Finally, it seems as though BlackBerry users are getting some choices when it comes to Twitter applications. Recently, I reviewed UberTwitter, which I preferred to the ubiquitous TwitterBerry, and found comparable to SocialScope, another Twitter/Facebook BlackBerry app that’s still in private beta.
The latest app to emerge is called TweetCaster, and it offers one killer feature that the other BlackBerry Twitter apps don’t currently have: multi-account support, a key feature of desktop applications like Seesmic Desktop and TweetDeck as well as several iPhone apps. But does the rest of the app stack up to the competition?
Setting up multiple accounts is fairly self-explanatory, and each time you fire up the app, you can choose which account you’d like to use. Like SocialScope, the interface is more visual than TwitterBerry (or UberTwitter), with a variety of icons to choose from at the top: standards like replies, messages, or jump to user profile, as well as more advanced options like view currently trending topics, an option to see nearby Twitter users via GPS (like UberTwitter), and Twitter search.
The interface for all of these features is clean and intuitive, and frankly a bit more visually appealing than any of the alternatives. For each tweet throughout the applications, there are easy options to reply, retweet, add to favorites, or email the tweet to someone. The form for sending the tweets is also nice, telling you clearly how many characters you have remaining. However, it would be nice to be able to switch accounts at this point rather than having to back out and switch usernames.
Using the photo feature of the app inexplicably crashed my BlackBerry, triggering the phone to go black and take pictures over and over again. I’ll give the app the benefit of the doubt and blame this on pilot error, but if you experience a similar issue I’d love to hear about it (as opposed to pulling the battery out of the back of my phone and waiting for yet another reboot). There’s also quick access to TinyURL, though inclusion of other URL shorteners would be a welcome addition.