WSJ States: RIM Testing A Tablet And New BlackBerry to Rival iPhone.
If you are a frequent reader of BlackBerryDreamBlog.com, you’ve become familiar with our coverage of the soon to be released BlackBerry Bold 9800 touch screen slider and BlackBerry 6 OS. There is one item we have not talked about, manly because it seem to be very close to being only a rumor. There has been much speculation that RIM has been secretly working on a BlackBerry version of a touch screen tablet of it’s own. According to the The Wall Street Journal , RIM does seem to have some tricks up their sleeves for the consumer and business market. Here is an excerpt from the The Wall Street Journal article :
RIM is testing a touch-screen smartphone with a slide-out keyboard, according to people familiar with the device. The phone runs on a new version of the BlackBerry operating system and works much like an iPhone, letting users swipe through screens and expand images with their fingers, these people say. It also has a universal search bar that lets users scour all the phone’s data and some data online as well, these people say.
RIM is also experimenting with a tablet device to serve as a larger-screen companion to its BlackBerry phone, say people familiar with RIM’s plans. That device, which is in an early stage of development, will connect to cellular networks via a BlackBerry phone, these people say. It could come out as soon as the end of the year, these people say.
A RIM spokeswoman said the company doesn’t comment on rumors and speculation. RIM executives have said they will ship a phone running a new operating system and a new Web browser in the quarter ending Sept. 30, but haven’t provided details of the device. They haven’t discussed plans for a tablet.
RIM’s upcoming smartphone and operating system—dubbed BlackBerry OS 6.0—is aimed at addressing many of the complaints critics have leveled at the company’s devices. RIM executives unveiled the software at an investor conference in April.
RIM still sells more smartphones globally than any company besides Nokia Corp., and last year grabbed 19% of the world market for the do-everything devices, according to the research firm Strategy Analytics.
I personally don’t agree with the WSJ since I think BlackBerry users and iPhone users have a different type of mindset in the way they user their smartphones. So their actually is no true rivalry, but BlackBerry users do expect a more rich mobile experience going forward to feed their multitasking addiction. To read the full article, click here to visit the WSJ online.
Source : The Wall Street Journal Credit : BlackBerry Rocks
