Tue Jun 16, 2009 10:01 am
BlackBerry maker Research In Motion plans to add the BlackBerry Tour smartphone to Verizon and Sprint line-ups this summer as it aims to grow its market share among both business and mainstream consumers.
The Waterloo, Ontario-based company said the BlackBerry Tour is a hybrid of the BlackBerry Curve, which proved popular with users, and the BlackBerry Bold, which RIM aimed at high-end corporate consumers.
RIM calls the handset a "world phone," which means it can easily access voice and data services on networks overseas -- a feature popular with business users in the past.
It supports high-speed EV-DO Rev. A networks in North America, as well as 3G UMTS/HSPA and quad-band GSM networks abroad.
The handset comes with email, messaging and social networking support with built-in GPS.
It has a QWERTY keyboard for fast typing and a large bright display delivering the highest resolution available on a BlackBerry smartphone. Additional features include 3.2-megapixel camera and video recording, a media player for videos, pictures and music and Bluetooth stereo audio.
To appeal to the consumer market, RIM loaded the Tour with multimedia features similar to those found in the Curve and Pearl, such as a photo and video camera and music player.
RIM wants to make inroads into the broader retail market without alienating the corporate users that have been its mainstay.
Rivals such as Apple, Palm and Nokia have launched new products and aggressively priced their smartphones to lure consumers.
"With its striking design and exceptional performance, the new BlackBerry Tour will offer a compelling choice for the growing number of wireless customers looking to upgrade their existing cell phone to a smartphone," said Mike Lazaridis, President and Co-CEO at Research In Motion.
The BlackBerry Tour is expected to be available this summer.
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