FreshPhoneNews.com

Ok BlackBerry die-hard fans, time to celebrate, even though the BlackBerry Messenger 5.0 hasn’t been officially launched, it has been leaked, yes leaked, to the masses. Just about every BlackBerry handset rocking OS 4.5 up is getting BlackBerry Messenger 5.0 action. Life.does.not.get.sweeter.than.this.

After a long silence after its launch ages ago of the BlackBerry 7290, RIM has a new version of its BlackBerry messenger. As of yet not released for public and prying eyes, it is so damn hot. Some of the features that have come to light are:

• Avatar support —you can set an avatar or use your awn pic. This will be showcased in your messenger as well.
• GPS location integration — privacy is your bitch, so to say. You can now control who can or can’t find you. Your friends can and your ex cant.
• Proximity sensor — while this will not tell you if your BFF is angry at you it will tell you how close your friends are in terms of physical distance
• Set conversation subjects — now you can choose what you chat about and keep track of what you were talking about. Something I have a lot of trouble with when it comes to multiple people.
• Homescreen support — you can pin/sticky actual Messenger contacts directly to the homescreen for easy access

Sweet deal. Way to go RIM!

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The Facebook application for BlackBerry has been alluding us for a while now, but finally word has it that it’s all set for release sooner than later. How come the confidence? Well because a blog just put up screen shots of what the new Facebook 1.5 application for BlackBerry will look like.

So what’s the new Facebook application like? Well for starters it brings three refreshing and much needed new changes. Among these is the integration of BlackBerry Messages, Calendar and Contacts with those of Facebook.

The integration of BlackBerry Messages with Facebook is hands down great. As you know, currently all your Facebook messages and pokes can be read only by navigating to the Facebook application. Version 1.5 allows you to read these messages right in your inbox, by enabling the BlackBerry Messages option. Saves time, and really helps you make good on your reputation of shooting snappy comebacks.

Now moving on, the BlackBerry Calendar Application lets you download all the Facebook events you’ve RSVP’d to, to your BlackBerry calendar on a folder named ‘Facebook’. Nice feature, now all the guys out there can remember important dates (not when NFL night is) like birthdays and anniversaries. The last big improvement is the option to integrate Facebook friends with BlackBerry contacts. You can add phone numbers, pictures and work details to your contact list. And just in case you don’t want to add everybody, you can apply the feature to a select number of friends by ‘linking’ or ‘unlinking’ to your heart’s content.

Other additions aren’t such stick outs. For one thing the UI is the same old story. You can call your Facebook contacts who have their number on Facebook or you’ve integrated them on your ‘Berry’s contacts. You can also now comment on your friends’ status. No more having to save that itch to snap back till you find a PC. We still can’t edit our Facebook profiles from our mobile sets, but we can edit our contact numbers, be it landline or mobile. Kind of like Twitter for your contact information, only without any sense. Who changes numbers that often?

Alright then citizens, that’s the new Facebook you’ll soon be seeing available for your BlackBerry. Killing time was never easier.

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Somewhere back last year, rumors had surfaced that were so awesome, they were just unbelievable. It seemed that Windows Mobile users were about to get the treat of a lifetime, the ability to use the BlackBerry Operating System to get access to BlackBerry Applications. This meant that the BlackBerry Operating System would run on Windows Mobile as an application.

Back then the rumor surged and then died down, because nothing material really showed up, but now there have been images out of that show off a damn good looking BlackBerry Application suite on the HTC Touch Pro. Not only images, but more details are gliding into the smartphone world straight from the mouth of RIM itself. The Application Suite is approximately 32 MB in size and is currently based on OS 4.2.1 which can be programmed to boot up as soon as Windows Mobile boots up. BlackBerry email, PIN messaging (and yes you can jump for joy, the BlackBerry Messenger works), calendar, tasks, address book and memos function in the same way as they do on a real BlackBerry, including BES synchronization. IT policies are supported and Windows Mobile and BlackBerry can operate simultaneously through their separate APNs. Another interesting feature is the fact that Windows Mobile and the Application Suite can each be tied into a separate Exchange accounts without complication.

Well that’s all the good stuff, but there are a few bugs to be sorted out, like GPS, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi can’t work since the Application Suite does not have access to them. Also, phone calls can’t be made through the BlackBerry Application Suite and have to be routed back through Windows Mobile. There isn’t any support for Video Playback yet, not to mention some applications won’t work with a VGA resolution. These would be the blessed fruit of working with a non-open OS. Ah well, at Windows Mobile just got better.