The evolution of the BlackBerry
With the launch this week of the BlackBerry Z10,
Research in Motion (soon to be known as
BlackBerry) launched what it hopes will be the
product to put the one-time smartphone giant
back on the map.
But how did RIM get to the Z10? Today we trace
the evolution of the BlackBerry, from its humble
pager roots, to dominant global player, to one-
time great in need of a turnaround.
By Jeff Jedras
This early model shows RIM’s transition
from pager manufacturer to mobile e-mail
powerhouse, with a pager-like form factor
combined with the must-have QWERTY
keyboard.
In was powered by an Intel 80386
processor and 4MB of flash memory, which
isn’t bad, because back then there was no
Angry Birds.
There were two editions – one for
Exchange email, one for general Internet-
based accounts.
BlackBerry 950
Now this is starting to look familiar. In 2000, the
BlackBerry 957 was a must-have.
It’s not that dissimilar to the QWERTY models of
today in appearance, and the scroll wheel on the
side would be a BlackBerry staple for years, until
the first Curve’s poorly designed trackball.
This model also had a 80386 processor, but
upped the RAM by 1MB and introduced a
rechargeable lithium battery – no more raiding
the remote control.
BlackBerry 957
An early attempt by RIM to jump from e-mail
device to what we would today consider a
smartphone, the BlackBerry 5810 added
phone capability, but with one caveat – there
was no built-in microphone or speaker,
forcing you to fumble for your headset when
the phone rings.
It was also one of the early devices to
introduce SMS messaging to North America –
no headset requires for texting.
BlackBerry 5810
Colour!
In 2005, the BlackBerry 7250’s display was still pretty
basic, but at least it was colourful.
In addition to being able to make phone calls
without a separate headset, it introduced Bluetooth
connectivity for supported peripherals and now
boasted 32MB of flash memory. However its rated
3.3 hours of talk time and eight days of standby time
on a charge disappointed some.
Oh, if they could only see us now.
BlackBerry 7250
The Pearl was an early attempt by RIM
beginning in 2006 to break into the consumer
market.
In addition to colour choice, it was the first
BlackBerry to feature a camera and a media
player, and a much more phone-like form
factor.
The model was discontinued four years later,
having not found much love with either
BlackBerry purists or traditional mobile
consumers.
BlackBerry Pearl 8100
Later in the decade, RIM would have two
primary BlackBerry lines: the budget-friendly
Curve and more powerful Bold.
Launched late in 2009, the BlackBerry Bold 9700
boasted Wi-Fi calling and a browser with HTML
viewing – which may not sound like much now,
but at the time, for BlackBerry users, it was a
nice advance.
Still, weak browsers would remain a BlackBerry
deficiency.
BlackBerry Bold 9700
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