Well, I just finished my first day on back on campus for the fall semester, and I have to say, looks like I’ve gotten off to a pretty good start!  I took some time a few days ago to input my entire schedule into StudentDocket, and it really turned out to be a life-saver.  I’ll grant you that I have a slight bias (being the creator of StudentDocket and all), but after all, we made StudentDocket not just for you guys, but for us as well!  So here’s a quick run-down of why I love StudentDocket!

Integration with teacher e-mails and phone numbers

I wasn’t sure if my Economics class had recitation today, being the first week of school, so I went ahead and clicked on the class name in StudentDocket and selected “e-mail this teacher”.  After sending out a quick e-mail, I was delighted to find a reply sitting in my inbox (turns out he’s a fellow blackberry user!).  Unfortunately, we did have class .

Focused breakdown of what needs to be done NOW!

I don’t do very well with lists, particularly long homework lists with a million things that need to get done in no particular order.  Fortunately, StudentDocket takes care of this for me!  Simply setting the view to “Today” reminded me of that introduction essay due for my writing class.

single-glance for all my information

My entire class schedule and all of my assignments on ONE SCREEN.  My school has 35,000 students enrolled this semester, which I can promise you makes for a pretty hectic walk between classes.  Easy access to all of my information has already saved my life numerous times from on-coming bikes and student mobs.

Class locations

About half way to campus I realized I had forgotten my class list at home.  Within a few moments I had my BlackBerry out and was looking up where I needed to be in StudentDocket.  Not only did I know exactly which building I needed to head towards, I also noticed that the class didn’t even start for another hour!

Class names

With 6 classes on my schedule this semester, it’s pretty tough to remember the course and section number for each one.  This was particularly an issue while trying to navigate the school book store.  A simple glance at the main screen told me exactly which classes I’m in, allowing me to get all the right books (if only StudentDocket could have made them cheaper….).

So there you have it, a single day’s reflection on how StudentDocket helped me out.  We hope you guys have had a successful start to your semester!  Best of Luck!

Hey everyone, we wanted to welcome you to our new twitter account over at www.twitter.com/tgqe!  We know a lot of our users are twitter fans, and thought that it would be a good way to keep you informed of our most recent updates here at StudentDocket and TGQE (makers of StudentDocket).  We’re pretty shy here at StudentDocket, so we promise not to bother you too much with it.

For those of you not using twitter, we still recommend that you stay up to date with what’s going on by subscribing to our rss feed, or to our e-mail updates along the right hand side.  We only send out e-mails for special announcements such as product updates, and promise not to sell or otherwise abuse your information in any way.  opt out at any time!

The Student Starter Pack Released Just in Time for Back-To-School

Popular BlackBerry educational titles, Cram and StudentDocket have been bundled together in what is now the Student Starter Pack to help students heading Back-to-School save money.

DENVER, Co. and ATLANTA, Ga. - August 15, 2008 — TGQE, LLC and SimpleLeap Software, LLC today announced they are partnering to provide returning school students a savings with the “Student Starter Pack“ software bundle. The Student Starter Pack will consist of the two popular BlackBerry educational titles Cram, a scholastic testing software and StudentDocket, a student task manager, making this pair the perfect back-to-school essential.

“We’re excited to work together with SimpleLeap to provide some great solutions for students at awesome prices.  We’re confident that, when combined, StudentDocket and Cram will prove to be an excellent resource for students.” says Ryan Quinn of TGQE.

“There couldn’t be a more fitting partnership than the combination of these two great titles in The Student Starter Pack,” says Patrick Chukwura, Co-Founder of SimpleLeap Software. “It will be hard for students to find something of such value, at so little cost that will be of such contribution during their entire scholastic careers.”

The Student Starter Pack will be available for immediate download to the public on August 18, 2008 at http://www.studentstarterpack.com and will be priced at a special bundle price of $25.00 USD until September 18, 2008.

About TGQE

TGQE, LLC , located in Denver, CO, was founded in January 2008 with the creation of StudentDocket.  Our mission is to help students better organize their busy lives.  As students ourselves, we understand the need to get class schedules and assignment information out of your head and into a more tangible, usable form.  Once visible, we further strive to present this information in a streamlined and focused way, encouraging you to get the right things done at the right time.

About SimpleLeap Software

Atlanta, GA based SimpleLeap Software, LLC., was founded by Ashli Norton and Patrick Chukwura in 2008. SimpleLeap Software has dedicated it’s time to consistently bring simple, useful, and helpful applications across multiple mobile platforms to its user’s devices. SimpleLeap Software promises its users only the best mobile software, period and focuses only on the consumer’s needs when developing every feature in their applications. SimpleLeap Software has developed the title Cram for the BlackBerry and the iPhone.

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Media Contacts:

SimpleLeap Software, LLC
Ashli Norton
press@simpleleap.com

TGQE, LLC.
Andrew Gortmaker
press@studentdocket.com

Hey everyone!
We wanted to take a minute and let you know about some special back to school pricing we’re offering on StudentDocket - The only Blackberry task manager designed specifically for students! For a limited time, you can pick up your copy of StudentDocket for the ultra low price of $9.99! So go ahead and head on over to our Features page and see what we have to offer! You can then pick up your FREE 15-day trial copy in the Downloads section. But don’t delay! This offer is only good through the month of august!
See you around campus,
The StudentDocket Team

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As the second installment of our “Back to School” series, today we’re going to look at which Blackberry device is best for students.

The current Blackberry device lineup consists of all 8xxx phones and can be found on all major carrier networks. Each device packs its own little punch, and it’s really just a matter of selecting which one fits in with your own unique style. Personally, I’ve opted for an 8830 World Edition, as at the time of purchase it was the only Blackberry device offered by Verizon that supported world travel. I’ve never looked back and have no regrets! Andrew, my partner in crime here at StudentDocket, has opted for the newer BlackBerry Curve and couldn’t be happier.

In any case, here’s a quick rundown of what you have to choose from:

83xx Curve:

This phone has recently received quite a bit of love from the Blackberry team, and therefore currently comes in 4 different flavors: 8300, 8310, 8320, and the 8330. All of the devices are pretty similar, with the exception of CDMA Network support and video recording for the 8330. GPS can also only be found on the 8310 and 8330 varieties. Other than that, this device is stable, smaller than its 88xx brethren, and packs a camera to boot (no small feat for a blackberry I don’t mind telling you).

Pros:

• Includes a camera with Video Recording (8330 version Only)
• GPS (check with your carrier to ensure availability)
• Larger screen size makes browsing the internet as enjoyable as possible from a mobile device
• Smaller size than the 8800
• Full QWERTY keyboard makes typing out e-mails a breeze

Cons:

• Still a little on the large size, but not by much
• Sensitive mouth piece often picks up background noise a little too much

Summary:

This, to be honest, seems to be one of the best Blackberry options currently available. Online reviews are nothing but positive, and users seem highly satisfied.  Check out one such review here!

81xx Pearl

The Pearl is the baby in the Blackberry lineup, and seems to be one of the more popular units among the student population. Its smaller form factor pits the Pearl up against all the “regular” sized phones out there, making it an excellent choice for students looking to own a Blackberry without any of the size commitments. Unfortunately, this smaller size comes at the expense of a smaller screen and no full-sized QWERTY keyboard. General consensus seems to be that the keypad still works quite well, but is in no way as convenient as larger Blackberry devices.

Pros:

• Smaller size makes it more comparable to other phones
• Includes a camera
• Though not a full QWERTY keyboard, the keypad is still larger than normal and with practice can become quite an efficient little tool
• Let’s face it, the thing’s just pretty

Cons:

• · Smaller screen size (this may be a plus for some)
• · Not a full size QWERTY Keyboard (this may be a plus for some)

Summary:

The Pearl is definitely worth a look if you’re trying to avoid the larger size of other Blackberry devices. All reviews seem to be positive! Check out a full review here!

88xx (sometimes World Edition):

This was one of the first phones Blackberry released in the 8xxx lineup. As such, it’s considered one of the older offerings. Still not a bad phone though, and worth a look if your provider carries it. The device has no camera, but does include GPS (where allowed by your provider, Verizon customers beware: it has been deactivated).

Pros:

• · Larger Screen size makes browsing the internet as good as it can be on a mobile phone
• · Full QWERTY keyboard makes e-mailing or texting a breeze
• · Great call quality

Cons:

• · Larger size makes carrying it around inconvenient; I have to use the included holster which is often annoying
• · Over-sensitive mouth piece picks up a little too much background noise
• · No camera (this may be a pro for some people though)

Summary:

This is really a great option if you don’t mind the size of the phone. The only issues I’ve ever had are the lack of camera and not being able to keep it in my pocket.

And what about that Bold?

Blackberry has recently announced a new addition to their lineup with the Blackberry Bold. Though the Bold seems to be a rather solid offering, it’s still a few months out. If you’re not yet up for renewal, or don’t mind the wait, however, it may just be worth it. Keep in mind, however, that the Bold will be the largest model of the bunch, and therefore may not be the best choice for some. You can check out early reviews of the Bold over at the Boy Genius Report.

And what about that iPhone

This one’s a toughie, with all the press out there you’d think that this thing was hands-down THE way to go. Unfortunately, it’s not the case, particularly if you happen to be on any network other than ATT. Though the iPhone is without a doubt a great phone, users report several problems with it and should in no way be considered perfect. In the end, it comes down to user preference. Avoid the hype, pick one up, and decide for yourself. Avoid being seduced by lower price tags (over the 2 year contract, the newer iPhone is actually MORE expensive than the original) and an insane advertising budget. We’re hoping to provide a students review of the iPhone in the near future to help you out here!

In the end, it all comes down to which features you’re looking for, and which features you can actually get with your provider. If you don’t mind the size, the Curve is an excellent choice for students. It’s slimmer than the 8830/8820, yet packs more features with the added camera. A Pearl, on the other hand, is an excellent choice if you’d like to keep things more compact. Regardless of which device you choose, I know you won’t be disappointed. One of the few complaints I’ve ever had with my Blackberry was the default task manager it comes with. To put it simply, it just isn’t built for students. That’s why I created StudentDocket; feel free to check out your FREE 15-day trial today!