Technology Development

The repeatedly leaked and recently unveiled smartphone collaboration between handset giant RIM and sports car company Porsche, the Porsche Design BlackBerry P’9981 is to be released in the UK exclusive to luxury department store Harrods, the high-end retailer has confirmed.

Set to land within the coming days the P’9981 features a host of lavish design traits with the handset’s internal array of specs offering far less of an impact than the device’s external façade.

Porsche Design BlackBerry P’9981 Features.

A step away from the usually fusty and plastic heavy design of the current selection of BlackBerry handsets the design geniuses at Porsche have bestowed their usual brushed metal aesthetic upon this latest full QWERTY boasting device.

Crafted with a forged stainless steel frame the P’9981 oozes class, craftsmanship and style with the hand-wrapped leather back and sculpted QWERTY keyboard being complemented by the internal inclusion of a 1.2GHz processor and NFC communication technology.

Running the BlackBerry 7 operating system the P’9981 is plumped by the inclusion of an exclusive Porsche Design UI which boasts a bespoke Wikitude World Browser Augmented Reality App. HD 720p video recording capabilities and 8GB of internal storage, expandable up to 40GB via SD, complete the handset’s specs.

Porsche Design BlackBerry P’9981 Release Date and Price

Set to hit the UK before the end of the month Harrods have pencilled in a Porsche Design BlackBerry P’9981 release date for “the middle of December” with the luxury smartphone to set wannabe owners back the princely SIM-free sum of £1,275.

Are luxury smartphones ever worth their value or would you only ever pay over the odds for a device boasting superior specs as opposed to simply a lavish design aesthetic? Let us know what you think via the comments box below.

Better late than never, right? After almost a year (and what a hard year it has been for RIM), the BlackBerry PlayBook is getting all three Angry Birds games: the original, Seasons, and Rio. However, they don't come cheap; all three go for $4.99 a pop, which is a bit steep considering the hits are only 99 cents on iOS and the Kindle Fire and there are the free ad-supported versions. Additionally, the Facebook app, which is free, is getting a refresh. The update includes Groups functionality and improvements that make it easier to view and upload photos and videos. All the new apps are available for download in the BlackBerry App World now, however, still missing is that native email client.

VW gives BlackBerry-wielding workers a silent night.

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The working day is over and the Christmas holiday has officially begun, but the blinking red light or vibration of a BlackBerry is still maddeningly hard to ignore.

Angered by the blurring of the dividing line between the workplace and home, Volkswagen’s powerful works council has struck an agreement with management that employees who use a BlackBerry and whose pay is governed by a collective wage tariff agreements will be subject to new email restrictions.
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So from now on, VW’s email server will cease routing messages 30 minutes after the end of an employee’s shift and will only begin sending mails again half an hour before the next working day begins.

The agreement is expected to affect more than 1,000 VW employees who have a company BlackBerry. It is unclear if other heavily unionised German companies are considering such a rule.

“The new possibilities of communication also contain inherent dangers,” Heinz-Joachim Thust of VW’s works council told the Wolfsburger Allgemeine Zeitung.

A VW works council spokesman confirmed the existence of the BlackBerry agreement but explained that the rule did not apply to senior management or other workers who fall outside trade union-negotiated pay brackets.

The works council sought the restriction in response to the tendency for BlackBerry users to be contactable by employers at all hours and amid a growing awareness in Germany of the risks of employee “burn-out”.

BlackBerrys began life as toys for executives but have since become a staple of corporate life. So great are their perceived addictive powers that the email devices quickly earned the monicker “CrackBerries”. But employees have long been forced to trade the convenience of owning a Blackberry with being “always available”.

The works council said that so far there had been very positive feedback to the new email rules which came into force earlier this year. Workers will still be able to make phone calls using their Blackberrys at any time.

Volkswagen workers have been working flat out this year as the company bids to overtake Toyota and General Motors as the world’s biggest carmaker by sales.

At a recent employee rally in Wolfsburg Martin Winterkorn, chief executive, congratulated workers on completing 38 extra shifts and producing 50,000 additional vehicles, putting the company on track to sell more than 8m cars this year.

Mr Thust did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. It is unclear if his BlackBerry was switched off.

Comwave Launches BlackBerry App with Free Calling to 57 Countries

Due to popular demand, Comwave has followed up on their iPhone and Android Applications with the release of their mobile app for BlackBerry. Comwave's new Mobile App has eliminated cell phone long distance charges to 57 countries. Available today in BlackBerry App World™ for the US & Canada for $30 per year, users are able to place long distance calls directly through their existing contact lists on their BlackBerry Smartphones, to 57 countries including the USA & Canada. There are no monthly bills and there is a 100-minute free trial available at http://www.comwave.net/mobile. "With Consumers loving our iPhone and Android Apps, a BlackBerry version was a natural progression," says Yuval Barzakay, President and CEO. "At $30 per year this App is such a great offer that it's really hard to turn down if you ever make long distance calls from your Smartphone." Customers can register at http://www.comwave.net/mobile and then download the App for free in BlackBerry App World™. Other Smartphone users can download the App for iPhone on iTunes or for Android devices in the Android Market. $30/year Includes: Ability to change your Caller ID 250 free local & long distance minutes per month for 12 months to call across the street or around the globe (That's 3,000 free minutes to 57 countries) Lower rates than Skype if you go over the free 250 minutes/month or call outside of the 57 countries No monthly fees... Just an annual fee of $30About Comwave Comwave is Canada's largest independent communications company specializing in Voice over IP (VoIP), long distance and mobile for residential and business customers. It has recently released the very successful ePhone for the BlackBerry Playbook, PC & Mac. Led by President and CEO, Yuval Barzakay, Comwave has become Canada's leader in VoIP solutions. Comwave serves over 500 cities in Canada and over 1100 in the United States. In our competitive landscape Comwave has always been the go-to company for great savings and we continue to bring our customers the absolute best rates. We are never undersold, and we don't compromise on reliability and customer satisfaction. Our Focus: To improve on the customer experience and overall satisfaction Keep things simple Innovate

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2011/12/22/4140072/comwave-launches-blackberry-app.html#storylink=cpy

Why RIM Should Not Sell the BlackBerry Brand--and Why It Should

Rumors about a potential sale of BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion (RIM) have been circulating for months, due largely to the Canadian company's ongoing struggles to retain its place in the competitive mobile market and compete with the likes of Apple, Google and others. This week, those rumors came to head when news broke that Microsoft and Nokia have considered making a joint bid for RIM and the BlackBerry brand. And Amazon.com also reportedly reached out to RIM about the possibility of a takeover or partnership, though RIM supposedly quickly refused.

As a BlackBerry watcher and loyal RIM customer, I've always kept a close eye on the company and its options for the future. Whether or not you believe the most recent BlackBerry buyout rumors, one thing about the BlackBerry maker is crystal clear: RIM is in trouble and some drastic changes are in order if the company hopes to ever regain a semblance of the success it had in the mid-to-late 2000s--and an all-out BlackBerry buyout could potentially be in the cards for RIM.

What follows are two good reasons why RIM should refuse any BlackBerry buyout offers, and two reasons RIM might want to sell the BlackBerry brand post haste.

Why RIM Should Stay Its Course and Refuse a Buyout

The Potential Promise of BlackBerry 10

RIM is about to roll out a brand new smartphone OS, which could potentially reignite consumer interest in the brand. If--and it's a big If--RIM is able to successfully steal consumer attention away from Apple and Google and eventually woo enough developers to start building an impressive app catalogue for BlackBerry 10, the OS launch could breathe new life into the Canadian company.

RIM could also potentially license BlackBerry 10 or other future BlackBerry software to additional hardware manufacturers, if it's able to convince those manufactures that consumers really want BlackBerry software. Right now, it doesn't really make sense for device makers to license RIM's software since consumer demand for it is diminishing. But a successful BlackBerry 10 launch could turn the tables.

It's possible that BlackBerry 10 could be the stepping stone RIM needs to get back on track, and as such, it makes sense for RIM to resist buyout offers and focus on making BlackBerry 10 a success.

RIM and the Enterprise

RIM still has a strong foothold in the enterprise, which is nothing to scoff at; businesses spend big bucks on enterprise mobility software, and RIM's BES is still a solid source of income for the BlackBerry maker.

Enterprises, unlike consumers, are far less emotional and spontaneous when it comes to mobile devices and software, so organizations, particularly large ones, are less likely to jump ship on RIM without serious consideration. And many of these organizations are comfortable with RIM products and have already invested mucho dinero in RIM software and services, and in training staffers on that software.

To capitalize on this, RIM plans to unveil a new device management product in 2012, called BlackBerry Mobile Fusion, which will allow IT administrators to manage not just BlackBerry devices, but also Google Android and Apple iOS smartphones and tablets. With BlackBerry Mobile Fusion, RIM is acknowledging that other devices and mobile platforms are here to stay in the business world, and it's doing its best to help customers support these new devices with familiar software--and keep them as RIM customers.

RIM could even decide to focus completely or nearly completely on the business market, where it has been most successful in the past. And RIM's grip on the enterprise could actually strengthen in the coming year or two. RIM is a major player in the business world and it is still bringing in significant revenue on sales of enterprise software, with potential to grow that business. Hence, a BlackBerry buyout in the near future may not be necessary for RIM.

Why RIM Should Accept a Buyout Offer Right Now

RIM's Value is Dropping...But It's Still Worth a Bundle

RIM's stock is literally and figuratively dropping. In fact, RIM's overall market value has plummeted during the past year by more than 75 percent, down to about $6.8 billion, according to Reuters. (RIM's stock actually went up for one of the first times in recent memory on the rumors of a potential buyout.) And customer demand, at least in the key North American market, is at an all-time low.

But nearly $7 billion is still a heck of a lot of scratch--some analysts estimate that RIM could bring in as much as $8 billion in a BlackBerry buyout.

All signs seem to suggest that things are only going to get worse for RIM in 2012, especially since it recently announced yet another major product delay: Its BlackBerry 10 smartphone OS won't become available to until late 2012, according to RIM.

A number of RIM shareholders have already called for a sale of the company, including Jaguar Financial Corp. So it's starting to look like a good idea for RIM to accept a buyout offer while its market value is still somewhat healthy.

RIM Leaders Have Their Heads in the Sand

RIM leadership seems unable to accept or admit just how bad things have gotten for the company, and this is particularly troubling.

RIM needs a serious strategic shift if it's going to get back in the game, and its current chief executives, Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie, have demonstrated time and again that they're not the men to lead this charge. The executives have tried to appease frustrated shareholders and employees with promises that things will change, but those promises never seem to come to fruition; RIM still appears to making the same mistakes that dragged it from grace in the first place.

In my opinion, one of RIM's most significant downfalls right now is its inability to get new products to market in a reasonable timeframe. The last couple of years have been a vicious cycle that typically starts with a contrived and underwhelming product announcement, often made to maintain the appearance that RIM is "keeping up" with the competition. Then come months of waiting for said product. Eventually, a premature release of a half-baked product arrives, and gets panned by reviewers and critics because it's buggy or unfinished.

And RIM's BlackBerry 10 launch, arguably RIM's most important product launch ever, is starting to look just like another example of this nasty cycle: The software was announced months ago at RIM's BlackBerry Developer Conference; RIM's CEO promised the first BlackBerry 10 smartphone in the "not so distant future;" RIM announced major BlackBerry 10 delays last week, etc., etc.

It's difficult to have faith in the men in the driver's seat at RIM, and since its board of directors seems set on letting Lazaridis and Balsillie remain behind the wheel until RIM either rights itself or crashes and burns, it could be a good idea for RIM to sell itself off before the bottom falls out.

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/246910/why_rim_should_not_sell_the_blackberry_brandand_why_it_should.html