BlackBerry Cool

Leaked pics of the BlackBerry Pearl 9100 Stratus

2009-11-20T21:33:45Z

Gotta love Salomondrin for leaking pics of the upcoming BlackBerry Pearl 9100 aka Stratus. The 9100 is apparently a 3G Pearl for the GSM network. It has SureType, an optical trackpad, 3G, WiFi and the version we’re seeing is running OS 5.0.0.350. Too bad Sal’s YouTube was taken down by RIM legal. Those lawyers are killing the Internet, 1 leak at a time.

Conclusions from testing the BlackBerry Bold 9700 battery

2009-11-20T10:21:17Z

Testing the BlackBerry Bold 9700 battery has been an interesting experience. I always thought consumer electronics manufacturers embellished their battery life expectancies in order to impress the buyer. In this case, RIM has actually slightly under-stated the Bold 9700’s battery life, and really proved themselves to be an honest company when it comes to their battery life marketing. Could we say the same for Apple? I challenge TIPB to do the same with the iPhone, and see if it can play 39 hours of music off radio and last 29 hours with heavy usage. Speaking of Apple…the BlackBerry Bold 9700 lasts longer than the best iPod.

Just look for yourself, the BlackBerry Bold 9700’s battery, lasts longer than that of the best iPod available.

In Part 1 of the BlackBerry Bold 9700 battery stress test, we threw RIM a bone and checked out the music playback with the wireless connections off. For the second part, it was important to test how long the battery would last given very heavy usage. During the 29 hours that the BlackBerry was on, it went through the following:

About an hour of voice over 8 phone calls.
10 SMS messages received, 7 sent.
13 Tweets from UberTwitter, 9 of which contained a pic.
Google Maps running the whole time and updating Latitude.
About 8 hours of music streaming and playing via Bluetooth.
Received about 30 emails and replied to around 15.
The remaining time spent with all connections on and pulling data.

This is the first BlackBerry that I have been able to run more than 1 full day of usage without charging. There are definitely updates and optimizations made to the OS that make music playback more efficient, as well as general improvements to the device that make the battery last longer than any other BlackBerry. If you’re interested, I could do similar experiments with other BlackBerry smartphones. Anyone want to know about the Storm2 battery?

This BlackBerry test proves that the Bold 9700 has a killer battery.

Special thanks goes out to Slacker for white listing my account so it can be played in Canada. Now if only the lazy bureaucrats can get their act together, Canadians would have an awesome music device.

New Elecite theme Sentient with cool animations

2009-11-20T10:24:36Z

Elecite have a new theme out called Sentient. It looks pretty cool and features an animated shield with 6 customizable icons. It’s easy to use and the navigation is pretty user friendly. As with most Elecite themes, the icons could do with a little work.

Sentient is $6.99 and available for the Storm, 8900, 9700, Bold & 9600 (OS 4.7 & 5.0).

BlackBerry Cool readers get 25% off eBooks at Fictionwise

2009-11-19T22:51:07Z

Personally, I’ve never read an entire book on my BlackBerry, but I might just give it a try. Viigo is a part of my daily reading habits and if the font size were right, and the interface was clean, I could see myself going through a full eBook on my BlackBerry.

If you want to try it out, or you’re looking for another book, Fictionwise are offering BlackBerry Cool readers 25% off with the coupon code “blackberrycool25″ (sans quotes). The coupon is good until the 30th of November.

Some instructions from Fictionwise:

For Fictionwise.com customers, every MultiFormat (unencrypted) eBook and every Secure eReader eBook will work on your BlackBerry. When you log in to your Fictionwise.com account from your BlackBerry, note that you will only see listed those eBooks that work with eReader for BlackBerry. You will not be shown eBooks that don’t work, such as Secure Microsoft Reader eBooks, etc. If you see it on your BlackBerry, you can download and read it.

RIM talks about security threat of DDOS attacks on carriers

2009-11-19T21:00:17Z

Scott Totzke, RIM’s vice-president of BlackBerry security, recently spoke with the press about the potential of the DDOS attack by hackers using BlackBerry devices to target wireless networks. The thought is that because the BlackBerry is essentially a smaller PC, it could be used in a similar manner to overload networks.

But is this really a big concern? I have to agree with Ronen at BerryReview, that someone stealing personal data with an application seems like a bigger concern. All you have to do is build an application that accesses user data, and sends it back to the company’s servers. If they wanted to, a company could use the data on your BlackBerry for malicious purposes.

It seems like only a matter of time until someone in Nigeria figures out how to submit a malicious app into Mobihand. While App World might have a vetting process that looks at what the app is accessing, I can guarantee you the Mobihand network isn’t diligent enough to catch something like this.

Remember, Mobihand are the same people who sell NetworkACC, a bogus application that claims to speed up your mobile network. Not only is the app bogus and a waste of money, but I bet you eMobiStudio are gaming the review system because their app is filled with 5 star reviews. Mobihand have such a weak review system that anyone can write a hundred positive reviews about their app.

We can only hope that if a malicious app shows itself, the good people at BlackBerry Cool, BerryReview, CrackBerry, etc. will find out and spread the word not to download it.

Bplay launches Embrace your City themes

2009-11-19T18:46:33Z

Bplay has launched a new line of city themes. They’re pretty basic themes with changing backgrounds and easy to read icons, but they do a good job of representing your favorite city.

Embrace Los Angeles
Embrace New York
Embrace Paris
Embrace London
Embrace Rome
Embrace Berlin
Embrace Vancouver
Embrace Tokyo
Embrace Beijing
Embrace Barcelona

Check out all of their featured cities here.

Free hockey scores application available in App World

2009-11-19T18:14:31Z

There is a free app in App World called Hockey Scores that lets you check NHL scores across the league. The app is updated frequently but it’s not clear whether it takes advantage of the Push APIs from RIM, which would push the scores to the device in near-real time.

Hockey Scores is free in App World and available for almost every device.

Rumor: BlackBerry Curve 8530 to launch December 10th

2009-11-19T15:48:38Z

There are some rumors going around that the BlackBerry Curve 8530 will be launching December 10th. Barring some unforeseen testing issues, this date will probably stick. With an 8530 on the way to Verizon as well, this device is going to get a decent spotlight. Remember, this is the same 8530 that we discovered will feature OpenGL, so there is some awesome app potential. It will be interesting to see if the carriers even mention it.

GreenTech BlackBerry theme by HedoneDesign

2009-11-18T22:17:32Z

HedoneDesign have prepared a new theme designed for OS 5, called GreenTech, which was made using the latest BlackBerry Theme Studio 5.0. GreenTech features an easy-on-the-eyes green color, with large time, battery and signal icons.

Because it was developed using the Theme Studio 5.0, this theme is compatible with all the latest devices including Storm2, Storm, Tour Bold 9700, 8900 and 9000. On the other hand, popular but older devices like the 8330 aren’t compatible.

GreenTech is available for $3.99 until November 23rd (regularly $7.99).

BlackBerry Storm2 and Storm game Revball now available

2009-11-18T21:13:31Z

Nickel Buddy are really cool BlackBerry game developers because they’ve been putting out quality games specifically with the BlackBerry Storm in mind. The latest is called Revball and it’s a paddle ball type arcade game.

While the game is available for the Storm2, it doesn’t use the multitouch feature which is a pretty key element of the device. As a Storm2 user, I’m always on the hunt for content that uses its unique features, but a Storm game is good fun regardless.

Revball is $4.99 and there is more information available on the purchase page.

OS 5 for the BlackBerry Curve 8520 leaked

2009-11-18T19:19:21Z

CrackBerry and BlackBerryOS are reporting a leaked OS 5.0.0.348 for the BlackBerry Curve 8520. RIM have said that it won’t be longer than 2010 before we start seeing OS 5 rolled out across a larger gamut of devices so it shouldn’t be long until this is official. So if you want it now, and you’re okay with some third party apps not working, then go ahead and give it a try. Usual caveats apply.

Download OS 5.0.0.348 from MegaUpload.

If you’re getting the error “File Temporarily Unavailable”, all you have to do is keep refreshing the screen. It took me about 15 refreshes to finally get the download to work.

TELUS launches the BlackBerry Storm2

2009-11-18T18:44:24Z

The new BlackBerry Storm 2 is now available at TELUS on their 3G (CDMA) network for $199.99 on a 3-year contract. You can also buy the device sans contract for $599.99, but it’s rare that anyone commits that much cash up front these days. In any case, we’re hoping this device does well for TELUS.

See the TELUS site for more details of the upcoming BlackBerry Storm2.

Zeebu Mobile launch Super BabyGO! with 25 copies to give away

2009-11-18T14:27:20Z

Super BabyGO! is the latest update to the BabyGO! franchise by Zeebu Mobile. The first version of the app, is a free sample of how the game works, and this version has some great new features you and your kid would like.

Once downloaded, the app locks the BlackBerry and lets your 0-2 year old push the keys and hear the corresponding sound. The app also features a growing section of downloadable content to keep things fun. Instead of letters and numbers, it can deliver cute animals as well as multiple languages.

Super BabyGO! is available for $5.99, or on a free trial. You can get more details and download information from their site. Also, Super BabyGO! is soon to be in App World so feel free to check it out then.

The folks at Zeebu Mobile are also providing 25 licenses to winners who comment and tell us “what games/toys your kids love to play with.” We’ll select 25 winners at random and email them licenses.

Deal of the Day Reminder: Wrath retro space shooter for the Storm

2009-11-18T14:02:00Z

Wrath is a retro space shooter for the BlackBerry Storm. Using the accelerometer or touchscreen, you control your ship as it picks up power-ups and blasts space aliens. If things look like they’re getting messy, click the screen to super-nuke everything.

One of the coolest features in this game is the ability to listen to your own music while you play. Just make a playlist in the BlackBerry Media player, and Wrath will use it for the in-game music.

Wrath, the retro space shooter for the BlackBerry Storm, is on sale for $2.49 (regular price $4.99).

Dope Wars more awesome on BlackBerry as Druglord Wars

2009-11-18T13:51:37Z

Berry Wars has been given a huge update and is now a visually stunning BlackBerry game called Druglord Wars. The game is just like the original Dope Wars, where the aim is to buy low and sell high, all the while avoiding the cops.

Some new features to the game include:

Global online leaderboard to compare your skills to the world.
17 drugs to buy and sell in 11 beautifully rendered cities.
18 weapons and storage containers to take down enemies and hold more drugs.
Over 125 custom designed images just for BlackBerry.
Save games and preview progress before resuming.
Unlimited gameplay mode to see how far you can take your drug empire.

The game is currently on sale for $3.99 until November 20th (regularly $4.99). Druglord Wars is available for OS 4.6 and up with 480×320 or 480×360 screens, and there are plans to support 4.5+ with 320×240 soon.

Stress Test: How long can the BlackBerry Bold 9700 play music? (Part 2)

2009-11-20T00:33:58Z

UPDATE: The Bold 9700 battery just died. The BlackBerry Cool official time is 19:22, exactly 29 hours. This is 29 hours while using the device heavily. Let’s see an iPhone do that!

UPDATE: 16:19 and 26 hours into the test, with 10% battery left. Part 2 of the test has sort of changed. It started off as a test of the music playback under more strenuous network conditions and has turned into a test of how long the battery will last under power user conditions. I’ve been playing music, tweeting, taking pics, using Google Maps, running several other apps simultaneously, making and taking calls and constantly pulling data from both Maps and Twitter. There was a break when I went to sleep but I left all the connections and apps running so it was still very much active.

UPDATE: 14:16, 24 hours into the test, and the battery is at 25%. Something I’ve noticed is that making calls depletes the battery much faster than anything else. I knew this intuitively but the test really made it obvious. Streaming music doesn’t seem to have much impact on battery life at all.

UPDATE: 10:40 went through the night and we’ve been back on WiFi, radio for a couple hours. At 30% and around 20 hours we’re definitely going a full day no problem.

UPDATE: It’s 02:29, 12 hours into the test. The batter reads 40% and I have been using a very decent amount of apps and data. Holding the BlackBerry Button, it shows the following apps: Messages, UberTwitter, Home Screen, BlackBerry Messenger, Media, Radio Companion, Setup Wizard (I switch devices a lot), Visual Voice Mail, Google Maps, Browser, Gmail and Phone. I’m going to give the updates a rest until around 8 AM.

UPDATE: It’s 23:11 and I have been out and about for the past 2 hours. During that time, I wasn’t listening to music but I was burning through data and the battery pretty fiercely. I was Tweeting pics, using Google Maps and calling friends. I’m not sure if this corrupts the test or anything, but I’m back at the office and on WiFi, streaming music on Bluetooth. At 55%, the battery is still going strong. We’re about 9 hours into the test.

UPDATE: 20:11 and the battery is at 65%. I’ve been using the device pretty intensely over the past 6 hours. On a normal day, I’ll probably use 20 minutes on headphones and the BlackBerry Media Gateway for 30 mins the odd time. So far, I’ve used about 5 hours of streaming Nobex on WiFi and Bluetooth, and another hour on radio and headphones.

UPDATE: The time is 18:14 and the status screen is telling me the battery is at 80%. By the looks of the meter, I would say it’s around 95%, but we’ll see. We are almost 4 hours on WiFi, taking in emails, BBM, and SMS, streaming music using Nobex and playing it via Bluetooth over the BlackBerry Media Gateway. Go baby go!

UPDATE: The time is 15:55, just over an hour into the test and the battery hasn’t budged, we’re still full bars. I’ve had a few BBM’s, and about 10 emails come in through WiFi, all the while streaming music using Nobex and playing it off the BlackBerry Media Gateway. Things might change if I leave the office and get off WiFi.

UPDATE: Okay we’re good to go. I have the Bold 9700, running all connections, using EDGE, roaming on the Rogers network and this bad boy is sucking in data like a Dyson vacuum. The time is 14:22 and we’re starting off on WiFi, at my office, listening to the Bold 9700 via Bluetooth on 7.1 surround sound. I know, it doesn’t make a difference that it’s 7.1 but it’s still cool. I also made sure to make the amplifier read Bold 9700. Oh yeah, and I’m running Nobex Radio Companion for the music because Pandora and Slacker figured out I’m Canadian. We’re full battery.

So it turns out the BlackBerry Bold 9700 can play music for up to 38 hours, as advertised (the BlackBerry Cool official time is just short of 39 hours).

It seems as though we tested the Bold 9700’s music playback in a similar way that RIM would test it. There might be a standard for such a test somewhere, and maybe the National Institute of Standards and Technology could comment.

Let’s get on to Part 2 because it’ll be much more interesting. Playing the Bold 9700 with the radio turned off is really throwing RIM a bone. It’s time to test the Bold 9700 under some decent Power User conditions. For Part 2 of “Stress Test: How long can the BlackBerry Bold 9700 play music?”, I’m going to use the device as a primary communication and music device. I think the following conditions would be cool:

Radio On.
WiFi On.
American SIM and device roaming on Canadian Network.
Streaming Slacker Radio during down time.
Headphones On, Volume Full and Bass Boost On.
When at office and home, connected via Bluetooth and playing to stereo (this is a personal shout-out to BlackBerry Cool Reader Caspan).
Taking emails, calls and SMS.
Taking advantage of GPS and maps when appropriate.
I might even take a pic or two.

So take your guess, how long will the Bold 9700 play music under heavy usage conditions? Comment your predictions and we’ll see the discrepancy.

Update on Cellcrypt voice encryption for BlackBerry

2009-11-17T22:40:47Z

The last time we wrote about Cellcrypt, they were showcasing their secure mobile voice encryption software for BlackBerry at WES 2009. The company and BlackBerry app have come a long way and we got to talking with them last week at BBDC.

Since WES, the company has received FIPS 140-2 certification, a standard approved by the US National Institute of Standards and Technology. At BBDC, the company announced that their product is available for the BlackBerry Bold 9700, as well as Curve and Pearl series devices.

Cellcrypt’s product has become more relevant than ever with the ongoing media coverage behind a group of hackers looking to crack the standard GSM network. The hackers say they’re doing this in order to send a message that 2G GSM calls lack proper security encryption, and they could make their code book available to anyone via torrents. While the process is purely academic, and not likely an imminent threat, it still demonstrates a need in the industry for greater voice security.

FileScout updated to version 1.5.0.0

2009-11-17T16:53:49Z

FileScout presented at the BlackBerry Developer Conference Final 16 in San Francisco and they have since updated their application. The latest updates include:

Display of thumbnails in search result.
Thumbnail-Options: New Button to generate all thumbnails for all images on your device.
When resizing images to device resolution size you can now select to keep the aspect ratio of the original image.
UserDefined resolution (image resizing) can be now be max 9999 pixel [but it's recommended not use more then 1200px].
Support for DesktopManager Backup & Restore (FileScout settings).
A ‘[W]‘ in the Screen Title indicating that the background threads (required for Search and other extended features) are still running (after FileScout is started) – once the threads are completed the ‘[W]‘ will disappear.
Integration in the RIMs FileExplorer Application: a ‘Explore with FileScout’ MenuItem is added.

What’s fixed?

Search files in the current Directory only function fixed to be usable multiple times.
Potential OutOfMemeory Error during start of FileScout (when the thumbnail store is getting too large).
Accessing OS5 System Folder for Bold, Bold2, Storm and Storm2.
For all of you who are waiting to get a “fix” for the System folder on the Bold, Bold2, Storm and Strom2 on OS5.
RIM confirmed that they made the System folder in OS5.x read only.
FileScout (and all other 3′rd party applications) can only show the content of the System folder but can’t modify anything.

Try FileScout for your BlackBerry from App World or as Donationware from http://www.emacberry.com/ota/BBFileScout.jad.

Gym Technik for the BlackBerry Storm coming in two weeks

2009-11-17T15:34:39Z

When we posted about RoadRunnerGPS, a lot of BlackBerry Cool readers recommended using Gym Technik for weight training. At first, this app was a web-based client but a few weeks ago they went native, which really helps if your gym is in a basement.

Gym Technik will be launching their popular fitness tracking app for the BlackBerry Storm in two weeks. To find out when Gym Technik for the Storm goes live, you can register at their site.

BlackBerry and Twitter a huge success in Venezuela

2009-11-17T15:28:18Z

Bloomberg has a great article about the use of BlackBerrys and Twitter in Venezuela. The combination of a BlackBerry and Twitter, is apparently a crucial traffic tool in a country with shoddy road work and hectic driving conditions. Under a group called Trafico, Venezuelans flag potholes and vent frustrations about local infrastructure.

According to RIM, Venezuela’s per- capita use of smartphones outpaces Europe’s. Under Chavez’s currency controls, Venezuelans are allowed $400 annually for online purchases. It seems that they are spending this $400 on a new BlackBerry because it’s a status symbol.

If you’re interested in checking out the service that Venezuelans are using to Tweet traffic reports, try out GroupTweet.

Wilfrid Laurier School of Business offers BlackBerry MBA program

2009-11-17T20:28:20Z

This isn’t breaking news as it went live about a month ago, but it slipped under my radar and I have to post it. The Canadian Wilfrid Laurier School of Business and Economics in Waterloo, Ontario (near RIM headquarters), offers an MBA BlackBerry pilot program. The program puts a BlackBerry Curve 8900 in the hands of every student, as well as provides them with education and collaboration tools for their device.

The faculty even talks about using push technology to push content to their students’ BlackBerrys, and will be recording metrics to gauge which content is being accessed.

So if you’re a student in this program, feel free to hit up BlackBerry Cool for software and accessories. I have no problem giving you some cool applications for the device to test what it can do.

Are you experiencing a BIS outage?

2009-11-17T14:57:00Z

There are reports all around that the BIS is down across North America. Personally, I never notice these things when they happen because I’m on a BES, but I feel for everyone affected. The outages are reported with AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile. Again, there are so many reasons why the BIS might be down that it’s impossible to speculate, but if multiple carriers are affected, it’s probably a node somewhere in RIM’s network.

Are you experiencing an outage? Where are you and who is your network provider?

Reminder: Get an additional level of security with free VeriSign app

2009-11-17T03:56:46Z

While the app has been in App World for some time now, I got a chance to sit down with the folks at Verisign at the BlackBerry Developer Conference, and they showed me their VIP Access app. If you haven’t seen it, it’s a free download that provides you with an additional layer of security for your online profiles.

Once you register your VIP Acccess app, you get a new One Time Password every 30 seconds, which is securely stored on your BlackBerry. If your username or password is hacked, you still have an additional layer of security.

So if you have an account with eBay, PayPal, AOL or GEICO, this is worth the free download.

Stress Test: How long can the BlackBerry Bold 9700 play music?

2009-11-18T13:33:11Z

UPDATE: It’s dead! The BlackBerry Bold actually exceeded the marketing materials and died just short of the 39 hour benchmark.

UPDATE: It’s 1:12. There is 8% battery left and I used some extra juice to take a screenshot. Regardless, the BlackBerry Bold 9700 has been on for 36 hours and it seems like it will hit the 38 hour mark, as advertised, dead on. BlackBerry Cool reader Durbin007 deserves a hat tip.

UPDATE: 21:52. About 1/5th of the battery power left. The BlackBerry Bold 9700 has been playing music for 33 hours.

UPDATE: We are now almost 27 hours into the test and we still have 2/5 battery power.

UPDATE: We’re coming up to the 24hr mark and I have to say, this test is driving me slightly mental. If I were to design a new torture method, it would involve leaving loud music playing from headphones in the same room as someone for hours on end.

UPDATE: At 09:06 we’re about 21 hours into the test and the Bold 9700 is showing just a little over half battery. At this rate, it could be upwards of 45 hours to drain the battery completely.

UPDATE: It’s 20:32 EST, about 8 hours since we started and not even a single bar down. At this rate I won’t need to update until tomorrow.

UPDATE: It is 16:57 EST, a little more than 4 hours into it and we still haven’t gone through a full bar. Going to give it a while longer before another update.

UPDATE (14:26 EST): It has been 2 hours and we’re still running on full battery. This could take a long, long time.

So here’s the deal: The BlackBerry Bold 9700 has some battery optimizations that make it last so long it makes the Energizer Bunny look impotent. That, combined with some OS optimizations specifically tailored to the music player, means the Bold 9700 can play music for a long time.

But just how long can it play music on a single charge? Well I’m going to put this thing to the test. The test will involve 2 parts. The first part, will be playing music with the radio off and playing it directly from the SD Card. This will give us an idea of how long the battery will last, solely playing music without being interrupted by calls, emails and network searching. The second part of the experiment, will be playing the music from Slacker, to test the 9700’s ability to stream music while on the network. This will be an incredible strain on the battery but I have a feeling the Bold 9700 will surprise us.

So lets get started with Part 1 of How Long Will the Bold 9700 play music for?

Comment your predictions! Remember, the following conditions:

Radio is off.
Full battery charge.
Full volume with headphones.
No audio boost.
No headset equalizer.
Songs on continuous play so it won’t have any interruption.

AT&T announces the BlackBerry Curve 8520

2009-11-16T17:12:06Z

The press releases have gone out and the AT&T BlackBerry Curve 8520 has just been announced. The device will be available “in the coming weeks” and it will cost $99.99 on a 2 year agreement.

The press release doesn’t mention whether or not App World will come preloaded on the device, but it does say to expect Facebook and MySpace preloaded.

More of the usual details from the press release.

LaterDude Pro 50% off for today only

2009-11-16T15:52:16Z

Our buddy Fabian is selling LaterDude Pro for 50% off today. That means the app is yours for only $1.48 (regularly $2.95).

LaterDude Pro is a simple app that reminds you to call, SMS or email someone. The app creates a new event in the calendar, so you definitely won’t forget.

Stay tuned because Fabian has some great stuff coming for all you Storm2 users. From his Twitter account: “Workin on the new BlackBerry Storm2 app – lots and lots of testing.”

RoadRunnerGPS Fitness Tracking for BlackBerry with Giveaways

2009-11-18T15:35:24Z

RoadRunnerGPS is a feature rich app for fitness enthusiasts. The app uses GPS features to provide feedback for joggers and walkers on their time, speed, distance, pace and calories.

Once you have finished your run, you can upload the data to Kanavon’s servers where you can review the data and get a variety of metrics and statistics about your workout.

We’re giving away 25 copies of this app, so just comment and let us know what other fitness apps you have tried for BlackBerry.

There is more information about RoadRunnerGPS on their site, as well as in the App World webstore.

Update: Thanks everyone for participating! The 25 winners have been selected and will receive an email shortly.

Analysts talk about upcoming BlackBerry slider

2009-11-16T14:12:43Z

Analysts at Kaufman Bros are saying that RIM will be launching a touchscreen BlackBerry slider with a QWERTY keyboard, along with an updated web browser.

Kaufman said they are picking up strong indications of a new form factor under development that would be a cross between a touchscreen BlackBerry Storm 2 and a physical keyboard BlackBerry. They said, “from our understanding, this new BlackBerry would have a full touchscreen plus a pull-out physical keyboard. It would be similar to others from HTC, Palm, Motorola and others but of course sport a distinctive signature BlackBerry industrial design.”

We have heard rumors of such a device being codenamed Talladega, but nothing much else. It would still be cool to see a BlackBerry Storm slider though. Also, a touchscreen device would be a great launch device for the new WebKit-based BlackBerry Browser.

BlackBerry Bold 9700 comes decently priced at Walmart

2009-11-16T13:56:53Z

The BlackBerry Bold 9700 is on sale from the official T-Mobile site, but you can get a bit of a better deal from Walmart. The official price for the 9700 is $199.99 on the new Even More plan, or at $449.99 on the Even More Plus plan. From Walmart, the device is as low as $129.99.

The device is clearly a hot item as there is a back order already.

Telus and Bell Blackberry Unlock Codes Get more Complicated

2009-11-16T13:38:26Z

The Bell Blackberry Bold 9700 has a new lock on it called the Service Provider (SP) lock. Both the original “Network” lock aka MEP2, and the new SP lock aka MEP4, are needed to unlock the Bell 9700 now. We’ve found 2 methods to do it and blogged about it on our site.

Through the eyes of a cell phone unlocker, it seems that RIM is always making an effort to tighten security on their new Blackberry devices. This time it has gone beyond RIM, with Bell and soon TELUS adding new locks on their Blackberry phones.

We like to call them “MEP4? locks instead the old MEP2 that we’ve grown so fond of. It has already been implemented on the Bell 9700 which has 2 locks – the network lock and the Service Provider (SP) lock. Unlock code developers, crackers and hackers are still in the process of developing a quick and “Instant” method for unlocking these MEP4 codes. Although we are able to unlock the Bell Blackberry Bold 9700, it’s interesting to see that RIM, Rogers and T-mobile are still using MEP2 codes for the Rogers Blackberry Bold 9700 and T-mobile Blackberry Bold 9700.

Perhaps Telus and Bell are doing this to protect their new HSDPA network? Or maybe they are passionate about retaining their clientele and keeping exclusivity of their handheld devices. Who knows? Regardless, we have discovered 2 methods to unlock the Bell Blackberry Bold 9700.

Method 1: Unlocking the Bell Blackberry Bold 9700 with IMEI & PIN#

Calculate the 2 unlock codes with just the IMEI and PIN #.

PROS:

Can be calculated accurately within 24-72 hours.
Incorrect IMEI and PIN submissions will result in a “Not Found” code instead of returning an incorrect code due to an incorrect IMEI submission.

CONS:

Longer than normal process times.
If your IMEI and PIN are not in the database, you will get a “Not Found” code even though everything was submitted properly.
Very pricey compared to method 2.

Method 2: Unlocking the Bell Blackberry Bold 9700 with Blackberry Logger info:

Calculates the 2 unlock codes with a “Logger” that is read off of your phone with a third party program. This is the method we have adopted to unlock your Bell Blackberry Bold 9700.

PROS:

Accurate codes are generated within 0-48 hours.
A great way to accurately generate all the information from your Blackberry device to avoid errors in typing your IMEI.

CONS:

Instant speeds are not available.
Altered logs will create incorrect codes – do NOT alter when you send in your Bell 9700 logs.

The program to get your Blackberry log can be downloaded here. After getting your IMEI and MEP from the program, you can purchase your Bell Blackberry Bold 9700 unlock code. Simply enter the MEP under the “Model” section.

UPDATE: For those commenting, it’s not actually a virus/trojan. It’s a security feature called “Themida” which protects the software from being duplicated or taken apart. Certain Virus scanners say that its a trojan horse, but its nothing harmful whatsoever.