BlackBerry’s accessories are almost as interesting as its first BB10 shipping hardware, and in addition to an external battery charger, they’ve also got a Bluetooth Mini Stereo Speaker/speakerphone that’s extremely portable, delivers decent sound and won’t cost you an arm and a leg at $79.99. Plus, the unique design means it clips onto your sun visor in the car for hands-free communication.

The sound quality from the speaker is decent, much better than a lot of more expensive devices (though I’d still prefer a Jambox for audio fidelity), and it can actually go quite loud. Not room-filling or anything, but plenty loud for private listening. But the main advantages are the fact that it acts as a very good Bluetooth speakerphone, charges via micro USB (and can be charged with your external Z10 charger), can go weeks without a charge and has a 3.5mm headset jack, which essentially makes it a Bluetooth receiver for use with a stereo or headphones.

The hardware accessory market is a place where it’s hard to compete with platforms like iOS and Android, and that’s likely why BlackBerry is taking an early interest in doing things itself. And they’re off to a good start in that regard, if my experience with this speaker is any indication.

Article courtesy of TechCrunch

BlackBerry didn’t only unveil the Z10 today, it also introduced a couple of accessories, including the Battery Charger Bundle for the LS1, the Z10′s 1800 mAh battery. The external charger is extremely slim and portable, and houses a covered slot for a spare battery (which is included in the bundle), as well an integrated micro USB cable that slides nicely into the case when not in use, all of which will run you $49.99.

Honestly, the charger is one of may favorite things about the new BlackBerry announcements today. It daisy-chains with the Z10 itself so that you can charge both at once, with power directing to the phone first and backup battery second, and it has a light that blinks yellow while depleted and charging, green while more full and charging, and solid green when completely topped off. It can also be used as an external charger for any micro USB device, so if you’ve got an Android tablet as well as the Z10, you’re set.

It also effectively doubles the battery life of the Z10 itself, which is good considering that I found that wasn’t one of the Z10′s strongest suits in my comprehensive review of the new BlackBerry smartphone. It’s available [DATE] for $49.99, and if you’re getting a Z10, it’s basically a necessity.

Article courtesy of TechCrunch

The BlackBerry keyboard is dead, long live the BlackBerry keyboard. Despite the full throttle touchscreen focus of its new mobile platform, BlackBerry 10, the company formerly known as RIM has not forgotten its most fervent fans’ adoration of those little plastic keys and has thrown them a bone — or rather a handset.

Meet the hybrid BlackBerry Q10 (below right, next to the full-touch Z10), a touchscreen smartphone that also packs in a full physical Qwerty keyboard for those who just can’t bring themselves to stop stroking plastic keys. The lack of an optical nav pad may still cause long-time BlackBerry lovers a spot of angst.

The company showed off the Q10 at the launch of BB10 today. “We know there are a lot of physical keyboard lovers out there,” said CEO Thorsten Heins.

The Qwerty-packing handset resembles the N Series BB10 device which leaked in a promo video last September – with a ‘classic’ BlackBerry shape housing a relatively generously sized touchscreen that’s nonetheless considerably smaller than the Z10 full-touch device that RIM also unboxed today.

Another difference between the Z10 and the Q10 is that the latter necessarily lacks some of the ‘smart keyboard’ software features found on BB10 full-touch devices. The full touchscreen keyboard includes a predictive text feature that positions suggested words above the next letter you’d have to type to spell the word out — so you can quickly swipe up to add the whole word. That smart positioning just isn’t possible with plastic keys getting in the way.

The Z10′s virtual keyboard also customises to its owner in a way that the Q10′s physical Qwerty never can: the central strike points of each key can move by up to half a key to adjust to your particular typing style (with the aim of reducing typos). Again, good luck trying to wear down plastic keys to suit your sausage fingers.

As with the Z10, the Q10′s BB10 software analyses your messaging history to learn more about the language you use — and will apparently incorporate what it learns about your vocab and slang into its next-word suggestions.

Despite RIM’s efforts to oust the old and usher in the new with BB10 it’s not a surprise the company has kept a toehold in the physical keyboard camp. Back in September Heins reaffirmed RIM’s commitment to keys, telling attendees at the BlackBerry Jam developers’ conference that both full touchscreen and physical keyboard BB10 devices would be unboxed. Today he made good on that pledge.

Heins also described the keyboard as one of the main points of focus for RIM in BB10, along with productivity, reliability, security and multi-tasking.

Although the Z10 will be available in the U.K. from tomorrow, in Canada from February 5 and in the U.S. from March – with an estimated retail pricing of $149.99 on a three year contract – there’s no word (yet) on the Q10′s availability or pricing.

Article courtesy of TechCrunch

No more RIM-shots allowed if you are among those who like to joke about the trials and tribulations of the Canadian handset manufacturer. Today the company said that it was dropping its Research In Motion moniker and would from today be known as BlackBerry only, finally aligning its branding and company name.

The news was announced during the big BlackBerry 10 event taking place in New York and elsewhere. The new stock trading name is BBRY on Nasdaq, and BB on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

“Our shareholders are investing in BlackBerry,” CEO Thorsten Heins said today in his speech at the event.

From now, the logo changes from the one you see at the top of this post to the one you see here to the right.

The move, BlackBerry hopes, will represent a new, more unified and simplified direction for the company — although for many it probably will feel long overdue.

And in that sense, today’s rebranding news is one (final?) reminder of how BlackBerry has perhaps not innovated enough to keep up with Apple and its iPhone line and the huge army of Android handset makers that have over the years supplanted BlackBerry as the device of choice among the high-end and enterprise users that the Canadian company has always courted.

Article courtesy of TechCrunch

After what feels like years of decline, CEO shakeups, and launch after launch of the same old stuff, RIM is turning a new maple leaf.

The Canada-based firm is today unveiling its BB10 operating system, which will determine the future of the company in many ways.

RIM has long struggled to compete with Apple and Google when it comes to app and media ecosystems and feature-rich smartphones, but BB10 is said to change all that. We all know that an OS means very little without hardware to run on, which is why RIM is also using today to fully introduce the BlackBerry Z10, its new all-touch flagship.

But what else will RIM have in store for us during this six-hour press experience (said to run from 8am ET to 2pm ET)?

We’ll be live blogging the whole thing, so stay tuned.

Article courtesy of TechCrunch

After months of stoking anticipation and dealing with criticism, RIM will finally reveal BlackBerry 10 to the world on Wednesday. It’s got to be a heady moment for everyone involved — this is the company’s big shot at redemption and relevance — but until then the rest of us will just have to make do with another batch of leaked BB10 hardware photos.

The subject this time around though is the white Z10, an oft-rumored version of the device that’s popped up in rumor posts and renders (including one that appeared as part of a leaked Verizon Wireless promo page) but generally not out in the wild. Longtime readers may know that I’m a bit of a sucker for a white phone, but the black bezel that runs around the white Z10′s 4.2-inch display is a neat little touch that makes the thing look visually distinct — certainly not a bad thing now that RIM preparing to wade once again into the middle of a heated smartphone conflict.

Naturally, the rest of the technical particulars are still under lock and key right now, but that hasn’t stopped leakers and rumormongers from disseminating a tentative spec sheet in recent days. Should it hold true, the Z10 will include 2GB RAM, 16GB of internal storage, and 1800 mAh battery, and an 8-megapixel rear camera. BGR reports that the Z10 will make its retail debut with a sub-$199 price tag as well, with editor Jonathan Geller pointing to a $150 price point as a distinct possibility.

Wednesday’s event will be the first time that the world at large can get better acquainted with BlackBerry 10 and the hardware that runs it, but it certainly won’t be the last. RIM has sunk an undisclosed amount of money into a 30-second spot due to run during the Super Bowl this Sunday, so it’s clear that RIM is gunning to make a real splash in the market over the weeks and months to come.

Article courtesy of TechCrunch

Waterloo-based RIM is gearing up to take the wraps off of BlackBerry 10 in just a few days, but a bit of showmanship in front of journalists and analysts won’t be enough to convince the masses of the platform’s worthiness. For that, RIM is gearing up for a big advertising push, including a 30-second spot due to run during Super Bowl XLVII.

It’s hardly the first time we’ve seen a major smartphone player peddle their wares during the Super Bowl (Samsung’s Justin Hawkins-infused spot immediately leaps to mind), but it’s RIM’s first ad for the big game, and you’ve got to wonder what sort of approach they’re going to take. Brusque and informative? High-minded and vague? Dare they try to be funny? Only time (or if we’re lucky, a chatty rep at the BB1o launch event) will tell.

Curiously, recently-installed RIM CMO Frank Boulben hinted in an email release that the company may have more on its mind than just pushing smartphones onto the market — the statement invokes the possibility of tablets as well. I don’t need to tell you that RIM’s PlayBook wasn’t quite the runaway success that the company may have been hoping for, but it’s heartening to hear that RIM may have something up its sleeves that hasn’t already been leaked to hell and back. Of course, it’s very possible that the ad could tackle RIM’s tablet ambitions with mockups and uncertain terms, so we may be getting worked up over nothing.

One thing is clear though — this going to be a pricey little gamble for RIM. It’s said that the base ad rate for Super Bowl XLVII is hovering around $4 million, a non-trivial amount considering RIM’s once-rough financials. Then again, the Canadian company’s stock has been on the upswing lately, so this may be its best bet for introducing its long-awaited OS to the whole of America (and the rest of the world).

Article courtesy of TechCrunch

Research In Motion is once again the target of a rumored acquisition. Lenovo’s CFO Wang Wai Ming said in an interview with Bloomberg at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos that the Beijing company is eyeing the BlackBerry maker as a potential acquisition target or strategic alliance partner.

The news comes less than a week after RIM CEO Thorsten Heins told German newspaper Die Welt that RIM is still undergoing a strategic review, with the possibility of licensing BB 10 to other manufacturers and selling its hardware production unit. And last August, Bloomberg reported that IBM “made an informal approach” to acquire RIM’s enterprise-services unit–the heart of BlackBerry’s business–amid intensifying rumors of an acquisition.

“We are looking at all opportunities–RIM and many others,” Wong told Bloomberg. “We’ll have no hesitation if the right opportunity comes along that could benefit us and shareholders.” Wong added that Lenovo has already spoken to RIM and its bankers about various combinations and strategic ventures, though it is unclear when exactly Lenovo would put in a bid.

RIM has been looking at its options since last year, when its market share took a beating from the iPhone and Samsung Galaxy. On Lenovo’s side, a shrinking PC market has kept it from growing after it bought IBM’s PC unit in 2005.

RIM’s stock price fell to a low of $6.22 in September, but has since nearly tripled due to speculation over the results of a strategic review and buzz over RIM’s long-anticipated BB 10 phones, which will finally debut in less than a week. If the BB 10 takes off as RIM hopes, one option is to focus on licensing the OS to rivals like Samsung.

Other rumored suitors for RIM over the past two years have included Amazon back in 2011, and Samsung, which repeatedly denied rumors of a deal last year.

A takeover of RIM by a Chinese company would certainly raise security questions–especially for the company once described as a Canadian “crown jewel” by Prime Minister Stephen Harper. And back in July, RIM CEO Thorsten Heins said that the company has pulled back from expanding its China operations because of concerns over protecting its sensitive networks.

The deal could also face regulatory hurdles in the U.S., where government investigations into spyware have already created massive hurdles for two other Chinese telecommunications manufacturers, Huawei Technologies and ZTE Corp. But a deal focused on just hardware instead of key IP and software might have an easier time making it past regulators.

Lenovo has been on an acquisitions kick lately as it seeks to pump new life into its business as PC sales wane. This month it completed a purchase of Brazilian computers, moible and tablets maker CCE. Its other five acquisitions in 2011 have included the purchases of Essen, Germany-based maker Medion, and the PC unit of Tokyo’s NEC Corp.

RIM has been emailed for comment.

Article courtesy of TechCrunch

As it gears up to launch its next-gen OS, BlackBerry 10, RIM has made a small but significant change to the branding of its store — dropping the word ‘app’ to turn BlackBerry App World into BlackBerry World. RIM mentioned this change was coming when it discussed the future of the store at the BlackBerry Jam Americas developer event in October, noting then that music and videos would be added to BAW (or BW as it’s now presumably known). RIM has reused its own conference branding for the new store name — but says the BlackBerry World conference will get a new (as yet undisclosed) name.

The BlackBerry-maker is following Google’s lead in ditching the word app from its mobile store. Google’s Android Market evolved into Google Play last year, after Mountain View overhauled the look and feel of the store to put more emphasis on its multimedia content.

RIM has now hung the new sign above the door of its web store. Writing in a blog post, the company said the new branding will also be rolled out to BlackBerry smartphone and PlayBook owners in the “coming weeks”.

It described the new BlackBerry World store as a “one-stop shop” for “mobile entertainment” but did not specify who would be providing the music and video content users will be able to download. RIM has previously said “music and video store access may by limited in some regions” — so it looks likely there will be regional supplier variation. We’ve reached out to RIM for clarification and will update this story with any response.

In a bid to boost the number of apps its new platform has at launch — due in Q1 — RIM recently held a port-a-thon to encourage developers to port apps they have built for other mobile platforms to BB10. The event ended with more than 19,000 apps being ported to RIM’s platform, according to its VP of developer relations, Alec Saunders. The total amount of apps at launch is likely to be “about 70,000″, according to RIM CEO Thorsten Heins, speaking in an interview with German newspaper Die Welt.

Despite some inevitable focus on app quantity, Heins also talked up app “quality”, telling the newspaper: “There are studies that say that, for example, of all Android applications, only 50 percent have been downloaded at least once. Of course, you need a certain selection [of apps], corresponding to regional preferences.”

Article courtesy of TechCrunch

The CEO of RIM, Thorsten Heins, has been speaking to German newspaper Die Welt ahead of the launch of BlackBerry 10 devices — due in Q1. Heins told the newspaper he has not ruled out licensing the new OS to other manufacturers. Asked whether RIM might not go down the licensing route, as Microsoft has with Windows Phone, he said (translated from German by Google Translate): “Before you licensed the software, you must show that the platform has a large potential. First we have to fulfill our promises. If such proof, a licensing is conceivable.”

Heins was also asked what has taken the BlackBerry maker so long to get its next-gen OS in the market. He told Die Welt that the reason for the delay is because RIM is building a platform that’s fit for the next decade — and one which can find its way into new types of devices. “We have taken the time to build a platform that is future-proof for the next ten years. Our aim is not only to smartphones, but also to the use, for example, in cars that will be in the future increasingly networked. We see with BlackBerry 10 completely new areas of growth,” he said.

The CEO also revealed that RIM has been using up a lot of shoe leather visiting carriers to introduce them to BB10. “We have visited more than 100 network operators in person to introduce BlackBerry 10. The response has been extremely good, you want to have alternatives to Android, Apple and Co.,” he told the newspaper. In December all the U.K.’s major carriers confirmed they planned to range BlackBerry 10 devices this year.

Heins also told the newspaper that the “perception” the BlackBerry brand is just for business people is “no longer the reality”, pointing to markets such as the U.K., Indonesia and South Africa he said messaging is its primary use-case there.

“We are a relatively young industry. In the smartphone market, which is growing fast, so there is still plenty of room. It will be shown at some point, how many systems the market can bear. I’m assuming that we’ll play with BlackBerry 10 is not just a role. I think our role will be substantial,” he added.

In a longer version of the interview on Die Welt’s website Heins also discusses what’s changed in the year since he took over as CEO of RIM. “Honestly a lot,” he said. “We have an entirely new management team.The company has become leaner, which meant that we have reduced costs. Meanwhile, decisions are made ​​faster and responsibilities were redistributed. We are still in the middle of this process. We even increased the liquidity, although many of us have predicted that we would burn money. We are debt-free and have $ 2.9 billion cash available.”

Heins added that RIM is still undergoing a strategic review — with the possibility of licensing BB10 and selling its hardware production unit both still options on the table. “But there is no reason for us to decide in [haste],” he added. ”It is important first of all, BlackBerry 10 successfully putting them on the market. Then we shall see.”