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Items by Stefan Constantinescu

September 06, 2008
21:29
RIM’s BlackBerry comes to Finland for less than 5 euros, no contract required
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM

Spotted while grocery shopping:
July 12, 2008
0:46
Live pictures of the 3.2 megapixel packing BlackBerry Javelin appear online
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
Looks like a BlackBerry Bold doesn’t it? That is actually the BlackBerry Javelin and while it may look like the Bold, it lacks 3G and … well that’s about it. The 2 megapixel camera in the Bold is now a 3.2 megapixel in the Javelin, the all black color for the Bold is now two tone, the processor inside is called Argon V, 480×360 pixel screen, WiFi, GPS, OS 4.6, no clue on date and price.

[Via: Boy Genius Report]

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
July 07, 2008
21:14
More pictures of the touch screen BlackBerry 9500 leak
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
Here are some new images of the BlackBerry 9500, known as Thunder, running version 4.7 of the BlackBerry OS. This will be the first touch screen enabled BlackBerry and from the looks of it RIM is trying to further increase their reach into the consumer space by appealing to the multimedia crowd. You can’t really tell how tight it’s going to be by just these few pictures, but hey, someone out there is going to use this as flame bait in an online forum. The screen has a 480×360 pixel display and the key selling point is that it will tie into an operators’ existing music store offering.

[Via: BlackBerry Sync]

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
May 27, 2008
22:16
RIM is NOT going to let the Indian government read your email
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
We thought RIM was going to let the government of India read the emails of all its citizens, well it turns out RIM isn't going to have any of that poppy cock and is insuring that "it is committed to ensuring their emails are safe from snoopers."

So all you pimps, drug dealers and business executives who hire the mafia to knock off the cows of your enemies every once in a while, you can sleep well at night knowing you're not being watched.

[Via: Engadget Mobile]

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
April 15, 2008
22:21
Nokia says good bye to employees in Bochum while RIM says hello
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
Nokia closed a plant in Bochum citing the cost of labor was too high. RIM saw an opportunity, plenty of talented people who've been working on Nokia mobile devices for 1989 are now out of a job, which is why they're planning on opening up a research faciliity and looking to hire 300 people. Nokia's Supervisory Board member Ulrike Kleinebrahm told Thomson Financial that RIM is "in Bochum and is holding talks" and that it is "talking to engineers, not workers."

[Via: Forbes]

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
March 18, 2008
10:43
Handango to attempt selling mobile software in the retail channel
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
In a move that makes me choke on my morning Müsli, Handango has decided to sell software for mobile phones in actual stores, like the kind you have to leave your house and stand in line to buy things kind of store. Carphone Warehouse will be working directly with Handango to sell applications for the BlackBerry 8120 at first and then move on to other platforms later.

Can you imagine how the meeting must have went?

"Hey Bob, we need more money, think we should sell software at the point of purchase of the actual device?"

"You mean sell software when someone buys a phone?"

"Yea why not, we already push so many upgrades and confusing rate plans, might as well try and sell them a 20 quid calander application they'll never use! We'll put it in a pretty box, it will sell, it's a sure fire bet!"

"Brilliant!"

Just like the floppy disk above is useless today, people in the industry and moving towards moving their bits digitally. Music, movies, books, software, everything. Leave it to Handango to start the devolution process.

[Via: Mobile Burn]

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
February 18, 2008
20:29
Motorola and RIM battling it out in court over patent dispute
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
Motorola is claiming that RIM is violating some of their patents with the 8800 class of devices and the BlackBerry Enterprise Server Software, RIM is claiming that Motorola charges way too much to license their patents and that they have infringed on some of their patents as well. Legal battles are never fun and I didn't think Motorola, with their bleeding handset division, would be dumb enough to risk whatever money they have left on something like this.

[Via: Bloomberg]

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
20:29
Motorola and RIM battling it out in court over patent dispute
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
Motorola is claiming that RIM is violating some of their patents with the 8800 class of devices and the BlackBerry Enterprise Server Software, RIM is claiming that Motorola charges way too much to license their patents and that they have infringed on some of their patents as well. Legal battles are never fun and I didn't think Motorola, with their bleeding handset division, would be dumb enough to risk whatever money they have left on something like this.

[Via: Bloomberg]

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
January 31, 2008
17:47
FCC unveils RIM's copy of the Nokia Bluetooth Audio Gateway
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
A device submitted to the FCC for approval by RIM looks to be the exact same thing as the Nokia AD-42W (picture below) audio gateway. You pair your mobile phone to this little box that sits in your stereo shelf connected to your (hopefully expensive) speaker system and then proceed to enjoy the latest Britney Spears album. Whether I find this useful or not is irrelevant, the question that is bouncing around in my head is why is RIM suddenly taking an interest in multimedia and how will that effect their perception in the market?

RIM after all is the only enterprise device manufacture I know of using 3.5 mm headphone jacks, a concept I'm hoping the Europeans and Asians catch on.

[Via: Engadget]

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
January 22, 2008
14:36
New BlackBerry platform update includes HTML email support, remote search
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
RIM is attending Lotusphere 2008 and took the oppertunity to announce a new update the BlackBerry platform. Microsoft Word, Powerpoint and Excel documents will now be editable on a BlackBerry and you will also have the ability to preform an email search that spans both your device and the server in your office. Windows Mobile 6 already has this, S60 doesn't do any of this as far as I know and these are certainly features the business crowd are going to love. Expect to see this rolled out in the first half of 2008.

Full press release after the jump.

Orlando, FL, Lotusphere 2008, Booth 516 - Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq: RIMM; TSX: RIM) today announced a series of updates for its market-leading BlackBerry® platform that include enhanced messaging and collaboration, simpler management, enhanced security and expanded application development support. These updates will benefit users, IT groups and developers and will enable organizations to increase mobility, productivity and return on investment.

"RIM continues to expand the capabilities of the multifaceted BlackBerry platform to allow an increasingly rich and productive mobile experience for our customers," said Mike Lazaridis, President and Co-CEO at RIM. "The software enhancements demonstrated today will make BlackBerry smartphones more powerful than ever and even easier to manage."

Enhanced Messaging and Collaboration
The BlackBerry Enterprise Solution is a complete, end-to-end wireless platform that extends the benefits of an organization's messaging and collaboration environment to mobile users. Updates to the BlackBerry Enterprise Server and BlackBerry device software¹ will enable customers to further enhance usability and increase end-user productivity.
- Document Downloading and Editing – As a result of the integration of the ‘Documents To Go® by DataViz®’ software with the BlackBerry platform, users will be able to edit Microsoft® Office Word, PowerPoint® and Excel® files² directly on their BlackBerry smartphone.
- Remote Search for Messages – Users will be able to search for and retrieve email messages from their email server even if the message is no longer stored on their BlackBerry smartphone.
- Free-Busy Calendar Lookup – Users on the go will be able to check the availability of colleagues before sending a meeting request.
- HTML and Rich Text Email Rendering – BlackBerry smartphone users will be able to view HTML and rich text email messages with original formatting preserved including font colors and styles, embedded images, hyperlinks, tables, bullets and other formatting.
- Advanced Enterprise Instant Messaging and Presence – New features for users running IBM Lotus Sametime® and Microsoft Live Communications Server will include improved address book integration, IM contact “click to call”, IM session “convert to call” and advanced emoticon support, allowing co-workers to collaborate and communicate more effectively using their BlackBerry smartphones.
Simpler Management and Support
BlackBerry Enterprise Server provides IT groups with industry-leading management and support capabilities. New features will further improve and simplify the administration of BlackBerry deployments.
- BlackBerry Monitoring Service – A new software component of the BlackBerry Enterprise Server will help organizations maintain high availability and high performance of their BlackBerry infrastructure by providing administrators with enhanced monitoring, alerting, troubleshooting and reporting capabilities. BlackBerry Monitoring Service will be included in the next release of BlackBerry Enterprise Server³.
- BlackBerry Web Desktop Manager – A web-based device management console has been designed to increase deployment flexibility and simplify software upgrades by reducing the number of BlackBerry software components installed on end-user workstations. BlackBerry Web Desktop Manager enables users to install software and manage their BlackBerry smartphone from any browser-enabled computer. The software is available now as a free download from: www.blackberry.com/go/webdesktop.
- Over-the-Air Device Software Upgrades⁴– Organizations will be able to update a user's BlackBerry device software wirelessly, delivering a fast, cost-effective method for remotely supporting users and managing BlackBerry device software lifecycles.
- Expanded Systems Compatibility – BlackBerry Enterprise Server v4.1.5 is certified with Microsoft® Exchange 2007 SP1 and supports IBM® Lotus® Domino® versions 7.03 and 8.0.
Enhanced Security
Security is a cornerstone of the BlackBerry Enterprise Solution and today there are over 400 IT policy settings and controls that an administrator can set to centrally manage and enforce security policies. Newly introduced IT policies further enhance the security and control of a BlackBerry deployment⁵.
- Encrypted Attachment Viewing – Users will be able view attachments within encrypted PGP and S/MIME messages.
- Increased Control over GPS – Administrators will have the ability to control which applications access GPS functionality on BlackBerry smartphones.
- Increased Bluetooth® Controls – Administrators will have the ability to enable or disable certain Bluetooth profiles as well as set the allowable 'discoverable time'.
Expanded Application Development Support
RIM continues to expand the opportunities for software developers to create innovative and powerful wireless applications that leverage the inherent security, network efficiency, reliability and push capabilities of the BlackBerry platform and take advantage of new BlackBerry smartphone features. With the recent release of the BlackBerry Java Development Environment (JDE) v4.3.0, new Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) have been added to the thousands previously available, enabling developers to offer even more robust and exciting business and lifestyle applications to the more than 12 million BlackBerry subscribers around the world. In addition, support for the following Java Micro Edition APIs is also now available:
- JSR 205: Wireless Messaging 2.0 (MMS Support) – provides the ability to send and receive messages that include images, sound and video via Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS).
- JSR 211: Content Handler API (CHAPI) – allows applications to invoke other applications, including native BlackBerry applications, to handle specific content types.
- JSR 238: Internationalization – allows developers to easily create a single application for multiple languages and regions across the globe with proper location-specific language, time conventions, currencies, and number formats.
- JSR 172: Web Services – enables developers to quickly develop and deploy applications that act as web services clients.
These new BlackBerry platform enhancements are scheduled to be phased in to new software releases during the first half of 2008 and will be showcased at Lotusphere this week. For more information please visit www.blackberry.com/go/serverupdate.

1) Requires BlackBerry Enterprise Server v4.1.5 and BlackBerry device software v4.5 or above.
2) Microsoft Office Word and PowerPoint files will be supported in conjunction with BlackBerry device software v4.5 and Microsoft Excel files will be supported in conjunction with a subsequent software release expected later in the year.
3) Included in BlackBerry Enterprise Server v4.1.5 for Microsoft Exchange and IBM Lotus Domino, and included in BlackBerry Enterprise Server v4.1.4 for GroupWise.
4) Requires BlackBerry Enterprise Server v4.1.4 and BlackBerry device software v4.5 or above.
5) Requires BlackBerry Enterprise Server v4.1.5 and BlackBerry device software v4.5 or above.

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
January 07, 2008
4:57
Sprint gets the red BlackBerry 8130 while Verizon gets the pink version
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
I rarely, if ever, write about news concerning operators because frankly they don't matter anymore. Like you could care less which company maintains your electricity or which company is responsible for your water, I could care less who is giving me service. I choose the cheapest with the best coverage and let that be that. Operator differentiation happens in little cute ways that slap logic in the face and today I present you the BlackBerry 8130. It is known as the Pearl 2, has a 3.5 mm headphone jack, microSD slot, 2 megapixel camera, GPS and all the fun bits associated with the BlackBerry OS. Verizon gets one in Pink, Sprint gets one in Red.

Which operator should you choose depends on what color sneakers you happen to be wearing today or what sex your chromosomes decided when you were conceived.

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
January 05, 2008
22:34
Props to Boy Genius, he scored Vodafone's 2008 roadmap! BlackBerry, Palm, Symbian and Windows Mobile inside
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
Boy Genius has the scoop of the century, a peak at Vodafone's 2008 lineup! Now he is going to break it up into several posts, but I'll condense his writing into this one mega article. Stay tuned as I update this through out the day!

Devices in this post so far:
- BlackBerry 8XXX
- Nokia E71
- Nokia E66
- HP Silver
- HP Oak
- Palm Drucker
- BlackBerry 8110 (Pearl 2 with GPS instead of WiFi)
- ODM v16xx
- Palm Wanda
First up is the newest BlackBerry to come out in May. It has a full qwerty keyboard, quad band GSM/EDGE, triband 3.6 MBps HSDPA (2100/1900/850 MHz), 624 MHz Intel Tavor 65 nanometer processor, 2 megapixel camera, GPS, WiFi, High Speed USB, 1500 mAh battery and my favorite part: half VGA (480×320) screen:

Next we have the Nokia E71. Vodafone confirmed what we already knew: 3.6 MBps HSDPA (most likely 2100 MHz only), quadband GSM/EDGE, 320×240 resolution screen that is only 2.36 inches, full qwerty keyboard, 3.2 megapixel camera, GPS, WiFi and the release is expected in Q2:

The Palm "Drucker" has no picture, but has the following specifications: Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, 320×320 resolution screen that is flush with the case, full qwerty keyboard, 2 megapixel camera, WiFi, GPS, quadband EDGE/GSM, triband HSDPA 3.6 MBps (2100/900/850 MHz), Bluetooth 2.0 and a whopping 1500 mAh battery. It is supposed to come out in July for 270 British Pounds which is ~365 Euros and 535 American Dollars.

The "HP Silver" is a Windows Mobile 6 Standard device with a qwerty keyboard that has 2 letters per button (known as SureType) which is similar to RIM's BlackBerry Pearl. It has HSDPA that does 7.2 MBps, HSUPA, GPS, WiFi, 320×240 resolution screen, 1010 mAh battery and is supposed to come out in July with a cost 250 British Pounds which is ~335 Euros and ~495 Dollars:

The Nokia E66 is the follow up to the E65. It has WiFi, 3.6 MBps HSDPA, 3.2 megapixel camera, GPS, 2.4 inch 240×320 display, quadband EDGE/GSM, Bluetooth and is supposed to come out in Q2 for 280 pounds aka 375 Euros aka 555 Dollars. Notice how on the new Eseries lineup the Symbian key has been replaced by the Home key:

The HP Oak form factor is a copy of the HTC Vox, meaning there is a T9 keyboard on the front with a slide out QWERTY keyboard. No word on the resolution of the screen. It has WiFi, GPS, 7.2 MBps HSDPA, quadband EDGE/GSM, runs Windows Mobile 6 Professional, a 1010 mAh battery and will cost 260 pounds (515 Dollars or 350 Euros) when it comes out in September of 2008:

This next one is nothing out of the ordinary, supposed to come out this month too, the BlackBerry Pearl 2 aka 8110. It's just a Pearl with GPS, I'm not going to bother listing out the specifications, you can view them here:

This ODM v16xx is a low end Windows Mobile 6.1 device with triband EDGE, GPS, 1.3 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, full qwerty keyboard and a 320×240 display all being power by a 1200 mAh battery:

The Palm Wanda is a Windows Mobile 6.1 device with a 320×240 display, triband GSM/EDGE radio, 3.6 MBps HSDPA, GPS, 2 megapixel camera, 1200 mAh battery and is supposed to come out in September for 180 pounds (355 Dollars or 240 Euros):

Just a recap, here is a snippet of a slide of Vodafone's Windows Mobile Roadmap. I choose to cut out 2008 and blow it up since that is what matters:

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
December 31, 2007
11:05
Is this the BlackBerry 9000?
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
Is this the BlackBerry 9000? No one knows and this is all the information we really have. Notice the standard microUSB port and 3.5 mm headphone jack on the side.

[Via: Boy Genius Report]

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
December 21, 2007
7:13
Nokia's silent, but deadly competitor: RIM
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
People think that the iPhone made a dent in Nokia’s revenues, but no one realizes that in 2007 Nokia came out with over 30 mobile phones versus Apple’s single SKU. Apple aside, the real threat isn’t the fruit from the west coast, but the businessman from Canada. Research in Motion is estimated to own 10% of the smartphone market this year according to ABI Research and their expansion into the APAC region, where volumes make American and European figures seem insignificant, will only help to increase that figure. RIM has also managed to maintain an ASP (average selling price) of $345 versus the industry average of $248. They have a premium product and more importantly a service offering that is attracting enterprise customers and regular consumers as well. While attending the Consumer Electronics Show in January this year I wasn’t surprised to see men in suits with the new BlackBerry Pearl, but I was not expecting to see my fellow college classmates carry them around when the spring semester started a few days later.

Nokia needs to take RIM seriously and their current software implementation as it stands does not look impressive. I’m not going to say the battle is lost, hardly, there is plenty of opportunity for growth in this sector, but is Nokia hungry enough to capture it? It all starts with a quote from a conversation a few bloggers and I were having with Carlo Longino from Mob Happy at Nokia World (podcast here). I’m going to paraphrase, but it went something like:

Nokia needs to realize that Eseries users have a life after 5 PM and that Nseries users have a job.

He hit the nail on the head, Nokia is segmenting their devices based on some stupid four quadrant chart of users when in reality they need to focus on the fact that everyone is an individual. How can Nokia tailor their S60 platform to enable customization on a mass scale? Larry Lessig gave a talk at TED (video) a few months ago where he said something along the lines of “currently we’re in a dozen markets of millions and the future will be a million markets of dozens.”

Stop putting us into little boxes Nokia, treat us like real people or you might loose a sale.

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
November 03, 2007
15:00
Video: BlackBerry OS 4.3.1 Beta preview
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
BlackBerry devices are starting to get more and more multimedia capabilities and with this 4.3.1 Beta video recording has become enabled. The CEO of Nokia was correct when he said RIM and Apple make him paranoid. Other features include documents to go for viewing and editing attachments, voice recorder and the web browser got just a tiny bit prettier. I never used/owned a BlackBerry, but the people I know who do swear by them.

Now is it a coincidence that BlackBerry’s are getting more multimedia capabilities seeing that their corporate office in Texas is less than 2 miles away from Nokia’s? Can you say sign on bonus?

[Via: Crackberry]

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
October 07, 2007
10:02
Video: 17 minutes with Verizon's latest lineup
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
Will’s post on Verizon’s winter lineup was the most popular article this week on IntoMobile, guess we have a lot of readers who are Verizon subscribers! Those same people will probably appreciate this video with James from jkontherun checking out the new BlackBerry, Venus, Juke and Voyager:

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
September 24, 2007
6:58
Video: BlackBerry 8320, when WiFi adds absolutely nothing to the user experience
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
EDGE vs WiFi, common sense dictates one blows the other out of the water in terms of bandwidth. Is this really the case in the recently launched BlackBerry 8320 on T-Mobile? Boy Genius finds out:

Update: Video after the jump, it breaks our tables

[Full specifications of the 8320]

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:
September 07, 2007
19:59
The iPhone was outsold by RIM's BlackBerry lineup 2 to 1 in July
» ‎ IntoMobile » RIM
IntoMobile
Ah the iPhone dimwits can stop jumping up and down about the report iSuppli put out less than 48 hours ago. You know, the one that said that the iPhone outsold all other smartphones sold in the United States during July. The C level executives at RIM were quite miffed at that statement and double checked their numbers. What iSuppli should have said is that there wasn’t one BlackBerry model that outsold the iPhone, but instead it was the entire BlackBerry family of products that outsold the iPhone. Way to manipulate figures iSuppli.

Way to go RIM! Feel free to send us a swank new BlackBerry Pearl 2; I’d love to throw in my 2 cents about the man who should be executed at point blank range for selecting the fonts your devices use.

[Via: SMS Text News]

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