The official Twitter for BlackBerry goes public beta tonight at 9PM EST. Everyone will be able to download the app and give it a try. While the app has been in private beta for some time now, it will be great to finally open it up to the general public and let everyone have a go.
The latest version that will launch tonight includes some features that were not in the private beta such as:
Notifications of New Tweets and @Replies/Mentions
When an @reply/mention is received, the user will be notified with a splat on the BlackBerry home screen ribbon as well as the application icon.
Users will also be notified of new tweets in the BlackBerry Messages list.
BlackBerry Messenger had yet another chain letter circulating and while it was called “spam” when it we posted it, it’s worth mentioning that it’s a simple chain letter that had no help spreading other than by BlackBerry users themselves. This isn’t the first time this has happened, but it does bring to light a grievance about BBM that I think many users can relate to: the need to update BBM’s broadcast feature.
I’ve had only one or two good experiences with BBM’s broadcast feature. This is compared to the thirty or so times that I’ve been distracted and annoyed by someone on my contact list broadcasting a message about something I could care less about. Chain letters and mass messages have been happening since the early days of email, but getting one on your BlackBerry is far more annoying.
The Beta Zone has a requested feature to allow you to never receive broadcasted messages. But is this enough?
So here’s the poll, what do you think of BBM’s broadcast feature?
BlackBerry Messenger is getting hit with spam again, and it’s starting to get a little worrisome about RIM’s ability to keep the message client spam-free. Spam can easily kill a messaging service as everyone has seen with Windows Messenger. I personally don’t log in to Windows Messenger anymore because the second I do, I’m inundated with spam. If this continues, the value of BBM will be seriously diminished.
Here is what the message says:
Hello, greetings from RIM (Research In Motion) proprietors of BlackBerry. This message is to inform all of our users, that our servers have recently been really full, so we are asking for your help to fix this problem. We need our active users to re-send this message to everyone on your contact list inorder to confirm our active users that use BlackBerry Messenger, if you do not send this message to all your BlackBerry Messenger contacts then your account will remain inactive with the consequence of losing all your contacts.
We apologize for the inconvenience but this is the only way possible to resolve this problem. Sincerely Research in Motion. For more information visit:
www.blackberry.com/inactiveusers
CB got the scoop on some great pics of the upcoming BlackBerry Bold 9650. The Bold 9650 is actually the Tour 9650, but RIM have made a marketing decision to call it a Bold series, probably to avoid a backlash from Tour customers who would resent an upgrade to their device so soon after they purchased. Also, the Bold branding carries a better reputation, and this will probably help boost sales. The Bold 9650 is running OS 5.0.0.573 at the time of taking these pics. Continue reading ‘Leaked Pics of the BlackBerry Bold 9650 Emerge’
AT&T are offering refurbished Bold 9000s for free with a 2 year contract. This isn’t a bad deal considering a new Bold 9000 will run you $199 on a 2 year plan. It’s not clear what caveats to attach to this deal, and just how refurbished the devices are, but if you’re comfortable with OS updrades and device wipes, I’m sure it will be fine.
Skyfire have recently come out with a really outspoken and honest blog post regarding their development for BlackBerry. As most know, Skyfire have been developing a 3rd party browser for BlackBerry that will render all manner of media and compete with/complement the native browser. The browser works by rendering all the pages on their server, and then sending your device a picture of what you’re browsing. This circumvents the need to render it on the device.
BlackBerry users have been waiting for some time now, and it seems they’ll have to wait even longer. This is Skyfire’s explanation for skipping BlackBerry for now, and focusing on Android:
We see Android as a fast-rising ecosystem, with a rich, totally open developer environment, a healthy app market and a healthy advertising and search ecosystem. The Android OS has a tremendous amount of interest from handset makers and carriers, and also has a strong need for making the explosion of video more network optimized (Skyfire’s wheelhouse).
