RIM's first BBX BlackBerry smartphones will support BES

Research In Motion's (NASDAQ:RIMM) first smartphones running the company's new BBX platform will support RIM's BlackBerry Enterprise Server. They will also sport the same screen resolution as the company's PlayBook tablet, a senior company executive said.

Alec Saunders, RIM's vice present of developer relations and ecosystems development

Saunders

Alec Saunders, RIM's vice present of developer relations and ecosystems development, said RIM's new smartphones may not look like the company's classic BlackBerry Bold devices, but will support the company's core email functions. He told PC Magazine that the first BBX smartphones will have the same screen resolution and aspect ratio as the BlackBerry PlayBook, which has a 16:9 ratio and 1024-by-600 screen.

"Look, if you build [an app] for the PlayBook, then it will run on BBX. We have maintained aspect ratios, BBX also has the ability to upload multiple dimension graphics... [and the standard resolutions] are the same as PlayBook," he said.

BBX is RIM's next-generation operating system that will run its future tablets and smartphones, and is powered by QNX software. RIM unveiled the software last month at its developer conference, but provided few details. The company's PlayBook tablet is also powered by QNX, though the PlayBook represents just the beginning of the BBX platform. RIM likely will release BBX devices early next year in the hopes of shoring up its declining market share. 

Saunders said that RIM's first BBX phones will have native email support and BES support. When the PlayBook was released it did not have a native email client and needed to be paired with a BlackBerry smartphone to access email--RIM was heavily criticized for those missing features. Last month RIM delayed until February 2012 the release of the PlayBook's updated operating system, version 2.0, which will add native email support as well as support for Android apps, among other features. "I think you're seeing an evolution of a platform ... you should not expect [BBX] to be behind the PlayBook," Saunders said.

For more:
- see this PC Magazine article
- see this The Verge article

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