Curve 3G available this month, BlackBerry 6 ready
It's not the Torch but BlackBerry's new handset may appeal to first time smartphone buyers
Published: 9 August, 2010
READ MORE: Research In Motion | Handset
It was leaked a few days ago but now it's been made official that the BlackBerry Curve 3G is due to be released this month and will be BlackBerry 6 ready. The phone which was prematurely featured on the Canadian Rogers website with a price of $79.99 last week led people to speculate whether it would be compatible with the OS. This came not long after the BlackBerry 6 was unveiled along with the Torch handset on which the new features were demonstrated.
The OS is designed for devices with touchscreens and trackpads and now features a completely revamped home screen which will allow you to directly add contacts without any unnecessary navigation. Swiping to the side of it will bring up the user's most used apps and notifications are now presented as previews which can be sorted without leaving the home screen. Another feature of the home screen is an integrated search which searches as you type. There's also a new app which brings gathers together all the user's social networking feeds and an improved system for organising photos.
The Curve 3G features a trackpad rather than a touchscreen like the Torch along with a full QWERTY keyboard, dedicated media buttons and a MicroSD slot which can take up to a 32GB card. With its multimedia features and Wi-Fi connectivity the phone seems to be aimed at a more casual user looking for their first smartphone rather than business user with which they are so popular.
"The majority of people in the worldwide mobile phone market have yet to buy their first smartphone and the BlackBerry Curve 3G is designed to provide an extremely attractive and accessible choice that will help convince many of them to make the leap" says Mike Lazaridis President and Co-CEO of RIM.
The announcement doesn't mention a specific date for the BlackBerry 6 upgrade, only that it will be available "in the coming months" and will be subject to carrier certifications. The phone is in the candybar form factor and has high-speed 3G compatibility. No word yet on who will be carrying it (apart from Rogers) only that it will be available this month.
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