The big news in tech was the release of BlackBerry Messenger 6.0 as a free download from BlackBerry AppWorld. On the heels of the big news is the question: Is BBM 6.0 enough to save, nay revive, RIM?

iOS and Android smartphones have significantly eroded BlackBerry market share worldwide, but in Jamaica, BlackBerry still remains the dominant smartphone, thanks in part to BBM. The instant messaging service allows users to securely send text, images, audio and other files to other BBM users for no more money than the standard flat subscription fees. In effect, it is free messaging and very popular.

So popular, it has been copied. Apple announced that it would release iMessage in the fall, a direct competitor to BBM. iMessage one-upped BBM by including Twitter integration. Not willing to concede its mobile instant messaging dominance, RIM, makers of BlackBerry, moved quickly to update BBM.

third-party application

6.0 launched with social integration for a limited number of apps across several genres, including games, radio, news, business and location-based apps like FourSquare. Users can chat, post and update their profile from within apps like Score Mobile. You can share app content with all your contacts, or individual contacts; they can review your posts or join you in the third-party application, depending on their preference.

Noticeably absent from the suite of roughly 100 apps that have integrated with BBM are Facebook and Twitter. Also of note, many of the apps are only accessible in the United States.

To me, the best addition to 6.0 is the non-BBM messaging; that means I can now text or email a contact from within BBM as if they were a BBM contact. Yes, I will be charged per text, but it's great not to have to go into another window. I love this feature.

Others may like the fact that users can send larger files - up to 6 MB is size - share calendar and location and have larger groups. BlackBerry Messenger groups were previously limited to 30 members, no new limit has been established. In the new Messenger, group members can share GPS location, podcasts and websites across the group.

BlackBerry Messenger is popular with both business and casual users because it works, and works well. It's free, light, easy to use and highly functional. It functions on all newer BlackBerry handsets and the new BlackBerry Playbook. Arguably, it is the reason than RIM still has a stake in the smartphone market. That said, it is highly unlikely that it will be introduced across platforms in the near future. Earlier this year, there were rumours that BBM may be available on Android devices; don't hold your breath.

With the last major BBM update, many users lost their contact lists and had errors installing the app. It seems those problems do not repeat for 6.0. Still, it is prudent to back up your entire device to a computer (not just to BlackBerry Protect); if anything goes wrong, at least you can restore from the backup. Then log into AppWorld, download, install and enjoy the new features of BBM 6.0.

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Tech Glitch: Peter asked, "I forwarded a broadcast from RIM to my entire contact list and several persons said I spammed them, why?

Tech Fix: Because you did. RIM does not communicate with its users via BBM; their servers are not full and they do not need you to broadcast the messages to others to confirm your service. Such messages are malicious spam and should not be forwarded. In fact, you may want to delete the contact that sends such foolishness to you.

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Can a social messenger save RIM?