Posted on August 17, 2010, at 4:31 PM .
BlackBerry Widgets are a high priority for RIM because it will allow them to attract an entirely new set of developers to the BlackBerry platform. Web developers can use the BlackBerry Widget SDK to package their web apps into files that can be loaded on a BlackBerry and sold in App World. In this sense, a BlackBerry Widget is nothing like a typical widget (a small app placed on a desktop or homescreen). A BlackBerry Widget should actually be called a BlackBerry Web App.
Below are some examples of applications in BlackBerry App World that were created using the BlackBerry Widget SDK. They’re not identified in App World as being Widgets, but RIM is able to identify them internally and we have a short list of some of them for you. What’s interesting about Widgets is that you can tell they’re web apps. Some of them have little bugs that you haven’t seen before in a BlackBerry app (eg a cursor arrow popping up) and seem very “web-like” when it comes to graphics.
Continue reading ‘Examples of BlackBerry Widgets in App World’
Posted on August 17, 2010, at 1:48 PM .
Analysts at RBC Capital Marktets and Stifel Nicolaus are saying that sales of the BlackBerry Torch are at around 150,000 during the first weekend. Although the WSJ compares this to Apple and its 1.7 million iPhone 4 units sold in the first three days, RIM’s device sales follow a different trend. Enterprise clients, for example, generally don’t purchase on launch day and these sales will trickle in over the course of the next few months.
Continue reading ‘BlackBerry Torch Sells 150K Units Over Weekend and Costs $183 to Build’
Posted on August 17, 2010, at 12:56 PM .
Jason sent us a link to a post he wrote up that includes a few slides from an AT&T developer webcast. The slides show some of the updates coming to the BlackBerry Widget SDK 1.1 as well as the web plug-ins (Eclipse and Visual Studio) which will be updated to version 2.5.
Widgets are being pushed very heavily in BlackBerry 6 and we’re going to see a great deal of news in the coming months about them. RIM is looking to attract web developers to the platform in order to address the issues that BlackBerry is a difficult platform to develop for and the need for more apps. Widgets will be essentially web apps, wrapped in a COD file so they can be loaded to a BlackBerry. More slides after the jump.
Continue reading ‘AT&T Developer Webcast Slides Show Upcoming Widget Updates’
Posted on August 17, 2010, at 11:46 AM .
This isn’t anything groundbreaking but just a little tidbit some of you may have noticed playing around with BlackBerry 6. With BlackBerry 6, RIM separated out the Lock and Password Lock functionality. The Lock button on the top of the device locks the unit, so there are no accidental key/screen presses, while Password Lock and Timeout requires users to enter their password. With non-touchscreen devices, BlackBerry 6 will have a separate Keyboard Lock and a Password Lock. There are many users who prefer the added security of a Password Lock, especially as the Lock can be disabled on a Torch by sliding it open.
This feature was in the later versions of OS 5 and the official word from RIM is that they’re separated in BlackBerry 6 and onwards. In order to set your device to password lock, you have a few options:
1. Set the Password Timeout to something relatively short in Options > Security > Password > Lock After: 2 Min
2. Use the Password Lock icon on the homescreen.
3. Set the Password Lock to a convenience key.
Do you Password Lock your device?
Posted on August 17, 2010, at 11:03 AM .
Skylab Mobilesystems Ltd. just released version 1.5 of their popular GPS tracking application MobileTracker for BlackBerry. The latest update includes full BlackBerry Torch support as well as a BlackBerry Maps preview feature. To coincide with the update announcement, MobileTracker is available for a special introductory offer of 50% off. Other features of the app include:
- Records a GPS tracklog.
- Elevation and time can be tracked.
- Easy one-click tracklog recording.
- Extensive statistical information and background tracking.
Check out MobileTracker in the BlackBerryCool Store.
