BlackBerry urges BB10 users to roll-back its glitchy Twitter app
After loads of BB10 user complaints, BlackBerry is pulling the latest Twitter update from its app market. Should you still need your 140-character fix however, the beleaguered smartphone maker has a solution: roll back to the application’s previous version — 10.2.1 — via the simple step-by-step instructions posted on its blog. First, delete Twitter from your device. Then, open BlackBerry World, refresh it and search for the micro-blogging service by name. Voila, a (hopefully) stable app should appear. If anything, this proves that the QWERTY king listens to more than just those in its boardroom. So, the next time that you notice an app go wonky, speak up — it likely won’t be in vain.
Filed under: Mobile, Blackberry
Via: Mobile Syrup
Source: Inside BlackBerry
Evernote for BlackBerry 10 updated with sharing, offline notebooks and more
Yearning for more from BlackBerry 10′s Evernote experience? You got it. The service just updated its native BB10 app with improved performance, more security and a small collection of overdue features. Namely, Evernote has given users the ability to share notes from within the app, both to friends and with other apps installed on the device. The reverse works too: data from other Apps can be shared and saved to Evernote using BB10′s regular share dialogue. Premium users can also save their notebooks for offline use, and the introduction of a new lock feature secures content with a four-digit passcode. Oh, and the team has enabled Universal Search too, which lets users search their Evernote account from anywhere on the device. Game changing features? Maybe not, but we won’t scoff at the update. Check out the company’s official blog for more details.
Source: Evernote
Google seeks judgment protecting Android from ‘Rockstar’ group’s patent lawsuits
Google isn’t about to remain idle while the Apple- and Microsoft-led “Rockstar” patent group sues numerous Android partners. The search giant has quietly filed a declaratory judgment complaint asking a San Jose court to rule that the company (and therefore, the Android ecosystem) doesn’t infringe seven of Rockstar’s patents. As GigaOM notes, Google isn’t mincing words — the firm accuses Rockstar of “placing a cloud” over Android and harassing a large part of the technology industry. The legal action doesn’t necessarily amount to fighting fire with fire, though. Declaratory judgment complaints frequently represent attempts to score an early victory, rather than the first line of defense; Google likely has more up its sleeve if this tactic doesn’t work.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Apple, Microsoft, Google, Blackberry
Source: GigaOM
BlackBerry’s latest casualty: Two unreleased phones
2013 continues to be a downer year for the company formerly known as Research In Motion. The Wall Street Journal has just uncovered a tidbit in BlackBerry’s latest earnings report that states two unreleased phones had to be cancelled due to poor sales of its existing handsets. Apparently code-named Cafe and Kopi, they were slated to be sold as budget phones for emerging markets but had to be nixed to “mitigate the identified inventory risk.” This comes on the heels of BlackBerry’s announcement that it’s partnering up with FoxConn for device manufacturing and canceling its annual conference in order to save costs. It all seems rather dire, but the Wall Street Journal also reports that the company is still working on a couple of higher-end handsets internally code-named Ontario and Windermere. Whether or not those phones will see the light of day, however, remains to be seen.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
Via: CNET
Source: Wall Street Journal
BlackBerry CEO hoping to avoid future layoffs, expects to be profitable by 2016
This morning’s earnings report may not have been BlackBerry’s favorite moment, but John Chen seems confident in his vision for the company’s future — and his ability to turn things around. Speaking with a small group of analysts and reporters, Chen mentioned that this coming year will be critical for BlackBerry, saying that it will be an investment year. We can’t say we disagree; certainly the deal with Foxconn (which Chen specifies does not involve any licensing agreements, ensuring government relations remain under BlackBerry’s control) will require a lot of additional effort and resources on his company’s part. Chen seems adamant that this “investment” will not include layoffs, however, “if [he] can avoid it.” Certainly no guarantee, of course, but Chen is confident that this quarter was just a hiccup that will help BlackBerry find future financial success, and that he expects his company to be cash flow-neutral by 2015 and profitable by 2016, and wants to do it using growth, rather than saving money through cuts. In fact, Chen plans to build up an Enterprise sales force “to take it back to the market.”
Chen also spoke to his new position as chief executive, saying that the “interim” title has been removed, and he’s now the man in charge for the foreseeable future. But for how long, exactly? As long as it takes to get the company on strong financial footing. “My step one was to have the company financially out of harm’s way. I can’t say I’ve done it today, but we are on a good path.” He definitely wins the prize for the most confident CEO of the year.
Additionally, Chen mentioned that BlackBerry will be building a security technology center in Washington, DC to work with big government clients like the Department of Defense. This new center, which will be several thousand square feet, will primarily employ engineers (although he doesn’t specify if these engineers will be transferred there or if BlackBerry will enjoy a hiring spree). This makes sense, given Chen’s insistence that one of the company’s biggest areas of focus must be on security for regulated industries, in which government relations will play a huge role.
Also, if you’ve been concerned that these recent announcements mean that the company may not put as much of an emphasis on keyboards as has done in the past, good news: the new CEO doesn’t plan to ditch keyboards anytime soon — he mentioned that BlackBerry customers still want them, so he’ll continue to listen to his customers.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, Blackberry
Source: FinancialPost
BlackBerry teams up with Foxconn for budget smartphones as sales continue to plunge
BlackBerry’s new interim chief John Chen has just got a rude wake-up call: the company realized revenue on only 1.9 million smartphones in Q1 compared to 3.7 million last quarter, and lost $4.4 billion. It also said that most of the phones shipped were BB7 models, and that much of the bloodletting can be chalked up to a massive $2.6 billion loss on BlackBerry 10 devices and other associated BB10 charges. Given that, Chen has already started making big changes, including a new organizational structure and partnership with Foxconn to build smartphones for emerging markets like Indonesia. The Canadian outfit’s now been divvied up into the following business: Enterprise Services, Messaging, QNX Embedded business and Devices. It hopes that’ll create more focus for the services group and greater efficiencies for its handset division.
Given that BlackBerry’s smartphone sales are now in freefall, the company also detailed its new five-year partnership with Foxconn. It said such a deal would let it focus on design and software, while “Foxconn’s scale and efficiency will let us compete more effectively.” Foxconn will build handsets in both Indonesia and Mexico, while BlackBerry said it would focus development on market segments still friendly to the brand, like enterprise and government. Meanwhile, the Waterloo company’s only bright spots in the quarter were messaging, with 40 million new Android and iOS users, and its bread and butter Enterprise services. However, given the hardware sales drop in just a single quarter as shown in this latest earnings report, it would appear that the next quarter or two will be do-or-die for the iconic company.
Filed under: Cellphones, Blackberry
BlackBerry bringing Channels and Voice Chat to BBM for Android and iOS next year
Remember how excited you were for BBM to hit Android and iOS and then BlackBerry continued to fake us all out with imminent releases? Thankfully, that’s now all in the past and BBM is a reality for those of us not on BB10 devices, but still its feature set leaves something to be desired. The good news is that BlackBerry intends to flesh out BBM in 2014, though not just for the app.
So what’s up ahead? Arguably, the most significant changes are coming to Android and iOS users in the form of BBM Voice and BBM Channels. Think of BBM Voice as you would Skype or Google Hangouts — it’s essentially a way for you to chat with your contacts without touching your allotment of minutes. And Channels, if you’ll remember from our preview this past summer, is basically BlackBerry’s spin on the social network. Both are already available for current BBM users running BB10, so this addition really just brings the rest of BBM’s outsider base up to speed.
BlackBerry’s also looking to make sharing with BBM a less cumbersome process in the new year. Though the company hasn’t elaborated fully on just how it intends to make photo and voice note sharing that much speedier, it seems as if the process will soon require less fussy UI interactions. Users will even be able to divulge their whereabouts with BBM, albeit on a temporary basis and make use of over 100 new emoticons. All of this is coming “in the next couple of months,” so if you need something to sate your curiosity now, check out the video after the break.
Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile, Blackberry
Source: BlackBerry blog
BBM to be Preinstalled on Some LG Devices
When the Blackberry Messenger app first got leaked out, pulled, and then officially released it was met with excitement and disappointment. While many couldn’t believe it was coming to Android, it took off like a bolt of lightning. Current numbers in the Play Store put it in the 10 to 50 million download bracket. The launch didn’t go all that smooth and had plenty of bumps, but it is alive and obviously flourishing.
Blackberry claims there are around 80 million active users sporting the software with 20 million of them being Android users. It makes sense that they would want to attempt to take it to the next level and find a partner to have the app pre-installed on a device out of the box. A press release that has hit the Blackberry press site has announced just that today. LG will pre-install BBM to the LG G Lite.
“BBM is widely used throughout the Middle East, Africa and Indonesia where smartphone users tend to engage heavily in social networking,” said Kevin Shin, Vice President of Marketing for Asia, the Middle East and CIS countries of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company. “The LG G Pro Lite offers an optimized BBM experience with its large, high quality display and embedded Stylus Pen.”
“People across the globe are using BBM to connect with each other and the enthusiasm has been phenomenal,” said Andrew Bocking, Executive Vice President for BBM at BlackBerry. “We’re extremely pleased that LG Electronics will help bring their customers a more seamless experience with BBM by preloading the app, starting with the G Pro Lite in key markets.”
As you see, there is no mention of the U.S. in their. While BBM will be pre-installed in some LG devices, it looks like it will mostly be for devices in the Middle East, Africa and Indonesia. It is good for Blackberry, even if it might seem a little odd to some of us Android users.
Via Blackberry
Twitter for BlackBerry 10 scores BBM integration and timeline photo previews
It’s no secret that Twitter for BB10 still needs a lot of polishing, and the latest attempt to make it shine brings BBM integration and other new features. Now, you can automatically update your status on the platform’s famous messaging service simply by tweeting through the refreshed app. The latest version also brings thumbnail previews that show attached images right on your timeline. Other than that, it comes with a built-in reply box and a fresh option to report spam or abuse that show up when you tap on a tweet. Unfortunately, if you read the app’s reviews on BlackBerry World, you’ll see a lot of users complaining that their apps have stopped working after they downloaded the update. So, no matter how sweet these changes are, it might be wise to proceed with caution or just wait until the developers issue a fix.
Filed under: Mobile
Via: Inside BlackBerry
Source: BlackBerry World
Nielsen: users embracing smartphone apps while ditching traditional web services
‘Tis the season for year-end lists and summaries galore, and Nielsen is no exception to this rule. The company has just released its list of the top 10 web brands, online video brands and smartphone apps, and its findings reveal a growing trend that may not come as a surprise to anyone: more people are using smartphones, and they’re using them to access the most popular services out there, instead of their web-based counterparts. In these aforementioned lists, Nielsen also discusses how each brand has changed year-over-year; web brands have all decreased, online video brands are relatively flat and smartphone apps are skyrocketing in overall usage.
Let’s take a look at a few services in particular. Google was the top web brand for 2013, yet it saw a decrease in unique visitors by six percent from last year (and YouTube dropped by 14 percent). That said, these two brands represented five of the top 10 smartphone apps, with growth ranging from 14 percent to as high as 29 percent. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Facebook experienced a very similar trend, with a 16 percent decrease in web traffic versus a 27 percent increase in its smartphone app numbers, making it the most-used service of the year. In addition, social networks like Instagram and Twitter grew by leaps and bounds, earning each of them a spot among the top 10 apps; Instagram, in particular, was the fastest growing app on the list. (Also, here’s a shameless plug for our parent company as the seventh most popular web brand.)
Finally, Nielsen also reported that nearly two-thirds of US phone subscribers — 65 percent, to be specific — are now using smartphones instead of featurephones, which is a solid jump up from 56 percent at the end of 2012. Of those subscribers, 52 percent are now using Android devices, while 41 percent use iOS and seven percent use other platforms (BlackBerry is at three percent, while Windows Phone is at two). Head below the break to see all of the fine details for yourself.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, Apple, Microsoft, Google, Blackberry, Facebook
Source: Nielsen
AIVAnet 