Touch screen BlackBerry Bold announced
Research in Motion (RIM), makers of the BlackBerry range of smartphones, announced two new BlackBerry Bold devices that have capacitive touch displays.
This marks the first time that a touch display makes it onto a BlackBerry Bold device.
The two devices unveiled today are the BlackBerry Bold 9900 – which supports HSPA+ connectivity – and the BlackBerry Bold 9930 – which supports CDMA EV-DO Rev. A and HSPA+ roaming on GSM/UMTS networks.
They are the thinnest BlackBerry devices ever introduced, RIM said.
The new BlackBerry Bold boasts a 1.2 GHz Qualcomm CPU, 2.8-inch 640×480 resolution display, 8GB internal storage, 768MB RAM, a 5 megapixel camera with 720p HD video recording support and NFC (near field communications) support.
RIM is calling the technology behind the Bold’s touch screen “Liquid Graphics.”
According to RIM it delivers fast, smooth performance for highly responsive touch-based navigation, web browsing, pictures, video and graphics intensive games with features like OpenGL 2.0 support.
NFC and augmented reality
The new Bold devices have Near Field Communications (NFC) support as well as a built-in compass (magnetometer) to support location-based services and augmented reality.
RIM said that APIs will allow third party developers to take advantage of the new functionality in their applications.
HD Video
The new BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 also support 720p HD video recording and playback. According to RIM users can easily share their videos directly from the smartphone or sync videos and photos to their computer using the BlackBerry desktop software.
BlackBerry 7
RIM also confirmed that the new BlackBerry Bold devices will be the first to ship with BlackBerry 7 OS (operating system). This is the underlying software that powers the devices.
According to RIM, BlackBerry 7 OS offers 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.
Availability
The BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 smartphones are expected to be available from carriers around the world “this summer,” RIM said.
BlackBerry Bold 9900 << Comments and views
Jan Vermeulen is a guest of RIM South Africa at BlackBerry World in Orlando, Florida
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