RIM announces BlackBerry Bold 9900, aka Bold Touch

I am quite happy with my new PlayBook, but am just using an evaluation BlackBerry smartphone at this time. I was waiting for new BlackBerry announcements and after seeing RIM announce the Bold 9900 and 9930 (aka Bold Touch) I plan to pick one up as soon as they are available. The new Bold Touch devices take the great Bold form factor and adds a touchscreen with seriously beefed up internal specs and BlackBerry 7 OS.

These new Bold smartphones are the thinnest BlackBerry smartphones to date with a thickness of 10.5mm. The 9900 is the GSM only model and the 9930 is the CDMA/GSM world phone model. Specifications for the new Bold Touch includes:

• RIM BlackBerry 7 OS
• 2.8" capacitive touch screen display - VGA (640x480), 287 dpi resolution
• Ultra-easy QWERTY keyboard, optical trackpad
• 1.2 GHz Processor, 768 MB RAM
• 8 GB on-board memory, plus microSD slot supporting up to 32 GB cards
• NFC technology
• 5.0 MP camera, supports 720p HD video recording
• Orientation Sensor (Accelerometer), Digital Compass (Magnetometer), Proximity Sensor
• Built-in GPS / aGPS
• Dual-Band Wi-Fi - 802.11 b/g/n at 2.4 GHz and 802.11 a/n at 5 GHz
• Bluetooth 2.1+EDR support
• 1230 mAh removable, rechargeable battery
• Dimensions of 115 x 66 x 10.5 mm, approximately 130 g

We don't yet have any details on pricing, carrier support, or availability, but the press release states they will be available from carriers around the world this summer.

Those in attendance at BlackBerry World are getting some hands-on time with the new Bold smartphones so check out these articles:

• CrackBerry.com
• PhoneScoop
• Boy Genius Report