackBerry smartphones that enhances and works in conjunction with the native Task app (it will not work if you deleted the app for more memory). It allows you to create and customize tasks a number of ways and is available for most devices running OS 4.2 and higher. Let's just take a look at a few of the many features included.
Interface
When you first look at BHive it sports a clean, simple and user-friendly interface. It is divided into four tabs: Due, Category, Priority, and Status. This allows you to easily locate and filter through your tasks without having to scroll through each and every one. In addition, you can configure the startup screen to open on any one of these tabs.
Synchronization
If you add a task or create a new category in BHive it pops up in BlackBerry tasks and vice versa. All of the required fields are duplicated in this application so you still have your categories, recurrence options, reminders, etc. This means if you're like my boss and syncs his Tasks with Outlook they'll port over as well. It also means tasks are viewable on your PlayBook.
Mass updates and tasks creation
BHive goes one step further by allowing you to modify and create multiple tasks at a time. For instance you can input reminders for all of your bills or a bunch of items at once. You will need to go through each one if there are different due dates though. In addition, you can select all of your tasks at once and modify their category or folder without painstakingly opening each one.
Shortcuts
One of the things I really love about this program are the shortcuts. Without a doubt it is one of the best features of this application and what drew me to it in the first place. Not only are shortcut keys embedded into the program but even when entering a new task. Using their own form of shorthand you can enter in the due date, reminders, priority and folder name automatically when you hit enter.
Pros
Cons
Rating
Average rating 4.5/5 stars in Blackberry App World
Conclusions
BHive Tasks is a top notch productivity tool that seamlessly integrates with your native tasks applications to not only deliver much needed functionality but reduces the number of steps when entering or filtering through tasks as well. It helps me stay on top of things without resorting to my post-it note madness. Before, I used to introduce my to-do methods as organized chaos. With this app I'm leaning towards a little more organized and a lot less chaos. Now I have no excuse for my laziness. It's just the thing for those of us who need better organizational skills.
You can pick up BHive Tasks 4.0 at BlackBerry App World for $8.99 and a free trial is available. For a limited time it's currently on sale for $4.99.
More information / purchase BHive Tasks 4.0
Word Farm now available in BlackBerry App World
Looking for a new game to quickly become addicted to? Tired of playing poker or breaking bricks, well then it is time to check out Word Farm for BlackBerry. Word Farm has been out for a bit on Android, and has been released for BlackBerry today, and it is quite an addictive word game.
The concept of the game is to use the letters on the screen to spell as many words in the allotted time as possible. Of course, the longer the word the more points, and there are various achievements to unlock and various secret words which will give you bonus' in addition to extra points. You may be thinking how addicting can a word game really be, well give it a shot for yourself and find out just how addicted you can become. The game is available through BlackBerry App World for $2.99, so click the link below and get to downloading, and hit the break for a preview video!
More information / purchase of Word Farm
Et tu, BlackBerry Protect? The terrible saga of a device switch fiasco
I have been betrayed! The BlackBerry Protect application that I have lauded and recommended time and time again has - in my eyes - failed me. But let me back up a little (and turn the melodrama dial down from eleven).
The other day, I finally joined the OS7 masses, getting a brand new BlackBerry Torch 9860 (I really liked the CDMA version of the phone). I know, I know, I'm a little late to the game; but in my defense, so was my carrier. Anyway, whenever I do something on my BlackBerry I try to figure out how to turn it into an article. This article was going to be titled, "How lazy do you want to be? Switching devices using BlackBerry Protect." Sadly, this is not that article.
Now obviously, I wasn't expecting miracles. The BlackBerry Protect application only grabs a small portion of the data on your BlackBerry: contacts, calendars, SMS text messages, memos, and browser bookmarks. But between that service and the nearly ubiquitous BlackBerry ID, I figured it would be an easy transition to a new phone - no BlackBerry Desktop Software required. I was wrong.
Of all the data that BlackBerry Protect backs up wirelessly, I really only cared about my contacts. After going though the rigmarole of setting up BlackBerry Protect (which, by the way won't let you restore data until after you've agreed to the TOS/EULA - a fact that is not even remotely implied by the setup instructions), I expected to find all of my contacts waiting for me. Instead of finding over 100 contacts on my new phone, there were three. Since these were the three most recent contacts, I imagine this was some failing of an incremental backup that only saved recent changes. Whatever the exact problem, the result is still the same: Fail.
Setting aside the problems of missing contacts for a while, I next turned my attention to getting email working on my new phone. I've had a BlackBerry ID for a while, and many Research In Motion-designed applications use it - BlackBerry App World and BlackBerry News (Feeds) to name two. I was really hoping my ID would tie my old and new phones together so I wouldn't have to jump through hoops to get email working. Nope.
Every email address associated with your BlackBerry must have its password entered and verified. (I'll save my troubles with that particular system for another time.) In Research In Motion's defense, I believe this is a security measure to prevent unauthorized email access, but it's still an annoying step to have to take. As of this writing, I don't have access to three accounts because I can't remember their passwords. On the plus side, at least one of my email addresses had some synced data attached to it, and I got most of my contacts back (sorry Adam, my new BlackBerry doesn't like you.)
On to BlackBerry Messenger. Oh, no, Joseph, not BBM troubles, too? Yup. BBM has this nice feature that allows you to back up contacts using one of your BlackBerry-associated email address. Trouble is, it didn't work for me. I know for a fact that I've used that backup feature before installing BlackBerry Beta Zone stuff. Sadly, when I tried to recover those contacts, none could be restored. Thankfully, I figured out a way to import the contacts using a saved local file and a couple of USB cables.
When I set out to switch BlackBerry Smartphones, I knew I wouldn't get everything. Received emails would be lost, apps wouldn't transfer, and BlackBerry Messenger might be a little wonky for a little while. I didn't know it would turn into a multi-hour ordeal of frustration and swearing. Rather than writing the article I wanted - about how easy it is to switch devices - I'm writing one about how difficult that process is. The moral of this unfortunate saga is two-fold.
First, to Research In Motion, what happened? Why didn't Protect transfer my contacts? What happened to my BBM contacts? Why is it so difficult to restart email services on my Smartphone? If my name were Joe Everyperson - and not Joseph Holder, CrackBerry blogger extraordinaire - the first thing I might have done is turn around and take this phone back to the store.
When selling Smartphones to the consumer, that end-user ease of use is one of - if not the - most important factors. I really thought that RIM was making great strides in this with their BlackBerry ID, but that has not been the case. I yearn for the day when my new phone asks for my BlackBerry ID and then hourglasses for a few minutes as all my old data is pulled onto the new phone. There is certainly a security issue with that scenario - and there's always a balance that must be struck between security and convenience - but Research In Motion knows security. If anyone can figure it out, they can.
I understand why things work better in the factory than in the wider world, though. As people who design and build these phones day in and day out, the average user's experience just doesn't come into play. It's pretty much a given that programmer and users do not think alike. That's why beta testing these phones and services in real-world situations is so very important - something that the BlackBerry Beta Zone has done a fantastic job at. In fact, if RIM wants to send me a new phone every month to Beta test, I'll be more than happy to do my best to break it. After all, that is what a good beta tester does.
Finally, my readers, a bit of advice for you. In the past, I've been quite happy to share my foibles with you. If I managed to cause some horrid foul-up with my Smartphone, at least you don't have to suffer with the same problems. Today is no exception.
Use BlackBerry Desktop Software to switch between your phones. Had I simply gone the "lazy" route and hooked my phones up to my computer, none of this would have happened. The Device Switch Wizard in BBDS would have prevented all of these problems. After less than half an hour, my new phone would have had all of my contacts, all of my email address, all of my BBM contacts updated with my new PIN, all of my previous emails, and even the majority of the apps that were installed on my BlackBerry Torch 9800. In short, BlackBerry Desktop Software is the easiest, simplest, best way to switch between BlackBerry Smartphones; use it.
Now, if you'll excuse me I still have some apps to install. And some Facebook friends to connect to my BlackBerry contacts. Ditto for BBM contacts. And some email account passwords to look up. And some Wi-Fi networks...
Flashback Friday: Impress your friends with a shiny new BlackBerry Storm2, only $140 at 1SaleADay!
It was 2009.
BlackBerry OS 5.0 had just been released, BlackBerry App World was still in its infancy, and we had our first device (the BlackBerry Curve 8520/30) with a trackpad instead of that dirty old trackball.
Research In Motion was trying to recover from the initial BlackBerry Storm, and launched the BlackBerry Storm2 in an effort to redeem themselves. Was it a successful attempt? You can judge that for yourself, since just a bit over two years later, none of the latest devices carry the Storm name.
In any case, the device does have a following - mostly made up of people that for one reason or another have stuck with it since launch. You can still buy the BlackBerry Storm2, and deals like this one at 1SaleADay pop up from time to time. So, whether you try to impress your friends with your retro style when you pull this bad boy out of your pocket, give it to the dog as a chew toy, or use it as a backup device in case of emergency, for just $140 you won't have to mortgage the house to own it. Don't delay, the sale ends in a few hours.
Get Notified When You Lose or Gain Data Connectivity
If you live, travel, or work in an area with shoddy data connectivity you might really appreciate this app. Josep from Neurona Sistemas let us know about their new app called Data Coverage Notifier. It lets you set notifications via sounds, LED, and vibration when your coverage goes up and down. Its not the most sophisticated of apps but its a great way to know if you are back in a coverage area to browse the web or fire up an app that needs data.
The Data Coverage Notifier is nice and cheap at $0.99 in App World. Let us know what you use it for if you pick it up!
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