MIke Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie have stepped down as co-CEO's and Co-chairmen of RIM (Research in Motion), Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. Their new positions are Vice Chair of the Board's new Innovation Committeeand Board Director respectively.
Thorsten Heins has been named the new CEO and President, he has been with the company since 2007 as was the Senior Vice President of the Blackberry Handheld Business Unit. His appointment to RIM's Board is also took immediate effect.
Vlingo is a Voice to Text Application for your smart phone (BlackBerry®, iPhone, Android, Nokia, Windows). Vlingo acts like a virutal assistant. Once installed users can send texts, messages and status updates as well as find services, directions and information. Voice recognition technology turns your words into actions. Currently for BlackBerry® owners Vlingo is available free (regular price $19.99 US) until 31st December 2011.
In a statement issued by Assa Abloy AB, the world's leading lock group, they are in talks withRIM to incorporate NFC Technology in BlackBerry®BoldTM and CurveTM 2012 model* smartphones.
NFC - Near Field Communication is key-card technology that would allow the user to swipe their phone to lock and unlock doors instead of using access cards.
Tired of getting unwanted calls. BuzzOff call blocker (a BlackBerry App created by Toysoft Inc) effectively blocks unwanted phone calls** on BlackBerry devices running 4.2.0 or higher software. The Pickup and Hangup feature prevents the caller from leaving you a voice mail. Individual or marketing phone numbers can be blocked all the time or within a specified period of time.
To make amends for the outage, RIM has offered its 70 million users a selection of free apps totalling $100 and its business customers free tech support for a month.
Oh and they also unveiled the new BlackBerry operating system, BBX, which is based on the operating system already in the BlackBerry Playbook.
BBX will allow Android software to run on the BlackBerry smartphone.
Mike Lazaridis, RIM (Research In Motion) co-CEO, apologizes for recent issues with BlackBerry cell phone service outages. The outages have effected Blackberry users in Canada, America, India, Uk, Europe and Middle East and Asia. The late delivery of data to users during the last few days has effected millions globally.
The tiff.fest App for Blackberry® Smart phones and the Blackberry® Playbook will keep users updated about the films, show times as well as providing screening location maps. Also included in the Free App are special features and the exclusive Mavericks Programme.
Although it is an obvious thing to do, lots of people leave it too late to insure their tech toys before something happens
As the new study year begins is a good time to make sure that your new tech toys :
computer tablet, smart phone, satellite receiver and tv are insured. Either through your home contents insurance policy or with a specialized insurance product such as the Bell Smart Phone Care Plan
Protecting your investment now can prevent hours of anger and frustration in the event of loss or damage.
The Canadian National Exhibition (The Ex) runs from 19th August 2011 to 5th September 2011. Good news if you have an iPhone, iPod Touch or BlackBerry O/S 5.0+ with an SD card. To plan your visit, just download the free CNE App.
BBM6 (BlackBerry Messenger 6) Research In Motion's (RIM) mobile messaging and chat app was released today. Key new feature is the ability to chat from within open applications eg gaming, social, workflows etc. BBM6 also enables users to easily share applications with friends via the profile panel.
It was officially anounced today that PushLife Inc the Toronto company that makes apps for non Apple phones has been bought by Google.
Their app is designed for non-Apple platform phones, ie mobiles running Android or BlackBerry systems. The app makes it possible to sync with iTunes and Window Media Player libraries making it easier to share, play, categorize and buy music.
When was the first twitter message - 5 years ago 21st March 2006. Who posted the Tweet - Jack Dorsey, founder of Twitter. What was the first Tweet - " inviting co-workers "
To date over 175 million registered global users utilize Twitter to share information or to discover breaking trends and news stories. Because Tweeting is spontaneous it is essential to have an app for your smartphone that will quickly let you connect, tweet, catch up and retweet. Here are our recommendations for the top three smart phone operating systems - iPhone, Android, Blackberry :
iPhone For multiple accountsTweetdeckwill handle your Tweets plus your Facebook, Google Buzz and Foursquare accounts too.
Android Android smartphone can also runTweetdeck.However, if you prefer to just handle Twitter then Seesmic will let you use multiple accounts. Photos and video can easily be shared as Seesmic supports Plixi, yFrog, TwitPic and even YouTube. Bit.ly and ls.dg account holders can also use the built in url shortener.
Blackberry The obvious app isTwitter for Blackberrywhich can of course be used on most BlackBerry model phones. Another good option isUberSocialwhich the standard Twitter features as well as some advanced ones, like tweet shortening, profile editing and search saving.
Note - For tweeting pics best app for all three - Twitpic you can post direct, via website or email your photos in.
The CES (Consumer Electronics Show) 2011, which was held in Las Vegas, is a showcase for the manufacturers to announce, display and demonstrate the latest in electronics. Some products were distributed prior to the show for testing, some products are still being assembled and some products already have been surpassed. Our pick for Top Five Trends for 2011 :
1. Pads, Readers, Palms and Tablets
This market is growing, competition is fierce - useful apps, processing speed and media functions will determine the winner. Multi functionality is one consumer demand manufactures dare not ignore. Ahead of the pack at CES 2011 - BlackBerry Playbook. Loaded with business apps it is sure to be a success with business managers and office workers in companies of all sizes. Dual Core processors provide ample multi function capacity. The BlackBerry Playbook also displays flash and runs full desktop versions of programs.
2. Smart Phones for Gamers
Many mobile phones have touch screen controls, so taking a cue from the PS3 Phone (the Sony Playstation Phone) expect to see slide out game controls in place of slide out alpha numeric key pads.
3. Mini Projectors
In response to consumer demands that their smartphone do more, both RIM and Apple are offering mini projectors. Speculation strongly suggests that iPhone5 will include a Pico projector. The Rim BlackBerry Presenter is to be offered as an accessory for BlackBerry smart phones, using Bluetooth technology once connected to a monitor or projector. Of course stand alone mini projectors are being developed by other companies too.
4. Wireless Charging Pads
No more jumbled up wires or cords. Put the electronic device (mobile phone, smartphone, camera, gaming controller, mp3 player, pad or e-reader) on to the battery charging mat, pad or charger zone. WildCharge (UK and Europe only at present) and Powermat both use device specific sleeves. CES 2011 saw the debut of the ElectroHub which requires a special battery to be used in place of the devices own.
5. 3D and Multi Media
Imagine your TV displaying 3D images, now image it using 2D input and converting it to 3D output, then add the capabilitiy to download apps. ON a smaller scale the new SonyVaio F series laptop converts 2D to 3D on the fly too. Gamers haven't been left behind either - Nintendo 3DS renders 3D without the need for special glasses.
Also worth noting:
Coming soon to your remote control a Netflix button. LG have incorporated their Pen Touch technology into Plasma TVs and business boards.
