BlackBerry maker Research In Motion is testing a tablet that could act as a “companion” to its BlackBerry phone, says the Wall Street Journal.

The BlackBerry tablet is reportedly in the early stage of development and will tether to the the phone. Last month, the Boy Genius Report web site said the BlackBerry tablet is likely to have an 8.9-inch screen and include Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity.

Since Apple introduced the iPad in April, other PC and smartphone makers have announced that they are working on tablets of their own. In less than 60 days since the iPad was launched, Apple said it sold more than 2 million of them.

Earlier this month, Dell announced it will introduce a tablet called ‘Streak’ that will have a 5-inch display and run Google’s Android operating system. The Streak also has a SIM card so users can make calls with it. The device is currently available in the U.K. now and is expected to launch in the U.S. next month for $500. HP is also working on a tablet computer called the HP Slate.

RIM hopes to introduce its tablet to complement its BlackBerry phones. The move evokes Palm’s failed experiment with the Foleo. In 2007, Palm announced the Foleo as a companion device to its Treo phone. The Foleo priced at $500 would sync wirelessly to Treo phones. But, after much criticism, Palm cancelled the device even before it could make it to retail shelves.

RIM’s tablet might be better received. A tablet could help RIM compete better with the latest generation of smartphones. Except for the BlackBerry Storm, RIM hasn’t released any smartphones with touchscreens. A tablet could help bridge the gap between its keyboard-focused phones and the fast growing market for touchscreen devices.

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Since its inception, YouMail, a visual voicemail service for mobile phones, has had one big problem. You could view and play your mobile phone’s voicemail messages online, or–beginning lat June–by pointing the mobile browser to YouMail.com, but messages weren’t stored on the device itself.

Starting Wednesday, YouMail has begun to change that with a native YouMail in-box for BlackBerry phones. Visual Voicemail Plus is a free downloadable app that stores your incoming voice messages along with the caller’s name, number, and time of call.

In addition to viewing and playing messages in any order you’d like, those who have signed up for the free or premium transcription service will be able to read the message content.

Other online features have carried over as well, including interacting with the voice files by downloading, saving, and forwarding them, or posting them to social networks.

The latter has always been the creepiest application, and in my opinion, a misguided attempt to tap into social networking trends. It’s true that replaying calls for amusement, blackmail, or punitive action has been a common fate of cell phone messages for much longer than actor Alec Baldwin’s damning outburst back in 2007, but why make it so easy to push a private call to the public domain? Let’s just hope I’m the only Debbie Downer here envisioning embarrassing abuses of an innocent call.

But back to the app at hand.

While I’ll certainly be the first to welcome this native app with open arms, I will point out that it’s a bit basic in the design department. We’re sure to see more style come to the download in future releases.

The opening of YouMail’s API, now in limited beta, means we’re sure to see a proliferation of development, including YouMail’s porting to other mobile platforms, and to other apps and widgets as a plug-in.

For now YouMail’s Visual Voicemail Plus application will work on the BlackBerry Pearl, Curve, Bold, and Storm running version 4.3 or higher of the operating system, and only if you’re with Verizon, AT&T, or T-Mobile carriers. New users can sign up for a free account from the Visual Voicemail Plus interface or online.

It seems that mobile phone manufacturers are busy designing and preparing “iPhone killers”, mobile phones that use a touchscreen instead of a keyboard. Until now Apple’s iPhone has proven to be a real success and it proudly stands above all smart phones.

Research In Motion’s BlackBerry Storm has just been released and people are very excited to try it out and are actually thinking that the new BlackBerry might pose a real threat to the iPhone. On the other hand, The BlackBerry Storm is not an attempt to create a true iPhone killer, but to give BlackBerry users and fans the possibility to enjoy the newest technologies that are available at the moment.

Critics who have tested out the Storm have generally given good reviews, mentioning the phone’s smart SurePress system, that was designed to give the user the feeling that he’s actually using a keyboard and not a touch sensitive screen. SurePress allows the user to actually press the screen down in order to give certain commands.

The only problem with this is that SurePress has a weird learning curve that might not appeal to some. After a while, controlling the phone becomes natural and pretty intuitive, but a small amount of time is, indeed, needed in order to get familiar with the controls.

A thing that received many good grades was the phone’s Internet browser, which works very well and its cursor hovers above the user’s finger an not underneath it, like it is the case with other similar phones. This is a good thing because one knows exactly what he’s pressing, the view not being obstructed by the user’s finger. BlackBerry Storm also has its downsides and, maybe, the most noticeable is the lack of Wi-Fi.

Source: eFluxMedia