Posted on Friday, May 16 2008 @ 5:26 CEST by Thomas De Maesschalck
FUD Zilla
heard RIM is working on a new BlackBerry with a touchscreen. This phone will be called BlackBerry Thunder and it will compete against the Apple iPhone.
The new touchscreen BlackBerry is known as the BlackBerry Thunder and it will be offered exclusively by Verizon and Vodafone, provided they are able to keep up with the numbers required to maintain their exclusive status for this device. Yes, that is right: here in the U.S. if the BlackBerry Thunder is a hit, you may only be able to get it from Verizon.
As for the features, the Thunder will, of course, have the iPhone-like touchscreen, which is the big draw here. It will not have a slide out keyboard and will only have four actual keys on the phone itself. According to our sources, the Thunder will be available only as a hybrid device, meaning that it will use CDMA and GSM when you travel internationally.
Sources are suggesting that RIM could be ready to push the Thunder out of the nest as soon as next quarter. Some have suggested that the Thunder is ahead of schedule. Verizon will have to meet heavy guidelines as to the sale of the Thunder in order to keep the exclusivity of the Thunder in the U.S. market and that may prove to be a challenge in itself.
