If you have a BlackBerry 7 device and frequently visit Youtube, you likely noticed a change in the formatting. Yes, Youtube has now rolled out their HTML5 layout for BlackBerry 7 devices. Of course, this does come much later then other platforms but either way it's nice to see it being implemented finally and much of that can be credited to the work that was done on the BlackBerry 7 browser by RIM and their Torch Mobile browser team.

Sadly, if you're not running BlackBerry 7 you are indeed stuck with the older mobile layout and won't be able to take advantage of the higher quality streaming and better formatting Youtube now offers. But you can add that to the list of reasons why you need a new BlackBerry.

Thanks, @SirPedro83!

You've no doubt by now heard some news about Google today considering they are holding their annual Google I/O conference. One of the larger announcements from their keynote, as noted by the fine folks over at Android Central was that the Android platform now has a movie rental service available to them from Google and YouTube. Major studios have signed on and the content being made available is rather broad and should be of interest to a lot of people.

Google however neglected to mention one thing about the actual services -- it works for other platforms as well. BlackBerry PlayBook owners can already access the content right from within the BlackBerry PlayBook browser. You see, the offerings are powered by YouTube and visiting the YouTube movie site from your BlackBerry PlayBook allows you to login, rent and view movies with ease.

In fact, you can even access it directly from the Android Market as well all from within the BlackBerry PlayBook. Pointless step, yes when you can just go to YouTube -- but the fact it allows you to do so is funny. So yes, Hulu and Netflix may be out for now -- but would YouTube really block the services? Not likely. Go ahead and give it a shot, let us know how it works for you. Keep in mind though, only available free videos can be played in Canada. Free and paid are available in the U.S.

Check it out via YouTube

If you're a BlackBerry PlayBook owner, you've no doubt realized by now how great the video camera on the device really is. Videos taken with the BlackBerry PlayBook turn out great, especially when you have the ideal conditions in place.

While Research In Motion spent a lot of time integrating YouTube directly into the BlackBerry PlayBook for viewing videos, one thing they seemingly left out from the PlayBook YouTube client was a means of uploading videos directly to YouTube from the PlayBook.

That of course, doesn't mean uploading videos taken with your BlackBerry PlayBook is out of the question though. in fact, it's rather easy to do -- once you know the basics of what it is you are supposed to be doing in order to offload those videos. Read on past the break for a full run down of how to upload videos taken on your PlayBook directly to YouTube.

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[ youtube video link for mobile viewing ]

Every minute of every day, we upload over 35 hours of video to YouTube, that's over 18 million hours uploaded each year. We increasingly enjoy sharing bits of life with others and the world. Whether it's a video of Grandma's 85th birthday or that dog that runs into the wall when he wakes up, your BlackBerry smartphone makes it easy to capture, preserve, and share those moments.

We've covered the basics of using the video camera on your BlackBerry, no matter if you're using BlackBerry OS6 or OSFive. After you've filmed your masterpiece, what do you do with it? Does your video get moved to your computer? Perhaps you send your video to a friend's phone with BBM or as a "text" message. Some videos simply fade away; filmed and forgotten. Lost amongst a sea of ones and zeros.

Bring those videos back to life. Share them on YouTube. If it was good enough for you to film, it's probably good enough for YouTube. Granted, not every video is appropriate for the video sharing site; my independent film, "10 Minutes of the View Inside My Shirt Pocket," wasn't very popular. But don't let my incomplete success dissuade you from uploading your own cinematic work.

OS6 users have it easy with the ability to upload videos built right into the operating system. OSFive users don't have it quite so simple, but there are a few workarounds.

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Last night I was taking a look through the CrackBerry app store to see what new apps had been released and updated. I happened to notice a YouTube player that was listed as free so decided I should give it a look. There has been a few YouTube apps made available in the past but most are either no longer supported, only available on certain devices or just plain suck. Simply named Player for YouTube, this one is free and looks nice.

Features:

• Featured, Popular, Top Rated, Newest and Most Viewed Feeds
• Playing videos over RTSP Streaming or Wifi and WAP
• Share video links by email with your friends
• Bookmark your favorite videos for easy access
• Search for videos, including saved search history
• Browse videos by Categories and Tags
• View user channels
• Click on YouTube links from other BlackBerry applications

That is a rather large feature list for an app that is available for free. After testing the app out for a few videos I can surely say it beats firing up YouTubes mobile version all the time. Currently, OS 4.6 and up is the umbrella for supported devices and this includes the BlackBerry Storm. If you find yourself using YouTube a lot you may find this to be a better option.

• Download Player For YouTube For Free From The CrackBerry App Store >>

One gripe often heard about BlackBerry smartphones anytime, anyone mentions YouTube and BlackBerry together is that YouTube streaming on BlackBerry looks like crap. At some point, last week Youtube seemed to increase the quality on their mobile site for BlackBerry devices. Many others have noticed this as well, in the forums and even on Twitter. I've seen this mentioned on more than one occasion in my Twitter stream by different individuals.

Some are attributing it to some optimization made through their YouTube accounts as described in the forums. However, having not tried this method myself I'm quite certain that isn't all there is to the story. Especially since my videos are looking much better without having done anything. Let us know in the polls folks.

February's Prizes include a T-Mobile BlackBerry Bold 9700, Accessory SuperBundle, and BlackBerry VM-605 Bluetooth Speakerphone!

WooHoo! It's contest time and you're going to love this one. It's easy to enter, features great prizes, and best of all, is ONGOING. It'll just take you a few minutes to make sure you're entered and once complete all you need to do is sit back for your chance to win each and every month. Inspired by my CrackBerry Kevin's Ongoing Twitter Contest, we're taking things to the next level with CrackBerry.com's Ongoing Follow CrackBerry and Win Contest!!!

The Premise: Follow CrackBerry on Youtube, Twitter and Facebook and you could win! The last day of each month we'll pick three lucky winners -- one from the CrackBerry subscribers on each of these sites -- to win some awesome BlackBerry prizes - apps, accessories and even devices (minimum prize value $50). We'll announce the winners on the CrackBerry blogs the first day of each month as well as let you know what the prizes for the next month will be. Subscribe to all three for the most chances to win and keep on following! And if you're already following us prior to the launch of this contest, don't worry, you're automatically entered!

February's Prizes: Are awesome. Follow us on Twitter for your chance to win a BlackBerry Accessory SuperBundle for your BlackBerry and become a fan of our Facebook page for a chance to win a BlackBerry Visormount Speakerphone. AND for the sweetest prize of the month, follow us on Youtube for your chance to win an unlocked T-Mobile BlackBerry Bold 9700!!! Click the image links above to login to each respective site and follow us. 

For full contest details and for the specific urls to each site's CrackBerry channel/page, visit the contest page at crackberry.com/followcrackberrycontest

Thanks to the BlackBerry Web Video Generator you can now download and view YouTube clips right on your BlackBerry Pearl or BlackBerry 8800.

The software automatically downloads, converts, and optimizes the videos for play on your berry. The software is easy to install, easy to use, and only costs $20. If you pick it up from the CrackBerry.com store, use the discount code "SPRING10" and you'll save yourself 10%.

Need a good video to test it out on? Go for the CrackBerry anthem by Jack Benney!!