A few days ago the BlackBerry Bold 9930 came up with a Verizon splash screen.  Now we see the BlackBerry Torch 9850 come up with Verizon branding on the back of it.  We already knew it was going to arrive in CDMA flavor, but RIM is lacking an official announcement for it.  There’s not much here other than a comparison between the BlackBerry Torch 9850 and 9860.  It looks like the 9850 will have physical buttons that pop up as we’ve seen in previously leaked images while the 9860 gets capacitive ones like the BlackBerry Storm 2. More images after the jump!

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Sling Golf for the BlackBerry PlayBook is getting a nice update soon.  Firstly, Sling Golf is one of those successful PlayBook games which recruits many into becoming addicted to it.  It’s miniature golf with fictional characters to play as including a monkey.  Here’s what’s coming up in the next update of Sling Golf:

• 3 new courses (Beach, Cemetary, and Fall).
• 2 new characters ( A Lion and a Polar Bear).
• Some animated transitions between the new courses.
• Links to Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
• A “Buy Full version” button on the “Sling Golf Lite” product.

The official BlackBerry instant messaging applications got updated yesterday to version 2.5.84.  As always, there’s no change log for them.  AOL Instant Messenger was left behind in the update as Google Talk, Windows Live Messenger, and Yahoo Messenger got the update only.  Click the links below to download!

• Download Google Talk >>
• Download Windows Live Messenger >>
• Download Yahoo Messenger >>

RIM is now accepting BlackBerry 7 OS applications for the BlackBerry Torch 9810, Torch 98590, and Curve 9360.  The BlackBerry Bold 9900 and 9930 are already getting apps submitted into App World, so now these devices have all been added in the mix.  I still find it funny that RIM hasn’t yet announced any device besides the Bold 9900.  Oh well.  Here’s the letter from BlackBerry App World Marketing mentioning the new devices supported for developers:

Dear BlackBerry App World Vendor,

We are pleased to inform you that BlackBerry App World is now accepting app submissions for additional BlackBerry smartphones. In addition to the BlackBerry 9900 and 9930, you can now submit your BlackBerry 7 application(s) to App World for the 9810, 9850 and 9360.

If you have not already started testing and updating your current applications for the new BlackBerry 7 smartphones, do so right away to ensure your apps are available at launch. To help you with testing, we have made available the following tools and information:

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BlackBerry Travel has officially updated to version 1.1.42.99.  It’s come a long way in both official and beta updates from Beta Zone over the last few months.  BlackBerry Travel is great for those who travel (obviously) and would like an easier way to manage flights, hotels, car rentals, time zones, and more.  Here’s a change log of features added since version 1.0 of BlackBerry Travel:

• BlackBerry 7 Operating System Support
• Support for BlackBerry Pearl and BlackBerry Style
• Rental Car Booking
• World Clock supporting 60,000 cities WW
• Booking in 20 local currencies
• Updated Weather Icons
• Special Deals Search for Hotels
• Improved Hotel Recommendations
• Now available in 70 countries Worldwide

A few days ago Instaphoto launched officially for BlackBerry.  We’ve seen it on the BlackBerry PlayBook already, so it’s nice to see it on the smartphones as well.  Now we have it available in our app store for purchase.  Here are some features of Instaphoto:

• Easy to get started, simply choose a preexisting photo or snap one right away. Camera integration runs directly within app, allowing you to take a photo and start instantly!
• Images save to a custom gallery folder, and are featured when you load the app, or you can opt to view the latest uploads on Twitter from your friends!
• Large preview images allow you to see an effect clearly before making a selection.
• Simple controls with stunning pre-set effects, it’s easy for anyone to use with just a tap of the finger!
• Quick rending, no long loading times for an effect.
• Unique effects creating interesting themes for your photos; periscope, mugshots, HUDs and many more!

I honestly would of just kept quiet if I leaked my own product on my own site by accident.  RIM went ahead and released an official statement on the leak of the Android Player for BlackBerry PlayBook:

“An older version of the Android App Player beta software for the BlackBerry PlayBook was inadvertently posted and has since been removed. We recommend that users refrain from downloading and installing this software since it is outdated and non-functional in many respects. The official beta release of the Android App Player for the BlackBerry PlayBook is on track for release later this summer.”

So a beta version is expected to launch this summer.  That sounds like fun.  How many of you already put in the Android Player and have functioning apps?  RIM of course does not recommend using the leaked on as they say it’s an early version and “outdated.”

Source: NerdBerry

RIM has just acquired JayCut for their expertise in cloud services and video editing.  Based on the post over at Inside BlackBerry on the acquisition, RIM is looking to bring video editing to the BlackBerry PlayBook, and hopefully future BlackBerry smartphones.  JayCut is based out of Sweden and have an online video editor licensed to companies.

There’s not so much said about any cloud services but this could be good stuff as well for BlackBerry.  The JayCut site is currently down so we don’t see anything else on RIM’s acquisition other than the blog post.

The BlackBerry Bold 9790, which was leaked back a few months ago has came up again in a tutorial video.  The BlackBerry Bold 9790 seems to be appealing for those who want a form factor similar to the 9700/9780 now.  The Bold 9900 series is more like the 9000 size, and some of you may not be fond of a BlackBerry in that size.  Check out all three tutorial videos after the jump!

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We just got word from RIM that the BlackBerry PlayBook got FIPS certification (Federal Information Processing Standard) from the National Institute of Standards and Technology.  This is the first tablet to get the certification which is pretty cool for RIM.  They aren’t the first in the tablet department, but when it comes to being government certified they are. You can read more in the press release after the jump.

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