CrackBerry asks: What is an appropriate age for children to get their first smartphone?

A recent study conducted by SodaHead revealed that most people feel kids shouldn't get their first smartphone or tablet until at least 16 years of age, though regular cellphones or feature phones are ok for the younger crowd. Interestingly enough, it wasn't just adults that felt that way; teens surveyed shared that opinion. A Mediamark survey in 2009 showed that more than a third of 10-11 year olds had cell phones already. Our oldest son is almost 11, and he's been asking for a phone (specifically a BlackBerry, shocker) for a couple of years now, but I've been putting him off until it's more of a necessity, not just a luxury.

We want to know, CrackBerry nation: At what age do you think a child/teenager should get their first smartphone? Vote in the poll above, and drop your comments below. The full infographic from SodaHead has some other interesting info, which you can check out at the source link below.



Source: SodaHead

If RIM were to push one native application to the BlackBerry PlayBook developer version of OS 2, which would you prefer?

As we all know, we unfortunately won't see the official release of the BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.0 until February of 2012, but we were still fortunate enough for RIM to allow developers to take part in a beta version. The beta doesn't contain any of the native applications that we had hoped it would, but that led me to some interesting thoughts. If RIM were to add just one of the native applications to an upcoming developer build, which would you want to see? Would you like to see Contacts, Calendar, Email, BBM, Tasks, Password Keeper or Notes? Odds are we won't see any of them until the official release, but it never hurts to use our imagination a little, right? Let us know your pick in the poll above, then tell us why you chose what you did in the comments.

How do you use your device: Do you prefer native or 3rd party apps for Memos and Tasks?

There are several third-party apps for taking notes available for the BlackBerry and for the BlackBerry PlayBook. Some of these sync between devices and your computer, some are stand alone apps, and they come in different styles and levels of complexity.



It seems to never fail, whenever we post about one of these apps, such as Evernote for example, there are always comments about why people don't use the native Memo Pad and Tasks instead of bothering with a 3rd party app. So this is our question for you today. Do you use the native Memo or Tasks apps on your BlackBerry or Playbook, or do you prefer a 3rd party app with extra bells and whistles? After you vote in the poll above, go ahead and leave a comment below explaining your thoughts on the subject!