Author: Joe

Take a look at our blogroll. Do a Google search for “BlackBerry blog.” You’ll notice tons and tons of them. Why so many blogs, then, devoted to one topic? Because we all approach it from different angles. This is nice for readers, who can pick the one that best fits their BlackBerry needs. Plus, since we tend to interlink, you can keep up with most others as well. It’s great for the bloggers, too. No one person can think of everything. I love reading the stable of BlackBerry blogs because it gives me ideas for BBGeeks posts, both directly and indirectly. Today’s is a direct influence, from Robb at RIMarkable, one of the good guys in the blogosphere. He has an excellent tip for quickly and easily sending contact information to any email address or BlackBerry user.

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If you find yourself with idle time on your hands, BlackBerry games can come in handy. That’s not idle time as in vegging out — there are PS3s and Xboxes for that. But plenty of people face daily commutes, wait for meetings, and otherwise experience downtime during the day. Cell phone games have existed for quite some time, and as platforms have evolved so have the available titles. The iPhone made quite a leap in this regard, thanks to its large touchscreen. The BlackBerry Storm, too, has a penchant for gaming. Today we’ll take a look at some interesting titles for the Storm.

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Despite its many flaws, the BlackBerry does make searching the web pretty easy. The Go To screen contains an address bar, a search bar, your bookmarks, and recently visited sites. For most users, that’s enough. More intense mobil web users might prefer wider reaching search options, beyond the basics — or, for Verizon customers, beyond just Bing. SearchIt has been available for a while, though I have to say I hadn’t seen it before today, when Obi at CrackBerry noted an update. Shaosoft has added plenty of features to an already excellent application.

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At one point, months ago in history, I didn’t use folders on my BlackBerry. After downloading an application, the icon would sit at the bottom of my app menu — or, if it were important it would move to the home screen. This continued on, with me deleting unused application to keep the clutter to a minimum. Then I got my BlackBerry Tour in November. At first I didn’t like the folders. They were just one more layer between me and my applications. But, after getting used to them, I don’t know how I managed without them. No longer do folders represent a layer between me and my stuff. Now they represent storage bins, in which I carefully place my icons so I can easily find them next time. I feel as accomplished as a kid who puts away his toys when he’s done.

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What happens when we get tidbits about new BlackBerry devices? We break them down on the Geekcast. We’ve got two this week, both milestones. We saw one caught in the wild for the first time, and we saw the other in carriers’ computer systems. Plus, perhaps you can increase the storage on your BlackBerry soon.

So click on over here to hear the BBGeekcast (8 min, 0 sec)

And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast so you won’t miss future episodes!

You can also subscribe to the BBGeekcast in iTunes.

Highlights include:
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For many of us, the ability to search through emails is critical. When we’re on the go we need a quick, reliable way to find messages, whether we search by subject, sender, or a bit of text in the message. BlackBerry does take care of this, but they’re not search experts like Google. The latest addition to Google’s suite of mobile apps: email and contact search. It comes as part of the regular Google Mobile App, so it can also search the web. This is a plus for Verizon users who prefer Google over Bing. A few weeks back, Verizon took Google off the Go To screen in the browser, replacing it with Bing (though mine has yet to change). The app is the best replacement for that feature.

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In last week’s News From The Wire we focused on the BlackBerry Pearl 9100. That’s one of two BlackBerry models slated for an early 2010 release, and since we haven’t seen a Pearl release since 2007 it’s probably the more exciting of the two. The other device, the Tour 2, a/k/a the Essex, will also hit shelves soon. I’ve expressed my dissatisfaction with a release so soon after the original Tour, but that doesn’t make it any less noteworthy. So what did we learn about the Tour 2 this week?

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As we go through new BlackBerry themes every other week, I’ve been noticing that more and more have spots for weather applications on the home screen. It’s a great feature, really, especially when it’s also on the lock screen. Those are the screens we look at most often, and to have the current weather conditions handy proves useful in many situations. In yesterday’s theme review we looked at two themes with weather app slots. If you liked one of those themes, you might want to check out BeWeather. It’s a simple weather app, and now it’s available for free at BlackBerry App World.

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Whenever I prepare for our bi-weekly theme review, I find myself hitting a few sites regularly. We always review Hedone Design themes, and it’s a rarity this week that they’re not included. Another regular stop is Cherri Chiodo’s All Things Berry. When I visited her site recently to check out her new themes, I learned some bad news. Her daughter has been diagnosed with Retroperitoneal Undifferentiated Sarcoma, and has been undergoing chemo and radiation treatment. So, before we dive into the theme reviews this week, I’d like to offer my thoughts and prayers to Cherri, her daughter, and her family. No one deserves to go through this.

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When I first saw the Energizer EnergiStick, I thought it was one of the coolest little gadgets around. No long would I have to fear my battery dying if there wasn’t an outlet available — or worse, if I forgot my charger, as I do so often. The device has an obvious limitation in that it can only provide a certain level of charge before needing a charge itself. Apparently, there was an even cooler BlackBerry charger on display at CES last week, though it went underreported. The folks at OhGizmo caught wind of it, though, and because of them we can now revel in the coolness of the RCA Airnergy. It charges your BlackBerry wirelessly.

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Remember when people called the Internet the information superhighway? It’s probably been over a decade since I heard that phrase, and for good reason. While information still resides in all corners of the net, the focus has shifted. Today the web is a largely social platform where we can make connections with people we otherwise would never have known. Yes, we share bits of information from this superhighway with our friends, both new and old, but the emphasis lies on the sharing, not on the information itself. Services like Facebook and Twitter embody this social ideal. Today we’ll look at another service that tries to reconcile these social connections. It’s called Glide Engage, and while it’s small beans now it has the potential to enhance the way you connect with others.

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Over the summer I got a chance to check out Tumbplay’s music store. At the time it was the only one available at BlackBerry App World, but it has since faced competition, mainly, I think, from 7digital. But Thumbplay wasn’t about to lay down and let 7digital steal the day. No, they knew they had to introduce something new, and at CES we heard the announcement. Their new unlimited music app is now in private beta, and should be ready for an official release soon. Any time you put the words unlimited and music next to each other, I’m all ears. So let’s check out what the app has to offer.

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Here’s a feeling I’d like to avoid for the rest of my life. You’re at a trade show, cruising the expo hall floor, calling and messaging to make appointments. You meet with people, exchanging contact information. While grabbing lunch you watch a quick video you saved on your SD card. Then, come mid-afternoon, disaster strikes. You’re almost out of battery. It’s no surprise, really. Your backlight has been on constantly, which slowly eats away at battery life. You’d go camp out next to an outlet and plug in for a while, but gosh darnit you’re just so busy. This is the exact market Energizer had in mind when it created the EnergiStick, a new addition to its Energi To Go line of products.

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It’s CES week, so you know we’ve got some new BlackBerry developments from there. There are a few new gadgets, some functional, some for fun, but all around a good BlackBerry experience. And, as we do every week, we discuss the new BlackBerry model du jour.

So click on over here to hear the BBGeekcast (13 min, 44 sec)

And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast so you won’t miss future episodes!

You can also subscribe to the BBGeekcast in iTunes.

Highlights include:
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If it’s true that there’s always a market for the super expensive, then it looks like Viper has a hit. They’re bringing their SmartStart vehicle control system to the BlackBerry, and while it’s one of the coolest new applications for BlackBerry it’s also one of the most expensive. That’s because the remote entry and starter requires hardware in addition to the application — which, of course, is free. Why charge for the app when you can charge hundreds for the necessary parts? Still, if you have a few hundred laying around, or know someone who likes to buy you expensive gifts, this is something worth checking out.

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Happy New Year, everyone. Because of extenuating circumstances — i.e., the holidays — we’ve missed News From The Wire for the past few weeks. Instead, we ran with the news on the BBGeekcast. Now that we’re back to normal, full weeks, we’re also back with the news in text form. It’s CES week, so you know there are a few tidbits worth noting in the BlackBerry world. And, as is our bread and butter, we’ve heard a new device’s release is imminent.

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Does cell phone radiation cause cancer? Scientists have debated this issue for years and have come to no consensus. Some studies try to show that it does cause cancer, while others try to show that it does not. Exercising caution is probably the best route for now, until scientists conduct more conclusive studies. With all this uncertainty, I’m sure BlackBerry users weren’t happy to hear last September that the BlackBerry Curve 8330 emits a high level of radiation, the fourth highest among popular handsets. For concerned BlackBerry users, Pong Research just announced a new case that claims to reduce radiation. I can’t vouch for the accuracy of these claims, but if you’re looking for peace of mind, you might want to check out this new case.

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You won’t catch me wearing a Bluetooth headset. No sir, not me. My girlfriend got me one a few years ago to use while driving, and while I did that reluctantly, I immediately ditched the thing when I moved to the city and sold my car. Call me old fashioned, but I like holding the receiver to my ear. Plus, any time I see someone with a Bluetooth headset I can’t help but think of this clip (which contains profanity). But there are many benefits to using a Bluetooth headset, and there are many people who benefit from using them — especially car drivers. So, with the help of everyone on the BBGeeks staff, we’ve compiled a list of our favorite Bluetooth headsets. Clearly we’re not going to cover them all, so let us know if we missed one that you particularly like.

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No one likes a wireless contract. It restricts our freedom as consumers (e.g., no class action lawsuits) and binds us to a single carrier for two years at a time. So why do we sign them? We don’t have much of a choice, since that’s the way America’s major carriers operate. But even if offered the option, many of us would still sign a contract, because that grants us a subsidy on a handset. While a BlackBerry normally retails for between $400 and $600, a subsidy gets that price below $200. Over the past year we’ve seen three prominent players in the U.S. introduce prepaid BlackBerry services. As expected, they all involve paying a heavy up front fee for the device. Is that a worthy trade-off?

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IMS, the RIM partner that developed iLane is ready to pop the cork on a slick productivity app in the new year. We got our hands on an anonymous Power Point file showing details of a soon to be released app they’re calling XTopMobile. It’s designed to make life a little easier for BlackBerry users who frequently find themselves toggling between handheld and PC.

I know what you’re asking yourself. Can a productivity app really be that interesting? Well, if you spent your Holidays stranded in a snow-bank in Colorado after blindly following your GPS into oblivion, you’d probably appreciate mobile applications that don’t try to tell you where to go.

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