BlackBerryInsight

Introduction

I just did some research on BlackBerry contracts in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (Hong Kong S.A.R.). I guess there might be some of you who would like to know more about this topic. Even if you are not from Hong Kong you might be interested in contracts for BlackBerry devices and plans somewhere else. It often gives you an overview of the prices out there. Anyway, as I was personally interested in this topic, I thought it might be a nice step to share this information with you.

First of all, my preferences:
It would be great to have one the recent BlackBerry devices with the newest technologies. Therefor, a BlackBerry should:

• have a built-in GPS receiver
• support Wi-Fi
• support GSM (as Hong Kong’s networks are GSM powered)
• have a camera
• have a microSD slot

Devices

Unfortunately, there is no BlackBerry with all those features available by now. The most interesting ones in Hong Kong are:

The great thing in Hong Kong is: If you are signing a contract at a provider like 1010 HK CSL you will get the price of the device credited to your monthly bill. E.g. you buy an 8820 for HK$ 4288. You just pay this sum at the day of purchase. Every month you get a bill (according to your contract) and you will get 1/10 of the purchase price credited to it. This would be HK$ 428.80 every month. You will get this for ten months which result in a free device after all.

Contracts and Charges

1010 HK CSL has two essential plans for individuals:

• 1010 + BlackBerry for Individuals: Monthly Plan
• 1010 + BlackBerry for Individuals: Traveller Monthly Plan

The traveller plan is a bit more expensive than the normal monthly plan but includes free roaming in an area of your choice. So for example, if you are travelling a lot in Asia, you can enjoy free BlackBerry service roaming in Australia, China (PRC), India, Indonesia, Japan, Macau, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand. There is also a special China Traveller Plan which provides only free roaming in China Mainland.

Both (normal and traveller) plans are available as 5 MB and 50 MB packages. You can find an overview on this below:

If you are on any of those plans and you are travelling out of your “free roaming area” (e.g. you don’t have the traveller plan or you are not in the area your traveller plan uses the world roaming includes) you have to pay charges depending on the provider you are roamed into. in Germany for example you would pay something between HK$ 0.12 (O2 Germany) and HK$ 0.30 (Vodafone) with different minimum charge units. However, it seems to be still quite cheap.

Data Plans

While all mentioned rates above are just for the BlackBerry email service you can also get normal data usage plans. If you want to surf the web or use third party applications that connect to internet services, you might need one of those plans. An overview on this can be found below:

There is also a traveller package for data usage which would cost HK$ 338 per month including 15 MB of traffic if you decide to travel into a certain region (e.g. Asia like mentioned above). All charges thereafter - no matter which data usage plan you are on - cost the usual HK$ 0.03 per KB.

We hope you are now a bit more informed in what is available for individual BlackBerry users in Hong Kong. Please keep in mind that all of those charges, plans, devices, fees, and information are just from one provider (1010 HK CSL). There are more providers available like SmartoneVodafone and Hutchison.

Links:

• 1010 HK CSL
• 1010 HK CSL BlackBerry Site
• Smartone Vodafone
• Hutchison / 3
• A BlackBerry Guide for Hong Kong

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Technically this is pretty easy. As the BlackBerry Pearl (this example) comes with a bright screen - like all BlackBerry devices - you can also use it as a flash light.

There are a bunch of flashlight / torch applications out there and you can choose one of them. I guess there is no big difference. The really cool thing is, you can use your BlackBerry’s convenience key to link a key directly to your flashlight application. Lern more on your convenience / soft key setting HERE.

I am using for this:

• BlackBerry Pearl 8100
• Flashlight Pro

So if I am in the dark and am looking for the lock to put my key in - I just click the softkey on my BlackBerry, the flashlight switches on, and I can see what I am doing! Easy, huh?

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The new year 2008 is coming and BlackBerryInsight is looking forward to bring you great gadgets and news from the BlackBerry front.

If you are looking for productivity tools, software, games, ebooks, and anything you can put onto your BlackBerry: Take a look to our BlackBerryInsight Software Store! (and get 20% discount!)

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I just found out that there is a new BlackBerry Pearl 8120 with Chinese input method available in Hong Kong by now!

Quote: “Support English Spell Check and Simplified Chinese Input (WuBiHua / PinYin)”

That’s great news! I was looking for such an device for more than a year! Now it is available at the shops of HK CSL in Hong Kong. Unfortunately, I could not find its BlackBerry OS for download - so I could upgrade my old BlackBerry with the new software. However, the 8120 in Hong Kong comes with features like: Wireless email Organiser, Browser, Phone, Camera, Video Recording, BlackBerry® Maps, Multi-media player, Corporate data access, SMS, MMS, and Wi-Fi! The missing GPS receiver is a huge contra argument for not buying this device. I just like to track my trips and play around outside.

Links: BlackBerry Pearl 8120 at 1010 HKCSL

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The following has just arrived in my inbox.

Merry Christmas

MobileSoftMarket - your market for mobile software - wants to celebrate Christmas with you! Purchase a license. Get a Christmas rebate. Download instantly. Enjoy!

Christmas is a special time in the year. We would like to share our success in the market with you all! It is a time of giving and saying “Thank you”. Thank you all for your trust and support in our idea of distributing mobile software at lowest prices on the market.

20% OFF at MobileSoftMarket.
Code: LG2MC9 (valid before 2008-01-24)
(Tip: This discount code can be used for all other products at the shop)

Please find a short selection of Christmas products and our bestselling articles below.

	Sudoku Expert - Christmas Edition for BlackBerry® The ultimate christmas puzzle! Only $12.99 $10.39		Christmas Wallpaper Pack for BlackBerry® High quality wallpapers for the best time of the year! Only 4.49 $3.59
	BerryDialer for BlackBerry® Save up to 80% by using calling cards! Only 19.99 $15.99		NextAction! (World Edition) for BlackBerry® GTD® and productivity at its best! Only $39.95 $31.96
	Wallpaper Megaplex for BlackBerry® Lifetime access to our huge wallpaper library! Only $9.99 $7.99		EBook MegaPack for BlackBerry® 96 ebooks in one pack! Only $59.99 $47.99

More interesting products can be found at MobileSoftMarket.

We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Getting Things Done and GTD are registered trademarks of David Allen & Co. The RIM, BlackBerry and SureType families of related marks, images and symbols are the exclusive properties and trademarks of Research In Motion Limited.

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BlackBerryInsight introduces a new area at the left side bar.

Everything listed there is free for all of you to use. Feel free to share the link to BlackBerryInsight with your friends, relatives and co-workers.

The BlackBerryInsight team hopes you enjoy our service. Free is the right thing!

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DDH Software is today launching HanDBase 4.0, a major update to the top mobile database program. Many people get intimidated by the term “database”, but HanDBase is simply the easiest way to create your own solution–whether you need to store and organize information for work or personal uses. HanDBase 4.0 is a very significant upgrade, with Vista support and more options for data filtering and synchronization, and with its cross platform functionality, you can exchange information with other users regardless of the type of device (Palm OS, Windows Mobile, Symbian, BlackBerrt) they are using.

Official press release: DDH Software Launches HanDBase 4.0, a Major Update to the Top Mobile Database for Personal and Business Use
New version delivers Vista support and more options for data filtering and synchronization

“HanDBase 4.0 again sets the standard for mobile databases, with features deep enough for power business users in a wide variety of fields such as medicine, inspections, and education, yet easy enough for anybody to create and manage lists for their own needs,” said David Haupert, president of DDH Software. “HanDBase is still the most flexible and inventive program available for handhelds–and it is always amazing to see the ingenious uses of HanDBase as users create their own mobile applications.”

Screenshots:

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Evelyn asked us: “I’m trying to find out if any of the chinese carriers offer the Pearl
in China? Or, if I’m bringing my Pearl from the U.S. to China, will
any of the carriers support it? I’m moving to China, and I love my
Pearl to death. I’d appreciate any advice/insights.”

The Pearl is not available in China right now. It seems it will still take some time to get the Pearl from a Chinese provider. The problem is not the device or service! I used a BlackBerry Pearl in China with no problems. There is currently a limitation of the Pearl which is a good reason for not selling the Pearl in China: there is no Chinese input method available for the Pearl. That’s why this device is not sold in China. However, if you plan to bring your Pearl to China, it will work without any issues. Except the input method: You will not be able to write SMS in Chinese or save names of your contacts using Chinese characters. Unfortunately, this is a huge issue for Chinese customers and the only reason why there is no SureType BlackBerry available in China until now.

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PhoneFavs Debuts as First Social Bookmarking System Optimized for Mobile Phone Users

PhoneFavs is accessible on the web at http://phonefavs.com or via pfavs.com, and is available for any device with a web browser — smartphones, feature-phones, iPhone’s. PDA’s, tablets and portable computers.

Website: http://phonefavs.com
Source: http://phonefavs.com/press

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It seems to be new that there is the possibility to get BerryDialer customized for enterprise purposes.

I am using BerryDialer for international calls which saves me a lot money. However, it might be interesting for companies to get this application with pre-loaded data for example. That would make it easy to deploy it to a bunch of handsets through a BES.

Also just purchasing an higher amount of license can save a lot of money in the first place. By using calling cards on a BlackBerry you can even save 80% for international calls. The applications integrates seamlessly into the BlackBerry’s address book and therefor, offers an high grade of convenience. It can be used very easy, just like the BlackBerry’s phone application.

Links:

• BerryDialer Site
• BerryDialer Enterprise Customization

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