BlackBerry 10 to launch worldwide on 30 January

The long-awaited launch date for the new BlackBerry 10 operating system and smartphones has been announced – and it is two months earlier than the market expected.

Research In Motion announced today that it will hold its BlackBerry 10 launch event on January 30, 2013. The event will happen simultaneously in multiple countries around the world. This day will mark the official launch of its new platform – BlackBerry 10, as well as the unveiling of the first two BlackBerry 10 smartphones. Details on the smartphones and their availability will be announced at the event.

The market had expected a launch date in late March, due to indications from RIM that it would release the phone and operating system by the end of the first quarter. The January date will boost RIM’s image – and possibly it’s fortunes – with the indication that it is not attempting to push back the launch as far as possible.

‚”In building BlackBerry 10, we set out to create a truly unique mobile computing experience that constantly adapts to your needs. Our team has been working tirelessly to bring our customers innovative features combined with a best in class browser, a rich application ecosystem, and cutting-edge multimedia capabilities. All of this will be integrated into a user experience the BlackBerry Flow that is unlike any smartphone on the market today,‚” said Thorsten Heins, President and CEO of Research In Motion. ‚”Thanks to our strong partnerships with global carriers and a growing ecosystem of developers, we believe our customers will have the best experience possible with BlackBerry 10. We are looking forward to getting BlackBerry 10 in the hands of our customers around the world.‚”

The South African launch is also expected to take place on 30 January. During his visit to South Africa in September, Heins told Gadget editor-in-chief Arthur Goldstuck that this country would be among the first wave of launches, along with Nigeria. (see interview here:http://www.mygadget.co.za/pebble.asp?relid=5168)

He had said in the interview: ‚”South Africa is a priority one market for us, and we will acknowledge that with the launch of BlackBerry 10. There will be three waves in taking it to global markets, and South Africa and Nigeria are in the top range of Wave 1 launches. We will pay tribute to our customers here by delivering BlackBerry 10 in South Africa when it is launched.‚”

BlackBerry 10 will offer a large catalog of the leading applications from across the globe and across all categories, including Games, Productivity, Social, Lifestyle and Leisure, Multimedia and Published Content, as well as applications designed for business and enterprise use.

The BlackBerry 10 platform has recently achieved FIPS 140-2 certification, which means that government agencies will be able to deploy BlackBerry 10 smartphones and BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 as soon as it is available. This marks the first time BlackBerry products have been certified ahead of their launch. In addition, RIM recently announced that BlackBerry 10 smartphones have now entered more than 50 carrier labs with many more entries expected in the coming weeks.

Some key features of the new BlackBerry 10 devices already unveiled recently include:

BlackBerry Flow and BlackBerry Hub

BlackBerry Flow is a new user experience that allows seamless navigation across open applications and the BlackBerry Hub. All messages, notifications, feeds, and calendar events come into the BlackBerry Hub and no matter what the user is doing with the device, with a simple gesture, they can peek into the Hub at any time.

BlackBerry Keyboard

The BlackBerry Keyboard learns how you write and adapts to how you type so you can write faster and more accurately, giving you the kind of legendary typing experience that only BlackBerry can deliver.

BlackBerry Balance

BlackBerry Balance offers the most elegant way to satisfy both customer and corporate needs without compromising on either. With BlackBerry Balance, personal apps and information are kept separate from work data, and the customer can switch from their personal to work profile with a simple gesture. The work profile is fully encrypted and secure, enabling organizations to protect their content and applications, while at the same time letting customers get the most out of their smartphone for their personal use.

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