BlackBerry Curve 8330 to Land at Verizon

By Geoff Duncan March 31, 2008

BlackBerry Curve 8330 to Land at Verizon

Verizon Wireless has announced it will be offering the BlackBerry Curve 8330 smartphone beginning in May. The handset is RIM’s smallest and lightest smartphone with a full QWERTY keypad, and is aimed at people who need to manage their professional “responsibilities” without giving up their personal communications and mobile entertainment options.

The BlackBerry Curve 8330 sports a 320 by 240 LCD display, a two megapixel camera, an integrated trackball interface, stereo Bluetooth, a microSD/SDHC media card slot for loading and saving media, and comes in a silver-and-chrome body that at least won’t put off the fashionistas in the world. Of course, the Curve 8330 taps into Verizon’s EV-DO features (including VZ Navigation, Verizon’s GPS-driven turn-by-turn navigation service), along with email, Web browsing, and a built-in Facebook social networking application. Contrary to earlier rumors, the 8330 does not sport integrated Wi-Fi, so the unit won’t latch on to nearby open hotspots for improved connectivity and Internet access.

The BlackBerry Curve 8330 will be available in May for $269.99 with a two-year service contract—and that price is after a $50 mail-in rebate. Additional purchase credits are available with qualifying voice and data plans; the BlackBerry email and Web service is another $29.99 a month for a data-only plan, with a $34.99/month option for unlimited data access.

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…

Mobile

Classic BlackBerries are finally losing suppport as company shuts down services

BlackBerry Key2. Credits: BlackBerry official.

After kickstarting the smartphone era, BlackBerry's classic devices and services are finally shutting down. No, not the Android-powered modern BlackBerries such as the KeyOne, Key2, and Key2 LE, but anything that ran a BlackBerry-branded operating system. Whether this is a classic QWERTY keyboard powered by BlackBerry 7, or the iPhone-inspired BlackBerry 10, or even the forgotten BlackBerry PlayBook OS -- it's all shutting down this month.
"As another milestone in the BlackBerry journey, we will be taking steps to decommission the legacy services for BlackBerry 7.1 OS and earlier, BlackBerry 10 software, BlackBerry PlayBook OS 2.1, and earlier versions, with an end of life or termination date of January 4, 2022," the company announced. "As of this date, devices running these legacy services and software through either carrier or Wi-Fi connections will no longer reliably function, including for data, phone calls, SMS, and 911 functionality. We have chosen to extend our service until then as an expression of thanks to our loyal partners and customers."
BlackBerry bids farewell to its longtime customers. Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends
It's the end of an era for what was once a distinguished product that defined the market a decade ago. Even predating iMessage, the BlackBerry instant messaging service -- BBM -- was a great selling point for the product line. As iOS, Android, and WhatsApp began to dominate, BlackBerry devices began to fall by the wayside.
The company tried to rejuvenate its smartphone business by launching its own touchscreen phones and later its own operating system in 2013, but had little success. Unable to keep up,ity stopped the creation of smartphones in 2016 and licensed services to TCL Ltd. between 2016 to 2020. BlackBerry promised to launch a smartphone by the end of 2021 in partnership with OnwardMobility, but that hasn't panned out.
The company has now shifted its focus to selling software. It briefly had a nostalgia-fueled increase in its share price this year, which later nearly returned to its original price. While the market has been saturated with multiple companies claiming a stake in the smartphone pie, hopefully, BlackBerry manages to return to some form of relevance with its current partnership.

Deals

The best Verizon Black Friday deals you can shop today

iphone 12 image

Whether you or a loved on is in dire need of a new smartphone, or are you shopping around for some stocking stuffers for a techie you know, these Verizon Black Friday deals have some of the best bargains we've seen during the early holiday shopping season so far. Verizon may be best-known as the second-largest network service provider in the U.S., but the carrier's online store also offers some great bargains on everything from flagship phones to mobile accessories like earbuds and smartwatches. We've rounded up the five best Verizon Black Friday deals right here so you can dive right in.
Verizon Black Friday deals: Best offers today

Fitbit Charge 5 -- $130, was $180
Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro -- $150, was $200
Apple iPhone 12 Mini -- From $0/month with Unlimited plan, was $600
Apple iPhone 12 -- Buy one, get one free with Unlimited plan
Google Pixel 6 -- Buy one, get one free with Unlimited plan

Mobile

BlackBerry rises from the grave: New 5G phone with a keyboard coming in 2021

BlackBerry Key2. Credits: BlackBerry official.

BlackBerry is the smartphone brand that steadfastly refuses to die. The presumed-dead name has been resurrected once again, this time by a new company called OnwardMobility. It will work with manufacturer FIH Mobile to create and sell a 5G BlackBerry Android phone with a physical keyboard, ready for a potential release in the U.S. and Europe during the first half of 2021.

You read that right: A new BlackBerry phone with a physical keyboard and 5G, running Google’s Android software, is coming next year. TCL Communications was the last company to produce BlackBerry smartphones. It did so under license from BlackBerry Ltd., which continues to provide mobile security services, but isn’t in the hardware business anymore. TCL let its license lapse in February 2020 when modern, Android-based BlackBerry phones became a thing of the past. Until now.