RIM has had Theme Studio for BlackBerry 7 in Beta for a while and we haven’t heard much else about it, until today. RIM has just announced on the Inside BlackBerry Developer Blog, via a post entitled “One Door Closes, Another Door Opens,” that they will not be releasing Theme Studio for BlackBerry 7 and that BlackBerry 10 WILL NOT have a theme option.
First, let us take a look at Theme Studio for BlackBerry 7. The Beta is out there but it’s not being very widely used and developer feedback on the software has been bad. There will not be an official release of Theme Studio for BlackBerry 7. The blog post cites the following specifically for Theme Studio 7:
“Once we looked at the final product, it was clear to us that it didn’t address theme developer needs or asks. In addition, feedback from our Theme Studio beta testers showed us that the quality of the tooling would not be acceptable.”
Now, on to BlackBerry 10. RIM has no plans to release a Theme Studio for BlackBerry 10, and even if they wanted to, themeing may not even be possible with the custom interface that BlackBerry 10 runs on. Here is more from the blog on why there won’t be themes for BlackBerry 10:
“there will be no Theme Studio product for BlackBerry 10 and there will be no theme support in the BlackBerry 10 OS. We’ve worked diligently over the last year and a half with our design team to create a new user interface – focused around the idea of “flow”. While there are some great themes built for the current BlackBerry OS, BlackBerry 10 is designed to provide users a unique experience that can be personalized in other ways, but will have a consistent look and feel in iconography and settings.”
So, there you have it. Direct from RIM, confirmation that themes on BlackBerry are a thing of the past. Theme developers need not be discouraged; however. Building applications for BlackBerry 10 requires little to no additional knowledge above what you currently possess for themes. Take a little time to check out developing for BlackBerry 10 and you may find a new outlet to keep the revenue flowing in and your love for BlackBerry flowing out.
Source : Inside BlackBerry Developer Blog
Justin Lisenby
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