Kickstart - Blackberry clamshell mobile phone spotted

05 May 2008

RIM plan to release consumer friendly handset.

RIM is planning to release a new clamshell mobile phone called Kickstart. Known more for their business approach to mobile phones - witness the Blackberry range of productivity-based handsets with a full keyboard - it has come as a surprise to see the first sighting of a clamshell design under the name of Kickstart.

A consumer oriented model, according to the Boy Genius Report website,  the new RIM clamshell design arrives with a SureType keyboard that looks like it has been designed specifically for clamshell use instead of being shoe-horned from another Blackberry design plus a Blackberry Pearl-type trackball, which you will already either love or hate, to aid navigation and an external LCD screen.

The new Kickstart is reported to include a camera. However, there are no details as to the camera's specifications or associated facilities. No price details have yet been mooted but a observers suggest that the handset will be released towards the year's end.

Click to read the Boy Genius Report website story