Aug
14
RIM’s new Blackberry model “Bold” will likely be available in the US by mid-September
Filed Under Technology
If you prefer the Blackberry over the iPhone, you will be happy to know RIM’s new Blackberry model “Bold” will likely be available in the US by mid-September.
According to the Associated Press story New BlackBerry expected within month in N. America by Rob Gillies…
“August 14, 2008 - TORONTO - The new BlackBerry model should be coming to North America within a month now that Research In Motion Ltd. has started selling it in Germany and Chile.
The first major new BlackBerry model in more than a year, the Bold is a high-end BlackBerry that has twice the screen resolution of current models made by RIM. The Bold, or 9000, matches the resolution, but not the size, of the screen on Apple Inc.’s iPhone, which has emerged as a potent competitor in the smart-phone category.
AT&T Inc. says it will be the exclusive U.S. carrier for the Bold, as it is for the iPhone. An AT&T spokesman declined to say Thursday when the company will release it.
But Peter Misek, an analyst with Canaccord Adams, said he expects AT&T to start selling it on Sept. 15 and Rogers Communications in Canada to release it on Aug. 18.
Misek said the Bold will cost about $200 in the United States depending on the contract.
After enjoying years of success in the corporate market, RIM has targeted the consumer market with the Curve and the Pearl. Like those consumer-oriented phones, the Bold has a full-size headset jack and a camera that can also capture video.
The Bold has a glossy metallic look and adds corporate-strength Wi-Fi capabilities to third-generation cellular and Bluetooth radios. Otherwise it stays close to the formula of the Curve, with a horizontal screen above a trackball and a keyboard with one letter per key.
Many people consider the BlackBerry easier to use for e-mail and text-messaging than the iPhone because they have traditional keypads instead of touchscreens.
Misek said the Bold is the first of a series of new models that RIM plans on releasing, including a touchscreen BlackBerry called the Thunder. Misek said RIM has 5 million to 7 million people who have older versions than the Curve, Pearl and Worldphone and could be targets of an upgrade.”
