Research In Motion Limited (USA) (NASDAQ:RIMM) (TSE:RIM) has just released two major announcements. The company is changing its name to BlackBerry, and it has just unveiled two new BlackBerry 10 handsets. Although shares of Research In Motion Limited (USA) (NASDAQ:RIMM) (TSE:RIM) fell yesterday, true to the form of most tech stocks, they started rising this morning just prior to the planned announcement unveiling the new phones and then started to fall afterward. The stock fell about 4 percent after the big announcements.
Executives at Research In Motion Limited (NASDAQ:RIMM) (TSE:RIM) decided to change the company’s name to BlackBerry in order to unify its image. Most people know the BlackBerry name, but only hardcore techies and investors know the Research In Motion name.
The two new BlackBerry 10 devices are the Z10, which has a 4.2-inch, 356 pixels-per-inch touchscreen, and the Q10, which has a QWERTY keyboard and a portrait display that’s slightly smaller than the Z10. The back of the Z10 is textured so that it’s less likely to slip out of the user’s hands, while the Q10 sports a glass-weave cover so that’s more durable and lighter and thinner than plastic.
So far Research In Motion Limited (NASDAQ:RIMM) (TSE:RIM) has signed up T-Mobile (a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom AG (ADR) (NYSE:DT), AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) to carry the BlackBerry 10 handsets and several other carriers all over the world—650 in all.
One of the main features on the new BlackBerry 10 devices is the BlackBerry Balance feature, which makes it possible for just one device to switch between personal and work users. This makes it possible for users to have just one device with two different personalities. It also gives corporations greater control over sensitive data that may be on employees’ phones if they happen to leave the company.
The BlackBerry Flow feature makes it easy to swipe from app to app with just one finger. The company has also apparently redone its web browser and BlackBerry World app store and updated its BlackBerry Messenger service.
