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For the past nine months, I’ve been a BlackBerry Curve evangelist. This isn’t out of duty to the website. In fact, I was a bit underwhelmed with my first two BlackBerry models, a second-hand 8700 and then the 8830 World Edition. Not that they weren’t good devices; they got the job done better than any device I’d used to that point. When I got the Curve, though, I had a completely different view of the BlackBerry. It appears other share my enthusiasm, since the Curve was the best-selling smartphone in the first quarter of this year. Today I’m going to share my top five accessories, just for the other BlackBerry Curve geeks out there.

BodyGuardz

A few months ago, Cooper sent me a package of BodyGuardz. The idea, I thought, was great. It’s essentially a clear plastic film which covers your BlackBerry, protecting it from the nicks, scratches, and bumps which frustrate us all. A complete BodyGuardz skin covers nearly every inch of the BlackBerry device, save for the keyboard. This includes the screen, which would have been awesome for me had I not already severely scratched mine. Still, I was eager to prevent further scrapes.

It was a bit intimidating at first. The instructions talked about how the BodyGuardz skin is permanent, and knowing my own clumsy ways I feared for my poor little Curve. Once I got into it, though, there was no problem. Installation can go from the simple — i.e., the screen and battery cover, which are the spots of most damage — to the complex, which includes the surface around the keys and screen, plus the top. It’s been an excellent addition to my Berry.

The reason BodyGuardz rocks so much is that it provides a level of protection without adding to the device’s bulk. OtterBox cases might provide heavy-duty protection, but they also come with heavy-duty bulk. BodyGuardz allows you to enjoy screen protection while still allowing your Berry to fit in your pocket.

You can get two BodyGuardz skins at the BBGeeks Store for $24.95. The two skins part is nice. It gives you a reprieve if you mess up. If you don’t, you can always give one to a friend.

Seidio Extended Battery

With moderate use, a new BlackBerry battery can usually last about two days. When I first got my Curve it would last about that long, give or take. Even though I took proper care of the battery, it still started losing capacity recently. Hey, no one’s perfect, and I’ve let the battery run down to the orange low-battery indicator a few too many times*. Eventually it became a choice: charge the Berry every night or get a new one. Since I occasionally come down with a bout of wanderlust, a new battery made a world of sense.

* I can’t tell you how many people tell me that it’s best to let the battery discharge completely, and then charge it all the way back up. With nickel-cadmium batteries, this was the case. With modern lithium-ion batteries, such as the ones you find in your BlackBerrys, laptops, etc., it’s best to charge them at around 50 percent, letting the battery get to the “low-battery” point about once every 30 charges. Case in point for this: at a conference this winter, a colleague noticed that I left my laptop plugged in all day. He told me that was bad for the battery. I asked him how long his two-year-old battery held a charge for. About an hour, he said. My two-year-old battery still held a charge for nearly three hours. Just to illustrate the point.

An extended-life battery can be of use in many areas. If you’re out at a conference, like I was at CTIA earlier this year, and are constantly using your BlackBerry, an extended-life battery can be a savior. It’s also good if you’re away from home and use streaming audio services. With MLB Gameday Audio and Pandora on my BlackBerry, streaming audio can decimate the battery. An extended-life battery has become a necessity lately.

You can get the Seido Extended Battery for $49.95. That’s the 2600mAh version, which provides 140 percent more power than your original. For five dollars less, you can get the 1500mAh, which provides 35 percent more battery life.

Motorola Wireless Travel Stereo Speaker

While an extended-life battery might be of use to someone who uses streaming audio services, there is something of perhaps even greater utility. The Motorola EQ5 travel stereo system can be a boon to those who want to listen to the game, or just listen some tunes, when there is no better alternative available. This Bluetooth-powered device provides stereo sound for both audio and for speakerphone. Best of all, it can fit in your pocket.

The unit is powered by SRS Labs Wow HDTM technology. You can read up abit about SRS Wow here. I met up with Alan Kraemer, chief technology officer of SRS, during CTIA to discuss some of the company’s developments. It turned into a 30-minute shop talk session, mainly about SRS’s theories of audio delivery. They use software to enhance the aural experience, rather than expensive hardware. In fact, Kraemer has written about software surround sound’s superiority to the multi-speaker setup we’ve grown used to.

You can get the Motorola EQ5 wireless travel speakers for $99.95, down from $119.95. If you’re using this to enhance your streaming audio, an extended-life battery is a near-necessary complement. The use of streaming audio and Bluetooth will kill a standard battery in no time.

16 GB media card

Does anyone these days run a BlackBerry without a memory card for expanded memory? With so many BlackBerry applications and multimedia functions, it’s become a near-necessity. The best part is that memory cards are rapidly expanding in capacity. So while it wasn’t long ago that 4 gigabytes was the biggest microSD card available, now they’re up to 32 GB for the BlackBerry — and growing.

Of course, just because a 32 GB microSD card can work on a BlackBerry doesn’t mean it can work in any BlackBerry. For Curve users, it appears we’re topped out at 16 GB, as the 32 GB card will only work with OS 4.6 and above. If you haven’t yet upgraded to OS 4.5, you can check out the upgrade process here. If you’re not one for upgrades, you can check out which memory card is compatible with your BlackBerry. Once you’ve determined which memory card to purchase, you can check out our guide to installing a memory card.

You can get a 16GB microSD card at the BBGeeks Store for $69.95. Just as the Bluetooth speaker system goes perfectly with the extended-life battery, so the 16GB microSD card goes perfectly with the Bluetooth speaker system.

Battery cover

As I’ve professed in the past, I’m a function over form guy. Give me something that works well and I don’t really care what it looks like. However, when I get something that has excellent function but poor form, and there’s a way to upgrade that form, I’m not going to ignore it. Not that I think the Curve form is poor — I quite like it, actually. Some people like to customize their devices, and that’s where battery covers come in. Short of a complete paint job, a new battery cover is the best way to change the look of your BlackBerry.

Of course, that can be functional, too. Everyone drops their BlackBerry from time to time, so a new battery cover could be in order for functionality’s sake. There’s even more room for function, too, as Seidio makes a rubberized battery door. While this purportedly enhances the speaker function of the phone, the main selling point is the rubberized nature of it, so that it prevents scratches. No one likes a scratched battery door.

You can get a standard battery cover at the BBGeeks Store for $14.95. They come in silver, red, gold, titanium, pink, black, and amethyst. You can get the Seidio rubberized battery cover for the same price.

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