RIM is reportedly going to launch BlackBerry 8, a next-generation QNX platform for smartphones and tablets, at some point in 2012.
2012 was supposed to be the year when Nokia's Qt-based effort would kick in for real. Instead, Nokia is now aiming to make a big Windows Phone push that year, while Qt, Symbian and MeeGo efforts are rapidly being phased out of Nokia's roadmap. RIM is another manufacturer that has been forced to rethink its strategy. According to BerryReview, RIM is currently in the early stages of developing BlackBerry 8 for smartphones and tablets, with the aim of releasing BlackBerry 8 devices in 2012.
Based on previous RIM statements, the upcoming BlackBerry 7 will act as a stepping stone to BlackBerry 8. RIM co-Ceo Jim Balsillie recently confirmed to investors that BlackBerry 7 is the retail version of what has been referred to as BlackBerry 6.1 to date. RIM is expected to officially unveil the BlackBerry Bold Touch powered by BlackBerry 7 at the BlackBerry World conference next week. Upcoming phones like the BlackBerry Touch and BlackBerry Torch 2 will be released with BlackBerry 7 later this year.
There's little doubt that especially BlackBerry 8 will be a strong contender in the mobility market. RIM has made several strategic acquisitions of high significance, and it looks like the Canadian manufacturer is destined to deliver a next-generation BlackBerry 8 solution that will not only go far in defending BlackBerry's expanding position in the smartphone market, but also give the company a solid foundation for success in the emerging capacitive tablet market.
The recently released BlackBerry PlayBook is powered by the QNX-based BlackBerry Tablet OS. Both BB Tablet OS and BlackBerry 7 will reportedly be replaced by BlackBerry 8 in 2012, with the aim of running smoothly on both smartphones and tablets, similar to what Google and friends aim to do with the yet-to-be-released Android 3.1. HP has chosen a similar strategy with a next-generation WebOS, which will be running on upcoming devices like the HP TouchPad tablet, several smartphones, and eventually HP computers.
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