PocketBerry » Apps

Hands On: Need for Speed Shift on the BlackBerry Torch 9810

Mac Jadalhack — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 20:00:00 +0000

Need for Speed was never the greatest game on BlackBerry. It launched for the BlackBerry PlayBook which provided an incredible experience with 3D game play we’ve been anxious to see come from RIM for a very long time. With the new device line up which includes the BlackBerry Torch 9810, we see better enhanced game play. I picked up the Torch 9810 yesterday from AT&T and saw a link in games for Need for Speed Shift. Although it was only a demo, it exemplified how good game play can get on it as the graphics were real smooth and responsive when driving around. Below are a couple of screenshots from the game, but simply hit the jump to check out more.

I have only tried out the demo, but the full game is available for only $4.99 in BlackBerry App World. The full version includes more cars and levels to play on of course. We haven’t seen gameplay on BlackBerry smartphones come this nice so it’s definitely a huge improvement. Only thing I didn’t like about the game is the music. It was too old school and polyphonic which didn’t match up the game’s graphics too well. Other than that it’s definitely a must game to get if you’re looking for 3D game play. You can click the link below to check out Need for Speed Shift on your device, but it looks like to get the Torch 9810 3D version, you have to buy it within the game itself after downloading the demo. If you discover its own link available in App World let us know!

Need for Speed Shift >>

Hands On with Video Options in BlackBerry 7 OS

Mac Jadalhack — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 19:17:00 +0000

The BlackBerry Bold 9900/9930 and other OS 7 devices record video in awesome quality. For those who haven’t gotten their hands on an OS 7 device yet, I figured it would be nice to check out some options available such as video recording options. You can record videos in 720p HD, which is a huge improvement to see in a BlackBerry.

The options menu lets you customize how you want to record your videos. You get video light on/off which we had before, image stabilization, scene mode, and video format. In Scene Mode, you’ll see Auto, Portrait, Landscape, Closeup, and Beach. In OS 6, we had different settings for the camera depending on the scenery around you so it’s nice seeing available here. The auto feature works well, but if you want to play Mr Video Expert you can try the others as well. Then for video format, you can record in awesome HD which gives you 720p in 1280 x 720 resolution, then normal in 640 x 480 which is the BlackBerry Bold 9900’s screen resolution (varies by the device you’re using), then MMS Mode in 320 x 240 resolution.

When recording videos, the layout looks pretty much the same as OS 6 where you get the record button and flash next to it along with the timer on the far right.

By default OS 7 devices tend to be HD in the video recording menu. This may be obvious news to most of you, but if you’re trying to make clips you can send fast and easy on your BlackBerry, please make sure to lower the resolution, maybe to MMS Mode if you really have to. Also, image stabilization really helps. You’ll see a huge difference in video playback.

Video recording works great over all on the BlackBerry, and again it’s great to see RIM put in such high resolution support on their new devices. HD recording is nice, but make sure you have a big enough memory card to support large media. I averaged at about 100MB per minute for some HD clips I took so you’ get the idea.

Review: Dead Space for BlackBerry PlayBook

Mac Jadalhack — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 18:00:00 +0000

Yesterday we let you know that Dead Space by EA Games has made its way to the BlackBerry PlayBook. It’s grown in popularity already on the Apple iPad, so it was nice to see EA match it up with PlayBook support. We didn’t get into the game play much when we let you know about it as we were excited to try out first hand. So here’s some screenshots of the game along with a video overview after the jump.

The controls in the game are really easy. You use your left thum to walk around forward, back, left, and right. Your right thumb is used to face/look different directions. Then when you want to use your unique weapons you’ can swipe up on the left side of the screen (with the saw). Other weapons require you to aim and tap the screen to shoot.

To get a real good idea of the game before grabbing a copy, check out the video below to see how it goes.

Browsing via BlackBerry? Click here to view video

As I mentioned in our other post on the game, I’ve been playing Dead Space on and off via iPad and it’s been an awesome experience so far. I haven’t finished the game completely yet, but hopefully will some day. Wish there was a way to transfer saved game from iPad to PlayBook!

Dead Space is indeed a pretty scary game to play. I don’t care how brave or how old you are, those demons come out of nowhere and will skeeve you out a bit. If you’ve been waiting around for good 3D games to hit the BlackBerry PlayBook, especially after seeing the powerful Need for Speed from day one, then check out Dead Space for sure.

If you’re looking for a new adventure/action game, then Dead Space is good for you. As I said before, it is really spooky, but again lots of fun and challenging at the same time. It’s not offered free like Need for Speed, so don’t get high hopes. Then again it’s a quality game worthy of the $9.99 price tag for sure.

Dead Space for BlackBerry PlayBook >>

Quick Review: Ascendo Money for BlackBerry

Ryan — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 17:00:13 +0000

I guess being able to control all your finances on your BlackBerry is a plus. Although you may not want to keep all the stress at your finger tips, you can manage your money better at least. Ascendo Money is an app that has been available for BlackBerry for years and seems popular too. Here’s some key features of the app:

Great password feature with recovery if you would forget!
Quick launch to add a transaction with ease.
Guidance to help to get you started
A online faq and user guide
You can set up as many different accounts as you want
Currency change allowed (good for me in UK)
You can set up direct bank connect (America)
Schedule transactions
Setup budgets and track them
Create reports from your BlackBerry and view charts

This is a full on program, you can even sync with your PC and have keep everything updated. you will be in more control of your finances as Ascendo Money can help you track your spending, stay within budgets, pay your bills on time and plot your course to financial freedom.

It cost $29.95 which i think is well worth the price taking into account what you get.

Below is a list of the full features of this application:

Create an unlimited number of accounts such as checking, savings, investments, retirement, credit cards, debit cards, etc.
Display the total of all accounts to determine your net worth.
Set currency, starting date and starting balance for each account.
Manage account registers to keep track of withdrawals and deposits.
Display running balance and ending balance for transaction register.
Record payee, date, amount, category, type, payment method, status, transaction number and memo for each transaction.
Set user-defined field to store check numbers, investment types or other important data for each transaction.
Automatically increment and display next check number when creating transactions in your checking account.
Use auto-complete to select a payee in as few as two clicks.
Automatically set default values for category, type, status and payment method based on the payee you select.
Access information quickly and intuitively using Roll & ScrollTM to move up and down the transaction list and horizontally across fields.
Customize how the transaction register is displayed by setting font size, font family, scrolling method, field ordering, field size and field alignment.
Create an unlimited number of categories such as automotive, clothing, meals, entertainment, utilities, etc. to classify transactions.
Split transactions over several categories.
Create an unlimited number of types such as personal expenses, business expenses, business incomes, etc. to further analyze your spending.
Set budgets for categories of expenditures.
Compare actual amount spent and percentage of budget for each category.
Schedule recurring transactions such as rent, car payment and salary deposits.
Select recurring transaction frequency to be daily, weekly, monthly, every 2 weeks, every 3 weeks, yearly.
Set number of occurrences or specify that recurring transaction has no ending date.
Make transfers from one account to another.
Generate numerous reports to show spending by payee, category, type, payment method and deposits versus withdrawals.
Display bar graphs and pie charts for spending by category, type, payee and payment method.
Reconcile accounts by setting account balance amounts & start dates.
Forecast balances at future dates to determine if scheduled transactions will overdraw your account.
Send account transactions by email in text delimited format so that you can import them into productivity applications like Excel.
Set over 20 options to determine screen layout, screen display, navigation, default currency and many more.
Set default date format for different international conventions.
ASCENDO MONEY DESKTOP (Included)
Synchronize financial information with Ascendo Money for BlackBerry.
Display accounts and registers in single view.
Show balances for all transactions, and cleared transactions.
Set budgets and track spending by category.
Schedule recurring transactions.
Reconcile account balances.
Forecast balances at future dates.
Import & Export in Quicken Interface Format (QIF) to exchange information with Intuit Quicken (Version 2008, 2004 & earlier), Microsoft Money and other personal financial managers.
Import & Export in Comma Separated Values (CSV) format to exchange information with Excel, Access, File Maker and other 3rd party applications.
Backup and Restore data files.
Vista Compatible.

I’ve played with one too many personal finance applications for BlackBerry and have found Ascendo Money to be one of the better ones. It’s nice to have the mobile interface along with the Ascendo Money Desktop Edition included as well so you can manage on your computer or BlackBerry at any time. Click the link below to check out more on Ascendo Money.

Check out Ascendo Money for BlackBerry >>

Overview of Foursquare with BBM 6 Integration

Jon Destouche — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 14:00:07 +0000

Ever since the launch of BBM 6 with itsSocial Platform and apps such as Foursquare (which has been upgraded to support RIM’s Social Platform), there has been a lot of talk of what it can do. Let’s take a look at foursquare with Social Platform. One of the many awesome features is:

First awesome and obvious feature is the ability to let your friends or family on BBM know where you are at. Your BBM contacts may not be on Foursquare, or have a Facebook or Twitter to know what you are doing. What a great way to let them know where you are and what you’re doing.

Also you have the ability to show off your badges in your profile. Right now it looks like it only allows three badges at a time to be displayed (maybe with a future update it will show all your badges). This is a great feature now you can really show off your badges with your friends.

You can also control your privacy settings with the foursquare app. Foursquare with Social Connect doesn’t post to your BBM without your permission. It confirms that you want to share with your BBM contacts, even after you select “share with BBM”

It’s a really great feature that RIM is rolling out, and it’s great to see how developers are making their apps (such as foursquare) to take advantage of their services. If you haven’t already you can download Foursquare here and if you haven’t downloaded the new BlackBerry Messenger, you can grab it here

Quick Review: Aqualux for BlackBerry PlayBook – Addicting, fun to play, and good graphics

Mac Jadalhack — Wed, 11 May 2011 14:30:12 +0000

I’m usually a sucker for “Top Purchased Apps” when it comes to application stores. That’s how I came across Aqualux which appeared to be high on the top purchased list in BlackBerry App World for PlayBook. Aqualux is really fun and addictive game where you have to get pipes together from start to end so that “aqua” (I don’t know why they don’t just call it water) can flow through. The game looks and sounds easier than it really is though.

There are different pipes that work differently. For example. Orange piping can’t be moved at all. Those are in place and must be worked around. Yellow piping can be switched with other yellow pipes around it. Then there’s the silver piping that can be rotated in different directions, but not moved around. I’m sure there’s more as the game goes on, but I’m only on level 10 at the moment. There’s lots of cool surprises in the game including portals where the aqua flows to it and out in another portal.

Although the game isn’t 3D, it has really good graphics and music goes really well with it. Something I’ve noticed about a lot of other PlayBook games and applications it’s that they seem so rushed. I know RIM had a special promotion of giving out free PlayBooks to developers who successfully submitted an app to App World, but I think RIM lowered the standard of apps way too much.

Any way, not to get off topic here, Aqualux was definitely done right, and you seriously forget your playing this game on a PlayBook. While playing this game, it felt like it was on an iPad or Android tablet, which some of you may think of it as an insult when in reality it’s a good thing. Let’s face it. Both Android and iOS do have great games that run way smoother than they do on BlackBerry. Seeing a game operate this smooth on a BlackBerry is something we’re very native too and are getting used to.

Game complaints? As I mentioned before, the game is overall great to play. What I wish they had though is a hint button where the game helps you on the next move. I’m not saying I get ditzy when it comes to the game, but sometimes you just want to move forward than get stuck for a few minutes. Perhaps we can see that happen in future updates.

At a price of $2.99, it’s very fair priced. There are games on App World for BlackBerry smartphones, not even PlayBook that will ring you up $4.99 and up, and might really not be worth it.

Check out Aqualux at BlackBerry App World >>

Amazon Cloud Player on the BlackBerry PlayBook – No need for an app!

Jon Destouche — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 15:00:53 +0000

I think it’s very important to point out what works well on the BlackBerry PlayBook, without the need for an application for it. With that said, I’m a huge Amazon fan, and when I found out that they opened up their own cloud services I was excited. 5GB of storage for FREE and if you purchase an album you get upgraded to 20GB for a year. So I started uploading music right away. Unfortunately, I couldn’t access my cloud from my BlackBerry only from a computer or from my Android device.

Last night I decided to see if I could use the service from my BlackBerry PlayBook and guess what? It worked. so I can play MY music that I purchase or that I upload to the cloud on my PlayBook. I have lots of music and I don’t want to max my PlayBook with all my music and not have room for anything else. All I had to do was login to the site, and thanks to the state of the art web browser equipped on the PlayBook, everything worked seamlessly.

Now you can use the Amazon Cloud for storage for anything not just music. So next step is to try accessing other files (other than music) on the BlackBerry PlayBook. If anyone else is using the Amazon Cloud may want to check this out or if you interested then check out this link here to get started https://www.amazon.com/clouddrive/learnmore

Hands on: Slacker Radio for the BlackBerry PlayBook

Kal Chebli — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 20:00:50 +0000

Since we got our hands on the Playbook here at PocketBerry last week, we’ve been trying to keep you informed and up to date with the unit as well as applications for it. One app that we’ve taken likening to which came preloaded with the device is the Slacker Radio app. As most of you know, Slacker Radio is one of the most popular streaming audio applications for blackberry and now that it is available for the PlayBook, I can see it being a regularly used app.

For those unfamiliar with Slacker, Slacker is an application that streams 100’s of pre-created genre playlist stations by music experts or allows you to create real-time playlist directly from your PlayBook. Slacker Radio requires a username and password but once you have created your ID, the music plays to your desired liking. With Favorite and Ban song options, you can decide what you want to hear while Slackers algorithms behind the scenes will evaluate what to play next to ensure you a pleasant radio listening experience.

Slacker Radio offers an array of features which allows you to view the Artist’s Bio, Album Review, and even Lyrics to anything your listing to. Slacker even offers an ABC News Update on the hour every hour which can be turned on or off to keep you up-to-date with current events while you zoned into your music playlist. Slacker’s premium version for paying users, Slacker Radio Plus, offers all of that with unlimited song skipping, unlimited song requests, and no advertisements.

The Slacker Radio interface for the BlackBerry PlayBook is simple to play with yet advanced enough to have search options amongst other things. My favorite feature is how well it ties into the playbooks hardware design. The volume buttons on the top of the playbook will raise and lower the volume no matter screen you’re on or even if the PlayBook’s screen is off and locked out. Same applies for the play/pause button between the volume keys. It doesn’t simply just mute it, it will pause it for you. Another cool native feature is built into the application switching. If for example, you open a video file or a song from another application, it will automatically pause Slacker so the audio doesn’t play over one another. A big thing I haven’t mentioned yet while were talking about the audio is the quality. The Audio quality streams at such high quality considering how fast it loads from song to song. One thing that I am not happy with is how the window will not resize for portrait mode. Not sure how important that is for some considering the application will generally be operating in the background or that’s how I listen to music at least.

Over all, the app is great and does what it needs to do. Let’s not forget this is the first build for the playbook and despite that we are still happy with it as we see what it can do now and not forgetting the potential with more updates to come. The clarity is great, the user interface is smooth, and it’s optimized for the users comfort. We look forward for what’s next to come from Slacker.

Hands on: Poynt on the BlackBerry PlayBook

Kal Chebli — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 16:15:13 +0000

We’ve been seeing Poynt for the BlackBerry PlayBook here and there since CES 2011 and we finally get our hands on with it as it appeared in App World just yesterday (for the PlayBook that is). With the PlayBook just being released, we’ve been going through the AppWorld left and right looking for apps we are used to seeing on OS 6 now operating on the PlayBook. One super app we all love has just his just been made available to us, Poynt. Poynt is a local search tool which fully integrates with your BlackBerry without ever having to leave the application all while having ability to use GPS and WiFi to expedite the result return process. Poynt allows you to connect with local businesses and retails all on the go. If you have point on your BlackBerry, then you already know Poynt’s very simple and easy to use interface.

On OS 6, Poynt opens up with an array of options that you can scroll around from icon to icon in a circular pattern all while it depicts basic weather information in the background. The phone based application even lets you open up more detailed weather information displayed for your desired search area. Similar to the application designed for the phones, Poynt has done something very similar their tablet application. The ideas, concepts, and goals of the program haven’t changed but the layout is a bit different and some may say even more user friendly. The program still will use your GPS to find the nearest results and this will be evident when it prompts you for GPS access on initial startup. You also do have the option of putting in a different location in the search bar if you want to find results for a location where you are away from.

When Poynt opens, you will see four icons and the fifth one will appear after a location has been selected. The first four that appear are, Business, People, Movie, Restaurant, and the final icon appears is Gas. Before even clicking one of these options, you will find that in the top right hand side of the page, the basic weather for the selected location appears. If you click on the basic weather information, a pop up window inside of Poynt will appear with more detailed weather information and will allow you to see weather for the week ahead. As far as the first icon, Business, when you click the icon, you will be able to find any seller, service, or store by business name. People icon will allow you to search a few ways; by name, reverse lookup by phone, or reverse lookup by address which needless to say is convenient. The most overlooked function in Poynt is probably the Movie icon.

Some friends of mine didn’t know that through this icon you can lookup theaters nearby, movies nearby, top 10, genres, and search by tittle. Not only will you be able to find you movie and time but you will also be able to view a movie trailer without ever leaving the application. The hardest part is deciding and to assist with that process, Poynt has teamed up with www.rottentomatoes.com to display accurate movie ratings right next to the tittle. If that’s not enough, you can buy your ticket(s) for participating theaters all without leaving Poynt. Taking a step back to Poynt’s home screen, we can hop around and find a place to eat if we get the hunger. Once you click Restaurants, you will find that Poynt has teamed up with the best in the industry, SuperPages, CitySearch, and OpenTable.com, to provide the best restaurant search options in the fastest ways possible. The basic functions of this tab include, Restaurants Nearby, Restaurants by Cuisine, and a search option which allows you to narrow down the very restaurant in mind.

If you’re having trouble deciding with all the hits nearby, you can narrow down your results by choosing from over 40 types of cuisines. Scolling over restaurant names will allow you to see a mapped address with directions if need be, details, reviews to aid in your decision making process, and some participating restaurants will allow you to reserve a table all from your PlayBook. If Poynt somehow did not include all the information you would ever need, you can be redirected to the restaurant’s website just by clicking a link in Poynt. The only icon we haven’t covered yet is the Gas Icon. When clicked, you will be able to narrow down your search results by Gas stations nearby or even by Gas Price. Once you have selected the desired station based on the price and amenities listed you can map the address get directions and even send that information to be saved to your BlackBerry SmartPhone. We couldn’t get this feature to work as its not yet available but it is something were are absolutely looking forwards to.

Although Pyont has stepped up their game for the PlayBook, there were a few things I didn’t like. On a BlackBerry, when you opened Poynt, the weather graphics in the background would change depending on weather in your area and the animation was unnecessary but nonetheless lovely and quite enjoyable. Poynt for the PlayBook either doesn’t offer this feature or they have decided to leave it out in this build. One thing we did notice that they left out was the Event Tab. On a BlackBerry, you have the Events feature which allows you to search events nearby, venues nearby, breakdown of categories, and even search performers. Poynt also used to have a Map It feature on BlackBerry SmartPhones which seems to be missing on the PlayBook. It wasn’t all that necessary with the numerous mapping software available but was a one stop convenience feature. Another notable point about Poynt is that the program has been developed for landscape more only and does not rotate and auto size for portrait viewing or using. Although it doesn’t make a huge impact as the software is so powerful, this software is also about conveniences by having all the information you need about businesses in one place and the lack of portrait mode is one less convenience the use has.

Overall, Poynt is a great application and a must have for everyone with a BlackBerry and especially those with PlayBooks. It is fast, user friendly, and very powerful. It needless to say is a true super app.

Hands on: Gmail on the BlackBerry PlayBook

Kal Chebli — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 17:00:01 +0000

We received our BlackBerry PlayBook review units last week, and have been messing around with its features since. The PlayBook came preloaded with a Gmail link as well as Hotmail and Yahoo alike. Every user has his/her preference and here we are given the option. So to start off with Gmail, first thing you need to know is it is an icon on the home screen which essentially redirects you to the browser. Rather than Gmail opening up in a format you are familiar with from a computer browser, it has been optimized for the PlayBook, more or so as HTML 5 (as seen on the iPhone) to open up in such a fashion that is convenient and user friendly.

As you will see in the screenshots, it has a very fluid layout which at times, can remind you of outlook or other email clients. On the left side of the page, you can see email headers by date, and on the right-side, you have a preview window which enables you to read the email right from there. The layout looks great and is quite responsive to user input.

Gmail on the PlayBook has a number of convenience features available such as folder views, emails searching, deleting, and even archiving messages. The application has been developed with the end user’s preferences in mind and with that consideration; the browser allows you to switch to a Basic HTML view, or the default Desktop view. The tablet even allows Gmail Chat (Google Chat) to function from Desktop view. This like many other applications and interfaces are relatively a new breed to the PlayBook and as time progress, so will the enhancements of the apps. We look forward to seeing what else Gmail and Google have to offer as far as applications and web experiences go.

PocketBerry » Apps

Hands On: Need for Speed Shift on the BlackBerry Torch 9810

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Review: Dead Space for BlackBerry PlayBook

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Quick Review: Ascendo Money for BlackBerry

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Overview of Foursquare with BBM 6 Integration

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Quick Review: Aqualux for BlackBerry PlayBook – Addicting, fun to play, and good graphics

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Hands on: Slacker Radio for the BlackBerry PlayBook

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