Win BlackBerry PlayBook Paired With BlackBerry Curve 9360 via TechPinas Gadget Bonanza Power Pair Edition!

Here in TechPinas, we believe in giving you nothing but the best!

Update as of May 22, 2012:

Hi TP Friends! We've already wrapped up this contest. Thanks to everyone who joined. The winner will be announced on May 25, 2012 via a TP post. God bless!

Last week, following RIM CEO Thorsten Heins' speech at BlackBerry World 2012, I wrote an article asking our readers, "Why Pinoys Choose BlackBerry?" And in just a matter of minutes, we began receiving several insightful comments. TP Friend Jason Icasiano - a loyal BB User, for example, wrote,

"BlackBerry has been part of my life [for] the last 3 years. There are a lot of "revolutionary phones" that came out during that time frame, but I held on to my BlackBerry. Of course, I update the BlackBerry model I use every time my budget allows me to. Come to think of it, the BlackBerry did help me become more successful. As doctor and an editor-in-chief of our society's newsletter, emails that had to be sent were sent including attachments and they were instant, no delays, [and] pictures came thru clearly."

BlackBerry Wants To Say 'Thank You' to All Pinoys Who Support the Brand!

BlackBerry Philippines took notice of that TP post and - perhaps loving what they saw in the comments section - wrote us about their intention to give a token of gratitude to all Filipinos who continue to support the popular handset brand.

BB gave me a powerhouse pair, a BlackBerry PlayBook and a BlackBerry Curve 9360, as a gift for the TechPinas Community and told me to I'm free to give them away to TP Friends who love BlackBerry. Hence, I decided to launch TechPinas Gadget Bonanza Power Pair Edition!

You can pair BlackBerry PlayBook with BlackBerry Curve 9360 via BlackBerry Bridge for a richer messaging and multimedia experience!

You Control Your Chances of Winning!

If you remember, the winners of the previous TPGB's were chosen via raffle. This time, we want to give you a chance to actually work for the prize and win it using your skills.

The TP Team will choose the winner of TPGBPPE - that sole person who will take home the BlackBerry PlayBook and BlackBerry Curve 9360 pair - via an essay writing contest! Yes, this time, you'll have the power to convince us to give you the prize!

So What Are The Mechanics?

1. The contest will run from May 8, 2012 to May 21, 2012. The deadline for submission of entries is at exactly 11:59:59 PM of May 21, 2012 and the winner will be announced on May 25, 2012 via a TP post.

2. TPGBPPE is open to anyone who has a Blog (Blogger, Wordpress, Tumblr, or self-hosted - in any category) or a Facebook account.

3. All you have to do is to write a 200-word minimum (meaning you can send entries with more than 200 words) Essay-style blog post or a Public Facebook Note with the theme "How Does BlackBerry Help You Achieve Your Purpose in Life or Help You Become a Person of Purpose?"

You can take inspiration from this quote by Thosten Heins, taken from his recent BB World 2012 speech,

People who live for a purpose. These are the people that BlackBerry's focused on serving -- the BlackBerry people. Now what does that really mean? In recent studies we've done, we know that our target customers are hyperconnected. Now what does that mean? On average 63% of smartphone users access social network sites on a daily basis. 87% of BlackBerry people do this daily. 65% of smartphone users access organizational tools like calendar and task lists on a daily basis. 91% of all BlackBerry people do this to manage their busy lives. 22% of all smartphone users search and download apps every single day compared to 34% that do this on a BlackBerry. This tells us something about BlackBerry users. This tells us that our target audience is far from the average smartphone users. You are people of purpose. You believe that the more you put into life, the more you get out of it. You mobilize other people. You don't just dream, you make your goals happen. You're successul by your own definition not by somebody else's defintion. You do more and you get more done in a day.

4. You can write your essay in any language you're comfortable in or the one that would allow you to fully express your thoughts (English, Tagalog, Cebuano, Hiligaynon, Ilocano, etc.). However, note that I only speak English and Tagalog (I know a bit of Ilocano since my parents are both from La Union) so I'd have ask for help from my friends in translating and determining the level of clarity of entries written in other languages.

5. You are free to give your entry any title you want. But make sure you put this line on top of your post "This is my official entry to TechPinas.com Gadget Bonanza BlackBerry Power Pair Edition".

5. After writing and publishing your essay online, email me your PUBLIC blogpost's URL or the link to your PUBLIC Facebook Note via markmacanas[at]gmail.com with the title "TPGBPPE Entry by [Full Legal Name]". Before emailing, make sure that your blogpost or Facebook Note's privacy is set to PUBLIC, meaning everyone should be able to access and read it.

6. You are free to submit as many entries (essays) as you like. Just keep emailing me the links.

7. IMPORTANT: Entries will be judged based on the following criteria: Relevance of Content to the Theme 70%, Creativity and Originality 20%, Construction and Clarity 10%. Of course, the entry with the highest score wins!

8. Everyone from around the world can join but the winner will have to find a way to pick up his or her prize in Makati City, Philippines. Make sure you follow TechPinas Facebook, TechPinas Twitter, BlackBerry Philippines Facebook and BlackBerry Philippines Twitter for updates!

If you have questions or clarifications, just leave a comment below.

So what are you waiting for?! JOIN NOW!

DISCLOSURE: TechPinas didn't receive any financial compensation for holding this contest. Both devices to be given away were given to the TP Community by BB as gifts. TechPinas reserves the right to revise the contest mechanics at any time within the contest period.