BlackBerry

BlackBerry 10 to launch with Facebook, Foursquare, more

SAN JOSE, CA.--At today's BlackBerry Jam Americas conference in San Jose, attendees got the inside scoop on some of the apps expected to be available by the time the oft-delayed BlackBerry 10 platform launches. The list of developer partners spanned a number of different categories, but we got to see live demos of two of the biggest names in social networking.

Facebook for BlackBerry 10 made its first public appearance, and it looked like, well, Facebook. In fact, I would say it looked very much like the Facebook for iOS app, with its shortcuts along the top and … Read more

Why it's possible to still believe in RIM's BlackBerry 10

Research In Motion's BlackBerry Jam developer conference in San Jose, Calif., could either be considered the rebirth of a company or a last gasp attempt to keep developers interested in the platform. There's not much in between.

Given that binary reality -- BlackBerry 10 either does well or RIM dies -- it's worth checking in on both sides of the equation. Watching RIM CEO Thorsten Heins talk all things BlackBerry 10, which will be tested by carriers in October, I couldn't help but root for RIM. Yes, I realize RIM faces long odds, but we all … Read more

New BlackBerry App World opens for devs Oct 10, groups media downloads

SAN JOSE, Calif.--Today at BlackBerry's developers conference and press event, Alec Saunders, vice president of developer relations, announced a new download feature for its mobile OS' app store, BlackBerry App World.

Grouping together its media content into one portal, BlackBerry will allows users to rent or buy both music and movies right through the store. They can also download and watch offline multimedia content.

Touting the popularity of BlackBerry's app store, Saunders dived deeper into the store's offering.

In addition to demoing BlackBerry 10's native Facebook app, which utilizes the OS' new "peek" … Read more

BlackBerry 10 OS will have work, personal profiles

SAN JOSE, Calif.--During RIM's heyday, no device was better than a BlackBerry at keeping corporate information secure. Despite moves by companies like Yahoo to cease supporting BlackBerry phones, RIM is determined to make its upcoming overhauled BlackBerry 10 operating system as work-friendly as possible, for both the user and their company.

The feature in question, called BlackBerry Balance, has a handy behavior that lets you press a button to toggle between personal and professional profiles.

BlackBerry Balance isn't entirely new. In fact, bits and pieces have existed for company IT managers since BlackBerry OS 6. However, the … Read more

RIM to begin carrier testing of new devices next month

Carrier testing on new BlackBerry devices will start next month, Research in Motion CEO Thorsten Heins told developers today at BlackBerry Jam Americas.

"BlackBerry 10 is on track," Heins said. "Our sales forces are getting ready. Better devices are in testing."

Heins made his remarks during the company's US developers conference. The event gave the company a chance to show off details about the upcoming BlackBerry 10 operating system -- and to woo developers back to its platform. An updated software developer kit today will give software makers early access to new features in the … Read more

BlackBerry 10 Beta 3: Messenger, navigation show promise (hands-on)

When it comes to BackBerry 10 OS, RIM wants you to go with its Flow. The new navigation theme is something that the BlackBerry-maker has stressed since it first unveiled its reinvented BlackBerry ecosystem last May.

So far, RIM has given us a few peeks of flow and other software elements, all of which it hopes will reinvigorate faithful followers and draw new customers. RIM has certainly refined the software in four months, and will release its third beta update to developers today. The BlackBerry 10 OS Beta 3 package will include APIs for developers to harness apps like Blackberry Messenger. … Read more

RIM pushes BlackBerry 10 into the spotlight at BlackBerry Jam

Research In Motion and its next-generation BlackBerry 10 operating system will get another chance to prove their worth at the company's annual developer conference, kicking off Tuesday in San Jose, Calif.

In a move that will surely disappoint analysts, shareholders, and the RIM faithful, we don't expect the company to show off any new devices at BlackBerry Jam Americas (known last year as BlackBerry Developer Conference,) but they will want to provide more details about the OS, hoping loyal and new developers recommit to BlackBerry over iOS and Android. In addition to selling developers on the brand new … Read more

RIM fixes BlackBerry outage that hit Europe, Middle East, Africa

RIM's BlackBerry e-mail service was offline earlier today for users across the Europe, Middle East, Africa. But service has since been restored, according to the company.

Research In Motion confirmed the outage in a tweet earlier today and said that services should now be up and running again.

A spokesman for RIM sent CNET the following statement from CEO and president Thorsten Heins:

I want to apologize to those BlackBerry customers in Europe and Africa who experienced an impact in their quality of service earlier this morning. The BlackBerry service is now fully restored and I can report that … Read more

Microsoft, RIM ink patent deal on storage tech

Microsoft and Research In Motion today said they have signed a patent licensing agreement that gives RIM access to Microsoft file system technology.

That technology is called Extended File Allocation Table -- or "exFAT" for short -- and Microsoft says it optimizes files for use on flash storage, which is overwhelmingly the storage of choice on smartphones and tablets.

"Today's smartphones and tablets require the capacity to display richer images and data than traditional cellular phones," David Kaefer, the general manager of intellectual property licensing at Microsoft said in a statement. "This agreement with … Read more