For some of the growing BlackBerry Z10 owner base battery life has been a concern. Some folks say the battery has been fine while others say they've not been overly pleased with it. In any case, the latest OS update for the BlackBerry Z10 was noted to have over 60 battery optimizations in it and as such there has been an ongoing thread in the CrackBerry forums discussing whether or not folks are seeing improved battery life.

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Are you as excited about BlackBerry 10 as we are? If not, you darn well should be. We're only 19 days away from the global unveiling on January 30th and couldn't be more excited. It seems like we've been waiting forever but launch day is only a few weeks off.

If you're looking for a great way to show your support for BlackBerry 10, check out this awesome Facebook cover photo by forums member Suyash Srijan. The image looks great on Facebook and will let everyone know how passionate you are about BlackBerry and the January 30th launch event. If this cover isn't quite your style, head over to Pootermobile to grab one of many BlackBerry Facebook covers. Grab the full size image from the link below, then head into the forums to say thanks! 

Download the BlackBerry 10 Facebook cover photo
Discuss more in the CrackBerry forums 

We're all counting down the days until BlackBerry 10 is in our hands (notice the nice new countdown clock on the CrackBerry homepage?!), but already our members are thinking ahead about how BlackBerry can further enhance the experience.

Cruising through the CrackBerry Forums this morning I stumbled upon this thread in our BlackBerry L-Series forum by member lucky-lad, which proposes enhancements to the current Active Frame layout in BlackBerry 10.

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"There are two types of people: BlackBerry users, and all the others." -Brian Williams

Chances are you've heard about a little publication called the New York Times and one columnist's article earlier this week that regarding BlackBerry users and how most of us are ashamed of our devices and that we're the Black Sheep of the mobile world.

In the video above you'll see a clip from Brian Williams on Rock Center last night. Mr. Williams is the anchor and managing editor of NBC Nightly News, the evening news program of the NBC television network here in the United States. He makes a statement I think many of our readers would agree with: "There are two types of people: BlackBerry users, and all the others."

He goes on to speak a bit about keyboards and touchscreens, but I'm not going to spoil the ending for you. You'll have to watch and see what happens. Be sure to jump over to the forums at the link below and or leave a comment here letting us know what you think! Thanks mchahine91!

Discuss in the forums

As posted in the CrackBerry forums by member pg101 earlier this week:

"Just got off phone with an IT gal at my employer. I work for one of the "big 5" banks in Canada... They are preparing to go BB10 from day 1....both phones and PlayBook. The gal who has a personal iPhone even says the BB10 has a better experience, the ideal BYOD product, and keyboard's ability to learn your typing errors and predict/correct is amazing. Every third word from her mouth was "sexy" when she was describing the features to me. She sounded very excited to talk about it.

On a side note, my bank tested Apple already as a replacement, and concluded that Apple still has significant hurdles to go through before it can be as safe and secure at BB. Needless to say, every other bank and insurance company here in Canada will likely come to the same conclusion, and will still continue to use BB over Apple. That is the bottom line! "

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Many people up in Canada have been taking advantage of some great sales on the BlackBerry PlayBook over the last couple of weeks. While the 16GB wifi version has been found for as low as $99 at stores such as Staples, finding available stock at these stores has been pretty hit and miss. Some persistent folks have found stock at other retailers and gotten a price match for the advertised sale price either in-store or by placing an order via phone. Of course, this is available on a store-by-store basis, as not all stores will always be willing to match a competitor's price.

If you're in the market to pick up a PlayBook, whether it's your first or you want a back-up or a gift for a great price, and you live in Canada, this may be a good opportunity to buy for the lowest price we've seen. If you're looking for locations near you or online that are having these sales and have the tablet in stock, or if you've got information to share, hop on over to the thread at the link below. Members of the CrackBerry community have been posting the stores they find that currently have or are expecting to get stock to help out others who are looking.

Share information on BlackBerry PlayBook sales in Canada

It's always fun to see what creative ways CrackBerry readers come up with for customizing their devices and accessories to fit their needs. We've seen several custom car mounts and installations and custom snake skin cases, and now we've got a CrackBerry member who has crafted his own BlackBerry PlayBook skin.

After creating a template, backsidetailslide cut some 3M brand vinyl including the BlackBerry logo on the back of the PlayBook. Since this is the same material used on car decals, it's durable yet won't leave any residue if/when it's removed. It fits like a second skin (as it should) and doesn't interfere if the tablet is placed into a charging dock. It really looks nice and is a fun way to spice up the look of the PlayBook. If you'd like to see more pictures or join in the conversation, feel free to stop off in the forums at the link below. And as always, you can check out the skins at ShopCrackBerry as well. 

For more pictures and to join the conversation

Sitting down at my computer this morning, I shuffled through endless Tweets and news posts regarding the iPhone 5 - just as I have been all week. I read about how the iPhone 5 pre-orders sold out and how excited all the Apple fans are to get their new phones next week. I also got a chance to check out some insight from CrackBerry readers that took time to hit up the forums with their thoughts on the Apple event and the iPhone 5. There seems to be a pretty good mix of those both for and against Apple, but it does make for an interesting conversation (and a long one at that). 

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We have no shortage of great car kits and mounts in the CrackBerry store, but sometimes that's simply not enoughc. Take for example CrackBerry member Mark PPG. He was inspired after watching the video of the QNX Jeep and set out to complete a similar project on his car, modifying the dash a bit so he has a home for his 4G LTE BlackBerry PlayBook. By relocating the existing car stereo into the space previously occupied by the air vents and altering the stock radio trim, and building custom brackets to hold the PlayBook, Mark now has the perfect setup for his car. The mount tilts out so that the tablet can be inserted/removed and so that he can plug in an audio jack to play music through the car stereo. He says future plans may include a BlackBerry Music Gateway and a power source for the PlayBook.

Mark currently has just a few applications installed on the PlayBook, including a music player and a couple of navigation apps. He's looking for more so if you have any suggestions that you think would be great on a 4G LTE BlackBerry PlayBook in a car mount, feel free to leave them in the comments or in the forums at the link below.

Interested in mounting your BlackBerry PlayBook in your vehicle, but not comfortable making alterations like this to your dash? Head on over to ShopCrackBerry and check out the car kits and mounts; you're sure to find something that will suit your needs.

Discuss Mark PPG's customization in the forums

Our friend Bastian had Big Blue for BBWC this year (seen here with Kevin's P'9981)

Cruising through the forums today I came across this thread and it got me wanting more. Forums member wait63 came across an old BlackBerry and asked for other members to post some pictures of their own vintage devices. Currently there aren't too many additions to the thread, but I know there are plenty of you that still have some old school devices kicking around. So if you find some time today, snap a photo of those old Berries and post them up in the forums for everyone to see. Let's see who has the oldest devices out there.

Show us your old BlackBerry! 

CrackBerry member eve6er69 recently took a look at the Seidio SURFACE Extended Battery Case and holster for the BlackBerry Bold 9900 and was kind enough to post his thoughts in the forums for anyone that may be interested in picking one of these up. This post comes from our Community Reviews forums. Post your review and if we promote it to the blogs you'll receive a coupon for free accessories. Read on for his review!

Seidio has gone ahead and released a welcome addition to their extended battery design for the BlackBerry Bold 9900/9930 and it is in the form of their SURFACE line of products. Now I will warn you this case is not for the faint of heart. I have read many comments here on the forums complaining that the added size of the battery alone is too much for them, but to some people like myself I just need something that will last me through a rough day and then some. Like I said it is not for the faint of heart because it does add some bulk to your device; not enough to complain about but enough to notice.

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Your BlackBerry addiction started somewhere, and we want to know where. Odds are that through the years you have changed BlackBerry smartphones like socks, leaving behind the old faithful for the new shiny one. My journey has included just about every single model that ever hit Verizon Wireless since the BlackBerry 8703e. The amazing people in the forums are usually here to discuss issues, help you solve things that are going on and inform us of new apps, but every now and then we get some unique ideas.

Forums user ajst222 came up with the idea for everyone to share their first BlackBerry device with the rest of the CrackBerry community, and the idea is quite fantastic. So, what was your first BlackBerry? Be sure to hop into the forums and share your pictures with the community, so we can all know just where your addiction began.

Discuss more in the forums 

Earlier this month Bla1ze passed along a story about a mother looking for a used BlackBerry smartphone on Kijiji for her daughter Claire's 13th birthday. The mother works in marketing, and passed along some suggestions for RIM, poking a bit of fun at teenagers and apps in general while doing so. Shortly after posting the story, the woman's ad quickly received over 20,000 hits, drawing quite a bit of attention to the family and the girl's birthday wish.

Well, Claire has had her wish granted, but not in the way you might imagine. Research In Motion contacted Claire's mom and gave her a brand new BlackBerry to give her daughter for her birthday! “Her birthday gift would have been delayed. I wouldn’t have been able to afford it for a little bit longer, so you know, RIM just made her 13th birthday for her,” Cynthia told CTV News. I'm sure it's a birthday that Claire and her mom will never forget.

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We want to know what your BlackBerry home screen looks like!

If you've been around the CrackBerry forums for a while, you've most likely seen our *huge* What does your BlackBerry screen look like thread. Retired forums mod naviwilliams started the thread wayyy back in 2007 and it's been going strong ever since. It's now filled with pages upon pages of BlackBerry screens - everything from plain old stock to crazy themed out creations.

The great thing about BlackBerry is the ability to customize nearly everything to fit your needs, and that all starts with the home screen. I personally like to use the stock theme and just change up the wallpaper every few days (or every Wednesday!), but I know tons of you prefer to use a custom theme to give your device that special look. So if you haven't yet seen the What does your BlackBerry screen look like thread I encourage you to check it out and post your own home screen (grab Capture It if you need something for screenshots). It's a great resource for new ideas on how to arrange your own device, and also a bit of a trip down memory lane if you check out the older (and I do mean older) screens from years back. Let's see those screens!!

What does your BlackBerry screen look like?

It looks like if you want to pick up a 16GB BlackBerry PlayBook you'll want to do so sooner than later. Forums member ubermanx received an email from Research In Motion yesterday that made it pretty clear that they will not be offering the 16GB model in the future, though the 32GB and 64GB will still be available. Of course, this doesn't mean that the 16GB will immediately be pulled from shelves and become impossible to buy. Plenty of retailers currently have stock both in-store and online. It just means that the stores likely won't be replenished when they sell through this stock. When we reached out to RIM for a statement, we were told "In regards to your question about the 16G PlayBook -there is more value for our customers in the higher capacity models (32 GB, 64 GB), and as such we have decided to focus our efforts there."

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When a disaster strikes, fast and efficient communication, organization, and teamwork are vital to managing relief efforts for a successful outcome. Forums member CrackBerryTorch9800 learned this first hand recently when his town of Thunder Bay in northwestern Ontario, Canada was declared a state of emergency after record amounts of rainfall and flooding devastated the city. The flooding washed away roads and filled basements, but on top of that the sewage plant failed and as a result sewage backed up and filled people's homes causing even further damage. With thousands of people now without food, water, and shelter and desperate for help, the city pulled together and volunteers began running a command center from a local church. One of those volunteers was CrackBerryTorch9800 (whose real name is Mitchell).

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If there's one thing that most people agree on, it's that Research In Motion needs a new marketing plan for BlackBerry 10. While the #BeBold campaign isn't the worst we've ever seen, it's obviously geared more towards the Bold 9900 line and won't be relevant for the upcoming devices. Forums member Playbookjoe came up with a new campaign that is not only great for marketing the new devices, but possibly helping RIM save some face in light of recent circumstances. His idea centers around the lack of marketing from RIM over the last couple of years. Why not turn that around and "reshape the quietness that has happened into being something that was done on purpose"?

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Crazy rumors are flying today, and only time will tell what becomes of them. If you've already read through the blogs, then why not head into the forums and see what's up with your fellow CrackBerry addicts? Not only can you find awesome people, news, and helpful tips, but we also have some ongoing contests in the PlayBook Apps forum and the General Discussion forum. We rounded up some other interesting threads you can check out at the links below.

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It's been a while since we've spotted a good fake BlackBerry, but this time around all the work was done for us. Forums member Superfly_FR posted up this Photoshop of the BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpha sporting a full QWERTY keyboard. As noted in the forums post, there is certainly enough room for a standard BlackBerry keyboard (I'm down with a Bold 9900 keyboard on this baby). As RIM CEO Thorstein Heins said at BlackBerry World, we'll still see BlackBerry devices with a physical keyboard, so maybe down the road this won't be too far fetched.

What do you think of this design? Is it good? Bad? Ugly? Sound off in the comments!

Discuss more in the CrackBerry forums

Often times you may find yourself wanting to edit some images on your BlackBerry PlayBook. While there is a small seleciton of apps available, as forums member edyb pointed out, there are also plenty of free online editors that work great on the PlayBook. In my experience the best is pixlr.com, but there are others that appeal to different users as well. Keep reading for the full list, then play around a bit with each to see which you like best (let us know in the comments). Be sure to hit up the forums and let us know which one is your favorite.

Discuss more in the forums

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All caught up on today's blog posts? Then why not head into the forums and see what's up with your fellow CrackBerry addicts? Not only can you find awesome people, news, and helpful tips, but we also have some ongoing contests in the PlayBook Apps forum and the General Discussion forum. We rounded up some other interesting threads you can check out at the links below.

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The CrackBerry forums are a great place to not only get help with your BlackBerry, but also to meet people, share experiences, and more. Last month we started up a thread for sharing creations made with the Scrapbook app for the BlackBerry PlayBook. To make it a little more interesting, we're periodically going to choose some submissions and give out some prizes as our way of saying thanks for participating and for being awesome forum members. Keep reading to find out who won gift certificates to ShopCrackBerry this week, and to enter your own Scrapbook creations check out the thread at the link below.

Post Your Scrapbook App Pictures!

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Looking for inspiration? Check out the thread below for what would make an awesome BeBold story. Click the forum link to join the discussion!

We're heading into Easter weekend which means extra days off of school and work for a lot of people. That also means plenty of time to get caught up on the blogs, and then why not head into the forums and see what's up with your fellow CrackBerry addicts? We rounded up some interesting forum posts you can check out at the links below.

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A little over a week ago Kevin started a fun thread in the PlayBook forums for people to share their Scrapbook creations with the rest of CrackBerry nation. We decided it would be cool to give away some prizes for those that chose to post their creations, not as a formal contest really, but just for fun. The CrackBerry writers got together and looked through this week's submissions, and boy was it hard to narrow it down! Finally, we came up with three from our favorites, which you can view after the break. Each of these members will receive a $25 gift certificate to ShopCrackBerry, so if you were chosen, watch your email over the next few days for information on that!

The thread is still open at the link below, and we'll keep the contest going indefinitely and likely mix up the prizes so it will be a surprise each time. Each week or so we'll pick some more winners, so keep sharing your Scrapbook creations! Check out this week's picks after the break!

Post Your Scrapbook App Pictures!

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What 10 features do you think BB10 smartphones will need to possess to survive in the smartphone market? Click the forum link below to join the discussion!

Anticipation is mounting as we head into the middle of the week. An update to the BlackBerry Bridge application dropped tonight, which in the past has usually been followed by an update to the BlackBerry PlayBook OS. While you all sit around repeatedly hitting the button to check for updates, why not head into the forums and see what's up with your fellow CrackBerry addicts? We rounded up some interesting forum posts you can check out at the links below.

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Post your BlackBerry PlayBook Scrapbook pictures and you could win! Find out details and discuss this and more in the forums at the links below!

It's Friday and we're heading into the weekend! We hope the weather is nice for all of you out there, so you can get out and enjoy some fresh spring air. Don't forget to check out the forums before you head out though. We have a new on-going contest for PlayBook owners, so definitely visit that thread for details. We rounded up some other interesting forum posts you can check out at the links below.

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Does your BlackBerry PlayBook function how you want it to? Discuss this and more in the forums at the links below!

Now's a perfect time to head into the forums and see what your fellow BlackBerry addicts are up to. We rounded up some interesting forum posts you can check out at the links below.

• BlackBerry PlayBook: Does Your PB Function the Way You Want it to?
• BlackBerry Torch 9810: Music Organization
• BlackBerry PlayBook: The number 1 thing i would change about Appworld
• BlackBerry Bold 9930/9900: BB10 Bold
• BlackBerry PlayBook: Rave review from Android developer

Found an interesting article you want to share with CrackBerry Nation? Have a burning question about that feature you just can't figure out? There is ALWAYS more happening just a click away in the forums. You can always head over and join in the conversation, search for answers, or lend your expertise to other members of our community. If you aren't already, take a moment to get registered in the CrackBerry forums today!

Now's a perfect time to head into the forums and see what your fellow BlackBerry addicts are up to. We rounded up some interesting forum posts you can check out at the links below.

• BlackBerry PlayBook: To Password or Not Password
• General Discussion: Patience is a virtue...TAT and RIM will deliver
• PlayBook Apps & Games: Query for Interest: Netflix and Skype
• MLH Software: QuickView Beta Feedback
• PlayBook Apps & Games: Kobo Discounts!

Found an interesting article you want to share with CrackBerry Nation? Have a burning question about that feature you just can't figure out? There is ALWAYS more happening just a click away in the forums. You can always head over and join in the conversation, search for answers, or lend your expertise to other members of our community. If you aren't already, take a moment to get registered in the CrackBerry forums today!

Happy Thursday everyone, hope you're all getting ready for a fun weekend! Now's a perfect time to head into the forums and see what your fellow BlackBerry addicts are up to. We rounded up some interesting forum posts you can check out at the links below.

• PlayBook Apps & Games: RDM+ smashes Splashtop for productivity
• General Discussion: Data compression and the new bb10 devices
• BlackBerry PlayBook: Will APPS really come or is it just a dream/hope?
• BlackBerry Torch 9810: Video Recording - Strange Display

Found an interesting article you want to share with CrackBerry Nation? Have a burning question about that feature you just can't figure out? There is ALWAYS more happening just a click away in the forums. You can always head over and join in the conversation, search for answers, or lend your expertise to other members of our community. If you aren't already, take a moment to get registered in the CrackBerry forums today!

It's Tuesday, and not a lot is happening in BlackBerry news so far this week. That means it's a perfect time to head into the forums and see what your fellow BlackBerry addicts are up to. We rounded up some interesting forum posts you can check out at the links below.

• General Discussion: What are your 'top line' icons?
• PlayBook Apps & Games: Library books - Overdrive help
• BlackBerry Apps: BlackBerry Travel, Maps, Traffic needs integration!
• BlackBerry PlayBook: How my PlayBook and Print To Go saved my behind
• BlackBerry PlayBook: Put a reward/info box on your lockscreen wallpaper for lost PlayBooks

Found an interesting article you want to share with CrackBerry Nation? Have a burning question about that feature you just can't figure out? There is ALWAYS more happening just a click away in the forums. You can always head over and join in the conversation, search for answers, or lend your expertise to other members of our community. If you aren't already, take a moment to get registered in the CrackBerry forums today!