Mobile still continues to be one of the driving factors behind the majority of web development growth within the sector. Smartphones and their browsing / app capability are mainly responsible for the majority of this growth. However you have to ask the question, what is your Blackberry for? And is it really possible to fall back in love with it?

I guess I have to admit I’m one of Apple’s biggest fans particularly when it comes to mobile devices. But I’ve recently found my Blackberry starting to grab my attention again.

Why? It can’t even compare with my iPhone and doesn’t even come close to a rewarding easy to use experience. However it does serve a relatively simple purpose. Blackberry should have never tried to become a smart phone or a browsing device. Its just a simple two way pager a simple calendar and a great keyboard that just allows quick and easy access to the basics of communications. It just works and works well in the business world.

I believe Blackberry should focus on simple business utility tools, where productivity is key. Organising conference calls, sending emails checking your diary, collaborating with your team and getting simple updates from your business processes. It should not try to do more.

It should try and be a partner to the iPhone, but allow iPhone to stay cool and understand that most users will probably have two phones. Stick to the basics. The little red light that catches your attention when an email arrives and a really great keyboard to hammer out your rants and responses.

It does work well with the wordpress app which is also a bonus.

But what about web design and app design on these devices? Keep it functional and keep it to business. Users will browse your website and you may be required to build apps for the device, but keep it simple and keep it to business. You will get Blackberry users accessing your stuff so you need to not ignore them but don’t try and compete with the Smart phone world.