blackberry

Jeb Bush bids farewell, but his BlackBerry lives on

Leaving all personal opinions about Jeb Bush's legacy aside, it's worth noting, from a technology perspective, that he chose to include his BlackBerry in the backdrop of his official gubernatorial portrait in an attempted nod to his role as the first "e-governor," according to press reports.

Last week, at the close of the Florida governor's two-term administration, he revealed the portrait, in which he's standing next to a bookshelf topped with a family photo and his beloved device. Bush reportedly received tens of thousands of e-mails sent to his very public address, Jeb@Jeb.… Read more

Cingular quietly prelaunches BlackBerry Pearl (updated)

It's been no secret that Cingular would get its own version of the BlackBerry Pearl, since the company announced the news at the fall CTIA 2006 show, but we really haven't heard much since then. However, it seems the little gem of a smart phone is on its way; the carrier has quietly posted an advertisement on its business Web site, taunting customers with "coming soon" promises. Still, no details on exact availability date or pricing, but we've contacted Cingular reps to see if we can get them to spill the beans. In the meantime, … Read more

Forget Paris and the Sidekick

Stars like Mariska Hargitay and Heidi Klum are sporting a cool new phone from RIM, the Blackberry Pearl. This phone is feature-packed and is sexy and elegant, hence the name "Pearl." It's your choice to be like Paris and be seen with the Sidekick, or be classy like Heidi and Mariska with the Blackberry Pearl. I see the Sidekick as more for texting and keeping track of parties, whereas the Pearl is for scheduling important meetings. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against Paris but I would definitely choose the latter.

Hotels give 'CrackBerry' addicts a hand

"CrackBerry" addicts are getting much-needed help from, of all things, the hotel industry.

A few months back, the Sheraton Chicago made headlines by offering afflicted guests a harsh but effective cold-turkey treatment that put their BlackBerries under lock and key. Now, Hyatt hotels are offering a special hand massage designed to counter the dreaded "BlackBerry Thumb" malady.

The therapy begins with heat treatment and uses a "BlackBerry Balm" that "focuses on counteracting tension on various hand and arm muscles, specifically in the thumbs and overworked wrists," Hyatt said, adding that a 30-minute … Read more

IT guys don't need e-mail to control your BlackBerry

Buying a BlackBerry without e-mail capability would be like drafting Reggie Bush and asking him not to run the ball. Really, what's the point? Why spend all that money and not use it for what it does best?

OK, apparently there are people who do this--and they populate the IT departments of manufacturing, insurance, health care and real esate businesses, to name a few. In which case, they'll be happy to note that Research In Motion has come out with BlackBerry Enterprise Server for Mobile Data System Applications. The software lets the IT folks control what is/isn'… Read more

Opera Mini shrinks the Web for your Treo or BlackBerry

Up, up, down, down, left, right, left--no, this isn't a cheat code for a Nintendo game, but rather the motions you may go through while trying to view a Web page on your mobile phone. Come on, you know what I'm talking about--surfing the Web on a smart phone is like driving in L.A.; not fun and excruciatingly slow. But Opera Software is hoping to change all that with its Opera Mini Web browser, which compresses Web pages for faster delivery and better viewing on handsets. Starting today, it's available for BlackBerry and Treo owners. The … Read more