So you just got a Blackberry Pearl and you have a mac…

Posted bymathowie 244 Comments on So you just got a Blackberry Pearl and you have a mac…

I unpacked my new Blackberry Pearl a few hours ago and after running all over the web trying to solve basic problems, I figured I should do a roundup of the basics here for other mac users, since I couldn’t find all this info in one place.

  • Charge it up the first time by plugging it into a wall. It seems buggy at first with USB charging, giving errors that you are not using a powered USB port and you are missing drivers, both which are untrue. My iMac worked fine after the first charge.

  • You can’t pair the device to your mac via OS X’s bluetooth utilities just yet. That means no iSync over bluetooth right now either. I suspect this is coming someday soon and someone can correct me on all the backstory (leave a comment).

  • update: at this point I would suggest using Missing Sync for the Blackberry Pearl. It’s much more stable and reliable than PocketMac.

  • You can use PocketMac along with the included USB cable for syncing, but don’t look for it on PocketMac’s product page, you can only get it from Blackberry directly following a link halfway down this page.

  • PocketMac 4.0 will resemble iSync and let you sync your address book, calendar, etc. Be sure to launch the app, then connect via USB, then sync everything. PocketMac refused to launch until I did it in this exact order.

  • Even though you can’t do much via bluetooth, apparently using the blackberry as a modem with bluetooth is possible and works using this modem script and set of instructions. I also hear it is free under T Mobile’s regular blackberry plans (I used to pay $20/month for the luxury on my old phone).

  • You can apparently transfer files over bluetooth but it sounds buggy.

Hopefully iSync/OSX starts fully supporting the device soon, but until then, this was all the info I needed to get started. Gmail works great on the device as does MetaFilter, so I’ll be set whenever I’m on the road and away from the keyboard.

Published by mathowie

I build internet stuff.

244 replies on “So you just got a Blackberry Pearl and you have a mac…”

  1. hey man. Just wanted to say thanks for posting this article! I would have been dumbfounded when pocketmac kept getting an error for Skipping… when I opened the ap, connected and sync’d in that order, it worked perfectly.

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  2. This is in response to Karyn’s question about an unlocked Treo 650. I’ve used an unlocked Treo with my iBook for a couple years and it works great. I don’t use iSync as I have MS Office and use Entourage as my organizer. The unlocked Treo is certainly pricy but you can get it directly from Palm.
    However, I’ve heard the Palm 680 should be out before the end of the year, which has essentially the same functionality as the 650 but no protruding antenna nub. Might be worth the wait if you want a Treo.

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  3. Very happy mac owner here, also been a Blackberry user for years. I just ordered the Pearl, and am anxiously awaiting it’s arrival. I’ve been using PocketMac to sync all of my information, but am concerned with the fact that the Blackberry site says that the software can be used on “PowerPC and IntelMac.” Does this mean I won’t be able to use it with my PowerBook G4? Is anyone out there using this combo? Help? (PS. LOVE this site, thank you, thank you, thank you!!! And a Happy Thanksgiving to all!)

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  4. The pearl is infuriating, I have followed the advice on syncing between my mac and said device via pocketmac v4 and I still get the same error message (below). The device doesn’t mount in the status screen and whichever combination of plugging in the usb, blackberry on or off and when i open the app doesn’t seem to have any effect whatsoever. Does anyone else have a walkthrough or other ideas?
    [08:58:32.783] Unable to connect to BlackBerry (error 1); skipping.

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  5. Well, I’ve downloaded PocketMac, synched my files to my new Pearl and everything is just great…sort of.
    When I syched the address book in Entourage (mostly email addresses) to the one I had already installed in the Pearl (cell numbers only) I had a ton of duplicate names. I had to go through the address book and clean them up manually. I figure that once I add the data package to my phone plan, then I’ll worry about getting all the email addresses in there. More specifically, I’ll probably just do my diligence in cleaning up my Mac address book and then export/synch it with the Pearl…email addresses, phone numbers and all.
    While PocketMac seems to go a bang up job on the synching of contact info, calendars, etc., I’m still confused as to how I’m supposed to get my music on there! Any clues???
    Also, I’m just getting ready to buy a Macbook Pro, and since it is Windows/Mac compatible, I’m wodering of that means that I could actually use the Windoze-based Blackberry tools CD that came with the phone. (It seems to me that if it is truly dual platform compliant, this should work.) Assuming that is the case, the Blackberry tools would allow me to copy music from the MacbookPro to the Pearl…at least that’s the theory. (I have a G5 right now and it can’t do it.) Can anyone out there running the new Intel chip shed any light on whether or not this is possible?)

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  6. Help please! I plugged my 8700 (synced to pc) into my mac thinking I could just charge it and now the mac won’t open an internet connection.
    Nothing I do brings it back on line. Any advice?

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  9. I too had problems for quite a while. First thing, make sure you have pocketmac4. I did everything in order as per this site but nothing worked. I got the skipping message and did not recognize device etc. I also noticed that in the manager under status has a devise and status display. status said available but there was nothing for device. I reloaded v4 and then unchecked ALL sync options. Nothing for calendar, contacts, tasks…and then hit sync. I am now synced up. Be sure to uncheck ALL sync boxes for the first sync.

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  10. i have a rather unhelpful solution to the non syncing issue. I was having the skipping error and the device wasn’t mounting (no storage device showed up the desktop). I tried a second pearl (my mac guy) after exhausting all the steps above. The result – it worked perfectly. My solution, I had my company order me a new device, which i got today, and it too worked. So if you are having a syncing problem, it may very well not be the software either pocketmac or that on the pearl but rather something to do with the usb plug on the pearl, which seems the most likely scenario.

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  11. I’m having no trouble synching my Pearl with PocketMac to an old iBook but I cant work out how to get music onto it. When I link I can see a drive called NO NAME with a folder in it called blackberry. Inside are folders called music, ringtones, system and videos and I can copy files into these folders but I can’t find the folders on my Pearl. I’m a dope probably.
    Nolan

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  12. OK. Can any one help me? I cant seem to get mp3’s on my pearl or photos off of it. I would be gratefull for any suggestions.
    Thanks to all of you on this site i was able to figure out the sync issues i was having. Ed’s post was what did it for me. I was able to sync everything i needed. Thanks again.

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  13. I get the calendar to sync but not the address book with Mac address book. Everytime I get an error that says Bad default category length???? Anybody? Bueller?

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  14. I love my Pearl, but am having one consistent, annoying problem. All my personal email accounts work fine, but my corporate (Lotus Notes) email, using BlackBerry Enterprise Server, now has a strange symptom. Some of my corporate emails show up as folder icons instead of envelope icons, and I can’t delete them from my BB. Has anybody seen this?

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  15. Hey there. This might be a stupid question but can I ask how you have your phone numbers formatted in Address Book to get the Pearl to properly resolve, say, an incoming SMS to the proper number/name in your address book?
    I constantly get texts from +19175551212 when that number belongs to someone in my Address Book. Does this make sense?
    Thanks for any help you can provide.

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  16. Okay, I just figured out how to load tunes onto my Pearl from my G5 Mac! Woohoo!
    First, you need to connect your Pearl to your Mac via USB, and you MUST have an expandable MicroSD card installed in the Pearl. (I installed a 1 GB chip.)
    When you plug the Pearl (with the MicroSD chip installed) into your Mac via USB, you should get a message on the Pearl asking if you want to turn on “Mass Storage.” Choose “Yes.” This will mount the Pearl on your Mac desktop and give you access to the MicroSD card.
    When you install the MicroSD, BlackBerry creates a folder structure for Pics, Vids, Music, etc. on the MicroSD within your Pearl. You just drag and drop your songs from itunes on your Mac into the music folder on your Pearl – voila!
    The only kink I haven’t been able to work out is that the folder on the Pearl seems to show the resources AND the actual music files. (There seems to be a resource file for every music file.) I have to scroll through all the resources until I get to the actual music…but it’s there, and it sounds great! (Please note that the music through headphones is much louder than the ipod – be careful!)
    Hope this helps!

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  17. I just got my pearl yesterday and cant wait to try with my MBP. Im running both parallels VM with Windows Vista and Bootcamp 1.1.2 with Windows XP.
    The software that comes with the pearl (cd) looks interesting so im gonna install it on both windows version and let the best os win. 😛
    I dont see any problems with using the microSD as mass storage.. I do the same thing with a Garmin Nuvi GPS 350 on the MBP.

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  18. The “skipping ” issue happens because the Cable sent with the 8100 don’t allow the 8100 to be recognized. Changing cables may help, Maybe even changing phones will.

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  21. Has anyone tried using the Blackberry as a modem? I have a 7250 and wondering if anyone has any experience in this.

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  22. I am considering buying and using a Pearl with Cingular provider. Does anyone know if the pearl is unlockable as i travel intercontinentally a great deal. Also, where is the best place or site to buy the pearl?
    Thanks

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  23. I have gone through 2 Pearls and spent about 4 hours with RIM support (after spending about an hour with t-mobile support). Bottom line is the Pearl still does not sync with PowerBook G4. RIM is working with PocketMac on a beta release of the fix that they claim will be ready this week — they asked me to be a beta tester. In fact, the latest release of PocketMac, once you install it, prevents you from syncing with a 7105t as well. So now I am stuck with no ability to sync my old BB and no ability to use the Pearl till the new release is fixed. I took my Pearl back to T-Mobile and if the beta comes out this week I will, once again, go get another one, try it with the new software, and see what happens. If it works, great. If not, I am more-or-less forced into the Treo 700. Better broadband speed using it as a tethered modem, more coverage area, but no international compatibility.
    Anyone out there have a success story with the Pearl and a PowerBook G4? Also, be sure that your subsequent syncs work. Sometimes it seems they are working but new data on the Pearl does not get loaded into your Mac.

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  24. Update on the beta – the new beta version of PocketMac was released to the beta test group today (December 11). It doesn’t work either.

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  25. i just got my pearl yesterday (and have a daughter named pearl). i’m using cingular and the service appears excellent so far. i followed the instructions to close all apps, launch pocketmac 4 (earlier versions did not work), and then hook up the usb connection – it all worked like a charm. i’ve only done this once so far.
    i also followed instructions posted for downloading pictures and itunes, and it appeared to take the music and photos onto the BB. here’s my I’m-a-total-BB-idiot question: where on the BB do i go to access the music and photos i downloaded?
    thanks, – Barry

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  26. i’m on a mac that i purchased approximately 2 years ago, a powerbook g4. i used entourage for mac, and all my contact data synchs both ways perfectly. calendar information goes imperfectly both ways – some of the stuff i delete on the pearl goes off my mac, and some not, and vice-versa. So, synching using the pearl and entourage datebook , after following all the instructions listed above, is imperfect. any thoughts? do people know if pocketmac is aware of this and working to address it?

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  27. I know PocketMac and RIM are aware of much more serious issues with iCal and Address Book on a PowerBook (which is that they don’t work at all), but the beta release as of Dec 11 seems unable to resolve those issues. Might be worth an email to RIM or PocketMac to alert them to Entourage problems. I know PocketMac email tech support has been very good about responding to emaild within 24 hours in the past, but they are now about 3 days overdue on an email I sent them about these current issues. I’m guessing they are swamped by hundreds of complaints.

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  28. Ed, Matt, et al.,
    I, too, am having trouble getting the Pearl to sync with Entourage. RIM acknowledges the problem and says it is working on a driver, but has no timetable for delivery.
    I sent them logs and they found some corruption in my Entourage database; they suggested rebuilding it and then seeing if that affects the syncing process.
    Matt, tried syncing the way you suggest; having limited success sporadically. When it syncs, which is rare, it ends up crashing the Pearl, which requires a reboot.
    Bottom line here…RIM is very aware of sync issues with the Pearl and is working to develop a solution. So, I’m holding out and using my Pearl for email and as a phone in the meantime, without being able to sync. Frustrating yes, but I like the phone and am willing to wait for them.

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  29. I have spent 2 hours simply trying to get my Intel Mac Mini and BlackBerry Pearl to SYNC, repeat SYNC contacts ONLY. Still cant get it. Dealt with duplicates…finally fixed that…now if I add info to an entry in my blackberry THEN SYNC..the added data does not transfer into my Address Book on the Mini. Very Annoying. Anyone out there found a work around?
    Thanks,
    Steve

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  30. Thank you so much, these tips really helped and I are so much more helpful than anything on the official sites which I found very frustrating for their lack of support.

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  31. SRM — I read on someone’s blog that if he disconnects the Pearl, removes the Pearl battery and replaces it, then reboots his Mac he gets better results. Sounds like a lot of effort to me. I wonder if you have to stand on your left foot or your right foot while you tug on your ear to make it work.
    Other than that, there is no workaround that I am aware of other than waiting for RIM/PocketMac to fix the software.

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  33. This thing sucks IF:
    -you thought you were going to be able to transfer your phonebook from ANY other app.
    -you thought you were going to be able to set the phone to RING at audible level
    -you thought that in your message inbox screen it would clearly show (in different colour) the destination of each incoming message
    – you thought that you could insert a mediacard that could hold more than a (4MB) 5 minute video clip or 180 songs
    – have the phone interface with your Apple through bluetooth
    (now I do admit that frustration is attributable in large part to working with RIMM reps through Tmobile. This is the most ridiculous service imaginable, since the average wait time before speaking with a RIMM rep is 24!!! minutes..kinda takes the coolness out of the privilege)

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  35. Steve —
    I believe it is right ear and left leg for the Northern Hemisphere. Left ear and right leg for the Southern Hemisphere. But I might have that backwards.

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  36. i am pretty remedial, but the people at t-mobile told me that i could load the desktop manager disk for the pearl using pocket mac. since pocket mac refuses to even acknowledge my device, i am at a loss. i want to re-load software and download the new patch, since my browser has had a software glitch for 2 months now. can anyone help me understand how i can do this, or is it even possible?

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  38. I just got my pearl today and i was playing around with it before it gets wrapped, It won’t let me set up my yahoo email account, it says data connection denied and there is no browser icon available can anyone help?

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  40. this is ridiculous. i thought i was buying a blackberry, but all i got was a an expensive- if pretty- phone. i tried to load the software on virtual pc- no luck. t-mobile offered me a new phone, but it may or may not have the new software on it. meanwhile, i cannot fix my browser on the original pearl. has anyone else had this problem? (christina r: my phone also came without a browser icon; t-mobile support had to send it to me a few days after my account activation.)
    does anyone know if RIM has any intention of developing software for macs? and if not, should i think about buying a mac-compatible pda? is there one?

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  41. syncing the pearl with a powerbook g4 is, to me, hopeless. I gave up after a couple weeks and countless hours. Im very unimpressed with Pocketmac and the pearl in this regard.
    I cant even get the firmware update on the phone without finding a friend with windows to let me load the inlcuded syn software on their computer to sync the update. What a load of crap.
    If the phone could be used with all the features it touts it would be an awesome device. However, Im currently running at about 40 % of its intended capabilities because I run a mac and havnt made time to laod the software on a friends PC to synd the new firmware. Now T-mobile says my technical issues (person on other end of call cannot hear me unless I have phone on speaker -ALWAYS, phone doesnt ring – EVER) cant be resolved until I get the firmware update – which they cant help me with.
    Nice.
    Im glad the phone was free with the service or Id really be pissed and would have probably returned it long ago.

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  42. Hi,
    Had a TREO 650 on Orange and a Mac.
    I had already moved from the Palm desktop to MarkSpace to sync with iCal and Adressbook.
    The Pearl is a pretty good repalcement. Thanks for this blog – very useful.

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  43. I read this thread with a degree of trepidation, but when I loaded up PocketMac 4.0, plugged in the BB to my Intel MacBook and tried to sync my Entourage data (no careful ordering of plugging in, no closing of other apps, let alone tugging left ears) – bingo it works! Marvellous. Not sure what help that is for others with synching problems, but there is hope!

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  44. Jenny, I think I can help you out…
    First, I’m assuming that you’ve loaded the songs onto your Pearl as per my instructions above. (Just drag and drop from itunes into music folder on the Pearl.)
    If you want a song to be the ringer for a specific individual, just go to their name in the address book, click the button on the left of the pearl (I’ll just call it left from now on) and hit “edit”. Once you are on the “edit address” page, scroll down to the bottom of the screen to see if there is anything listed for a custom ring tone. If there isn’t, hit the left button again and scroll down and select “add custom phone tune”. (It should be defaulted to something.) Select it, and then scroll to the very TOP of the various tones/tunes list and you’ll see “browse”. Hit browse, and a window should pop up that says “Ringtones” offering you the option of Media card, preloaded media or device memory. DON’T OPEN ANY OF THEM; just hit the left button again and choose “explore”. Then go “media card”, then “blackberry”, then “music”, and then select your song!
    (NOTE: generally speaking, music doesn’t make a very loud ringtone. I find it is best if you use something with either piano or saxaphone in it if you want to hear it. Also, it helps if you organize your songs in descending order so that the actual mp3’s appear before the resource files. Otherwise, you’ll have to scroll through 250 resources to find the first real mp3 file.)
    If you want to make one of your mp3 files your ringer for ALL calls (as opposed to assigning it to specific callers), simply select the “profiles” application on the desktop. Scroll down and select “Advanced” and then hit the left button. Choose “show tunes”. Select “media card” but DON’T hit the pearl; instead hit the left button and go to “explore”. Then go “media card”, then “blackberry”, then “music”, and then select your song.
    For what it is worth, I’ve actually been able to create custom ringtones by opening songs in GarageBand, deleting the parts of the songs I don’t want and then exporting the newly named ringtone to itunes. I usually only grab 18 seconds of the song – a solo, the chorus or whatever – and then save that. The net benefit is that the file size is very small and the song is more ‘identifiable’ i.e. you’re not just getting the intro. If you have the time to mess around with this, you can create some excellent custom ringtones that NOBODY else will have…depending on your tastes in music. You can also adjust the volume of the ringtone in GarageBand, effectively making your custom ringtone much louder than would normally be the case…
    Good luck!

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  45. Mona —
    My sympathies. My advice — take the Pearl back and get a Treo 700p. It is not nearly as elegant as the Pearl. It isn’t as appealing in its design, size or weight. It is buggy. But unlike the Pearl, it works with a Mac. Get Missing Sync and the interface works better than my blackberry ever did with PocketMac, even before they “upgraded” it to work with the Pearl. I would rather have a Pearl, but a Pearl that doesn’t work is not as useful as a Treo that does.

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  46. Just to quick update the sync process for BB
    make sure when “mass storage” appear on your BB, you choose “Yes”. as per James’s post, it said “no”. if you choose “no”, the computer won’t recoganize your device, therefore, the warning will pop up with “skipping”.
    Also, for 1st sync, make sure y your choose “overide device” in the preference. i only sync address, calender, tasks and notes. and, this option appear in all four catagory. the only question i have is when i re-sync next time, do i need to over-ride device or i can sync both way, not sure, so, anyone know for sure, let me know. here is recap of the proper steps for the 1st time sync between BB and mac,
    – Close all other applications
    – Open pocket mac
    – double check all preference for each catagory
    – choose “overide device”
    -Plug USB lead into computer only
    – turn off BB
    – Plug USB into Pearl
    – turn on BB
    – Wait for the ‘mass storage’ prompt and choose YES
    -wait till the device appear on your desk top
    – Click ‘Sync’
    -computer will pop some message for calender and tasks syncs, make sure you follow the instruction on the scree,
    -wala, about 1 min. it should finish up, then you can put music, pic..ect to your folders on the device.
    hope works for you guys,

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  47. i tried importing songs via bluetooth to the phone and it’ll start th transfer but then it won’t accept it. Is it the file size? Plus my syncing refuses to open. I downloaded PocketMac but it won’t open the file saying i need to choose an app to get it to run. Anyone help?

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  48. thanks for the suggestion, ed. unfortunately, it is too late to return the pearl, so perhaps i should re-gift it to someone with a pc.of course, i am also stuck with a 2 year t-mobile “service” contract. i can’t believe how many hours i have put into this blackberry, and still have little to show for it. i bought the bb for all its bb uses, but i especially like the gsm flexibility of t-mobile, since i travel quite a bit.
    does anyone know if the iphone coming out will be a gsm phone, and if apple has already decided on service providers? and thanks everyone for all this information. i only w ish i had seen this site before i bought the pearl.

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  49. I wish I were kidding, but where is the on/off switch on the Pearl?
    I bought mine on ebay and it arrived wrapped in newspaper sans instructions or anything. Clearly a mistake, but now I’m stuck. I got it working last night and turned it off with the screen icon, but now I’m pressing buttons like an idiot and not getting anything to happen!
    thanks,
    natalie

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