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BlackBerry as Notebook Alternative, Part 2BlackBerry tips for working with Office files and Web browsing.James A. Martin
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Last week I described my experiences using a BlackBerry 7520 as a notebook alternative, focusing on e-mail and typing. This week I'll pick up where I left off, with a look at how the BlackBerry handles creating and editing Microsoft Office files and browsing the Web, and what it's like to do those tasks on its small color screen.
Working With Office Files
In my opinion, to qualify as a viable notebook alternative, a device must enable you to create and edit documents that are compatible with Microsoft Office.
Out of the box, a BlackBerry doesn't offer that capability, unlike a Windows Mobile-based handheld or a Palm Treo 650, which comes with DataViz's Documents to Go Office-compatible suite. However, you can use DynoPlex's eOffice suite to add those features.
The professional edition of eOffice ($200) includes eWord, for working with Word files; eCell, for Excel files; eWorks, which lets you compose and edit formatted e-mail messages and transfer your Outlook inbox to your BlackBerry, among other things; eSpell, a spelling checker; and eFile, a Windows Explorer-like utility for managing and organizing files.
In my tests, the eOffice suite worked well. Navigation can be frustrating, however. Because BlackBerrys don't...