Posted on November 10, 2010, at 1:12 PM .
Jim Balsillie made an interesting point recently when he compared the tablet market to the smartphone market, essentially saying there’s enough room for everyone and the market will explode in a similar fashion. It does seem to be the case that everyone is upgrading to a smartphone, and that everyone’s phone will eventually be “smart”, but does the same necessarily hold true for tablets?
“You have seen the smartphone market just explode… We are in the right sweet spot… This idea that there are two players and a small pie and they are divvying that between them – you are missing the point,” Balsillie told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of the G20 CEO Summit in Seoul.
At the same meeting, Jim Balsillie told reporters that the PlayBook will be priced under $500, but wouldn’t go into specifics about the exact price. Will it be $499? Or perhaps much cheaper at $300. Considering the device relies on a BlackBerry for connectivity, RIM is going to have to price the tablet lower than the competitors. Ideally, the PlayBook would come in at a pricepoint where every BlackBerry user will feel like they can afford one.
It looks like all of this will be confirmed in the next couple of months when we get close to a rumored February launch.
Posted on November 10, 2010, at 11:50 AM .
Facebook Places is now available in the newest version of Facebook for BlackBerry, which launches today. Over the next 24 hours, users will receive notices to upgrade to Facebook for BlackBerry v1.9, and the new version is also available for download in BlackBerry App World. New features of Facebook for BlackBerry v1.9 include:
- Facebook Places
- Check in, add a Place and tag friends
- Check in to Facebook Places within a 1.25 mile radius of your location
- Select a Place from the available Nearby Places or add a Place if location does not already exist in the Places database
- Tag a friend upon check in, and include a comment
- View Places where friends have checked in
- View Places, “Here Now”, “Nearby” and “Elsewhere”, that friends have checked in to
- “Like” or add a comment to friends’ check ins
- Check ins will appear in the News Feed
- GPS and BB Maps Integration
- View a map of the location you’re checking in to and get directions to and from friends’ locations.
- Search
- Perform a search for People and Pages within the application
- Find mutual friends and view their profile thumbnails by searching for individuals and pages; send them a friend request, a message or a poke.
- View pages in the Friends list and News Feed, and elect to become fans of pages
- Pull Facebook results using the Unified Search application on BlackBerry 6 smartphones
- Friends List Update
- View friends’ profile pictures as well as their Pages from the Friends list.
- UI Elements
- Use the redesigned navigation bar to easily view your own profile, and click on the Search and Message icons
The Places feature uses the BlackBerry GPS to determine the user’s location and therefore your device must have GPS and it must be enabled to use the feature. This is a little strange considering cell tower IDs are so common and you would think this feature would be used.
How do you find the new Facebook? Are there any features you still want that are missing?
Posted on November 9, 2010, at 5:43 PM .
Xobni has updated their very useful BlackBerry app to support BlackBerry 6 as well as they’ve added a few other features. Here is a breakdown of Xobni’s support for BlackBerry 6 and the new features:
- On OS 6.x devices touching the Xobni bar or flick up works on compose, reply and forward actions
- Updated High-Definition icons
- Touch scrolling enhanced for optimized scrolling experience
- Editing is aware of virtual keyboard display and formats content shown on remaining screen
- Xobni bar not showing up in some cases now handled
- Add picture for contacts via camera
The new version is supposed to be available in App World but it isn’t showing up on the Torch just yet. It’s probably best to get the latest version directly from Xobni at xobni.com/mobile.
Posted on November 9, 2010, at 5:02 PM .
The next BlackBerry PlayBook webcast where RIM and Adobe will be demonstrating the SDK will be held on November 11th. The first webcast was helpful but there are still a lot of unanswered questions, so hopefully RIM has taken the time to plan out a little more about what features will be available to developers and give us a better idea of the roadmap. Remember, a lot of what they build into the feature roadmap will be based on demand so openly voice your support for certain features.
Register for the 2nd webcast at this link.
Posted on November 9, 2010, at 4:51 PM .
Magmic has officially launched THK Live and it’s out of beta and in Bplay and App World. THK Live is a very unique poker game and Magmic has taken an interesting approach to selling the game. The game is free and users have the ability to purchase chips in game in order to play high stakes games or top up their account. Features of the game include:
- Free To Play: Each day you’ll receive chips that you can take straight to the tables, without paying anything.
- Fast, Smooth and Fun: Are you tired of waiting for your opponent to make their move? This is the fastest poker game available for BlackBerry. Our quick speeds and easy to use interface ensure that you’ll spend more time taking down pots.
- Automatic Table Selection: THK Live will pick the most appropriate table for your Bankroll, Experience and Speed – All you have to do to start playing is press “Play.”
- Slick, Easy-to-Use UI: Magmic’s new and improved user interface is designed for high resolution devices providing vivid colors and smooth animations. Poker actions are easy to use and are inspired by BlackBerry’s own home screen.
- Unlock Achievements: Earn over 35 unique achievements that will reward you for winning pots, playing hands and getting lucky. THK Live will continue to add new and exciting achievements with each free content update.
- Stylish Avatars: Choose from over 30 unique Avatars, their high-resolution, full detail avatars are sure to make an impression. Magmic will continue to add more avatars with free content updates.
- Free Content Updates: THK Live is designed to be easy to update. We’ll be able to push out new and exciting features and new content as a direct downloads.
- Chat 2.0: We’ve dedicated a lot of time and effort to create the best chat system in a poker game. You’ll be able to quickly and conveniently taunt or praise your opponents without missing a hand.
Another cool addition to the game which some of the beta testers may have missed is the ability to get a new avatar with Pretzil. By signing up for a Pretzil account, you earn points each time you play THK Live and you can use these points to purchase new avatars for use in-game.
Go to getthklive.com from your BlackBerry to grab it OTA, or go to Bplay at this link or grab it from App World below.
Posted on November 8, 2010, at 12:29 PM .
On Sunday, AT&T kicked off a holiday promotion for the BlackBerry Torch 9800, and they’re selling all colors (Charcoal, Sunset Red and White) for $99.99 on a new two year contract. If you’re looking for a solid BlackBerry, this could be a great promotion for you.
Check out AT&T’s site for more details.
Read our review of the Torch 9800.
