BlackBerry Bold to Debut Locally

[Gregmyers]

BlackBerry Bold to Debut Locally
17th July 2008
Australian IT

THE long-awaited 3.5G version of the BlackBerry device will be unveiled on July 29 in Australia, Research In Motion has confirmed. The BlackBerry 9000, commonly known as the Bold, will be available from Telstra, Optus, Vodafone and 3 Mobile.

Pricing and availability dates will be announced by the individual carriers.

"3 Mobile has no pricing and availability information available at the moment (for the Bold)," company spokeswoman Edwina Elliott said.

The telcos and RIM have been keeping mum on the Bold's release but in the US, carrier AT&T is expected to sell the smartphone for over US$300 ($307) when it launches, although the exact date is unclear.

RIM's other 3G offering, the BlackBerry 8707g, which starts at around $580, doesn't come equipped with the Bold's bells and whistles.

The new device will have integrated GPS, WiFi and other multimedia features.

BlackBerrys are popular amongst business users but RIM is hopeful that the Bold will have broader appeal.

In an interview last month, RIM Asia-Pacific vice-president Greg Wade said the Bold represents a balance between the company's traditional strengths in the workplace and meeting the needs of users for applications that go beyond the workplace.

"BlackBerry is highly applicable in the workplace, and we're looking at expanding that outside," RIM Asia-Pacific vice-president Greg Wade said in an interview last month.

"In the early days, the drive for us was in enterprise and government, then small businesses, which is always a great market, started to get into the BlackBerry experience.

"Now we're taking it even further and looking at individual buyers and users. The Bold is for individuals looking for strength in workplace functionality but also wanting to connect that with social and out-of-work relationships."

"What is really important to us is to continue to respect our lineage from the enterprise environment and build on it," Mr Wade said.

Recently, Qantas chief information officer Jamila Gordon said the airline had purchased 400 BlackBerrys to investigate replacing paper-based customer service forms.

[Finn]

Just wondering if there was any more updates on when the bold will be available for purchase by the end-user?

[Gregmyers]

Late September on Telstra (Maybe).
Link:
Telstra to sell $0 BlackBerry Bold | Australian IT

[Tfer]

Originally Posted by Gregmyers

Late September on Telstra (Maybe).
Link:
Telstra to sell $0 BlackBerry Bold | Australian IT

Thanks Greg... missed that

[supabrudda]

In this arvo's MX on Page 8 there's a Blackberry Bold article.
probably based on this article
BlackBerry Bold debuts | Australian IT

Similar to the above but
Optus release on 20 Aug for $10/mth on Blackberry $79 cap plan.