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Our friend RogersDude69 sent us a pic of the Rogers BlackBerry Bold 9700 which is now in stores. A launch date was not included in the press release, but now that the device is in the store, we know it’s only a matter of time.
A closeup of the Rogers Bold 9700 after the jump
RogersDude69 brings us a pic of some promotional materials that have arrived at the Rogers retail outlets in Canada. It seems we’re really close to this device launching and we’ll be getting more details soon.
The only thing this flier reveals is that it will support TalkSpot, for unlimited Canada-wide calling.
There isn’t much else to say here, but we’re all hoping that Rogers will launch the device in some new colors such as the coveted white BlackBerry Curve 8520.
Anyone buying?
Our Rogers ninja, RogersDude69, is reporting that Rogers has been giving their employees extra incentives to sell HTC Android devices. Apparently, Rogers is running internal contests where you sell 5 and get 1 free. While this isn’t necessarily news, and Rogers often runs these contests, it comes along with a recent statement from the president of Rogers Communications’ wireless business, Rob Bruce.
Rob Bruce, said he expects that phones with full slideout keyboards, as well as those based on Google’s Android operating system, will chip away at the dominance of RIM’s BlackBerry and Apple’s iPhone.
Speaking at an investor conference, Bruce said the so-called QWERTY slider devices made by manufacturers such as Samsung and LG Electronics “are peeling off the low end of the smartphone market right now and in effect putting pressure on that duopoly.”
He characterized Android-based phones that are making their way to store shelves as the “other major vector” in challenging RIM and Apple for dominance of the lucrative smartphone market.
BlackBerry Cool readers are well educated when it comes to the various operating systems out there. So I put the question to the readers:
Can RIM and BlackBerry learn anything from the Android platform?
In 5 years, BlackBerry or Android?
[Via]
Recently, we learned that the Rogers HUP was going to extend to all devices, and not just smartphones. Our friend RogersDude69 has broken down a brief history of how the Rogers HUP has become increasingly stringent and is making it really difficult to get a new device.
When will the madness end? Rogers needs to realize that having customers upgrade their devices will mean bigger bills and more money for them in the end. Also, as a general note for doing business, you should never tell your customer that they can’t buy the product. Make concessions and get the product in the customer’s hand. Here is a little history of how the HUP is quickly becoming obsolete:
Continue reading how Rogers is destroying their customers’ ability to upgrade devices
Sometimes news can come from the craziest sources: internal leaks, html sniffing, etc. Sometimes all it takes is a direct phone call! After friend of the site RogersDude69 tipped us off that Rogers had given callcenter employees a specific script to read when customers ask about touch screen BlackBerrys (i.e., the BlackBerry Storm), we just had to call ourselves and see what was up.
The audio below confirms that Rogers will carry the BlackBerry Storm 9500, and that we’ll see it before Christmas (hopefully in November)! Apologies to the extremely helpful customer service rep who was the subject of my ruse.
So that’s Verizon, Telus, Bell and Rogers in North America. Where are Sprint and AT&T?
Oh jeez, all those Rogers BlackBerry Bold early adopters just got RickRolled iPhone’d. No more than 6 weeks after initial launch, Rogers will be dropping the price of the BlackBerry Bold from $399.99 on a three-year contract to $299.99 on a three-year contract.
While it’s hard to look a cheaper Bold in the mouth (especially with the reduced Rogers data plans coming the same day), I know there are a lot of Rogers BlackBerry users asking ‘why now?’ Are BlackBerry Bolds not selling as briskly as Rogers would like. Does this have something to do with the ‘hero campaigns’ Jim Balsillie mentioned during RIM’s investors conference call?
Maybe the most important question: if enough Rogers subscribers complain, will they get a refund? Post a comment and let us know what you think.
Remember the Rogers BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 party invitations we told you about? Well, it turns out one of those parties was last week, and old friend of the site RogersDude69 was there to snap some pictures.
Apparently the event was fairly low key, with a lot of Rogers BlackBerry experts going around quizzing attendees about their BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 knowledge for a chance to win the device. However, judging from the pics, Rogers really likes ‘urban’ dancers and people jumping around on bicycles, which is kinda cool.
Rogers BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 photos
With the recent release of Roger’s new BlackBerry data rates and the unveiling of their iPhone voice and data rates on Friday, we thought now would be a good time to offer a head-to-head comparison of both plans. Unfortunately, while Rogers has updated their data-only plans, they have yet to update their integrated voice and data plan, leaving us to compare the iPhone plan with its approximate BlackBerry counterparts. Still, the results are surprising and might impact your next smartphone purchase.
(Original image Alex Eben Meyer via Slate)
Click here to see the Rogers data and voice rate comparison
Hmmm, this is interesting. We just received word that on July 15th, RIM will be holding a series of events across Canada for a “BlackBerry product launch for business executives.” While there’s a possibility that the product in question could be something other than the upcoming BlackBerry Bold, it seems less than likely. The event is supposed to feature “demonstration kiosks”, which sounds similar to their set up at this year’s WES.
The question now becomes one of when the Bold is launching on AT&T. The mid July timeline seems to coincide with what Engadget has reported previously, so we could be seeing a simultaneous release, or the AT&T Bold dropping days earlier. Until we know for sure, check out AT&T’s newly launched Bold promotional page to hold you over.
(Thanks, RogersDude69!)
You didn’t think I went all the way to Rogers HQ just for a pink BlackBerry, did you? The mysterious ninja that is RogersDude69 also let me put my paws on the recently released BlackBerry 8120, which is notable for its WiFi/UMA support and being the first BlackBerry to launch with OS 4.5.
First to WiFi. It should be noted that if you don’t have an active account (i.e., if you’re not using a post-paid SIM card) you cannot use the web browser. With an active SIM in the 8120, but the “Mobile Network” option turned off in your Connection Manager, the browser will connect sometimes, but it’s very spotty.
While the AT&T version of the BlackBerry 8120 has a separate icon for WiFi browsing, it gets a little bit trickier with the Rogers version. With no separate browser, you have to make sure your BlackBerry Browser is set to the WiFi Hotspot option. Unfortunately, browsing using the WiFi can be excruciatingly slow, and I could beat the 8120 to most pages using my EV-DO BlackBerry 8330. I highly recommend disabling JavaScripts in your browser options, which can make a noticeable difference. I’m not sure why exactly browsing is so slow, but I’m willing to be it has something to do with the 8120’s legacy-8700 processor.
We’re going to play around with the BlackBerry 8120 some more (specifically its UMA features), and let you know when we’ve found OS 4.5’s other idiosyncrasies.
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