Officially announced by Research In Motion (see press release) on Oct. 27th that it would be rolling out worldwide in the month of November, the BlackBerry Bold 9780 is beginning to hit carriers around the world. My local Rogers store go them in stock today, so I rushed out to grab one and immediately put it down on the good 'ole green CrackBerry review table for a closer look. You can check out the video above for the ritual unboxing as well as some quick hardware comparisons to other BlackBerry device models and a look at BlackBerry 6.

As a one year refresh device compared to the BlackBerry Bold 9700, the BlackBerry 9780 isn't *that* much different. Visually, the black color version is more blacked-out around the edges. Inside, the memory is doubled up to 512MB of flash memory and the camera moves up from 3.2 to 5 megapixels. The chipset is updated to the same that is used in the Torch and Pearl 3G, which means it gets Wi-Fi N and has slightly better video recording resolution than the 9700. Last but not least, the Bold 9780 ships with BlackBerry 6 preloaded. 

So while it may not be all that different from the BlackBerry Bold 9700, the 9700 was and still is a pretty awesome device and the 9780 simply improves upon.  Some initial thoughts:

  • Look/Feel - I like the dark look, and like the Bold 9700 it's a great feeling phone in hand.
  • Performance - It's FAST. BlackBerry 6 feels pretty darn snappy on the 9780. It's the fastest BB6 experience I've felt to date. From scrolling through the OS to snapping photos, it's quick.
  • Battery Life - I haven't tested it yet obviously, but I'm assuming it's going to rock :)
I think I called the BlackBerry Bold 9700 the "pinnacle of the traditional" BlackBerry experience, so really, I guess the BlackBerry Bold 9780 is the "NEW Pinnacle of the traditional BlackBerry experience." I'd really like to RIM add a touchscreen to this form factor and somehow make the screen just a little bit bigger, but all in all if you're a heavy communicator and get stuff done quick kind of person, the BlackBerry Bold 9780 is likely the BlackBerry for you. Stay tuned for the full the review!