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It's Monday, and that means it's time for the first Hammerdown Monday. This here app review column will be posted every Monday, and will be bringin ya the apps "That help keep ya truckin on the go". I will rate apps from one gear to ten gears, with one meaning "don't use this app even if they pay ya", and ten meaning "if you don't have this app yet, you need some serious head shrinkin". So, no more jackin around, rev yer engines and grab yer gears, lets get truckin!

It's a beautiful autumn night, Albuquerque is fading on the backdoor, and my Berry just let me know that there's a new episode of "No Agenda" ready for my perusal. Hot dog! I got a few more hours of drivin, according to the comicbook. This'll keep me from noddin' til I get to the Dancing Eagle Casino, where I'll back out on the hammer and catch some z's.

Podcast's on the Berry, you ask? Yep. But I'm not using the BlackBerry podcasts app, no sir. That one don't have the features I want from a podcatcher. So I use Podtrapper from Versatile Monkey. With features you can't get from other podcatchers on the Berry, this little gem will give you everything you need, plus some things you didn't know you needed.

The features list goes a little something like this:

Automatic downloading of new episodes via Wifi
Automatic downloading of new episodes via Cell network (On most carriers)
Downloads via desktop application for those without Wifi or with difficult carriers
Keeps track of last played podcast
Remembers where you left off in every episode
Automatic playlist sorting and management
Automatic deletion after listening
Built in podcast browser
Reliable pause and resume of downloads when connectivity changes
Built in keylock to allow for control of audio in your pocket
It Just Works, mostly

Now, automatic downloads can be hourly, 4 times a day, twice a day, daily, every 2 days, twice a week, weekly, and manual only. This is great, as some podcasts don't keep regular schedules.

Automatic switching between Wifi, cell network, and the desktop application is smoother than new blacktop in New Jersey.

Remembering where ya left off in a podcast is not a problem, you can even listen to a different cast, come back to another, and it still remembers where you left off. Sweet, eh?

Sort all your casts with playlists, and you can listen to casts based on the time of day, your mood, or any other criteria you can think up.

Need to save space on your memory card? No problem, auto delete has you covered. Want to keep all the episodes from a particular cast? Again, no problem, just turn off auto delete for that cast.

A slick user interface, and easy-on-the-eyes color scheme, make it a winner in the eyecandy dept. Most options can be accessed with one click of the menu button, while more advanced options are not that far down in the menu.

All in all, I give Podtrapper a solid nine and a half gears, the only gripe I have is there is (yet) no way to mark all listened episodes of a particular cast as "unlistened". At 9.99, it really aint all that much, and with a free trial, you can decide if it's right for ya before you buy. I paid for my copy after one trial day. Thats all I needed.

Get Podtrapper in the BBOS store

Next week I will be reviewing Vlingo Pro, a voice command app for BlackBerry's.

Howdy Hands, I got some good news for ya, I have copy's of Podtrapper to giveaway. A great big ol' Thank You to Marcus from Versatile Monkey, who just sent me fifteen keys to hand out to my loyal readers, and I'm gonna give y'all a chance to win the Hammerdown Monday reviewed app, and what I think is the best podcatcher around, .

I'm gonna make it real simple, just leave a comment, any comment, and your entered. Simple, eh? Only leave one comment though, multiple comments will take you out o' the running. This giveaway will run until Sat Sept 10th at 11:59 pm Eastern, then within 72 hours I will post the winners and PM your keys to ya. So what are ya waitin for? Get posting!

Hammerdown Monday is written by ADPerdue, a genuine Long Haul Trucker with eight years on the road, 825,000 accident and ticket free miles, and a certified BlackBerry junkie.