At the Canadian Telecom Summit yesterday the major Canadian carriers said they’re on board for LTE and are making preparations for a full-scale rollout of the technology.
This is great news considering BlackBerry devices are upgrading at a rate which will be hindered if the carriers don’t keep up and update the network infrastructure. At the conference, Mike Lazaridis said “Consumption is going to continue to grow. This, in my opinion, is one of the most important problems facing the industry in the near future.”
Carriers, such as Verizon and Rogers, have significantly invested in LTE technology and we’ll hopefully be seeing it sometime in the year 2011.
With the launch of the first LTE networks, you can rest assured that RIM will have an LTE BlackBerry ready to use the 4G equivalent speeds and technology. Now the question is: what would an LTE BlackBerry device look like? Continue reading about what we can expect from an LTE BlackBerry device
Here at WES 2009 there is a lot of talk about App World. While it is an evolutionary step for RIM and BlackBerry, third parties have been providing content to early adopter BlackBerry users for years. To understand how RIM can improve App World, we can look to existing portals for tips. Handango, Mobihand and Handmark are some major portals, while companies like Bplay are offering BlackBerry content as well.
One of the first things you’ll notice about App World, and we’ve been hearing a lot of complaints about this, is the marriage to PayPal. Third party app vendors offer a wide range of payment methods and RIM should do the same. Ideally, we would see carrier billing, but more on that later. Continue reading about improvements App World could make
Telus posted their Q4 2008 financial results today, reporting a drop in profit, but growth in revenue. Telus’ Fourth-quarter earnings fell to C$285 million (US$231.7 million), or 89 Canadian cents a share, from C$400 million, or C$1.22 a share, a year earlier. Telus blamed the loss in profit on fewer tax-related gains and increased spending on restructuring. Telus recorded favorable tax-related adjustments of C$32 million, compared with C$143 million a year earlier. It also said restructuring costs increased by C$32 million.
On the positive side, revenue rose 5.3% to C$2.45 billion on growth in wireless revenue, as wireless subscribers spent more on text messaging and social networking. Telus stated that more subscribers were picking up feature-rich smartphones, like the BlackBerry, and using services like messaging and Facebook, which boosts data revenue.
Our fellow Canadian droogs over at MobileSyrup have uncovered a black and white image of some upcoming BlackBerrys on the Bell network. Ignore the ugly Palm device on the left and you will see Black and Pink versions of the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8230. The image also displays a launch date of March 6th, but no pricing information. However, I think it’s reasonable to expect a ‘less-than-$100′ pricetag, or possibly even free, with a 3-year contract.
Hong Kong – Research In Motion today announced that the new BlackBerry Curve 8900 smartphone, the thinnest and lightest full-QWERTY BlackBerry smartphone to date, is available in Hong Kong. Powered by a 512MHz next generation processor, it packs quad-band EDGE support with built-in Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g) and GPS in a refined, streamlined design weighing just 110 grams and measuring only 109mm x 60mm x 13.5mm.
“The new BlackBerry Curve 8900 smartphone packs a wealth of functionality in a compact and refined design that looks and feels great,” said Norm Lo, Vice President, Asia Pacific at Research In Motion. “Its multimedia and messaging features help users stay connected and entertained, allowing them to make the most of their busy lifestyle at work and at play.”
The BlackBerry Curve 8900 will be available from 3 Hong Kong, China Mobile Hong Kong Company Limited (PEOPLES), CSL and SmarTone-Vodafone from mid February. For more information on pricing and detailed service plans, please contact the respective carriers.
Great news for recent BlackBerry Curve 8350i users having problems enjoying some iDEN PTT goodness. Sprint has officially released OS 4.6.1.128 for the Curve 8350i, which should fix many known issues (minus the ‘echo effect’ issue, which I’m told will be taken care of in a future release). To download the OS update, hit the either the Sprint or direct BlackBerry link below. To figure out what to do after that, read our OS upgrade how-to (Telus 8350i users may find this particularly interesting, as it contains instructions on how to use an OS build other than your carriers for upgrade goodness).
Telus posted their Q4 2008 financial results today, reporting a drop in profit, but growth in revenue. Telus’ Fourth-quarter earnings fell to C$285 million (US$231.7 million), or 89 Canadian cents a share, from C$400 million, or C$1.22 a share, a year earlier. Telus blamed the loss in profit on fewer tax-related gains and increased spending on restructuring. Telus recorded favorable tax-related adjustments of C$32 million, compared with C$143 million a year earlier. It also said restructuring costs increased by C$32 million.
Hong Kong – Research In Motion today announced that the new BlackBerry Curve 8900 smartphone, the thinnest and lightest full-QWERTY BlackBerry smartphone to date, is available in Hong Kong. Powered by a 512MHz next generation processor, it packs quad-band EDGE support with built-in Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g) and GPS in a refined, streamlined design weighing just 110 grams and measuring only 109mm x 60mm x 13.5mm.
