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RIM’s new flagship device, the BlackBerry Bold 9700, has been officially announced. If you’ve been following the latest leaked videos and pictures, you’d already know a fair bit about this device (including that it’s coming to AT&T, T-Mobile, Vodafone, Bell, Rogers, telus and maybe even wind) but here’s a spec run-down anyway:
- 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocus, image stabilization, video recording, flash and 2 x zoom
- 122 g, 109mm x 60mm x 14.1mm
- 2.44″480 x 360 display
- New 624 Mhz processor, 256 MB of flash memory
- Wi-Fi with UMA support, A-GPS, Bluetooth (incl. A2DP)
- 3.5mm headphone jack, microUSB jack, and microSD memory card slot supporting up to 32 GB
- Optical trackpad
- 1500 mAh battery with 6 hours of talk time or 19/15 days standby (GSM and UMTS, respectively)
- 1900/1800/900/850 MHz on GSM, 2100/1900/850/800 Mhz or 2100/1700/900 Mhz on UMTS
For those currently rocking the original BlackBerry Bold 9000, upgrading to this bad boy would provide you not only with added application memory, processor speed, and an upgraded camera, but extra style by way of the optical trackpad, slimmer dimensions, and overall revamped style. Don’t worry, the keyboard you know and love has changed very little, and the leather backing is still there, if you’re into that kind of thing. Anyone who had passed up on the 9000 because it looked like a fatty next to the Curve will probably be reassessing their options this go-around.
OS 5.0 is also included in the new Bold, some of the improvements from which we’ve seen in the Storm2. A lot of the really cool enterprise stuff, like flags and remote e-mail lookup will be available for those companies who have upgraded their BES to 5.0 and have devices like the Storm2 9550 and Bold 9700 among their employees; in good time, though, OS 5.o will likely find its way to the most recent BlackBerry models.
There’s no official info on carriers or pricing, but they are expecting it to be picked up in November, just in time for Christmas.
[BlackBerry Bold 9700 Official Site]
UPDATE: Rogers has confirmed that they’ll be offering the 9700 for $299.99 on a three-year plan. T-Mobile and AT&T will both be selling the Bold for $199.99 on a two-year term. Bell and Telus have also confirmed the 9700; although with no price point, they’re saying November.
About The Author
Simon Sage
Simon Sage’s education largely surrounded writing, technology and online community, leading him to begin his blogging career at www.BlackBerryCool.com and to quickly discover a vibrant and active community surrounding BlackBerry and mobile technology. In exploring RIM’s platform, he has learned what enterprises are looking for in mobility as well as what makes the innocuous BlackBerry so appealing to them. Recently Simon’s been covering RIM’s gradual move into an already-crowded consumer market, and the impact of burgeoning challengers, such as the iPhone, as well as long-time leaders, like Nokia, on BlackBerry’s advancement. With plenty of content under his belt, Simon will be branching off a bit to see what other smartphone manufacturers are working on while still using BlackBerry as a barometer. At IntoMobile, you can count on his posts being even-handed, well-informed and thought-out.
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