BlackBerry

The BlackBerry is a wireless handheld device that fits in the palm of your hand and hosts a variety of technical features. It provides email services, acts as a mobile phone, supports text messaging, keeps you organized, tracks your contacts and contains a web browser. The Blackberry was developed by the Canadian-based company, Research In Motion (RIM), and it first hit the market in 1999. Over the years, the Blackberry has emerged as one of the most popular mobile devices for the techie consumer.

Originally, the Blackberry gained its popularity by providing mobile email services. As long as you could connect to the wireless network, you had email capabilities anywhere in the world. Their "push" technology automatically sends emails to your BlackBerry so you don't miss important messages. This is great for the busy business executive who needs to keep in constant contact with the office, or for the socialite who wants to keep in touch with friends. The ease of constant communication is what led to the enormous success of the BlackBerry.

Other factors contributing to the great popularity of the BlackBerry are its very sleek design and innovative technologies that keep it easy to use in spite of its tiny size. It is operated by a thumb-wheel, buttons, and a tiny built-in QWERTY keyboard. All of the controls are optimized for thumbing, which means you operate everything with your thumbs so you can hold the device steady with the rest of your fingers.

To help reduce the workload on those important thumbs of yours, many technologies have been developed to provide all kinds of tricks and shortcuts. For example, the "Auto Text" feature can be used to configure hotkeys that type frequently used words or to ease the typing of special characters. Some later BlackBerry models have a newer technology called "SureType" which allows a single key to represent multiple characters. "SureType" also uses a dictionary to try to predict the word that the user is starting to type and provide suggestions for an auto-completion of that word.

These devices are not only useful to the individual consumer; they are also a staple for some businesses. Field personnel have become dependant on their BlackBerries to keep in touch with the office. Some models can also be found equipped with two-way radio features, which are great for employees out on the showroom floor to buzz the warehouse to see if they have an item in stock. Because it provides crucial communication features in an easy to use format, the BlackBerry is an ideal gadget to consider acquiring to help manage your day-to-day activities.