Kamis, 24 Maret 2011

BerryReview.com Giving Back to the BlackBerry Community

BerryReview.com Giving Back to the BlackBerry Community


RIM Explains BlackBerry PlayBook Bridge Setup Designed for BES Customers

Posted: 24 Mar 2011 02:29 AM PDT

PlayBook BES

RIM is walking a fine line with the BlackBerry PlayBook. Its like they cannot decide if it is a consumer or enterprise device. This just got a bit more interesting when I was reading @BonnieCNET tweets covering a Q&A panel with RIM @ CTIA. WSJ's Walt Mossberg asked why RIM is launching a tablet that needs a BlackBerry to get your email and calendar. RIM's response is the most interesting part.

According to Bonnie RIM said that the BlackBerry PlayBook will be getting a native email client in the "coming months" but it was originally designed with BES customers in mind. I can understand that BES customers are important to RIM but just look how they have been showing off the PlayBook. Front and center is gaming, web browsing, video, and other consumer focused features. On the other hand the only enterprise ready part of the tablet is the BlackBerry Bridge which in and of itself I hear only has one IT policy at launch (Bridge on/off).

So the thing I have to ask RIM. How hard would it be for you to write an email, calendar, etc client? I don't think this is a deal breaker since I simply plan on using the Gmail website in the browser but still. Now that RIM has realized they are targeting the consumer market I am hoping we will see a PIM client very soon. I am not against the concept of the Bridge but why give the haters such an easy target?

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Posted by Ronen Halevy for ©BerryReview, March 24, 2011, 5:29 am. | RIM Explains BlackBerry PlayBook Bridge Setup Designed for BES Customers | Leave a comment |


Staples Already Setting Up BlackBerry PlayBook Stands in Stores?

Posted: 23 Mar 2011 06:08 PM PDT

Staples BlackBerry PlayBook Stand

Staples seems to be stealing quite a bit of Best Buys glory with the BlackBerry PlayBook launch. RIM actually put out a press release about Best Buy accepting preorders as a "Preferred Retailer for the BlackBerry PlayBook" and then Staples went out and offered preorders sans press release. At first I heard it might be a mistake on Staples part but then…

I was just sent the above picture by a good friend. He took it at a NYC Staples location that is already setting up for the BlackBerry PlayBook launch. They have put up this booth and for what its worth one of the employees in the store said it was coming next week… Employees are notoriously clueless but why are they setting up booths over 3 weeks in advance? Ill let you speculate in the comments…

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Posted by Ronen Halevy for ©BerryReview, March 23, 2011, 9:08 pm. | Staples Already Setting Up BlackBerry PlayBook Stands in Stores? | 6 comments |


RIM Shipping Developers Free PlayBooks Before Release Worldwide

Posted: 23 Mar 2011 04:49 PM PDT

Screen shot 2011-03-23 at 7.36.05 PM

With the April 19th date almost upon us many developers have been waiting to get their hands on the device to test their apps. This includes many international developers including a few who asked the question on RIM's #AskBBDev session yesterday. The thing is the BlackBerry PlayBook is not really set to launch internationally until later though RIM did initially set the international launch date to sometime in calendar Q2. These PlayBooks in question are the free ones offered in the promotion RIM has going for apps submitted into App World before March 31st.

 @Ddluc specifically asked:

Screen shot 2011-03-23 at 7.36.00 PM 

Here is what RIM responded:

Screen shot 2011-03-23 at 7.36.05 PM

@BBThemes1 them followed up asking:

 Screen shot 2011-03-23 at 7.40.55 PM

To which @BlackBerryDev responded:

Screen shot 2011-03-23 at 7.41.02 PM

I then checked the original wording from RIM's terms and conditions on the offer and it says:

3.4 Subject to the Application Criteria outlined below, if the Application qualifies for the Offer, the Participant will be deemed eligible to receive a free BlackBerry PlayBook ("Eligible Participant"), subject to the notification and delivery conditions below. Each Eligible Participant will receive one (1) 16GB BlackBerry PlayBook; one (1) USB charger; and, one (1) North American wall outlet charger (collectively, "Device"). However, be advised that the distribution of the Device will not begin until the Device is commercially available to the public in the Eligible Participant's country of residence (as provided to Sponsor during initial registration at the Vendor Portal).

Then I noticed that RIM has added a new line to the bottom of the contest page:

The launch date of the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet has been announced. All qualifying vendors for the free BlackBerry PlayBook tablet are on a priority list to receive their shipment.

I guess its good to be a PlayBook developer!

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Posted by Ronen Halevy for ©BerryReview, March 23, 2011, 7:49 pm. | RIM Shipping Developers Free PlayBooks Before Release Worldwide | 2 comments |


RIM Explains a Bit More about New “Cloud Based BES” Service

Posted: 23 Mar 2011 02:58 PM PDT

RIM has yet to fully spill the beans on their new "Cloud Based BlackBerry Enterprise Service for Microsoft Office 365." Still we have heard some details from RIM in a webinar we covered along with Microsoft’s announcement. Now we have a better understanding of RIM's angle on this one from their official BlackBerry for Business blog.

In a nutshell this new cloud based BlackBerry service is intended to offer a "set of features similar to BlackBerry Enterprise Server Express that is priced competitively with ActiveSync services." In other words RIM is confirming what I have been saying all along. BES Express is not enough since it still requires another server and is too limited. What RIM really needs is to move the BES server to the BIS solution or make it a hosted solution any company can use for free.

What's interesting is RIM has actually added more features in this Cloud BES such as allowing for more user self service like remotely locking their own devices or wiping them. If this service is something you have been looking for I highly recommend checking out Roger's article about it here.

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Posted by Ronen Halevy for ©BerryReview, March 23, 2011, 5:58 pm. | RIM Explains a Bit More about New “Cloud Based BES” Service | 2 comments |


JeeoSuite Enters Public Beta – Wi-Fi Portal to Your BlackBerry Data

Posted: 23 Mar 2011 10:46 AM PDT

 jeeosuite_promo

JeeoSuite has been in private beta for a bit and they have finally opened up the floodgates. The public beta is now available on their website and it lets you access your BlackBerrys Email, Photos, Files, Calendar, Bookmarks and more, over Wi-Fi, on any computer. The idea is the app creates a Wi-Fi portal to connect to your BlackBerry data. That way when you are home you can easily transfer files and more through your browser over Wi-Fi.

So I am sure you are wondering what you can do with JeeoSuite. Here is the breakdown:

  • Send and receive Email
  • Stream Audio, and Video
  • Transfer Files (over Wi-Fi)
  • Manage your Photos
  • View your Calendar (Month/Day)
  • Take Screenshots (over Wi-Fi)
  • Optimize Memory
  • Locate a lost phone
  • Send Messages to the phone
  • View Memory & Device info
  • Store Bookmarks
  • View, or add Memos … and more

You can download the public beta OTA at this link after which you can access JeeoSuite with an easy to remember personalized URL like my.JeeoSuite.com/mblware.  Once you have the app installed, you’ll want to head over to http://my.jeeosuite.com and sign-up.

Check out a video of JeeoSuite in action below:


Desktop Video Link | Mobile Video Link

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Posted by the BerryReview Team for ©BerryReview, March 23, 2011, 1:46 pm. | JeeoSuite Enters Public Beta – Wi-Fi Portal to Your BlackBerry Data | 6 comments |


Free Fixmo Extend Tethering App Enters Public Beta

Posted: 23 Mar 2011 10:37 AM PDT

Desktop_App_screenshot

Fixmo has gone out and created their own take on a BlackBerry tethering app with Fixmo Extend. The app has just entered public beta and is currently free so feel free to go out and kick the tires. In short the app lets you use your BlackBerrys data plan to connect to the internet from your PC. The beta is only available for Windows PC's with XP or newer and has the following features:

  • Get connected quickly with an elegant user interface
  • Handy charts and metrics help you monitor your data usage
  • A simple download of mobile and desktop applications to get connected

Extend_Mobile_App1

The requirements for Fixmo Extend are:

  • BlackBerry (OS 4.6 and greater)
  • Windows PC (Windows XP or greater)
  • Microsoft .Net Framework (2.0 or greater)
  • BlackBerry Desktop Software (available from RIM)
  • A mini-USB cable to connect your laptop to your BlackBerry

You can read more about the Fixmo Extend beta at this link or pick it up in the store. Let us know what you think of it!

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Posted by Ronen Halevy for ©BerryReview, March 23, 2011, 1:37 pm. | Free Fixmo Extend Tethering App Enters Public Beta | 6 comments |


OnTime App Promises to Help You Stay on Schedule

Posted: 23 Mar 2011 09:10 AM PDT

Ontime Ontime2

I cannot count how many apps I have tried over the years to make sure I keep on schedule. Still I am always open to trying a new one so when OnTime contacted me I decided to give it a spin. So far I find the app kind of cool since it works with your calendar to give you reminders and maps of your route. I don't drive as much but it can also notify you of traffic delays and can tell your upcoming appointments if you are running late.

All in all it seems like a different spin on RIM's BlackBerry Traffic app with more calendar focused features. Since I don't drive on a regular basis I decided against using the app but if you find yourself on the road every day you might want to check it out. You can read up more about the app on their website or pick it up for $1.99 in App World. If you give it a spin let me know what you think since I did not have much of a chance to test out their mapping, traffic, and other features.

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Posted by Ronen Halevy for ©BerryReview, March 23, 2011, 12:10 pm. | OnTime App Promises to Help You Stay on Schedule | 5 comments |


BlackBerrys Gaining Stronger Penetration in Younger Market

Posted: 23 Mar 2011 08:01 AM PDT

ComScore Users BlackBerry Younger

I was wondering what the story was with RIM's "hip" advertising this past year or so. Kathryn @AdAge pointed out an interesting tidbit in ComScore's "Year in Mobile 2010" report showing that RIM is making headway in lowering the average age of their users. RIM has been advertising heavily to the younger market to get them to use BlackBerrys and associate them with being "Cool" instead of simply a business/enterprise productivity tool.

The crazy part is that it seems to be working. A majority of RIM's demographic profile, according to ComScore, is now under 40 especially when you consider the newer OS releases from OS 4.6+. I want to meet these users who still have OS 4.0 but that's a different story.

So I thought I would ask all of you. Do you feel "cooler" than last year? :) Here I thought it was all about efficient communication tools instead of being a toy or status symbol.

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Posted by Ronen Halevy for ©BerryReview, March 23, 2011, 11:01 am. | BlackBerrys Gaining Stronger Penetration in Younger Market | 11 comments |


RIM Shares Interesting Stats and Facts at Sunnyvale BBDevDay

Posted: 23 Mar 2011 06:30 AM PDT

DevDay Sunnyvale

RIM has been making their way around 3 cities in the US along with Toronto with their BlackBerry Developer days. I sadly missed the one in NYC but they just had one in Sunnyvale, CA yesterday. I was following the tweets from the event and while some of the information was repeats there was some gold in there too. Here is what I spotted but let me know if you found anything else:

  • 49% of paid apps are BB5.0 users, 41% are on BB6.0 via @OldDirtyGamer
  • There are 580 carriers globally for BlackBerry. Most BB users (505) are on version 5.0 and only 10% are on version 6,0. via @OldDirtyGamer
  • Just spoke with the folks from RIM. No restrictions on using third party payment platforms. via @PayPalx
  • In-app payment microtransactions for Playbook available today; subscriptions within apps for Playbook coming later. via @OldDirtyGamer (This one kind of confused me since I don’t see the support documented anywhere)

Last but not least :)

Picture credit goes to @BlackBerryDev

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Posted by Ronen Halevy for ©BerryReview, March 23, 2011, 9:30 am. | RIM Shares Interesting Stats and Facts at Sunnyvale BBDevDay | 2 comments |


PlayBook Promotion Pictures From Best Buy and Future Shop

Posted: 23 Mar 2011 05:00 AM PDT

While I was checking out pre-order details on BestBuy.ca and FutureShop.ca I browsed through the PlayBook galleries and was pleased and surprised. For the most part, the pictures look great. But there are some pictures that leave me thinking…what the?

playbook in handplaybook walking

There is a big time focus on portability here, which is fine. Is it just me though, or does the PlayBook on the right look significantly smaller than the one on the left? I know, I know, angles and lighting and distance and stuff. Still, looks quite disproportionate.

playbook suit pocket

Which brings me to the next picture. As much as I'd like to believe this PlayBook will fit into this debonair gentleman's inside suit pocket, not so sure that's happening.

Keep reading for more pictures and my personal favourite…

playbook not portrait

What the heck happened here? This one made me laugh. Were they trying to demonstrate portrait mode and snapped the picture before it switched orientations? I'm going with pure laziness here. This looks like a simple rotation of a stock photo. How hard would it be to get a quality picture of a PlayBook ACTUALLY displaying correctly in portrait mode?

playbook in hand walking blue

Who needs a handbag when you have a PlayBook? I actually liked this one. How ridiculous would this look with the same person holding an iPad? In my opinion, 7″ is the perfect size.

playbook media player

At least the media player still looks awesome! Smile

What do you guys think about these promotion pics? Have you pre-ordered your PlayBook yet?

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Posted by jforce for ©BerryReview, March 23, 2011, 8:00 am. | PlayBook Promotion Pictures From Best Buy and Future Shop | 19 comments |


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