RIM Announces New BlackBerry Phones

BlackBerry maker Research In Motion announced five new smartphones on Wednesday, which include updates to its popular Bold line of devices, as well as new Torch phones that do away with the hardware-based keyboard in favor of a touch-screen-only design. All of the phones will run a newly updated BlackBerry OS, version 7.

The most interesting of RIM's new devices looks to be the BlackBerry Torch 9850 and 9860. These two devices (which are essentially the same phone for different carriers) ditch the hardware-based QWERTY keyboard found on the original Torch, instead offering a 3.7-inch touch screen. RIM says that's the biggest display ever offered on a BlackBerry phone. These phones will be RIM's first all-touch-screen devices since the BlackBerry Storm and Storm2, which never really took off. Sprint will offer the Torch 9850, and AT&T will offer the 9860. Pricing and release dates have not been announced.

Also announced on Wednesday is the BlackBerry Torch 9810, a follow-up to last year's original BlackBerry Torch. Like its predecessor, the Torch 9810 features a 3.2-inch touch screen and a slide-out QWERTY keyboard. It will be available from AT&T in August, but pricing has not been announced.

Additionally, RIM announced the BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 smartphones, which it says are the thinnest BlackBerry smartphones yet.

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