BlackBerry Bold 9700 – Hands-on Photos

As you’ll know if you saw the post from Simon the other day, the new BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) (9700) is now official. Our friends over at Electricpig.co.uk… have gone wild on the BlackBerry Bold 9700, with seemingly an avalanche of pictures for your general edutainment! These are not product shots, but really good quality ‘user-generated’ (well they generated them at least) images – certainly worth a look if you are considering a purchase!

You can check out all the images by clicking here.

We’ve been manhandling the BlackBerry Bold 9700 all morning. Check out its cutesy new curves and reassuring heft in our first hands-on photos.

The new BlackBerry Bold 9700 isn’t a reinvention of the original BlackBerry Bold, after all, BlackBerry’s continuing to sell the original Bold 9000, but rather a refinement of its key features.

It’s still as solid as the original, but BlackBerry’s trimmed some of its bulk. The metal casing has been replaced by plastic, and a few millimetres have been shaved from its shell.

Around the back, RIM has trimmed back the leather-look coating to cover just the battery panel. It still feels great in the hand, but not quite so beefy.

Sony Ericsson Aino now Remote Playing with European PS3s

We know Sony Ericsson’s PS3-lovin’ Aino would be hitting European shelves at some point during the month, and now Sony itself has stepped forward to confirm that the handset is on sale. …We’re hearing that it’s selling for £399.99 ($639) sans a contract, and just in case you’re wondering why you and your PlayStation 3 should care, the Aino is capable of turning your console on and off, browsing the XMB user interface, accessing DRM-free content on the HDD, shopping for items in the PS3 Store and watching live TV via PlayTV. Hit up the read link for all the nitty-gritty, and be sure to hit your British friend up if you’re stuck yearning here in the States

Original BlackBerry Storm to get flick scrolling, better browsing through firmware update

Despite Verizon’s best efforts to ignore the obvious, RIM’s BlackBerry Storm2 is not only official, it’s (un)officially destined for Big Red’s airwaves. If you’re one of those slightly disgruntled Storm 9530 owners,… however, you could be looking at a rather nice firmware update coming your way in the near future. According to phoneArena, the Storm and Storm2 will eventually be “practically identical” in terms of software, with a forthcoming update to add flick scrolling, tabbed browsing and threaded texting to the original. Of course, we should probably wait for VZW to confirm the existence of the Storm2 before expecting any formal word on this, but feel free to go about your day with cautious

BlackBerry Storm2

The original BlackBerry Storm, though a massive departure from RIM’s usual buttoned-up candybar smartphones, left many unhappy with the clicking touchscreen called SurePress. Well, after a lengthy batch of leaks, the BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) (NSDQ: RIMM) Storm2 9550 (known as Odin, once upon a time) is on its way to Verizon (NYSE: VZ) (NYSE: VZ), and presumably 02 and Vodafone (NYSE: VOD) (NYSE: VOD) across the pond. From what we’ve seen, the new and improved SurePress is based on a series of four sensors beneath the screen, as opposed to the single central pivot point on the original 9500. Being able to hit multiple keys on the virtual keyboard promises to improve typing speeds, and the inclusion of Wi-Fi is something that has been missing for a long time. Throw in a few stylistic changes, like rubberized buttons, and a new chrome trim, and you’ve got yourself an exciting sequel to a device that had previously failed to impress. So, does the Storm2 deliver? Hit the jump to find out for yourself…

Verizon (NYSE: VZ) and RIM have officially announced the BlackBerry Storm2. It’ll be available for general consumption on Wednesday, October 28th for $179.99 on a 2-year contract (after mail-in rebate). We suspected this… but now, we have the official word.

Finally, an official Verizon word on the matter Mark October 28th on your calendar. And, if you’re all pumped for the Storm2, be sure to hit up our extensive BlackBerry Storm2 Review.

BlackBerry 9700 Bold Device Simulator Available for Download

Developer tools are making the rounds for BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) OS 5.0, to work with things like Google Gears and widgets, but something that might be a little more interesting for end users is the new BlackBerry …Bold 9700 device simulator. Since review units aren’t getting out yet, and there’s only a smattering of hands-on pictures/video, this is your best bet for getting a feel for the device right now.The new Bold is coming out on many North American carriers (Telus (NYSE: TU), Bell, Rogers (NYSE: RCI), AT&T (NYSE: T), T-Mobile (NYSE: DT)) and will be one of RIM’s top-of-the-line handset – 3.2 megapixel camera, optical touchpad, 256 MB of application memory, and slimmer dimensions will all set it apart from the original BlackBerry Bold 9000. To give the 9700 a spin, go ahead and download the simulator.

BlackBerry 9700 goes official – eXpansys confirm availability on 9th November!

As you’ll know if you saw the post from Simon the other day, the new BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM) Bold (9700) is now official, and soon to be coming to a retail emporium near you – in the UK…, eXpansys have broken from the pack to announce that they’ll have it on 9th November. It will be selling for £419.99.

If you want to check it out, click here.