Telstra, Optus and the Vodafone-3 alliance now known as VHA are all lined up to carry the new Bold 9700, a smartphone described as “the best BlackBerry ever”.
RIM has lifted the covers on the BlackBerry Bold 9700, with the souped-up smartphone set to be offered by all Australian carriers on their respective 3G networks.
This includes the dual-band 2100MHz and 900MHz networks of Optus and Vodafone, as the Bold 9700 is the first BlackBerry to support 3G HSDPA on the 900MHz band.
Previous models treated 900MHz as a GSM capable of supporting only the slower GPRS/EDGE signals, although the 9700 also sports a quad-band GSM radio (850/900/1800/1900MHz) for globetrotters.
Adele Beachley, RIM’s Managing Director for Australia and New Zealand, told ACP that the Bold 9700 would be offered “across all carriers” as two separate models – one with 2100/900MHz for Optus and Vodafone, the other with 2100/850MHz for Telstra’s Next G network and for 3 customers roaming wishing to roam from 3’s 3G network onto Next G.
Beachley also confirmed that the Bold 9700 would be available “in late November” and that it would slot in alongside the original Bold 9000.
However, Beachley said she was unable to speak for carriers as to whether the Bold 9000 would drop in price to become an ‘entry-level’ 3G BlackBerry or if the Bold 9700 would land at a premium above the current monthly plan pricing for the Bold 9000.
Optus spokeswoman Simone Bergholcs told APC that the Bold 9700 would be offered as “a hero product for Optus’ business customers”. VHA has also confirmed with APC that the Bold 9700 will launch through both Vodafone and 3 in late November,
Speaking at today’s Bold 9700 media launch, held at Sydney’s swank Assiette restaurant, Beachley said that 2009 marked not only 25 years of RIM as a company but 10 years of the BlackBerry, which now has 32 million subscribers worldwide with over 50 million BlackBerry handsets shipped.