Hi,

This is the only Blackberry app with fully offline GPS Ski maps with track analysis specially designed for skiers and riders. The app supports navigation quality GPS maps for 85+ resorts in N. America and 460+ resorts in Europe.

The developer would love it if you could try out BerrySki and let them know your feedback by sending an email directly to support@berryski.com

BerrySki offers the first fully offline GPS ski maps software for BlackBerry with analytics for skiers and snowboarders in North America(85+ ski resorts) and Europe(460+ ski resort). You can find a video demonstration of a subset of features here(www.berryski.com/main/allvideos) .

The software does not require any internet connectivity once the maps are downloaded to the device. A detailed description of all the features is here ( www.berryski.com/main/features).

BlogBabel Tags: berryski, Blackberry apps GPS Ski Maps

If you want to remove that “Say a Command!” voice dialing application from your BlackBerry smartphone there is a easy and simple way to remove the Voice Activated Dialing from your BlackBerry,VAD (Voice Activated Dialing) – usually activated by pressing the default assigned left convenience key. Just follow these steps. OTA Download

BlogBabel Tags: How to remove Voice Activated Dialing from your BlackBerry?

MaxMem for BlackBerry is a free app that allows you to free up to 5MB of memory. MaxMem cleans up your BlackBerry from unused applications, themes, and files that come preinstalled. Enjoy more memory and slightly faster speed. OTA Download

BlogBabel Tags: Free App: MaxMem for BlackBerry - Instant Free Memory Boost!

Applico let us know about their latest app called Aurkon. Aurkon is a free application that offers automatic wireless backup of your BlackBerry information. Aurkon backup includes Contacts, Calendar entries, Tasks, Memos and other items they don’t specifically specify.

I have not had a chance to use Aurkon myself but it kind of reminds me of a less feature full version of SmrtGuard. The only caveat I have with Aurkon is that I am trusting them with my sensitive contact information and they make no promises about how securely they are storing that information.

Aurkon Features:

• Constantly runs in the background. Never misses anything.
• Only sends out data when your phone is idle. Doesn’t interfere with performance.
• The home screen reports how many records have been sent and how many are in queue.
• Checks for an optimal network connection before trying to connect.
• Sends out records in bulk. So, for example, when you first create an account, Aurkon can send your hundreds or thousands! of records out at once to be backed up instead of one at a time.

The app is free so I am not sure how they will pay for their costs of storing your backups. Still it may be worth a shot if you are looking for a free backup solution. From what I can tell reviews on BlackBerry App World are pretty positive (they have practically all 5 star ratings…). They also have a change log available at this link.

BlogBabel Tags: Backup Your BlackBerry Wirelessly for Free With Aurkon

Resize images on the fly right on your BlackBerry smartphone with this small and useful free application. ShrinkIt for BlackBerry allows you to resize or to be exact downsize images on your BlackBerry smartphone with just a click. The app is free and it is available as OTA download.

BlogBabel Tags: Free App: ShrinkIt - Downsize pictures on your BlackBerry

If you’ve ever modified your BlackBerry OS a little as a moderate to advanced user of BlackBerry smartphones you might be familiar with BlackBerry Master Control Program. If not, it’s a great app for your computer that can help get at some of the inner workings of your BlackBerry OS to modify some stuff other apps simply cannot get at.

After having used the app myself for a while now, I’ve got to see it go through some growing stages and this time Darren, has released version 0.9.3.0 Beta 4 to the masses. The change log for BlackBerry Master Control is one that is always extensive, so hit up the site for downloads and more information on it’s release. And remember folks, be careful with this app if you have no idea what it does, probably best left alone.

• Click Here For Downloads And More Info On BlackBerry Master Control Program>>

BlogBabel Tags: BlackBerry Master Control Program 0.9.3.0 Beta 4 Now Available

Trapster have updated their app to version 3.6 and while I haven’t used the app in a long time, it was fun rediscovering some of its features like their custom sounds. A popular trend in navigation tools, you can switch up the audio warning for Schwarzenegger, George Bush or an Old Hillbilly.

Some new features you will find in version 3.6 include:

• Dynamic alert area narrows and elongates based on your velocity and direction of travel.
• Customizable alert filters allow you to specify what types of traps you will be alerted to, and how you’re alerted.
• Custom sound themes for spoken alerts, in lots of fun voices, plus French, German, and Spanish language.
• Real time traffic information for many areas.
• All new native BlackBerry UI, no more DOS looking menus.
• Improved signup process.
• Ability to search for your location manually on BlackBerrys with no GPS or blocked GPS.

Trapster 3.6 also includes a Virtual Radar. A blue blip emanates from your GPS location and follows you in real time. As you approach reported trap locations and one or more of the traps come within that alert area, Trapster begins playing spoken alerts such as “Live Police” or “Red Light Camera”, and animating the associated icons.

Safe driving folks!

Download Trapster free in our store or in App World.

BlogBabel Tags: Trapster Updated with Virtual Radar and Custom Notifications

Are you tired of knuckleheads calling you to offer glaucoma surgery for your dog in Guatemala? Are you a person that is called on your BlackBerry for a long distance offer and you respond with “how long is it?” Well, if the fun is gone from tormenting telemarketing drones, read on. Why? Well, PrivacyStar, is giving away 5 one year subscriptions to its service to help you provide these pesky callers an atomic wedgie and a Chuck Norris-style roundhouse kick to the face *THWAP*.

What does PrivacyStar do, exactly? Let me call the horse and have him tell you straight from his mouth. *whistles*.

PrivacyStar is a simple-to-use mobile app that enables users to take complete control of their phones by blocking any and all unwanted callers, using Caller Lookup to identify unknown callers and easily report unwanted telemarketing violators to regulatory enforcement authorities.

BlogBabel Tags: PrivacyStar – 5 One Year Giveaways

Recently, foursquare for BlackBerry has gone version 1.03, which is the version they will likely launch with. Other than bug fixes, this latest version adds a few navigational features and seems to be fully ready for launch. I thought I’d review foursquare now, as it’s basically ready and I’ll post the download link so that anyone who doesn’t have foursquare on their BlackBerry can go ahead and download it.

Friends

As we talked about in the beta review, foursquare has 3 main tabs: friends, places, and more. In the friends section, you get a feed of where all your friends are checking in. From this tab, you can either check-in somewhere yourself, or “Shout”. The shout feature allows you to broadcast a message to all your friends that will show up in the feed.

Check-in

When you check-in with foursquare version 1.03, I am still finding that the Favorites section isn’t doing a good job of remembering where I check-in most. For example, I check-in to my office constantly, but it never shows up in the favorites menu. I don’t think this issue is specific to BlackBerry though, because I’m played with the iPhone version and I found a similar issue. When you select your check-in location, you get a map and some options to push your message to Twitter, Facebook and friends. This could be much more robust, and I talk about what I would like to see implemented at the end of this article.

Places

Clicking on a business gives you a map, tweets nearby, the option to view on Yelp, an option to see who the mayor is, ability to add a tip, and the option to flag a venue as closed. BBCool Matt tells me that he’s had an issue with the flagging a venue option, saying that when he pressed the “back” button, it registered as a click and he accidentally flagged Ottawa’s downtown mall as closed for business. Oops!

Leaderboards

The leaderboards are great and I think it’s cool that it resets every Sunday night. I don’t know if checking in to your own apartment should count towards the point system though. The whole point of foursquare is that you’re supposed to be enjoying the local culture, and sharing businesses that you’ve discovered with the community. I’m tired of seeing my friends logging in to their homes 4 times in one hour because they’re running errands.

Specials Nearby

In my home city of Ottawa, Canada, there is only one bar that has taken advantage of the nearby specials. At least only one that I’ve discovered. The Mercury Lounge offers free cover at the door if you check-in with foursquare. This feature would have been way more fun if I didn’t live in a city of bureaucrats with locked down BlackBerrys that can’t install 3rd party apps.

Some improvements I would like to see include:

• Partner with a real Twitter client so we don’t have to hit the web version of Twitter.
• Add more Twitter functionality like Twitpic and Twitvid.
• More map integration. I’d like to see for example a heat map of where the most activity is and where my friends are at. If they’re all at a particular bar, I want to be able to log into foursquare and see a big white heat coming from that area.
• A better system for managing double entries. I’ve noticed the venue system is chaotic. For example, you shouldn’t let people register both “The Tavern”, “The Tavern in Toronto”, and “The Tavern bathroom.”
• Way more badges! There should be badges specific to types of businesses, offices, homes, cities and countries.
• Barcode check-in. Any business that has a barcode, you should be able to scan the barcode and foursquare would automatically check you in.
• Better integration with your BlackBerry contacts. Rather than hit the website and use Twitter, Facebook and Gmail, it should pull them from your BlackBerry Address Book.

Overall, I’d say this app is ready for launch, albeit a minor bug here and there. To download the latest Beta, go to http://foursquare.com/blackberry/beta-pacman from your BlackBerry. Remember, you can use a QR code too!

Go to http://tiny.cc/3IsxI for the OTA download.

BlogBabel Tags: foursquare for BlackBerry Version 1.03 Reviewed and Ready

Try downloading the above QR code for the foursquare beta app with this method.

Whenever we post a link about an app on BlackBerry Cool that you can download OTA, I’m sure there are many of you who pick up your BlackBerry and hit the site by typing it in your web browser. There is a much more fun way of downloading apps OTA and it involves 2D barcodes, or QR codes.

To do this, get a plugin that generates a QR code from a web link. With FireFox, a good plugin to use is Mobile Barcoder. Once you’ve downloaded and installed the plugin, it allows you to generate a qr code from a link with a simple right click.

Now that you can generate QR codes from links, you just need to scan them on your BlackBerry. For a good barcode scanner, see the BlackBerry Cool guide. I suggest adding the barcode scanner to a Convenience Key, so that with a touch of a button you can be downloading any app off the site.

Try it out with the foursquare beta app found at http://foursquare.com/blackberry/beta-pacman

BlogBabel Tags: Download BlackBerry Apps with 2D Barcodes