Facebook for BlackBerry

An innocuous Facebook user was poking through application permissions and found that the Facebook for BlackBerry app asked for permission to log in to the instant messenging service, even though it doesn’t offer mobile chat. RIM’s certainly no stranger to IM clients, having built AIM, ICQ, MSN, and GTalk apps around a similar and reliable framework. Producing a Facebook chat app may be a bit more involved, since the existing social networking app already has a lot of hooks into the native BlackBerry address book and calendar, but it’s well within the realm of possibility, especially considering third-party IM clients can already do it.

Of course, there’s no way of telling just how far along RIM is in releasing Facebook Chat for BlackBerry, but they haven’t updated the app in awhile, so it would be only fair if something came out soon.
www.intomobile.com

Twitter for BlackBerry Finally

BlackBerry Twitter fanatics can start getting excited now as the official Twitter for BlackBerry application has finally grown out of beta. We’re proud to see that the app has graduated into full, official status and with it comes a whole slew of new features and improvements. It’s about time after so many beta updates. Letting your friends know about the mundane details of your life has never been easier or more fun! To start, there are a number of new languages that are now supported: Portuguese EU, Japanese, Indonesian, Russian, Turkish, Dutch and Korean.


Thanks to the feedback of beta users, Twitter listened up, took the beta tester community’s advice and brought some of the features those users were clamoring for. You’ll now be able to “access any user’s profile from anywhere in the application using auto-complete functionality for followers,” according to RIM Media Relations.

Other features include:

* Push Notifications for Direct Messages
* Timeline Support
* Following and Followers
* Posting, Sending, Deleting , Replying and Retweeting Tweets
* User/Saved/Keyword/Proximity Search
* Tweet Photos/Links
* Trending Topics
* Seamless integration into core BlackBerry applications
* URL Shortening
* Auto-Update

In case you missed out on the updates in May, and part of what’s also included in the official client, here they are:

* Quote Tweets (editing retweets)
* Auto Complete for @ usernames
* View Photos from Yfrog & Tweetphoto
* View Geotagged Tweets
* ersonal Info Guard
* Hotkeys for Navigation
* Report as Spam

Tweeting about your weekend loafing at home, the weird turkey sandwich you had at lunch or maybe those strange, random comments you have about sports games that no one will ever understand unless they’re watching the same game will be so much easier now.

Starting tonight, the full launch will start rolling out and continue throughout tomorrow morning. If you want to pick it up, all you have to do is head on over to BlackBerry App World under the social networking category and you should be all set to go!
www.intomobile.com

BlackBerry OS 6

If you’ve already locked your jowls on the recently released video of BlackBerry OS 6… chances are you want it on your BlackBerry, and you want it now. Sadly, you CAN’T have it now, but thanks to the theme developers at WJD Designs… you can have the next best thing… a BlackBerry Theme based on BlackBerry OS 6.

The ‘Five Point Nine’ theme from WJD Designs brings a lot of the look and feel you’re used to seeing via the various BlackBerry OS 6 leaks we’ve had in the not-so-distant past. For all intents and purposes, the theme is the very same title that was released some time ago, titled ‘OS6′. I’m assuming RIM had a problem with this release, and they contacted WJD to make a change… ‘Five Point Nine’ is the re-jigged result. You gotta keep the legal beagles happy.

The theme is available now for the Storm, Bold, Tour and Curve series (on 5.0+). Hit up the download link below for all the goods… and as always, if you do purchase and install on your device… be sure to let us know what you think, right here in the comments!

Five Point Nine BlackBerry Theme ($2.99)

Note: Yes, I did elude to some BlackBerry OS 6 goodness at the beginning of this post. In case you missed it, be sure to check out the video that RIM posted yesterday. It’s mostly stuff we’ve seen before, but still, it’s good to see RIM is trying to keep us in the loop on their latest developments. Looks like some new features such as a revamped BlackBerry Messenger and tighter integration with your Facebook and Twitter accounts could be a really good thing.
www.intomobile.com/

BlackBerry 9800

The BlackBerry 9800, aka BlackBerry Talladega, aka BlackBerry Torch, has been all the buzz on the Berry scene over the past few months. However, I found it odd that I hadn’t heard much about RIM’s first-ever vertical slider as of late. In fact, just the other day I woke up wondering what the latest and greatest rumors were surrounding the device. Thankfully, this morning I have another rumor about the 9800 to share with you.

The latest rumor has the 9800 going to Rogers in an exclusivity deal. If you were hoping to nab this one on Bell or TELUS, so far things aren’t lookin’ too hot for you. No pricing or launch date info was leaked… so we’ll have to stay tuned for more details, because you know they’re comin’.

The BlackBerry 9800 is a vertical slider, with BlackBerry OS 6 on-board, a 5 megapixel camera, 3G, full QWERTY keyboard, optical trackpad, A-GPS, Bluetooth, 3.5 mm headset jack, and 4GB of memory (expandable to 16Gb via microSD). Yes, it’s going to be a powerful little device, but it remains to be seen how the device will be accepted by consumers, and the hardcore BlackBerry community as a whole.

That said, please take this with a grain of salt. It’s just rumor from an unnamed source at this point. Sure, I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see the 9800 as a Rogers exclusive, but until we get official word you know where I’m filing this one… in the unconfirmed rumors file. Whether the device does rear its head on Rogers or not, I don’t really care at this point. What I do want to know is this: is a BlackBerry that packs all of the latest technology (including a new OS), and a brand new vertically sliding form factor something that appeals to YOU? Or could you care less about this one? Let me know, in the comments.

www.intomobile.com

Otterbox BlackBerry Bold 9700

For those of you not familiar with the Defender series, the series specializes in offering premium protection for your BlackBerry or iPhone while offering the user full access to all the features of their phone. The Defender series cases offer three layers of protection against bumps, drops and shocks. Luckily, Otterbox was happy enough to provide me with a sample so that I could explain to all of you about their product!

The first, innermost layer, is a hard plastic shell which wraps around the phone. This layer includes has embedded in it a hard plastic cover protecting the users screen and camera. This layer also offers a 2mm bevelling along the edges of the screen and camera so that if the device is to be dropped, impact would not occur against the screen or camera. There is also a built in plastic screen protector attached to the plastic shell which ensures that your screen will remain in great condition! The second, outermost layer, is a silicone skin which completely covers the hard plastic shell. It is this layer which I would like to mention one caveat which irked me a bit. The silicone is a dust magnet. Even when placed in the third layer, the holster, my sweat or jacket covers the device in lint. I have found no way to avoid this. The only way to clean the case, is simply wipe it down with a damp cloth. One positive of the silicone however is the gripped backing. This allows the users to safely hold the device without having to worry about losing grip.

The third, and external layer, is their heavy duty holster. This belt clip on the holster made me have some nostalgic memories of my old BlackBerry 72xx series holsters. It has a very high quality, heavy duty plastic clip in which I personally have 100% confidence will NEVER fail on anyone. In addition to the clip, the holster itself is very thick further instilling trust into the quality of the product. There is one caveat however. One’s ability to remove the phone from the holster is very easy. In fact, I don’t go a week at work where someone doesn’t dislodge the phone from the casing, without my knowledge, just to show me how easily one’s device can be disconnected and stolen; however, Otterbox’s primary concern is protection from drops, bumps, and shocks and that they do very well!

To test the quality of the casing, I did the unthinkable…yes, you thought correctly…I dropped my phone, in it’s casing, onto several surfaces from about 5 feet above ground to test the quality of the casing. Not only was there no damage to the phone itself, there are NO visible markings or damages to the casing in question. I have owned Seidio & CaseMate products and never, until I used the Defender, have I felt that my phone was more secure than when I began using the Defender! All in all, with the exception of the case being a dust magnet, and the cases apparent lack of security in regards to theft, I am very happy with the product that Otterbox has created and I am confident, that in the future, they will develop new technologies that will remedy the caveats that I have mentioned!

BlackBerry Bold 9000 OtterBox Commuter Series

series is one of my favorite cases but I was not to sure how it would feel on an Bold 9000 since the 9000 is already a good size device. The OtterBox Commuter series is a combination of a hard cover and a silicon protective skin. The only thing with the Commuter series is that it does not include a holster, but it does make up for it because it doesn’t add much bulk to the device. One thing is for sure I don’t like carrying my BlackBerry around without any protection, I tend to drop them often. OtterBox was nice to provide a sample of their Commuter series for the BlackBerry 9000.

Package: The package include the case, a silicon skin, the hard cover, a Self-adhering clear protective film, microfiber cleaning cloth and installation card.

Placing ON/Removing: Placing the Commuter series on the BB is really easy the silicon skin goes on first and then the hard cover. The cases takes takes a little while to settle in but fits on the device just fine. Removing the case takes only a few seconds and keeps the BlackBerry clean.

Protection: The case covers all the vulnerable areas if the the device is dropped. The screen protective film offers protection from minor scratches. The hard shell protects it from drops in hard surfaces like concrete. The silicon skin covers the corners which is usually the first place the BlackBerry gets scratched. The silicon skin also protects the BlackBerry by helping it take the shock when is dropped.

Convenience Keys: The silicon part of the case covers all the convenience keys and keeps some dust from getting inside. The case doesn’t take away from the easy access to the keys on the side, it actually makes it easier to find.

The BlackBerry 9000 is a pretty good size so my first though was how much bigger will the case make it. The case doesn’t add more bulkiness to the devices. Typing on it is conformable and you know it is safe from minor damages. Just a few days after placing the BlackBerry on the OtterBox it was dropped twice on while getting out of the car. Not even the case got a scratch. The OtterBox Commuter series is one of their best products. It provides great protection without taking away from it’s usability and it doesn’t add more bulkiness to the device. At first the price may seem a bit high but when you think about how much the devices cost you will be glad you got one.

The only thing I would like to see for this case is more color options and maybe a holster for it but other than that the case does protect the BlackBerry better than most products I have used.

BlackBerry

BlackBerry is a line of mobile e-mail and smartphone devices developed by Canadian company Research In Motion (RIM). While including typical smartphone applications (address book, calendar, to-do lists, etc., and telephone capabilities), the BlackBerry is primarily known for its ability to send and receive Internet e-mail wherever it can access a mobile network of certain cellular phone carriers. It commands a 20.8% share of worldwide smartphone sales, making it the second most popular platform after Nokia's Symbian OS.[2][3]. The service is available in North America and in most European countries[4].

The first BlackBerry device was introduced in 1999 as a two-way pager. In 2002, the more commonly known smartphone BlackBerry was released, which supports push e-mail, mobile telephone, text messaging, Internet faxing, Web browsing and other wireless information services. It is an example of a convergent device.

BlackBerry first made headway in the marketplace by concentrating on e-mail. RIM currently offers BlackBerry e-mail service to non-BlackBerry devices, such as the Palm Treo, through the BlackBerry Connect software. The original BlackBerry device had a monochrome display, but all current models have color displays.

Most current BlackBerry models have a built-in QWERTY keyboard, optimized for "thumbing", the use of only the thumbs to type, and there are also several models that include a SureType keypad for typing, and two models that are full touch-screen devices with no physical keyboard. System navigation is primarily accomplished by a scroll ball, or "trackball" in the middle of the device, older devices used a track wheel on the side and newer devices like the Blackberry Bold 9700 or Curve 8520/8530 use a small pad for navigation "trackpad" instead of a trackball. Some models (currently, those manufactured for use with iDEN networks such as Nextel and Mike) also incorporate a Push-to-Talk (PTT) feature, similar to a two-way radio.

Modern GSM-based BlackBerry handhelds incorporate an ARM 7 or 9 processor, while older BlackBerry 950 and 957 handhelds used Intel 80386 processors. The latest GSM BlackBerry models (8100, 8300 and 8700 series) have an Intel PXA901 312 MHz processor, 64 MB flash memory and 16 MB SDRAM.[5] CDMA BlackBerry smartphones are based on Qualcomm MSM6x00 chipsets which also include the ARM 9-based processor and GSM 900/1800 roaming (as the case with the 8830 and 9500) and include up to 256MB flash memory

RIM Buka Kesempatan Membuat Aplikasi BlackBerry

Apakan sudah jenuh dengan aplikasi BlackBerry yang itu-itu saja? RIM sudah menyediakan solusinya.

Bosan dengan aplikasi BlackBerry yang itu-itu saja? Jangan khawatir, pasalnya kini Research In Motion (RIM) telah membuka kesempatan yang memungkinkan pihak ketiga (third-party) menyisipkan aplikasi buatannya ke dalam ponsel cerdas tersebut.

Dengan BlackBerry Widget Software Development Kit (SDK) yang baru ini, pengembang dapat membuat aplikasi web ke dalam BlackBerry yang selama ini hanya menyediakan aplikasi berbasis bahasa pemrograman Java.

Untuk render aplikasi yang menggunakan user interface HTML, CSS, dan JavaScript, BlackBerry widget ini menggunakan mesin browser BlackBerry. Para pengembang dapat menggunakan konten web yang sudah ada menggunakan BlackBerry widget dan memperluas aplikasi web menggunakan BlackBerry widget API.

Contoh aplikasi BlackBerry widget yang baru adalah interaksi antara sebuah widget dan email BlackBerry serta aplikasi kalender, melihat dan mengedit file/dokumen yang tersimpan pada smartphone, mengakses layanan berbasis lokasi atau media player, dan banyak lagi. Pengembang juga dimungkinkan untuk memanfaatkan teknologi Push RIM secara optimal.

Tertarik mencoba BlackBerry widget? Aplikasi ini dapat dicoba secara over-the-air melalui BlackBerry App World di www.blackberry.com/appworld atau melalui BlackBerry Enterprise Server untuk lingkungan korporat. Sedangkan rilis beta BlackBerry widget sudah tersedia mulai hari ini di www.blackberry.com/developer/widget. BlackBerry juga mengadakan BlackBerry Developer Conference 2009 yang akan diadakan tanggal 9-12 November di San Fransisco

Info Blackberry Bold 9700

Blackberry, meluncurkan Blackberry Bold 9700, atau yang lebih dikenal dengan nama Blackberry Onyx. Produk yang dipersiapkan untuk menggantikan Blackberry Bold 9000 ini sekilas mirip dengan Blackberry Javelin 8900. Namun jangan salah. Soal fasilitas, Bold 9700 berada di atas Bold. Salah satunya adalah layarnya yang beresolusi 480 x 360 pixel dengan kedalaman warna 65K, sehingga menghasilkan gambar yang sangat tajam. Boleh dibilang, layar Onyx layak mendapat predikat terbaik dari semua produk Blackberry.



Selain itu, Dengan BB Media player Anda dapat memutar video atau musik bertipe file codec XviD, WMV3, MPEG4, dengan audio codec .3gp, MP3, WMA9 (.wma/.asf) dan MIDI melalui headset kesayangan yang berbasis jack audio 3.5 mm. Selain itu, kamera 3.2 MP yang didukung fitur video recording, flash, dan 2x digital zoom membuat Anda bisa mengabadikan momen terbaik. Sayangnya dengan layar yang hanya berukuran 2,44 inci, Anda tidak akan terlalu puas menikmati gambar atau video di layar Bold.


Kamera
Kamera 3.2 MP dengan fitur flash menghasilkan kualitas gambar yang baik. Balutan kulit sintetis pada penutup baterai menambah kesan elegan.



Perubahan lain adalah pada trackpad­-nya yang berbasis optikal; sama seperti yang kita lihat di Gemini. Ini seperti menjawab keluhan pengguna yang kurang menyukai kinerja trackball di Bold. Berkat trackpad berbasis optikal ini, kita bisa menjelajah layar dan mengakses aplikasi dengan cepat. Sedangkan untuk keyboard, ukurannya di Onyx agak lebih kecil dibanding Bold sehingga sedikit menyulitkan pengguna yang memiliki ukuran ibu jari yang cukup besar.

Maklum saja jika ukuran keyboard Onyx sedikit lebih kecil. Pasalnya, Untuk menghadirkan kesan elegan dan tangguh, RIM memangkas dimensi tubuh dari Onyx ini sehingga lebih ramping dan ringan dari Bold. Dibalut dengan cassing plastik padat warna hitam glossy dan list warna titanium chrome membuatnya terlihat seksi. Kesan itu berpadu dengan balutan kulit sintetis di penutup baterai untuk memberi kesan elegan.


Isi Ulang dan Transfer
Port Micro USB ini digunakan untuk isi ulang baterai sekaligus transfer file. Sedangkan untuk menikmati audio, tersedia jack audio berformat 3.5 inci.


Keunggulan lainnya ada di fitur sistem. Dinahkodai prosesor 624 MHz CPU, memori internal 256 MB, serta tambahan slot eksternal MicroSD hingga 16 GB, Onyx menawarkan responsifitas yang tinggi. Dukungan dari OS Blackberry v5.0.0.311 menawarkan akses yang lebih cepat, dan pilihan aplikasi yang lebih beragam. Untuk kemampuan koneksinya, Onyx telah menggunakan koneksi quad-band UMTS/HSDPA 2100/1900/850/800 MHz, dengan tambahan Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g dan Bluetooth v2.1 untuk mendukung kenyamanan Anda berkomunikasi.

Fasilitas lain yang turut disempurnakan adalah di sisi browser, sehingga Anda dapat lebih nyaman mengakses website yang menggunakan Javascript. Namun begitu, tetap saja kemampuan default browser BB ini masih kalah jika dibandingkan dengan Opera Mini. Kelemahan satu-satunya mungkin hanyalah masalah harga. Onyx yang resmi masuk ke Indonesia pada akhir November lalu dibandrol seharga Rp. 6,35 juta, yang oleh beberapa distributor dirasa masih terlalu mahal dibandingkan dengan harga di luar negeri yang hanya sekitar $459 tanpa kontrak dengan provider.