Posted on October 17, 2008, at 9:40 am .
I have to hand it to Kevin, he knows how to get people to humiliate themselves for prizes throw a contest. He’s asking members of the BlackBerry Nation to tell him what they’d do for a BlackBerry Storm (nothing dangerous). The catch is this: if selected, you have to then prove it by recording yourself doing what you said you’d do.
It’s a great contest idea, and we like to think that someone may end up with a BlackBerry Storm tattoo on their body when this is all said and done. Hit the link below for more information:
What Would You Do For a BlackBerry Storm?
Posted on October 16, 2008, at 10:38 am .
If you’re excited about the number of cool BlackBerry applications you’ve heard about recently, it probably has something to do with the BlackBerry Partners Fund, the $150 million venture capital fund announced at WES. I would ask you to look no further than the BlackBerry Developer Challenge and the BlackBerry Cool 15 as examples of their pedigree. Today they announced the addition of two new members to its investment team: Marc Faucher and Matt Golden.
“Marc and Matt add competencies that perfectly compliment the knowledge and
experience currently resident within the members of the BlackBerry Partners Fund management team,” said Kevin Talbot, Co-Managing Partner of the BlackBerry Partners Fund. “With these appointments the BlackBerry Partners Fund has further solidified itself as the preeminent source of venture capital for mobile application or service developers.”
Both Marc and Matt have a variety of experience from other venture funds, as well as major wireless players like Bell, Ericsson and Tira Wireless. Welcome to the team, guys!
(via MobileSyrup)
Posted on October 16, 2008, at 9:21 am .
The BlackBerry Parnters Fund, the fine folks who are sponsoring the BlackBerry Cool 15, have announced the finalists of the BlackBerry Developer Challenge. Maybe you’ve heard of it? It’s only the biggest BlackBerry developer contest ever, with prizes for each category and the top two developers receiving two $150,000 investment opportunities.
You can see a brief description of each finalist after the jump. The winners, of course, will be announced at the BlackBerry Developer Conference. I was excited to see FreeRange’s AP Mobile News make the cut, as it was one of the best apps we spent time with at CTIA.
BlackBerry Developer Challenge Finalists
Posted on October 15, 2008, at 10:34 am .
This may seem like old news to most BlackBerry readers out there, but I just spent the past two days in a car trying to reach BBCool HQ after car troubles (don’t ask), so I’m playing a bit of catchup today.
At 12:01 Monday morning, T-Mobile officially announced the availability of the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 in their stores. RIM’s first flip phone is retailing for $150 on a two-year contract. You can read the full press release after the jump with spec details or hit the link below to visit T-Mobile’s Pearl Flip page.
T-Mobile BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220
T-Mobile BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 Press Release and Specs
Posted on October 13, 2008, at 4:03 am .
For BlackBerry Pearl users who can’t get enough of the color pink, today is your lucky day. AT&T has placed the Sandstone Pink BlackBerry Pearl 8110 on their website. The Sandstone Pearl 8110 retails for $150 on a two-year contract, but also features a $50 rebate which drops the device down to an even $100. Considering the price and the color, I think the Sandstone Pink BlackBerry Pearl 8110 will sell like hotcakes this holiday season.
Sandstone Pink BlackBerry Pearl 8110
Posted on October 9, 2008, at 3:04 pm .
UPDATE: Just got an email from Rick Segal, member of the BlackBerry Partners fund, confirming that he can also participate as a judge! This is great news for all developers participating, as I’m sure he’s looking to break open the vault and cough up some term sheet love for the BlackBerry Nation.
We’ve had a long history of being excited about being excited for the BlackBerry Developer Conference since it was first announced back in May. Our excitement reached a high point last week, when we told you of our participation in the BlackBerry Partners Fund Developer Challenge and the What Makes a Great Mobile Application? panel. I’d now like to formally introduce another DevCon event that can’t have us any more excited: The BlackBerry Cool 15.
The BlackBerry Cool 15 is an event we’re running to give exposure to BlackBerry developers with innovative and “cool” software ideas while providing them with a relaxed forum to interact with other like-minded people. The BlackBerry Cool 15 is a celebration of the BlackBerry development community and a good excuse to have a great time! Here’s how it will happen:
* We’re looking for 15 registered DevCon developers willing to display their innovative, pre-1.0 software release in front of an audience at the BlackBerry Developer Conference.
* Each of the 15 selected developers will have 1-2 minutes to pitch their idea or application, followed by 2-3 minutes of questioning by a judges panel.
* After all the developers have made their pitch, the audience members will vote on the best BlackBerry application. The winner will receive some great prizes which will be announced shortly.
* The whole event will be filmed and eventually displayed on BlackBerry Cool for the entire BlackBerry Nation to see.
The BlackBerry Cool 15 is being sponsored by the BlackBerry Partners Fund, which will supply both the adult beverages and developer prizes (thanks guys!). Our judging panel is a ‘who’s who’ of the BlackBerry blogging world, comprised of Al Sacco from CIO.com, Kevin Michaluk from CrackBerry.com, Hayden James from Pinstack.com (unconfirmed) and yours truly.
The BlackBerry Cool 15 is going to be a great time so make sure to come. It will take place on Monday, October 20th after the DevCon opening reception (more specific details to follow). Are you a developer interested in making a pitch to a room full of VCs, RIM employees and peers? REGISTER NOW!!!
Posted on October 8, 2008, at 4:28 pm .
By now, you should know how we feel about Vlingo: we love it. But now, the makers of this great voice-powered application need your help to make Vlingo even better! Read this below:
Vlingo is currently looking for active BlackBerry users in the US, Canada and the UK to test the latest features and functionality of our voice-powered application. Be one of the first users to try it out and have direct input into how the product evolves. Sign up now!
To participate, you need to meet the following criteria:
* Have a Pearl, Curve or 88xx
* Are interested in using voice to interact with your BlackBerry
* Be willing to fill out a survey post beta
* Live in the US, Canada or the UK
As part of this program, you’ll be testing and providing feedback on vlingo features designed for social media, Web search, messaging and much more. The program begins on Wednesday, October 8 and runs for one week. All beta testers will be asked to include your e-mail address so that vlingo can contact you to fill out a brief survey at the end of the test period. We will never sell or provide your contact information to any other company. We ask you to keep your beta test experience private until the formal product launch later this month.
To sign up for the closed beta, hit the link below via your BlackBerry Browser:
Vlingo Closed Beta Download
Posted on October 7, 2008, at 11:57 pm .
Wow, it’s an exciting night for Canadians! We’ve just received word that Telus will receive the BlackBerry Storm in Canada!!
Go to www.telusmobility.com/storm for more info or read the press release after the jump.
Telus gets the BlackBerry Storm
Posted on October 6, 2008, at 3:56 pm .
We’re almost at the point with these BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 releases that we might need to make a ‘FlipBerrys Around the World’ post. Telefonica announced today that it is bringing RIM’s first flip phone to Spain this fall. As such, there’s no word yet on pricing, but by way of comparison, Italian carrier TIM released the BlackBerry Pear Flip last week for 269€.
For our Spanish friends, more information on the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 can be found at http://es.blackberry.com/, or you can view the full device specs after the jump.
BlackBerry Pearl 8220 specs
Posted on October 6, 2008, at 11:39 am .
Uh-oh, looks like it’s time to add another country to the BlackBerry Bold World Map. Zain Bahrain and RIM jointly announced today the launch of the BlackBerry Bold in the Kingdom of Bahrain today.
“The uber-sophisticated BlackBerry Bold smartphone is sure to delight Zain Bahrain customers who love to stay ahead in the tech race as well as those who value increased productivity. It delivers an amazing blend of functionality, performance, usability and design, making it an ideal choice for both business professionals and power users in Bahrain,” said Zain Bahrain’s Special Projects Manager, Bashar Alami,
I’m not sure how large our Bahrainni readership is, but they must be excited! Check out our BlackBerry Bold Review to know if you should buy it (answer: yes). You can read the full press release after the jump.
The Ultimate BlackBerry Bold Review (with full device specs)
BlackBerry Bold Bahrain Press Release
