A price has popped up for one of the first handsets to arrive running RIM's BB10 operating system. The Z10 will cost £479.95 SIM-free, according to what seems to be a leak from the Carphone Warehouse database, Engadget reports.
The product code BLAZ10WHI matches a previous leak from the high street giant. If correct, it's £30 cheaper than a 16GB SIM-free iPhone 5.
We shouldn't have long to wait to find out if this is correct -- RIM is set to unveil BB10 on Wednesday, at an event in New York. The touchscreen Z10 will be joined by the X10, which will have a keyboard, so should satisfy anyone jonesing for a hit of good old fashioned BlackBerry typing.
The Z10 has a slightly larger screen than the iPhone 5 -- if the leaked specs are anything to go by -- being 4.2 inches across, and with a higher pixel-per-inch count too (355, to the iPhone's 326). It could well be a worthy contender, though how good the device is depends on the operating system, of course.
Inside the Z10 is 2GB of RAM, and 16GB of memory.
BB10 should have "tens of thousands of apps" when it launches, if one RIM exec is to be believed, and they should span more categories than ever. RIM has changed the name of BlackBerry AppWorld to just BlackBerry World, so expect more games, movies and TV shows than ever before. BB10 could also be seen on rival manufacturers' devices, if RIM licenses it as it says it might.
Competition is good for everyone in the world of mobiles, so I hope BB10 can turn around RIM's fortunes. With Apple and Samsung so dominant, it'd be good to see RIM rise again like a Phoenix from the flames. Roll on Wednesday.
Are you looking forward to BB10? What features would you like to see? Let me know in the comments, or on our Facebook page.
Android App 
RSS Feeds 
iPhone App 
Newsletters 
Comments 17
Add your comment
anonymous 27 January, 2013 12:29
No one cares anymore...
Damien2501 27 January, 2013 13:03
If the leak is true, I think RIM has made the same mistake as Nokia: pricing its phones really high SIM free. For exactly £100 less you can get the Galaxy S3 or the Nexus 4. I hope RIM doesnt make its products exclusive to one network or retailer, as Nokia did. RIP RIM.
anonymous 27 January, 2013 13:05
What I've always liked about Blackberry is the level of security they have on their phones. As well as protecting your privacy. These are areas Apple and Google have always failed to compete with Blackberry. As we use our phone more and more for confidential information, Blackberry could be an excellent choice if you don't want your data collected to the level of Google or Apple. I wouldn't rule them out just yet...I would certainly consider them if their os is above par in terms of other os and with Blackberry's security.
anonymous 27 January, 2013 14:31
price is key right now. cant believe the s3 is so cheap compared to the htc x+ 920 etc. i dont want the s3 but price is so important right now i may have no choice, unless bb can do something
leoevs44 27 January, 2013 14:38
Completely agree with Damien2501, couldnt have said it better myself...
anonymous 27 January, 2013 14:42
DANR 27 January, 2013 6:25
Security vulnerabilities have been uncovered BB in the past, and the low number of exploits may be related to the low(ering) popularity of BB, analogous to the lower popularity of Mac OSX.
anonymous 27 January, 2013 16:51
I myself work in the cellular world, we carry every phone on the market. I also have had the pleasure of playing with a BB10. I believe rim has a very good shot at getting back in the market as there new OS is great, makes it a lot easier to navigate and multitask. I believe iOS is already getting to the point of being out dated, Its price is also high on a phone that restricts you on what you are able to do. Samsung is much better in that sense but security is no good and apps like to kill themselves. I've used every phone and believe bb10 will be a hit with people who like to get things done faster,multitask, and live to be on social networling, BB10 integration with social networking is unbeleivable. Now if you want a toy to play games, may not be the phone for you, then you probably wannt a samsung that gives you 70% more free apps then any other OS
Stuart Perchard 27 January, 2013 19:38
big mistake so what would you rather have, this or 2 Nexus 4's :-)
anonymous 27 January, 2013 21:56
@Stuart Perchard I totally agree, its a ridiculous price considering how the market is changing.
Matt Winston. 27 January, 2013 22:51
Switching from a BB to Galaxy S2 (5 months ago) is one of the best decisions I ever made. "Android is buggy" "Samsung is a toy"....Im shocked there are still BB fans on this page, try a real phone:
http://mobiledeals.cnet.co.uk/phones/samsung/galaxy-s-ii/
"The next big thing is already here!"
anonymous 27 January, 2013 22:59
It really will be a surprise if RIM prices the Z10 at that price when rumours where in the US it would start off at $199. Quite frankly RIM is not going to be getting consumers on their side anytime soon at that price. The nexus 4 is only £239 but has so many stock issues its actually laughable. Realistically the S4 is also cheaper at £400 so the Z10 really can not be at that price. RIM can't possible be that stupid. If they its curtains for them. If its cheap people will take a punt on em if its not they will want guarantees. I am looking forward to it though. Its new, different and exciting. It could be the next big thing having shown to beat the iPhone 5 in browsing tests and that was the dev model!
anonymous 28 January, 2013 06:24
You can get the NEXUS 4 and install UBUNTU which isa better OS than BB10 in February
anonymous 28 January, 2013 08:51
I've tried UBUNTU on my nexus 4 and its terrible, as far as I'm concerned its very unstable and the icons are so small you need chicken fingers to press,also when you do manage to press an icon you have to press multiple times for it to open with this stupid little cursor,decided after a few days of sheer frustration to wipe phone and go back to standard jellybean 4.2.1, I much prefer it , the nexus 4 is goog enough on its own it doesn't need over the top OS's.....
anonymous 28 January, 2013 11:26
I thought that Blackberry wanted to re-build market share; not at this price guys. I'd have a Nexus 4 anyday (if I could get one!). I would like to try a Z10 but, as I always buy my phones sim free and unlocked, the sim free price is crucial. If they try this price, I'll wait for the inevitable fire sale
anonymous 29 January, 2013 11:04
@anonymous 27 January, 2013 22:59 - That $199 price is with a 2 year contract in the US. For some reason they always quote the price on a contract over there and subsidisation on a contract in the US/Canada is terrible.
anonymous 30 January, 2013 16:27
Earlier sending a sms was cheaper than calling a person so the mobile user sent a sms. Now the utility has increased manifold with the introduction of internet facility on the mobiles. These are better used as data based application servers rather than voice-based application servers. Prices of mobiles in Pakistan
anonymous 31 January, 2013 07:21
I think Blackberry have made a couple of mistakes in the execution of the BB10 launch:
1. Pricing. The Nexus 4 is a very capable handset at half the price, SIM free. The Z10 could have been a hit had it been priced more competitively.
2. Releasing on contact. I haven't seen the Z10 on sale SIM free here in the UK. They're only going to be able to sell to those who a) want the latest BB10 device, and b) are ready to enter into another contract. Initial sales will be slow due to this.
I'm kind of listing the desire to go out and purchase a Z10 because of these two points (I never buy a phone on contract).