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Using Your BlackBerry As a Modem On Linux

Posted by timothy on from the repurposing-for-the-win dept.

ruphus13 writes "Now, the suits and the geeks can unite — Barry allows BlackBerrys to serve as modems for Linux machines. From the news post, 'Barry, created by open source software vendor Net Direct, lets you not only sync your contacts and calendar but also use your smartphone as a computer modem. Sure, it's not as fast as T1 or cable, but you can't beat it if you're stuck somewhere with no Internet access. Currently, there are packages available for Ubuntu, Debian, Mandriva, and Fedora (although syncing is not supported on Fedora 9). Most older BlackBerrys work just fine with Barry, but the newest generation of devices — the Storm and Bold — are not yet fully supported.'"

15 of 135 comments (clear)

  1. Modem use forbidden by corporate policy? by fruey · · Score: 1, Informative

    Most corporate comms policies I have seen where Blackberries are given strictly forbid the use of work mobile phones as modems for their laptops, because data charges are so high.

    One of the reasons RIM carved such a niche in corporate phones/PDAs is the "eat as much as you want" (more or less) email access; surfing the net via GSM/TDMA/3G/UMTS is not part of the deal, and billed by your provider as data by the Kb or minute.

    --
    Conversion Rate Optimisation French / English consultant
    1. Re:Modem use forbidden by corporate policy? by Zerth · · Score: 3, Informative

      I just got a Storm with an All-you-can-eat(but don't go over 5 GB/month or else!) data plan, but I think it explicitly excepts using it as a modem.

    2. Re:Modem use forbidden by corporate policy? by charlesnw · · Score: 2, Informative

      15.00 a month from verizon makes it available to tether. This is on a business plan.

      --
      Charles Wyble System Engineer
    3. Re:Modem use forbidden by corporate policy? by qmaqdk · · Score: 5, Informative

      They have lots and lots of money.

      Sorry, but how can this comment be modded +3 Insightful?

      Better mod this one +5 Informative:

      "The Universe is very big!"

      --
      My UID is prime. Hah!
    4. Re:Modem use forbidden by corporate policy? by vux984 · · Score: 2, Informative

      What corporations are getting Blackberries w/out unlimited data plans?

      Many blackberry "unlimited" data plans only include unlimited data destined-to and originating-from the blackberry itself. Data incurred when using it as a tethered modem is usually excluded from the unlimited bb data plan.

      The rationale is that you can really only consume so much bandwidth with the BB itself. After all, its primary an email device with some modest multimedia capabilities. So they can give you "unlimited data" and the limitations on the device itself effectively keep practically everyone within the bounds they'd like. After all, its not like you are going to use it to seed torrents or stream hi-def video...

  2. Ok except for the cost by sheldon · · Score: 2, Informative

    I tried to do this with my Pearl when we went on vacation. Thought I could use my laptop on the trip when we wanted to find where to go, etc.

    First roadblock is the cost. I pay $30 for my Blackberry data plan, can browse the internet... unlimited data they say. Except if you want to tether it to a computer that is another $30.

    Then half way through the trip it just plain stopped working. I had to "reboot" the Pearl to correct the problem, where rebooting means pulling the battery out.

    Otherwise I actually felt the speeds were decent, faster than dialup... probably 120k/sec, and this was over old-school GSM(not 3G).

    1. Re:Ok except for the cost by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

      You must be on AT&T. I have the same setup (BB Pearl, AT&T) and you are also limited to 5GB of data on their "unlimited" plans, whether via the phone's browser or tethering. They advertise on the main web page and in print ads that it's unlimited data, then when you actually read the EULA before confirming the purchase it's listed as limited to 5GB.

      Granted, I doubt I'll ever use 5GB either in-phone or tethered (I don't download big files on the go) but it's something they should put out there in the open.

      One more thing, the 5GB ceiling even applies to their "unlimited" $60/month laptop connect cards and dongles.

    2. Re:Ok except for the cost by charlesnw · · Score: 2, Informative

      May I ask who your carrier is? T-mobile USA it's 24.99 for unlimited data, and it tethers easily. I wrote a howto on it at http://adjix.com/if6u It's 9.00 for exchange access.

      --
      Charles Wyble System Engineer
  3. Re:Welcome to the 21st century by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

    Uhhh, this is just Linux. Blackberries have been tetherable since lord knows when, but it's been windows only.

  4. I've been doing this without Barry... by dino2gnt · · Score: 2, Informative

    I've been doing this with my Curve 8320 without Barry for some time now, via blueZ and rfcomm under Gentoo on my laptop. It's relatively stable and has enough bandwidth for casual web surfing. I was able to get up to 20KBps down / 11KBps up over EDGE.

    --
    Future events such as these may affect you in the future!
  5. Re:Mac OS X? I've been doing this in Linux for yea by MikeBabcock · · Score: 4, Informative

    Bluetooth to my cell is a saviour in low-service areas where I can't find a quick access point.

    I've been doing this for quite some time as well, although some of the new usb-attached modems from local cell service providers are very nice (and work with Linux).

    --
    - Michael T. Babcock (Yes, I blog)
  6. Re:Other phones too ? by Michael+Meissner · · Score: 2, Informative

    I just switched to a Nokia 6133 using t-mobile, and I've set things up so the laptop connects to the phone via bluetooth, and I set up a normal PPP connection using GPRS/EDGE. I also have the cable, but it is more convenient to use bluetooth (however, I discovered when my house lost power for 5 days and I needed to check email, that the bluetooth drains the battery much faster). I do have to subscribe to the unlimited data service on t-mobile, and speed depends on whether I can get GPRS or EDGE. Here is one such site that documents how to set things up. http://koti.kapsi.fi/mcfrisk/linux_gprs.html

  7. Re:Is this really news. by conlaw · · Score: 4, Informative

    I agree that this isn't news. Five years ago, I could do this from my Blacberry using software from RIM and T-Mobile. The great part was that the Blackberry kept on recharging while I using it as a modem.

  8. Good way to get booted from your provider by kkffjj · · Score: 2, Informative

    even if you have "unlimited" there are TOS that forbid this. They have all done it.

  9. Nice. :\ by AdamWill · · Score: 2, Informative

    Well, this was a nice article.

    It obliquely credits my own article on the same topic - written a whole one day previously - while describing it as a 'review' of Barry. No, it isn't. It's a guide to the exact same topic covered in this article, only it's a hell of a lot more useful, because my article tells you exactly what packages to download for what distributions, and how to actually use them. Rather than just saying "oh, look, this application lets you do this, isn't it cool?"

    Would've been a lot more useful to link to me. But then, my server probably can't take the load, so I should be thankful. :)

    http://www.happyassassin.net/blackberry-tethering-and-more-on-linux/