Smartphone maker Research In Motion (RIM) has added another phone to its BlackBerry lineup after announcing the BlackBerry Tour 9630 smartphone.
The Tour is a cross phone between the BlackBerry Curve, marketed towards consumers, and the BlackBerry Bold, which is for people who work in the industry. The phone will be available for Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel, and it will launch later this summer with a $199 price tag after mail-in-rebate and two-year service contract.
The 3G phone has an upgraded screen compared to the Bold and Curve, and is more of a subtle upgrade to the BlackBerry lineup. Furthermore, it's a "world phone," meaning owners can use the phone while traveling as it has the ability to use voice and data services on foreign telephone networks.
The $199 price point is aimed at the Palm Pre smartphone and the latest Apple iPhone, which is available for the same price for new subscribers.
I've been a BlackBerry Curve 8330 smartphone owner for almost one year now, and have been very happy with the phone. The BlackBerry Touch is definitely a phone I'm interested in checking out, though I don't know if I want to extend my contract with Verizon at the moment.
