1. johnenglish's Avatar
    Just came across the wire.

    RIM Introduces New BlackBerry Bold Smartphones

    New BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 Smartphones are the Thinnest and Most Powerful BlackBerry Smartphones yet, Featuring the Renowned BlackBerry Keyboard Together with a Brilliant Touch Screen and the New BlackBerry 7 OS

    WATERLOO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - May 2, 2011) - Research In Motion (RIM) (NASDAQ:RIMM)(TSX:RIM) today unveiled two new BlackBerry(R) Bold(TM) smartphones. The high-performance BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 smartphones feature a stunning and iconic design that integrates an incredibly easy-to-use BlackBerry keyboard with a brilliant, high resolution, capacitive touch screen. These exceptional smartphones are built on a new, performance-driven platform powered by the BlackBerry(R) 7 operating system and designed to deliver the ultimate in communications, multimedia and productivity for users around the world.

    "The new BlackBerry Bold smartphones and BlackBerry 7 OS are inspired by millions of customers around the world who want the ultimate combination of performance, functionality and style," said Mike Lazaridis, President and Co-CEO, Research In Motion. "These fully-loaded and beautifully crafted smartphones offer a highly refined user experience with blazingly fast performance, a brilliant touch screen and an outstanding typing experience."

    Thin, Sleek, Iconic Design

    Distinguished by an iconic design and the industry's best keyboard, the BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 smartphones feature the premium materials and finishes that characterize the BlackBerry Bold line. Both models have a lustrous exterior with a brushed stainless steel frame and a high-gloss glass-weave backplate. They are also the thinnest BlackBerry smartphones yet, at only 10.5mm. The quality materials and optimized design of the new BlackBerry Bold smartphones are instantly evident when held in the hand.

    Performance-Driven

    These BlackBerry Bold smartphones are built on a new performance-driven platform featuring a 1.2 GHz processor, Liquid Graphics(TM) touch screen, and support for high speed 4G/HSPA+ wide area wireless networks.

    The Liquid Graphics touch screen, a key new feature powered by BlackBerry 7, delivers fast, smooth performance for highly responsive touch-based navigation, web browsing, pictures, video and graphics intensive games(i). Offering up to 60 frames-per-second performance with instant UI action/response, Liquid Graphics gives customers a visually rich and immersive experience that's responsive to the touch. In addition, the smartphones feature brilliant displays with an eye-popping 287 dpi to deliver crisp, stunning visuals.

    The new platform also provides support for 4G networks; the 9900 supports HSPA+ connectivity, and the 9930 supports CDMA EV-DO Rev. A and HSPA+ global roaming on GSM/UMTS networks.

    NFC

    The BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 smartphones include built-in support for NFC (Near Field Communications), a new technology that will enable many rich and exciting experiences. Through NFC, users will be able to, for example, pair the BlackBerry Bold to an accessory or read information such as a web link from smart tags by simply tapping their BlackBerry Bold to an NFC tag (eg. Smart Poster).

    Augmented Reality

    The BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 smartphones feature a built-in compass (magnetometer) to support location-based services and augmented reality. APIs will allow third party developers to take advantage of the new functionality within their applications. The new smartphones will also include Wikitude, the leader in mobile augmented reality, which overlays contextual information on what the user sees through the smartphone's camera viewfinder.

    HD Video

    The new BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 smartphones support up to 720p HD video recording and playback. Users can easily share their videos directly from the smartphone or sync videos, as well as music and photos, to their computer using Media Sync in the BlackBerry(R) Desktop Software.

    BlackBerry 7

    The BlackBerry 7 OS is designed to power the new performance-driven BlackBerry Bold platform. It provides an easier and faster user experience with improved browsing, voice-activated searches, the ability to manage personal content separately from corporate content, as well as additional personal and productivity apps out of the box.

    The BlackBerry Browser has been significantly enhanced in BlackBerry 7. In addition to the general performance gains of Liquid Graphics, which helps deliver faster rendering and seamless panning and zooming, the BlackBerry 7 browser includes a new JIT (just in time) JavaScript compiler to improve the load time speed of web pages. The new browser also includes support for additional HTML5 elements, such as HTML5 Video.

    Building upon the Universal Search feature introduced in BlackBerry 6, BlackBerry 7 expands the capability to include voice-activated search. This new capability makes it even easier and more convenient to search for content on the smartphone or web.

    BlackBerry 7 also integrates BlackBerry(R) Balance(TM), which separates personal content from corporate content on the smartphone, giving users the freedom and flexibility to use the handset for personal email, Facebook(R), Twitter(R), multimedia, games and other apps while satisfying the very real need for corporate data to be highly secure and manageable. BlackBerry Balance works in conjunction with BlackBerry(R) Enterprise Server 5.0.3, which provides a number of unique IT policy controls such as wiping only corporate data from the handset or blocking work related content and apps from being copied or forwarded to personal contacts.

    With BlackBerry 7 on the BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 smartphones, users will also get the full version of Docs To Go(R) with all "premium" features enabled out-of-the-box so that users can easily work with Word, Excel and PowerPoint files directly on the smartphone. Docs To Go also includes a native PDF viewer.

    Availability

    The new BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 smartphones are expected to be available from carriers around the world beginning this summer.

    For additional information please visit MySpace for BlackBerry Smartphones

    APPENDIX

    BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 Specifications


    -- 115 x 66 x 10.5 mm, approximately 130 g
    -- 2.8" capacitive touch screen display - VGA (640x480), 287 dpi resolution
    -- Ultra-easy QWERTY keyboard, optical trackpad
    -- 1.2 GHz Processor, 768 MB RAM
    -- 8 GB on-board memory, plus microSD slot supporting up to 32 GB cards
    -- NFC technology
    -- 5.0 MP camera, supports 720p HD video recording
    -- Orientation Sensor (Accelerometer), Digital Compass (Magnetometer),
    Proximity Sensor
    -- Built-in GPS / aGPS
    -- Dual-Band Wi-Fi(R) - 802.11 b/g/n at 2.4 GHz and 802.11 a/n at 5 GHz
    -- Bluetooth(R) 2.1+EDR support
    -- Wireless Network support:
    -- 9900: Tri-Band HSPA+, Quad-Band GSM/EDGE
    -- 9930: Dual-Band CDMA/EV-DO Rev. A, Dual-Band HSPA+, Quad-Band
    GSM/EDGE
    -- 1230 mAh removable, rechargeable battery
    -- BlackBerry 7 OS

    (i) Features OpenGL 2.0 support for developers.

    RIM Announces New Facebook App for BlackBerry PlayBook

    WATERLOO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - May 2, 2011) - Following on the success of the Facebook for BlackBerry(R) smartphones app, Research In Motion (RIM) (NASDAQ:RIMM)(TSX:RIM) today announced Facebook for BlackBerry(R) PlayBook(TM) -- a new app that delivers popular features of Facebook, optimized for the 7" high resolution, multi-touch LCD display of the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet.

    "There are over 30 million users of our Facebook for BlackBerry smartphones app who are staying in touch with their social network while on the go," said Tom Goguen, VP, Collaboration and Social Networking at Research In Motion, "Now with Facebook for BlackBerry PlayBook we can also offer customers highly engaging social experiences optimized for the PlayBook including the ability to share Facebook pictures and videos with friends and family on an HDTV."

    Facebook for BlackBerry PlayBook offers users a highly engaging experience by integrating popular features and functionality of Facebook including;


    -- View and add Friends - Users can interact with friends quickly and
    easily: find friends by scanning the new grid view of their profile
    pictures; search for and add new friends and manage new friend requests;
    browse their profiles, photos and videos; view and interact with wall
    posts; view key information on profiles and pages; and view, comment and
    'like' photos on profiles and pages.
    -- Enjoy seamless photo and video viewing - Facebook for BlackBerry
    PlayBook makes it easy to upload photos from the BlackBerry PlayBook
    Picture Library, tag friends in photos, view comments, tags and likes.
    The BlackBerry PlayBook can also be connected to an HD TV to display
    photos and videos at a whole new level in full 1080p HD.
    -- Connect with friends using Facebook Chat - On the BlackBerry PlayBook
    screen, users can enjoy side-by-side viewing of online contacts and
    active conversations. Notifications of new Chat messages are displayed
    on the Notifications Bar, so users can quickly and easily read and
    respond to new Chat messages while browsing friends' profiles, viewing
    their pictures or reading their status updates.
    -- View and interact with the News Feed - Users will be able to browse
    highlights such as photo uploads and status updates and seamlessly view
    links in the BlackBerry PlayBook browser. They will also be able to
    "Comment" and "Like" to discuss and show appreciation for friends'
    content, as well as publish a status update or upload a photo from the
    status publisher accessible from their Profile or from within the News
    Feed.

    The Facebook for BlackBerry PlayBook application will be showcased this week at BlackBerry World 2011 (BlackBerry World Conference for BlackBerry Users) in Orlando, FL and is expected to be available on BlackBerry App World(TM) in May.
    RIM Announces New Video Chat Application for the BlackBerry PlayBook Tablet

    Allows BlackBerry PlayBook users to easily share special moments with friends and family

    WATERLOO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - May 2, 2011) - Research In Motion (RIM) (NASDAQ:RIMM)(TSX:RIM) today announced the availability of the BlackBerry(R) PlayBook(TM) Video Chat application - an easy and fun way for friends and family to place and receive video calls between BlackBerry(R) PlayBook(TM) tablets over an internet connected Wi-Fi(R) network.

    "BlackBerry is a renowned mobile communication solution for connecting users to the people and information that matter most throughout their day," said Tom Goguen, VP, Collaboration and Social Networking at Research In Motion (RIM). "With the BlackBerry PlayBook Video Chat application we are excited to be enabling our customers to share important moments and events with family and friends via video calls. With the BlackBerry PlayBook's high-resolution video cameras and stunning display, a Video Chat call is the next best thing to being there."

    Key features of the PlayBook Video Chat application include:


    -- One-Click Video and Voice over Wi-Fi Calls - with just one click users
    can make a call from their Video Chat contact list, log of recent calls
    or simply by entering the BBID email address of the person they want to
    call.

    -- Incoming Call Notifications - users will receive a notification pop-up
    when a new video call comes in, allowing them to accept the call as
    either a video or voice call, or decline the call. For those quiet
    moments - such as when while watching a movie or playing a game -users
    will also have the ability to simply set the "Do Not Disturb" option and
    the BlackBerry PlayBook will automatically ignore all incoming calls.

    -- Powerful In-Call Functions - by using the picture-in-picture function
    users can easily preview their own video image prior to placing the call
    in order to see what will be displayed on the other end. They can also
    easily switch cameras from front to rear so their friends can see what
    they are seeing, and for private moments users can mute/unmute audio or
    make or take calls using voice only.

    -- Friends List - BlackBerry PlayBook Video Chat comes complete with a
    Friends List for maintaining your favorite contacts. A picture can
    easily be added to a contact to personalize the entry and a Call Log
    makes it simple to keep track of received and missed calls.
    RIM Launches BlackBerry Balance for Work-Life Balance on BlackBerry

    Unifies Work and Personal Use of BlackBerry Smartphones without Compromising Company Security or Personal Privacy

    WATERLOO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - May 2, 2011) - Research In Motion (RIM) (NASDAQ:RIMM)(TSX:RIM) is advancing work-life balance on BlackBerry(R) smartphones with BlackBerry(R) Balance(TM) - new technology that makes possible the convenience of using a single BlackBerry smartphone for both work and personal purposes without compromising the security of company content and the privacy of personal content. RIM is introducing this technology in response to the growing trend by businesses to allow employees to use personal BlackBerry smartphones for work, or company-owned smartphones for personal, and the need by businesses to secure, manage and control confidential company or client information on these devices.

    "BlackBerry Balance is a win-win for employers and employees," said Jim Tobin, senior vice president, software and services at Research In Motion. "It's a secure and cost-effective way for companies to keep employees connected and productive, while also allowing the flexibility for employees to carry a single phone."

    BlackBerry Balance presents a unified view of work and personal content on a BlackBerry smartphone while keeping the content separate and secure. The division between work and personal content is transparent to the user unless they try to perform actions prohibited by company policy. IT administrators can set policies via BlackBerry(R) Enterprise Server or BlackBerry(R) Enterprise Server Express. These policy settings can enable the following:


    -- Secure access to business information while preventing the information
    from being copied into, sent from or used by personal applications like
    Facebook(R), Twitter(R), Windows Live(TM) Hotmail, Google Mail(TM) or
    Yahoo!(R) Mail accounts.

    -- Business data or files created by business applications cannot be used
    by personal applications.

    -- If a user attempts an action that is prohibited by IT policy, a
    notification is displayed on the device.

    -- If an employee leaves the organization, an administrator can remotely
    wipe business information from the device while leaving personal
    information intact.

    -- If a device is lost or stolen, an administrator can wipe all information
    from the device to help ensure that sensitive business information and
    the user's personal information don't fall into the wrong hands.

    BlackBerry Balance is available only on BlackBerry devices and can be applied to employee- or company-owned smartphones. It is built into BlackBerry(R) Enterprise Server 5.0.3 and BlackBerry(R) Enterprise Server Express 5.0.3 (available this week) for Microsoft(R) Exchange(R) or IBM(R) Lotus(R) Domino(R). It also requires the latest version of BlackBerry(R) 6 Device Software(i).

    For more information, visit BlackBerry Balance.
    Last edited by JohnEnglish; 05-02-11 at 08:08 AM.
    05-02-11 07:56 AM
  2. valorian's Avatar
    Someone help me understand this part. What type of 4G networks are they referring to?

    The new platform also provides support for 4G networks; the 9900 supports HSPA+ connectivity, and the 9930 supports CDMA EV-DO Rev. A and HSPA+ global roaming on GSM/UMTS networks.
    05-02-11 08:07 AM
  3. badger906's Avatar
    so the only noticeable difference between the two, are their connectivity methods? in that case i doubt the 9930 with be Europe bound..
    05-02-11 08:16 AM
  4. ZMc1834's Avatar
    05-02-11 08:22 AM
  5. HeezyBear's Avatar
    Someone help me understand this part. What type of 4G networks are they referring to?
    I believe HSPA+ is what AT&T utilizes for 4G.
    05-02-11 08:29 AM
  6. bjack56's Avatar
    "1230 mah battery"

    *sigh*

    This is why I didn't like my Torch - sketchy getting through a busy day.
    05-02-11 08:36 AM
  7. johnenglish's Avatar
    "1230 mah battery"

    *sigh*

    This is why I didn't like my Torch - sketchy getting through a busy day.
    It's the new JM-1 battery which is "better" then the current M-S1 battery.
    05-02-11 08:44 AM
  8. badger906's Avatar
    "1230 mah battery"

    *sigh*

    This is why I didn't like my Torch - sketchy getting through a busy day.
    Dont think it will be too long before the after market 1500mah+ batteries appear, having said that i read a rumored story that they are utilizing new battery technology this time round, improving the life of the battery even compared to the original... true or not no one can say
    05-02-11 08:46 AM
  9. leftypepper716's Avatar
    I still think Sprint will get this bad boy before the end of June, it only says for ALL carriers coming this summer...maybe the big 3 will get this sooner? With it being 4G (yes NO 4G coverage yet in Detroit) but great to know...will serve me well for 2yrs until 4G QNX on Sprint...get the Bold 9930 out ASAP Sprint!

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    05-02-11 09:08 AM
  10. infamyx's Avatar
    Someone help me understand this part. What type of 4G networks are they referring to?
    HSPA+ is an evolved form of 3G for GSM networks that gets data from 14-21 MB/s.

    Tmobile and AT&T both use HSPA+ until they switch to LTE (an actual 4G standard, but doesn't operate by 4G speed definition of 100 MB/s for mobile devices)
    05-02-11 09:20 AM
  11. Seijuro's Avatar
    ._.
    someone please help me understand this:

    "The new platform also provides support for 4G networks; the 9900 supports HSPA+ connectivity, and the 9930 supports CDMA EV-DO Rev. A and HSPA+ global roaming on GSM/UMTS networks. "

    the 9000 is the GSM version right?? and it supports HSPA+ 14,4mbit, in EUROPE as well, right?
    and the 9930 is the CDMA version, which will also support 4G (the fake 4G, actually 3,9) am i right?

    please, anyone help me out here : P
    basically the CDMA (9930) version will be a little faster, but the GSM (9900) version will also finally support 14,4mbit instead of 7,2mbit in europe, which will make the internet experience significantly faster, is that correct?

    and it says its expected to be available early summer from carriers around the world, but here in germany we always get stuff late (makes me so sad :/ )
    but could it be that the 9900 launches the exact same day you guys in the U.S. will get it?
    someone care to explain?

    this post by Phill_UK gets me hoping again..
    "You're correct... it is impossible to tell

    However, Europe/UK have seen many of the previous new GSM releases before the US. "

    AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
    help me ^^
    05-02-11 09:39 AM
  12. barrist's Avatar
    everything looks great EXCEPT:

    no word on wifi-hotspot, seems to be missing from the specs.

    And this one is hugely dissapointing


    App storage space is still limited in this way?
    05-02-11 09:57 AM
  13. Seijuro's Avatar
    206,8 mb??
    05-02-11 09:59 AM
  14. qbnkelt's Avatar
    SUMMER?!?!? AAARRRGGGHHH!!!!!

    I want this YESTERDAY!!!!!!

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    05-02-11 10:06 AM
  15. Seijuro's Avatar
    ._.
    someone please help me understand this:

    "The new platform also provides support for 4G networks; the 9900 supports HSPA+ connectivity, and the 9930 supports CDMA EV-DO Rev. A and HSPA+ global roaming on GSM/UMTS networks. "

    the 9000 is the GSM version right?? and it supports HSPA+ 14,4mbit, in EUROPE as well, right?
    and the 9930 is the CDMA version, which will also support 4G (the fake 4G, actually 3,9) am i right?

    please, anyone help me out here : P
    basically the CDMA (9930) version will be a little faster, but the GSM (9900) version will also finally support 14,4mbit instead of 7,2mbit in europe, which will make the internet experience significantly faster, is that correct?

    and it says its expected to be available early summer from carriers around the world, but here in germany we always get stuff late (makes me so sad :/ )
    but could it be that the 9900 launches the exact same day you guys in the U.S. will get it?
    someone care to explain?

    this post by Phill_UK gets me hoping again..
    "You're correct... it is impossible to tell

    However, Europe/UK have seen many of the previous new GSM releases before the US. "

    AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
    help me ^^
    oh and another question..
    or is it called HSPA here in europe, which will support the 14,4mbit and called HSPA+ in the U.S. which is also known as 4G-fake (3,9G) ??
    im confused, could someone take the time and answer my questions? would be much appreciated
    oh and on 3 other sites i read that the 9930 is actually the global GSM version.. *confused*

    also, whats with the 206,8mb ??
    (pic above)
    05-02-11 10:11 AM
  16. sahloe's Avatar
    206,8 mb??
    Here we go again with the trickery. Onboard memory and app memory, big difference! RIM, why why why do you always do this??

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    05-02-11 10:14 AM
  17. Seijuro's Avatar
    so 768mb ram

    and all we can expect to use for apps is 206mb?
    wouldnt really make sense, the 9780 would have more memory for apps with 512 mb ram than the 9900/9930 with 768mb
    i dont get it
    Last edited by Seijuro; 05-02-11 at 10:24 AM.
    05-02-11 10:20 AM
  18. barrist's Avatar
    so 768mb ram

    and all we can expect to use for apps is 206mb?
    Yeah it's quite mind boggling that they're still putting only 512mb of app storage on a phone in 2011:

    05-02-11 10:24 AM
  19. infamyx's Avatar
    ._.
    someone please help me understand this:

    "The new platform also provides support for 4G networks; the 9900 supports HSPA+ connectivity, and the 9930 supports CDMA EV-DO Rev. A and HSPA+ global roaming on GSM/UMTS networks. "

    the 9000 is the GSM version right?? and it supports HSPA+ 14,4mbit, in EUROPE as well, right?
    and the 9930 is the CDMA version, which will also support 4G (the fake 4G, actually 3,9) am i right?

    please, anyone help me out here : P
    basically the CDMA (9930) version will be a little faster, but the GSM (9900) version will also finally support 14,4mbit instead of 7,2mbit in europe, which will make the internet experience significantly faster, is that correct?
    The 9930 is nothing more than the 9900 with an extra radio (CDMA) tacked on. The 9930 won't support 4G unless it's running in GSM HSPA+ mode and it is on a compatible carrier.

    To answer your other question, yes you are correct they will both support 14.4mbps in Europe, depending on your carrier
    Seijuro likes this.
    05-02-11 10:28 AM
  20. Seijuro's Avatar
    but whats with the other 256mb it has?
    whats that for??

    i thought with 768 mb ram compared to 9780's 512 ram we would have way more app storage??
    05-02-11 10:29 AM
  21. barrist's Avatar
    but whats with the other 256mb it has?
    whats that for??

    i thought with 768 mb ram compared to 9780's 512 ram we would have way more app storage??
    RAM is different from ROM (app install memory) (768 vs 512)
    05-02-11 10:31 AM
  22. infamyx's Avatar
    Yeah it's quite mind boggling that they're still putting only 512mb of app storage on a phone in 2011:

    For RIM they don't need to, their app development hasnt changed.

    It is possible that with these new APIs RIM has put out and with BB Balance, RIM has allowed for applications that use a massive amount of space to offload to the onboard storage.

    To offer much more robust hardware and still be limited by the same factors as before would be downright humiliating imho
    05-02-11 10:31 AM
  23. Seijuro's Avatar
    The 9930 is nothing more than the 9900 with an extra radio (CDMA) tacked on. The 9930 won't support 4G unless it's running in GSM HSPA+ mode and it is on a compatible carrier.

    To answer your other question, yes you are correct they will both support 14.4mbps in Europe, depending on your carrier
    thanks, so nothing changed
    the maximum the 9900 will be able to support 14,4mbit, and as long as my carrier here in germany will support it, i'll have a faster internet experience than with my 9700
    good to know, thanks
    05-02-11 10:33 AM
  24. sleepngbear's Avatar
    Sorry, just thinking out loud. Some are asking, some are already b!tching. For some people nothing will ever be good enough ... there'll always be something it can't do that somebody can't seem to live without, and for that to those people RIM will eternally suck. <sigh>

    For me, I'm thinking this will absolutely be the perfect phone. I loved my Bold 9000; I love this Torch for the things it does better, but I still miss that big beautiful Bold keyboard. The 9900 is going to be the best of everything I love on both of them. If that sounds like a fanboy, I don't care - I can't wait until I'm due for an upgrade in September.

    I'm kind of in shock from all the news at once this morning. I'm very interested to learn more about Balance - it's going to make my phone useful for business again without infringing on my personal use. Not sure what to think about opening up BES to other platforms; I don't think its going to help phone sales any, but it should help to lock in a lot of enterprise customers who want to allow their employees to use other phones. Very interesting stuff for sure.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    andyahs likes this.
    05-02-11 10:55 AM
  25. Seijuro's Avatar
    i 100% agree with you !
    i really was just asking, as i didnt understand why it has less app storage even tho it has 256mb more than the 9780 ^^

    and yes, i agree, i think its definitely gonna be the best phone !! i dont know, its just perfect.. and i was pressing f5 the whole time on like 6 different sites to get all the updates
    it looks awesome, looked at about 120+ pics, every new video that appeared.. and im VERY impressed and i cant wait to get my hands on it
    1 year bold touch -> QNX phones

    i really cant wait for this device and hope there's also gonna be a qnx phone with keyboard+touchscreen
    its perfect

    and yes, i <3 blackberry, never gonna switch ; )
    05-02-11 11:21 AM
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