More Verizon BlackBerry Tour 9630 news this morning. This really seems to be the hot topic of the last 24 hours! The latest has Verizon (NYSE: VZ) offering up not one, but two versions of the new handset from RIM. What’s the difference between the two? One comes with a 3.2MP camera… and the other comes without. Both are listed at $199.99. Kinda nice to have the no-camera option, no?

For more info, as always, hit up Verizon Wireless.

[Via: CrackBerry]

On the heels of BlackBerry Tour 9630 dummy devices and promo materials arriving at Bell, some Verizon (NYSE: VZ) BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) Tour news has dropped. BGR is reporting that the Verizon BlackBerry Tour 9630 will be available online and in stores July 12th. Look for it for $199 on the standard two-year contract.

You can sign up for email updates via the BlackBerry Tour minisite at Verizon… But at the moment you’ll notice some wrinkles need to be smoothed out. You’ll notice in the screenshot above some funky image sizing and placement… I trust Verizon has a designer and/or developer on the case at the moment… It is a little late. Perhaps they were havin’ a few late night beers when they put the site up?

[Via: BGR]

It’s only a matter of time now… You know, when you start hearing about dummy units and promo materials shipping to stores… it’s only a matter of weeks before the device pops up in-store. This time around I’m talking about the Bell BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) Tour 9630, and thanks to BGR’s ‘ninjas’, we’ve got some pictures to backup the claim.

Dummy devices have arrived and promotional materials are all set to go at Bell. Mark your calendars, as the same ninjas put the Bell BlackBerry Tour 9630 available for general consumption on Friday, July 17th.

It’s looking to be a very interesting (and busy) summer surrounding the BlackBerry Tour. The Sprint version could be hitting us by July 20th… Plus, I’ve read rumors that the Verizon edition could be launching the device around the same time as Bell. Finally, Telus is squaring up to launch the Tour on the 15th… Yikes… Did I miss any carriers here?

[Via: BGR]

The Samsung Jet Omnia II is rumoured to be hitting Verizon (NYSE: VZ) shelves in July, in all of its WinMo, 5 megapixel camera, WVGA screen-bearing glory. The Omnia II was announced early last week, along with a slew of other Samsung handsets, but no information was available from carriers at the time. While Verizon will likely pick up the Omnia II sooner or later, I tend to agree with the age-old adage “pics or it didn’t happen”, so let’s pencil in this July release date very lightly.

[via PhoneArena]

We’ve been seeing a lot of the Windows Mobile-packing HTC Ozone lately, so it’s no surprise to see an official announcement today. As expected, the full QWERTY candybar will run you $49.99 on contract after rebates, and offers 3G, Wi-Fi, GPS, and a 2.4″ QVGA screen. It’s a shame that Verizon (NYSE: VZ) chose to ditch the stylish trackball that appears on the original Snap model, but the Ozone should stilll be a fine messaging device for those who don’t want to get on the BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) boat. Also as predicted, the Ozone will be available as of June 29th., so keep an eye on VZ’s online store to pick up yours.

[via PRNewsWire]

For those of you on ‘Big Red’ waiting oh so patiently for the Verizon BlackBerry Tour to arrive (you can check out a spy shot here), looks like your wait may be coming to an end. Not because the vagary of the ‘this summer’ time frame is now upon us, but because we have an actual mention of the device on a mail-in rebate form. Check it out for yourself above. You can clearly see (ok, maybe not so clearly) the BlackBerry Tour 9630 listed in the top right corner with many other Berry devices carried by Verizon (NYSE: VZ). Better yet, this form is valid from June 28th through August 1st… So the Tour has to be coming to us ‘this summer’… Only now, we have an actual time frame.

[Via: CrackBerry]

We got a brief, vague glimpse of the HTC Ozone on the way to Verizon (NYSE: VZ) earlier this month, but a full-bodied spec list has recently bubbled up. The QWERTY candybar will be running Windows Mobile 6.1, support EVDO rev. A as well as quad-band GSM, Wi-Fi, stereo Bluetooth, unlocked GPS, and a 2.4″ QVGA screen. It might not be packing the same cool Inner Circle feature as the HTC Snap, but it sure has the form factor down pat. Tempted? Online sales are rumoured to begin June 29th., and hitting up stores proper on July 13th. The Ozone will run you $49.99 on a two-year plan, $119.99 on a one-year, and $359.99 outright after rebates.

[via BGR]

As expected, the BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) Pearl Flip 8230 from Verizon (NYSE: VZ) is now available and ready to pick up for $79.99 after rebates. Frankly, I think that price point is still a bit of a gyp considering T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) is selling their 3G-less counterpart for almost half the price, but hey, at the sub $100-level, you’re kind of splitting hairs. I took a look at Telus (NYSE: TU)’ version not long ago, and walked away relatively happy. The form factor is a big departure for RIM, and a fine stepping stone for those who want to start tapping the functionality of BlackBerry without carrying around a big businessy thing with a full QWERTY keyboard; in fact, the external screen actually adds a surprising amount of functionality. If you’re thinking about picking one up, be sure to check out our review first.

Washington D.C. is looking more and more like a high school popularity contest where everyone dresses in expensive suits and drives around in luxury cars provided by tax-payers, doing whatever they can to get as many people to think they’re “cool.” And, just like high school, the kids on Capitol Hill tend to flock to the same fads. Which isn’t always a bad thing. The latest fad seems to be all about consumer protection from wireless industry giants like AT&T (NYSE: T) and Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Wireless. More specifically, our politicians are apparently becoming more and more concerned with consumer choice, fair pricing and competition in the US wireless market.

US Senator Herb Kohl (D-Wisconsin) has asked that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) investigate the competitiveness of the US wireless market. As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s subcommittee on antitrust, competition policy and consumer rights, Senator Kohl is concerned that the 100% increase in the price of SMS text messages from 2006 to 2008 might be “the result of a lack of competition” in a wireless eco-system where 90% of the market is controlled by a select few - Verizon Wireless, AT&T, Sprint (NYSE: S) Nextel and T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) USA.

The issue at hand is whether the Big Four wireless carriers, especially AT&T and Verizon Wireless, violated anti-trust laws by colluding to increase SMS text message prices over the years. On the surface, that does indeed seem to be the case. All four major US wireless carriers have increased the price of their text messages from 10 cents to 20 cents. But, Verizon Executive VP and general counsel Randal Milch denies any collusion - pointing out that carriers offer different pricing for prepaid plans.

Both AT&T and Verizon Wireless defended their position by noting that only a small percentage of their customers (17%) were affected by the text message price increase. Most text message customers opt for text messaging bundles that offer cut-rates on SMS messages. Big Blue and Big Red say that just 1% of all text messages sent through their networks are not tied to text messaging plans.

More competition is always good for the consumer. And, it’s important to ensure healthy competition in a market that’s controlled by just a handful of huge companies. With a little luck, the past few days of political posturing will keep consumer rights at the forefront of Congress’s agenda (but not ahead of the economy, of course).

[Via: LATimes]

The BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) Tour 9630 went all official yesterday, so it’s to be expected we start seeing carrier branded devices popping up. Telus (NYSE: TU)’ is the only other Tour we’ve witnessed in the plastic, but we should be seeing evidence of Bell and Sprint (NYSE: S)’s devices in short order. If you’re already on a GSM carrier, the Tour won’t seem like that big of a deal (especially considering its lack of Wi-Fi), but if you’re locked into CDMA, or happily married to it by choice, the 9630 is the first “real” BlackBerry in a long time. To get updates on when Verizon (NYSE: VZ)’s offer will be ready, hit up estore.vzwshop.com/bbtour.

[via CrackBerry]