RIM to put Intel inside BlackBerry

Stuart Corner
Wednesday, 28 September 2005 17:39

Business IT - Technology

BlackBerry handheld developer, Research In Motion (RIM) is to build its next generation of handhelds around Intel chips, primarily to enable support for EDGE networks.

EDGE (Enhanced Data Rates for Global Evolution) is an enhancement to GSM networks which enables them to support much higher data rates. It is generally regarded as a 2.5G technology, midway between 2G GSM and 3G WCDMA. While it does not offer the same throughput as WCDMA, it is a much lower cost upgrade to a GSM network.

RIM is adopting the Intel XScale architecture and will use the Intel PXA9xx cellular processor, codenamed Hermon, for its next-generation BlackBerry devices. Also, Intel and RIM say they will continue working together "to drive new wireless technologies and handset features, while also working to support and expand the rich ecosystem of BlackBerry applications and services.'

RIM said it had selected the PXA9xx for its "EDGE communications capabilities and its industry-leading application performance".

RIM's president and Co-CEO, Mike Lazaridis, said: "Our collaboration with Intel has enabled us to make a fundamental architectural shift that maximises the benefits of EDGE-based mobile networks. We chose the Intel PXA9xx cellular processor because it provides us with the increased processing horsepower we need for future wireless applications, without compromising battery life requirements."