Jenn Writes

Tag: BlackBerry Classic

  • How my BlackBerry Passport Equals Mobile Freedom

    How my BlackBerry Passport Equals Mobile Freedom

    It’s no secret that I love my BlackBerry devices. I have a BlackBerry in my hand for a good 60% of the day.  One of the things I love most about BlackBerry is how easy it makes it to work on the go. I wrote about my Blackberry Classic  and how much I loved it and the difficulties in choosing a case for it. I’ve found the same thing with my BlackBerry Passport. I love the Passport even more than the Classic. At first I thought it was going to be too big. I looked down at the device in the box and thought “I’ll probably be using the Classic again within a month”. Well, I was wrong. So very wrong. The Classic has found a new home in the hands of my dad, and the Passport is mine, all mine. I mentioned with regards to the Classic how much I had missed the physical keyboard even though I had loved my Z30 with all my heart. Well the Passport takes the keyboard experience to a whole new level. It just feels right.  The screen width on the Passport makes reading text a breeze – the wider screen allows more characters which reduces scrolling (and makes me a happier reader). Contrary to what I thought before I had a Passport, the Passport does fit in my pants pocket, and in my purse, so it goes pretty much everywhere I go. I have a BlackBerry hard shell case on it 90% of the time and a Folio case with a credit card slot the rest of the time (It’s an aftermarket one, but needs improvements if it was going to be a daily driver).

    Last fall, I talked about the Blissdom Canada Social Media Conference and how I presented a micro-session there. What I didn’t say was that I did most of the planning for that session on my BlackBerry Passport. I didn’t want to have to carry my laptop around for the day, or make the trek back across Blue Mountain Resort to drop it back in my room. Instead I used Docs to go, and planned out my entire presentation on my mobile device. I travel 1-2 days a week and work remotely. Lately I’ve been doing all the work I need with just my BlackBerry Passport. I have a list of clients and projects on the go in BlackBerry Remember – I love how easy it is to add notes to items or mark items as finished and how I can flag email messages and attach them to the task list so that I’m not constantly going back and forth to check details from an email. I currently have 14 projects on the go and they’re all lined up neatly within the Remember app. In May, I’m going to be speaking at ROAM – another Social Media event – this time in Vancouver. My travel arrangements are in BlackBerry Travel – including confirmation numbers, hotel phone numbers, and event details. If someone asks me where I’ll be on one of the days when I’m in Vancouver, all I have to do is open BlackBerry Travel and all the information is right there.  I’m not taking my laptop to ROAM either. Having attended a number of conferences in the last 12 months and presented at one, I’m confident that my BlackBerry Passport will be all I need to work on the go.

    Working remotely via the BlackBerry Passport is awesome. One of the things that I love most about working from my BlackBerry is that unlike some other phones where you can only edit or view a document on the go, my BlackBerry Passport allows me to start a new document or spreadsheet, so I can start on a new project before I get back to my computer.  Given that the vast majority of my work is done in either Excel or Word, the ability to start documents is a must. There are so many little things to love about my Passport too – The Hub, for example. I’ve written about my love of the Hub before but it’s at a new level now that I’m emailing attachments almost daily. I love that I can search through email attachments directly from the hub while I’m on the phone with a client – there’s no lost time, which is good since I have very little to spare these days.  I love the way my Passport looks too – fashion isn’t a deal-breaker for me but it’s nice when function and fashion meld together so seamlessly.

    %{include image.html url=“/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/IMG_20150515_162425_edit.jpg” alt=“A BlackBerry Passport – a square shaped cellphone with a physical keyboard in a box” description=“I think this is one of the coolest looking phones out there.”}

    My Passport battery gets me through the work day – and I’ve been told I’m exceptionally hard on battery life due to the number of high drain apps I like to run at the same time. I use Facebook a lot for business these days, and while the loss of the dedicated Facebook app was hard on me, I actually enjoy the mobile browser experience more in terms of the capabilities to manage my pages. I’ve been off of Twitter lately due to some ugliness there, but check in via Blaq or the native Twitter app daily even if I’m not tweeting as much. I’m hoping that the problem has been solved by my recent blocking spree, and will be back to using Twitter to talk about the things I love.  Instagram – while there isn’t a native client for Instagram, there is a great app called Igrann that gives me all the access I need to take amazing photos and share them with the world. I love how easy it is to edit pictures in the native BlackBerry photo editor and a huge bonus is the 1:1 ratio that is the default on the Passport – making all my pictures perfect for Instagram without cropping (Yes, I know cropping is pretty simple but hey…saving time and effort is awesome). The Passport camera is amazing and I love taking effortless panorama shots.

    A panoramic view of the football field inside skydome taken from the 200 levels. There are players warming up on field and fans in the stands.
    Panorama picture from the last Argos game at the Rogers Centre. I love how panorama mode allowed me to capture everything in one shot.

    I use BlackBerry Messenger to set up meetings more than I use email now. I’ve convinced quite a few of my clients to try out BBM for Android or Iphone (those that aren’t already on BlackBerry devices) and love how easy it is to chat, add pictures, and even send works in progress back and forth over BBM. I could do that over text message I guess, but then I’m using MMS which can be expensive for some people, while BBM works over wifi.  I’m not a heavy email user – I probably send 25 a day and receive about 100 that I need to read, but I use my BlackBerry Passport about 95% of the time when I’m sending or reading emails. It’s just that much more convenient.  I also use my car’s Bluetooth connection and have the BlackBerry Assistant read emails to me if I’m driving when an important email comes in.

    Recently one of my friends joked that BlackBerry devices seem to be an extension of me – whether it was my Z30, my Passport, or my Classic, they seem like natural extensions of my body. I choose to take that as a compliment. We are well suited for each other – BlackBerry devices enable me to keep my busy life organized and allow me to work wherever I find myself as long as I have a signal. I couldn’t imagine trying to do what I do without a BlackBerry in my hand – I’m pretty sure it would be theoretically possible, but I know it wouldn’t be anywhere near as enjoyable. Have questions? Feel free to leave them below or find me on Social Media – I’m always willing to help #TeamBlackBerry.  Oh and this post? I wrote it entirely on my Passport – all 1300 words.

     

     

  • I’m All About That Case…

    I’m All About That Case…

    I love my BlackBerry Classic and my BlackBerry Z30 and I am very excited to be getting a BlackBerry Passport this month. What’s that? I have a phone addiction? It might be more of an obsession than an addiction, but I do love my BlackBerry devices. When I got my BlackBerry Bold 9900 years ago, one of the first things I did was get a screen protector. I didn’t want to scratch the screen or, even worse, chip it. I also made it awesome with some stickers that made it look like a TARDIS (yes, I’m a giant geek).

    A BlackBerry Bold 9900 in a case that makes it look like the TARIDS - a blue police call box
    My Beloved Bold 9900 – as a TARDIS !

    When I got my Z10 at launch, thanks to the BlackBerry Elite program, It had a custom back on it, with a tiny silver spark in the top right corner. I couldn’t bear to cover that up so I left it naked and put on a matte screen protector to carry it around. There are a lot of great screen protectors out there –  I like the matte ones better because they don’t show fingerprints as easily.

    Then I got my Z30.  There wasn’t a special back on it and I actually found it a little slippery.  Thank goodness BlackBerry devices are built tough – I dropped it 3 times in the 2 days after I got it. I tried out 3 different screen protectors for my Z30 – before finally settling on the BlackBerry screen protector. It was easy to install, looks good, and works well.  I have a couple of cases for my Z30 too – one for everyday use and one for special occasions. The daily driver case is another OEM gem. I guess it stands to reason that products made by BlackBerry fit BlackBerry products well. I have the White Transform Hardshell case and I love it. It also comes in black which looks sleek and a little sexy.

    I like the way the transform fits the Z30 without making it feel bulky. It gives me a little extra grip, a bit of colour and it can act as a stand when I’m watching Netflix or another video. For those times when I’m going to be using a bag or a purse, I have the black flip shell case which gives me a little more protection since it covers the screen so it doesn’t get scratched by stuff in my bag. I went with basic black, though I was tempted by some non BlackBerry made cases that were more colourful. The Trident Aegis case shown below was a serious contender until I learned that it didn’t ship to Canada. (If you’re in the US though, you should seriously look at this – click the picture to go to Amazon.com – it’s really nice and comes in 4 colours and I could live vicariously through your phone case.)

    When I got my Classic from “Bob”, it included a great Soft Gel Case, which I loved. Then my dad got a Classic and complained about it being hard to hold, so I lent him my beloved case and haven’t seen it since. I let him keep it because, well, he’s my dad and went looking for another case. Not being one to do things halfway, I ended up ordering two from Amazon and really like both of them. I have the screen protector that came with the BlackBerry soft shell case on the phone right now and it’s doing well.

    For my Passport, I asked around and got 3 very different suggestions, then looked and came up with a 4th of my own. I’m not sure which one I’m going to order yet. The first is the BlackBerry Hardshell Passport Black case- It looks good, is thin and has the BlackBerry logo on the back (which I really like). The second contender is the GMYLE Wallet Case because I loved the transform case’s ability to stand up, this one is a real contender. I’m not sure I’d use the wallet slots though.

    Help a girl out – I can’t choose!

  • I’ve been Bobbed!

    I’ve been Bobbed!

    Once in awhile the universe surprises you with something so wonderful, there are no words for it. Then again, I make my living with words so I’m going to find them. I belong to some fantastic groups on BlackBerry Messenger (BBM).  One of them, Team Z30 is a group of people from around the world who chat about pretty much everything. Yes, we are all using BlackBerry devices but we talk about our regular lives as often as we do about devices and upgrades and technological stuff. The members of the group have become like family to me – I worry about them when they’re going through stuff, I enjoy hearing how their day is going, and occasionally, I want to give some of them a good swift kick in the rear.

    The group was named Team Z30 because at the time of its creation, the Z30 was the newest BlackBerry 10 smartphone out there and it was one we all had. As newer BlackBerry 10 phones have been introduced, some members of the group have upgraded to either the Passport or the Classic. As a member of BlackBerry Elite, I get a device upgrade every year. I got the Z30 in late March 2014 which gives me my next device in the next few months. However, a lot of my friends have been asking what I think of the Passport and Classic devices. Having only used them for an hour or so each, I didn’t feel qualified to offer more than a basic opinion on them. I had mentioned this frustration in the group and asked members to let me know what they thought of the new devices so that I could pass on real user opinions to my friends and colleagues who wanted more than just a sales pitch.

    In February, BlackBerry Elites had a promotional code for the shop Blackberry website that gave customers $100 US or $125 Canadian off of a BlackBerry Passport in any colour. I shared the availability of the discount with the group members (and all my BBM contacts) and a number of group members took advantage of the savings to upgrade or get a second device. I love helping people get new BlackBerrys to fall in love with. It didn’t make sense for me to order a new one when times are a bit tight financially and my Z30 is working perfectly fine, so I lived vicariously through my friends who were getting new devices and posting lots of pictures of the unboxing.

    A few weeks ago, one of the members of the group messaged me to say that she had a screen protector for my phone and that she would like to send it to me. I was flabbergasted that someone I hadn’t met in person would do such a thing, but then I remembered that I’ve sent along chargers and cases for phones to people I’ve only known virtually. I sent along my address and waited.

    Then I waited some more. It seems that the Canadian Border Services Agency decided to keep my package for a few days. Then it meandered around Ontario for a few more days. Then, on the 20th, the sender got a message that there had been an attempted delivery and the package was being held at the post office. Except that I’d been home all day and had gone to the superbox at the end of the subdivision and there was no notice or anything else from Canada Post. Strange, but I decided to give it until Tuesday to start raising heck as I’m on a rural route and sometimes my mail takes a bit longer to get from the sorting depot. Tuesday dad was heading out for a business lunch so I asked him to check the mailbox for a slip or a package and let me know. He called to tell me that there was a package being held at the Post office for $55 in “fees”. $55 for a screen protector? That seemed a little rich, even for customs and brokerage fees (and taxes – there are always taxes). So I BBMed my friend. I asked if there was something I should know since I needed to pay a $55 hostage fee for the package. My friend didn’t want to spoil the surprise, but realized that the lovely people at Canada Post had tied her hands. So she told me.

    It wasn’t just a screen protector in the box. It was a new screen for the screen protector to go on – in the form of a BlackBerry Classic! She was quick to tell me that the phone wasn’t from her, it was from an anonymous source who wished to be identified only as Bob.

    Here is the note that accompanied the package: (I am so jealous of the handwriting!)

    %{include image.html url=“/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/img_20150302_141743_edit.jpg” alt=“A handwritten note that says Dear Jenn, You’ve been Bobbed. PS this gift is not from me” description=“It’s a mystery”}

    There was a lot of screaming going on in the family room as I grabbed the heavy duty scissors and went at the multiple rounds of packing tape. I carefully cut off the customs paperwork and put it in a file (I keep stuff like that just in case), then I ripped into the box with abandon. Not only was there a nice new (at least to me), Classic but also a skin and an official BlackBerry pocket to put it in. There was also the screen protector that started the whole adventure, and a piece of delicious chocolate. My day, month, year, have been made.

    %{include image.html url=“/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/img_20150224_153841_edit2.jpg” alt=“A BlackBerry Classic, with 2 different cases, a screen protector, and a small chocolate” description=“So much goodness in one package”}

    So to “Bob”, I’d like to say Thank You. When I get my next upgrade, one of my devices (either the Z30 or the Classic) will be passed on in a similar manner to continue the circle. Your generousity touched me and came at a time when I was feeling low. Knowing somebody cares – makes all the difference. Yet another reason why I am a proud member of #TeamBlackBerry

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