Indeed, the new device continues RIM’s move away from its traditional side-mounted scroll-wheel configuration, in favor of a tiny trackball on the front of the device (similar to the Pearl). It features a full QWERTY keyboard, built-in GPS and BlackBerry Maps, as well as a multi-media player and an expandable microSD memory slot.
The 8800 was unveiled at the 3GSM conference in Barcelona, and is quad-band GSM/GPRS and EDGE-enabled, and of course comes Bluetooth 2.0. It allows the usual voice and data applications, including phone, email, text messaging, web browser, organizer, and multimedia features.
It features noise cancellation for better audio performance, as well as speaker independent voice recognition for voice activated dialing. The device also has a high-resolution (320 x 240) landscape display, with built-in light sensing technology that automatically adjusts the screen, keyboard and trackball brightness for optimized visibility.
On top of this, there is a media player supporting MP3 and ACC music files, as well as MPEG4 and H.263 video files. A stereo headset jack is also available on the device.
But the new and potentially most interesting point is that the 8800 comes with GPS (Global Positioning System) already built in. At the time of going to press, RIM could not confirm to Computer Business Review what silicon is being used.
What Blackberry does say that when the GPS is used to conjunction with BlackBerry Maps, users get driving directions and the route is tracked via GPS. How well this works in practice remains to be seen.
The BlackBerry Maps are stored on RIM servers or off-board, and the according to a Blackberry spokesperson the application uses the same compression technology as the BlackBerry browser, so users shouldn’t get any shock when the bill comes through in terms of data usage.
It is also integrated with other BlackBerry applications, so users can generate a map from an address in their BlackBerry Address Book and send maps via email from their BlackBerry 8800.
Kit Macgillivray, product manager for Herzlia, Israel-based mapping and navigation vendor Telmap Ltd, said the 8800 ships with a rudimentary mapping capability developed in-house by RIM, but lacking some of the more sophisticated navigation and directions that his company offers in its products.
One of the companies, whose off-board mapping applications are already available on the BlackBerry platform in association with an external puck fitted with the GPS silicon, Telmap clearly has hopes of capitalizing on the advent of the 8800. We’re focusing on the mobile operators rather than the handset manufacturer, said Macgillivray.
In the UK the Blackberry 8800 is available from Vodafone and Orange (T-Mobile and O2 are expected to follow). In the US meanwhile, it will be available on AT&T Inc’s Cingular network, priced at $300 with a two-year contract commitment.
