We're big fans of BlackBerry and PlayBook sightings in shows, but this is a little different. ¡Q’Viva! The Chosen is a new show starring Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony, and Jamie King that is sponsored by BlackBerry. These celebrities are on a mission to find the most inspiring performers in Latin America, traveling all over looking for talented performers across 20 countries. The most talented artists will be chosen for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to appear in a live celebration of music, dance and performance.

I watched a couple of previews and Youtube videos for ¡Q’Viva! The Chosen, and was really pleased to see how much screen time the BlackBerry PlayBook seems to have in the show! They use it for everything, from watching videos of potential candidates, to recording video, and playing it back via HDMI to flat screen TV. What a perfect device to take on such a journey, since they can use the BlackBerry Bridge for internet access while on the road and in villages without modern technology.

You can find out more details about the show as well as how to submit your own videos for consideration and watch more behind-the-scenes footage of the show at the link below, and check out the show's official trailer after the break. The show premiered January 28th on Univision. Thanks for sending this in Chango_BB!!

More information on ¡Q’Viva! The Chosen

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Like most BlackBerry users I'm a big fan of Auto Text on my device (AKA Word Substitution). You can add an endless supply of quick text expansions that make typing out long or common phrases a breeze. There are quite a few that come preset on the device as well, one of which is "sig". Typing "sig" in any text field will automatically spit out whatever you have entered for your lock screen information (Put in the info by going to Options > Display > Message on Lock Screen). Pretty cool if you want to quickly enter your email address, name or other text without typing it out (mine is set to my email address). Keep in mind too that you can edit the "sig" Auto Text and change it to whatever you'd like should you choose to do so, but it defaults to the lock screen info. Thanks @dannthedude!

If you have any BlackBerry tips of your own you'd like to share send them along to tips(at)crackberry.com

RIM has posted up their latest commercial, this time showing off the BlackBerry Torch 9850/9860. The theme of the ad is "Break Free" and shows off some BlackBerry use to get away. This is the first ad we've seen dedicated solely to the all-touch device but most likely not the last. While it's been a bit overshadowed by the BlackBerry Bold 9990, this is a good reminder that the 9850 and 9860 are still out there :-)

Jennifer Lopez has been seen several times with a white BlackBerry Torch 9800 in real life. In her latest video, Papi, she's seen pining over a picture of her and some guy on a BlackBerry Bold 9900! Check out the video above to see it. If you're not into J-Lo, no worries; the scene is first up in the video.

Thanks for sending this in Luis!

One keen eyed CrackBerry reader caught the BlackBerry PlayBook in action on TNT's Rizzoli and Isles this past week. It's not the first time we've seen the PlayBook in action on a TV show and hopefully not the last. Networks like TNT and FX have some crazy BlackBerry action going on where phones are concerned, so maybe they'll start busting out the PlayBook more often as well. One more image after the break. Thanks Marc and Gilahiker for posting it in the forums!

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While Google's mobile operating system may have consumer market momentum with Android handset activations hitting 500,000 per day, one person who appears to not be in a rush to abandon his BlackBerry habit is Google Chairman Eric Schmidt. Schmidt was in Indonesia last week for an entrepreneurship summit, and one of our CrackBerry spies on the ground in Bali managed to catch Schmidt black-handed snapping a photo on his BlackBerry Bold 9780.

What's really funny about this photo is that it isn't the first time Schmidt has been photographed while taking a photo on his BlackBerry. Back in July 2009 he got caught using his Curve 8900 (see photo below). Past precedent is always the best indicator of future performance, so I'm placing my bet we'll see Schmidt upgrading to the BlackBerry Bold 9900 next month. I'm not sure what this says about Android, but it definitely says a lot of good for BlackBerry. Maybe it's the keyboard, maybe it's the world class security, the BBM, the battery life or impossible to ignore blinking red light... or maybe it's all that and more.

There's nothing really "new" in that Bold that can be justified as testing out the competition, so at the end of the day I'm thinking that Eric Schmidt just loves his BlackBerry. Smart man. Kind of makes you wonder if he also has a BlackBerry PlayBook running Android apps?

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You know we're suckers for BlackBerry themed cakes at CrackBerry, and we've posted several before. Usually we see birthday cakes in the form of the user's favorite or current device, but today we have cupcakes! And not just any cupcakes, but BBM themed cupcakes! They look incredible with emoticon faces recreated on each one perfectly.

Hit the break for another shot, as well as a yummy looking BlackBerry PlayBook cake, and check out the Flickr gallery at the link below for a few more cakes. Thanks for posting this in the forums FMB8900!

More BlackBerry themed cakes at Flickr

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Michelle has been doing a great job on our weekly Celebrity BlackBerry Sighting Round Ups, but when Miami-based fashion blog FashionablySocial.net sent us in this photo taken this past weekend I just had to post it up. Seriously, bikinis + blackberrys.... how could I not post it?!

The photo was captured at the Mercedes Benz Miami Fashion Week Swim event, at the Mara Hoffman show. Gotta love dueling BlackBerrys in the front row capturing the models walking down the runway. Definitely a RIMPIRE Strikes Back kind of moment. Now if only we can get some RIMPIRE bikinis made up, they'll be a nice compliment to the RIMPIRE t-shirts. Click the photo to see a bigger version. Enjoy!

Source: FashionablySocial.net

CrackBerry member Dylan sent in some pictures of a project he just completed. He designed himself a custom PlayBook vehicle mount! Combining the snap-on shield from his PlayBook OtterBox and a car heater mount with a ball joint, he had a good starting point. A quick trip to the hardware store found him some L-shaped brackets to use as the mount. Says Dylan: "The rest was easy, just drill the holes and bolt them in. After it was mounted I hooked up my aux cable and had myself a custom screen in my truck."

It looks great, and goes to show what you can do with a little creativity and some spare parts. If do-it-yourself isn't your style, head on over to ShopCrackBerry and check out the car kits there. You can have a look at more pictures of Dylan's custom vehicle mount after the break, and if you've created something awesome you want to share with the CrackBerry community, don't hesitate to send it in!

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The 64th Frankfurt Motor Show is in September, and ahead of that Renault has debuted their latest concept car, the FRENDZY. Not only a commercial business vehicle, the FRENDZY  also has "family" mode to truly take this concept from work to play. This design is futuristic and sleek, but it's also got a practical side. The BlackBerry PlayBook has a big part in this concept car, as the center console has a dock specifically for it to truly turn the FRENDZY into an office on wheels.

BlackBerry PlayBook can allow users to benefit from an effective workplace and unrestricted mobility while on the go. This makes it particularly well suited to neighbourhood deliveries and local craftsmen, for whom it is a genuine work tool, both inside and outside of the vehicle.

The tablet connects directly into the centre console, ensuring perfect convenience of operation once on the move. As soon as it is plugged in, it becomes an integral element of the vehicle and configures itself into the Renault environment. Continuity of work is assured once the device is removed, and it can of course be used for all of the renowned BlackBerry PlayBook tablet features.

The device has an important role to play, too, in the customization of the vehicle as it controls the exterior screen while the vehicle is in motion and when parked, for business as well as for personal uses - pictograms illustrating life with electric vehicles, or the viewing of a film, for example.
Sensors located on each door sill log the loading or unloading of packages equipped with RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) chips containing key information such as destination address, weight and dimensions. This gives users a real-time inventory of the goods being carried in their vehicle. In addition, tradesmen can automatically calculate or re-calculate their itineraries on the basis of this information.

Complete details can be found in the press release at the link below. I think this concept is awesome!! Would you drive something like this? Let us know in the comments below.

Renault Frendzy: A Vehicle for Work and Family!

This one has been floating around the web for a while it appears, but Matthew brought it to our attention yesterday and I'm not sure how we missed it for so long. This is by far my favorite of all the BlackBerry themed songs we've posted thus far. Here we have Phil & Friends in and informal jam session singing about all that is BlackBerry. The song is super catchy and really well done, and once again sure to be stuck in your head for the rest of the day. Granted there is an iPhone floating around in the video, but since the song is so good we'll let them slide just this once. Check out the full video above and get your BlackBerry jam on :-)

CrackBerry member Otton sent in pictures of the BlackBerry cake that he received for his June birthday from his girlfriend Malena. Modeled after his BlackBerry Bold 9700, it really shows just how addicted he is to his BlackBerry. This style is a bit more subdued than some we've seen in the past, but it's unmistakably a BlackBerry and looks awesome! I hope it tasted as good as it looked. Happy birthday Otton! 

A couple more pictures can be seen after the break.

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It's no secret, we're big fans of BlackBerry around here, and we aren't the only ones. Our members are hooked too, and you know you're a die-hard fan when your addiction starts leaking over into other..unexpected..areas of your life. CrackBerry member nez just celebrated his birthday, and his wife got him this amazing BlackBerry Bold 9780 cake! I give this two CrackBerry thumbs way up, and all of us here at CrackBerry hope nez had a great birthday!

This isn't the first BlackBerry themed cake we've seen, and I hope it's not the last! If you have a BlackBerry cake, cookie, pastry, or other baked good you want to share with us, send it in to editorial (at) crackberry.com.

No stranger to the CrackBerry blogs, Will.I.Am. is a well known BlackBerry user and RIM spokesperson. He's performed at WES (now called BlackBerry World Conference), appeared at various product launches, and even had a BlackBerry PlayBook in a Black Eyed Peas music video before it was available for purchase.

The Black Eyed Peas were in France this week, and appeared on French TV show Taratata, performing a mash-up on stage with Belgian artist Stromae. During the song, you can see Will.I.Am pull his BlackBerry Torch out of his pocket, referring to the screen for a good portion of the song. There was speculation about what exactly Will.I.Am was doing, but in an interview following the song it's all made clear. It was their first time performing the song, and as such he didn't know the lyrics well. With so many songs floating around in his head, how can you blame him? And seriously, how awesome is it that he pulls out his BlackBerry to read those lyrics? You can check out the interview after the break. The interviewer asks about him pulling out his phone starting around the 9:40 mark in the video, and Will.I.Am discusses a bit about technology and how it plays into his life and their songwriting.

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