Configure BlackBerry Pearl as a Modem on Mac OS X

Thursday, May 1, 2008 at 12:18 AM  by 
Jared Hanson

When I’m working away from my apartment or the office, I’m usually in a coffee shop with free Wi-Fi. However, occasionally I’ll find myself in a location where the only connection available is via my AT&T account. In order to utilize that from my PowerBook, I’ve configured my BlackBerry Pearl as a Bluetooth modem on Mac OS X 10.5.

I’ve documented the configuration procedure, as a reference for anyone who might find it useful.

Prepare BlackBerry Pearl

To allow Mac OS X to find your device, ensure that Bluetooth is enabled on the BlackBerry Pearl and that it is set to be discoverable. These settings are available under Bluetooth in the Options screen.

Download Modem Scripts

Mac OS X 10.5 does not provide support for BlackBerry devices out-of-the-box. However, Grant Goodale has been kind enough to provide modem scripts that enable the missing functionality. I’ve mirrored his scripts here: BlackBerry.ccl.zip

Download BlackBerry.ccl.zip to your Downloads folder, and extract the archive. A new BlackBerry.ccl folder should appear.

Copy the BlackBerry.ccl folder to the Macintosh HD:Library:Modem Scripts folder.

Set Up BlackBerry Pearl on Mac OS X

Step 1

Open System Preferences and go to the Bluetooth pane. Click “Set Up New Device…” which will bring up Bluetooth Setup Assistant.

Step 2

Click “Continue” to move past the Introduction screen.

Step 3

Select “Mobile phone” as the device type.

Step 4

Mac OS X should find a BlackBerry 8100. Select it and continue. If your phone is not discovered, check that Bluetooth is enabled and the device is set to be discoverable. Once those settings are verified, go back and repeat this step.

Step 5

In order to pair the computer and the phone, enter the given passkey on the phone.

Step 6

With the devices paired, the BlackBerry Pearl can now be configured as a Bluetooth modem. Check the box next to “Access the Internet with your phone’s data connection” and continue.

Step 7

Select Research in Motion and BlackBerry 8100 as the phone vendor and model, respectively. If wireless service is provided by AT&T (formerly Cingular), use the following settings.

Username: WAP@CINGULARGPRS.COM
Password: CINGULAR1
Phone Number: wap.cingular

If not using AT&T, contact your wireless provider for connection settings.

If Research in Motion does not appear in the Phone Vendor menu, the modem scripts were not properly installed. Repeat this procedure after fixing the installation.

Step 8

Congratulations! The device has been configured.

Connect to the Internet

Step 9

Open the Network pane in System Preferences. Select the Bluetooth service and click “Connect.”

Step 10

If everything is correct, you should now be connected to the Internet using your BlackBerry Pearl!

Comments

Lonna Hanson
says:
May 1, 2008 at 7:19 AM

This is amazing Jared. What a nice feature for your Blackberry. Again, this is amazing. Happy May Day!
Mom

Colin Devroe
says:
May 19, 2008 at 6:13 AM

Oh how I wish I had this for my iPhone.

Lee Walters
says:
May 23, 2008 at 3:03 PM

Wow, so close, yet so far. I’ve followed your instructions to the letter and I’m still getting this annoying Dialog: “Could not negotiate a connection with the remote PPP server. Please verify your settings and try again.” Any ideas? Thanks!

acajaja
says:
June 1, 2008 at 4:24 PM

I’ve gone through this process a number of times with a few variations here and there. It worked once for me and I can’t get it to work again. I’ve followed everyones nicely clear & simple instructions and I get a few different error messages, including the -Could not negotiate a connection with the remote PPP server. Please verify your settings and try again.- message.

In my quest for answers I ran into one person who seemed to think it was the current version of the blackberry pearl 8100 software. They said they downgraded to the last version and everything worked fine.

Can anyone verify this?

Blackberry pearl 8100 new macbook pro 10.5.3 t-mobile wireless

Joanna
says:
June 27, 2008 at 11:21 AM

Im having the same problem as lee and acajaja. I keep getting the same message as well. If you figure anything out e-mail me. cpajoanna@hotmail.com

Thanks

tom
says:
June 30, 2008 at 12:42 AM

Got it “working” with following config:

Mac OS X 10.5.3
BB 8700 - AT&T

If I follow the instructions above my mac book connects via BB 8700. Although the speed is incredibly slow. Anyway the problem is disconnecting the modem - I always get ” CCLExit: -6019 (Modem error, modem not responding.)” error in my /var/log/ppp.log file. This is causing following behavior: I can connect once, then after disconnecting - my BB modem become really confused and I am not able to connect anymore until I “hard” restart the cell phone (removing battery). This brings following conclusion - I believe that the problem is in the disconnect script or the BB device it self.

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