Everyone, even your mom probably, knows that there is a new BlackBerry Storm coming soon from Verizon. It’s only a matter of time before RIM or VZW announces the updated 9550. CrackBerry just got a screenshot showing a curiously unannounced BlackBerry Thunder. Could this be the next Storm? → Read More
We’ve got a bit of good news for anybody lookin’ to get their mitts on the BlackBerry Storm over in the UK. According to Pocket-lint, Vodafone will be bringing the touchscreen handset to the sovereign isle sometime in the next two months. Read the rest at MobileCrunch >> → Read More
Click image for the embiggened version Today’s supposed to be the big news day for the BlackBerry Storm on Verizon and, lo and behold, documents prepping Verizon employees for the news have started hitting desks. While it doesn’t mention pricing or reveal the release date, it does confirm the high-resolution touch screen (“RIM’s highest resolution screen ever”), “Quad Band connectivity”, full HTML browsing, Visual voice mail, and the 3.2 megapixel camera. The document talks up the launch like they’re going to announce it in some way where people will suddenly rush the store in mobs demanding Storm information, so we’ll probably be hearing more about this all soon. Or they could just leak a few more documents, and probably get the same coverage on the same blogs. [Thanks, HoFo readers] → Read More
BoyGenius is reporting that at least a birdie or two dropped by with a bit of bad news for those anxious for the BlackBerry Thunder Storm: it’s facing delays. Read the rest at MobileCrunch >> → Read More
According to Fudzilla, the highly anticipated touchscreen device from RIM will launch on Verizon Wireless on October 8. Let’s take this one with a huge grain of salt since Fudzilla isn’t really known for this sort of thing. We all tend to leave RIM-related news up to BGR and now CrackBerry. Anyway, Fud claims that their moles are saying the Thunder will be equipped with a 3.2-megapixel camera, microSD slot and OTA mp3 downloads from Rhapsody. No word on price, but it’s a real shame that Verizon has first dibs on this device. It might be a hot gadget, but Verizon doesn’t really know what to do with hot ticket items. Let’s hope for their sake they don’t mess this up like the iPhone deal. → Read More
According to BGR, Crackberry‘s info on the BB Thunder keyboard is utterly false and, in fact, the haptic keyboard is complete garbage. That’s what one of our RIM ninjas are telling us! We’ve got the scoop on the BlackBerry Thunder, and contrary to most reports, we’ve been told that the unit is nowhere near being able to enter production, let alone being released. Here’s a quote: “Thunder is in no way shape or form market-ready. If Bold was any indication, Thunder won’t be ready for at least another 4-5 months.” Our source goes on to tell us that the keyboard is incredibly annoying to type on, and the screen actually shows ripples even when pressed ever-so-lightly. There is an accelerometer in here, but it goes “bonkers” when the device is moved. In its current state, the UI blinks and lags when you try to scroll, and for every key press, you have to wait half a second until you get a response. Our guy, when talking about haptic feedback, said that the screen “clicks.” We were informed there are “buttons” on each corner, so when you press the screen, you might feel one click, two clicks, or four simultaneously. We’re told these four independant buttons actually press, so you do “click” the screen. RIM implemented a touch-and-drag approach which is the only way to select on screen buttons at this point. We were also told this was the latest build of the software, and to quote him, “Most of the people who have handled it thinks it’s a joke.” → Read More
After the BGR first announced to the world that Verizon and Vodafone would have exclusivity to the Thunder, the WSJ did a little more digging and managed to find out that the device will launch in Q3. That’s it for now. → Read More
Did I just say that the norm is for AT&T to get RIM’s latest BlackBerries first? FAIL. According to the BGR, Verizon will have exclusive rights to the Thunder aka 9500 aka Storm aka the first touchscreen BB. But fret not BB fans for the Thunder will be a world traveler like its 8800 series brethren and run GSM HSPA. It’s a bit unclear whether it will be EV-DO or possibly 4G, but it’s a bit too early to predict that. The Thunder has only four physical hard keys sans keyboard. I’m a bit skeptical considering the latter and how I don’t think touchscreen phones are useful. Well, they are to a certain extent, but a BlackBerry without a keyboard worries me. As stated earlier, Verizon will have an exclusivity rights on the Thunder unless it meets a quota. We’ll see how this pans out, but we’re a long ways away before this launches. → Read More