MORE importantly, M3 is going to be the first network in Bermuda to offer 3G (of the GSM worldwide roaming kind, not the Cellular One EVDO kind) so that the Bold on M3 is going to get high speed data access that you won’t be getting on Digicel.

Here is the ad that M3 is running:

New! BlackBerry Bold

The BlackBerry® Bold™ smartphone is pure innovation. Discover how it can power the passions you pursue.

No compromises. With email, phone, IM and the Internet, it can connect you. With an integrated organizer,
it can help you stay on top of your day. With camera and video recording you can capture and share the moment with just a few clicks. And that’s just the beginning.

Do more – do it faster. The BlackBerry Bold smartphone was designed to take advantage of the speeds available on the HSDPA network*. Together, this 3G high speed network and the 624-MHz processor help support your need to multitask and prioritize with access to your voice and data services at the same time.

Key Features:

• Fast 3G performance
• Multimedia
• GPS and BlackBerry Maps
• Wi-Fi
• Brilliant display

Here is the pricing of the Bold on M3:

BlackBerry Bold
With Minimum Plan $499*
*see in store for details

With Commitment $699
With Activation $999
Regular $1499

WOW, almost $1500 if you just want to buy without a new activation or contract!

Digicel has announced it has added the BlackBerry Bold smartphone to its range of handsets.

The Bold is the first BlackBerry to support tri-band high-speed networks around the world and comes with integrated GPS and Wi-Fi, as well as a set of multimedia capabilities.

“Customers will benefit from a super-fast phone with all the whistles and bells needed to work, play and communicate wherever they are,” a statement from Digicel read.

Here is a quick look at the new Bold on YouTube

Formerly dubbed the ‘Bold’ (yes, like the washing powder) it actually has few surprises following leak , after leak, after leak , after leak but what’s most impressive is the Bold has delivered on all these and more besides…

Probably the biggie of the bunch is this is RIM’s first HSDPA enabled handset and it comes with WiFi and GPS backing it up. A 480 x 320 pixel display is also the densest in the company’s history while it features a style makeover and heavily redesigned software interface courtesy of BlackBerry OS v4.6. The 624MHz CPU at the heart of the Bold is also the fastest RIM has employed to date.

A full page rendering web browser is in there too and for multimedia fans it will play all the usual audio and video codecs while the new ‘BlackBerry Media Sync’ will sync with iTunes for non-DRM infected files. Call life is good as well at up to five hours talk time and up to 13 hours on standby (no doubt with WiFi, Bluetooth et al turned off). At 114 x 66 x 13mm and 133g, the Bold is also no more bulky than an iPhone.

So any negatives? Well there’s no touchscreen tech in there and the 2MP camera is kinda weedy in this day and age. Furthermore the 1GB of internal memory isn’t overly generous in these days of 4GB and 8GB handsets, though it can be bolstered by the ubiquitous microSD slot.

Interestingly, RIM has only described the BlackBerry Bold as being “available this summer” which seems rather vague for such a major release. It is indeed running scared of the 3G iPhone? If so there’s no need to be…

In a related news RIM has also announced the ‘BlackBerry Partners Fund’ in conjunction RBC and Thomson. $150m has been invested towards development of applications and services on the BlackBerry OS platform. Apple announced a similar ‘iFund’ of $100m provided by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers when it unveiled its SDK in March.

On top of this a new partnership with Microsoft will see tighter integration of Windows Live Services (including MSN and Hotmail) on all BlackBerry smartphones. BlackBerry owners lowering themselves to use Hotmail, whoever heard of such a thing?

Link:
Product Page