The last device to get outed via UAProf was the BlackBerry 9300 and while we'd been hearing about that one for a while the latest device to show up, the BlackBerry 9800 is kind of the new kid on the block. We got some tips last night as to what it might possibly be, but nothing solid so anything said here is pretty much speculation and rumors.
The known specs on this one are listed as being 3G, having 802.11n Wi-Fi and rocking a 360x480 display. To go with that, it is currently listed as coming with OS 6.0 but still lagging behind in regards to the browser version indicating it may not be currently running the upcoming WebKit browser. Looking at the specs side by side, it could be thought as an updated version of the 9700a aka Slider or possibly what we are looking at is the Storm 3. What do you guys think? Is this a Storm 3 that we are looking at or possibly just the Slider finally getting renamed to the device model it'll actually go to market with (we always figured the 9700a device model was a temporary one and it would change at somepoint)? Sound off in the comments.
Source: BBNews.pl
Reader comments
BlackBerry 9800 Outed Via UAProf But What Is It? (best guess: 9700a slider is now 9800 slider)
I'm HOPING its The Storm 3....get it out of the way...I was MANY of the fools to get The Storm 1...Christmas '08...after SO many issues I got rid of it (only had it ONE week)...I LOVE BlackBerry...went to the 8330 now got a FlipBerry!!...I would consider The Storm FOUR!! But I'm NOT thinking Storm until then...so my hope is the 9800 IS the Storm 3!!!!
Been with RIM for 4 years, but the lack of renovation and new innovation with their OS sickened me. Switched to the iPhone 3Gs (hate it or love it)and switched my entire family over to iPhone's. I felt regret at first, but now their recent news reported to many tech sites (or lack of)further confirms my choice. RIM needs a fresh breath of innovation to compete with the next generation smartphone market.
I am not saying anything new, but the truth is RIM better hit a home run sometime within the next year or we BlackBerry fans will start walking out of the ball park.
I got my wife the Nexus One and my son Moto Cliq; I agree that Android is amazing, but my loyalties still rest with my 9700, for now! Berryguy25 was correct in stated the screen size on the 9700 is small. Don't get me wrong the 9700 is a work horse, but why couldn't RIM have upgraded the 9000 to 9700 specs or better given how wide and thick it is? Luckly for RIM I still have a preference for physical keyboard and nobody does keyboards better then RIM, but its getting harder and harder to defend the platform.
RIM, YOUR CLOCK IS TICKING SINCE LOYALTY IS EXPENDABLE.
Hopefully it's not Blackberry/RIM's death shroud due to their lack of innovation compared to the rest of the industry!!
I miss the days when Crackberry broke the news of the upcoming models, not just repost news from other BB websites :(
I owned two blackberrys the 8700 and the curve and used to love them because they always had great things to offer. The fact is that blackberry is behind almost a year apposed to everyone ANDROID and APPLE and hate to say it soon windows with WINMO 7 . I just hope that they come out with something soon, phone and operating system is revamped. The fact blackberry is still "selling" is because every carrier is giving them away with a two year contract.. come on blackberry used to love you guys..
i own the htc hd2 and not even the storm comes close to it.. and its running on windows 6.5 .. COME ON BLACKBERRY! GET UR ACT TOGETHER.
thanks for everythings blackberry company.
but don't you think that it is time for you guys really need to create something better "OS"to make bb user proud of .
SOMETHING THAT CAN BEAT UP THE "ANDROID"!!
please,surprise us with "new os" people!!
I love my BB but they are getting blown out of the water spec wise. 3.2MP cameras and 360x480 screens don't cut it anymore. HTC is coming up with some amazing devices such as the HD2, Incredible, EVO 4G. The OS is getting very stale as well. 6.0 better offer much more than the 5.0 "upgrade" did. Android is making very large strides in updating their OS. RIM is dragging their feet and it could cost them. We should know much more by the end of the year in regards to Storm 3 specs(RIMs best opportunity to upgrade hardware), OS 6.0, and webkit. Hopefully some of these answers will be answered at WES as well.
360x480 is a pathetic resolution for a high end 2010 smartphone. Everything has moved up to a minimum of 800x480. I am looking forward to the Storm 3 as a possible upgrade candidate for Christmas when I'm eligible, but if it doesn't significantly increase the screen resolution then I'm going to get something else.
If OS 6.0 is coming out this soon, then its safe to assume it will probably be the same old, same old with a new theme and a few other how hum "enhancements". No new browser yet? What the hell is going on in Canada. Do these people live in the real world and see what the other platforms are doing.
It seems they aren't worried about North America! RIM is hitting India and other fast developing countries hard. Phones like the up-coming curve and the new pearl (both T9 and QWERTY) seem to fit that demographic over the largely North American "Crackberry" base. So, when we see these products (which they'll sell here too btw) we all get mad and wonder what the hell they're thinking... They have a firm hold on NA and Europe (well see for how long, however) and are broadening their reach into the rest of the world in a big way---although much of it seems crappy to us!
(Just my theory)
Besides, we all saw their latest numbers! Very strong sales, but sale of high-end models were weak. Sales of lower-end devices were much higher than expected...
It's obviously the long rumored BB Flannel. So refreshing to see a phone coming from RIM that doesn't look like all the others that they make .
I'm gonna acknowledge that that was funny! As far as the slider/dakota, I'm not convinced I want to know. I'm really afraid of being disappointed by both. I'm ready for the 9650 to come out to upgrade my work phone, but I very well may be bouncing to an android phone for my personal mobile this summer. It's really not a big deal, RIM just isn't going after a lot of the things that I want in a device nowadays.
Same pic as your tease for "9300". Is it a 9800 or a 9300?
Regardless of what phone it is, why is the damn thing so small?? Just by looking at the photo above, it looks like it's the size of the 9700 which in my opinion is just do damn small, especially for a phone categorized as being in the Bold-series of devices. Anyone that had the original Bold and then tried the 9700 can't deny that the darn thing is just too small.
I really just hope you threw a cover over a 9700 just for the "mystery" effect.
That's a stock CB pic of an 8900 before we ever saw live shots of a storm. The Crack team has used it for any blog about a Berry we've not yet seen.
I'm so relieved to hear that. Although, after ready the article again, that screen size doesn't make me happy at all, it might as well be the same size as the 9700....
Don't forget that the Storms' res were 480x360 so the screen may not be wider than the 89/97/96 series, but could well be longer.
The "veiled BB" photo above is old! The new phone being discussed isn't under the cover! :)
So I looked at the UA Prof and it says max image size is 1600x1200. So I did a quick search and found: "For instance, if your camera can produce an image 1600 X 1200 Megapixels it's a 2 Megapixel camera.". What? That better have a fantastic lens! I'm one who does use my camera as I'm no professional and it's easier than carrying a separate camera. It does a great job for me other than I could use some real zoom on occasion. But really, 2 MP on the Dakota?
I agree with Kevin and Bla1ze, but after seeing what salomondrin had to say, it probably is the Dakota which is very upsetting if it is true considering that screen resolution. Its either the dakota or slider though cause it damn sure ain't the storm3. If ya'll read the "hands on" articles of the storm3......the ones from BBleaks, and the other from that android site.......one says that the storm3's screen is composed of like 16.7 million colors, while the android site says that next to the Droid, the Storm3's screen blew it out the water! A 360x480 screen is not gonna blow a 800x480 screen out the water.
Sal, u da man, but I hope u wrong bout this being the dakota. I remember CX saying the dakota was a game changer, and if the screen is going to be 360x480, then that's already a fail in my eyes. Sure that resolutions is nice on our current BB's but the competiton was doing this resolution like 2 years ago. I'm not saying it needs to be a 800x480 screen but damn......for somethin that's supposed to be a "game changer", I'm expecting a lot.
A part of me really wants and hopes to be wrong here. CX is a way better source here than 99% of us, so I hope he is right here. I'm guiding myself off the facts here tho, which I hope somehow are wrong. :s
In RIM's intranet the slider is still known as the 9700a for both versions, CDMA and GSM, and the Storm 3 is not a GSM first and then a CDMA, its a CDMA phone before anything else.
The 9800 is another phone, which is NOT the slider, unless they have 2 GSM different sliders coming out, and I personally don't think a Storm3. Leaving the Dakota to be it with disappointing specs :( I don't like to judge the phones on paper tho, I like to have them in my hand before making a judgement, because things always change :D Let's keep are fingers crossed, as usual! LOL
CX mentioned on Twitter (4pm) that the 9800=Slider.
In any event, I'm can't wait for more S3 info goodness to leak out or to be revealed @ WES.
lol Sal im glad you were wrong (if this is true) ha ha just playin wit ya man but im thanking jesus that these specs weren't for the dakota. If CX is right, and he normally is, we should have something to look forward to in the Dakota. Hopefully its something truly high end because im not going to keep giving RIM my hard earned money when I can go spend 200 on a android phone like a Droid and get WAY better specs. its a lot of people who have been loyal to RIM long enough and its terrible that we still can't get these better smartphone specs.
If the slider isn't a very decent improvement over the current Blackberries, then I'm off to Android. I love Blackberry, and will still use my Tour, but if nothing decent happens by October, then I'm going over! Lol
October is still pretty far away, so Blackberry still has a pretty decent amount of time.
WCM
Slider oh boy there is no point in making
Those.. Rim needs to innovate in breakthrough tech
Not re work the same old stuff
I want a Storm 3 on Att with a fixed screen!!
I highly doubt there will ever be a Storm series device with a fixed screen. They've spent too much R&D and $ on click screen technology.
With that said, one day there may be a Storm-like device with a fixed screen, and if so, I'd be willing to bet it's screen would be larger. But who knows right? I wonder what they'd call it...
But whatever happened to the Dakota?
In RIM's intranet the Slider still is known as the 9700a, they haven't changed that.
So it must be Dakota. Also the number is that of a GSM device, so unless is the GSM Storm 3 WITH a keyboard, chances are its Dakota.
I tried adding you on BBM. How does that work? Can I still message you if you didt accept? Also, what is your take on the Android phones compared to Blackberry?
WCM
In Mexico :( LOL I need to go back and get it. I left it there like 2 months ago, but I'm going back in 10 days and I'll pick it up. Sorry buddy for the delay :(
I completely love what HTC is coming out with. I'm really looking forward to the Incredible and the Galaxy S by Samsung is going to put every other phone out to shame :D E-mailing still much better on Blackberry and security, but those Android phones are so pretty and so much fun!
That galaxy S and the Evo 4G will put pretty much every phone to shame....including many BB's for the next 1 to 2 years lol. Just another example of why 360x480 screens aren't cutting it no more. The Galaxy S is truly a high end phone. People call the 9700 high end but if u look at every other platform and compare specs, I'd say all BB's are either middle of the road to low end.
To play with the EVO 4G! That thing looks mean! And I have to agree with you, sadly no other platform is like BB's, and security and e-mailing services are the reasons why a lot of us still have to use a blackberry. BBM is a big thing for me too, cuz I have to do business outside of the US and being in contact with my people through BBM is just so easy and cheap. I'm sure eventually something will come out that will work on every platform and will be as popular, but for now I have to stick to my BB as my main device.
Hey Sal how are ya! Any word on the 9650? And when will we be seeing the leather back and a release?!
To be really honest with you I'm not 100% sure about any of those answers. I've heard Mid May thrown around a lot, but haven't seen anything solid yet. The BB game is getting harder and harder to get in since RIM is stopping LEAKS little by little, and I feel like LEAKS are a huge part in our "Crackberry Culture". Without those we can't call this "Crackberry" anymore. Also, I've never made a penny off my blog or anything here and everyone else is trying so hard to become the next Crackberry (which is impossible) and those people are willing to spend a ton of money and extreme measures to keep all the info and sources to themselves, making it very hard for me to not get "cock-blocked" LOL. People forget that I'm not a tech guy, I just like to bring a fun/funny POV to all of this and wanna compete against me... but in no way shape or form I'm competing against them.
Thank you so much! What Blackberry do you own right now? The 9650 will be my first Blackberry and I'm trying to get all the info I can! WES will give us an exact release date right? Crackberry and your blog are truly the best!
@salomondrin - Couldn't agree more about the leaks, that's how you get the buzz and there is nothing wrong with people buzzing about wanting to get your products last time I checked. I haven't been on this site or any BB site since January just because there has been nothing to buzz or get excited about at all for the most part. Aside from the Slider-Berry, what else has there really been to buzz about?
Hey Sal,
Gotta say i agree with you about your comments on Android...i just got the new HTC Desire yesterday from Tmobile here in the UK and what a freaking fast device it is...1ghz processor....i dont think you guys will be getting it....the EVO 4G looks to be your best bet. Ive also got the google Nexus 1 coming this week as well. But ill probably keep the Desire...its just simply an awesome device and puts my 9700 to shame.
Saying that i wont ever ditch BB though...the Desire is an iphone killer until apple release their next iphone but the way HTC is bringing out phones and especially Android phones is crazyyyyy.
About the Blackberry and the security, and I am doing extensive research into this. So far I've found that Android is the security thing should be coming eventually, and the push email is inevitable. I have to look more into this, and I'm giving myself until about October, when my contract can be renewed, to see what RIM has to offer.
I love Blackberry, and have been blindly standing by them through all the mud slinging, but after that Skyfire fiasco, and me having waited more than a freaking year for something that NEVER came, it left me with a bad taste in my mouth.
The HTC EVO from Sprint releases this summer, as has been stated here in this forum as well, and this will give me about three to four months to see what RIM brings to the table, and for the EVO to work out the kinks. (on my third Tour -- thank God three was the charm -- but I'm not jumping into that mess again.
I was in a Sprint store and was playing with some of the Android phones, and man are those things fun and soooo just RIGHT THERE. Not to mention Google pretty much owns all the useful apps out there, so they'll all be done up right on that phone.
It's going to be an exciting Summer, just watching from the sidelines. In the meantime, I'm using the crap out of my Tour. 5.0 on Sprint is VERY good.
WCM
Only because I really want one and am hoping it comes out for TMobile. ;)
I definitely agree with you Kev.
With many touchscreens coming out with a 800x480 resolution, I doubt RIM would make the Storm 3 the same resolution as it is currently... least I hope not...
My guess is the 9800 is the BlackBerry Slider device. We know that particular unit is running OS 6.0 and we knew the 9700a device model number was a temporary # that was bound to change up - it would never go to market as the 9700a. Given the screen resolution listed and the timing, this is the most logical assumption.
i think (hope) a storm3 would get a bump up in screen resolution... if VZW is going to follow up Storm2 with a Storm3, RIM will have to provide a device that has some compelling specs/features if the want to sell any (ie. much higher resolution). so given 360x480, i still vote 9800 to be a slider. guess we'll see!
With the idea that it's the slider as well. Storm 3 deserves more of a bump in specs as you mentioned..and any devices that ended with a or x were just place holder names.
would definitely agree with kevin on this...the 9700a doesn't fit rimms model numbers and for marketing its complete garbage...buy the bold 9700a (sounds like they just make the 9700 into a slider) or buy the bold 9800 whole new number peoples minds work in funny ways marketing is crucial...maybe one of the two models will be built for sprint or verizon and for rimm to internally distinguish the 2 they names one 9700a which once again doesn't make sense since then they should have gone with 9800a or 9850 as they did with the 9630/9650...so much confusion i just want the slider regardless of the model number haha...definitely grateful to crackberry and everyone for the leaks
I crown thee 'the slider'
lmao