While the launch of the BlackBerry Storm2 on Verizon is widely expected to take place on October 28th and the Bold 9700 is so close we can almost taste it, owners of current generation BlackBerry smartphones  — the Pearl Flip 8220/8230, Curve 8330/8350i/8900, Bold 9000, Storm 9500/9530 and Tour 9630 — should be pleased to note that RIM is all set for the launch OS 5.0. Specific dates aren’t easily pinned down as it more or less depends on the device one has and the carrier one is with, but ...

It seems like only yesterday that Verizon gave the general public a first taste of the BlackBerry Storm, RIM’s first and currently only touchscreen phone. If you’re a late adopter, we have awesome news for you: Verizon has reduced the price of a brand spankin’ new Storm to just $49.99 on a 2-year contract. Oh, and the latest buy-one-get-one-free deal we scooped is still going on, too. So what’s with all the BlackBerry deals intended to clear store shelves? At this point it seems pretty...

According to iSuppli, the cool cats that live to shed insight on the total dollar value of components in electronic devices, RIM’s BlackBerry Storm has about $203 worth of mediocrity jammed into its bulky frame. Want some specifics? $15 for the SurePress screen, $35 for the Qualcomm MSM7600 and $13 for the 3.2 megapixel shooter. $203 might not sound like too much, but it’s significantly more than the $169 of the Bold or the $174 of the iPhone 3G when you consider how many of these things are being...

We figured that instead of making you comb the internets trying to hunt down the latest information on the BlackBerry Storm, we’d compile a nice recap of sorts. Some of it is new exclusive information, and some of it is just other things that have been floating around. Let’s get into it…We’ve heard that Vodafone UK has absolutely no intention of selling the Storm to BES users until 2009. We’re not exactly clear on this (since the two Vodafone Storms we have were converted to a bu...

Gather around, kids, because you’re in for the most special of treats! In lieu of unboxing our very own BlackBerry Storm, we though we’d leave it to the real pros: the British working class! Enjoy the best BlackBerry Storm unboxing video. Ever.Read

Finally some good news for our friends from in the land of tea, top hats and posh accents: the BlackBerry Storm is out and available for purchase through retail channels. Free on all contract-based tariffs over £35 a month, the Storm is reportedly flying off the shelves of High Street shops. If you were one of the smart people who pre-ordered a Storm then there’s a good chance yours will arrive in time for you to show it off tonight at the clubs to anyone within sight. If you weren’t one of the p...

Well, it looks like the Verizon Storm Challenge went down in Times Square as scheduled yesterday but not everything went according to plan. You remember the deal right? Contestants step into a booth one at a time and a whirlwind of cards is blown around them. Each contestant who can manage to snag at least seven black BlackBerry Storm cards wins a shiny new Storm (once released) and a $50 VZW gift card. According to the accounts of some people at the event, the reps in charge of the booth managed to screw the...

The Blackberry Storm hit the Verizon Wireless staging testman website with pricing and details! It’s coming in about where we expected – $219 with a 2 year contract, $289 with a 1 year contract and whopping $519 for full retail. Remember, this is just the staging site so it’s entirely possible that things will change. In fact, the price does not include any rebates or New Every Two discounts so the final price out the door on the launch date will surely be lower. Sweet! Unfortunately, the pa...

The nation’s soon-to-be largest wireless carrier has inadvertently shed some light on one of the biggest questions on the minds of anxious Storm fans across the country. Thanks to the contest terms and conditions regarding Verizon’s BlackBerry Storm scavenger hunt taking place in New York, it looks like the Approximate Retail Value (ARV) is set at a relatively reasonable $499. To quote the terms exactly:Prizes: Daily Grand Prizes (50): A BlackBerry “Storm” 9500 Smartphone and a $50 Ver...

If there’s one thing we can say about the Storm pricing Vodafone announced earlier today, it’s that the company definitely provides a nice wide range of options for customers with varied budgets. Don’t expect the same options stateside people, it’s just not our style. Our friends across the pond who pre-order the device online will be happy to know that said orders will be fulfilled on or around November 11. Woo! So let’s talk pricing:£300 (US $495): 12-month contract, starting ...

With the Storm coming out soon, Blackberry is throwing a little shindig in Los Angeles later this evening with Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age providing the entertainment! A few who were in the know sent text messages to a specific number to try to win tickets to the show. The following morning, the winners were sent text messages with instructions on how to get into the show. Guess who’s going to be there? That’s right, the BGR team will be putting up pictures and giving you updates live...

We’ve known for a while that it was coming, but nothing says it’s going to be here soon like, well, the words “Coming soon.” This ad has just appeared on the Wall Street Journal as well as other newspapers this morning. Other carriers (Vodafone) have made their official announcements for Blackberry’s first-ever touch screen and it’s been rearing its head on VZW’s site, but nothing says “official” like a full page ad on one of the most widely read publicati...

According to the Times Online, Vodafone will be giving away the BlackBerry Storm for free to all users who sign an 18-month contract. The catch? Your monthly tariff has to be £35. The Times also bragged revealed that they were granted a little one-on-one time with the Storm and found it be be a bit larger and heavier than it’s competition, but overall felt the Storm to be “sleek and stylish” as well as “easy to hold and use.” While discussing the competition, RIM’s co-CEO ...

After all of the cool Storm promo material we saw yesterday, Vodafone flicked the live switch on their “interactive” Storm website, allowing anyone who cares to read and see way less than what they already know about the soon to be announced phone – that is unless you aren’t a dork who regularly reads this website, in which case all of this new and exciting to you. The website runs over the main features of the phone in a very irritating way and has the feel of pathetically desperate p...