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T-Mobile USA offers free BlackBerry Pearl trackball replacement
If you're Pearl's pearl has lost some of its luster -- and indeed some of its control -- we've heard that T-Mobile USA is stepping in to help sort that out. As of the 15th February, BlackBerry Pearl 8100, 8120, and 8320 owners can apparently pop into a T-Mo shop and have it replaced for $free. The only catch is your device has to have been purchased from T-Mobile -- and, we assume, have troubles. Sadly other BB owners with problems can't get this in-store service -- as they require more than a simple pin for the same service -- but we'd imagine enough noise to customer support could help your cause if you're having trouble. We're liking the trend we've seen of late with carriers offering up these random acts of kindness and do hope we'll continue to see more.
Epson's 2010 PowerLite Home and Pro Cinema projector lineup given US pricing, dates
We already snuck a peak at the European version of Epson's Home Cinema 8500 UB (the EH-TW4400) and Pro Cinema 9500 UB (EH-TW5500) at the big IFA show in Berlin. Now they're US official, and joined by newly anointed PowerLite Home Cinema 8100 and Pro Cinema 9100 models. The new 8100 doubles the reported contrast of the old 6100 (on paper anyway) which should equate to a visible black level improvement for an asking price of just $1,500 after $100 rebate -- very reasonable for a Full HD home theater projector of Epson quality. The 9100 adds support for an anamorphic lens, ISF certification for professional setups, a bundled ceiling mount and spare E-TORL lamp, and a 3-year replacement warranty for a beefier $2,600. Expect the 8100 to hit US retail in October along side the "sub-$4,000" Pro Cinema 9500 UB while the 9100 lands in November with the "sub-$3,000" Home Cinema 8500 UB. Your holiday slide-shows will never be the same. [Via The Art of Home Theater Projectors]Read -- PowerLite Home Cinema 8100 and 8500 UB Read -- PowerLite Pro Cinema 9100 and 9500 UB
Viettel, Alcatel-Lucent and RIM bring BlackBerry solution to Vietnam
It's a good week internationally for BlackBerry lovers. First we hear that South Korea finally has unbridled access and its own Bold to toy with, and now we're hearing a similar story for the people of Vietnam. Viettel (a mobile operator in the country), Alcatel-Lucent and RIM have all joined hands to make it happen, with "it" being the launch of BlackBerry wireless service. Speaking of launch, prospective buyers can look forward to wrapping their palms around the Pearl 8100, BlackBerry 8700 or the Curve 8320 initially, though we wouldn't be surprised to see even more flavors roll out soon. There's no talk of price just yet, but feel free to phone up your nearest Viettel shop and see what's up.[Image courtesy of thugian]
Navigon's 81xx GPS unit lands on FCC's doorstep
Now, we're not certain whether the 81xx actually arrived in a basket wrapped in old linens, but whatever the case, the FCC was kind enough to take Navigon's forthcoming PND in and put it through the necessary paces. After doing a little 2 + 2, we're going ahead and assuming that this unit is the 3D map-lovin' 8110 that we played around with briefly at CeBIT. As you'd expect from an FCC filing, there's no mention of when this thing will be freed for selling here in the US, but we don't expect it to lag behind the 2100 Max for too awfully long.
Pearl 8100, original RAZR on their way out of AT&T stores?
Grab your Kleenex, folks, because we've heard today that a couple of seemingly timeless pillars in AT&T's lineup might be breathing their last few breaths of in-store air. First up, the Pearl 8100 is due for replacement on all the networks that still offer it, with the 8110 and 8120 models taking their place depending on individual carriers' dispositions toward WiFi, and we're hearing that AT&T will be phasing out the older units this month in preparation for an April launch of the GPS-equipped 8110.Next -- and here's a shocker -- rumor has it that AT&T is also starting to close the door on the original Motorola RAZR V3. Not to worry; naturally, you'll still be able to get those great circa-2004 looks by picking up a V3xx, but the old-skool units appear to be on the verge of overstaying their welcome. Frankly, the writing's been on the wall there for a year, if not longer, so we're not sure that this is much more than a formality. We'll keep you updated on this one as soon as we here more.[Thanks, Kal and Matthew]
T-Mobile busts out bunch of Pearl colors
In the event that neither black nor white were to your liking, T-Mobile is now delighted to offer you three more colors of the BlackBerry Pearl from which to choose: blue, "Sunset," and "Pale Gold." The only problem? It's the same old Pearl, not the Pearl 2 everyone's salivating over. Whatever, though, we guess it'll be cool to flash this to your RIM fanboy and fangirl friends for the next few weeks while we wait for the next generation to come around. Get 'em now for the same $150 on contract as the originals.[Via Boy Genius Report]
Red Pearl makes its debut on Rogers
Leave it to Rogers to sneak out another color in the BlackBerry Pearl stable without having an official announcement anywhere in sight. Since May 9, Rogers has been quietly selling the candy apple red 8120 (8100, just kidding) for $249.99 (about $230) on a (gulp!) three year contract. Now, the only question is why would RIM and Rogers release the Pearl in such a lovely shade without a ton of fanfare? Maybe they were still backlogged from other events. [Via Howard Forums]
The Boy Genius Report: N75 delay, red Pearl confirmed!
So, first the good news: a recent market pricing document from AT&T shows that the N75 is still in the cards. Now, the bad: it's anybody's guess when it might finally get around to launching. Said document simply (and ominously) shows "Launch Delay" in the N75's row, indicating that S60 fans could be in for more of a wait to get their US 3G on -- as if they haven't waited long enough already. Let's end this little tid bit on a bright note, though, shall we? There's a red variant of the Pearl in the pipe, which may very well make for RIM's least business-oriented product yet (our apologies if your original black and gray piece is starting to look a little drab now). No word on a launch date there either, but we're guessing -- nay, hoping -- that there are fewer technical hurdles involved with the color changed than with the N75.
Rogers pumps out its own Blackberry Pearl -- in white
Just like T-Mobile USA here in the states, Canada's Rogers Wireless is set to release a white version of the RIM Blackberry Pearl sometime on February 1st (like yesterday). We've loved how the "Pearl" sports its name due to the pearl-like navigation...thingy, but now Rogers can join T-Mobile with a more apt-pearl moniker of being offered in white this time through. It'll set you back $250 in royal-mounted Canadian greenbacks with a 3 year commitment -- to a voice and data plan. Is it really just GPRS as spec'd on Roger's website page? Man, we hope not, for the speed sanity of all those who'll be forking over decent pocket change for this unit. Perhaps Rogers just forgot that "E" in front of the "GPRS," eh? We like to at least live on the EDGE.[Thanks, Ashleigh]
T-Mobile's white Pearl in the flesh
In case you couldn't really wrap your brain around what a white version of the BlackBerry Pearl might look like, we've finally laid our paws on some eye candy that should clear things right up for ya. According to our sources, it's not a flat color, but a pearly white that "shines" -- a little more glitzy than the solid black we're used to seeing on this sucker. Look for the phone to launch this coming Monday for the same price as its darker sibling (we hope), but in the meantime, click through for s'more visuals.[Thanks, The Fish and johnnyFive]
RIM cooking up a white Pearl for T-Mobile?
Wait a tick -- in nature, aren't black pearls more precious than white pearls? And following that logic, shouldn't RIM have released the white Pearl first and manufactured like ten of them for every black one? Seriously, RIM, get with the program; talk to Verizon and LG for an idea of how this punny product name thing works. Anyhoo, an intrepid reader found this microscopic picture (blown up for readability and hardcore blurriness) of a pale Pearl on T-Mobile's support site, which seems like pretty strong evidence of an impending release. We'd say it was the keypad that needed fixing first, not the color, but is there really any doubt RIM's gonna sell a baker's dozen of these anyway?[Thanks, Penn]
Cingular's Pearl launches tomorrow, TeleNav offered
Not only should you be able to stroll into a Cingular store in the next few days and pick up a Blackberry Pearl (ahead of schedule, no less), but now we're finding out there's no way you'll get lost getting back home. Cingular's variant of the Pearl -- a device already launched to much fanfare on T-Mobile -- will be the first carrier-launched device in the US to feature TeleNav Maps, providing users with static maps (that is, no GPS link) and driving directions free of charge. Of course, folks ponying up the cash for an external GPS receiver will also be able to use the dynamic TeleNav navigation services already offered on several other Cingular devices. Other than this Pearl's push-to-talk capability, the spec sheet reads very much like its T-Mobile predecessor -- 260 x 240 display, 1.3 megapixel cam, SureType, crappy keys -- and it can be yours starting tomorrow for $200 on a two-year contract.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
BlackBerry Pearl coming soon on Vodafone
While we still may not have an official answer for our trackball woes, RIM's off to the races planning their next Pearl release -- this time around, Vodafone gets the honors. Styling looks to be identical to its American T-Mobile cousin (save for that little Voda logo down there, of course), and the guts carry over as well, meaning our British friends will be no better off when it comes to 3G data. No word on the exact day these things will materialize on store shelves, but Vodafone is more than happy to take your pre-order now for £127.66 (about $240).[Thanks, Chris H.]
Why the BlackBerry Pearl keys suck
Ever used a Pearl? Well, yes, it's thin, it's sexy, it's much more easy on the eyes than the rest of the BlackBerrys out there. But the keypad -- dear lord! RIM got so wrapped up in that stupid "Pearl" of theirs that they forgot how crucial the typing experience is on a mobile communicator with a QWERTY (or in this case SureType) keyboard. They're smushy, mushy, wobbly, and weak. Know why? Because they're just keys glued to a thin, flexible rubber film beneath. Seriously, we kid you not -- more pictures after the break.
Cingular: we'll rock a Pearl in 2007
Cingular customers, we're afraid you're going to have to wait just a little bit longer to automatically ignore your calls. Though they say they'll still be getting a PTT-enabled version of the Pearl, it won't be coming until early 2007 now instead of the late 2006 we'd hoped for. By the time it comes, they'll hopefully have the ringer-silencing trackball issues worked out, but it sounds like it'll be going up against a strong competitor in the SGH-i607, a sprightly little smartphone that happens to pack 3G (not to mention a full keyboard) in a package every bit as small as the Pearl. Then again, we love a good showdown -- when it comes to smartphones dropping stateside, we say the more, the merrier.[Via Gadget Review]
BlackBerry Pearl won't ring in your pocket
Anyone who's had the good fortune of seeing a Pearl in the flesh knows that it's one extraordinarily good looking phone, particularly by BlackBerry standards. Unfortunately, where we come from, phones that don't ring are called "paperweights" -- which is exactly what the Pearl becomes when the trackball gets nudged. You know, like if it's in your pocket, or your purse, or pretty much anywhere besides a stationary counter top. As it turns out, when the phone rings, the handset immediately silences the ringer with even the slightest movement of the trackball, regardless of whether keylock is enabled. While we do appreciate the Pearl taking the initiative for us and ignoring phone calls so we don't have to, there is an occasional situation where we like to make the decision ourselves, and until RIM issues a fix users simply don't have that option. Strangely, two Engadget editors patiently attempted to explain the issue to a RIM representative this week at CTIA for several minutes without success; we think the first step to RIM issuing a fix would be for the company to understand the problem, so we could be in for a bit of a wait. Maybe the words we were using were too big?
BlackBerry Pearl available on T-Mobile's site
No surprises here. We knew when, we knew where, and we knew how much -- now, T-Mobile, $199 -- but in the event the BlackBerry Pearl has slipped your mind, consider your memory jogged.[Thanks, Max and Zach]
BlackBerry Pearl official
Right, like you needed RIM to tell you about the Pearl at this point. Ok, well, here it goes: RIM officially announced the BlackBerry Pearl tonight for T-Mobile USA launch on... wait for it... September 12th, and on Rogers in Canada in October. The price wasn't disclosed, but c'mon, don't you trust us? (Psst, it's $199 with service agreement.) Oh, here's the final spec list, just in case you weren't paying attention previously: 240 x 260 65k color display 1.3 megapixel camera with flash 64MB flash and microSD Media playback with MP3, AAC, MPEG-4 (h.263) Trackball (i.e. the pearl in Pearl) Bluetooth 2.0 SureType keyboard quad-band GSM / EDGE 4.2 x 2.0 x 0.57 inches (107 x 50 x 14.5mm) 3.1 ounces Click on for some more shots! Like you need 'em![Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
The Boy Genius Report: BlackBerry 8100 user guide and trackball video!
Today's Boy Genius BlackBerry Pearl (8100) leak: the User Guide and a good long look at the trackball that gives the Pearl its name. From the guide it looks like it has built-in support for Push-to-Talk, which Cingular will most likely take advantage of when it releases the Pearl later on the year. The Boy Genius also confirmed to us that the Cingular version will have cosmetically differences from the T-Mobile release. Boy Genius also sent us a video of the Pearl's trackball -- a setting in the phone app enables the trackball to changes colors to a ringtone set and during a phonecall.[Thanks to Jibi for deconstructing the Pearl .xml files]Download - User GuideWatch - Trackball video [MOV]
The Boy Genius Report: Thoughts on the BlackBerry 8100
Field report tidbits from Engadget's mobile insider, the Boy Genius. [Our man the Boy Genius hit us up with a few thoughts on having used the Pearl for a few weeks. Here's a bit about what you can expect. -Ed.]It's pretty apparent that the BlackBerry 8100 is RIM's first real stab at a mass market consumer device, and to be honest, it didn't come out all that bad. But once you get away from the "oh my god there is a camera, mp3, and videoplayer" knee-jerk, it is simply a long overdue update to the 7100 line. Don't get me wrong, I am a BlackBerry fanatic for life. I would get any BlackBerry that RIM releases no matter the features, regardless of whether I have 2 or 10 cellphones and PDAs; you will always catch a BlackBerry on my hip. I just think that for the people RIM is targeting with this device, they won't see results like RIM hopes (at least without a better AIM client, anyway). In fact, I'd wager the only people they will get to transition are die-hard push email fans. The way the Pearl is designed and works, it's much more like a featurephone -- which is a huge improvement -- but people can get plenty of devices that outshine the 8100 in features. Read on for more.
