Taiwan Mobile and Research In Motion (RIM) announced that the highly anticipated BlackBerry Storm - the first touch-screen BlackBerry smartphone - will be available in Taiwan tomorrow.   The BlackBerry Storm smartphone features the world’s first “clickable” touch-screen and delivers the renowned usability and performance of the BlackBerry solution with powerful communications and multimedia features.

Honoured with the GSMA’s Best Mobile Technology Breakthrough award at Mobile World Congress 2009, the BlackBerry Storm smartphone's unique SurePress touch-screen depresses ever so slightly when the screen is pressed, dramatically enhancing the touch interface for both typing and navigation and giving users an experience they can actually feel. The BlackBerry Storm offers a large and stunning display together with a first class phone and the industry’s leading email and messaging capabilities, as well as many other powerful features including 3G (HSPA) network support, desktop-style web pages, advanced multimedia capabilities, 3.2 megapixel camera and built-in GPS – all designed to give users a fast and intuitive mobile experience.

Taiwan Mobile also announced new monthly plans for BlackBerry Internet Service at NT$390, NT$690 and NT$990, providing customers with flexible and economical choices for service.  The BlackBerry Storm smartphone is available at only NT$8,990 for customers who sign up with a plan at NT$990 for 24 months and Taiwan Mobile’s Myzone voice service plan at NT$968 for 12 months.

“The BlackBerry Storm has been well-received by customers around the world and we are happy to introduce the first BlackBerry touch-screen smartphone to customers in Taiwan,” said Cliff Lai, Chief Operating Officer of Consumer Business Group, Taiwan Mobile. “We see more and more Taiwanese consumers using BlackBerry smartphones now. They like to send and receive email, chat with friends on instant messaging services, listen to MP3 music and watch video on the go; and the BlackBerry Storm with its large, clickable and stunning touch-screen, rich set of multimedia capabilities and easy access to popular IM and social networking sites, is a perfect choice for them.”

“The BlackBerry solution is a communication standard for business customers with its advanced security, reliability, network efficiency and management controls,” said George C. Chou, Chief Operating Officer of Enterprise Business Group, Taiwan Mobile.  “We are glad to launch the BlackBerry Storm today and soon offer the new BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0* software to corporate customers.  BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0 delivers the next-level of enterprise mobility with high availability and enhanced IT management and administration features. We will continue to provide tailor-made mobile solutions to address corporate customers’ needs and to further enhance our leading position in the enterprise market.”

“We are pleased to introduce the BlackBerry Storm together with Taiwan Mobile," said Norm Lo, Vice President, Asia Pacific at Research In Motion.  "The BlackBerry Storm is an innovative touch-screen smatphone that provides a gateway to a wide array of mobile applications, including business, entertainment, travel, IM and social networking.  Together with its rich set of features, chic design and the renowned usability and performance of the BlackBerry solution, the BlackBerry Storm will allow both consumers and business customers to make the most of their time on the go."

Features of the BlackBerry Storm smartphone from Taiwan Mobile include:
- Sleek, stylish design with chromed frame, contoured corners and stainless steel back
- Large (3.25-inch), "clickable" touch-screen with 480 x 360 resolution at 184 ppi, delivering sharp and bright colours
- A powerful media player that can play movies smoothly in full-screen mode, display pictures and slideshows quickly and manage an entire music collection; playlists can be created directly on the handset
- Support for HSPA high-speed networks around the world
- Full HTML browser that works in either portrait or landscape orientation and support for mobile video streaming on sites such as YouTube (m.youtube.com) and Taiwan Mobile’s "catch" portal
- Purpose-built applications for Facebook, Windows Live Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, Google Talk, and Flickr, allowing easy access to these popular IM and social networking services
- 3.2 megapixel camera, with variable zoom, auto focus and a powerful flash that also provides continuous lighting when recording video
- Ability to synchronise with iTunes or Windows Media Player to enjoy music on the move or through a home stereo using the BlackBerry Music Gateway
- A 3.5 mm stereo headset jack, support for the Bluetooth stereo audio profile (A2DP/AVRCP) and dedicated volume controls
- An ambient light sensor that automatically adjusts the backlighting and an accelerometer that allows the BlackBerry Storm to be used in either landscape or portrait mode
- Built-in GPS that supports location-based applications and services, as well as geotagging photos
- 1 GB of onboard memory storage and a microSD/SDHC memory card slot that supports up to 16 GB of additional storage per card. An 8GB microSDHC card comes preinstalled
- Preloaded DataViz Documents to Go allows users to edit Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint files directly on the smartphone
- Support for a wide range of lifestyle and business applications
- Removable and rechargeable 1400 mAhr battery that provides approximately 6 hours of talk time on 3G networks and 15 days of standby time
- Supported on BlackBerry Internet Service and BlackBerry Enterprise Server

Availability
The BlackBerry Storm smartphone is available tomorrow from Taiwan Mobile myfone stores for both corporate and individual customers.  The smartphone supports English input and Traditional Chinese display and is expected to support Chinese BoPoMoFo input in July.

Courtesy: Research In Motion

Related News:
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Cellular South launches BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8230

Related Books:
Mobile And Personal Communication Systems And Services
Mobile Computing: A Book of Readings
Mobile IP: Design Principles And Practices

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Posted by Amrith K.A on 11 June, 2009 3:33:53 PM IST #