In the hunt for a new BlackBerry smartphone, but the 9900/9930, 9810, and 9850/9860 just don't quite fit your needs? Perhaps the new Curve 9350/9360/9370 will be up your alley. RIM revealed the newest member of the Curve family late last night, promising that they'll be launching in Canada this month and arriving in other countries in September. Spec-wise you're looking at a 2.44-inch 480x360 HVGA+ display, 800MHz processor, 5-megapixel camera with LED flash, VGA video capture, 512MB RAM, 512MB built-in storage (1GB for the 9370), 1000mAh battery, NFC, and BlackBerry 7. And just in case you were wondering, the 9350 is CDMA-only, the 9360 is a GSM device, and the 9370 packs both GSM and CDMA into its small frame.
There's nothing terribly surprising to be found with these new Curves since we've known about the devices since way back in January, but hey, it's always good to see a leaked handset made official. As for when we can expect to see the 9350/9360/9370 stateside, we've heard that T-Mobile may be launching the device at the tail end of this month or the beginning of next month, while Sprint may be expecting it on September 9th. No word yet on potential Verizon and AT&T launches. Considering that both carriers have released several other Curve models in the past, though, I'm sure we'll be seeing these new devices hit the nation's two biggest carriers at some point.
RIM Introduces New BlackBerry Curve Smartphones
Sleek, fast and easy-to-use smartphones feature next-generation BlackBerry 7 OS and deliver smooth social experiences wherever you go
Waterloo, ON - Research In Motion (RIM) (NASDAQ: RIMM; TSX: RIM) today announced three new BlackBerry® smartphones featuring the BlackBerry® 7 Operating System (OS). The all-new BlackBerry® Curve™ 9350, BlackBerry® Curve™ 9360 and BlackBerry Curve™ 9370 smartphone are exciting additions to the popular BlackBerry Curve series.
These new models are designed to address a large and important segment of the global mobile phone market where customers are looking to upgrade their existing feature phone or existing BlackBerry Curve with an affordable, easy-to-use, full-featured and socially-connected smartphone.
“These new models will build on the incredible success of the BlackBerry Curve line and further expand the largest global launch of BlackBerry smartphones in our history,” said Mike Lazaridis, President and Co-CEO at Research In Motion. “The new BlackBerry Curve smartphones are absolutely stunning and offer a significant performance upgrade with an unmatched mobile social experience for the millions of feature phone users in the market as well as our existing Curve customers.”
Everything You Need
The new BlackBerry Curve smartphones are slim, stylish and simply beautiful. They are ergonomically designed with a comfortable and iconic keyboard for fast, accurate typing and an optical trackpad for easy, one-handed navigation. GPS and Wi-Fi® support are also included, as well as a 5MP camera with flash and video recording so that memories can be captured and instantly shared on social networks. The microSD/SDHC slot supports up to 32 GB memory cards for additional media storage.
In addition to supporting the new BlackBerry 7 OS, the new BlackBerry Curve smartphones feature a range of powerful hardware enhancements including upgraded processors, displays and memory, and built-in support for NFC (Near Field Communications), a new technology that is enabling many exciting capabilities, including the ability to pair accessories or read SmartPoster tags with a simple tap of the smartphone.
Next-Generation BlackBerry 7 OS
BlackBerry 7 introduces a next generation BlackBerry browser which combines the dramatically improved performance of the advanced WebKit browser engine with the hardware enhancements in the new BlackBerry Curve smartphones to deliver a significantly faster, more fluid web browsing experience. Additional enhancements to this next generation BlackBerry browser have also enabled smoother navigation and optimized HTML5 performance for incredible gaming and video experiences.
BlackBerry 7 OS also includes a number of other pre-loaded applications and integrated functionality for increased productivity and collaboration right out of the box. The Premium version of Documents To Go is included free of charge, offering users powerful document editing features as well as a native PDF document viewer. BlackBerry® Protect is also pre-loaded*, offering customers the peace of mind that personal data can be backed up and secured in the cloud. With BlackBerry Protect, users can locate their misplaced BlackBerry smartphone using GPS or remotely turn up the ringer for an audible notification if their handset is close-by. BlackBerry® Balance (announced May 2, 2011) is integrated in BlackBerry 7, allowing users to enjoy the full BlackBerry smartphone experience for both work and personal purposes without compromising the IT department’s need for advanced security and IT controls. The popular universal search capability has also been enhanced with support for voice-activated search, so users can now simply speak to begin searching their device and the web for information.
Best In Class Communications and Social Experiences
The next generation BlackBerry Curve smartphones deliver the world’s best mobile communications and social experiences with a highly refined and integrated suite of phone, email, messaging and social apps to keep users connected and productive throughout the day.
The latest release of BBM™ (BlackBerry® Messenger) is pre-loaded and now extends the real time BBM experience to a range of other apps, such as Foursquare, allowing users to easily interact with each other from within the ‘BBM connected’ app (see separate announcement on July 28, 2011).
The updated Social Feeds (2.0) app has been extended to capture updates from media, podcasts, and favorites all in one consolidated view. The new Facebook® for BlackBerry smartphones (2.0) app introduces features like Facebook chat and BBM integration that makes it easier for users to connect with their Facebook friends in real time utilizing push notifications. Twitter for BlackBerry smartphones also delivers a deeply integrated experience including use of real time push notifications and Social Feeds integration.
Availability
The BlackBerry Curve 9350, 9360 and 9370 smartphones are expected to be available from carriers in Canada this month and from other carriers around the world beginning in September. Availability dates and pricing for specific devices from specific carriers will be announced in conjunction with RIM’s partners.
Additional Information
For additional information please visit www.blackberry.com.
Note to Editors:
For devices images and more details, visit the BlackBerry 7 Virtual Press Room at: www.rim.com/newsroom/blackberry7
* BlackBerry Protect may not be available in all countries.
About Research In Motion
Research In Motion (RIM), a global leader in wireless innovation, revolutionized the mobile industry with the introduction of the BlackBerry® solution in 1999. Today, BlackBerry products and services are used by millions of customers around the world to stay connected to the people and content that matter most throughout their day. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, RIM operates offices in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and Latin America. RIM is listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market (NASDAQ: RIMM) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: RIM). For more information, visit www.rim.com or www.blackberry.com.
