Mike Lazaridis is now the Vice Chairman of RIM’s Board and Chairman of the Board’s new Innovation Committee while Jim Balsillie will remain as board member. Barbara Stymiest a member of RIM’s Board since 2007, has been named the independent Board Chairman.

Prior to joining RIM in 2007, Thorsten held several positions in the wireless arena including the Chief Technology Officer of Siemens’ Communications Division and several general management positions in Hardware and Software businesses.

Thorsten holds a master’s degree in Science and Physics from the University of Hannover in Germany. Thorsten also serves as a member of the Board of Directors for the Canadian German Chamber of Industry and Commerce Inc.

[Press Release]- RIM

List of the BlackBerry smartphones that will receive the OS 7.1 update:

• BlackBerry Bold- 9900/9930
• BlackBerry Torch- 9850/9860/9810
• BlackBerry Curve- 9350/9360/9370

The new update comes with the following improvements:

• WiFi hotspot functionality- allows up to five WiFi-tethered devices
• Improved Universal Search- an auto-suggest feature that intelligently filters Bing search results to offer users a variety of relevant Web sites based on their search terms
• WiFi Calls- supports carrier implemented Wi-Fi calling services (UMA/GAN where available), allowing users to make Wi-Fi calls from their BlackBerry smartphone that don’t eat into their airtime minutes.
• BlackBerry Tag- an NFC tool used to pair up accessories, swap data(such as doc & pictures) and add new contacts, BBM invitations
• FM Radio for BlackBerry Curve 9360 and 9380 smartphone

Applications such as BlackBerry Messenger 6.1, BlackBerry Traffic, BlackBerry Maps and BlackBerry Travel are also updated.

If you receive the message that no updates are available after clicking on the Check for updates button, you may still be able to find software for your smartphone by visiting the software download site for your Telco:

• Maxis BlackBerry OS update
• Celcom BlackBerry OS update
• DiGi BlackBerry OS update

P.s: The OS7.1 is yet to be available at the download site at the point of writing.

The Argentinian Government made a surprising decision to ban the import and sales of foreign-made smartphones, especially the Apple iPhone and BlackBerry smartphones, among others.

Somehow, the ban does not affect Nokia, Samsung, LG and Motorola as they have already built plants in Argentina. The Government says that the ban is temporarily and will be removed once the economy improves and becomes stable.

Apple and RIM can avoid the ban by building a factory in the country. Rumours points out that RIM is already looking for a partner but Apple has been quiet.

Although the Argentinian Government have taken these anti-crisis policy due to economic reasons, it seems a bit too radical to completely ban the sales of some of the most popular devices in the world.

[Source]- Phonearena

The BlackBerry subscriber base now stands at 75 million and according to RIM it has shipped 14.1 million BlackBerry smartphones and 150,000 PlayBook tablets during the quarter.

As for Q4(ending March 3, 2012), RIM is expects to ship between 11 million and 12 million BlackBerry smartphones.

Shares of RIM fell to the lowest level in almost eight years after saying that its new BlackBerry 10 operating system won’t be out until the “latter part” of 2012.

“The BlackBerry 10 phones were delayed because the company wanted to deliver devices with better performance and battery life,” said Mike Lazaridis, the RIM CEO. The chipsets that will allow those capabilities won’t be available until mid-2012. “We ask for your patience and confidence,” Lazaridis said.

The stock has dropped 77 percent this year.

[View]- RIM’s Q3 Report

Sales of the PlayBook exceeded 150,000 in the third quarter, down from about 500,000 in the first quarter and 250,000 in the second quarter. RIM claims it has a high level of BlackBerry PlayBook inventory and noted that its promotional pricing has helped sales.

The BlackBerry Playbook went on sale sometime April this year for $499 for the 16GB model. However promotions from various retailers such as in the US and Canada has put the price below $199(RM622). Currently, the 16Gb PlayBook sells for about RM1,133 in Malaysia.

“RIM is committed to the BlackBerry PlayBook and believes the tablet market is still in its infancy. Although a number of factors have led to the need for an inventory provision in the third quarter, we believe the PlayBook, which will be further enhanced with the upcoming PlayBook OS 2.0 software, is a compelling tablet for consumers that also offers unique security and manageability features for the enterprise,” said Mike Lazaridis, Co-CEO at Research In Motion.

RIM also said it is taking a $50 million charge for its near worldwide three-day network outage in October and is currently offering customers free apps.

While RIM is still in the process of finalizing its third quarter financial results, the company said it shipped approximately 14.1 million BlackBerry smartphones in the third quarter ended November 26, 2011 which was in line with previous guidance of between 13.5-14.5 million.

[Source]- RIM

Happening from 7th to 8th December 2011 at the Suntec International Convention Centre,  Singapore, the BlackBerry Developer Conference is the showcase for the latest innovations and breakthroughs with the BlackBerry Development Platform.

Here’s your chance to win full conference passes worth US$250.00 and a 16GB BlackBerry PlayBook*. All you have to do is:

Send BlackBerry Malaysia your idea via email of a BlackBerry app which you think would be awesome! It’s that simple. In the email, include the following details:

Subject: My BlackBerry App Idea
Full name:
Age:
Permanent address:
Contact number:
Your app idea (in less than 200 words):
Send to:tempus.malaysia@gmail.com
(Each giveaway participant is eligible to win only one pass)

There are 9 (nine) passes up for grabs, so hurry! Giveaway starts 25 November 2011 and ends on 1 December 2011. Winners will be contacted by Tempus Communications by 2 December 2011. Open to residents of Malaysia only.

Visit the BlackBerry DevCon Asia website for more info on the conference: http://www.blackberrydevcon.com/asia

*Complimentary BlackBerry PlayBook unit can only be collected by the winner at the conference venue. No representative is allowed to collect on behalf.
**Prize(s) does not include the cost of transportation / flight to Singapore, accommodations and any other forms
of expense(s). These are to be borne by the winner(s).
***Judges’ decision is final and no correspondence will be entertained.

[(L-R) BlackBerry Curve 9380 & BlackBerry Bold 9790]

The BlackBerry Bold 9790 runs BlackBerry 7 OS, along with a 1GHz processor. It has 768MB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage & supports micro SD card up to 32GB. The touchscreen is 2.45″ capacitive display with 246 dpi resolution. Full specifications here.

The BlackBerry Curve 9380 has a 3.2″ TFT capacitive touchscreen. It is powered by a 806Mhz processor with 512MB RAM and 512MB internal memory expandable via the microSD slot. It runs BlackBerry OS 7.0 featuring Wi-Fi, GPS, 3G with HSPA and NFC capabilities. Details here.

In statement, BlackBerry Malaysia said “Pricing for both models will be announced via our Carrier Partners and will be shared very soon. Pre-order activities commence today. ”

Mobile Operators such as Maxis, Celcom, DiGi and U Mobile are expected to offer the BlackBerry Bold 9790 & BlackBerry Curve 9380 in Malaysia. More details as it becomes available.
______________________________________________________________

[Update 1, 4.40pm]: Malaysia Retail Price(RRP)- BlackBerry Bold 9790(RM1488) & BlackBerry Curve 9380(RM1166).

The BlackBerry Bold 9790 runs BlackBerry 7 OS, along with a 1GHz processor. It has 768MB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage & supports micro SD card up to 32GB. The touchscreen is 2.45″ capacitive display with 246 dpi resolution. Full specifications here.

RIM Indonesia also opened the first BlackBerry store in the country, at Mall Kelapa Gading 3 after too much pressure from the Indonesian Government. The Indonesian Government earlier was upset that RIM has chosen Malaysia to manufacture its BlackBerry smartphone.

Last year, RIM was forced by the Indonesian Government to set up office and at least 40 service centers in the country. The Government also demanded that the Blackberry device maker to build a data center locally to deal with pornographic content and allow access to RIM’s encrypted network.

The BlackBerry Bold 9790 is expected to be available in Malaysia this year.

[Source]- Pictures taken from BlackBerry Indonesia Facebook

It is the first Curve to come with a touchscreen and the BlackBerry Curve 9380 has 3.2″ TFT capacitive screen, with HVGA+ resolution. There’s also the optical trackpad and the device has a 5MP camera with auto focus and flash.

Inside, the BlackBerry Curve 9380 is powered by a 806Mhz processor with 512MB RAM and 512MB internal memory expandable via the microSD slot. It runs BlackBerry OS 7.0 featuring Wi-Fi, GPS, 3G with HSPA and NFC capabilities.

Just like the Bold 9790, RIM says that the BlackBerry Curve 9380 is also expected to hit the shelves in the next couple of weeks. No pricing has been revealed yet. We will update more once it is announced in Malaysia.

The BlackBerry Bold 9790 runs BlackBerry 7 OS, along with a 1GHz processor. It has 768MB of RAM and 8GB of internal storage & supports micro SD card up to 32GB. The touchscreen is 2.45″ capacitive display with 246 dpi resolution.

Full specifications and more pictures below:

• 110 x 2.36 x 11.4 mm, approximately 107g
• 2.45″ capacitive touch screen display – VGA (640×480), 246 dpi resolution
• QWERTY keyboard, optical trackpad
• BlackBerry 7 OS
• 1GHz MG1 Marvel Tavor
• 768 MB RAM, 8 GB eMMC, plus microSD slot supporting up to 32 GB cards
• 5.0 MP camera, supports VGA video recording, Continuous auto focus
• Accelerometer/Magnetometer     Proximity Sensor, Ambiant light sensor
• Built-in GPS / aGPS
• Bluetooth 2.1+EDR support
• Wi-Fi: Supports UMA 802.11 a / ??b / g / n
• UMTS: 2100/1700/900 MHz 2100/1900/850/800 MHz
• GSM / GPRS / EDGE: 850/900/1800/1900 MHz
• HSUPA: 5.76 Mbps, HSDPA: 7.2 Mbps
• 1230 mAh removable, rechargeable battery

RIM did not reveal the date of availability or pricing however the BlackBerry maker said that the BlackBerry Bold 9790 will be available in “coming weeks”. We will update more once Maxis, DiGi, Celcom or Brightstar make available the BlackBerry Bold 9790 in Malaysia.