X

Photos: RIM's refreshed BlackBerry 6 OS

The company has showcased its refreshed operating system at the Wireless Enterprise Symposium, displaying a new home screen and social-network integration
By Joseph Hanlon, Contributor
blackberry6os1.jpg
1 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

Research in Motion kicked off its annual Wireless Enterprise Symposium with an announcement from co-chief executive Mike Lazaridis, who showcased the upcoming BlackBerry 6 operating system refresh due in Q3 of this year.

To highlight some of the key improvements, Research in Motion (RIM) put together a funky video with the BlackBerry 6 OS dancing on-screen to the music of the Black Eyed Peas, which you can see on YouTube in all its bass-thumping glory. ZDNet UK's sister site ZDNet Australia managed to grab some pics to take a closer look at what to expect from the system overhaul.

blackberry6os2.jpg
2 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

'Fresh but familiar' was the buzz-phrase of the presentation, and as you can see from the main menu display, RIM has succeeded in recreating the look and feel of version 5, but with some new-look graphics and icons.

blackberry6os3.jpg
3 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

The home screen has been redesigned around collecting app shortcuts together, using a folder-like metaphor under the headings: All, Favourites, Media and Downloads.

blackberry6os4.jpg
4 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

Being able to use a universal search for the content on your handset is excellent, and extending that search to the web is a fantastic improvement.

blackberry6os5.jpg
5 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

RIM's recent acquisition of browser technology company Torch Mobile is finally delivering what we have all been waiting for: a WebKit browser for BlackBerry. This should provide a faster, better web experience all round.

blackberry6os6.jpg
6 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

One of the most obvious improvements in the new WebKit browser is a visual tab switcher for browsing on several sites simultaneously.

blackberry6os7.jpg
7 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

A rich, context-sensitive menu is one of the features that has always set BlackBerry smartphones apart from the competition. RIM is improving this part of its OS with a sprinkle of visual flair, spicing up the currently black-and-white text-only menu.

blackberry6os8.jpg
8 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

This picture shows how the context menu will change depending on which app you're working in.

blackberry6os9.jpg
9 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

One exciting advancement on the app front in BlackBerry 6 is a new combined reader, mixing together your various social-networking feeds with any RSS feeds you choose to check out each day. We can't tell from the video if this will support Google Reader feeds, but if it does, we'll be calling this feature a big win.

blackberry6os10.jpg
10 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

Alongside the combined reader will be the ability to combine different modes of communication for each contact and a simple drop-down menu to choose how you're to communicate with them.

blackberry6os11.jpg
11 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

It looks like a simplified, one-touch Twitter post tool might be on the cards too.

blackberry6os12.jpg
12 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

BlackBerry 6 displays playlist covers.

blackberry6os13.jpg
13 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

Universal search as seen through the eyes of a music lover. Add your favourite artist's name and search the web for content not on your handset.

blackberry6os14.jpg
14 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

What is it with sample images and flowers? The touch-friendly BlackBerry 6 image gallery.

blackberry6os15.jpg
15 of 15 Joseph Hanlon/ZDNET

A slick new way to see the most recent entries in your call logs, messages and calendar.

Related Galleries

Holiday wallpaper for your phone: Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year's, and winter scenes
Holiday lights in Central Park background

Related Galleries

Holiday wallpaper for your phone: Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year's, and winter scenes

21 Photos
Winter backgrounds for your next virtual meeting
Wooden lodge in pine forest with heavy snow reflection on Lake O'hara at Yoho national park

Related Galleries

Winter backgrounds for your next virtual meeting

21 Photos
Holiday backgrounds for Zoom: Christmas cheer, New Year's Eve, Hanukkah and winter scenes
3D Rendering Christmas interior

Related Galleries

Holiday backgrounds for Zoom: Christmas cheer, New Year's Eve, Hanukkah and winter scenes

21 Photos
Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6: Electric vehicle extravaganza
img-8825

Related Galleries

Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6: Electric vehicle extravaganza

26 Photos
A weekend with Google's Chrome OS Flex
img-9792-2

Related Galleries

A weekend with Google's Chrome OS Flex

22 Photos
Cybersecurity flaws, customer experiences, smartphone losses, and more: ZDNet's research roundup
shutterstock-1024665187.jpg

Related Galleries

Cybersecurity flaws, customer experiences, smartphone losses, and more: ZDNet's research roundup

8 Photos
Inside a fake $20 '16TB external M.2 SSD'
Full of promises!

Related Galleries

Inside a fake $20 '16TB external M.2 SSD'

8 Photos