rim

It's officially fall. The leaves are changing colors, and apparently, so are the colors of smartphones. Just one day after Sprint announced two new colors for the Palm Centro, T-Mobile introduced three fresh hues for the RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8120.

Available immediately, you can now get the Pearl in emerald black, indigo, or frost, in addition to the current titanium offering. All versions will cost $149.99 with a 2-year contract and will include integrated Wi-Fi, a 2-megapixel camera with video recording, instant-messaging clients, and a microSD expansion slot. To learn more about the smartphone, please read our full … Read more

Orange UK has temporarily stopped selling Research In Motion's BlackBerry Bold while it tries to figure out a solution to unspecified 3G-related problems on the handset.

The operator halted sales of the popular handset on Friday. According to a spokesperson, sales will resume when a software fix becomes available, though no date was given.

"Orange UK is committed to providing the BlackBerry Bold to its customers in the U.K.; however, Orange UK and (BlackBerry manufacturer) RIM are currently working on providing a maintenance release of software to address some reported 3G-related concerns," a statement from Orange … Read more

It's been quite a year for Research in Motion. In 2008, the company has unveiled its premiere touch-screen BlackBerry, the RIM BlackBerry Storm, as well as its first clamshell model, the RIM BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220. While it didn't draw quite the oohs and ahhs of the Storm or the BlackBerry Bold, there are still plenty people of who really like the flip-phone design. In fact, according to RIM, about 70 percent of the cell phone-owning population in the United States have clamshell phones, which is why the company wanted to provide this option to customers and now … Read more

An analyst at Canaccord Adams named Peter Misek caused a minor stir on Thursday when he suggested to Reuters that Research in Motion's weak stock price may induce a buyout bid by Microsoft.

His argument is that Microsoft needs to stay competitive vis a vis Google and Apple in the smartphone arena. Conclusion: "RIM is a massive strategic fit" for Microsoft."

I'm not so sure that Microsoft would help itself by going the RIM route, but Misek's instincts are sound in one respect: the global turmoil might--and the operative word is might--spark a vigorous … Read more

With shares of Research In Motion among those that have seen a massive drop in recent months, Reuters on Friday made the case that the company could make a juicy acquisition target for Microsoft.

There are several reasons that could lead one to that conclusion. RIM is strong in the corporate phone arena, the area of most interest for Microsoft. Microsoft's OS has had trouble keeping pace feature-wise and its next version, Windows Mobile 7, is running quite late. And, of course, the RIM shares that were trading near $150 a few months ago are now at around $53. … Read more

It's not the RIM BlackBerry Storm or the BlackBerry Bold, but it looks like the RIM BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 might be nearing its release date. Early unboxing videos and photos of the smartphone have started appearing on the Web, including those from the Boy Genius Report and PhoneDog.com, complete with T-Mobile packaging, so we'd say you'll see this sooner rather than later.

If you'll recall, the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 was announced at CTIA Fall 2008 and is the first BlackBerry with a clamshell design. T-Mobile will be the first U.S. carrier to … Read more

That's the dog-sized Bluetooth headset you can buy to go with today's real news item, the new BlackBerry Storm: announced but not released. Until it comes out, though, it's basking in the warm glow of the "meeting and maybe exceeding expectations" judgments coming from the media. In sum, it sounds cool. And Google decides it's high time they made some money on that whole YouTube thing.

BlackBerry Storm 9500 hands-on http://www.engadget.com/2008/10/08/blackberry-storm-9500-hands-on/ http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10059498-1.html

YouTube adds … Read more

Tech journalists and gadget lovers across the globe are rejoicing over the announcement of the BlackBerry Storm, RIM's first touchscreen cell phone to compete with the iPhone.

Those who can't wait to get their hands on BlackBerry's latest call it a marvel and its keyboard functionality, which makes you press down on the screen to register a "touch", is something worth drooling over.

OK, I guess I can concede that the Storm is really neat and the touchscreen idea is fantastic. But I still don't see how the BlackBerry Storm will be able to compete on any level with the iPhone 3G.

It's not that I have a problem with RIM--I think the BlackBerry Curve is a fantastic device--or that I'm not impressed by the Storm. I just don't see how BlackBerry's first touchscreen device can compete against the iPhone if the vast majority of "mainstream" users simply don't know anything about it.

Go ahead and ask the person next to you at the office about the BlackBerry Storm. Chances are, if they aren't in to technology like you and I, they wouldn't have the slightest clue about it even though it's making headlines all over the tech world today.

Then ask those people what they knew about the iPhone the day after it was announced. I'll bet you'll find that they knew much more about the iPhone than the BlackBerry Storm.… Read more

We all knew it was approaching, but brace yourself, the Storm has made landfall. Tuesday night, Research In Motion and Verizon Wireless officially introduced the first touch-screen BlackBerry to the world: the RIM BlackBerry Storm.

Also known by its code name, BlackBerry Thunder, the Storm features a touch-sensitive display that's unlike that on any other touch-screen smartphone available today, thanks to RIM's own twist (more on this below). There are plenty of other highlights as well, including dual-mode functionality, support for Verizon's EV-DO Rev. A, integrated GPS, BlackBerry OS 4.7, and more.

Now, before you run out to the nearest Verizon store, we've got some bad news. Unfortunately, you won't be able to get your hands on the BlackBerry Storm quite yet (groan). A specific release date and pricing were not announced, but Verizon said the Storm would be out by the holiday season with "competitive" pricing. Obviously, we're not fans (and we're guessing you're not either) of such vague answers, especially in light of the RIM BlackBerry Bold delay.

RIM and Verizon did come by our office to give us a full rundown on the features, as well as some brief hands-on time with the device, so without further ado, here are all the details and our impressions of the RIM BlackBerry Storm.

Design Obviously, the touch screen is the biggest highlight of the BlackBerry Storm, but as we mentioned earlier, it's unlike any other touch-screen smartphone we've seen so far, including the Apple iPhone, T-Mobile G1, and Samsung Omnia.

Rather than provide haptic feedback (or none at all), RIM developed something completely new called ClickThrough, which consists of a suspension system that lies beneath the display, so that when you go to select an application or enter text, you actually push the screen down like you would any other tactile button.

Admittedly, it was a little weird when I first tried it. Given that with all other touch-screen devices, it's just a matter of lightly tapping on an icon or some similar action, it wasn't my first inclination to physically push down on the screen. My colleague Kent German also tried it out and had a similar reaction; while cool, the idea behind it took some explaining to fully realize the capabilities. Now, that's not to say we don't like ClickThrough; it just takes a little acclimation. Plus, it was responsive and I was pleasantly surprised at how easy and accurate it was to compose messages and notes.

In terms of text extry, the BlackBerry Storm features a SureType keyboard when the smartphone is in portrait mode and then switches to a full QWERTY keyboard in landscape mode. The Storm has a built-in accelerometer so it will automatically rotate the screen depending on if the phone is held vertically or horizontally (left- and right-hand support included). The letter/number keys also glow blue when you're typing.… Read more