Last week BlackBerry fans were surprised with a leak, from no other than RIM, on its official website, where visitors momentarily saw a new addition to the BlackBerry website – the Bold Touch. The leak caused a number of rumors spurring up all over the Internet on what could be expected from the upcoming BlackBerry World.
Yesterday, at the event, RIM announced the launch of its two thinnest and most powerful devices to date, the BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930. The Internet went ablaze with fans commenting on the new devices, and rightfully so.
The BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930
RIM confirmed that the two new devices will be the most powerful BlackBerry handsets manufactured to date with its new 1.2GHz SnapDragon processors and increased RAM. Both devices features top of the range touchscreens with liquid graphics display. Looking at the two devices, it is clear that RIM is moving in a new direction that will change the way in which we know and see BlackBerry devices.
Both devices boast with lustrous exterior with a brushed stainless steel frame and a high-gloss glass-weave backplate. They are also the thinnest devices to date, coming in at a mere 10.5mm and will also weigh a mere 130 grams.
For the first time, these devices will feature support for high speed 4G/HSPA+ wide area wireless networks.
Display
Both devices consists of a screen size of 640 x 480 pixels, 2.8 inches, and will feature a QWERTY keyboard, Touch-sensitive controls, Optical trackpad, Proximity sensor for auto turn-off, Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate and more.
As mentioned, the devices will boast with the latest technology in liquid graphics display and consist of the best touchscreen technology available.
Cameras
The new Bold handsets will both consist of a 5-megapixel camera, with 2592×1944 pixels, and LED flash. The camera will support Geo-tagging, face detection and image stabilization. As mentioned, users will also be in a position to record and playback video in 720p high-definition format.
New NFC Technology
According to RIM, the BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 smartphones include built-in support for NFC (Near Field Communications), a newly developed technology that will enable many rich and exciting experiences. Through the NFC technology, 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
To the delight of many, the BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 handsets 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.
High Definition Video
The new BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 handsets will support up to 720p HD video recording and playback.
The First BlackBerry 4G Device
The new Bold 9900 will be BlackBerry’s first 4G enabled handset. T-Mobile was the first carrier to react on the new Bold 9900, confirming that it will carry the new device on its networks and that the handset will indeed be its first 4G enabled BlackBerry handset.
BlackBerry 7 Operating System
According to RIM, the BlackBerry 7 OS was designed to power the new performance-driven BlackBerry Bold platform. The software 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. 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.
One improved technology to mention in BlackBerry 7 is the improved technology in voice-activated searching on the Internet, which will make browsing and searching information online a great experience.
RIM confirmed that the new Bold-series devices will run on its newly launched BlackBerry 7 operating system.
Not for All BlackBerry Devices
Unfortunately, for a large number of BlackBerry fans, the new operating system will exclusively be utilized for its future released devices.
RIM confirmed that all current BlackBerry devices on the market today will be locked to its OS 6 operating system. No current device will be in a position to support the new BlackBerry 7 operating system, and the company stuck to their guns on this decision.
The company’s decision was primarily based on the reason that the new operating system required more ‘muscle’ than that of current devices in order to function properly.
Availability
RIM confirmed that the new Bold handsets will be released world-wide by this coming summer. No price has been mentioned by the company.
BlackBerry 9900 Specifications:
General
2G Network: GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G Network: Tri-Band HSDPA
Size
Dimensions: 115 x 66 x 10.5 mm
Weight: 130 g
Display
Type: TFT Capacitive Touchscreen
Size: 640 x 480 pixels, 2.8 inches
– QWERTY keyboard
– Touch-sensitive controls
– Optical trackpad
– Proximity sensor for auto turn-off
– Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate
Sound
Alert types: Vibration, MP3 ringtones
Loudspeaker: Yes
3.5mm jack: Yes
Memory
Phonebook
Call Records
Internal: 8GB storage, 768 MB RAM
Card slot: microSD, up to 32GB
Data
GPRS
EDGE
3G: HSDPA, HSUPA
WLAN: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Dual-Band, Wi-Fi hotspot
Bluetooth: v2.1 with A2DP, EDR
USB: microUSB v2.0
Camera
5-megapixel, 2592×1944 pixels, with LED flash
Features: Geo-tagging, Face Detection and Image Stabilization
Video recording and playback in 720p, high definition, format.
Other Features
Operating Sysem: BlackBerry OS 7.0
CPU: 1.2GHz processor
Messaging: SMS, MMS, Email, Push Email, IM
GPS: A-GPS support, BlackBerry Maps
Java: MIDP 2.1
– NFC support
– BlackBerry maps
– Digital compass
– Docs To Go document editor (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), PDF viewer
– MP4/WMV/H.263/H.264 player
– MP3/eAAC+/WMA player
– Organizer
– Voice memo/dial
– Predictive text input
Battery: Li-Ion 1230 mAh
The BlackBerry 9930 Specifications:
General
2G Network: GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
CDMA 800 / 1900
3G Network: Dual-Band HSDPA
CDMA2000 1xEV-DO
Size
Dimensions: 115 x 66 x 10.5 mm
Weight: 130 g
Display
Type: TFT capacitive touchscreen
Size: 640 x 480 pixels, 2.8 inches
Other display features:
– QWERTY keyboard
– Touch-sensitive controls
– Optical trackpad
– Proximity sensor for auto turn-off
– Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate
Sound
Alert types: Vibration, MP3 ringtones
Loudspeaker
3.5mm jack
Memory
Phonebook
Call records
Internal: 8GB storage, 768 MB RAM
Card slot: microSD, up to 32GB
Data
GPRS
EDGE
3G: HSDPA, HSUPA; Rev.A, up to 3.1 Mbps
WLAN: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, dual-band, Wi-Fi hotspot
Bluetooth: v2.1 with A2DP, EDR
USB: microUSB v2.0
Camera
5-megapixel camera, 2592×1944 pixels, with LED flash
Features: Geo-tagging, Face Detection and Image Stabilization
Video recording and playback in 720p, high definition, format.
Other Features
Operating System: BlackBerry OS 7.0
CPU: 1.2GHz processor
Messaging: SMS, MMS, Email, Push Email, IM
GPS: A-GPS support, BlackBerry Maps
Java: MIDP 2.1
– NFC support
– BlackBerry maps
– Digital compass
– Docs To Go document editor (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), PDF viewer
– MP4/WMV/H.263/H.264 player
– MP3/eAAC+/WMA player
– Organizer
– Voice memo/dial
– Predictive text input
Battery: Li-Ion 1230 mAh
