Posted on November 11, 2008, at 3:49 pm .
Rogers is gearing up for the holidays and they’re going to make a big push with the BlackBerry Bold and RIM’s latest addition the BlackBerry Pearl Flip. Rogers will also be releasing the BlackBerry 8320 which is a blue Curve with Wi-Fi. The device will be $99.99 on a 3 year contract.
I love the idea of the Curve finally getting Wi-Fi. With more VoIP companies hitting the market, we’re all going to be saving money on our minutes and keeping in better touch with our friends via cheap data.
These releases and promotional deals may be just what Rogers needs to win the smartphone wars this holiday season.
[Via]
Posted on August 8, 2008, at 4:02 pm .
The flip BlackBerry now known as the Pearl 8220 is the big story this week, along with plenty of other info regarding Rogers’ plans for BlackBerry Bold and the slightly less-appreciated BlackBerry Curve with Wi-Fi. Lots of talk regarding their rebranded UMA service, Talkspot, but we also hit on Verizon and Telus getting the BlackBerry Thunder, and Virgin Mobile’s entry into the Canadian BlackBerry scene.
Click here to listen to the BlackBerry Cool Podcast: Episode 36
Posted on August 8, 2008, at 7:57 am .
The latest Q3 documents from Rogers are showing the Wi-Fi BlackBerry Curve right next to the BlackBerry Bold and the BlackBerry Kickstart Pearl 8220 for upcoming devices. It’s clear that Rogers is making a big push for their newly rebranded UMA service, TalkSpot, what with all of the Wi-Fi BlackBerrys coming down the pipe. They’ve had the BlackBerry 8820 and BlackBerry 8120 out since earlier this summer, all touting voice-over-Wi-Fi, but it looks like the BlackBerry Bold won’t be supporting it for some reason. Too bad, because unlimited long-distance calls in Canada when connected to any Wi-Fi network is pretty sweet. For those plenty satisfied with the BlackBerry Curve, you can expect to pick it up around the end of September for something in the neighbourhood of $199.99 on a three-year plan, and TalkSpot will cost you another $15 to $20/month on top of your regular e-mail, voice and data plans.
(via CB)
BlackBerry 8320 specifications behind the jump…
Posted on August 6, 2008, at 1:31 pm .
UPDATE: Woah! Just got an update from our friend Fake Ted Rogers, who tells us that the Rogers BlackBerry Bold will be out on August 19th. So it looks like Canadians are a lucky 13 days away from Bold goodness.
More news on BlackBerry releases keeps flowing out of Rogers today. In addition to the BlackBerry Kickstart BlackBerry Pearl 8220 sales info, we were also able to get our hands on some BlackBerry Bold copy. While both pricing and release date are still unconfirmed, leading us to stick to our claim of $250 on a 3 year contract, we can tell you that the Bold will be released on Rogers without UMA support – initially.
Theses are exciting times for the BlackBerry Nation! So many new devices, coming out so soon! Check a handy BlackBerry Bold/8820/8310 comparison chart after the jump.
Special thanks to Mike for the shout out!
Click here to see the BlackBerry Bold comparison chart
Posted on August 6, 2008, at 12:55 pm .
UPDATE: Our friend Fake Ted Rogers has also told us that the BlackBerry Pearl 8220 should also be arriving to Rogers in September like its T-Mobile counterpart.
The upcoming BlackBerry Kickstart is coming to Rogers sometime in Q3! But it won’t be called the BlackBerry Kickstart. Instead, the nascent FlipBerry will be called the BlackBerry Pearl 8220. Only time will tell if it will replace the candybar line of Pearls or run along side it.
There’s not much more than a few pictures and promises of the Pearl 8220 working on Rogers’ rebranded voice-over-Wi-fi service, “Talkspot“, but previous talk was pointing to a September launch on T-Mobile, along with a new CellData option to give some location info based on cell tower usage. An external LCD screen will also be on the BlackBerry 8220, marking it as a significant (and overdue) departure from the traditional BlackBerry form factor. This document from Rogers says the BlackBerry 8220 will have a “attractive price point”, which seems to confirm something within the supposed $49.99 price range.
Thanks Mike!
Full details of the Rogers BlackBerry KickstartPearl behind the jump!
Posted on June 27, 2008, at 8:09 am .
Vodafone, Cisco and RIM are partnering up to bring a unified communications solution called Vodafone Business One for small and medium businesses sometime later this year. In short, this service will allow your your mobile and landline to share a number and voicemail box, as well as enabling enterprise UMA calling for Wi-Fi calls while you’re in the office area. Solutions like this already exist, but it’s cool to see RIM getting directly involved with one. Who knows? In the long run, maybe fixed-mobile convergence will be just another one of RIM’s base services. I guess that would be their Mobile Voice System. For more info, and one helluva flash site, head on over to Vodafone Business One.
Posted on June 26, 2008, at 8:16 am .
Orange launched the pink Wi-Fi BlackBerry Pearl in Spain the other day, no doubt to the fanfare of many mujeres. Wi-Fi BlackBerrys might be old hat in Spain, considering they were the first to host them, but something tells me the novelty of coloured cases still hasn’t worn off. Pink has been a definite factor in pulling in the female demographic, but of course, it’s not all frivolous – the BlackBerry 8120 makes use of Orange’s UMA service, Único Empresas, for cheap calls over Wi-Fi. For more info, hit up Orange Spain.
Posted on June 20, 2008, at 6:49 pm .
This week the BlackBerry Javelin dominates our attention, but of course there’s always something going on in India. Rogers also got some new data plans which just fall short of unlimited, but also offer the BlackBerry 8820, which will nicely take advantage of their UMA service. To cap it all off, we shift gears away from developer interviews, and chat with two specialists out of California: Brian Boxer Wachler, eye specialist; and Glenn Cohen, hand surgeon. Learn not only the physical effects of your BlackBerry habits, but what the experts have to say on device design. Grab the MP3, yoink it off iTunes, or pilfer the podcast from our RSS.
Posted on June 20, 2008, at 2:12 pm .
There have been reports that the Wi-Fi-packing BlackBerry 8820 is hitting Canadian carrier Rogers today. There hasn’t been a press release, nor is the device showing up on the online store, but let’s face it, the clandestine BlackBerry launch is Rogers’ forté. Although it might be a little late to the game, the Wi-Fi would fit right into Rogers’ recent UMA service, the Home Calling Zone, which would let you shoot your calls over the internet and save your mobile minutes when you’re at home. The trusty ol’ BlackBerry 8800 is listed as out of stock, which is a pretty good sign that it’s being retired in favour of the newer model. It’s hard to imagine that anyone will bite at the 8820 with the Bold right around the corner, especially if the 8820 has a $349 price tag (on 3 year contract, no less). Any Canadians out there want to swing by their Rogers outlet and see if they’re in?
Posted on June 11, 2008, at 4:01 pm .
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.
