T-Mobile Sets U.S. Debut of BlackBerry Curve 8900

T-Mobile USA plans it own exclusive BlackBerry with the introduction of the BlackBerry Curve 8900 in February. AT&T already has its own deal with BlackBerry maker Research In Motion to offer the BlackBerry Bold, while Verizon features the BlackBerry Storm as a smartphone.

The new hybrid, quad-band Curve 8900 is the thinnest and lightest QWERTY device of the burgeoning BlackBerry line of smartphones. In addition to the popular keyboard, the device features built-in GPS and support of location-based services, built-in Wi-Fi 802.11b/g supporting voice and data, and support for T-Mobile's unlimited hot spot calling service.

In addition, the device has a 3.2-megapixel camera, a music player and a hot-swappable microSD/SDHC memory card slot with a 256MB card. The new Curve also comes with support for memory cards up to 16GB.

As a quad-band world phone, the BlackBerry Curve 8900 supports international roaming, extending the ability to stay connected while traveling abroad.

RIM claims the 8900's screen is the highest resolution available on a BlackBerry smartphone. The device also comes with a 512MHz next-generation processor, although T-Mobile plans to wed the device to its 2G EDGE network.

Like other high-end BlackBerrys, the Curve 8900 has enhanced Web browsing and access to social networking communities, including Facebook, Flickr and MySpace.

Neither RIM nor T-Mobile has announced U.S. pricing plans for the Curve 8900, but the device, which is already on the market in Canada, sells over the Internet at prices ranging from $500 to $550.