AT&T recently began updating its version of the BlackBerry Bold with Visual Voicemail. However, this carrier has discovered a problem, and has stopped to update process.

Exactly what has gone wrong isn’t clear. An internal AT&T document that has leaked out is vague:
AT&T has identified a software issue affecting the interaction between the device and network enhancements being deployed.

In an official statement from the carrier, it says the problem is not widespread, “affecting a small number of customers in a handful of markets.”

AT&T is working to fix the problem and bring Visual Voicemail to its Bold users. AT&T didn’t estimate how long it will be before this problem is cleared up, though.

When the issue has been resolved, this system software update will once again be automatically pushed out the BlackBerry Bold.

Those who have already installed it and are having problems are encouraged to call AT&T customer service. via brighthand.com – by Ed Hardy

Home Screen Tips

Return to home screen from any other screen

* Press End

Lock the keyboard

* Hold (*) or click Keyboard Lock

Unlock the keyboard

* Press Press (*) + Send or doubleclick Trackwheel

Switch between Default and Vibrate notification profiles

* Hold #

Switch to another application

* Hold Alt, Press Escape, Continue to hold Alt, Select application, Release Alt to switch to that application

Phone Tips

Open phone

* Press Send

End call

* Press End

Call selected name or phone number

* Press Send

Call a speed dial number

* Hold assigned number key

Type an extension

* Press ZX, Type extension number

Call your voice mail access number

* Hold 1

Type a letter in a number field

* Hold Alt and press letter key once for the first letter and twice for the second letter

Turn mute on/off during call

* Press Exclamation point (!) key

Switch between the speaker and earpiece during call

* Press Period (.) key

Change volume during call

* Roll Trackwheel

Browser

Open browser and display list of bookmarks made available by service provider

* Press Convenience key

Edit web address in Go To dialog box

* Hold Alt and roll Trackwheel, Select address, Edit text, Click Trackwheel

Move down a page

* Press 9

Move up a page

* Press 3

Move between full-screen mode and normal mode

* Press Exclamation point (!) key

Typing

To type words quickly using SureType™

- Press keys one time for one letter, Type entire word before attempting to make a correction

Scroll across list that appears when you type

- Press Next or roll Trackwheel

Choose selected item in list that appears when you type

- Press Enter or click Trackwheel

Insert a period

- Press Space twice, Next letter is capitalized

Capitalize a letter

- Hold the letter key until capitalized letter appears

Type alternate character on a key

- Press Alt and press the character key

Type a symbol

- Press Alt + Symbol, Press Symbol again to view more symbols, Type letter shown below symbol

Type an accent or special character

- Hold letter key and roll Trackwheel Click selected character

To insert “@” and periods in an email field

- Press Space

Turn on NUM lock

- Press Shift + Alt

Turn off NUM lock
- Press Alt

Switch between SureType and multi-tap input methods

- Hold (*)

Messages

Open the selected message

- Press Enter

Compose message from messages list

- Press Comma (,) key

Reply to message

- Press Exclamation point (!) key

Forward message

- Press Period (.) key

Reply to all

- Press Question Mark (?) key

View received messages

- Press Alt + 3

View SMS messages

- Press Alt + Question Mark (?) key

View MMS messages

- Press Alt + 9

View phone call logs

- Press Alt + Period (.) key

View voice mail messages

- Press Alt + 7

Navigating Screens

Move cursor

- Roll Trackwheel

Exit a screen or dialog box

- Press Escape

Click an icon or menu item

- Roll Trackwheel to select item, Click Trackwheel

Select multiple items or characters

- Hold Shift and roll Trackwheel

Move to top of screen

- Press 1

Move to bottom of screen

- Press 7

Organizer/Calendar

NOTE: For these tips to work in Day view, in the calendar options, set Enable Quick Entry field to No

Create an appointment

- Press Period (.) key

Move to next day, week or month

- Press 6

Move to previous day, week or month

- Press 4

Move cursor horizontally in Week view

- Hold Alt and roll Trackwheel

Move cursor vertically in Month view

- Hold Alt and roll Trackwheel

General Tips

Increase the brightness of backlight

- Press power button

Reboot

- Remove battery

Save battery

- Turn off BlackBerry handset in fringe or no-coverage areas

Attachments

Pan horizontally across an image

- Hold Alt key and roll Trackwheel

Zoom in on an image

- Press 3. To continue zooming, hold Shift and roll Trackwheel

Zoom out of an image

- Press 9. To continue zooming, hold Shift and roll Trackwheel

Rotate an image

- Press Period (.) key

by Greens – via blogcatalog.com

Home Screen Tips

Move icon on Home screen
- Select the icon, Press Alt and click Trackwheel, Click Move Application. Position icon, Click Trackwheel again to set icon

Vertically scroll between icons
- Hold Alt+roll Trackwheel

Return to the Home screen from other screens
- Press End or Escape

Lock your BlackBerry device
- Set password. Click Lock.

Lock the keyboard
- Click Keyboard Lock

Phone Tips

Open the Phone screen
- Press Send

Change volume during call
- Roll Trackwheel

Insert an extension
- Press ALT+8, type the extension #

Show the last number typed
- Press Spacebar + Enter

Access your voice mail
- Hold 1

Type letters in a phone number
- Hold Alt and type letters

Mute call
- Press Mute key

To turn mute off
- Press Mute key again

Turn on Speakerphone
- Press Speakerphone key

Browser

Toggle full-screen mode/normal mode
- Press U

Add a bookmark
- Press A

Open bookmarks
- Press K

Refresh a web page
- Press R

Return to the last page viewed
- Press Escape

Display list of useful bookmarks
- Press Front Convenience key

View address of current web page
- Press Trackwheel, Click Page Address

View list of the last 20 pages visited
- Press Trackwheel, Click History

Save a web page to Messages list
- Press S

Go to home page
- Press H

View, copy or send the address for a link
- Press L

Move a page down
- Press Spacebar

Move a page up
- Press Shift+Spacebar

Stop a web page from loading
- Press Escape button

Open browser options
- Press O

Typing

Capitalize a letter
- Hold letter key

Insert a period
- Press Spacebar twice

Type alternate character
- Hold Alt+character key

Type a symbol
- Press Symbol+click symbol

Type accented/special character
- Hold key+roll Trackwheel

Insert currency symbol
- Press Currency key

Select text by character
- Hold Shift + roll Trackwheel

Select whole lines
- Press Shift once + roll Trackwheel

Turn on CAP-Lock
- Alt+Right Shift (CAP)

Turn on NUM-Lock
- Alt+Right Shift (123)

Turn off NUM/CAP-Lock
- Press Right Shift or Left Shift

Insert “@” into an email field
- Press Spacebar

Messages

Mark a message opened/unopened
- Press Alt+U

Move down a page in a message
- Press Spacebar

Move up a page in a message
- Press Shift+Spacebar

Reply to a message
- Press R

Forward a message
- Press F

Reply-to-all
- Press L

View SMS messages
- Press Alt+S

View voice mail messages
- Press Alt+V

Calculator

Display calculation results
- Press Enter

Clear screen
- Press Y

Clear last entry
- Press T

Add
- Press O

Subtract
- Press I

Multiply
- Press A

Divide
- Press G

Find square root
- Press V

Find percent
- Press B

Add a number to memory
- Type number, press L

Recall memory
- Press J

Replace memory
- Type number, press K

Clear memory
- Press H

Metric conversions
- Type number, click Trackwheel

Navigating Screens

Move down a screen
- Press Spacebar

Move up a screen
- Press Shift+Spacebar

Move to item in list or menu
- Type the first letter of item

Select multiple items/icons
- Hold down Shift +roll Trackwheel

Organizer/Calendar

NOTE: For these tips to work in Day view, in the calendar options, set Enable Quick Entry field to No

Find a contact in address book
- Type contact’s name or initials (separated by a space)

Jump to next day in calendar
- Press Spacebar

Jump to previous day in calendar
- Press Shift+Spacebar

Change to Agenda view
- Press A

Change to day view
- Press D

Change to week format
- Press W

Change to month format
- Press M

Move to current date
- Press T

Move to specific date
- Press G

Create an appointment
- Press C

Move to the next day, week or month
- Press Spacebar

Move to the previous day, week or month
- Press Shift+Spacebar

Move cursor horizontally in Week view
- Hold Alt + roll Trackwheel

Move cursor vertically in Month view
- Hold Alt + roll Trackwheel

General Tips

Delete prior messages
- Click a date field, click Delete Prior

Save battery
- Set your BlackBerry device to turn on and off automatically. Click Options. Click on Auto on/off. Configure settings as needed

Attachments

Move to specific cell
- Press G

Display the contents of specific cell
- Press Spacebar

via blogcatalog.com

The old adage that the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence can be extended to our technology cravings. Even the person holding the shiniest new gadget can’t help but eye a neighbor who has a different device and wonder, “What does that do that mine doesn’t?”

Thoughts like these are especially prevalent when it comes to the devoted owners of BlackBerrys and iPhones. All too often, the people carrying these smart phones are curious about what one device has that the other lacks. This week, I’m going to save you the trouble and outline some of the personal usage ups and downs to each device.

Because I regularly use both gadgets and am accustomed to their different features, I have included fresh observations from five people who recently switched from BlackBerrys to iPhones. At my request, these people kept track of their impressions, noting the things they missed on their BlackBerrys along with things they preferred on the iPhones. This column isn’t meant to promote one device over the other; rather, it is a summary of some people’s sentiments, combined with my own observations in hopes of enlightening readers. I inevitably left out some differences.

The most outstanding observation from my switch group in favor of the iPhone was an appreciation for its applications, or apps.

They used things like driving directions for the first time because these apps looked and worked better on the iPhone than on the BlackBerry. And they went through a downloading frenzy during which time they found all sorts of apps for the iPhone, such as games, entertainment and those that enhanced business-travel productivity. “Browsing for games. Probably should leave the office now,” said one person’s notes.

Though Research in Motion’s (RIMM) BlackBerrys also run apps (including some of the same ones as for the iPhone), BlackBerry’s App World offers only a little better than 2,000 apps. Apple’s (AAPL) App Store boasts more than 65,000. A shortcut to the App Store ships preloaded on iPhones. BlackBerry App World is preloaded or virtually preloaded by carriers at their discretion, so a shortcut to App World may not be visible.

My switchers were frustrated by the iPhone’s battery life and complained of running low on battery. One person said, “I need to charge my iPhone a couple of times throughout the day which can be inconvenient, especially when traveling. With my BlackBerry I just charged it while I slept and it was good to go for the day.”

Granted, these people were all using the iPhone 3GS and had previously used various models of BlackBerrys that ran on slower networks and had smaller screens—two features that require less battery. Still, worrying about running out of juice is a hassle. One person said his iPhone’s weak battery was a tribute to the fact that he used it more often and for more things than he did the BlackBerry.

The most obvious difference between iPhones and BlackBerrys are the keyboards. The iPhone uses an on-screen keyboard, while the BlackBerry (except the touch-screen Storm model) uses a tactile QWERTY keyboard. As expected, the switchers had trouble using the iPhone keyboard–especially for the first few days. But after about a week, most people in the group had adjusted well to the on-screen keys and the iPhone’s auto-correct feature that fixes mistakes as long as you keep typing rather than stopping to fix an error. One person said, “I was a skeptic, and didn’t think the typing would work for me at all, but it actually hasn’t been too bad.”

Another said typing can be a real challenge at first, but that this could be overcome with a bit of practice.

Several people said they were still able to use their thumbs for iPhone typing as they did on the BlackBerry, though most preferred turning the screen horizontally to do this with slightly larger keys. Some said that they weren’t typing quite as fast as with the BlackBerry’s QWERTY keys but that they weren’t too far off.

The BlackBerry keyboard’s static position below its screen means all letters, numbers and symbols must come solely from pressing those keys; this is done by pressing ALT or Shift keys for numbers and symbols. Some switchers noted that pressing a button to change the iPhone’s on-screen keyboard from letters to capital letters or numbers took a bit longer than on the BlackBerry.

My switchers were ecstatic about using the iPhone’s Safari Web browser. They enthusiastically said searching, browsing and reading were all made much better and more visually pleasing compared with their experiences on the BlackBerry browser.

If you are a BlackBerry user, you know that all received and sent emails are listed on the same screen. The iPhone behaves more like a computer, storing sent emails in a special folder you must back up to open. This takes a little while to get used to.

Some switchers said they wished the iPhone had something like BlackBerry Messenger, the always-on messaging system that works to allow communication between all BlackBerrys.

The iPhone automatically changes its time when you enter a new time zone. BlackBerrys remain set to their home time zone for time stamping all emails with that time–unless you change the time in settings.

RIM prides itself on being able to run multiple applications at once; the iPhone allows this with its own preloaded programs like Mail and Safari, but not with other apps.

One switcher, for example, was frustrated that Pandora, a radio-like app that plays music according to user likes and dislikes, turned off when he opened Mail to read emails while listening to songs.

The BlackBerry’s AC adaptor takes up two power outlet spots, while the small, square iPhone plug occupies only one outlet, making it more versatile and able to charge in more locations.

The iPhone only works on one cellular service: AT&T (T). The BlackBerry is available from Verizon (VZ), AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint (S) and other carriers. My group used T-Mobile before changing to the iPhone’s AT&T service.

There will always be something on someone else’s device that looks more appealing than the one in your hand.

But the experience of using apps on the iPhone–and the huge selection of apps in the App Store–significantly enhance Apple’s device.

RIM is continually improving its own store, but it needs to move quickly to keep its loyal users contented.

Edited by Walter S. Mossberg – via solution.allthingsd.com

The look of this blackberry priority theme is very cool or in other words we say that this is a very cool theme for the new look of blackberry. If you want to give a new look to your blackberry in case of you are a blackberry tour owner then there is a new and free theme for your tour. The look of this theme is pretty darn good. This theme also looks very nice and performs functions too smooth. The priority theme is providing by SocksInsideOut and warns you also because this theme is currently in testing by the developers. Priority theme is a great new theme which is uses by some handy tabs that is present at the bottom of the screen.
You can grab the theme for free OTA via SocksInsideOut. via blackberryphone5.com

Smartphones, not broadband, will bring Internet to all

Deon Liebenberg

IN SOUTH Africa, a country with a population of about 50million, there are 57million active SIM cards and 37million personal users, according to the networks.

With this kind of cellphone penetration, large-scale market growth for handset producers is unlikely. The next big arena for growth and competition will be mobile connectivity for the Internet, multimedia and e-mail.

So says Deon Liebenberg, regional director for sub-Saharan Africa at Research In Motion, the company behind the BlackBerry solution. “Just about everyone has a phone, so the question is ‘now what?’

“The answer is the Internet, which currently enjoys just 12% penetration in South Africa. It’s not broadband that will bring the Internet to all South Africans; it is smartphones.”

Since launching in South Africa nearly four years ago, BlackBerry smartphones have enjoyed a meteoric rise in the consumer space, thanks to their long-time focus on mobile connectivity and the convergence of applications on devices. In this sense, the smartphone market is catching up with the BlackBerry solution.

“BlackBerry smartphones do not look the same as they always did; now they are thin, sleek and stylish devices that appeal to the consumer. Smartphones follow the specifications users want, such as large screens, keyboards, high battery life and solutions that work, no matter what. In the future we will see higher speeds, greater storage, increased music applications — the technology is very exciting,” says Liebenberg.

“Smartphones now have to offer Internet and e-mail functionality, along with other applications like music players and cameras, in order to compete. There are currently more than 10million MXit users and about 1.5million Facebook users in South Africa, and the next big handset revolution will be when these early adopters choose phones that will do all they want them to do. The BlackBerry smartphone is not a phone, technically — that part is now almost irrelevant — it’s a connectivity solution,” he said.

Although originally touted as an enterprise solution for mobile productivity, Liebenberg says half of all BlackBerry smartphones in South Africa are used by private consumers. “People’s phones have become their lives, which means you need all your information to remain secure, whether it is for an enterprise or for private use. This is where BlackBerry smartphones excel — e-mail over a wireless network in a secure way that integrates seamlessly with e-mail servers and other corporate applications.

“We have many accreditations the world over — even the FBI uses the BlackBerry solution, and so do public-sector security organisations in Europe and South Africa.”

The BlackBerry brand has experienced a 100% rise in brand value over the last year, with over 28.5million current global subscriber accounts. Liebenberg says companies achieve quick returns on their investments, given the device’s capabilities.

“You can set up 10 e-mail accounts, deal with attachments, faxes, music, online activity, photos, GPS, instant messaging, conference chat — all from as little as R2 per day, regardless of how much data you access. The fear of data use costs has prevented many people from using smart devices to their full capacity, but now you can share large files and get your information pushed to you. Even two- minute breaks become productive and useful, because there is no more dead time.”

The growing hype around the BlackBerry solution in South Africa is in keeping with worldwide trends, where Liebenberg says RIM’s annual revenue for fiscal year 2009 was approximately 11- billion, an 84% increase on the previous year’s 6-billion.

“In fact, since our public listing 13years ago, RIM has grown its revenues by a remarkable 170000%. In the worldwide market today more phones than laptops are being sold, and more laptops than desktop computers.

“This indicates the trend towards mobility, and the world’s youth is already used to messaging applications that are found on smart devices.

“To this end, we’ve focused on education through our channels and we think the next huge opportunity lies in SMEs. Small companies’ staff are often out of the office and they need low-cost solutions for mobile access and personal connectivity.”

The entry-cost barrier to smart- device usage has eroded, and RIM’s new BlackBerry Curve 8520 smartphone is available from this month.

“For R2 a day, imagine being able to surf the Internet all the time, receive your mail and be notified whenever something happens — e-mails, workflows, or even updates on social networking sites. This can all be offered over a credible, secure device.

“Whether it’s mission-critical information or personal use, costs are falling and handset multimedia capabilities are becoming richer — it’s important to find one device that can do it all,” says Liebenberg.

By Brendan Peacock – via thetimes.co.za

Finally, we are soon going to get the long awaited Facebook application that will support the 5.0 OS for BlackBerry! (Just not sure when) TheBlackBerryZone.com provided the screen shot and it is a step above the version that is out now. – via the blackberryzone.com

Yelp has released its mobile app for Blackberry smartphones.  The app already is available for the iPhone.  Yelp, founded in 2004, is an online service that helps people find local businesses, like mechanics, dentists and hair stylists.)

The Blackberry Yelp app allows you to:

• Use location-aware technology to determine your current location
• Lets you search for nearby businesses
• Read reviews
• Access a moveable Bing map that enables you to easily zoom in/out on a location
• Redefine your search based on that geographic area

The Blackberry Yelp app is available in the US, Canada, UK and Ireland.  To download the app, visit yelp.com from your BlackBerry and find the link to get the app at the top of the page. – via cellphonedigest.net

                                                                     via cellphonedigest.net – Air Canada’s new Web Signals service allows BlackBerry users to receive Air Canada information on their BlackBerry mobile device’s home screen via the Web Signals logo which links directly to the “My Message Service”.  The My Message Service allows BlackBerry users to get their Electronic Boarding Passes and flight notifications.

To access your My Messages inbox from one of the following:

• The Air Canada Web Signals logo on your mobile device’s home screen
• The link on your Electronic Boarding Pass email
• The link on your Flight Notifications email

You can view your My Messages inbox via the Web or from an Internet enabled mobile device.  You can register for Web Signals during a Web Check-in or Mobile Check-in.

For more information visit AirCanada.com.

via berrymanual.com – Seems AT&T is having some issues with their release of 4.6.0.297 for the BlackBerry Bold. Boy Genius posted the following information regarding the pulling of the handheld OS upgrade although the information seems to be lacking full reasoning as to why exactly it was removed.

AT&T customers are simply being asked to wait until another release becomes available in “the near future”, which with AT&T could be forever. Hard to even guess at the real reasoning for it, but for those of you who have already upgraded AT&T isn’t at this time issuing any notifications to downgrade so–enjoy your visual voicemail if you have it. If you didn’t update already you may be left waiting.