I just finished installing the BlackBerry Storm version 5.0 upgrade and here’s my initial thoughts…

The device is amazingly faster in all aspects! The touch technology and page-to-page navigation is sexy smooth and extremely accurate.  I hate comparing the Storm to the iPhone, but the quality of the improvements are quite comparable.  RIM even threw in a few new cool features, such as the new Word Completion, which displays horizontal tabs of the closest words as you type. It’s a clean new feature that’s properly placed and an overall brilliant addition.  I haven’t had the upgrade long enough to discover any bugs, but The Storm 5.0 feel like a brand new phone. I was going to transition to either the Storm 2 or Tour until I downloaded this software upgrade. Now I’m very satisfied and RIM has answered all my previous complaints with this upgrade. Here’s a few screen caps to see a few of the modifications.

Main Menu Screen

Internet Browser View

Media View

Here’s a summary of the improvements, courtesy of the Storm Software Upgrade Benefits referenced PDF:

Typing Improvements

• Faster & more accurate text input
• Added feature of word completion
• Virtual QWERTY keyboard in portrait view
• Enhanced sensitivity when editing, copying and pasting
• Ability to enable Auto Correction, rather than Word Completion in landscape view
• Send e-mails quickly by pressing the SEND button
• Save contacts and calendar changes quickly by hitting the SEND button
• Access webpages quickly by hitting the GO button

SMS Enhancements

• SMS modified to emulate chat windows in popular IM clients
• New MESSAGES LIST interface displays incoming and outgoing SMS messages as a conversation history
• Support for emoticons and contact information (including pictures) from your address book

Touch User Interface Improvements

• Flick your finger to look through contacts, photos

Media Enhancements

• Camera launches faster
• Image capture is quicker
• Applications launch faster
• Quicker rotation between Landscape and Portrait view
• Improved web browsing speeds

BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0 Upgrades

• Forward calendar appointments
• Flag messages for follow-up
• View attachments in meeting requests and calendar entries
• Manage mail folders – add, remove, rename and delete

The install took approximately an hour to finish, but it was definitely worth it! The 5.0 version upgrade puts the Storm back in the running for top smartphone. Have you upgraded your BlackBerry Storm to 5.0? What do you think about the enhancements? Is there anything RIM may have missed that you’d like to see in the next upgrade?

IMPROVE PERFORMANCE AND BATTERY LIFE

For the steps below, I have to give credit where credit is due. Each step below has been compiled from a few different threads on Crackberry.com, A guide to make your Storm BETTER by Scoops and How to: Save Battery On Your Storm by BBA. To see noticeable and significant performance and battery enhancements, you don’t need to use all the steps, but I’ve listed them all so you can use what works best for you.

Modify GPS Settings = Click  Options -> Advanced Options -> GPS -> Change GPS Service to E911-> Save *Note: Some Applications, such as WeatherBug, Poynt, Maps and others will need the GPS settings On to work properly.

Results: Turns off your GPS, enabling only 911 to access your location. Enhances your battery life.

Change Network Settings = Click Options-> Mobile Network -> Click Network Technology -> Change Network Technology to 1XEV if you’re in North America or 2G if in Europe

Results: Increases Battery Life and Performance

Lower Your Backlight Timeout Settings = Click Options -> Screen/Keyboard -> Change Backlight Timeout to lower setting, i.e. 10

Results: Enhances your battery life

Lower Your Blackout Brightness = Click Options -> Screen/Keyboard -> Change Blackout Brightness to lower setting, i.e. 10

Results: Enhances your battery life

Disable Bluetooth if You Don’t Need It = Click Manage Connections -> Uncheck Bluetooth

Results: Enhances your battery life

Turn off LED Flash Alerts for Message Alerts = Click SMS and Messages -> Menu -> Messages Alert -> Click one listed item at a time, changing LED: to Off -> Save

Results: Enhances your battery life

To find more tips, tricks and how-to’s, visit the CrackBerry BlackBerry Storm Forums.

MAINTENANCE

To keep your BlackBerry Storm running smoothly and efficient, you’ll want to do occasional, routine maintenance. One thing I failed to realize when I first purchased my BlackBerry Storm was that every application you open, remains open and running in your background. If too many Apps are running in the background, this can kill your battery and significantly effect your Storm’s performance. In addition to Apps running in the background, downloading several Apps can suck up all your memory and have an effect on your performance. Below are a few tips to follow to keep your BlackBerry cleaned up.

Close Unnecessary Apps Running in the Background = Hold the Menu key -> Close

Charge on Regular Basis – Especially when it’s brand new, ensure you charge it for atleast 12 hours. I typically regularly charge my device every night before going to bed.

Delete Unused Apps = Click Options -> Advanced Options -> Applications -> Highlight Apps to delete, one at a time -> Click Menu -> Scroll down to select DeleteDelete all apps that you are not going to use.

Create a Maintenance Folder = Click Menu -> Add Folder-> Name Maintenance or whatever you choose, then you can move all your Maintenance Apps or utilities to this folder by highlighting each item, then clicking Menu -> Move or Move to Folder. I have Options, Memory Clean, Manage Connections and QuickPull in my Maintenance Folder for quick access.

Apps Available for Download at Blackberry App World

In addition to the Apps listed below, it’s important to note that BlackBerry App World also has several team-specific Apps you can use to stay up to date with your favorite teams.

ScoreMobile for BlackBerry 3.5/5 Stars

Up-to-the minute sports scores, boxscores, fantasy player stats, betting odds, detailed game previews, recaps, top stories and league standings.

CBS Sports Bookmark – 4.5/5 Stars

Sports scores, play by play and breaking news headlines across all major pro and college sports. Fantasy baseball and football teams, including fantasy scoreboard, set lineup, my player news, roster trends and more.

SMap – 3/5 Stars

For runners, hikers, bikers, etc. SMap is a free route recording application…utilizes the GPS in your device to record your routes..and other information within your route. Manage your routes and easily upload them onto the Sanoodi website.

Viigo – 4/5 Stars

One click access to Live Sports, news, entertainment, etc. Customize what you want to read to get news from only the teams you follow.

Launchers, Alerts and More

UFC Mobile Alert – Visit UFC Mobile and enter your phone number to setup Alerts for the latest UFC news and notes.

MMAJunkie Mobile – Visit MMAJunkie’s Mippin mobile page to read a BlackBerry friendly MMA Junkie.

ESPN Blackberry Launcher – Visit ESPN Mobile from your PC or download http://espn.mobi/bblauncher from your BlackBerry browser.

MLB.com Launcher – Download to your PC or http://wap.mlb.com/blackberry from your mobile browser.

NFL.com Wireless – Click on NFL Wireless and enter your phone number to have the link text messaged to your BlackBerry.

NBA.com Mobile Alerts -Visit NBA.com Mobile Alerts and sign up for a free account. Choose the teams and players you want alerts for.

NBA.com Mobile – Visit http://wap.nba.com from your BlackBerry Browser.

The Hockey News – Visit The Hockey News fand enter your e-mail for download instructions.

SI.com Mobile – Visit SI.com Mobile and enter your phone number to have the link sent to your phone.

MLB.com Gameday ($14.99 per season) – This isn’t free, but deserves mentioning. Visit Mobile Premium for more information.

Do you have any great Apps or launchers you’d like to share? What’s your favorite from the list above?

YouTube (FREE @ Google)
It’s nice having YouTube on your Blackberry. Browse and watch millions of videos, access your favorites, share your videos or even upload your own.

Poynt (FREE @ Blackberry App World) – 4.5/5 Star Rating
Free local search tool for people, businesses, retailers and movie theaters. You can check movie information and purchase your tickets by using this App.

Superpages Mobile (FREE @ Blackberry App World) – 4/5 Rating
Find people and businesses, get maps, directions and find local movie and theater listings. Search by movie or theater. You can see showtimes, reader reviews, etc.

Movela Netflix Queue Manager ($2.99 @ Blackberry App World) – 3.5/5 Star Rating
This App lets Netflix subscribers search the Netflix library, browse popular lists, manage your DVD and instant queues and view entertainment and movie news.

Mobiola xPlayer Lite (FREE @ Blackberry App World) – 3/5 Star Rating
Multimedia player for all major audio and video formats, such as mp3, m4a, avi, mp4, 3gp, wma, amr, mid and wav. It features video full-screen playback, playlist shuffle, forward and rewind functionality, background mode and more.

Slingplayer (FREE @ Download.com) – 2.5/5 Star Rating
This App lets you control your TV and DVR from your Slingbox, directly on your Blackberry.

Blackberry Movie Launchers

Fandango – Mobile browser download, http://edlindustries.com/downloads/launchers/fandango/fandango.jad

IMDB – Mobile browser download, http://edlindustries.com/downloads/launchers/imdb/imdb.jad

The Movie Blog -Mobile browser download, http://edlindustries.com/downloads/launchers/movieblog/movieblog.jad

MovieTickets.com - Mobile browser download, http://edlindustries.com/downloads/launchers/movietick/movietick.jad

Rotten Tomatoes – Mobile browser download, http://edlindustries.com/downloads/launchers/rotten/rotten.jad

To find more great Blackberry Launchers, check out edlindustries.com, my go-to site for Blackberry Launchers. Did I miss any great Apps or Launchers you’d recommend? I’m hoping in the near future, sites like Hulu and TVShack will offer Blackberry Apps. Thanks for reading and feel free to let me know what you think about the listing.

1. App World – Mobile Download
Gives you access to over 300 Apps. These Apps are the official Blackberry Apps.

2. BerryStore - Mobile Download
Provides over 150 Apps and is a nice alternative to the new App World.

3. Google Apps Mobile – Directly from Google, these Apps brings the best of Google to your Blackberry.

• GMail: E-mail App. Mobile Download or Send Link.
  
• Sync: Syncs your Google Calendar with Blackberry Calendar.  Mobile Download or Send Link.
  
• Google Talk: Instant message with contacts from your Blackberry. Mobile Download.
• Google Docs: Access your documents & spreadsheets directly from your Blackberry. Mobile Download or Send Link.
• Google Maps: View your current location, get driving directions, phone numbers & addresses from local businesses. Mobile Download or Send Link.
• YouTube: Access to the entire YouTube video collection. Search for your favorites, rate, share & upload your videos.  Mobile Download or Send Link.

4. Facebook – Choose your Download Method
Access to your Facebook page, your friends, requests, etc. Share and upload photos directly from your Blackberry.

5. Slydial – Send Link
Get directly to your contact’s voice mail. Just go to your address book, select the individual and choose Slydial to skip talking to your contact instead going directly to their voicemail.

6. Opera Mini – Mobile Download
Alternative to using the Blackberry Browser.

7. Social Scope – Click to Request an Invite
This App, now in Alpha, integrates both Twitter and Facebook.

8. iSkoot for Skype – Mobile Download
Skype contacts, one button calling & live Skype Chatting.

9. FMLife – Mobile Download
Great laughs from others misery as they share their misfortunes.

10. VLingo – Send Link
Voice updates for Twitter & Facebook, send note to self, respond to e-mail & texts, etc.

11. Weatherbug Direct – Mobile Download
Local forecasts, temperature and tracking stations.

12. MobiPocket Reader – Mobile Download or Desktop
e-book and e-news reader with an integrated e-book Store so you can download e-books from your Blackberry.

13. WorldMate Live – Mobile Download or Send Link
Plan, manage and book your travel directly from your Blackberry.

14. Flickr - Mobile Download or Send Link
Upload and share your photos captured on your Blackberry to Flickr.

15. NewsGator Go – Create an Account and Get Link
A very good RSS Feed Reader.

With the addition of the App World, the Berrystore and all the other available 3rd party Apps, you can get much more out of your Blackberry. What’s your favorite Apps to use on your Blackberry? Did I miss any that deserves a mention?

Helpful Blackberry Storm Forums/Sites

My go-to site for the Blackberry Storm is the Crackberry Blackberry Storm Forums. This is where the majority of the tips I’m publishing in this post originated from. It’s a community of Storm users sharing information that can greatly enhance your Storm experience. A few other forums and sites that may be helpful to you are BlackberryForums, Blackberry Blog, Mobile Crunch and RIMarkable.

Blackberry Storm Tips & Hacks

Guide to Make Your Storm Better, from Crackberry Forum Member Sooks.

Ultimate Official Tips and Tricks from Crackberry forum member iMann101 and other community members.

PK’s Tips, Tricks & Help Thread from Crackberry forum member PKCable.

Blackberry Storm Video Conversion How To from Crackberry forum member Pastorhudson.

Settings for a Better Storm Keyboard from Blackberry Forums member RacerDJ.

Blackberry Storm Apps, Games, Ringtones, Etc.

Blackberry Storm OTA Apps Thread from Crackberry forum member Aradlahhiji and other community members.

Storm OTA Games – List of Games, both Free and Pay, to download for your Blackberry Storm.

Free Ringtones: Never Pay For a Ringtone Again! – I recently published this article, providing a listing of 4 of the best sites to get great ringtones or create your own.

Blackberry Storm Apps – (forums.crackberry.com) – Extensive listing of some great apps for the Storm.

BerryStore - Berrystore is in Beta, but they are an app store for your Blackberry which features 90+ Apps. Check out the BerryStore post I published detailing all the different apps in the BerryStore.

Software Built for Blackberry - Personalize your Blackberry with these different Apps.

Blackberry Freeware - This blog finds and posts various freeware for your Blackberry.

Free Blackberry Downloads Directory - Directory of themes, ringtones, wallpaper, games, etc.

Blackberry Desktop & Device Software Download Site - Directory for desktop software by service provider.

Blackberry Freeware Directory - Open directory for Blackberry Freeware

Free Blackberry Downloads - Themes, ringtones, wallpaper, etc.

Blackberry Storm 9530 Software (getjar.com) – Solid list of apps that work with the Storm.

I hope you found the tips and resources helpful. I’ve personally followed many of these tips and have gotten some great Apps for my Storm. There’s so much information, tips and help available, it’s just knowing where to look. The selection of 3rd party applications is also pretty extensive, but unfortunately not in one specific place. My goal with this post was to provide all the best Storm stuff in one central location. If I’ve missed any great tips or Apps locations, please let me know so I can add to the list.