Back in December when we dropped the first, exclusive image of the BlackBerry 'Milan' it gave us all a glimpse of the direction RIM was heading for their next-generation BlackBerry devices. Now, new rumors are suggesting the device has been scrapped simply due to hardware concerns with not much else for information being relayed. When the Milan appeared, Kevin took the time to note in his write up:

There's still time for RIM to tweak things up before locking down final hardware design for manufacturing so I'll be curious to see if things change up from here at all by the time we get this phone in our hands.

In other words, the news of it being scrapped really isn't all the surprising if it turns out to be true. Reason being, it was never a device that was set in stone when it comes to hardware and design to begin with.

The idea of a slider BlackBerry, featuring a physical full qwerty keyboard running BB 10 are the key points for the Milan design and for RIM to go ahead and scrap that idea entirely would be rather foolish of them as there is a market for those devices among users. Aside from all of that, RIM has a history of scrapping one hardware design idea only to bring it back looking better then it did the first time around. Don't be surprised if you see a device similar in design arrive from RIM in 2012.

Via: N4BB

CrackBerry.com's Review of the BlackBerry Torch 9800 on AT&T - the first BlackBerry with a touchscreen, slide keyboard, and BlackBerry 6!

RIM's all new BlackBerry Torch 9800 for AT&T capitalizes on BlackBerry's historical strength by including awesome keyboard and killer email while featuring a plethora of new features including a proper touchscreen, upgraded camera and the highly anticipated BlackBerry 6 operating system. It will be available August 12th for $199.99 after contract.

You thought sliders were played out? Well think again. Research In Motion may not have invented the slider, but by working hand in hand with AT&T on its development since the project took root in late 2008, they have come very close to perfecting it. With some major upgrades and many subtle refinements throughout the user interface and under the hood, BB6 plays catch up in the smartphone wars. With the Torch, it now delivers to BlackBerry users a modern feeling experience that takes messaging and social media to a new level while placing much more emphasis on traditional media (photos, music, video, podcasts, etc.). The best news of all is the new WebKit rendering engine, which is the same web browser technology behind the iPhone, Android, webOS, and Nokia phones. You can finally enjoy browsing webpages on a BlackBerry.

There's a lot to cover in this review, so let's get to it!

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Supplemental to our full out BlackBerry Torch 9800 Review, we have our full dump of BlackBerry Torch 9800 images and photos. In addition to seeing the BlackBerry Torch 9800 in all it's glory, below you'll also find comparison photos between the BlackBerry Torch 9800 and the BlackBerry Bold 9700, Apple iPhone 4, HTC Sprint EVO 4G, Palm Pre and Samsung Captivate. With its vertical sliding form factor, a first for a BlackBerry Smartphone, the Torch made a great model for the CrackBerry cameras. Check out all the photos and images below and be sure to read our BlackBerry Torch 9800 Review and BlackBerry 6 Review to learn all about the latest BlackBerry offerings.

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Technical Specs and Key Features for the BlackBerry Torch 9800

Official word of the highly-anticipated BlackBerry Torch 9800 is finally here! Below you can find the tech specs and key features list for the new BlackBerry Torch 9800 Smartphone. The Torch 9800 introduces  a lot of new stuff for a BlackBerry - a new form factor, new product family name, a new camera and it debuts the BlackBerry 6 operating system. Take a look and keep it locked to CrackBerry.com for our full BlackBerry Torch Review (hopefully coming soon!).

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Holding the BlackBerry Torch or Bold?

We've already seen plenty of pre-release photos and videos of the RIM's upcoming BlackBerry slider device, which according to the operating system's about screen pegs the device model number as the BlackBerry 9800. We've even seen the device carry the Bold branding on the hardware itself (stamped Bold onto the back of the device beside the camera), which pretty much makes it a no-brainer the slider would be marketed under the name BlackBerry Bold 9800. However, the BlackBerry Bold 9800 name isn't a done deal just yet.

Apparently RIM has been debating whether or not they should launch the slider as part of the BlackBerry Bold family or instead launch a new product family for the slider. The new name? BlackBerry Torch. We've received multiple tips on the 'ole CrackBerry hotline relaying word that the new slider from RIM, which will launch with BlackBerry 6, may ultimately carry the BlackBerry Torch name rather than Bold. A little digging confirmed the Torch name is being seriously considered (though it doesn't seem like the decision is quite final just yet). I wonder if RIM's affair with the Torch name came about when they acquired Torch Mobile (the company/team responsible for the new WebKit browser) or if it was the 2010 Olympics that inspired it? While the change of branding decision may still be a bit up in the air, we have heard that some slider devices are already being manufactured down in RIM's plant in Guadalajara, Mexico carrying the Torch branding and a quick WhoIs search on the BlackBerryTorch.com domain name does reveal that Research in Motion registered it back in April. In other words, this isn't random speculation.

CrackBerry Poll: So what do you think? Should RIM introduce a new product family for the slider form factor? As it stands, the Pearls are narrow devices featuring SureType, the Curves are the entry-level full qwerty, the Bolds are the flagship full qwerty, and the Storms are full touchscreen devices. With a new sliding form factor, RIM could take this as an opportunity to introduce a new brand name that would hopefully catch a lot of buzz and attention when the device hits (especially considering it will be the first device to get BlackBerry 6 and the new WebKit browser). At the same time, RIM just scrapped the Tour brand in an effort to consolidate and simplify the product families (though in that case it was arguably more redundant to the Bold family since it was essentially a flagship full qwerty). And if RIM introduces the BlackBerry Torch brand for the BlackBerry 9800 slider, what family of product to they put the BlackBerry 9670 (full qwerty clamshell) into. Decisions, decisions. Whether it be the BlackBerry Bold 9800 or BlackBerry Torch 9800, I just want to see this device hit the market asap. Cast your vote above and sound off with your thoughts on the BlackBerry Torch name below!  

We've seen it in pics, we've seen it in video and now it's time for another round of up close and personal pics with the BlackBerry Bold 9800. Love it or hate it, this is a device that many folks are now starting to love more and more as newer pics and videos show up on the scene. While I'm still not overly fond of the device myself, that on screen keyboard (if it works as I'm thinking it does) should be quite functional. One more pic of the back of the device is after the jump, showing the slider in the up position so you can just see the camera placement. You can view the whole lot of pictures over at TheBerryFix by hitting the source link.

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Whoa. Early morning treat for all you BlackBerry Bold 9800 slider fans out there. Brought to us by the folks over at The Cellular Guru, we now have some nice clear shots of what is surely one of the first BlackBerry devices to have BlackBerry 6 on it when released. Running on the slider, as you can see from the above shot is the long awaited Webkit browser Research In Motion has been working on. And judging by the picture, doing quite well as it just scored a 100/100 on the Acid3 test. As Kevin had mentioned before, it is indeed a touchscreen that is not powered by Surepress technology so we're all still waiting to see how that works out. Click on over after the jump for a few more pics of what to expect.

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This morning BGR dropped a post stating that the BlackBerry Bold 9800 Slider may be rolling into AT&T sooner than RIM may have lead us to believe at WES. The device is rumored to be arriving in June, and since we know the Bold 9800 will be running BlackBerry 6, it makes the arrival of OS a bit earlier than many of us were expecting (RIM ahead of schedule... who'd a thunk it?!). During the WES 2010 keynote and capital markets presentation the day earlier, RIM Founder and Co-CEO Mike Lazaridis told us we'd see BlackBerry 6 before the end of the "next calendar quarter". This essentially bought them time right through to the end of September if necessary, but knowing RIM history of product launches, we'd normally expect RIM to use every bit of the time frame they promised. So it's quite a pleasant surprise if this actually holds true -- it shows RIM is starting to pick up the pace -- so maybe we can hope to see BlackBerry 6 drop around the same time or soon after for other supported devices as well (not that we fully know what in-market devices will be supported). No shock either that the device will be on AT&T at the start, we've been saying that since the first day slider images announced. I'm getting the feeling it'll be a busy summer in BlackBerry land!

Source: BGR