Out of my group of friends, I was the first to own a Blackberry. Back then, Blackberry’s were being seen in public being used by celebrities and politicians, but ordinary Joe Public wasn’t interested. Although the guys and girls who did use a Blackberry, used them for their intended purpose. To send and receive emails and to keep track of work e-mails.
That was in 2008. Fast forward to 2011, and RIM (the people who make Blackberry phones) are one of the biggest manufacturers of smartphones in the world, and the Blackberry phones they produce are now considered one of the two main rivals of the Apple iPhone (Android based smartphones being the other rival). People today use their Blackberry’s to update their statuses on Facebook, use Twitter, and use it as an MP3 player while at the gym.
The problem is, there is a lack of education about these phones. They store an immense amount of personal data, and many Blackberry handsets aren’t password protected. Mostly because the user “can’t be bothered to enter a password all the time”. But these are the first people to be surprised that their Blackberry has been stolen and some people in Thailand have accessed their bank accounts with the details saved on to their Blackberry phones.
Originally, Blackberry phones were intended for business use. This meant that the IT company a user belonged to could lock down the lost Blackberry and wipe it of all personal data. Effectively rendering the phone useless to criminals. But, as personal usage of Blackberry phones increased, this protection wasn’t passed on to the ordinary consumer. Until now of course!
The “Blackberry Pocket” application allows users to do several things to their phone. For example, data on the phone can be backed up via Wi-Fi to their computer, and if you misplace your phone somewhere in the house, it can let off a loud ring (even if silent) to let you know where it is.
The feature I like is that you can track down your mobile phone if it’s been lost further afield than your own home. It will use the mobile’s GPS system to locate where the phone actually is. But (and here’s why you should really have it), it allows you to lock down the phone if it has been stolen or your unable to find it. For the peace of mind of knowing no one can read your emails or private data, it makes this free app all the more appealing!
Blackberry Pocket is still only in BETA (which means it will have some bugs on it), but it is available for download from the Blackberry App World service.