BlackBerry Bold 9700 Debuts in the U.K.

Vodafone and T-Mobile UK have become the first carriers worldwide to offer RIM's latest smartphone, the BlackBerry Bold 9700. This device isn't expected to debut in the U.S. until next week.

The Bold2 is smaller than its predecessor, but still sports an HVGA screen, keyboard, Wi-Fi, 3G and more.

This smartphone is available now on Vodafone's website and T-Moble UK's website, where is is available for free with a two-year contract of at least £35 a month.

An Overview of the BlackBerry Bold 9700
The Bold2 has the same general design as its predecessor, including a QWERTY keyboard, but with a new look. It is smaller than the original, and also has a slightly smaller screen, but at the same HVGA resolution. In place of a trackball is an optical trackpad.

It runs BlackBerry OS 5.0 on a 624 MHz processor, and has RIM's standard suite of productivity and entertainment software.

This phone includes a microSD card slot, and is bundled with a 2 GB memory card for storing music, video, and other files. It also includes a 3.2 MPx camera, a GPS receiver and a 3.5 mm headset jack.

The BlackBerry Bold 9700 is a quad-band GSM phone, with tri-band UMTS/HSDPA.  It also has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

Coming to the U.S., Too
Both AT&T and T-Mobile have announced plans to release its own version the Bold2 later this month.

These carriers will ask $200 for it, with a two-year voice and data plan and a $100 mail-in-rebate.

Source: Vodafone