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You’d think that with all of the recent BlackBerry OS updates, RIM would have provided the ability to record phone calls. This can be beneficial for many purposes. Often, people have to take notes when on the phone. That’s no good if you’re not sitting down. Having the voice recorder makes it easier to have the conversation and pick out the important parts later. For others, like me, it is a great tool for interviews. It feels embarrassing sometimes when an interviewee asks for your number, and you have to explain that you must dial in, since the only way you can record the call is via Skype. Is there any way we can record calls on our BlackBerry?
Voice Recorder Notes
If you have a newer OS (mine is 4.3.0.127), you’ll have the Voice Recorder Notes application. When I first saw this, I thought it was a great way to record phone calls. However, as you can see from the screenshot, that just can’t happen. I didn’t expect much of it, anyway. I figured it just used the built-in mic, which means that the caller on the other end would be horribly muffled at best. Instead, the application simply won’t work while the phone is active. So much for that idea.
There has to be a way, though. Right?
Ring2
Back at WES, I ran into a company called Ring2. They deal with conference calling, and have an application built for BlackBerry. In addition to a host of other features, they offer the ability to record conference calls. Since you technically can hold a call with just two participants, you can utilize the feature for your basic call recording needs.
The downside is that it costs. They don’t publish their prices, but expect a monthly fee rather than a flat-rate download. This looks like one of the easiest ways to record your calls.
Grand Central
In searching for an answer to the call recording question, I stumbled across Grand Central, a Google project. Among its many features is the ability to record incoming calls, simply by hitting the number 4 on your keypad. From what I’ve gathered, this only works with incoming calls. Still, it’s better than nothing.
(By the by, does anyone know which weighs more: All of the trees cut down to make U.S. dollars in one year, or all the trains traveling through Grand Central Station in one year?)
Limited options
So it looks like we don’t have a ton of options for recording calls on our BlackBerry devices. RIM didn’t include such an ability in OS 4.5, or at least as far as I’m able to tell. We might see updates to third-party applications like VR+, but even then we can’t be sure if this is on the developer’s agenda.
Anyone have a better solution out there? Please, please leave it in the comments if you do.
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27 Comments ↓
I been looking for a solution this this problem as well.
I thought mVoice, from Motionapps, was able to do it.
But now it seems, from what I’m learning, that it’s an OS challenge, and not developers in general.
I have a Treo 680, that has an amazing program called Callrec. That program and Natara’s Bonsai (outliner program, similar to Ideamatrix from Rexwireless), are literally Dealbreakers for determining whether I use my Treo 680, or my blackberry bold!
the best solution: Callrec and Bonsai, remade for the blackberry!
Wouldn’t such an application/use require notification of the other party that the call is being recorded? Or at a minimum issue the recurring “beep” across the line that indicates a call is being recorded in the absence of full notification?
Recording phone calls without consent is illegal in some states, which is why you will never see the functionality built into the blackberry, I’m sure that law extends to far more then the US as well.
One solution is to get a digital recorder like this one http://www.telephonecallrecorder.com/fsv256-133hour-phone-cell-phone-digital-recorder-p-56.html that comes with a earbud that is a microphone. Even though it’s in your ear, it picks up both your voice and the other person’s voice. You do have to be sure to keep the phone still on your ear otherwise you’ll pick up “rubbing” noise from the phone rubbing on the microphone. It’s not the highest quality recording because it’s not a direct connection to the line, it uses a microphone, but it’s a great way to record your calls.
It’s possible on some cell phones, and a few have had them built in. I know some of my older phones had the ability to record conversations for short durations, usually about a minute. They didn’t indicate a beep of any kind to the other person on the line, just to me when I would hold the notes button down.
As one poster stated, in some states it’s illegal to record a conversation without the other parties consent. In the state I live in, the law only requires that one party be aware that the recording is going on.
Im not sure exactly how it works but take a look at recordiapro.com my brother used it for recording incoming calls… somehow. i know u might have to get a new number
just addming my 2 cents.
Recordedcalls.com says they’re coming out with a solution to record calls on rim’s blackberry platform.
Well, I still haven’t found a suitable app for this. But I wanted to address your little riddle
“(By the by, does anyone know which weighs more: All of the trees cut down to make U.S. dollars in one year, or all the trains traveling through Grand Central Station in one year?)”
Neither, they are both fictional amounts. Dollars are made from fabric, not paper. No trains pass THROUGH grand central, they all stop there.
Recordedcalls.com has got to be some kind of scam phishing for emails.
It is rediculous that Blackberry does not have such an app.
It seems so basic, and it would be so usefull for interviews!!!
In terms of legalities. It is NOT illegal to record a phone call between two or more parties as long as you are a part of the conversation and all other parties are aware of this. It is only illegal when you are tapping into a conversation that you are not party to, or are using amplifying olr secretive recording devices to enable you to unnaturally listen to another person’s coversation. (This goes for Canada anyway – need I remind anyone of the mulroney tapes? =))It is more a question of ethics.
Just started a discussion on the blackberry forums. We’re all trying to find an app for recording phone calls as well. (I’m a journalist, and so such an app would invaluable). Any other suggestions on where to find such an app…?
The QmodilSoft support folks said, “We will expand our work to other devices but I can’t tell you when we will have software for Blackberry…It is because Blackberry OS has some limitations regarding call recording.”
What a damn pain… And why can’t Blackberry get it together!?
Has anyone tried mVoice by MotionApps?
Totally maddening. Am now seriously considering ditching the Blackberry 8220 and getting the new Palm Pre. Such a shame. But I really do need this feature. A pity it has proved so difficult for RIM to make it accessible. Thanks for all of your help!
re: palm pre:
no mention that it will be able to do what the older palm os allows…!
for all the bad-mouthing of garnet/palm os, it still allows this function to occur! hah!
if it is, in fact, due to the os not allowing it, then it’s pointless to badger developers regarding it. such is the way it is.
maybe we should badger rim regarding it.
re: lawfulness.
sounds funny to concern about who’s recording who, when I hear, generally, about the govts. always tapping into others phone calls and such. double standards I feel.
Thanks all!
I have the original ENV and it records both incoming and outgoing calls but only the voice of the party on the other line. all you have to do is hold down the CLR button for a couple of seconds.
This really helped when my ex wife interfered with my one allowed phone call a day to my son. The authorities got to here her in the backround interfering with the calls and cackling like a hyena on crack.
Legality? That’s an absolutely asinine argument, even for US republican bible thumper prudes. You know what else is illegal? Issuing death threats on your phone, phoning in false bomb threats, or impersonating a US president on the phone. All can be done with a cell phone, yet calls are still allowed.
https://vr.shapeservices.com/
No I dont work for them…
I’m eager to trade in my outdated Treo700p for something more modern, feature rich, with a better keypad. Digging the blackberry bold… On the Treo700p, I use mVoice from Motionapps–works like a charm to record calls, which I NEED to capture details from calls with clients when I’m not able to take notes (i.e., while driving) Am I stuck? Forever bound to a slowly dying treo? Sounds like developers aren’t able to crack the OS restriction. Won’t Bberry listen? Who’s lobbying them? It’s a dealbreaker for me… and it sounds like many, many others.
It might be illegal to record without other party’s consent, but only in some states. It’s not same as using this record illegally. I don’t see any point in this restriction.
Who wants to record for illegal purposes has a lot of options any way. Making phones without such basic features makes me not taking any phone as more than just a phone (calls only). (I recommend good old paper notbook:)
The set of feature on different phones are so unnatural. Every one lacks something important from what I need.
And BB is just another disappointment
In Canada it’s only necessary for ONE of the parties to know the conversation in being recorded, not both.
Grand Central is now called Google voice. The main downside is for Google voice is that you have to use the number given to you by google. So the other party needs to dial your google number and not your actual number. This is very difficult for people like me who are using the same number from last 7 years.
dont know if this method is any good but what i have tried is put phone onto speakerphone and record with an external recorder like a zoom, quality is spot on1
Berry Record!
[...] your intentions for doing this might be I do not know. I won’t ask. We already know there are few ways to record phone calls on your BlackBerry, but we haven’t even delved into the other areas. There is an app out which can accomplish [...]
“In some states, it’s illegal to record without the other party’s consent” is no reason not to have the feature.
It’s illegal for me to use my cellphone to photograph people in the locker room of the local YMCA without their consent. Yet nearly every cellphone has a built-in camera.
It’s illegal for me to deliberately smash my cellphone into someone else’s nose! Yet cellphones still exist!
Just because it’s *possible* to commit a crime with a feature does not mean that the feature should not be implemented.
Just thought of something: use speakerphone, connect headphone jack to line in of the computer and use Sound Recorder (or equivalent) to save it to mp3!!! I think it should work…
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