The BlackBerry Pearl 8220 runs neck-and-neck with the Storm for the title of "most leaked RIM device of 2008," but for what it's worth, T-Mobile is just now getting around to announcing a date and price for the most fliptastic phone in Waterloo's ever-expanding lineup. That's good news -- but perhaps the best news is that the launch date just happens to be today (for one of the two available colors, anyhow). The black version of the 8220 will be appearing online and in T-Mobile stores today, while the dark red will be following on a week later on Monday, October 20. Both will run $149.99 on a two-year contract.

We've been toying around with the black 8220 for a few days now, and our emotions are mixed. With WiFi, support for T-Mobile's HotSpot unlimited calling service, a 3.5mm headphone jack, 2-megapixel cam with flash, support for microSD cards up to 16GB, and everything that makes a BlackBerry a BlackBerry, there's little question that it's got some horsepower under the hood, but there are a couple odd personality quirks that we'd personally have a tough time getting used to. First off -- something we first noticed when we played with it at CTIA last month -- the keys are completely flush and tucked up next to one another, making it nearly impossible to type confidently (of course, we weren't huge fans of SureType to begin with, so experts might have an easier go of it). Along the same vein, the trackball is deeply recessed, so your thumb is constantly rubbing against the chrome well surrounding the ball; not a dealbreaker by any stretch, but annoying after a while. On the plus side, we think it's a pretty striking (albeit beefy) phone, the exterior display is both beautiful and functional, and we really think this is going to appeal to a whole bunch of folks who'd otherwise be considering a Pearl candybar. We'd once heard rumors that RIM and T-Mobile were going to try to launch this at a $50 price point, and by golly, if they could actually make that happen, they'd have a monster seller on their hands. Check out our hands-on shots in the gallery!

So the BlackBerry Storm hasn't even made it onto Verizon yet, and in flies word that RIM is actually doing something other than resting on its laurels (and contemplating buyout offers from Microsoft). The Boy Genius has it from two independent sources that RIM is currently hard at work on a "super-phone" of sorts, complete with a 5-megapixel auto-focus camera, 1GB of memory and a "near-HD quality screen." In all seriousness, it's not too shocking to hear that the outfit is working up a formidable opponent to go against HTC's Touch HD / T8290, but it's not stopping there. We're also told that a second and third-generation Storm are already being whipped up in the design room, but it's pretty safe to say you won't be seeing those in the flesh for a good while. Regrettably, that's it for the details, but you can rest assured that we'll be keeping an ear to the ground for more.

Funny story -- we pretty much heard this exact same rumor floating around last August, but given the current economic situation, we're inclined to believe this one a good bit more. A recent Reuters report is pointing out that RIM (like practically every other company right about now) is ripe for the picking, and any outfit with a serious load of cash reserves could get themselves quite a bargain. Given that the Redmond mega-corp has shown interest before (and clearly has plenty of Greenbacks), we were particularly interested in Canaccord Adams analyst Peter Misek's quote: "I'm fairly certain [Microsoft] has a standing offer to buy [RIM] at $50 a share." If you'll recall, RIM's stock sat at $148 per share just four months ago, and now, it's hovering around $60. As expected, Microsoft had no comment on the report, but don't be surprised to see something go down if Wall Street keeps hemorrhaging.

[Via Electronista]

If you're wondering why you don't have an AT&T-branded BlackBerry Bold in your hand at this very second, the answer might lie a couple thousand miles away where Orange has allegedly pulled all units off the shelves to hammer out some "software issues" that have plagued early devices in subscribers' hands. The whole situation leaves us to wonder whether carriers jumped the gun on validating early builds of the Bold's firmware in an effort to get it out into the market in a non-ridiculous amount of time, while AT&T may have chosen to play it safe with a longer, more excruciating battery of tests -- leading to RIM's swipe that the October 2 miss was all AT&T's fault. It's just a theory, and probably a pretty meaningless one since this Orange fiasco should apparently take a couple weeks to clear up at most, and we're still hearing occasional whispers out of the AT&T camp that they're still pushing for an October release over there. Chop chop, guys.

[Via Mobile Tech Addicts]

Just when we're all geared up to get crazy corporate with a bunch of Bold purchases, RIM has to go and make our lives difficult by reminding us that the Javelin / Curve 8900 is out there -- lurking -- just waiting to make a grand entrance sometime in the next few months. A new video posted to CrackBerry goes through the 8900's finer points, noting that the handset clocks in just a bit more compact than its big brother, features a slightly smaller, higher dot pitch display, and carries over an original Curve-style keyboard with spaced keys rather than the flowing design employed on the Bold (for what it's worth, the narrator seems to like both styles equally). Interestingly, it's noted that this prototype employs an older trackball design that'll allegedly be replaced with a more bulletproof design by the time it launches. The lack of 3G is going to be a dream killer for many, but we could see this one getting some retail legs underneath it if the price is right -- it's got WiFi, after all.

In fact, T-Mobile Germany is saying that it'll have the 8900 next month -- a claim we actually believe, since Germany is from the future. The trackball shown on its version of the handset is distinctly different than CrackBerry's, so it's looking like the claim of a redesign might hold water.

[Thanks, Alex]

Read - CrackBerry's Curve 8900 hands-on video
Read - T-Mobile Germany's Curve 8900 product page

There are, shall we say, certain "advantages" to driving a race car sponsored by global wireless behemoth Vodafone. Fame, fortune, and a free account (seriously, all the minutes and kilobytes you can eat!) definitely rank high on that list, but it all pales in comparison to this. It seems that Formula 1 wizard Lewis Hamilton has been gifted with a Voda-branded Storm, a great publicity play for the carrier -- particularly as he's sitting in front of a camera describing how "wicked" it is. Clearly, the video is little more than a PR stunt, but the phone genuinely seems to be his, and at least we can get a clear look at how fast, fluid, and pretty the interface appears to be. So, anyone know where he leaves that thing when he's out racing? Check the full action after the break.

It's just in beta at this point, but devs and techies far and wide are now invited to take a stab at coding up some magic for RIM's new touch-based user interface elements, orientation control, accelerometers, and virtual keyboards that are getting proudly shown off for the first time in the Storm. There's stuff in here for regular folk without a single programming bone in their bodies, too -- namely, a full-fledged emulator that appears to have all the features and functionality you'd expect the real thing to have. It's a gas to play with -- even more fun than that semi-functional G1 demo T-Mobile has up and running -- and it's a good way to test-drive the goods without laying out the cash first. Not to say you could even if you wanted to, since the phone's not dropping for another month at a yet-to-be-determined sticker price.

[Via Phone Scoop]

Update: Be sure to select Simulators v4.7.0 to get the goods -- otherwise you're going to go through some ridiculously long download, only to discover that there's no Storm to be found. Wouldn't that just suck?

Seems that the bickering over which Canadian carrier would land the Storm has drawn to an end -- either that, or Telus is gearing up to jump the gun and just declare itself the preemptive winner in the hopes of elbowing Bell right out of the picture. Whatever the case, the CDMA giant now has a page up on its site encouraging folks to sign up to find out when the 9530 is available -- which according to Boy Genius Report's leaked press release, should be "just in time for the holiday shopping season." If that unnecessarily nebulous statement means November, that puts 'em right in line with Verizon to the south and Vodafone to the east; so much for preferential treatment on the home turf, eh?

[Via Boy Genius Report]

Update: What's this -- a truce? Could it be? Bell has now also announced that it's getting the Storm, so if there's any sort of exclusivity going on here, it's for an awfully short period of time. Thanks, everyone!

A storm's arrival typically isn't something to celebrate, but we're going to make a notable exception here seeing how the BlackBerry Storm is less of a destructive weather pattern and more of an incredibly hot smartphone -- arguably RIM's hottest to date. Fit to its business-savvy roots, the long-rumored handset comes equipped with the most comprehensive global roaming capabilities of virtually any wireless device you'll find anywhere, featuring EV-DO Rev. A, quadband EDGE, and 2100MHz HSPA for Europe. Beyond that, the Storm becomes RIM's very first touchscreen phone, mounting a 3.26-inch 480 x 360 glass display on a unique clickable surface so that the entire thing can be pressed downwards -- just like a real button -- for tactile feedback when making selections. It includes a full HTML finger-navigable browser, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint editing capabilities, Bluetooth 2.0, 1GB of on-board storage with an 8GB microSD card bundled in the box, 3.5mm headphone jack, automatic orientation and ambient lighting sensors, and a 3.2-megapixel autofocus cam with dedicated flash, making it a legitimate jack-of-all-trades that seems likely to be able to handle even the most chaotic personal and professional lives users can throw its way. It'll allegedly do 15 days of standby or 5.5 hours of talk time on either GSM or CDMA networks. No word on pricing yet -- we're told all will be revealed "in the coming weeks" -- but it'll launch on both Verizon and Vodafone in November.

Pink Pearls are nothing new -- but a pink Pearl with a fancy silkscreen? That's another matter altogether. These 8110s imbued with a newfound sense of fashion are starting to show up in AT&T stores now, so get 'em while they're hot.

[Thanks, Kal]

We're still waiting on Verizon to stop teasing us about this thing, but Vodafone (who's been hinting at the phone since last month) just announced the BlackBerry Storm, RIM's touchscreen flagship. As if you didn't know already, Vodafone is confirming a 3.25-inch 480 x 360 touchscreen, 3.2 megapixel camera, automatic orientation flipping, 1GB of built-in storage and a host of multimedia capabilities, including iTunes sync.

[Thanks, Bob]

Get ready, Blackberry fans. After weeks of leaks and goofy internal videos, it looks like the Storm's finally a-comin' -- the first ads for the RIM's touchscreen wonder aired on CBS tonight. We're on the lookout for a better video, but even at this low res we can't help but notice how chunky this thing looks -- but we're totally willing to trade some heft for some sweet, sweet copy / paste action. Video after the break.

[Thanks, Jerry and deltajam]

Look, we love finding out the pre-release minutiae just as much as anyone, but this is getting a little absurd. Yesterday we spotted a Storm slide pack, just this morning we ran across a sneak peek of RIM's BlackBerry Application Center, and merely hours later we're being treated to the BlackBerry Storm User Guide. What's next, internal information on how to best polish the casing? C'mon Verizon, get this thing out in the open already!

There's no telling what sort of crazy behind-the-scenes negotiations had to take place in order for our good friend Boy Genius to get his hands on the very first retail T-Mobile-branded BlackBerry 8220 we've seen in the wild -- and let's be honest, the whole unboxing takes on a sexier tone when there's an element of intrigue to it, doesn't it? Mr. Genius flatly pans the thing for having a pair of awful screens and a prototype feel (despite the fact that he's got a final production unit), so odds are the Bold owners out there aren't going to be throwing fits of jealousy any time soon. To top it off, the contents of the box are about as exciting as flannel underwear (we guess it's cool that RIM saw fit to throw in a pair of headphones), so don't expect too much. At least it'll be available in a few colors, right?

At this point, you're probably wondering what section of the Storm's UI you haven't seen. Enter a few new sneak peeks, this time showcasing the purported BlackBerry Application Center. Granted, these shots are from the Vodafone edition, but we don't suspect the Verizon version will look much different. Reportedly, the Application Center will be available on v4.7 Storm devices, and carriers themselves will be responsible for hosting the data and sending updates; additionally, the download / installation will be handled by the browser in the first release, meaning that the software cannot restart the app or download intelligently. Give the read link a look for a few more tidbits / pictures.