Carlette DeLeon: Tech Time: Blackberry Tips

There are a lot of smart phones out there, but in Jamaica, Blackberry reigns supreme as the most popular smart phone. Here are some quick, general tips to help you get the most from your BB.

General Tips

1. Insert an @ sign or period in the email field simply be pressing space. Pressing space twice in most other fields inserts a period

2. Insert a special character by holding down the corresponding letter key and scrolling with the trackpad/trackball

3. Capitalise a letter by holding the corresponding letter key down, this is often easier that than simultaneously hold down the ‘shirt’ key and letter key

4. Move to an item in the menu by pressing the corresponding first letter

5. Select a line of text by holding the ‘Shift’ key and rolling the trackpad/trackball

6. Move up or down a screen by pressing ‘Space’ or ‘Shift’ and ‘Space’

7. Dial a number with letters (such as 876.878.FAME) by holding the ‘ALT’ key and corresponding letter

8. Send your PIN easily my typing ‘MYPIN’ in an email or text field, your PIN will automatically appear

Crackberry addicts can bear the thought of having their smart phone battery die. Consider the following tips for preserving battery life.

1. Charge your phone with a wall charger as much as possible until fully charged

2. Reduce the speaker volume on the phone, use headsets where possible and disable EQ settings

3. Close your browser and applications completely when not being used, not just running in the background

4. Reduce the backlight timeout and brightness settings

5. Set audible roll and keytones to mute

6. Turn off unused connections such as WiFi and Bluetooth ® when not in use

7. Disable your camera flash

All the above tips work on all Blackberry models, but if you are inclined to upgrade, consider the new Blackberry Bold 9700. The new Bold is sleeker, sexier and more durable than previous BBs. The handset features all now traditional features like the high resolution screen that displays 65,000 colours, but “one-ups” old BBs by adding a light sensing display. The once revolutionary trackball has been replaced by the innovative trackpad. Expandable memory and easy to navigate multimedia options take full advantage of the long battery life. Forget pictures; shoot video with the on board 3.2 MP camera with auto focus, digital zoom and image stabilization. Then, upload your footage instantly to the internet using 3G or WiFi.