AT&T, RIM Unveil Wi-Fi Capable BlackBerry

AT&T Inc. and Research in Motion are releasing the first Wi-Fi BlackBerry handset, the companies said Wednesday.

The BlackBerry 8820 will be available Thursday and supports 802.11a, b and g with enterprise security features. AT&T’s enterprise customers can use it with their corporate Wi-Fi networks and individual customers can use it in their homes and at other Wi-Fi locations across the country for an additional charge.

The device is powered by AT&T’s EDGE network.

“The new BlackBerry 8820 builds on AT&T’s leading domestic and international coverage footprint by giving customers the ability to link with their company’s wireless campus network or access e-mail and browse the Web at Wi-Fi hot spots even in the few countries in which we do not have data roaming agreements,” said Jeff Bradley, senior vice president- Marketing and Operations for AT&T’s wireless unit.

The BlackBerry 8820 comes with a full QWERTY keyboard, a trackball navigation system and a large display. BlackBerry features such as mobile access to corporate and personal e-mail, text messages, Web browsing, an organizer, multimedia and corporate data applications also are included. It also has video, music and Bluetooth capabilities.

The BlackBerry 8820 will be available for $299.99 — with a two-year contract and rebate. Data plans start at $29.99 a month, BlackBerry Enterprise Server plans begin at $44.99 and international e-mail access plans start at $64.99.

AT&T Inc. www.att.com
Research in Motion www.rim.com