Blackberry Blog http://blackberryblog.com/ Blackberry Code, News, Reviews, and Tutorials en-us 2008-02-18T02:23:55-05:00 Emergency Cell Phone Charger http://blackberryblog.com/2008/02/18/emergency_cell_phone_charger.html If you've ever been involved in building out a large scale network, you've undoubtedly heard about single points of failure. The BlackBerry network itself is a single point of failure as we saw last week: if it goes down, every single person that relies on BlackBerry email is hosed (pun intended: it is a Canadian device!). But for you personally, the biggest single point of failure is probably your battery: if you run out of juice and you don't have your travel charger, you are, well... hosed.

Which is where the latest BlackBerry accessory I found comes into play: an
Emergency Cell Phone Charger that runs off of a couple (four to be exact) double AA batteries. This gadget can be used anywhere: it generates an extra 20-30 minutes of talk time, when your battery is drained out and fits in your pocket or purse. Pick one up now before your battery runs out!

]]> Accessories ajohnson 2008-02-18T02:23:55-05:00 DVD Converter for your BlackBerry http://blackberryblog.com/2008/02/18/dvd_converter_for_your_blackberry.html If you've got a young kid, you've probably got a video camera for capturing all the seemingly normal stuff that we can do as adults but that is just plain amazing when a one year old does it. Thing is, most people don't carry about portable DVD players to show off all the new stuff that the kid... but you have a BlackBerry. If you've ever wanted to show a movie on your BlackBerry that you've got on a DVD (or more likely: you want to show off some internal presentation to a client or you're a real estate agent and you want to show a potential buyer a video), then I've got some software you should check out.

Wondershare BlackBerry Converter Suite includes Wondershare DVD to BlackBerry Converter and Wondershare Video Converter for BlackBerry. With this software, you can convert DVD or video to AVI, 3GP, MP4,WMV,MP3,AAC and WMA for playback on BlackBerry with with high output quality and fast conversion speed.

You can convert your DVD by selecting the subtitle and audio track you prefer, convert multiple video files at a time, trim your DVD and video files to capture your favorite video clips, crop movie video, set movie effects, and capture pictures from your movies and so on.

The software converts your videos to AVI, 3GP, MP4,WMV,MP3,AAC and WMA (all of which are supported on the BlackBerry) and you can merge DVD titles/chapters into one file and merge multiple video files into one file. It also supports video cropping and trimming.

You can buy it now for $39 or take it for a test drive.

]]> Software ajohnson 2008-02-18T01:53:31-05:00 Big Brother, Google Maps and your BlackBerry http://blackberryblog.com/2007/05/22/big_brother_google_maps_and_your_blackberry.html The guys at Skylab Mobilesystems have done it again: they keep creating these applications that I can't imagine living without. The latest is called Mobile Tracker and is described in their press release like this:
By taking advantage of the already built-in GPS receiver of the BlackBerry 8800 series, MobileTracker is able to record tracklogs. Those tracklogs are saved on the BlackBerry's internal micro SD-Card and can be viewed directly in Google Earth once you have the BlackBerry connected to your desktop and click on the tracklog file. To provide more flexibility it is possible to configure the delay between position recordings. So if you are on a ship crossing the Atlantic you can also set the delay to 5 minutes. MobileTracker works everywhere on the world, even without network coverage.

So now when my kid turns 16 and wants to drive the car around, I just stick my BlackBerry in the car and have it pump out updates to a website that understands the tracklog file (I don't believe it can do this now but my kid is only 2.5 years old so they've got 13.5 years to get their act together). Does anyone believe this isn't going to happen in 5 years? Kids everywhere are going to be devastated. When is the first transmission blocking phone going to come online?

Anyway, you can read more about MobileTracker and check out a cool demo on YouTube.com.

MobileTracker is available for $24.99.

]]> Software ajohnson 2007-05-22T02:43:15-05:00 Bored? Try wattpad.com http://blackberryblog.com/2007/05/22/bored_try_wattpadcom.html I honestly can't imagine that you're bored if you have a BlackBerry since you probably don't stop receiving emails, but in case you're all caught up with your email (just as unlikely), you should head on over to wattpad.com and download their BlackBerry client to start reading and sharing stories via your mobile. The site and software is free of charge.

]]> Software ajohnson 2007-05-22T02:39:25-05:00 vCardMaster from S4BB http://blackberryblog.com/2007/05/22/vcardmaster_from_s4bb.html The guys over at S4BB have released yet another program for your BlackBerry. This one is called vCardMaster and it is a program to attach vCard, vCalendar and iCalendar files to a mail.

You can purchase it from their website for $19.99.

]]> Software ajohnson 2007-05-22T02:33:46-05:00 Mologogo Public Beta for Blackberry 8800 http://blackberryblog.com/2007/05/22/mologogo_public_beta_for_blackberry_8800.html Noah from Mologogo is looking to get some beta testers for the new version of Mologogo (a free service that will track you and your friends using GPS). If you've got a BlackBerry 8800 and you use Cingular or T-Mobile, follow the directions below to get started and test it out:
You can download the software over the air by using your Blackberry Internet browser to go to bb.mologogo.com. Follow the instructions on the page to download.

If you are unable to download it directly to your Blackberry, you can go to bb.mologogo.com using your computer, and download a file that you can then install using the Blackberry Desktop Manager.

You will also need to register at www.mologogo.com to begin using the application. Note that Mologogo uses your data connection to download maps and for posting location updates, so you need make sure that you have a data plan (preferably an unlimited one).

For more information about mologogo, check out their website: http://mologogo.com/.

]]> Software ajohnson 2007-05-22T02:27:54-05:00 Documents To Go for BlackBerry http://blackberryblog.com/2007/05/22/documents_to_go_for_blackberry.html Jason from DataViz wrote in a couple weeks ago about the port of Documents To Go to the BlackBerry platform. If you've been living under a BlackBerry bush for the last couple years you may not have heard about DataViz: Documents To Go will enable users of BlackBerry devices to access, view, edit and create Native Microsoft® Word, Excel and PowerPoint® files on their devices. Natively. Pretty sweet.

You can read more about Documents To Go for the BlackBerry platform on their website and keep up on DataViz by reading their excellent blog 'Office Mobility Blog'.

]]> Software ajohnson 2007-05-22T02:20:36-05:00 Impatica ShowMate: PowerPoint via Bluetooth http://blackberryblog.com/2007/05/22/impatica_showmate_powerpoint_via_bluetooth.html BlackBerryBlog reader Jessica Morgan sent in the news that the Impatica ShowMate won an award for most "Innovative Wireless Device" at the CTIA 2007 show. The device is only useful for a small segment of BlackBerry users, but man is it cool. A quick poll: raise your hand if you've been in a sales presentation where the sales guys laptop didn't boot or couldn't sync up with the projector. Wait, is that all of you raising your hand? What's that? That happens in every meeting? The ShowMate is aimed at any / all of you people: it's a hardware device that attaches directly to a project and can then deliver your PowerPoint presentation from your BlackBerry device using Bluetooth, which means you can be milling about the room delivering the goods AND not have to worry about your laptop going to sleep or losing juice.

You can read more about the ShowMate here or buy it now for $249.

]]> Hardware ajohnson 2007-05-22T01:45:53-05:00 Radio Cognos http://blackberryblog.com/2007/05/22/radio_cognos.html The guys over at Cognos (business intelligence and performance management software) have started a podcast channel called Radio Cognos where they been discussing some really cool mobility related topics with some big hitters (Jim Balsillie anyone?). You can can subscribe to the show using iTunes or using your own podcatcher software. If you're not an audio kind of person, they also make the transcripts available for each episode (1, 2 and 3 so far).

]]> Tips ajohnson 2007-05-22T01:34:51-05:00 Pinger... really cool http://blackberryblog.com/2007/05/22/pinger_really_cool.html Joe from Pinger.com wrote back March (wow I'm way behind, sorry!) about some new functionality that they're offering over via Pinger.com that gives you the ability to send voice mails to anyone in your Pinger.com address book by calling pinger (858-274-6437), saying the name of your contact and then leaving a voice mail. The really cool part come next though: you can create 'groups' on pinger.com and then leave a voice mail that gets distributed to all the members of the group by saying the name of the group and then leaving your voice mail.

One of the less noticed parts of this that I like is that your contacts don't live on the phone: one of the biggest pains is moving from one phone or carrier to another only to have to re-enter all your contacts and all your phone numbers. Having the phone numbers on pinger.com means you can place calls to pinger.com all day long without having to have a single number on your phone. Also, for those of you who don't actually want to talk to the person you're calling but really just want to leave a voice mail, pinger is a god send.

Check out the cool demos they have on their homepage or read about some of the 'why' questions on their FAQ page.

]]> Reviews ajohnson 2007-05-22T00:23:03-05:00 MySpace for your BlackBerry? http://blackberryblog.com/2007/05/22/myspace_for_your_blackberry.html A couple weeks ago I got an email from Marc at MobilePlay about a new service they're offering called eXpress It!, which is billed as a Social Networking Service for mobile phone users. The service allows you to create a web page via your web browser that you then send to your phone (which they can do for you) and then you can forward that page to any of the people in your address book either by sending an email (probably the preferred method if you already have a BlackBerry) or by MMS. I'm not sure how the whole MMS thing is going to work out since I've never received one but email seems like a no brainer. In fact, I'm really surprised that something like this hasn't taken off: business cards seems so old and so wasteful. The only reason to have a business card is so that you can give it to some marketing / sales guy at conferences to get free t-shirts. Any reasonably connected business person has a laptop or PDA that they can and should be entering information into a regular basis. Sending a rich email or MMS message seems way more intelligent, faster and more compelling.

Check out the site @ mobileplay.com.

]]> Software ajohnson 2007-05-22T00:15:55-05:00 New Leather Cases for BlackBerry 8800 from Sena http://blackberryblog.com/2007/05/22/new_leather_cases_for_blackberry_8800_from_sena.html Ramsey from Sena Cases wrote to let me know about the new leather cases they're offering for the BlackBerry 8800 model. The website shows 4 different models: a vertical pouch, a leather skin, a magnetic flip case and a flip down case. The Croco Red case looks pretty sweet from where I'm sitting, but you can see them all here.

]]> Accessories ajohnson 2007-05-22T00:10:02-05:00 BerryDialer: Use multiple calling cards on your BlackBerry http://blackberryblog.com/2007/03/16/berrydialer_use_multiple_calling_cards_on_your_blackberry.html With the cost of international phone calls through Skype and other VOIP providers so low, I'm not sure why someone would ever choose to use a calling card, but I guess if you're on the go and don't have a laptop, then a calling card makes sense. If you're one of those people, you absolutely must check out the BerryDialer program, available from mobilesoftmarket.com, which gives you the ability to enter one or more calling card numbers into your BlackBerry and then not have to enter them again.

]]> Software ajohnson 2007-03-16T21:36:21-05:00 Tube 2 for BlackBerry http://blackberryblog.com/2007/03/16/tube_2_for_blackberry.html There's a number of subway / metro applications available for your BlackBerry, the one Ryan sent me today looks like one of the nicer ones. The screenshots of the maps look really nice, crystal clear almost and the application can overlay your route on map.

Tube 2 is available for London, New York City (soon!) and Paris, each city is $10.

]]> Reviews ajohnson 2007-03-16T21:31:09-05:00 NewsGator Go! for BlackBerry v2.1.8 http://blackberryblog.com/2007/03/16/newsgator_go_for_blackberry_v218.html The guys at NewsGator released version 2.1.8 of the NewsGator Go! for Blackberry product, which is an RSS reader for your BlackBerry. Since I'm a giant feed fan, I though I'd point out two things about this product that are especially important for the enterprise:

  • synchronization: If you read a post in NewsGator Go!, it's automatically marked as read in any other NewsGator client you use. I'm subscribed to over 200 feeds and while I'm not on the go that often, the ability to read a feed on your mobile device and then not have to see it again is a really big thing.

  • access to internal feeds: if the company you work for uses any sort of Web 2.0ish applications that tend to produce RSS feeds like bunnies make babies then you'll appreciate the combination of NewsGator Go!, NewsGator Enterprise Server and your BlackBerry because you'll be able to subscribe feeds that live inside your firewall, something that most feed reading applications won't be able to do. Big.

NewsGator Go! for BlackBerry is available for $29.95, you can download a free trial as well.

]]> Software ajohnson 2007-03-16T21:26:06-05:00