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It looks like AT&T will not be the only North American carrier to pick up the recently announced BlackBerry Bold, in addition it will be available for Canadian customers through Rogers Communication. The release date and pricing still remain a mystery, however there is a notification page to keep you up to date. Of course we will also keep you posted here as well. With the AT&T release coming in the beginning of this summer, we can only imagine that Rogers will not be that far away.

Read [Rogers]

So we’ve seen the Bold, seen that it will be in the same AT&T stable as the iPhone and at roughly the same price.  Brian Caufield, over at Forbes wrote a post today on “why Apple can’t kill the Blackberry.” In his post, Brian goes over the reason RIM is still in the fight is its back-end support.  His argument is the corporate folks need the infrastructure.  Brian misses it too.

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All due respect to RIM for coming up with a sleek and full-featured smartphone such as the BlackBerry Bold, but we couldn’t help feel shortchanged just a little as it doesn’t match up with the iPhone’s look and feel. So, it is but only natural to get excited over the latest rumor circulating around the BlackBerry name, the Thunder.

Yes dear readers, the group over at BGR are claiming that the latest smartphone from RIM has been codenamed the BlackBerry Thunder. And yes, this time, we just might be staring at the real iPhone killer. With its full touchscreen display and only four keys visible upfront - send/end keys, the BlackBerry menu key and the back key, the Thunder may well the next generation of what we can expect from RIM. Rumor has it that the BlackBerry Thunder will also be a worldwide lifetime exclusive on Verizon and Vodafone, so current AT&T subscribers still have plenty of time to think about shifting carriers before the Thunder arrives.

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AT&T has officially announced they will be the “exclusive carrier for the Bold in the US.” While the details are still coming in, this bit of exciting information almost seemed like just a brief mention in what was an article covering the recent increase for RIM’s stock. Of course between the 3G support in the BlackBerry Bold and the 3G coverage that AT&T has to offer I suppose we should not be all that surprised. Still unknown is an exact release date, however according to RIM’s earlier press release it will be available “beginning this summer.” We also cannot help to wonder just how much the Bold will set you back in terms of dollars.

Read [MSN Money] Via [Engadget]

After announcing the launch of its latest BlackBerry handset - the BlackBerry Bold, Microsoft and RIM have announced an agreement that will bring Windows Live Messenger and Live Hotmail to all BlackBerry handsets. This would allow users to access both their Windows Live Messenger and Live Hotmail using their e-mail addresses and passwords, just once.

With Windows Live Hotmail and Live Messenger on their BlackBerry devices, users will be able to the following; set an automatic message delivery and message synchronization using push technology, utilize a dedicated inbox for Windows Live Hotmail messages delivered automatically to users’ handsets, display HTML e-mail with graphics, web links and contact photos, send instant message and join group chats, see status and preferences of Windows Live Messenger contacts, customize status message, save conversations, display avatars, send and receive picture and files, and use more than 60 emoticons.

Windows Live Messenger and Live Hotmail will be available for the BlackBerry beginning summer of this year in multiple languages.

Read [Microsoft Press Pass]

Stefan over at IntoMobile has a very interesting post on what is ahead for phones/carriers as new phones begin casting nets into the net and begin to pull in more and more content from the net.  His view seems to be at odds with what I see: this is an amazing time to be alive and into tech.

His view
Stefan sees the manufactures of devices calling the shots, picking platforms, picking the spec and building the phone to it.  The problem here is the manufacturers are usually not the ones figuring out how to charge for it all.  Carriers have trained consumers to expect it for free - a very hard habit to break.  Their “unlimited” plans, Stefan would contend, are short-sighted and will make it tough to add on features that otherwise customers would want to pay for.

In the new world services are built for virality and terms like monetization are on the bottom of the todo list. This new way of thinking is not being fully embraced by the old rulers in their respective kingdoms, but more importantly it is causing the people to become accustomed to everything being free or supplemented by advertising. 

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RIM has officially announced the new BlackBerry Bold (previously the BlackBerry 9000. True to its name, RIM is announcing it in a bold manner, complete with a product site of its own. And since it bears the BlackBerry brand, we don’t have to tell you how sleek and cool looking this new BlackBerry model is, right? But just in case you have no idea how uber cool this BlackBerry Bold is, it has a lustrous black exterior, satin chrome finished frame and stylish leather-like blackplate.

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The latest, but still rumored information is now putting the soon-to-be-released BlackBerry 9000 with an official name, the BOLD. According to the folks over at CrackBerry this “appears with *reasonable* certainty that this is in fact the case” however without an official announcement we are still not 100% convinced. Either way it should not be long now before we see the 9000 BOLD officially announced and its fair to say we will also learn the name at that time. More important though is that the BOLD, whether or not that is the true name, is going to be a very nice addition to the current BlackBerry lineup. Here’s hoping that announcement comes as expected on Monday.

Via [CrackBerry]

The folks over at BGR are calling for the BlackBerry 9000 announcement to be coming very soon. Just a few days away in fact, on May 12 during WES (Wireless Enterprise Symposium) in Orlando, Florida. They have stated this is “100% confirmed” and that we can not only expect the 9000 to be officially unveiled but that a demo booth with be set up to get some hands on time.

And just as a teaser to make you dream a little more the folks over at CrackBerry.com were able to get their hands on the BlackBerry 9000 and were kind enough to offer up a video review for our viewing pleasure. Keep reading to check out the video…

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Anyone holding out for the Sprint-branded 8330 Curve can let out a sigh of relief today as it is now available. The Curve, originally announced back in early April is coming off a delay due to ”additional testing” being required. Well it looks like the testing has been completed to their satisfaction. The 8330 Curve will retail for $179.99, which comes after a $320 instant savings, $100 mail-in-rebate, and of course with a two-year agreement.

Product [Sprint]