Airtel, Vodfone Launch BlackBerry Flip in India

" Sports a 2 megapixel camera, WiFi, QWERTY keyboard and 1GB microSD card "



Airtel and Vodafone have finally brought RIM's first clamshell smartphone BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220-to India.

While most of us associate BlackBerry with wide bodied, brick like handsets, RIM seems desperate to change that notion. That is precisely why we now see gorgeous, compact handsets like the Curve 8220 and the Storm which seem to have become style statements - at least in the India.




If you thought the flip design has lessened the "Blackberry Effect" on the phone, be prepared to be surprised. It can do almost everything your "normal" blackberry can except for that much needed Qwerty keyboard layout. The keys are still labelled in the Qwerty layout but will use shared keys, instead of dedicated ones.Instead of that, what we have here is RIMs SureType input technology.



" On the multimedia front, it sports an expected 2 megapixel camera with digital zoom and not to mention, flash, video recording, stereo Bluetooth support wit A2Dp and an easily accessible expandable memory card slot for up to 16GB of additional storage. There is WiFi crammed in as well. Here's a brief spec sheet."

• 1GB microSD card included
  
• Enhanced SureType keyboard for easy text entry and phone dialing
  
• 2 megapixel camera with digital zoom, built-in flash and video recording
  
• Advanced media player for music, video and pictures with full-screen video playback
  
• Internal QVGA 2.4-inch diagonal display, 320 x 240 pixels and supports 65,000 colors
  
• Support for text messaging, picture messaging, popular instant messaging services, personal email (access up to 10 supported email accounts) and corporate email
  
• Media management software including the new BlackBerry Media Sync application making it quick and easy to sync iTunes digital music onto the handset
  
• Enhanced HTML browser for high-performance browsing with desktop-style depiction
  
• Stereo Bluetooth support (A2DP/AVRCP) and 3.5mm stereo headset jack
  
• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE/Wi-Fi network support including support for international roaming
  
• Dimensions (LxWxD): 101mm x 50 mm x 17.5 mm
  
• Weight (including removable battery): Approximately 102 grams
  

The phone is priced at Rs. 21, 990 and is now available at Airtel and Vodafone stores across India.