RIM:The secret of the BlackBerry's success is security and social networking is its future

Speaking during a session on mobile services at the GSMA Mobile World Congress, Balsillie said having security validations worldwide, and features such as built-in firewalls and the ability to remotely lock and wipe devices, are key.

"If you don't address this, you don't get to be accepted by the organization," Balsillie warned.

Echoing Vodafone Group chief executive Arun Sarin's words from an earlier keynote, Balsillie said carriers have come to a fork in the road that will see them either become pipes or platforms. They must therefore provide a managed service to users, seamlessly integrating Web services and desktop applications onto handsets. "This is not a concept. This is a reality," he said.

And change is afoot elsewhere too, according to Balsillie, who said a business-to-business social-networking revolution is coming that will bring networking benefits to the enterprise and also help drive data usage. "Once social networking becomes a B2B phenomenon--not unlike IM and texting--I believe every single social-networking user will want a data plan," he told the GSMA audience.

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BlackBerry "blackout" between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m.

It may be wishful thinking, but a Canadian government ministry has sent out a directive to its employees urging them to relax and not use their BlackBerry smartphones at night or on weekends and holidays.
Trying to re-establish a proper balance between work and life, Citizenship and Immigration Canada, which manages immigration and resettlememt services for the government, is starting by trying to cut the chains to what some have called CrackBerrys.

The department's deputy minister, Richard Fadden, sent out a memo asking employees to implement a BlackBerry "blackout" between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. and on weekends and holidays.

"Work/life quality is a priority for me and this organization because achieving it benefits us both as individuals and as a department," Fadden wrote.

"When we can 'balance' our work and personal responsibilities, we, as a team, stand to not only serve and perform more effectively, but also to attract and keep employees to help us build a stronger Canada."

BlackBerrys, made by Canadian-based Research In Motion, are handheld communication devices that can be used to send e-mails and make phone calls--thus allowing people to bring the office to their homes, vehicles, or even the ski slopes.

They have become an essential workplace tool in politics, business, and the professions.

Fadden also asked employees not to use BlackBerrys during meetings and also not to schedule meetings over lunch

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BlackBerry Pearl 8110 with GPS released in spian

The BlackBerry Pearl 8110 has the typical BlackBerry looks and has GPS navigation functionality to aid users on the move no matter if they are on foot, or on transport. The Blackberry 8110 is not the most feature-rich device around but will surely please the Blackberry addicts.

The Blackberry Pearl 8110 main selling point (beside the almighty email service) is obviously the integrated GPS receiver. Combined with the Vodafone GPS navigator service, it becomes a nifty little gadget. The Pearl 8110 comes with a one-year free subscription to the service, which based on the Telmap Navigator solution offers turn-by-turn voice-assisted navigation, real-time map updates and a rich catalogue of businesses and points of interest. There are two packages - “Iberia” and “Europe”.

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