BlackBerry Gets Bolder With Onyx 9600
While full specifications of the Onyx 9600 haven't been revealed, popular gadget blog Engadget has posted what appear to be images of the new device.
The pictures feature a smartphone similar to the BlackBerry Bold in a more compact form factor.
Being called a "sexier version" of the BlackBerry Bold, the 3G smartphone RIM released last year, the Onyx is a 3G-enabled GSM handset. It is expected to clock in at slightly smaller and thinner than the Bold, meaning it will fall between the Bold and the Curve 8900, which BlackBerry released in February.
Like the Bold, the Onyx 9600 initially is expected to hit AT&T's network in the U.S., with a UMA model, dubbed Driftwood, slated for T-Mobile sometime later.
So far, there are no clues as to when the BlackBerry Onyx 9600 will hit stores. Pricing is also unknown.
Other expected features include a full QWERTY keyboard, GPS, Wi-Fi, a 3.2-megapixel camera and a high-resolution 480 x 360 display. Early reports also indicate that the BlackBerry Onyx 9600 will feature a carbon fiber back battery cover.
The Onyx 9600 is just one of many expected smartphones BlackBerry has up its sleeve for 2009. RIM is also expected to release the BlackBerry Gemini and the BlackBerry Niagara later this year.