20
Jul
2010
RIM Takes Offense at Apple’s Presentation
We all know that Apple has been grasping at straws for quite some time. After all, they have been knee deep in problems for the past 22 days looking for a solution to the Apple iPhone 4 antenna issues.
Well, that is what Apple wants the world to believe anyway, but it is really difficult to accept that after more than three weeks worth of careful analysis and study, the most they can say is that they will be giving away free cases for Apple iPhone 4 users. That is not good, in fact, that is just downright silly –it should not take more than a couple of days for a company of that size and scale to state that they will be giving out bumpers for free.
In any case, it seems that the public is not the only ones with a beef with Apple, mobile phone manufacturer RIM is also quite unhappy with what happened last Friday night regarding the iPhone 4’s antenna issues.
Apparently, the demonstration showed off other mobile phones that “seemed” to have antenna problems. Actually, it is a well established fact that if held in unique ways, some mobile phones will lose signal. But the BlackBerry Bold 9700 is not going to drop a call just because it was held wrong –a user would need to intentionally position their hands around the antenna to block the call.
RIM’s co-CEOs are not too happy about the whole thing either. They stated that the demonstration is an insult to the long legacy that the BlackBerry brand has established and that they have been “designing industry-leading wireless data products” and have been “avoiding designs” similar to the iPhone 4’s antenna.
Of course, the big clincher in RIM’s reply would be this, “One thing is for certain, RIM’s customers don’t need to use a case for their BlackBerry smartphone to maintain proper connectivity”.
14
Jul
2010
RIM’s BlackBerry Protect Service Moves to Closed Beta
For those who have not heard, RIM is working out a new online service that is designed to help out users who often lose their mobile handsets. Of course, the service will only cover existing BlackBerry users. But if this works, then other mobile phone makers might want to try out the mode, for the BlackBerry Protect service.
The system is quite basic in terms of use. Users will need to create an account online and sign up their BlackBerry smart phones. After this, they can use the online service to remotely access the device. This comes in handy if the handset is misplaced, lost or even stolen as the number of commands available to users comes in a very wide range.
The most basic function would be to make the phone ring with message or an alert –this is really useful for folks who tend to leave their devices lying around the house. For those who feel that they might have left their device in a different location (such as the office, the car or a friend’s house) the GPS on the device can be activated and the location can be tracked to ensure that the device is indeed in the specified location.
Of course, there are times when phones are left in other places as well, such as the local gym or the pub, where the chances of another person taking the device is quite high. In these cases, or in times when direct theft is suspected, users of the Protect service may opt to have the device remotely locked or even have the contents wiped.
Wiping the memory can be a bit extreme, but as most professionals use smart phones to store important and private information, security is an important issue. The service also periodic allows over the air backups which allows users to instantly transfer content from one handset to another (should the previous handset prove to be irrecoverable).
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