Blackberry Playbook Redux

Tablet computers are quite popular these days.  To many users, the only tablet computer worthy of consideration is the iPad.  To me, I personally didn't feel the need to get a tablet.  I had an iPhone that served me well when I needed to get email, Internet access or other information on the run. 

I did pick up an iPad 2 for my mom as an entertainment / gaming device at home.  For the first time since I bought the iPad 2, my mom and I took it on the road for vacation.  I used the iPad to surf online a bit while at the hotel. 

What most people don't know if that I quietly picked up a Blackberry Playbook tablet computer a few months after buying the iPad 2.  There was an opportunity to pick up the Playbook for free which I took advantage of.   I didn't have any specific need for the Playbook but wanted to see what it could do. 

The initial version of the operating systems was a little limited and buggy.  I got a decent experience going online but apps were lacking.  Since the Playbook was a WiFi only tablet, I was limited in the places I could use it (home or other places that had WiFi internet connections).  As many people heard, the Playbook lacked email apps at launch and that was a major limitation. 

With an updated operating system several months ago, the bugs were ironed out a bit and email apps were added.  I download the update and gave the new operating system a spin.  It was pretty interesting but I didn't have a major need to use the Playbook.  When I was home, I would use my computer.  When I was out, I would use my iPhone.  My needs on the road didn't require a tablet.   With that, my Playbook just sat on a table collecting dust until tonight. 

I participate in a fantasy football league and for the first time in a few years, we were drafting players in person at a friend's house.  The league had drafted online only the past few years so I could easily just use my computer.  I wasn't sure if we were still going to use the online system even though we were meeting in person.   It was with that thought that I decided to pull my Playbook out of the mothballs and bring it along to the draft. 

As it turned out, there was only me, my friend and another guy at the house drafting while the other folks were drafting online.  I asked my friend to grant me access to his wireless network and I powered up my Playbook. 

After logging in and going to our fantasy football draft website, I was able to get into the draft room successfully.  It was NOT the smoothest of experiences I've had though.  There were some hiccups with the draft room though it wasn't a deal breaker.  I figured out what I needed to do and just went with it.  At the end of the day, the fact that I was able to participate and complete the draft entirely from the Playbook was good enough for me!  

Since the draft room was Flash based,  I probably would not have been able to participate in the draft with my iPhone (or an iPad).  I was fortunate that the Playbook was around and had Flash support.  While I understand why Apple did not want to support Flash, there are some cases where it is useful as I found out tonight.  

So while the Playbook may not be used regularly by me, I did find one niche use case for it tonight.  I may use the Playbook for monitoring my fantasy football team during the season as well.  My iPhone is ok for that purpose but the bigger screen of the Playbook may be better.  

My blog post will not necessarily turn around Blackberry's fortunes in the business market.   However, hopefully anyone reading the posting will keep an open mind and find uses for the Playbook (and other tablets) that exist on the market. 

BB Playbook

Yesterday, i got a nice gift in the form of the 16GB Blackberry Playbook tablet.  i'll leave the details of how i got the gift.  However, i've been using it and its not a bad little machine.  Yes, it's had its critics but free is free.  Just like the HP Touchpad users, the Playbook makes for a nice little web browser and can do a few other things.  In fact i am writing this posting as we speak.

Overall, the Playbook is nice but probably enough to be my primary computer.  The OS isn't bad but tbe browser hiccups a bit.  App choices are a little limited but there's useful stuff if you look for it.  Is it worth the regular price?  For me, no.  But for free?  I cannot complain!

iPhone 4 - All in one communication device..........

My friend and I were talking for a few hours today over various things.  Among the items discussed were our iPhone 4's that we each have.  I suggested a few applications my friend might want and vice versa.  As we were talking away, I realized how the iPhone 4 is the all in one communication device for me (probably many others as well).

The iPhone 4 is first and foremost a phone.  However, you can also receive text messages.  The next thing is there are various applications of instant messaging.  Lastly, there's Skype for making voice calls over the Internet.

I told my friend that if they couldn't reach me at any of the methods above, I definitely was not available!  :)

SIDENOTE:  Despite picking up the iPhone 4, my old Blackberry Curve is still around.  While the Curve doesn't serve as a phone anymore, I still have many songs on the device.  In fact, once I get around to deleting the various applications that no longer work, I will have even more space.  I plan to keep the Curve around as a portable music device for some occasions.  Recycling technology!  

Blackberry Curve 8310 Camera and Video Recording

A few weeks ago, I wrote about how much I loved my Blackberry Curve:

http://www.throughabceyes.com/2009/09/why-i-love-my-blackberryor-is-it.html

However, after Apple announced the 5th generation IPod Nano, I realized that I neglected to mention two other features of the Blackberry Curve that I use. The two features are the camera and the video recording.

Mostly everyone knows the Curve has a built-in 2 megapixel camera with a flash and zoom capabilities. While the Curve won't be replacing your digital camera anytime soon, it's a good alternative if you're in a pinch. While I haven't taken a lot of shots with the Curve, the camera works best when there is a lot of lighting. While the flash is nice, it doesn't seem to be strong enough to make up for areas that are dark.

One of the few features that people are going gaga for in the 5th generation Ipod Nano is the video recording function. What most people (Curve owners and non-Curve owners both) don't know is that the Research in Motion (RIM) implemented this feature in the Curve via a firmware upgrade several months ago. While this wasn't the reason why I upgraded the firmware, it was a nice bonus to have.

The video quality isn't great but like the camera, having good lighting helps immensely. You can record videos for as long as you want, depending on how much storage space you have on your Curve. Again, for your precious memories, you probably won't be using the Curve for your video recording. However, I have found the Curve for those spur of the moments that come up a lot in life.

One additional tidbit about video recording. One time, I was using my Curve to shoot a video of a co-worker doing an odd stunt. I wanted to share the video but had to use Bluetooth to transfer the video file from my Curve to my computer. I then uploaded the video to YouTube manually.

Another co-worker who was around while the stunt occurred introduced me to a site called QIK (http://www.qik.com)

QIK allows the Curve (and other mobile phones) to share their videos immediately without having to manually upload them. All you have to do is sign up for an account and download QIK software to your phone. Any videos you shoot will be automatically upload to the QIK website. The software also gives you the option to upload the videos to other sites such as YouTube.

I have used the QIK software and uploading capabilities a great deal. It allows me to capture and upload stuff easily (if not quickly since my Curve uses the old Edge network for Internet). It's a nice piece of software that seems to fill a niche that the phones themselves don't have. Plus the software seems to support all the major phones out there.

While the 5th generation Ipod Nano is a nice piece of hardware, I probably won't be going for one anytime soon. When I had the 2nd generation Ipod Nano, I found it cumbersome to carry around with my cell phone. When I accidentally lost the Nano, I chose not to get a new dedicated music player. I actually had an older one that I used for a short time.

However, my Blackberry Curve has filled all my needs. I can web browse, check email, instant message and listen to music. Throw in a camera and video recording functions and I have the all in one device I need.

Why I love my Blackberry....or is it a IBerry....or is it a BlackPhone?

Back around June of 2008, I had been thinking of getting a new cell phone. I'd had my old flip top cell phone for about three years. Though it was working fine, I was looking for some more advanced features like calendars and web browsing. I went around to various stores and browsed at the newer phones. One that caught my eye was the Palm Centro. The Centro had a lot of what I wanted and the phone was inexpensive. Since my old flip top phone was still working, I put off the decision in getting a new phone indefinitely. In my mind, I would get a new phone when the old one broke.

Alas, that time came about a month later. My old flip top phone suddenly died and d-day was here. I had to get a new phone. I immediately went to look at a Centro. However, after playing with the Centro a little more, it didn't quite feel right. The keyboard was a little small and the web browsing was a little limited than I expected.

The next choices on the list were the Apple IPhone (non 3G or 3GS) or the Blackberry Curve 8310. I had played with the IPhone at the stores since it came out but never really looked at the Blackberry. My dad thought I should get the IPhone since I had also lost my IPod Nano a few months back as well.

Despite wanting the IPhone for the novelty factor, I just didn't like the touch screen. Ultimately, after getting a friend's recommendation on the Blackberry Curve 8310 (she had bought it a few months earlier) and playing with it myself, I decided to get the Curve.

Unfortunately, I got a defective phone which rebooted every few minutes so I had to replace it after a few months. However, since I got the replacement phone, everything has been smooth sailing.

While the IPhone has the cool factor and definitely has it's advantages over the Curve, it still does what I need to do including:

1. Email (Hotmail, Yahoo)
2. Web Browsing - This is one area the IPhone had a major advantage over the Blackberry. The Blackberry browser is not robust and Safari does have it beat. However, for basic news reading, most big websites have optimized for the Blackberry. Also, for sites that haven't been optimized, I used Opera-Mini for browsing. Opera is not perfect but it's a decent substitute.
   
3. Games - While the IPhone has a ton of applications for business and fun, the Blackberry also has a few. The Blackberry comes with Brickbreaker (a variation of the old Breakout video games in the 80's). Also, I've downloaded free versions of Pac-Man and Tetris.
   
4. Music Player - My friend reminded me that if I didn't need a separate MP3 player from my phone that the Blackberry could serve as a decent substitute. Guess what? She was RIGHT! Now that ITunes has decided to allow their songs to be playable on other MP3 players besides IPhones or IPods, I can play the same songs everyone else can. I know that Blackberries are generally considered business phones and I personally haven't seen many people listening to music on their Blackberries. But it's much better than one would expect. Plus I love it when people look at me weirdly for I know they're thinking "Is he listening to music on a Blackberry?"
   
5. Blackberry or IBerry - Most IPhone users probably don't care about simulating the look and feel of a Blackberry. However, many creative folks have created IPhone themes for the Blackberry. So while I can't use a touch screen, I have icons that look like the IPhone on the Blackberry. My friends laugh at me for doing this but I'm open minded. I may not like the touch screen of an IPhone, but it doesn't mean I don't like the look of the icons or the interface! :)
   

It's been a year since I got my original Blackberry (7 months for replacement) but it's been fun. I know my phone is quite outdated with Research in Motion announcing a bevy of new phones (Curve, Tour) recently and a rumored new phone (Essex) coming.

However, I plan to enjoy my Curve for as long as it works. When that time comes again, then I will hopefully find another one that can be as fun as the Curve has been!