Inside BlackBerry for Business Blog » solutions showcase

Citrix Receiver and SAP BusinessObjects Dashboards on the Porsche 911 at BlackBerry World 2012 [VIDEO]

Luke Reimer — Fri, 04 May 2012 15:24:35 +0000

You might be familiar with the Porsche 911 featuring BlackBerry® technology from the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, or from the BlackBerry World™ 2012 keynote general session presented by RIM CEO Thorsten Heins earlier this week. But here on the floor of the Solutions Showcase we put the concept to the test with a few business use cases for professionals.

Morgan Parker of RIM Product Marketing and Jon Wong, Sr. Product Manager, walked us through a scenario of checking sales data using SAP® BusinessObjects Dashboards on the BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablet mounted on the dash of the Porsche, a well as leveraging the Citrix® Receiver to access a virtual Microsoft® Windows desktop. Check out the video below for the full scoop!

[ YouTube link for mobile viewing ]

What BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablet apps would you use in a car like this? Share your ideas in the comments below.

Catching Up with Mobile Innovation and the Police Cruiser Loaded with BlackBerry Technology [VIDEO]

Luke Reimer — Fri, 04 May 2012 13:32:57 +0000

It’s been about 9 months since the first of these police cruisers rolled through RIM campus in Waterloo, and I’m excited to catch up with the Mobile Innovation team here at BlackBerry World™ 2012 to see what’s new. Alongside the Porsche 911 and its debut at CES 2012, this vehicle displays a fantastic example of how BlackBerry® technology is making strides in the auto industry. There has been a high level of interest from police forces and public service groups internationally due to the benefits of this integration and the benefits that it brings for law enforcement.

Safety, mobility, portability, and rapid access to data are crucial to public services, and this police cruiser is slick in its display of each of these features. Additionally, technology that is securely manageable is a must-have requirement for implementations in this industry – something that BlackBerry® Mobile Fusion brings to the table when considering police-issued BlackBerry smartphones and BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablets. The best part? BlackBerry Mobile Fusion prepares these forces for the future with the capability to manage upcoming BlackBerry 10 smartphones. Check out the video below to view some of the features in action, and to hear it straight from the Mobile Innovation team behind this vehicle:

[ YouTube link for mobile viewing ]

Fitting in well after Government Day on April 30th, this solution is an example of embedded BlackBerry technology and is still impressive the second time around. It’s like a slice of the future when it comes to law enforcement and mobile tech.

What’s your favorite aspect of the cruiser? Can you see applications for this in community safety and law enforcement? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

BlackBerry World 2012: Previewing BlackBerry 10 with Rory O’Neill [VIDEO]

Roger B. — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 14:10:58 +0000

There are lots of great reasons to attend BlackBerry World™ 2012 – just have a look at this slide deck on our BlackBerry SlideShare™ site! Personally, I’m a huge fan of the Solutions Showcase. I just love seeing all the new and interesting applications from our Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) and channel partners. This year, one of the hottest topics in the Solutions Showcase will surely be ‘what’s new’ and Research In Motion® (RIM®) will be showcasing both the recently-launched BlackBerry® Mobile Fusion and BlackBerry® PlayBook™ OS 2.0. And, of course, we’ll be talking about the soon to come BlackBerry® 10! With exclusive previews on BlackBerry 10, detailed information on BlackBerry Mobile Fusion, and the many RIM partners featured in the Solutions Showcase…what more could you want?

Since everyone’s keen to get the latest updates, I was lucky enough to catch Rory O’Neill, our VP Marketing for EMEA who tells us a bit about what we can expect to hear about BlackBerry 10 at this year’s BlackBerry World – check out his preview:

[ YouTube link for mobile viewing ]

There are only 18 days left until the big event, so if you haven’t already done so, consider registering for BlackBerry World ASAP. There are alumni discounts and organizational group discounts available (terms and conditions apply).

What are you looking forward to most at BlackBerry World 2012? Are there specific questions you’re hoping to get answered? Topics you’re hoping we cover? Let us know so we can possibly fit them into the ever-evolving session catalog. See you in sunny Orlando!

BlackBerry World: Solutions Showcase

Roger B. — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 14:56:48 +0000

One of my favorite parts of WES – now the BlackBerry World™ conference – has always been the “Solutions Showcase”. Yes, the parties and concerts are fun and the keynotes are inspiring, but what really sticks with me is the exciting amount of innovation to be discovered amongst partners!

There was a time when I knew all the Alliance Members by heart – but that was when there were fewer than a hundred. Now, with thousands of partners – not to mention registered developers (corporate and individual) – all producing an increasingly diverse set of applications distributed through the BlackBerry App World™ storefront, in-house or direct, the character of the Solutions Showcase certainly has changed!

In addition to the Welcome Reception held in the Solutions Showcase on Monday May 2nd, I like to hit the showcase in between breakouts to stretch my legs and see what’s going on. Aside from reading the full list of sponsors, I wanted to get a better sense of what I could look forward to seeing this year, so I had quick chat with our Alliances Enterprise Solutions team. As expected, every conceivable category of business need seems to be addressed at BlackBerry World: vertical solutions, custom development, field automation, workflow management, and hundreds more.

Here are just some of the solutions that I’m personally looking forward to checking out during my time at BlackBerry World:

Anomalous Networks – Addressing the bane of most ITC managers (and parents of teenagers), they address “bill shock” through a Telecom Expense Management tool for consumers and enterprises. As their tagline says, “If it is on the bill, it is too late!”
OpenText – This is a platform designed for rapid design/deployment of enterprise mobile services. This takes mobility out of ‘connect my latest gadget’ land and into a more strategic arena, which makes me happy!
Syclo – Focused on extending back end systems like SAP, IBM® Maximo and Oracle, this is your typical independent software vendor from five years ago – with one big difference. Back then, ISVs typically had maybe a dozen clients. Syclo, however, boasts success with over 750 organizations in 37 countries! They also feature a “SMART Approval Manager” which looks like a ‘Prêt-à-Porter’ tool for mobilizing basic business requests: expense approvals, timesheets, PO’s, service reports, and so on.
Grabba – Their attachments are designed to enable interaction with Barcodes, RFID tokens, Mag-Cards/Smartcards, Fingerprints, OCR, Signature Capture, IR and even Zigbee. At BlackBerry World, they’ll be running sessions related to m-commerce and m2m. Given that they previously been involved with our work in the vertical markets, I’m keen to explore their solutions in greater detail.

Make the most of BlackBerry World and plan ahead – I know I will. What business problems are you looking to solve? Are there any partners you’re specifically hoping to connect with? I’m keen to hear about your interests, so let me know.