So check it out… RIM’s huge BlackBerry hullabaloo, Wireless Enterprise Symposium, or “WES”, officially kicks off tomorrow in sunny Orlando, but that didn’t stop the Waterloo folks from busting out two — count ’em, two — hot new smartphones prior to all of the festivities. Wanna know what they are? Hit the jump to find out.
BlackBerry loving, code division multiple access junkies rejoice, as today, RIM announced the latest addition to its CDMA BlackBerry portfolio: the BlackBerry Bold 9650. We would love to say we didn’t know the 9650 was coming…but we’d be lying. Here is the skinny on the new addition to the Bold family: CDMA EV-DO world phone with support for HSPA and UTMS (2100 MHz) networks, Wi-Fi b/g, optical trackpad, GPS, 3.2 megapixel camera with flash, 4.4” x 2.4” x .56” and 4.8 oz., 512 MB of flash memory, microSDHC card support up to 32 GB, 1400 mAhr battery, and BlackBerry OS 5 — the press release did not list a processor clock speed. The new handset will be available in the U.S. in May. Not exactly the most earth-shattering announcement, but hey… it’s something.
Then there’s the Pearl 3G. If the Bold 9650 was a phone we could see coming from miles away, the Pearl 3G could be seen from the exosphere. Just a touch smaller than the original Pearl 8100 at 108mm x 50mm x 13.5mm, the 3G is said to offer, “uncompromising performance and top–of-the-line features,” which include: 360×400 display, 3.2 megapixel autofocus camera, Wi-Fi b/g/n (a RIM first), GPS with BlackBerry Maps, 256MB of flash memory, microSDHC support up to 32GB, 1150 mAhr battery, and BlackBerry OS 5.0 — all of which is kept purring by a 624MHz processor. The Pearl 3G will be available with a SureType keypad (model 9100) as well as with a traditional T9 keypad (model 9105). Why is RIM just now making a smartphone with a T9 keypad? According to RIM co-CEO Mike Lazaridis, “more than three-quarters of the people in the global mobile phone market are still buying handsets with a traditional alphanumeric keypad, we think the new BlackBerry Pearl 3G addresses a substantial market opportunity. It allows consumers to upgrade their traditional mobile phone to a full-featured, easy-to-use and fashionable 3G BlackBerry smartphone […] while maintaining a handset design and layout that is familiar and comfortable.” The Pearl 3G will be available for a multitude of carriers starting in May.
We’ve got the official press releases linked up for you below.
Read – Bold 9650
Read – Pearl 3G
