The BlackBerry PlayBook sales are back once again.  This time Sprint is offering it for only $199.99, but only after Christmas.  The dates scheduled are between December 26th through January 7th.  So if after all the PlayBook sales in various retail channels you didn’t pick one up yet, here’s your millionth chance to.

Source: CrackBerry

Fido in Canada is known to carry BlackBerry smartphones way later after the device launches from the manufacturer.  This time around we’re surprised to see that the company has stepped up their game and launched the BlackBerry Curve 9360.  Ok so it’s a basic lower end BlackBerry smartphone, but is still a great device and carries a feature some other OS 7 devices don’t- NFC.  The BlackBerry Curve 9360 gets OS 7 preloaded, 800MHz, 5MP camera, 480 x 360 screen resolution with 3G and WiFi capability.  Fido is selling the device for only $30 on a 3 year contract.

BlackBerry Curve 9360 from Fido >>

Source: MobileSyrup

Usually AT&T is the difficult carrier to deal with.  It was such a hardship with BlackBerry Bridge on the BlackBerry PlayBook and then NFC being blocked on the all new BlackBerry Bold 9900.  AT&T has tweeted up that they will be offering two free months of BBM Music to its customers- sweet!  The tweet reads that you should check your media folder which should have a link to download BBM Music and get the free two month trial.  Otherwise you can download it from BlackBerry App World.

Thanks j_wizzy for the tip!

Last week CarrierIQ was definitely among one of the bigger trending topics when it comes to the mobile industry.  CarrierIQ was claimed to be existent in all mobile devices where carriers would be able to snoop messages sent received for their customers.  BlackBerry smartphones were accused to have CarrierIQ software, but RIM suggested that they do not install any of that on their smartphones.

TmoNews published a document today showing that CarrierIQ software is installed on the BlackBerry Curve 9360, Bold 9900, and Torch 9810.  But T-Mobile claims it is not snooping on what you’re doing.  This is what’s mentioned in the document:

• Battery performance: If a customer’s device battery appears not to be holding a charge, T-Mobile can determine if the issue is the battery, charger or device
• Dropped calls: If a customer attempts to make a call and the call fails, T-Mobile can determine whether the cause was the handset or the network
• Application failures: If a customer uses an application, preinstalled or downloaded from a third-party marketplace, and the app fails, T-Mobile will be able to troubleshoot that app failure, which may be perceived by the customer to be the device freezing/crashing

Does the info drive you away from T-Mobile or not concern you at all as a customer?

The BlackBerry Bold 9790 had its first launch in Indonesia, leaving the rest of the world hanging for a little bit until other carriers got the opportunity to pick it up and offer to its customers.  Now we’re seeing Virgin Mobile Canada is up for picking up the Bold 9790.  It’s a good sign since we can assume it will be branching off to other carriers as well.  It would have been a shame to see the 9790 go through the same exclusive as the Torch 9800 did in the United States last year with AT&T.  The BlackBerry Bold 9790 gets a 1GHz processor, 3G connectivity, NFC chip built-in, and a 5MP camera.  It’s not the best under the hood but falls somewhere in the middle.  Pricing hasn’t been confirmed yet, but MobileSyrup who got the leaked photo suggests it will be between $450 and $480.

NFC is included in various BlackBerry smartphones, but we still have no actual use for it just yet.   Research In Motion and the carrier Telefonica are currently testing NFC (Near Field Communication) in Spain.  The carrier has been looking into testing NFC and chose the BlackBerry for it due to its high security.  Below is the full press release.

WATERLOO, ONTARIO and MADRID, SPAIN–(Marketwire – Nov. 23, 2011) -

Telefónica Digital and Research In Motion (NASDAQ:RIMM)(TSX:RIM) today announced a pilot program of the Telefónica Wallet for BlackBerry® smartphones.

In collaboration with local banks and retailers, Telefónica will roll out the Telefónica Wallet for BlackBerry to 350 employees at its headquarters in Distrito Telefónica, Spain. Those taking part in the trial will be able to make payments in a simple, easy, safe and convenient way by simply tapping their NFC-enabled BlackBerry smartphone against a reader. Employees that are part of the NFC pilot project will also be able use their BlackBerry smartphone (in lieu of a security card) to gain physical access to the Telefónica headquarters office.

(more…)

The BlackBerry Curve 9380 has made its way to Telus in an official launch yesterday.  Folks in the region can expect to pay $49 on a 3 year, $269 on a 2 year, $319 on a 1 year, and $369 outright with no contract.  The Curve 9380 is the first touchscreen device in the Curve family.  It brings out basic specs, but far better than Curves we’ve seen in the past.  You get 800MHz, 480 x 360 screen resolution, NFC, and a 5MP camera.  Click the link below to check out more on the device at Telus.

BlackBerry Curve 9380 at Telus >>

Bell is expected to pick up the recently announced BlackBerry Bold 9790 on December 2nd. So far we’ve seen nothing but Canadian carriers picking this device up, which seems to be the trend lately anyway.  A quick recap on the specs, the Bold 9790 is touchscreen with full QWERTY keyboard, has a 2.4 inch display, OS 7, 5MP camera with autofocus, NFC, and more.  There’s no word on pricing that Bell will offer for the new device but details will surface soon as we get closer to the launch date.

Source: MobileSyrup

The BlackBerry Bold 9790 and BlackBerry Curve 9380 both were announced yesterday officially by RIM.  It looks like Telus is up to picking up both devices. As far as pricing goes, the Bold 9790 will be $129.99 on a 3 year, $379.99 on a 2 year, and $429.99 on a 1 year.  To buy the device outright with no contract it’s $479.99.  You can check out the Bold 9790 on the Telus website to get a nice 360 of the device and to updated when it’s available.

For the Curve 9380, expect to pay $49.99 on a 3 year, $269.99 on a 2 year, $319.99 on a 1 year, and $369.99 with no contract.

Bold 9790 from Telus >>

Curve 9380 from Telus >>

The BlackBerry Curve 9380 is already heading to carriers, starting with Bell which has internally noted they are launching it on November 28th.  The Curve 9380 is the first all touchscreen device in the Curve family offering lower end specs than what we currently have, sort of.  It gets an 800MHz processor, OS 7, 480 x 360 screen resolution, and NFC capability which devices such as the Torch lack. There’s no pricing details just yet.  RIM officially announced the Curve 9380 yesterday, so it’s just about right to see carriers announce carrying it anytime now.

Source: MobileSyrup