Most techno-savvy users with some semblance of a personal life know about the power of ‘turning off’: logging off IM, closing email, even ignoring phone calls and text messages when they’re not appropriate to answer. But there’s a phenomenon of BlackBerry users that simply can’t switch off. They’re the ones you see huddled off in the corner of social gatherings, busily writing replies to emails – however trivial – with the tiny, cramp-inducing keyboards that their thumbs are permanently attached to.

I, my friends, am now one of those social pariahs. For the next few weeks, anyway, while my BlackBerry 8800 is still shiny and new. ;) But I’ve also discovered that, like school kids that are given their first hit of heroin off a drug dealer for free, our pathetic addiction to mobile email is just not our fault. There is, in fact, no way to turn email delivery off if you’re using the BIS (BlackBerry Internet Service). *cue outraged gasps and horrified uproar*

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Well, now that I’ve induced mass hysteria and panic, I should amend that statement slightly. Strictly speaking, you can turn email delivery off – by logging onto the BIS accounts page and manually setting a filter to stop forwarding email to your BlackBerry. But having to do this every time you want to turn email off is a PITA.

Take a look at my email setup, for example. I’ve got my main POP email accounts forwarded to my BlackBerry, but as with many white collar types, I’m usually in front of my computer for most of the day. This results in me getting two copies of each email: one on my BlackBerry and one in Outlook on my notebook. I then have to go through and delete them all off my BlackBerry so as not to clog up the inbox. Surely there’s a better way?

All the Windows Mobile devices I’ve seen let you turn email off with a single tap in the Wireless Connection Manager. No such luck with the BlackBerry. Sure, you can turn it off if you don’t want email. But then you also don’t get your phone calls and text messages. Frankly, I find it bizarre that a device specialising in mobile email doesn’t even let you turn it off without jumping through hoops. Nor have I found a third-party program that lets me do this.

IMO, RIM should be encouraging the work-life balance a little more by providing its users with a way to turn off email. Thoughts?

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  3. T-Mobile Blackberry 8220 flip phone available now
  4. T-Mobile UK makes Blackberry Bold release data official – September 2008
  5. RIM will reportedly launch MyBlackBerry Social Networking site as soon as today