10 Great Free Apps for Blackberry

Blackberries may accept been overshadowed lately by the success of the iPhone, just they still offering and incredibly powerful platform.Plus, since the Blackberry operating system is build on Java and has always been open, there are a slew of useful and mature applications, many of which are free. Since I'thou a cheapskate when it comes to software, I've loaded upward my Blackberry Curve with a boatload of free programs. Here are the ones I use the most:

1. Google Mobile

Google Mobile is an all-in-i package combining Google'southward excellent mobile apps (Gmail, Google Maps, and Google Sync) with links to Google'due south mobile-optimized web services (search, Picasa, Reader, Docs, Google Notebook, etc.). Although Blackberry's already handle email fairly well, I notice the Gmail application a much more comfortable way to access email. The Maps application does everything you can do with Google Maps on your PC (search, get directions, switch to satellite view, and so on), plus it will use either the nearest cell tower or, if yous take a GPS-enabled telephone, GPS to pinpoint your location. The Sync app lets you do a ii-way synchronization between the calendar on your Blackberry and Google Calendar. The residuum of the links open services in Blackberry'south integrated web browser, although in some cases with limited functions compared to their PC-based equivalents (Google Docs, for instance, are read-only). All in all, this is an incredible piece of productivity software, one I apply probably a dozen times a day.

two. iSkoot

iSkoot puts the power of Skype on your mobile phone. You can ship and receive vox calls to and from other Skype users or using SkypeIn and SkypeOut services, and believe it or not the sound quality is pretty good, even on AT&T'southward tiresome 2G network. iSkoot gets all your contacts from Skype, making it a cakewalk to use. Of course, you can also IM with text. Calls received are handled by the Blackberry exactly like traditional cell calls, using the same controls and the aforementioned ringtone, so information technology'south actually indistinguishable from using your mobile phone normally. I have a SkypeIn telephone number for my professional person life; iSkoot lets me stay connected even when I'm abroad from my computer.

three. Viigo

Although I generally use Google Reader for my RSS feeds, Viigo is a squeamish culling – and adds several overnice options Google Reader (and most other RSS readers) don't. The new beta lets you lot fix atmospheric condition, sports, finance, and travel alerts, get updates from local Kijiji classifieds (if it serves your expanse), even become complimentary book feeds from DailyLit. And there's even a space – inactive for now – for podcast feeds, which developers promise volition be enabled soon, letting you download your favorite audio podcasts over the air. All this in a beautiful and very piece of cake-to-use interface – what more could you ask for?

4. BeeTag

This is a new addition to my Blackberry and, I admit, one that I haven't found much use for yet – but it's simply a thing of time. The app is chosen BeeTag, and information technology is a 2-D barcode reader that uses your Blackberry's camera to browse those foursquare-shaped codes (like the one next to this paragraph) that are popping up on more and more products, equally well as in ads and other places. Already huge in Nihon, these 2-D codes tin contain a URL, product information, or other material; BeeTag reads the lawmaking and sends you to the website indicated or displays the text. Even though you have to get quite shut to fill the frame plenty for BeeTag to read it – which means a blurry prototype – BeeTag could read everything I threw at it, including codes captured from my laptop's screen.

v. Vlingo

Voice-enable your Blackberry with Vlingo, which goes across phonation-dialing to voice-texting and fifty-fifty vocalization-emailing. Vlingo takes over i of your Blackberry's application keys (my Curve has ii, one on each side; I've assigned it to the i on the right, the one that controls the photographic camera by default). Agree the key down, say a command, and Vlingo goes to work. For example, I say "Send email to Bob Smith subject area You're an idiot Bulletin You forgot to take the coffee off your machine's roof every bit you drove away" and Vlingo creates an email reading "You lot forgot to accept the coffee off your auto's roof as y'all drove away" with the subject field line "You're an idiot" and the e-mail address from Bob Smith from my Blackberry's address volume. Yous tin search the web, update your Facebook condition, create tasks and memos, even open congenital-in applications and a handful of 3rd-political party Vlingo-enabled apps, all using your vocalization.

6. WebMessenger

You can IM through Skype using iSkoot, only if your contacts aren't mainly on Skype, WebMessenger allows you to chat on simply about whatsoever major IM network: AOL, Google, ICQ, Jabber, MSN, Skype, and Yahoo. Contact lists are imported from the appropriate service, and just similar a full chat client, yous can meet who's online, set your condition, and of course conversation all you want. Yous'll need to fix a primary login account with WebMessenger; later that, it volition stay logged in and run in the background.

7. Mobipocket Reader

Blackberry screens aren't the best for east-volume reading – that's 1 thing I miss about my onetime Palm Zire 72, with its neat large color screen – just Mobipocket Reader makes the best of what it has to work with, providing a decent if not brilliant reading experience. The .mobi file format is becoming the de facto eastward-book standard for mobile devices, so in that location are lots of titles bachelor for purchase, also as the normal range of classic texts available for free. Or you lot tin can convert PDFs or Word files on your PC and transfer them over. The plan is easy to use and fairly like shooting fish in a barrel to read, though not many lines fit on the Blackberry's screen at in one case. You tin can also add annotations, although strangely yous tin't add together bookmarks to return easily to important passages. Still, Mobipocket lets me go on a couple of e-books available for those times when I get caught with time to kill and zippo to practise, and for that I'k grateful.

8. Twitterberry

Blackberry's are great for sending text messages, so of course they're dandy for sending tweets on Twitter. Twitterberry makes information technology like shooting fish in a barrel, letting you admission your friend's timelines – collectively or individually – every bit well equally all your replies and direct messages. Of course, sending messages is a slice of cake, also. My only complaint is that messages are previewed, with only the first 40 characters or so visible in each timeline screen, and so you have to click them individually to read them in their entirety. Fifty-fifty with that, though, Twitterberry is even so a far improve feel than using the Twitter site through the Blackberry's tedious browser.

9. Poynt

Poynt is a slick local search app now in beta for the Blackberry. Poynt does local xanthous folio searches so you can discover businesses near you, and has an first-class moving picture listings characteristic that lets yous find movies almost yous, theaters near you, or browse by genre or review the current top ten. You lot can enter your location manually or, if your phone has GPS, let Poynt pinpoint your location automatically. Poynt too integrates with Blackberry Maps to provide directions – alas, AT&T, in its space wisdom, has determined that I (and the rest of its customers) should not employ Blackberry Maps. I'm certain it's very cool…

Fortunately, Google Mobile includes Google Maps so I tin become all the directions I need!

x. Facebook

You like Facebook, correct? C'mon, acknowledge it – you want to Facebook all the fourth dimension. And well you should – you have a Blackberry, subsequently all! The Facebook app makes it piece of cake to send messages, encounter your updates, and poke poke poke all twenty-four hours long, and that's pretty darn of import, isn't it?

Your favorites?

Those are the apps I'm getting a lot of utilize out of – what about you? What are your favorite Blackberry apps, free or paid? Permit us know all about information technology in the comments!

mcleodfultentreske.blogspot.com

Source: https://www.lifehack.org/articles/featured/10-great-free-apps-for-blackberry.html

Share this post