Mobile Apptitude

You’ve probably seen from our website that we now offer the most popular smartphone in the US, the BlackBerry Curve.  This sophisticated and powerful device is a must have for organizing, managing, and keeping up with the latest on the go.

Here are some basic applications that I found useful to have loaded on my BlackBerry Curve.

1. BlackBerry App World

BlackBerry App World is the one stop shop for finding applications to outfit your BlackBerry device.  The App World includes everything from games and social networking applications to weather and business applications.  Although I found that the browsing App World was at times a bit slow and not the easiest interface for finding what I’m looking for, it is still one of the most convenient place to go to find apps.

To download the BlackBerry App World Application

1. Select the Blackberry HELP! icon in your main menu. It should be the one that looks like a plus sign. This will launch the BlackBerry home page
2. Under “What’s New” click on the link “BlackBerry App World – Download Today!”
3. Scroll down and select the Download button. You will then see another screen with “Download”.  Click on the button to start downloading the application.
4. Once download completes, it will prompt you to reboot your BlackBerry.  The Blackberry App World icon will appear on your main menu after the reboot.

2.  Facebook  for Blackberry Smartphones

If you’re like me, I find out what my friends and my favorite organizations are up to through my facebook page. I can check the latest post from CREDO Mobile on the Food, Inc. Movie while waiting for the train by using the Facebook application on my BlackBerry.

Facebook app in BlackBerry App World

To download the latest Facebook app

1. Go to the BlackBerry Help! icon to get to the main BlackBerry Home page where the Facebook application is featured in the “What’s new” section.  Alternatively, type  http://www.blackberry.com/facebook in your browser.
2. Follow the questions on the subsequent pages.  Select your desired language and start downloading the app.
3. After the download completes, the facebook application icon will be added to your main menu.

3. Twitterberry

It’s not just celebrities anymore – approximately 200 members of congress  are reportedly tweeting and communicating with constituents over twitter.   You can follow them and remind them to support your cause from your BlackBerry using Twitterberry.

To download Twitterberry

1. Go to http://orangatame.com/ota/twitterberry/ from your BlackBerry
2. Click on download.
3. Once the download completes, the twitterberry application icon will be added to your main menu.

4.Google Maps

This is one application that you can’t find in BlackBerry App World – probably because it competes with the Maps application that comes installed on the device.  I’ve found the Google Maps to be faster in retrieving map data with a few more features than the pre-installed Maps application.

Google Maps works much like the Google Maps on the internet.

• You can get Transit and Walking directions in addition to the Driving directions
• There is an option (press 8 while navigating within the directions) to see the street view where available
• You can get up to date traffic information overlayed on the map

To download Goggle Maps

1. Go to m.google.com/maps from your cell phone browser or alternatively, go to the google website from a PC to type in your phone number and send an SMS with the download link to your phone.
2. Click on the “Install Now” link to start the download.
3. After the download completes, the google maps  icon will be added to your main menu.

Try it out the next time you’re trying to find a protest location.

5. Opera Mini

Sure, there is a default browser that comes installed on the BlackBerry, but who says you have to use it?  Just like I choose to use Firefox instead of Internet Explorer on my PC, I choose to use Opera Mini on my BlackBerry.  It has faster page loads, some useful features such as speed dial that allows you to bring up your bookmarked pages by dialing * and a number, and most importantly does a descent job of loading full (not mobile) websites.

To download Opera Mini

1. Go to mini.opera.com on your BlackBerry
2. Click on the download link
3. After the download completes, an Opera Mini icon with a Red letter “O” will be added to your main menu.

Go to Bookmarks-> Edit Speed dial -> to customize your speed dial options.

Let us know what you find useful – you might even discover a great new app while browsing App World.