[taxist]

Suping up a BlackBerry 8820

I bought a BlackBerry 8820 from AT&T because it has built in Wi-Fi and GPS chips. I thought I would be able to navigate the streets and surf the internet on Wi-Fi, but I found out two sad facts, to use the Wi-Fi you have to have the $30 data plan (even though you'll use your own network) and that you need to have a data plan so you can pull maps from the internet. I think paying $360 a year to have internet in your pocket is silly. I had the data plan for a month, after paying my bill I realized that I barely used it. In my case, I have internet at home, at work, at school, essentially everywhere I go except the car. So I ended up with a phone that has the hardware, but not the software to let me do what I want. I am very satisfied with the amazing reception and the battery life I get on the BlackBerry, that alone is worth having the, but I figured I should mess around with it and see how I can supe up the phone without paying for the data plan. The BlackBerry OS is robust, enterprise centered, why not tinker when suffering some insomnia? I thought I would share my experience with others, maybe it would save someone some headache, because I've spent way too much time on this.

The box I got from AT&T came with a CD that had the BlackBerry Desktop Manager on it, however, I also found out that I had to download the installation file from AT&T, in my case the file was (8820M_PBr4.2.2_rel305_PL2.4.0.67_A4.2.2.169_AT&T. exe) before I could install anything onto my handset. Until I did that it kept giving me this cryptic error:
App Loader - Error - No additional apps designed for your device were found...
So, download the file from your service provider, apparently it contains something that the CD doesn't... as irrational as that is... why on earth would you press CDs and not have all the necessary software included beats me.

One of the first things I did was get a SanDisk 8GB MicroSD card and SDHC reader from eBay, under $28. This will make life more fun, you can load a bunch of music and picture on your BlackBerry.

Some interesting applications that I installed:
1. bPhone zen (gotta love clown fish) by RogersMJ
2. Opera Mini 4.1
3. Google Talk, Gmail + other google apps
4. MyAlarm by lhurtado.vtrbandaancha
5. MobileTracker by Skylab-Mobilesystems
6. Berry-a-Code by Pint-Sized Apps
7. BerryDialer by S4BB Limited
8. iSkoot for Skype
9. Viigo
10. Nimbuzz
11. X2Blue by eamobile-tk
12. BlueChat by M-Socius
13. BerryUnitConverter
14. BBCalls by S4BB Limited
15. TIPMaster 1.1.1 by BBerryOne
16. VNC+ 1.2.6 by ShapeServices
17. TSMobiles 2.3.8 by ShapeServices
18. Facebook
19. Mobile GMaps 1.39.17
20. Mobile File Manager 2.5.36 by Rove Mobile Inc.
21. StopWatch 1.0 by BerryApps
22. MidpSSH 1.6.0
23. Flashlight Pro by S4BB Limited
24. ASV Bible 1.26 by OliveTree
25. FlipSide 1.07 by Electric Pocket Limited
26. TwitterBerry 0.8 by Orangatame Software

I decided to upgrade the operating system to Blackberry OS 4.5, if you google for "8820EastAsia_PBr4.5.0" you'll find the latest instructions on how to do that. The only drawback I found was that the bPhone theme wouldn't work everywhere, I think if you give it enough time then there will be even better themes for OS 4.5. With the upgrade to OS 4.5 you get better security, DocumentsToGo suite which lets you view MS Office documents, it gives you a pretty nifty Voice Notes Recorder, improves the built-in media player and a bunch of other stuff.

At first I could not figure out a way to use the Wi-Fi without using the data plan, but after some searching and testing, I was able to do it. This is what you need to do:
1. Clear all the APN settings (Options -> Advanced Options -> TCP)
2. Options -> Advanced Options -> Browser : set to "Wi-Fi Browser" (or Hotspot Browser in OS 4.5)
The rest should be pretty straight forward. If you install Opera Mini 4.1 you can set the "Wi-Fi" checkbox in Settings
There is a string you can use in certain applications to make them work with Wi-Fi, you can Google around for the compliant apps, here's the string so your Googling will be made easier:
;DeviceSide=True;ConnectionUID=S TCP-WiFi;ConnectionSetup=delayed;retrynocontext=true
I haven't messed with this enought to figure out how it works.

My obsessiveness about finding a maps program that would use maps from the SD card paid off, I found is Mobile GMaps, a small little app, combite with "Shustrik's .map Creation Tool for MGMaps" you can download maps to your BlackBerry and use it for GPS navigation in your car or elsewhere. When I finally discovered this, it was a happy day!

If you want to keep some pictures on your BlackBerry 8820, you can re-size your photos to the size 320x240 as that is the resolution of the screen and would be optimal for loading speed.

During my cubicle days I bought a Motorola HT820 Bluetooth Stereo Headphone/Headset and now I use it with my 8820, and it works out pretty sweet, with my 8GB I loaded about twenty of my favorite albums and enjoy listening to them when I read at the library or walk. When a call comes in, the music pauses, I talk to the called and then the music resumes. Lazy, I know. One thing that I discovered is that you can make playlists on the computer, but you have to make sure that the playlists you save are in EXTM3U (extended M3U) format, it seems that my Media Player only takes this type of playlist.

Well, that's all folks. Just thought I'd post this up for those of you out there with an 8820 and no idea. If there is something sweet you do on your 8820, I would love to hear about it. I'm still getting a feel for this device.

Spread the love,
taxist

PS: I wanted to post links, but the forum wouldn't let me, sorry you have to Google a bit.

[dingcrespo]

thanks for the information, I just got mine and cant wait to try some of it.