BlackBerry said this week that launch sales of its new BlackBerry 10-based handsets in Canada and the U.K. have beaten previous company records.

However, the company formerly known as Research In Motion has declined to release actual sales figures.

“In Canada, yesterday was the best day ever for the first day of a launch of a new BlackBerry smartphone. In fact, it was more than 50 percent better than any other launch day in our history in Canada,” the company said on Wednesday in a brief statement attributed to CEO Thorsten Heins.

“In the U.K., we have seen close to three times our best performance ever for the first week of sales for a BlackBerry smartphone.”

In not announcing precise sales figures, the company is taking a cue from competitors in the mobile electronics space.

Amazon has long resisted specifying Kindle sales on a unit basis, instead choosing murkier measurements like a percentage of the tablet market or “more than double” the previous year.

And when Microsoft recently launched its Windows Phone 8-series smartphones, the company proclaimed strong shipments of “over four times higher than they were last year,” but didn’t back up the claim with numbers.

BlackBerry’s Z10 smartphone went on sale in the U.K. on January 31, a day after the company unveiled the device. Sales in Canada began on February 5 and the phone is now beginning a roll-out to other countries as it passes network carrier testing.

A second phone, the Q10, features a keyboard and is due on sale in April.

The company is due to announce quarterly earnings on March 28, when it is expected to specify launch sales and quantify the consumer reaction to the BlackBerry 10 launch.

Thankfully, BlackBerry announced on Tuesday at the BlackBerry Jam Europe event in Amsterdam that the Android runtime environment will eventually be updated to Android 4.1: Jelly Bean.

Android runtime allows developers to re-package Android apps for use on BlackBerry, but it's currently stuck at Android 2.3.3: Gingerbread.

The newly renamed company reportedly announced that Jelly Bean is in the works for Android runtime at the developer-oriented event, later confirming the news with Engadget, though it provided no time frame for when Jelly Bean might arrive.

Jelly Bean apps on the Z10

BlackBerry Z10 owners will certainly benefit from an update Android runtime environment, as it ushers more up-to-date Android apps through a shortcut onto the BlackBerry 10 platform.



As of Monday, it seemed the BB Z10 could be released in the U.S. on March 27, though the BB10 flagship is already available elsewhere. And, from the looks of it, the phone is selling quite well.

Time for an update

Good on BlackBerry for bothering to upgrade Android runtime - no doubt the Canadian phone maker would rather see developers port their apps to run natively on BB10, but runtime provides an easy (if imperfect) alternative.

As it stands, Android runtime is like a version of Wine for Mac, which allows Windows apps to be packaged individually for use on Apple's OS without need for a Windows OS license, that's only compatible with Windows XP software.

It's true that some emulators, like those for retro video game systems, are meant to preserve old software, but when it comes to Android runtime we'd rather have it as current as possible.

Via CrackBerry

BlackBerry (BBRY) failed to give specific details at its press event last week regarding the future availability of its new smartphones in the United States. The flagship BlackBerry Z10 smartphone launched in the United Kingdom last Friday, and is scheduled to be released in the coming weeks in Canada and the United Arab Emirates.

The company vaguely announced that the device will be available in the U.S. sometime in March. According to a leaked roadmap obtained by TmoNews, the BlackBerry Z10 may launch on T-Mobile on March 27th. As for pricing, Verizon (VZ) previously announced that the smartphone will be offered for $199 with a new two-year agreement. Interestingly enough, the document also suggests that T-Mobile will launch a Galaxy S III smartphone with LTE capabilities on March 27th or April 3rd. The purported roadmap follows below.

Via tmonews

BlackBerry, as RIM is now known, has announced two phones packing its new BlackBerry 10 operating system. The Q10 and Z10 are both high-end smartphones with a raft of new features.

The difference between the two is mainly that the Z10 is an iPhone-like touchscreen phone, whereas the Q10 is a more traditional BlackBerry with physical keyboard.

Let’s take a look at how the Z10 compares to the iPhone 5.

BlackBerry Z10 Specs

Screen: 1280 x 768 resolution, 356ppi, 4.2-inch
Processor: 1.5 Ghz dual core processor
RAM: 2GB
Storage: 16GB (internal storage) and microSD slot for expandable memory up to 32GB
OS: BlackBerry 10
Camera: 8MP rear-facing, 2MP front-facing
Colours: Available in Black and White
Connectivity: 4G LTE or HSPA+ networks, NFC, micro HDMI
Battery: Up to 10 hours talk time (3G) and Up to 13 days standby time

iPhone 5 Tech Specs

Screen: 1136×640, 326ppi, 4-inch
Processor: A6 1.2 GHz dual core CPU, triple core GPU
RAM: 1GB
Storage: 16, 32, or 64GB
OS: Apple iOS 6.1
Camera: 8MP rear-facing, 1.2MP front-facing
Colours: Black or White
Connectivity: 4G LTE or HSPA+
Battery: Up to 8 hours talk time (3G) and up to 225 hours (9 days) standby time

The specifications for the BlackBerry Z10 are similar to the Q10, and both are a notch above the iPhone 5. However, we’ve seen with several devices that simply packing hardware into a box means nothing without the software to make use of it. Even then, most users don’t really care too much about benchmark tests, or processor speeds, as long as the device functions perfectly adequately and offers a good feature set.

BlackBerry devices are underwent extensive testing and benchmarking at Macworld last week, and we’ll be able to report in more depth shortly. Even so, there are certainly plenty of new features that will give Apple something to worry about.

BlackBerry Hub

Stay close to what’s important — keep everything that matters to you in one place. Simply peek into the BlackBerry Hub from any app with just a swipe and flow effortlessly in and out of your messages and conversations.

BlackBerry Keyboard

The new touchscreen BlackBerry Keyboard provides an effortless typing experience. It learns your writing style and suggests words to help you type faster, more accurately and with the least amount of effort. And if you tend to mistype certain letters, the keyboard will remember and subtly adjust to make sure you hit the right key.

BBM Video with Screen Share

Switch your BBM chat to a BBM Video1 conversation and talk face-to-face with those that matter to you most. Use the new Screen Share feature to show photos, your browser, or review a business document together. You can even share the view from your camera. It’s an amazing new BBM experience for BlackBerry 10 smartphones.

Camera with Time Shift mode

Pinpoint and adjust elements of your picture to get the photo you want. Time Shift mode captures milliseconds before and after your photo – so you can scroll back on the dial to open one friend’s eyes and then forward to catch your other friend smiling, before combining it all to create the perfect picture.

Members of the media wait for Research in Motion (RIM) CEO Thorsten Heins to officially unveil the BlackBerry 10 mobile platform as well as two new devices January 30, 2013 at the New York City Launch at Pier 36. Blckberry is hoping to make a comeback with the release of its lonng overdue BlackBerry 10, a new operating system that many analysts believe is RIM's last chance to become relevant again.











bY JuLee (Technewswebsite)

BlackBerry last night launched BlackBerry 10 across the world – dubbed ‘the re-designed, re-engineered, and re-invented BlackBerry’ platform that creates a new and unique mobile computing experience.

Available on two new smartphones, the BlackBerry Z10 (all-touch) and BlackBerry Q10 (touch with physical keyboard) smartphones powered by BlackBerry 10 offer a faster, smarter and smoother experience than any other BlackBerry.

BlackBerry unveiled the new BlackBerry Z10 and BlackBerry Q10 smartphones at events held simultaneously in New York, Toronto, London, Paris, Dubai, and Johannesburg.

“Today sees a re-invented BlackBerry launching an entirely new mobile experience,” said Thorsten Heins, President and CEO of BlackBerry.

“We are thrilled to be introducing BlackBerry 10 on the new BlackBerry Z10 and BlackBerry Q10 smartphones, to deliver a faster, smarter experience that continuously adapts to your needs.  Every feature, every gesture, and every detail in BlackBerry 10 is designed to keep you moving.”

Highlights of BlackBerry 10

BlackBerry 10 is a robust and reliable platform that is smooth and responsive. It has a modern design and a gesture-based interface that is highly discoverable. It is designed to support, learn, and adapt to the way you work and share with features like:

• The ever present BlackBerry Hub, which is a single place to manage all your conversations whether personal or work email, BBM messages, social media updates or notifications, and the ability to “peek” into the BlackBerry Hub from anywhere, so you’re always only one swipe away from what matters to you.

• BlackBerry Flow, where the BlackBerry 10 experience excels by enabling features and apps to flow seamlessly together, helping you complete the task at hand effortlessly and efficiently. For example, you can tap on an attendee listed for a meeting to see their latest tweet or LinkedIn profile. Or tap the thumbnail of a picture you just took to launch the Picture editor and quickly apply a transformation or filter, then instantly share it with your contacts.

• A keyboard that understands and adapts to you, that learns what words you use and how you use them, then offers them up to you so you can type faster and more accurately.

• BBM (BlackBerry Messenger), which allows you to share things with the people that matter to you in an instant. BBM in BlackBerry 10 introduces the ability to share your screen with another BlackBerry 10 contact.

• BlackBerry Balance technology, which elegantly separates and secures work applications and data from personal content on BlackBerry devices.

• Time Shift, an astonishing camera feature that lets you capture a group shot where everyone is smiling with their eyes wide open. Story Maker, which lets you bring a collection of photos and videos together, along with music and effects, to produce an HD movie that you can instantly share.

• The new BlackBerry 10 browser, which sets the industry benchmark for HTML5 support on smartphones, is incredibly fast. Scrolling or zooming is fluid and responsive. The browser includes many advanced features, supports multiple tabs, lets you browse sites privately, includes a reader mode, and integrates with the platform for easily sharing content.

• BlackBerry Remember, which combines memos, tasks and much more into a single experience. It helps you organise and manage information you have on your smartphone around projects or ideas, letting you collect content such as websites, emails, photos, documents, and other files, and then like a To-Do list, lets you create tasks, assign due dates, and track your progress. If your BlackBerry 10 smartphone is set up with a work account, your Microsoft Outlook Tasks will automatically be wirelessly synced with BlackBerry Remember.  If you have configured an Evernote account with your smartphone, BlackBerry Remember will sync Evernote workbooks as well.

• BlackBerry Safeguard technology that helps protect what is important to you, and the business you work for.

• Built-in support for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync so your BlackBerry Z10 or BlackBerry Q10 smartphone can be simply connected and managed as other ActiveSync devices in a company, or enabled with BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 to gain secure access to work email, “behind the firewall” applications and data, and benefit from other security and enterprise mobility management features.

• The BlackBerry World storefront, which now includes 70,000 BlackBerry 10 apps. In addition, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Foursquare apps for BlackBerry 10 are pre-installed, and BlackBerry 10 customers will have access to leading applications from across the globe. Leading application providers including Disney, Cisco, Foursquare, Skype and Rovio have committed to the platform.

“At Foursquare, we are extremely excited to launch our new BlackBerry 10 application and to continue developing on the platform,” said Dennis Crowley, Co-Founder and CEO of Foursquare.

“Our team built the app just for BlackBerry 10, and the result is an amazing Foursquare Explore experience to help people around the world make the most of where they are.”

“We’re delighted to bring Angry Birds Star Wars to BlackBerry fans around the world,” said Petri Järvilehto, EVP of Games, at Rovio.

“It’s a great platform that gives a fantastic gaming experience, so fans can experience the struggle of Rebel Birds vs. Imperial Pigs to the fullest!”

“Bringing Where’s My Water? and Where’s My Perry? to BlackBerry 10 smartphones will introduce some of Disney’s most popular mobile games to new audiences,” said Tim O’Brien, VP of Business Development, Disney Games.

“The new BlackBerry 10 platform is an exciting opportunity to expand Disney’s network of mobile players.”

“We’re proud to extend Cisco’s WebEx technology to the BlackBerry 10 platform letting customers of any size join, start, view content, and stay connected to WebEx meetings right from their BlackBerry 10 smartphone,” said Raj Gossain, Vice President of Product Management, Cloud Collaboration Applications Technology Group at Cisco.

“Our customers access Cisco collaboration capabilities, such as instant messaging, IP voice calling and conferencing on BlackBerry smartphones to stay connected anywhere, any time, and with anyone. RIM and Cisco have worked together to develop an application that is user friendly and meets the needs of our global customers.”

“We are excited about our plans to bring Skype to smartphones running the brand new BlackBerry 10 platform,” said Bob Rosin, VP & GM of Business Development for Microsoft’s Skype division.

“We are working closely with BlackBerry to ensure Skype runs great on BlackBerry 10 devices. This will give BlackBerry 10 users a great Skype experience, including free voice and video calling, sending instant messages and text messages, sharing photos, videos and files, and calling to landlines and mobiles at Skype’s low rates.”

BlackBerry Z10 and BlackBerry Q10 Smartphones

The new BlackBerry 10 smartphones are elegant and distinctive, and the fastest, most advanced BlackBerry smartphones yet. They feature 1.5 Ghz dual core processors with 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, and an expandable memory card slot. They include the latest enhancements in high density pixel and screen technology to display clear, sharp, and incredibly vivid images. Both feature a micro HDMI out port for presentations, and advanced sensors such NFC (near field communications) to support mobile payments and the exchange of information with a tap of the smartphone. They also have a removable battery.

The BlackBerry Z10 and BlackBerry Q10 smartphones will each come in White and Black.

A range of accessories for the new BlackBerry 10 smartphones, including the new BlackBerry Mini Stereo Speaker as well as a variety of carrying and charging solutions including a unique charger that provides on-the-go charging, will be available from select carriers and retailers.

Pricing and Availability

Worldwide, we have several key markets that are revealing pricing and availability today, including the UK, Canada and UAE.

• In the UK, the BlackBerry Z10 will be available beginning tomorrow on pay monthly contracts and pre-pay plans from EE, O2, Vodafone, Phones 4u, BT, 3UK and the Carphone Warehouse. BlackBerry Z10 smartphones will be available fully subsidised on competitive monthly pay contracts. Price points will vary according to carriers and retail partners.

• In Canada, the BlackBerry Z10 will be available on February 5th. Pricing will vary by carrier partner, but it will retail for around $149.99 on a 3 year contract.

• In the UAE, the BlackBerry Z10 will be available on February 10th. Pricing will vary by carrier partner, but unsubsidised it will retail for AED 2,599.

• In the U.S. market, we expect availability with most carriers for the BlackBerry Z10 to be in March. Today, U.S. carriers will start announcing pre-registration and price plans.

JuLee (Technewswebsite)

With almost twice as many smartphones shipping in Q4 of 2012 than the previous year, it’s no surprise that Google’s Android OS has maintained its lead in the smartphone race. A new report from Strategy Analytics estimates that a total of 152.1 million smartphones operating on Android shipped in Q4 of 2012, making Android’s global market share 70%, up from 51%, in Q4 of 2011.

With its open source ethos, Google’s Android OS has helped proliferate the manufacture and development of a variety of devices. Android devices of all colors and stripes have been popping up since it’s inception, ranging from high-end smartphones and tablets to entry-level devices. Unlike Apple, whose iOS only operates on a few devices produced strictly by Apple, Google lets manufacturers use the Android source code and customize it to their liking. It also allows Android devices to be sold at various price points, unlike the (new) iPhone that remains at a premium price.

It’s true that Android is dominating the smartphone market right now, but can it keep up with competing and emerging smartphone OS’s such as RIM’s new BlackBerry 10 OS and Firefox OS? Let us know what you think.

(Via: TechCrunch,Phandroid)

Time sure as heck passes by quickly, and we are rather fired up for the BlackBerry event that is happening in New York City later at the end of this month, where the all-new BlackBerry 10 operating system will be unveiled, along with accompanying smartphones from RIM which will, hopefully, usher in a new golden age for the Canadian company after being on the decline for a few years already. It seems that someone managed to pick up an interesting photo on Instagram which has been named a cryptic “twinsyoulose”, but depicts dummy units for the BlackBerry Z10.

One of the BlackBerry Z10 dummy units would come in black, while the other sports a white color, and over the weekend, we do expect to see more and more spy shots of the BlackBerry Z10 arrive, in addition to dummy units, of course. It is expected that the BlackBerry Z10 will not cost more than $200 with a contract, which means it has been priced to move. Exciting times are ahead for RIM and the smartphone industry on the whole, no doubt about that.

Facebook is the most popular mobile app in the U.S. in terms of unique users — at least for now.

The signature Facebook app passed Google Maps in October of last year to become the most used mobile app in the U.S. and held onto the top spot through the end of the year, according to data released Wednesday by comScore Mobile Metrix.

Facebook's app enjoyed strong growth in 2012 with 85.5 million monthly unique users in the U.S. in December across iOS, Android and RIM's mobile platforms, up from just under 65 million in March, when comScore first started tracking mobile app data. (In October, Facebook reported 604 million monthly mobile users worldwide.) Google Maps, on the other hand, saw its active user numbers dip from about 80 million in August and September to a little more than 70 million in October after it was removed as a default app on iOS 6.

"Both Google Maps and Facebook were growing nicely throughout the year until that happened," Andrew Lipsman, VP of industry analysis at comScore, told Mashable. "Facebook continued that trend and Google Maps took a dip that one month and now it's climbing back." Google launched a new Maps app for iOS 6 in mid-December, and Lipsman says it's likely Maps will grow its user numbers at a faster rate going forward, though it's unclear whether and when the app will return to the top spot.


ComScore's mobile app data is based on browsing behavior tracks from a panel of users as well as supplemental data from publishers showing app usage. The numbers represent active visitors to apps — rather than app downloads — similar to the way that comScore tracks visitors to websites.

While Facebook currently held the top spot at the end of the year, Google had the next five most used apps, including Google Maps, Gmail and YouTube. Lipsman credited this to the growth of Android and the popularity of Google services in general.



Aside from having the largest audience, Facebook's app also has by far the highest level of engagement. According to comScore, Facebook's app accounted for 23% of time spent on mobile apps while all of Google's apps collectively account for 10% of time spent.

RIM's yet-to-be-announced BlackBerry Z10 handset has come face-to-face with the iPhone 5 in a new comparison video.

The all-touchscreen BB10, which is all set for a grand unveiling at the end of January, has been leaked more times than we care to remember, but never in this much deal and never next to its chief nemesis.

German blog telekon-presse.ak has provided a hands-on with what is all-but-certain to be the Z10, comparing design, build, software and features with Apple's latest and greatest mobile handset.

According to the hands-on comparison, the BB10 voice control system does a better job than Siri during a request to send a message. It was more accurate and faster on the Z10 than the iPhone 5.

What's left to see?

The video also shows how the respective operating system deals with incoming text messages and offers a neat look at BB10's Peak View feature, which gives users a quick look at items in the BlackBerry Hub.

Other highlights include a look at the different ways multitasking is handled by the OS, and how app icons are presented while it also shows how to kill active apps and offers a look at the respective Twitter apps.

You can check out the interesting video comparison below. At this rate RIM will have nothing left to reveal on January 30, when it holds launch events around the world.






What do you think? On that evidence can the Z10 challenge the iPhone 5 on a level playing field? Let us know in the comments section below.

Via TechCrunch (Thank You)