The Best Twitter Apps for BlackBerry

Twitter's 140-character format -- and the tendency of users to follow hundreds, if not thousands, of incessant linkers and tweeters -- provides an almost perfect mobile means of instant communication and interaction. Together, the App World and the Web currently offer a variety of free apps allowing BlackBerry tweeps to keep a constant eye on their feeds and friends, with each selection offering its own multi-blogging benefits and frustrating faults. Since that Little Blue Bird has constructed a nest in the heart of contemporary pop culture, what better way to judge the primary twi-teria (C'mon, you knew the annoying Twitter puns would be inevitable) than with a 1-to-5 birdie scale?

RIM's Official App

Size: 963 KB
Ease: 4
Aesthetics: 4
Speed: 2
Options: 4
Multimedia: 4
While some App World shoppers have registered complaints concerning load times, crashes and lock-ups, this official app definitely boasts the best default home screen. The initial interface features the friend feed, the update bar, an easy photo-upload icon and an extensive horizontal option bar all from one easily navigable screen.

Open Beak

Size: 166 KB Ease: 3
Aesthetics: 2
Speed: 4
Options: 3
Multimedia: 4
Overall tweetability:

Open Beak serves as a great choice for those with data usage concerns and folks who tweet more than they follow, as the Friend Feed appears somewhat clumsy and unattractive. While Open Beak might not include the diverse options of other apps, it does allow users to choose between four different photo-hosting options, and it also enables easy video uploads, as well as the awesome ability to edit retweets.

Twibble

Size: 100 KB (compressed)
Ease: 2
Aesthetics: 1
Speed: 1
Options: 2
Multimedia: 1
Overall tweetability:

Stay away from Twibble unless you enjoy constant spam requests that ask you to upgrade to the pay version. The barren feed screen for the free app only displays ten tweets at a time, but -- in the one bright spot -- when a user selects a tweet, a list of fairly nice options (including hash tags and user history) appears.

BB Tweet

Data: 26 KB
Ease: 5
Aesthetics: 2
Speed: 4
Options: 1
Multimedia: 1
Overall tweetability:

According to this app's owners, BlackBerry Twitter apps were scarce when they developed BBtweet, so their creation seems relatively modest by current standards. The app basically operates as an SMS function -- with limited options -- but it does provide a simple and easy method of twittering.

UberTwitter

Data: 493 KB
Ease: 5
Aesthetics: 5
Speed: 4
Options: 5
Multimedia: 5
Overall tweetability:

The name doesn't lie. Finding faults proves incredibly difficult, as UberTwitter offers an incredible assortment of awesome options, including retweet-editing capabilities, a cool "nearby" feature, and -- maybe it's just the comic nerd in us -- sweet dialogue bubbles in the Friend Feed. If you don't want to see ads from the Uber sponsors (seeing as free ain't free), make sure you uncheck the "allow sponsored tweets" box during setup.

TwitVid

Data: 90 KB
Ease: 5
Aesthetics: 3
Speed: 4
Options: 1
Multimedia: 4
Overall tweetability:

As the name implies, TwitVid truly provides only one benefit. The welcome screen includes options to "Record a New Video" or "Select an Old Video," and this app serves solely as a video hosting option. It does, however, upload vids significantly faster than other apps, so users may want to use it in conjunction with another choice.

Seesmic

Data: 227 KB
Ease: 4
Aesthetics: 2
Speed: 3
Options: 3
Multimedia: 3
Overall tweetability:

People who desire a smaller, more basic app should definitely consider Seesmic. It offers standard options, with swift and easy access to lists and retweets (e.g., "by me," "of me," "to me"), but the interface and speed are strictly average.

Tweetcaster

Data: 1044 KB
Ease: 4
Aesthetics: 4
Speed: 3
Options: 4
Multimedia: 4
Overall tweetability:

TweetCaster ranks solidly across the board. It showcases an appealing interface and a plethora of extras, like retweet-editing, easy trends access and the sweet "nearby" locator. A speed increase would be nice, though, and easy access to lists and retweets would definitely be a favorable addition.

Ones to Watch

Social Scope

This app has garnered excellent and glowing reviews from lucky users, but potential BlackBerry twitterers will just have to wait. The Scope crew is currently telling those anxious potential users, "The response we've received has been overwhelming leading to quite a backlog. We'll let you know if a spot opens up or the app becomes publicly available."

TweetDeck

An April tweet from TweetDeck indicated that the company is currently developing a BlackBerry equivalent to its highly popular Apple app, so hopefully an offering will be available soon.

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