BlackBerry Forums Support Community - Use your Pearl as a BT Modem under OS X

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- Mac Users Corner (http://www.blackberryforums.com/forumdisplay.php?f=61)

- - Use your Pearl as a BT Modem under OS X (http://www.blackberryforums.com/showthread.php?t=46640)

Use your Pearl, 8700 or 8800 as a BT Modem under OS X

In the long tradition of writing software to fix problems with hardware I've bought, I've written a Modem Script to let you use your Pearl as a Bluetooth modem under OS X. :)

Unfortunately, I can't post a link here until I've posted 10 times, so you'll have to go to the RIM forum on howardforums.com and search for the title of this post to download it. You can also find it linked off my blog, which is mentioned in my profile. Sorry for the inconvenience!

EDIT: Just wanted to note that the 8800 is also supported, as well as the GSM variants of the 8700 if you have OS 4.2.

Thanks ggoodale! I posted the details below for those who need it.

Quote:

Use your BlackBerry Pearl as a Bluetooth Modem under OS X

Posted by: grant on Wed, 13 September 2006 9:41 AM -08:00

Update 3: A few people have pointed out that my directions are incomplete - I’ve updated them to include a few extra steps. If everything’s working for you, I doubt you’ll see any benefit from setting things up again.

Update 2: I just registered 208kbps download speed on the Speakeasy speed test, which is pushing the practical limits of EDGE. I’m therefore prepared to say the download speed’s about as good as it’ll get.

The upload speed, however, is another matter. I’m getting 8kbps on that same test, which seems really low. So further work is necessary. If you get a better upload speed than me, by all means let me know.

Update: I’ve uploaded a new version that improves performance (at least download performance) by a factor of 2x for me - I’m now reliably getting 135-150kbps speeds. It’s only a one character difference from the previous version - what have you got to lose!

In the long tradition of only writing software when it solves something that annoys me, I’ve written an OS X modem script for the BlackBerry 8100 (a.k.a. Pearl). If you have an 8100, you can now use it as a Bluetooth modem with your Mac. Here’s how you use it:

Download the script here.
Copy the script into /Library/Modem Scripts.
If you’ve already paired your Pearl with your Mac, open Bluetooth Preferences, Select your Pearl from the list of devices and press ‘Configure…’. (If you haven’t, choose ‘Set up Bluetooth Device’ - the following dialogs will be shown after you’ve paired your phone with your Mac.)
Make sure ‘Access the Internet with your phone’s data connection’ is checked. Also, make sure ‘Use a direct, higher speed connection’ is selected. Click Continue.
In the Modem Script pulldown on the following screen, Select ‘BlackBerry 8100’. Use the following settings for the other fields, then click Continue:
- Username, Password: leave blank
- GPRS CID: *99***1#
Open the Internet Connect application. Select the Bluetooth icon at the top. Under Phone Number, put your APN (for T-Mobile and the BlackBerry Unlimited plan, I use wap.voicestream.com). Type a username and password (I use guest/guest) in the appropriate fields.

That’s it! Let me know if it works for you. I don’t believe my settings are getting the most out of the device’s EDGE support, so I’ll be tweaking as I learn more. Credit to Ross Barkman and Tim Hatch for the original scripts I tweaked to make it work.

Caveats: I’ve only tested this with my G4 PowerBook and OS X 10.4.7, so I have no idea if it works with anything else.

Thanks! When I update the script, I'll post the updates there. My hosting provider seems to be having severe hard drive issues right now, so it's likely that my site is unusable at the moment. Once they've straightened things out you'll be able to download the script there.

Okay, I managed to grab a copy of the script off my site. I've attached it to this post. You'll want to remove the .txt extension from the file (I had to add it to be able to upload the file). Enjoy!

Now can't a script like that be written for the 8700g to use as a modem? or bluetooth is totally different?

Sadly there is some intrinsic limitation with Bluetooth on "lesser" blackberrys. When I connect my just-released-and-up-to-datest (in the UK) 7130g via bluetooth to my mac the only service I am provided with is the limited address book facility. This is actually not even useful either - normally this provides you with the opportunity to send SMSs directly from the MacOSX address book - it doesn't with this phone. There is (currently)no option for utilising the phone as a modem
Does anyone know if the bluetooth hardware on these phones is limited or might this inadequacy be software based?
R

ggoodale! Thank you! I am connected through my Pearl now! I came here hoping someone had worked out the connection details, but I never, ever expected it to work so smoothly.

THANK YOU!

Thanks for the instruction but for some reason it works only for a few minutes and then it looses connection. Bluetooth stays on but it alway looses the modem connection after few minutes. Does this happen to you? I'm using BB Pearl and PB G4 V10.4.7.

I thought i would try to connect my intel-mac Mini at work with these settings and no dice. I am going to try it at home with my PB G4, anything other tips i need to know?

hello,
sorry for the dumb question.

i grabbed the .txt file and changed the name of the file and placed in the modem scripts but when i choose it in my bluetooth settings it still has the .txt at the end of it.. not sure what i'm doing wrong.. is it a copy/paste thing??

I set it up on a Macbook Pro last night and everything went perfectly.

Oh.. btw.. the C|Net bandwidth test that I ran on the connection is pulling down 92kbps. Anyone else have stats ?

Worked flawlessly with PowerBook G4 12-inch (1.33) running 10.4.7 OS X. Thanks ggoodale for the script :)

hello,
so i own a macbook pro 15" and i have been trying to get my pearl working as the modem. i have followed all the directions and i connect but for some reason i can not log onto safari or get mail. my friend got his working on his powerbook but for some reason i keep getting the error, "The connection was terminated because the other side is not responding. Please try again."

can anybody help?
i have restarted, re-paired devices and followed all the instructions..

any help would be so appreciated..
thank

Can we leave the modem script as a .txt file?

Quote:

Originally Posted by rebelde

The .txt extension will likely go away if you restart your Mac.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rambo47

Can we leave the modem script as a .txt file?

You can - I changed it for asthetic reasons. :)

You probably want to grab the latest version at my site (link), as it's significantly faster than the one attached to my previous post.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rebelde

Hmm. Are you receiving any traffic at all after you connect? Is the 'Received' bar on the Internet Connect window moving at all?

One other question - what kind of coverage did you have when you tried to connect?

Will this work on the Cingular network? I have an unlocked pearl that i'm using with cingular... what are the network settings if I can do this on Cingular? Thanks.

You are a god! Thank you! Works awesome on my MacbookPro.

Blessings,
DJ