It's official: BlackBerry Bold hits AT&T on November 4 for $299.99
By Chris Ziegler 
posted Oct 22nd 2008 11:00AM
posted Oct 22nd 2008 11:00AM
[Thanks, Joe]
Update: And the press release just slipped out, too -- $299.99 on a two-year contract. Yikes!
about damn time :)
Price is 299 per marketwatch website news
Rogers in Canada is setting at 299 on a 3-year. So 299 for ATT is fair, but may drop lower to compete w/ iphone
In the UAE we have the Bold for about $60 per month for the device and data usage with a 2-year contract; in other words, the Bold is for "free" with the contract. Also available by the two tele operators, Etisalat and Du. The bad part is that it costs about $700 for the Bold without any contract, but who is crazy to buy it without a data plan!
300 bucks for a phone on a two-year contract with AT&T? You're better off flying to Chile or any of the other places where this has been on the market forever, you might save some money
/sarcasm
How much does a plane ticket cost from USA to Chile? Over $299? Ever hear of math?
The prohibitively expensive contract price is what scared me away from the iPhone 3G/AT&T 2-year deal, too. They must be able to get people to pay for it, but there are so many options I'm surprised AT&T can get away w/ it.
@ Kris
Ever hear of closing a sarcasm tag?
I can't imagine anyone's online-sarcasm detector could simply breeze over someone ACTUALLY typing /sarcasm.
Buuuut then ya did.
So will Verizon follow suit with a Storm release date?
I hear November 9th for the storm: www.stormrundown.com
The guy Verizon at best buy said the 16th last night. I'm not sure how much weight that holds though
We at BB haven't heard anything about the storm yet, much less BB's date for getting it.
$299 with 2 years contact eh?
sounds like a much better deal than Rogers here.
ugh.
the fuze is supposed to come out on the 4th it better still happen and not be pushed back
I am totally in agreement with you. I have been a BB user for almost the last 2 years and I love it. But I'm just really digging on HTC's phones!
People are balking at $299 and they wonder why phones like the Touch HD dont come to the US? Face it, its being cheap that has deprived the US of top tier phones and judging by this report that is likely to continue for a long time to come. Stop moaning and accept the fact that US consumers are NOT willing to pay for the best phones.
Seems to me that Apple sold quite a few iPhones @ $500/$600.
We're not balking at the price, just at what you get for it. I'd pay $300 for a Touch HD 'cause it's hella sexy and meets my needs and better.
timbemo, theefman said "best phones" and not the iPhone.
Sadd: Ha Ha! So true.
No one really bought it until the cheap asses could at $199 or $299 and even then they think that is some premium price.
$299? WTF what are they smoking.
Crackberry of course.
I'll be the 1st one to point out the many problems which a regular Joe the plumber might run in when getting this:
a) Date might change (for the 1000th time)
b) Activation issues
c) 3g connectivity problems.
I'd rather go for a phone that offers a lot without much hype.
What activation issues? BlackBerrys do not have a proprietary activation process.
I agree what activation issues would their be? My last BB I just popped in my sim card and I was done. I imagine this will be roughly the same thing.
I also doubt there will be 3g connectivity issues, at least nothing worse than what we already see with the iPhone.
If Joe the Plumber lived in the Netherlands, than he allready know:
a) no date problem...available for several networks
b) no activation issues
c) crisp 3g connectivity
Everybody dance now!!!
Everybody. Dance. Now!!!!! - Gob Bluth
Classic episode! Especially when Lucille went driving while high on marijuana!
$299 doesn't seem so terrible to me. If this is a "must have" phone for people who are heavy business users, then $299 (compared to the iPhone's $299 for more of the consumer segment) is a justifiable amount. I'm looking forward to the Storm and won't balk at a $299 price point for it either.
Shhhhhhhhhhh!!!
I'm waiting for the Storm too and I don't want them to think we are ok with $299. I want it to swing more towards the $199 price point but honestly [Whisper] I would pay $299 for it too. [/Whisper]
~ Slim ~
Shhhhhhhhhhh....
[Whisper/sings] just wait till you see my storm, wait till you see my storm [/Whisper/Sings]
@Slliim,
It (Storm's Price) better be < $200, coz then at least I'm not going for it. With verizon's 'expensive' data plan, no WiFi, and what not (they say some features might be locked), ~$300, I don't see a point.
@arke
what high priced vzw plans?
plus its rev.a evdo, so no need for wifi
and this phone was designed for vzw/voda. thus it wouldn't be locking things
Why are you guys complaining about $299 on a 2 year?
If you've also been complaining that Canada and other countries already have this phone. This is the price we've been having to pay:
https://www.rogers.com/web/Rogers.portal?_nfpb=true&_windowLabel=Wireless_BuyFlow_Portlet_Definition&Wireless_BuyFlow_Portlet_Definition_actionOverride=%2Fportlets%2Fconsumer%2Fwireless%2FphoneBuyflow%2FshowPage_ForPhone&Wireless_BuyFlow_Portlet_DefinitionproductId_Detailed=9000R&_pageLabel=WRLS_BuyFlow
and that is on a 3 year...
so really, you guys have it good.
I just checked and you can't even put it on a 2 year, 1 year or monthly contract.. its either $299 for a 3 year or you buy the whole phone for $599.
Just an example of how Canada is getting shafted when it comes to cellphone companies.
I dont like the "2 year contract" part... How much would it cost contract-free..?
the guy above you just said its 600 without a contract
im just surprised theyre charging the same as HTC for the fuze which is a much better phone in my opinion
@ Brian
That is $600 here in Canada. I'd be expecting something similar in the states though.
keep in mind that CAD 600 is closer to USD 500 thanks to the recent economic downturn.
@ Brian
The above comment is the Canadian price with Rogers. I am interested in the price in States.
@ John
You are right. xe.com says:
600.00 CAD = 479.978 USD
Around $500? I'm starting to like the Bold! It's got real button too.
Wow. $299? Not highway robbery mind you, but doesn't seem to make sense when an iPhone costs $199.
I realize that most business savvy folk would probably prefer a blackberry over the iPhone (or at least those who want a real keyboard), but I'm not quite sure of AT&T's logic here.
i think the storm is more of competitor for the iphone than the bold is. the bold is for biznass folk where as the iphone is not.
the only problem I forsee is with the economy taking it on the chin will businesses really see buying the bold as a advantage to the bb they currently have. I would wager no and thats why they weren't rolling this out in the summer. thats my theory
i got the bold one month ago in Mexico, $270 us dlls on TELCEL on a 1 year contract... how about that?????.. also.. would totally recommend
ya but you live in mexico....
What plan did you get? because I was told 400 dlls for a plan with 100 min and unlimited data
...and the sales of the Unlocked Nokia E71 goes through the roof.
Its to late for the bold , it might of sold months ago but it just doesn't offer enough features for the cost , add a 5 megapixel or better camera and maybe we have a deal
too bad my iphone 3G could never last half a days use. my bold goes strong for atleast two days with heavy usage for me with my wifi turned on and over 2 MB connection all the time. I had to be careful to use my iphone because around 12 it would be half way dead, i would take the Bold over it anyday. Top notch phone that has one of the best keyboards out there and one helluva screen
What firmware revision is your Bold running? I'm barely getting a day with the backlight set to low.
I think the Bold is a little over hyped. As well as over priced. The Storm is a better fit for a $300 tag. RIM best blackberry is the Curve...no flashy glossiness...it just works! But if you want a flashy over rated "smart phone".... The iphone is a better buy.
Mine is sitting on a table collecting dust.
I would buy the bold at this price if it were an iphone upgrade! But it's just another blackberry with a fast processor and a better screen. Web browsing still sucks! Fuze or iphone 3g are my only options. No cut and paste, cheap chipset on iphone makes this easy. Ladies and gentleman the new winner is the FUZE! (touchPro)
I see no issue paying $299 for the Bold and I would have paid the higher unlocked price if AT&T didn't release soon. If you use a BlackBerry for what it can do then the price is not an issue.
FINALLY!!!! Now maybe i can get some of my service books!!! Sux how RIM does it, i've had this puppy for a couple of months now and no MMS or Internet! :(
My Bold is running the latest rogers firmware and it kicked the orange firmwares ass in reliability for me. i have brightness fully on and do not have to sacrifice one bit of productivity for it. It may not be for everyone but it is a solid device for business users. I dont see the Storm taking over too many enterprises as the device of choice though.
@ konadakine
The browser is actually far better than the curves and is great for surfing the web for random things. I'll tell you one thing though it never crashes on me neither does the phone for that matter. I wouldn't be too proud of the touch pro, unless you want a fat brick like the original verizon V phone. It is not that nice for such a high price right now, but if you do get it then use some of the cooked roms on the web and not the stock one. Its a good looking phone though i can say although the screen is rather small
So an iPhone comes out w/ a 2 year contract for 299.99 @ 16 GB of internal storage. The Bold has the same price and contract requirements without 16 GB and the iPhone is a bad deal? You Engadget folks are the most impossible people to please. I'm not defending the iPhone, I just would like to see some consistency in the arguments placed forth here. I mean if the iPhone had wifi, 300 GB HD,3G, 4G, 5G, 9G, Quad-Band, an HD video recorder, and a recessed phone headphone jack for 400 bucks and 2 year contract, i guarantee everyone here would be complaining about the "recessed headphone." For everyone here who doesnt get sarcasm is you cant put anything and everything into a phone, which is why we have different phones. This is also known as giving the customers a "choice."
any idea when other carriers might getting this phone? I know there is no finite answer, but hwo long would you guys estimate AT & T gets it exclusive?
i have no clue how long they have exclusive rights to the bold, it will probably be for a while. I hear T-Mobile is getting the javelin though which is almost the same as the bold except no 3G, but comes with a 3.2 megapixel camera though. its a nice phone as well
ATT vs. VERIZON
ATT is banking on the iPhone and all of its extra revenue through the data plans. They are insecure about the upcoming BB Storm (essentially another iPhone killer) and in order to make the iPhone more competitive in reference to their current iPhone price, they subsidize less on the BB Bold so that Verizon (who has not yet established a price for the Storm) increase the price on the STORM so that it's not undercut by the BB Bold - and consequently, making the STORM less competitive in reference to price when compared to the iPhone.
The BB Bold on ATT is essentially a sacrifice for the iPhone to screw over Verizon and its customers in reference to price. If this is the case for the ATT business strategy to counter the upcoming devices, then ATT, all I could say to you is shame on you...
Is this price really too much ?. I thought phones priced in this range was average. It's really interesting to see how much the Storm is going to be with a 2 year agreement.
Has anyone heard of the new blackberry coming in spring that will be a lot like Bold, except it will have a touchscreen? I have been waiting for bold to come out for a few months now, since I broke my 8820. I am tempted to wait some more if such an upgrade to bold is just a few months away.
Seriously this is symbolic of how much the US telcom system sucks. First ATT holds this phone hostage for like 6 months while they push Iphones on the market. Then they realize Verizon is going to release an "updated" version in the since that the Storm is a touch screen. So they rush it to market. Seriously if there were software problems to the point the phone could not be released then updated 2 weeks ago they weren't fixed that quickly. Verizon has the habit of disabling phones so they can milk money from people so you don't know what to expect from the storm. Tmobile is handicapped as a foreign owned company so they get the the short end of the stick. And Sprint is inept. So the American consumer is fucked. If they UAE offers this phones data and everything for $60/mon, and Chile had it months ago and Japan and Korea have phones with TVs and everything else in them who is really behind?
$299 w/2 yr is the same price the 8800 launched at originally so I don't see what the big deal is.
Remember when the RAZR launched at $299 w/2 yr?
Prices drop after a few months. It's all a part of the plan.
I just started http://atthell.com after 9 years of hell with AT&T. I can't stand these suckers. I don't have service any more in my house and this means I need to get another service and kiss my iphone and RIm 9000 good buy :(
the blackberry bold.
a 3g phone you can tether without hacking, open and edit MS docs(with docs to go), and while not in 3g coverage att has edge which is faster than the competition... and has wifi... which the storm doesnt. and att will offer insurance on it, if not now, eventually. $300 bucks sounds a whole lot better priced.
also, why is $300 so crazy to spend anyways? ppl would buy an ipod that only played music and videos for that price... ppl would spend that on gas in a month... id buy a bold.
I never faced any problem in Blackberry Bold. Even Blackberry Bold is most awaiting phone model of BB, because it has lots of function and good looking too that is why BB bold and its accessories are in demand. Browse http://www.fommy.co.uk/blackberry-accessories.htm for BB Bold accessories for detail and don’t go on the rumors
It's $429.99 for a plan upgrade. It's 300 with a new activation.
This is great phone...but seriously I work for AT&T Mobility and all of our managers have been testing it for the last 4 months. Ive seen it...i felt..i like. $299.99 is not that bad. Get it.
I forgot about this phone. I moved on though because of the constant delays. I shoulda kept my Love Lockdown... I like it, I just don't "like" like it anymore...
I wanna know how much it is without a contract. Unlock baby!
Guess again - just talked to an ATT rep - looks like late November. Maybe time to go with the Curve or Titanium.