If you're a BlackBerry developer you may be interested in knowing that Research In Motion officially launched the Wi-Fi geolocation service a little over a week ago. Using Wi-Fi Access Point data that has been collected anonymously from your BlackBerry, this technology can provide location based sharing apps (such as foursquare or Twitter) a quick and accurate location fix.

Wi-Fi geolocation is faster and more convenient than GPS-based and Cell-site based location as well as uses less bandwidth, though the accuracy falls somewhere between that of GPS and Cell-site. APIs are available for devices running BlackBerry 6 OS and and higher, though service provisioning may take up to 3 more weeks. For complete details, head on over to the source link below. Thanks for sending this in Ray!

Source: BlackBerry Developer's Blog

I spend much of my day in front of the laptop, and my BlackBerry is always on vibrate. Because of this, sometimes I miss important calls as I just don't notice that when my device is vibrating. If this sounds familiar, maybe because you work in an office and your BlackBerry is tucked away in your desk or purse, you should check out Notifier for BlackBerry. This simple app forwards notifications from your BlackBerry to your computer via wifi.

Currently, notifications for incoming phone calls, SMS messages, and battery status are the only ones included, but hopefully more will be added in the future. All you do is purchase the BlackBerry app for $.99 and install it. You will also need the desktop portion of the app for Windows or Mac which you can install online from the developer's website. To set up the app, simply enter the IP address (displayed within the desktop client) into Notifier on your BlackBerry, and you're done! Alerts will be displayed on your computer screen as your device receives calls and SMS messages, and as your battery level drops. I can't wait to see more updates to this little app. BBM would be a great addition, for example.

For more information and to purchase Notifier for BlackBerry

You know Hedone Design for their awesome themes, and now you get to see a different side of their creativity. Their newest venture is app development under the name i-Mentalist, and their first offering is HiWiFi which was designed to save you money and make connecting to wifi hotspots easy and automatic. HiWiFi is a powerful wireless network manager. It provides automatic WLAN connection and informs you about available WLANs. With HiWiFi you can avoid using your data plan to help save money while roaming. You can save your favorite hotspots for automatic connection and be alerted by LED indicator when you are connected to a hotspot.

HiWiFi has two operating modes – Connect mode, which is default, and Watch mode which can be chosen in the Options menu. While in Connect mode, you will be automatically connected to any available hotspots, with preference given to the one with the strongest signal if there are multiple available.  Watch mode simply scans the area for hotspots, but it won't automatically connect to open ones. Depending on the type of hotspots found, they will be marked with a green circle (open and available hotspot), yellow circle (blocked hotspot that requires log in), or red circle (protected and unavailable hotspot). Untested hotspots are ones that have been found but HiWiFi has not yet determined the type, and are marked with a grey circle.

If you travel frequently, use roaming, or even just around town, this can be a very valuable tool for your BlackBerry. Wouldn't it be nice to worry less about how much data you have left for the month, and spend less time searching for wifi when you're out? Let HiWiFi do the work for you. HiWiFi is available for $8.99 and is compatible with BlackBerry 8220/30, 8330, 8350i, 8520/30, 89xx, 9000, 9300/30, 9520/50, 9650/70, 97xx, and 9800.

For more information and to purchase HiWiFi

Last week we posted an article how the PlayBook automatically transfers your saved Wi-Fi networks from your BlackBerry the first time it Bridges.  I first noticed this when I got my PlayBook home and saw it attached to my Guest 'g' Network by itself.  My first thought was "WOW how cool is this!!"  I hit up come colleagues on BBM and had them check their saved Wi-Fi networks and we noticed that all our saved Wi-Fi networks from our BlackBerry Smartphone's had copied over to the PlayBook.

Wait, is this good or bad?

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Every day, thousands will pick up a new BlackBerry. For a good many of them, this will be their first BlackBerry; maybe even their first smartphone. We've all had that first day; poking and prodding a new BlackBerry, trying to figure out how it works. This series aims to make that process a bit easier. 

Do you experience "blind spots" (no internet, email, or BBM) on your carrier? Are you having problems choosing the right data plan for your device? Is 3G just not enough G's for you? Have no fear; your Wi-Fi enabled BlackBerry is here. Wireless internet technology is a wonderful thing for users to take advantage of. It offers faster speeds, bypasses your data plan, and - with certain carriers - allows you to make unlimited phone calls (e.g., T-Mobile UMA). Thanks to coffee shops; airports; hotels; restaurants; and cable companies, Wi-Fi is everywhere. It's easy to enjoy the speed of Wi-Fi; click past the jump for step by step instructions.

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Hey folks, remember those cell phone bill shock commercials? You know, the ones where customers would faint, break furniture, or scream when finding a bill with extremely high charges. Those of you who travel internationally have probably felt the sticker shock from a large bill or two. Even those with international data and voice packages still pay higher rates than usual. When traveling internationally, you can can expect to see additional charges on your bill. You'll use data "minutes" when you use the browser, send and receieve PIN; MMS messages; and email, or use an application that accesses the internet. Be sure sure to stand near something soft and cushiony when that international data bill comes in the mail.As a bonus, using the Manage Connections menu is a quick and easy way to turn off your radios during flight operations (a.k.a. Airplane Mode).

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I have fond memories of all the BlackBerry devices I've used over the years.  Back in the summer of 1998 my first RIM device was called the 'interactive messenger' -- it was similar to the BlackBerry device but had a couple of interesting features that were quite popular; "text-to-voice" and "text-to-fax" allowing you to compose a message and have it delivered by fax or by Stephen Hawking via phone.

As with any product that exists the people are never content with what they have and always want more, and I am certainly no exception.  Last week I was having drinks with a friend and was showing off my BlackBerry Torch and all it's BB6 goodness, and I started thinking about how far RIM has come in the BlackBerry world.

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SmartWiFi is a great app to save battery power on your BlackBerry. It combines your WiFi data and location (by using cell towers) to determine your WiFi hotspot locations. When you are not in these locations, SmartWiFi will turn your devices WiFi off. This saves a tremendous amount of battery, that would normally be spent searching for a WiFi signal.

If you use your devices WiFi frequently, SmartWiFi is a must, especially if you find your devices battery not making it through the day. It is now on sale for $4.99 (normally $9.99) at the CrackBerry App Store. It is compatible for all devices running OS 4.6 and up.

Contest: We have 25 copies of SmartWiFi to give away. Just leave a comment on this post to enter. Contest ends this Sunday at Midnight PST. Please only leave one comment, multiple entries wont count.

More information and download of SmartWiFi

There's actually a good backstory to this CrackBerry Poll that prompted me to post it.... 

I received an email from a reader recently looking for advice. Let's call her Rachel. Rachel's AT&T contract is expiring soon (she's actually been with AT&T for 8 years and hasn't had any issues with them) and was thinking about renewing as she really wants to get a BlackBerry Torch. However, Rachel was concerned that with a device like the BlackBerry Torch that AT&T's new 200MB and 2GB BlackBerry data plans don't provide enough data for her as she wants to be able to go BBM, Facebook and browse the web all day long without running into overage charges (she used to have the unlimited plan but turned it off a year ago when she went back to school and can only get the new plans now). With T-Mobile offering unlimited minutes/messaging and data for basically the same price, Rachel was starting to think she should make the switch to T-Mobile and settle on a Bold 9700 even though what she really wants is a Torch. What oh what to do?!

My advice to Rachel began with a simple question.... do you have WiFi access where you live, go to school and work? While 200MB is plenty of data for many BlackBerry users and 2GB of data is likely plently for most BlackBerry users, including Rachel, taking advantage of WiFi hot spots where you spend the majority of your time can greatly eliminate your data concerns. This is especially the case on BlackBerry 6 where you don't have to toggle between Hotspot browser and Internet browser anymore - if you're on WiFi, you're using WiFi.

It turns out it never occured to Rachel that she could use WiFi on the BlackBerry Torch, and that she does in fact have WiFi access at home, work and school. Decision made, Rachel is definitely getting the BlackBerry Torch she wants. My last bit of advice to her was to pick up a spare battery - heavy WiFi use can eat up the battery life a bit. 

I have a feeling a lot of BlackBerry owners out there are like Rachel - either not realizing they could use the WiFi on their BlackBerry or just not using it as effectively as they can. Vote on the poll above and let us know where you rank. And remember, if you do want to save on your monthly bills, going for the cheapest data plan and maximizing your WiFi use is a good way to save. 

As most newer devices have Wifi, more and more questions are popping up on just how to get up and running with Wifi. Its fairly simple, but for new BlackBerry users, some of it may be a bit confusing. Wifi is arguably one of the best features on new devices, so for a quick look at some on the available Wifi settings, check out the video above. We'll take a look at how to add a new connection automatically or manually, connecting to the network, and some of the features you can tweak to get your settings just right.

A few days ago Shape Services released an updated version of their IM+ Skype applicationt, this time around touting its offerings of free WiFi calling from your BlackBerry utilizing Skype. Given in the past applications like this have used a SkypeOut/SkypeIn call back feature users often found that while the calls were free, they were also using their minutes up when placing these calls. Not exactly my definition of free. I wanted true WiFi calling. No carrier connection just WiFi, which is what SHAPE claimed with this.

Quite honestly, it seems as though the BlackBerry platform is among the last to see this type of offering arrive. The iPhone has plenty of applications that can make use of VoIP and even the official Skype app for it, allows WiFi calling. Heck, I don't even have a SIM card in my iPhone and it still works for calls. Android is no exception there either, the Android marketplace has many apps in it that act the same way. Over time, I have heard many reasons as to why BlackBerry couldn't make use of this feature. Everything from it's a hardware issue right down to it being a security issue. All of which just sounded like rather half-arsed excuses to me. Here is a quick look at SHAPE services IM+ Skype offering, their latest offering promises free WiFi calling over VoIP and I put it to the test.

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WiFi_BTPower by Toysoft Development is a great solution for those who use WiFi/Bluetooth on their BlackBerry SmartPhone. The application allows you to control when you want your WiFi and Bluetooth radio on, saving your battery power. You can choose what days of the week, and the precise time you want these radios to turn off or on. This application is great for those who use their WiFi and/or Bluetooth radios often, and want to save their BlackBerry's precious battery power. I personally have mine set to turn off WiFi everyday of the week from 2am till 7am, I figure why waste the power when I am sleeping. WiFi_BTPower is available for $1.99 until January 31st for all devices running OS 4.2 and up.

Contest: We have 25 copies of WiFi_BTPower to give away. Just leave a comment on this post to enter. Contest ends this Sunday at Midnight PST. Please only leave one comment, multiple entries wont count.

• More information and download of WiFi_BTPower>>

If you are a power user that constantly feels the drain WiFi can put on your battery, SmartWiFi from S4BB may be just what you need. The app combines cell tower and Wifi data and automatically turns off WiFi when you aren't in a "hotspot area". The app remembers your locations (home, office, etc) and shuts down WiFi when you aren't in a service area to save on battery life. When you arrive at a known hotspot, the app powers up WiFi again allowing you to reconnect. The app features:

• Saves battery by turning off WiFi when not needed.
  
• Remembers the WiFi locations you use.
  
• Up to 100 WiFi locations supported!
  
• Powers WiFi back on when you are back at WiFi coverage.
  
• Saves battery by avoiding to constantly check for available WiFi hotspots.
  
• Displays useful information: BSSID, SSID, Data Rate, Radio Band & Signal Level.
  
• Supported mobile devices: GSM / GPRS, CDMA and iDEN.
  

Check out the video above for a quick look at how the app works. SmartWiFi is on sale for just $4.99 through January 29th (regularly $9.99) in the CrackBerry App Store and is available in App World.

• More information and download of SmartWiFi >>

RIM have a bit of habit of giving their devices very similar sounding numbered names. We at CrackBerry.com try to keep up and pretty well know our 8800 from our 8820 but to the rest of the world it can be confusing.

RIM have tried to keep their business oriented devices in one category and their consumer oriented in another but the numbering is confusing to everyone. For example, there are three versions of the proposed 8300 line -- 8300 (which has GPS but no camera), 8320 (which has no camera but WiFi and GPS), and 83XX (will have camera, wi-fi and GPS). Word is that their code names are Papa Bear, Mama Bear and Baby Bear. We kid you not. We assume the 8800 and the yet to be released 8820 and 88XX will follow the same system.

Thankfully, the Boy Genius has given us a list of the latest RIM offerings and the things that differentiate each device offering.

For the full list of the various devices read the full article here.