It’s amazing competition. While Research in Motion preparing to launch its Blackberry Application Center, a startup called the BerryStore has already launched a similar service, but “better,” according to TechCrunch.

What makes it better than the official BlackBerry App Center (besides the name), is that apps in the BerryStore work across both old and new BlackBerries alike (not just the upcoming BlackBerry Storm), and across carriers. The BlackBerry App center, in contrast, is designed to be a carrier-specific store, with different apps for different carriers.

You can simply download the RIM-unaffiliated BerryStore as an app itself by visiting www.berrystore.com on your BlackBerry -instead of downloading apps through Blackberry browsers as required by Blackberry Application Center.

I tried visitting their site on my BlackBerry Curve 8310, and it reads:

“BerryStore makes it easy for you to find and install applications for your BlackBerry smartphone.

BerryStore is still BETA software and may have defects. If you choose to use the beta, you’re doing so at your own risk. An unlimitted data plan is strongly recommended.

BerryStore should work on all Pearl, Curve and 8800-series devices. It should also work on 8700-series devices, but this has not been well tested.”

Below is a list of each app currently in the BerryStore with a short description:

Books & Reference
NeoReader: Turns your Blackberry into a barcode scanner.
Blackberry Wiki: Wikipedia reader.
Beyond411: Yellow pages, maps, and directions.
MobipocketReader: Mobile e-reader.

Business & Finance
Obopay: P2P payments.
Bank of America: Manage your dwindling bank account.
NyTimes DealBook: A bookmark icon to the popular blog.
E-Trade Mobile Pro: Manage your dwindling stock portfolio.

Lifestyle
Google Mobile: Search, Maps, Gmail.
Opera: Opera Mini Web browser.
Zumobi:Mobile widgets.
Google Mail: As in Gmail.
Poynt: Local search.
Maufait InstaFind: Al-in-one 411, flight tracker, movie showtimes, stock quotes, weather, news.
Puretracks:Mobile music store.
Tellme: Voice-enabled GPS info.
reQall: Voice-to-text recorder, to-do list, and idea manager.
Nobex Radio Companion: Shows you the name of the songs playing on the radio.

News & Weather
Viigo: News, sports, entertainment, weather, stock and traffic alerts.
New York Times: Bookmark icon.
ABC News: Bookmark icon.
The Washington Post: Bookmark icon.
CNBC Mobile: Bookmark icon.
USA Today: Bookmark icon.
Slate: Bookmark icon.
PinStack.com: Forums

Social Networking
TwitterBerry: Mobile Twitter client that avoids SMS charges.
3jam: Group text messages.
eBuddy: Instant messaging app
Dexrex: Archives your text messages.
Pinger: Voice IM.

Sports
Sports Illustrated: Bookmark icon.
ESPN Mobile: Bookmark icon.

Travel & Navigation
Google Maps: What it sounds like.
GPSed: Map your GPS tracks, save them, and share them. Also geotags your photos.
Citysense: Live hotspot tracking.
WorldMate Live: A personal digital assistant for travelers

Utilities
Box.net: Access and share files on your BB.
AutoLock: Locks the keyboard.
MidpSSH: Connect to remote servers.
MiniMoni: Monitor IP traffic.

[via TechCrunch]