newBBie.com

Kelly,
I just discovered your blog last week, and it is incredibly useful and amazing! I can’t believe I’ve had my Pearl for over 6 months and I didn’t know half of these typing shortcuts.

I like the animations, but would also like to see the “instructions” part of the text printed next to it.

Thanks again!

Renee,
Thanks for the suggestion. I thought about that but wanted to see how “standalone” the animations would be. I’m eager to get more reaction from readers. I’m very happy to hear you did learn something from the few tips I covered.
Kelly

I didn’t know about the number lock. Haha! All this time I was holding down the Alt key. Same for the capitalization, but that’s only because it’s faster sometimes.

The animations are nice - I like them. Great tips.

Is the vibrate feature powerful? Will I get used to the keyboard? Does it work well with rotating belt clips?

John,
Are you asking if the vibration is strong? I would say, “Yes.”

Probably the biggest complaint by people who do NOT like the Pearl is that they could NOT get used to the keyboard. Personally, I LOVE the smaller keyboard because it allows for a smaller PHONE. I have adapted to the keyboard just fine. I’d say that if you approach the keyboard with a positive attitude, you can learn to like it.

I regret that my 8130 came with a holster that didn’t allow me to clip it to my belt. I found a case that was large enough to hold the holster itself, and the case had a rotating belt clip, so–as odd as it may sound–I carry my 8130 in its holster inside a case clipped on my belt. It works for me. The advantage of the holster is that it apparently has a built-in magnet that is used by the phone to know when it is in or out of the holster. The phone can be programmed to behave differently depending on whether it is in or out of the holster. The holster is also designed so that the trackball doesn’t accidentally get clicked. Many cases I considered were too tight and the trackball would get clicked, causing problems by activating apps, etc.

I hope all that addressed your questions.
Kelly

These tips are terrific — absolutely useful and informative. (I was ready to throw my BB out of the window — well, it’s actually my wife’s — until I came to your site and started to learn about this device. Now it’s looking pretty impressive as I learn how to use it.)

A big thank you.

One note re: the flash tips. I find the way you have them set up to be very intuitive and easy to understand. However, if one misses the instructions (in bold red font) then one has to wait until the sequences cycle through. Perhaps, as another reader suggested, having the text next to the flash could be of help. But, the whole thing is altogether very very useful.

Ivan,
Wow–to think I may have saved the life of a BlackBerry (not to mention a marriage?). Now, I DO feel like a hero!

Thanks for your feedback. I realized the problem about having to wait for the animation cycle to repeat but there wasn’t anything I could think of to help there. The free version of WordPress blog restricts me to what I can do with animation–can only do animated GIFs, can’t do Flash, etc.

When I get time, I may take advice from you and others that I need to add the wording next to the animations. I guess that way you have the best of both worlds–words and pictures.

Thanks!
Kelly

Kelly,

Thanks so much for all of your comments. You are a very giving person. When my phone arrives in the mail, I’ll get back in touch. I’m sure I will have many more questions.

John

Hi,

My Pearl keeps leaving MultiTap mode! It’s really frustrating! Is it something I’m doing somehow, or is it just trying to drive me insane?

Thanks,
John

John,
I think the best way is to override SureType is to do Options > Language > Input Language: > English (United States, Multitap). (I’m assuming US instead of UK.)

Having said that, I’m a big advocate of SureType although I realize it takes a little time to get used to. I’m working on a tutorial for SureType but it’s taking longer than expected to finish. Just don’t give up on SureType forever. Once you learn it, I don’t think you would ever go back to multitap. But, you’re the master of your phone and it’s your choice which method you use.
Kelly

Kelly,
Thank you for your wonderful tips and very helpful website. Is there a trick to typing email addresses more easily? Maybe a way to set email addresses to multitap?

Thank you,
Corey

Corey,
When you’re beginning to compose a new email, press the Menu Key and you should be able to select Enable Multitap. Read comments #10 and 11 just before yours for a more long-lasting method.
Kelly

Thanks for your response. I too am becoming a fan of the SureType. The only issue that I have is that when you select a word from the drop down list the program does not automatically insert a space so that you can start the next word. Do have a trick to do this?

Corey

Big problems with the phone ringer.
8130 has it under “profiles” =that’s dumb
to call it that. Took me days to find it,
Phone usually vibrates,
on Profile use “normal”
then how to control volume?
and ring tone.
Very little in the instuctions about ringer.
I thougt this was lacking and poor.
JB

@Corey,
I was thinking that if you scroll to the word in the list and press SPACE, that will select it AND do the SPACE. Isn’t that true?
Kelly

@jeff,
I agree that the whole “Profiles” feature of the BlackBerry could be improved. It’s my least favorite aspect of my phone. I’ve answered questions about ringing and Profiles a few times on the blog already, if you don’t mind searching for those answers.
Kelly

i always need to reenter multi-tap,
doesnt it memorize that i want mult-tap?

jeff,
Mine seems to remember my Multitap/SureType setting. But I almost always use Multitap for just a brief job, then always reset it to SureType. Do you know what might be causing yours to “forget?” Does power on/off change it, maybe?
Kelly

Thanks for the tips, quite helpful!