RIM Announces OpenGL ES Support, New Payment Platform for Apps, Integration with Adobe Developer Software

RIM made a boatload of announcements at its BlackBerry developer conference today which are sure to result in a hot new wave of apps for the BlackBerry platform. Even though we have no new handsets to report today, we’re starting to get an idea of what kind of apps BlackBerry users will be able to enjoy in the future.  Here are the highlights, and what it could mean for you:

• RIM now supports OpenGL ES, a platform that will allow Java developers to bring 3D games to BlackBerrys. Developers can use it to create games for phones running BlackBerry OS 5.0 and higher. A beta version is available now on RIM’s developer site.
• Developers will soon get a GUI builder, which will be built into the BlackBerry Java Plug-In for Eclipse. Hopefully, this means BlackBerry users will get more attractive apps– and that if developers can build them faster, we’ll be able to enjoy them sooner. This feature won’t be available to developers until mid-2010.
• With BlackBerry Theme Studio, a free package, developers can use BlackBerry Theme Builder and BlackBerry Composer, respectively, to design new themes for the BlackBerry interface as well as animations. This will work on phones running BlackBerry OS 4.2.2 or higher.
• Starting in the first half of 2010, RIM will support advertising in its apps. We hope this means more free ones in App World.
• Like Apple, RIM will allow for in-application payment options, a useful feature for developers working on games or apps that are subscription-based. Developers will be able to take advantage of this in mid-2010.
• BlackBerry Push Services, which pushes new content and alerts to applications, will be widely available (it’s been available as a limited release) starting in the first half of 2010.
• In addition to using GPS, developers can use  triangulation among cell towers to determine a phone’s location, and offer location-based services. The benefit of Cell Site Geolocation technology is that it will be faster than GPS, and consume less battery life.
• Also in location-based news, RIM will launch a Travel Time service in the first half of 2010, which will enable applications to show estimated travel and arrival times, as well as total distance traveled.
• Thanks to a stronger partnership with Adobe, developers can now develop rich BlackBerry apps using the Adobe Flash Platform and Adobe Creative Suite development tools. All future versions of this popular development software, starting with CS5, will come with these BlackBerry-friendly tools built in. Adobe Dreamweaver, Fireworks, and Device Central will also come with these tools baked in.

So, to sum up: expect 3D games, more (and more interesting) location-based apps, and– hopefully– more free apps. We can’t wait to see what exactly the developers come up with next year.