The voice of the BlackBerry community.
Got a tip that Boost is shipping their 8330 with OS 5.0.0.438 which is strange because Sprint is not. It could be that the CB forums member who posted it, has a leaked version on their desktop which was installed, or a hoax altogether. If Boost is in fact shipping the 8330 with OS 5, that would mean an official OS launch is just around the corner.
It’s fun looking at BlackBerry patents because even though they may never come to fruition, you can always speculate on the pros and cons of actually implementing said patent. In a patent that was filed on February 26,2009 and updated on January 12th 2010, RIM demonstrate how biometric finger scanning could be implemented on a BlackBerry.
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Otterbox has been known to make high quality and durable cases for BlackBerry phones for some time now. They recently released their Otterbox Commuter Series for the BlackBerry 9700. I promptly handed this case over to my good buddy, Choco. He is a man’s man. We once went on a camping trip and he was asked to bring back firewood…he returned with a truck tow strap around his chest and a tree that he later cut into pieces. He opens beer bottles with his teeth. This is the guy to test the Otterbox. So what did Choco think?
Likes
The Otterbox came in nice packaging, it was good looking but I didn’t have to have a chainsaw and pry bar to open it *Note: He does carry these tools anyway* The materials are solid. It didn’t feel cheap where I could tug on it a couple of times and it loosen it up). I found all of the cut outs to be clean and smooth to the touch. The device feels a little bigger without being bulky which gave me a better grip. I found that the push buttons on the outside of the case work well and that everything maintained responsive. The case also doesn’t add very much weight to the phone which is important to me. I didn’t feel like the phone tried to fall out of the case, so it really inspired confidence.
Dislikes
The phone no longer fits in the holster and it doesn’t come with a replacement holster. I also found it troublesome to see the LED indicator from certain angles. The screen protector is a nice touch, but as most screen protectors, they can be a little tough to apply properly. Finally, I found the hard plastic doesn’t go all the way around, so whenever you want to plug in the charger or headphones it pulls back a little. I do suspect that it might stretch after a while, though.
Overall, the Otterbox Commuter for the 9700 is a winner. It has a great feel in my hands, it protects my BlackBerry when I forget to do so and it does it in a slim enough package that I can still stuff it in my pocket without feeling awkward.
There you have it folks! Choco is a fan of the Otterbox Commuter. If you have any questions about it, please post it in the comments and we’ll make sure you get taken care of!
Almost immediately after I put up the review, Foursquare became officially available so be sure to check it out. Foursquare version 1.03 has all the basics you would expect from the app and while there are a few frustrations, the overall experience is still really fun.
Try foursquare for BlackBerry by visiting http://foursquare.com/blackberry/ from your browser.
Are you tired of knuckleheads calling you to offer glaucoma surgery for your dog in Guatemala? Are you a person that is called on your BlackBerry for a long distance offer and you respond with “how long is it?” Well, if the fun is gone from tormenting telemarketing drones, read on. Why? Well, PrivacyStar, is giving away 5 one year subscriptions to its service to help you provide these pesky callers an atomic wedgie and a Chuck Norris-style roundhouse kick to the face *THWAP*.
What does PrivacyStar do, exactly? Let me call the horse and have him tell you straight from his mouth. *whistles*.
PrivacyStar is a simple-to-use mobile app that enables users to take complete control of their phones by blocking any and all unwanted callers, using Caller Lookup to identify unknown callers and easily report unwanted telemarketing violators to regulatory enforcement authorities.
Sound good? Leave us a comment, we’ll use some special algorithm and knock out five winners by Monday. Good luck!
I have the latest accessory from RIM called the BlackBerry Presenter: a means of displaying PowerPoint presentations from your BlackBerry to a projector. The way it works is fairly simple. To get started, you do the following:
After using the device with several different types of PowerPoint presentations, I can say that this accessory had some serious drawbacks, but also more potential than any other accessory RIM has ever made.
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Recently, foursquare for BlackBerry has gone version 1.03, which is the version they will likely launch with. Other than bug fixes, this latest version adds a few navigational features and seems to be fully ready for launch. I thought I’d review foursquare now, as it’s basically ready and I’ll post the download link so that anyone who doesn’t have foursquare on their BlackBerry can go ahead and download it.
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Whenever we post a link about an app on BlackBerry Cool that you can download OTA, I’m sure there are many of you who pick up your BlackBerry and hit the site by typing it in your web browser. There is a much more fun way of downloading apps OTA and it involves 2D barcodes, or QR codes.
To do this, get a plugin that generates a QR code from a web link. With FireFox, a good plugin to use is Mobile Barcoder. Once you’ve downloaded and installed the plugin, it allows you to generate a qr code from a link with a simple right click.
Now that you can generate QR codes from links, you just need to scan them on your BlackBerry. For a good barcode scanner, see the BlackBerry Cool guide. I suggest adding the barcode scanner to a Convenience Key, so that with a touch of a button you can be downloading any app off the site.
Try it out with the foursquare beta app found at http://foursquare.com/blackberry/beta-pacman
I just finished reading Josh Sookman of RBC Venture Partners and the BlackBerry Partners Fund’s article about “Creating a Better BlackBerry Experience.” He touches on some good points and the article is definitely worth a read.
The article is based on the above diagram, which addresses the various levels from developer to end user in the BlackBerry Experience. The first part of the diagram involves addressing fragmentation in the platform. Developers don’t want to waste time and money porting their app to the various screen sizes, and RIM needs to do a better job of offloading this frustration. Acquiring a company or technology that can alleviate porting costs would go a long way for developers.
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Registration has opened for WES 2010 and if you register before February 19th, you get $400 USD off with the Early Bird rate. WES 2010 will be from April 27-29 at the Orlando World Center Marriott. If you’re going to attend one conference this year in the BlackBerry space, it has to be WES.
For more information, see AttendWES.com or join their facebook group facebook.com/WESConference.
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