I must admit I’m usually not one for posting stuff about other products, such as the iPhone, but this video was just too sweet. It seems a very angry iPhone user decided to take his Beretta 9mm handgun and shoot his iPhone 3 times, then burn it to ensure its dead. The iPhone owner appears to be angry over Apple denying the Google Voice app in their app store. All we can say is get a BlackBerry…

Here’s what the poster wrote:

Dear apple, We are sick and tired of your dictatorship. We refuse to be suffocated by your iron fist. Google Voice was the last straw. From now on I am a PC where I have my freedom.�

Enjoy the video (It’s also available in HD)…

[via MobileSyrup]

The Research and Consulting firm, IDC, listed the top-selling smartphone models in the US. It lists vendor sales to carriers and channels as well. So far it’s going on preliminary data. The actual numbers won’t be available till the end of the month. So let’s see what the firm says so far.

No 10 is the HTC Touch from Sprint, Nextel, and Verizon Wireless.

No 9 is the HTC Touch Pro from Sprint, Verizon Wireless, AT&T, and others.

No 8 is the Palm Pre from Sprint.

No 7 is the T-Mobile G1 by HTC from T-Mobile USA.

No 6 is the Research In Motion BlackBerry Storm from Verizon Wireless.

No 5 is the Research In Motion BlackBerry Bold from AT&T.

No 4 is the Apple iPhone 3G (both versions) from AT&T.

No 3 is the Research In Motion BlackBerry Pearl (all 81xx series, excluding the Flip) from AT&T, Sprint, Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile, and others.

No 2 is the Apple iPhone 3GS (both versions) from AT&T.

No 1 is the Research In Motion BlackBerry Curve (83xx series and 8900) from AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, Verizon Wireless, and others.

So what does that say? Research In Motion rules the smartphone world, and the BlackBerry Curve is still holding the number one position. I’m not surprised, though I’m very curious to see how the numbers change with the BlackBerry Tour 9630 entering the smartphone scene. I really like the Tour, it’s been very reliable, and I’m curious to see if it will rise to the top or come pretty close.

Anyone have any thoughts to share?

[via: FierceWireless]

I just got a great tip via email, that even I didn’t notice. If you head over to RIM’s product page for the newly announced BlackBerry Curve 8520 you’ll notice something quite interesting. It says that the BlackBerry Curve 8520 will support Mac computers out of the box. This means that anyone (such as myself) who was been desperately waiting for RIM to release BlackBerry Desktop Manager for Mac has a smile on their face. If all goes as planned T-Mobile USA should be launching the 8520 around August 5th, meaning we should be able to download DTM for Mac shortly after that. Keep chekcing in for more details when we get ‘em.

It seemed like it was never coming, but today RIM’s official blog broke word of their upcoming BlackBerry Desktop Manager for Mac. According to RIM we will see the official BlackBerry Desktop Manager for Mac this September. The new DTM for Mac will allow you to do pretty much everything that the PC version does. If your a Mac user and want to be notified when its ready for download simply head over to blackberry.com/mac and register your email.

Feature list:

• Sync your iTunes® playlists, calendars, contacts, notes and tasks
• Add/Remove applications
• Update your device when new software becomes available
• Backup and restore your device data with such features like automatically scheduled backups and optional encryption
• Manage multiple devices

RIM has reported $643 million in earnings (that’s $1.12 per share), for the 1st Quarter that ended May 30th. A year ago, that result was 482.5 million (that’s $.84 a share). Excluding a $175.1 million tax credit and other items such as that, RIM earned $564.4 million (that’s $.98 a share). Revenue was $3.42 billion, that’s a whole 53% from the same quarter last year.

This was pretty much in line with what was expected. About 81% of the revenue was attained from the sales of BlackBerry devices, 13% from service, 2% from software, 4% from various businesses. Gross margins were at a strong 43.6%, up from 40% last quarter.

RIM stated it had shipped 7.8 million BlackBerry smartphones and added 3.8 million BlackBerry subscribers which is now at almost 29 million. According to the IDC, RIM is estimated to hold 55% share of the U.S. Smartphone market. So with the great news on hand, why did shares of RIMM fall 5% in after hours trading time? Inflated expectations and the fact that RIM met expectations, but some investors want to see them exceed expectations. Investors are worried about Apple’s newer iPhone, Palm’s Pre, and also the addition of Google’s new Android smartphone (Goog), Samsung, and even Nokia that are now competing to try and get in on the competition. RIM says it will sell between 8.1 and 8.7 BlackBerry devices in the second quarter. With the Flip Pearl (”no more butt-dialing”) on the scene, the Storm 2 and the Tour (hopefully to be arriving soon to a cellular provider near you) on the horizon, RIM may just exceed the goal they’ve set for the next quarter.

[via: Daily Financial]

“Successful Mobile Deployments Require Robust Security“, by Maribel Lopez, who was formerly with Forrester Research, states that the BlackBerry smartphones are the most secure against unauthorized access when they were compared against other device manufacturers. The report rates mobile devices in four different categories and the RIM BlackBerry devices stood out in all of them.

The report rated them on: Device; Network; Transmission; and Overall Mobile Security Rating. I’ll break it down for you what each manufacturer was rated and the comments it received.

Let’s start with Apple’s iPhone. In Device it was found the OS can be compromised, lacks device encryption, and does not have OTA updates. In that rating it scored 0%. In Network it received 75% as it uses the same active directory based authentication methods as Windows Mobile. In Transmission it received 50% for it having full VPN support but doesn’t have the added extra protection of a gateway or NOC server solution. The Overall Mobile Security Rating was 25% because even though v2.0 added several security features the platform still doesn’t have several basic yet critical features.

Now it’s Microsoft Windows Mobile’s turn. In Device it received 50% and comments were that it has a two-tier access for code execution control, removable storage but not on the device encryption, it supports OTA updates, and it requires third party Anti-Virus and Firewall support. In Network it received 75% and the comment was it uses certificate and active directory domain services for authentication. Transmission received three fourths as well with the commentary that it has full VPN support but provides MDM gateway in the DMZ. The Overall Security Rating was 75% with the comment that the Windows MDM security update covers a majority of firms basic security requirements.

And last we have the BlackBerry. For Device it received a 100%, comments were that it allows complete control on what can be executed on the device, on device and removable media encryption, and supports OTA updates. In Network it reached 100% with the comments that it encrypts the message and uses an cryptographic shared key system for authentication. In Transmission it received 100% with the comments that it routes traffic through the NOC and the BES to ensure Security and does not require a VPN. The Overall Mobile Security Rating was 100% as the comment states RIM provides solid security across the three areas of vulnerability.

We all knew it all along, even with a PDF security breach, BlackBerry is still on top. Another reason to love your BlackBerry. What do you think of the report? Share your comments, we want to know!

[via: BlackberryBlast]

The NPD Group, a leader in wireless industry market research, released their “Smartphone Market Update” report which is based on US Consumer sales of smartphones. And once again, RIM proves to be the leader. The NPD Group attributed the rise to a “buy-one-get-one” sale by Verizon Wireless, which helped RIM’s numbers increase by fifteen percent to an almost fifty percent of the smartphone market in this first quarter, as Apple’s iPhone and Palm sales decreased each by ten percent. Another factor is that the BlackBerry Curve is sold by more than one carrier. And the numbers prove that while there are newer BlackBerry smartphones, and even more stylish looking Curve family members, the 83xx series is still the beloved and preferred BlackBerry Curve.

The top-ten best-selling smartphones for this first quarter are:

1. RIM BlackBerry Curve (all 83XX models)
2. Apple iPhone 3G (all models)
3. RIM BlackBerry Storm
4. RIM BlackBerry Pearl (all models, except flip)
5. T-Mobile G1

The Curve is number one, with the  Storm and Pearl taking the #3 and #4 slot.  Back in the first quarter of 2008, smartphones were 17% of handset sales in comparison to the first quarter of 2009 in which the smartphone sales are now 23%. Between Business and the Consumer markets, it has truly been a great quarter for RIM.

[via: Engadget & NPD Group, Inc]

We just received a tip that an upcoming BlackBerry Storm OS will introduce better finger movements for copy/pasting and selecting text. In the picture above you see the little box which you can drag along to highlight text. It’s quite a good idea!! We can’t tell you just yet what OS this will appear in however expect it soon at the rate of all these beta leaks. Using the box to slide your finger on the screen it makes it a lot easier to select text and copy/paste things. This little box at first reminded me of the hover on the iPhone, however it does not show the words magnified. Regardless it’s a great addition to the BlackBerry Storm and will for sure come in handy!

Here’s a video so you under.. Forgive me trying to operate camera and Storm at the same time…

As always stay tuned for more details…

_{If you have a great BlackBerry tip and would like to keep it confidential please use our secure tip form.}

If your a Mac user like myself you might be a little frustrated with the lack of BlackBerry software available (directly from RIM). Things are looking up though! Last week we heard that RIM was in fact working on a Mac version of their Media Sync which syncs with your non-DRM protect iTunes music. Today who else but Boy Genius got his hands on a copy of the software for Macs! Take a peak at the upcoming software, which hopefully will be available shortly. All I can say is this is gonna be sweet with a BlackBerry Storm :)

- The iPhone uses multi-touch technology / Storm uses haptic feedback technology
- iPhone was Wi-Fi / Storm doesn’t
- iPhone has an app store / Storm doesn’t (maybe coming soon?)
- iPhone syncs with iTunes / Storm will be able too but not as well?
- iPhone users Safari for browsing / Storm uses RIM’s browser
- iPhone is GSM/3G / Storm is CDMA/GSM/Dual band HSDPA

Check out the full release below

[Source]