Tag: blackberry
6 BlackBerry Apps to Cure iPhone Envy
by Ranju Chaudhary on Sep.06, 2010, under Gadgets
We’ve all run into someone with a new iPhone. And we’ve all learned to expect the inevitable “watch this” moment involved in this encounter.
Whether they identify the background music with Shazam
, pull up a fancy screen saver, or fire up a classic PC game, it’s easy for even the most loyal BlackBerry owner to feel a slight pang of jealousy while witnessing these demonstrations. The iPhone is so shiny, so trendy, and it does so many cool tricks.
It’s better to cope with these feelings than to admit them. There’s no need to give up your BlackBerry. The following six iPhone tricks can be accomplished by BlackBerry Apps (and by the way, Shazam makes a BlackBerry app
, too).
1. Cute Bubble Text Messages
crunchSMS changes BlackBerry text messages to an iPhone-like speech bubble format. All you need to do is block incoming text messages from your regular inbox, and you can use the app as an alternative.
2. Doodling
.Doodle allows owners of the touch-screen BlackBerry Storm do the same thing for $0.99. Similarly, Make a Mess has fewer features but doesn’t charge. BlackBerry enthusiasts who prefer navigation via ball don’t need to feel left out, either. SketchIt allows them to make Etch A Sketch drawings using the scroll ball or keypad.
3. Photoshop
Adobe makes an app for the iPhone that crops, rotates, changes the color of, and draws on photos. There’s even a Soft Focus feature. Sadly this awesome app has no BlackBerry sister, but the unbranded BlackBerry version, imgEdit, accomplishes just as many editing tasks. Plus it a has “a special Warhol effect.”
4. Doppler Radar
There’s something about the weather that turns us all into geeks. The iPhone has widgets and apps specifically designed to supply live radar maps to wannabe weathermen. While there isn’t a specific radar map app available for BlackBerry users, the “maps” feature of the Weather Channel’s free app is more than adequate for backing up amateur forecasts.
5. InstaPaper
Often cited as one of the coolest apps for the iPhone, InstaPaper
sends articles you find on the web directly to your phone so that you can read them later, even if your phone is offline. It turns out that the BlackBerry can do that, too. Save Web Page adds a “save PDF” option to your phone’s browser. Saved pages can be read without connecting to the Internet.
6. Remote Control Capability
iPhone users can purchase an accessory that plugs into the USB port and allows them to use their iPhone as a TV remote. The problem with this is that it changes the “where is the remote?” question to a “where is my USB accessory?” question. BlackBerry’s version of a home theater remote control, however, is a box that sits near entertainment equipment rather than connecting to a phone. The AV Shadow can use one phone to control your television, TiVo, DVD player, and satellite box. You can even use your BlackBerry to control Apple products like iPods.
Why Smartphone Adoption May Not Be as Big as You Think
by Ranju Chaudhary on Aug.27, 2010, under Gadgets, Trends
For years now, forecasts have pointed towards a portable, mobile future. And now, hand-held mobile web and geo-location are being touted as the next steps in the evolution of social media. These predictions have been shouted from the rooftops and proven, for the most part, to be true. As technology gets faster and more efficient, our phones are becoming smarter and more important to our social lives.
But if the mobile web and app explosion is really all it’s cracked up to be, how come so few of us have smartphones? Global adoption rates have been steadily (sometimes exponentially) increasing over the past several years, but the overall penetration is still relatively low.
A chart illustrating steadily rising worldwide smartphone penetration from 2008 to 2009.
We looked at some recent North American and European smartphone adoption stats to find out just how quickly, and where, the “future” is being adopted.
Adoption Rates in Europe
The U.K., Germany, and France have the fastest growing smartphone adoption rates across Europe.
The U.K. leads European countries in smartphone adoption rate, according to a comScore study from March, 2010. In just one year, the adoption rate has jumped 70%, to more than 11 million U.K. subscribers. Other major European countries like France, Germany, and Spain also had substantial growth, falling around the average adoption rate of 32%. France had the second-highest adoption rate with nearly 50% change over one year.
Perhaps the most interesting trend shown in the study was the move to cheaper, more universal plans. Monthly subscription plans were split into two groups: Mid to low tier (less expensive plans), and high tier (more expensive, roughly £35). Across the board, the adoption rates of less expensive plans dwarfed pricier counterparts. In Spain, for example, cheaper plans grew by 31% more than high tier plans.
While smartphones are considered the Rolls-Royce of mobile, their growth seems to be spurred by accessibility and affordability. The goal isn’t to build a hand-held super-computer but to create powerful, inexpensive devices to compliment the everyman/everywoman.
Worldwide Penetration
Italy, Spain and the United States lead in smartphone penetration across global markets.
Adoption rates need to be tempered with penetration (what percentage of a population actually own smartphones) in order to make proper sense. A country’s adoption rate could shoot up by 100% if their penetration changed from one person to two people.
Given this context, Italy has the highest penetration of smartphones at 28%, according to a 2009 study from nielsenwire. Spain ranks second, with a penetration of 23%, and the U.S. trails in at third with 17% of Americans toting smartphones.
A statistical breakdown of worldwide penetration demographics in 2009.
Similarly, while the U.K. and France are both experiencing high adoption rates, they rank below the U.S. in overall penetration. The report also brought up some interesting insights: Smartphone users are predominantly male, and generally earn more than $100,000 a year. So much for affordability and inexpensive plans, right?
Not entirely. The penetration statistics show that a majority of smartphone users still see the device as a Rolls-Royce. On the other hand, this only means that there is a huge, untapped market for casual users. The adoption rates show that less-expensive calling plans are growing at a faster pace while U.S. sales have seen a boost from discounted phones.
North America Jumps on Discounts
The U.S. saw steady growth with a 36% increase in adoption rate, according to The NPD Group in amocoNews article from March 2010. Even though the U.S. didn’t grow as much as the U.K. or France, it ranked above other major European countries for a comparable timespan. Canada enjoyed a modest presence with 12% market penetration.
The growth in adoption rate was again linked to discounts and cheap plans. Ross Rubin, NPD’s executive director, told mocoNews that as more and more smartphones enter the market, continued growth will depend on lowering the price of data plans.
