Earlier this week I had the pleasure of hanging out with a bunch of the BlackBerry folks on the BBM team. I had a chance to express my (pretty strong) opinions, make suggestions and pick their collective brains on BBM topics of all kinds. Just to make this clear, they didn’t reveal any big secrets, but I think I now have a good idea of what seems to be a priority to the team. Without...
Mobile Nations' resident analyst Chris Umiastowski on why he thinks today's C-Level cuts could bode well for BlackBerry's future
Password Keeper has been one of our favorite apps for years but it always seems to be missing come key functions. One of those was the ability to import and export the database without the use of BlackBerry Link (or Desktop Manager). A new version of Password Keeper has leaked in the CrackBerry forums that does just that however. The BAR file has been extracted and made available for...
With BlackBerry remaining a public company, a great number of us are obviously interested in what they can do to boost their valuation. As much as I hope they can sustain themselves as a mobile platform (software, services and handsets too), it’s a tough battle. But BBM can survive even without BlackBerry as an independent platform. It’s now a cross platform (and still awesome) chat...
Loading up Android apps is all the rage thanks to the OS 10.2.1.1055 leak, and luckily there are plenty of ways to do so. One of the more popular ones seems to be the Amazon Appstore. While it's been a mixed bag for us as far as actually getting apps from the store to run, some users are reporting that they've had success -- even with paid apps. One user reached out to Amazon...
BlackBerry OS 10.2.1 has leaked. It is by no means official but a lot of you have loaded it up onto your BlackBerry 10 devices already. No doubt enjoying all the new features to be found. BlackBerry 10 has certainly come a long way since it first landed back in January 2013. Just take a look at the BlackBerry 10 Master change log we've put together. BlackBerry OS 10.2.1 brings a lot...
BlackBerry OS 10.2.1.1055 is definitely awesome. The OS isn't even officially available but many users have already fired up the latest leak to take advantage of all the new features. One of those features is the ability to load APK files right on the device, giving BlackBerry users access to an even bigger set of applications. There are a few issues however, one being that most apps...
Earlier this week, BlackBerry posted on their dev blog an official note about the Android Runtime update coming to users as part of OS 10.2.1. There is more to 10.2.1 than updating the runtime from Gingerbread 2.3 to Jelly Bean 4.2.2 -- this is also the update that allows BlackBerry app developers to build headless apps -- a much sought after feature by native BlackBerry app...
We haven't heard too many rumors floating around for any new devices for a while, but one that's been on our radar is the BlackBerry C-Series. We've seen some images of the device before however some new ones have now surfaced that lend a bit more info. As uncovered by ofutur in the CrackBerry forums, the images are the standard tutorial shots from within the OS. Here we see a few...
The judges worked long and hard going through the hundreds of submissions in this year's Halloween Photo Contests, and they have finally narrowed it down and chosen the winners! There were so many incredible entries, from funny to scary with everything in between, and all of them were super creative, so this was a really hard contest to judge! It took a little bit longer than we had...
On Friday of last week, a bunch of us at CrackBerry sat down for podcast to discuss all the changes going on inside of the company right now. For a good chunk of time we discussed the possibility of BlackBerry gaining full access to all of the apps in the Google Play store. Since that podcast we’ve seen several bits of news, so it seems like a good topic to dive into a bit deeper. One...
This weekend you may have noticed the forums buzzing with rumors over Google Play coming to BlackBerry 10. We weren't quite sure what the deal was since there were no solid details, but we did reach out to BlackBerry to try and set the record straight. According to the rumors, you'll soon be able to run Google Play on your BlackBerry 10 device and have full access to the wide variety...
BlackBerry has started a new program through the Beta Zone and is testing the new Carbonite Pocket Case for the BlackBerry Z30. A good number of users have already been accepted to the program and the cases are starting to arrive. Some members have taken to the forums with their initial thoughts and overall the case is getting some good reviews thus far. Judging by the reviews, the...
A few days ago in the CrackBerry Forums another leaked OS appeared with the version number 10.2.01.845, we never posted it to the blogs because of the fact it wasn't a full OS and realistically no one should be loading it unless you simply enjoy poking around the files to see what BlackBerry has left behind and what they may be somewhat secretly working on. Now that it's a few days old...
This week started off with a bang. Fairfax pulled away from its initial offer to take BlackBerry private, and instead brought forward the idea of a $1 billion convertible debt offering. With BlackBerry’s balance sheet showing $2.3 billion in cash as of last quarter, this financing will put BlackBerry’s total cash balance over $3 billion when complete. It’s expected to be complete within...
Now that I've had 24 hours to think about yesterday's interesting financial twist and read plenty of other reporting on the subject, I thought I'd come back with another post to clear up a few things. First off, it was likely incorrect of me to say that Fairfax wasn't able to raise the $4.7 billion required to take BlackBerry private. I know some reputable media outlets said they were...
Following today's news that John Chen will be replacing Thorsten Heins as interim CEO of BlackBerry, we did some quick googling to dig up a handful of videos on the man who will soon be leading the company's day to day operations. With BlackBerry not going private, we can only imagine lots of interviews will be in Mr. Chen's future, so we wanted to get an early look. Past performance is...
In a surprise twist this morning, BlackBerry is going to stay public. What I’ll do in this quick editorial is explain what’s happening in plain language, along with my thoughts. The financing: Fairfax wasn’t able to raise the entire $4.7 billion required to go firm on its original $9/share take-private bid. That much had been anticipated, and was heavily reported in the media this...
Thorsten Heins to step down as BlackBerry CEO at closing
WOW! Crazy news this morning! This Tweet just came through from @globeinvestor: #Breaking: #BlackBerry abandons plan to find buyer, will replace CEO $BBRY$FFH.CA$BB.CA. Details soon from @globebusiness — Globe Investor (@globeinvestor) November 4, 2013 According to the Globe and Mail, BlackBerry is abandoning the deal with Fairfax Financial and will instead look to raise $1-billion...
That's according to a new report coming out of Reuters who's sources familiar with the matter claim several large banks are reluctant to participate due to the concerns that BlackBerry will not be able to reverse its rapidly declining fortunes. While Fairfax has Bank of America Merrill Lynch and BMO Capital Markets on board, several other large lenders are said to of have passed on the...
This afternoon the Wall Street Journal just posted a story saying that Mike Lazaridis and Doug Fregin, co-founders of Research In Motion, may jointly bid for BlackBerry along with support from Cerberus Capital Management. The WSJ cites the usual anonymous “people familiar with the matter”. As a reminder, Lazaridis and Fregin, together, own about 8% of BlackBerry stock, and are not...
It has nearly been 6 weeks since BlackBerry’s board of directors entered into an agreement with a consortium of investors led by Fairfax Financial. As a reminder, here is what that agreement said in plain English: They take BlackBerry private for $9 per share. The general agreement is for Fairfax, and its partner investors, to take BlackBerry off the public market by purchasing all...