Telecom New Zealand is gearing up to launch the BlackBerry smartphone in New Zealand together with associated back end server products.
According to Telecom about 400 Blackberry 8830 World Edition handsets are currently on trial with Gen-i customers but the company will offer the device to the general market early next year. Pricing has yet to be determined.
The BlackBerry 8830 features a full QWERTY keyboard and a trackball, and provides phone, email, messaging, organiser, web browser and multimedia services. The World Edition model is CDMA-enabled but is also capable of roaming on GSM/GPRS networks.
Telecom general manager of business products Martin Butler says the BlackBerry 8830 will enable Telecom customers to travel internationally with mobile voice, SMS, email and data coverage, without having to change their phone, phone numbers or email addresses.
For individuals and smaller businesses, the BlackBerry Internet Service allows users to access up to ten supported corporate and personal email accounts, including most popular ISP email accounts, from a single device.