blackberry smartphones

Matt Howard, a software entrepreneur, developed ZoomSafer following an incident when he almost killed a 9-year-old boy because he was texting while driving. He knew that if it happened to him, it could happen to anyone.

Howard, along with co-founders Mike Costello and Mike Riemer, gathered $1 million in venture capital to launch preventative mobile software, called ZoomSafer. When the car has passed 10 mph, ZoomSafer disables the keyboard on the phone and replies to calls or texts with a message letting them know the driver is on the road.

Big deal; why not switch the phone to airplane mode … Read more

As Research In Motion opens up the BlackBerry platform, it is providing new features and integration between third-party apps and core BlackBerry apps.

ZDNet UK spoke to Alan Brenner, a RIM senior vice president and general manager for the platform. Brenner was asked how BlackBerry competes in the crowded smartphone app market, how the handset manufacturer expects to work with developers, and what the key challenges are for the company's mobile platform.

Q: Where do you think the new APIs and the integration into core BlackBerry apps put the BlackBerry as a platform, compared with other smartphones? Brenner: The … Read more

On Thursday, Sprint hosted an online chat with its customers and its vice president of consumer marketing, David Owens, who revealed some of the carrier's plans for upcoming smartphones.

During the hour-long session, Owens answered questions on a variety of topics, ranging from service plans to community to, of course, future products. Regarding the latter, Owens said there will be a "robust" lineup of BlackBerry and HTC devices in 2010 and reiterated that a Wi-Fi-enabled BlackBerry Tour, as well as other such-equipped BlackBerrys, are coming.

The HTC smartphones will run on the Google Android platform, though Owens … Read more

Research In Motion's BlackBerry Storm 2 will be available to Verizon Wireless customers Wednesday, according to the carrier.

Like its predecessor, the BlackBerry Storm 2 will feature a touch screen. Unlike the BlackBerry Storm, though, the Storm 2's SurePress "clickable" display doesn't actually move (except for around corners). Instead, the display provides an electronic feedback that mimics the feeling of a click. It also features multi-touch support, allowing users to click two keys (like shift plus a letter) on the virtual keyboard at the same time.

Aside from a revamped touch screen, the Storm 2 … Read more

Research in Motion is about to launch a new social network for its BlackBerry App World store, according to a report from the blog TechCrunch.

The new site is called MyBlackBerry and it will allow device owners to create a social profile where they can share opinions and recommendations for their favorite applications and accessories, the story said. Users will also be able to share tips and tricks for using their devices.

TechCrunch claims that RIM will launch the new site on Tuesday. A source close to the company confirmed for CNET News that RIM is working on some kind … Read more

The RIM BlackBerry Tour 9630 has received positive reviews from around the tech world, though there's been one universal complaint: the lack of Wi-Fi. However, Sprint is hoping to right this wrong by releasing a Wi-Fi-enabled BlackBerry Tour next year and said it will require all of its future smartphones to have Wi-Fi.

"It is now a requirement for all our PDA equipment suppliers to include Wi-Fi," said Sprint's director of business product marketing, Jeff Clemow, in an interview with Fierce Wireless. He did not, however, specify a deadline for when manufacturers will have to adhere … Read more

iPhone users in the United Kingdom heavily rely on their device for accessing e-mail and Web content, compared with owners of other smartphones in the country, according to a report released Thursday by market researcher ComScore.

During a three-month period concluding in January, ComScore found that 79.7 percent of U.K. iPhone users accessed news and other Web information with their iPhone. Contrast that to 48 percent for users of all smartphones.

And e-mail also has struck a chord, with 75.4 percent of iPhone users relying on the device for checking their in-boxes and sending messages, compared to … Read more

It sure is hard to keep your home these days, and it's not a good time to sell it, either. But if you just want to look around, checking the market, it has never been more convenient.

Recently, I blogged about how you can search for a new home on your iPhone, but now, if you own a BlackBerry or any other smartphone, you can do that, too.

Coldwell Banker, the company that released the iPhone-optimized home-hunting Web site, announced recently its new Web sites designed specifically for BlackBerry and other smartphone users.

BlackBerry owners can just go to … Read more

TiVo and Research In Motion are teaming up to enable BlackBerry users to remotely schedule recordings of TV shows on their digital video recorder, the companies announced Thursday.

Under the partnership, BlackBerry users will be able to use their smartphones to review television schedules and set their TiVo DVRs to record select television programming.

"TiVo subscribers will soon be able to wirelessly control their TiVo DVRs using a BlackBerry smartphone--anytime, anywhere--and that is a powerful example of how our respective technologies can complement each other to serve our mutual customers," Jim Balsillie, Research In Motion co-CEO, said in … Read more