Okay Geek Farm
New BlackBerries leaked, BBM fans rejoice in fanfare
Daniel Carey
Research in Motion has always stuck to their own thing, updating their devices based on how well previous models sold. If not, why else would we see several hundred reiterations of the Bold and Curve? This time those crazy Canadians are at it again, with three recently leaked devices: The Dakota, the Apollo, and the BlackBerry Torch 2.
BlackBerry Dakota:
Codenamed the Dakota, RIM’s newest member in the Bold family takes what most believed to be the best BlackBerry available and brings it a much needed update. Currently the Dakota comes packing Quad-band GSM / GPRS / EDGE, Tri-band UMTS, a 5-megapixel camera with HD video recording, flash and image stabilisation. Other specifications include 4GB of built in storage, 768MB of RAM, 2.8-inch VGA 640 x 480 capacitive touchscreen, b, g, n WiFi, 3G Mobile Hotspot functionality, MicroUSB, Bluetooth, NFC, a Magnetometer, an Accelerometer, and BlackBerry OS 6.1.
It’s nice to finally see an update that matches some of the competition, but until BlackBerry fans actually see how this thing functions it’s nothing more than a pipe dream. Although with that said, it is almost definitely a dream worth having. Sure, it may not match some of the superphones on the market today, but for a BlackBerry we’re thinking this thing is spec’ed pretty reasonably.
BlackBerry Torch 2:
The next handset that’s been leaked just so happens to be RIM’s follow up device to the original Torch. Yep, we’re talking about a BlackBerry Torch 2. Internally, RIM’s second gen slider has a 1.2GHz CPU, Quad-band GSM / GPRS / EDGE, Tri-band HSPA at 14.4Mbps, 3.2-inch VGA 640 x 480 capacitive display, 8GB in built memory, 512MB RAM, Bluetooth 2.1, GPS, NFC, a 5-megapixel camera with flash, Magnetometer, Accelerometer, 1300mAh battery, and BlackBerry OS 6.1. — Much like the Dakota, it’s nice to see a newly updated model of RIM’s slider, even if most will feel this should’ve been the original Torch.
BlackBerry Apollo:
By now you’re all hopefully floating in a sea of BlackBerry euphoria, but that’s okay because RIM’s final handset will end up being a life jacket thrown in for good measure. Codenamed the Apollo, BlackBerry’s Curve family at long last recieves an update, not to mention concludes the list of leaked handsets. Internally the Apollo’s coming equipped with Quad-band GSM / GPRS / EDGE, Tri-band UMTS / HSPA at 7.2Mbps, Bluetooth 2.1, WiFi (b,g,n), GPS, NFC, 512MB of eMMC, 512MB of RAM, a 5-megapixel camera with flash, a HVGA display at 480 x 360, a 1050mAh battery, a Travor MG-1 800MHz CPU, and last but not least BlackBerry OS 6.1.
In retrospect, BlackBerry’s latest Curve may not be as well spec’ed as some other phones on the market (or even any of the other leaked phones mentioned above), but for the mid-low end range of RIM’s lineup we think it’s reasonably equipped to do the job it’s intended to do; a la run BBM, SMSing, and don’t forget, email.
Do any of RIM’s yet to be announced BlackBerry’s tickle your fancy? We’d love to hear from you, so how about sounding off in comments?
Jason Tsay contributed to this report.
