CellularOne and M3 Wireless have announced the launch of the new BlackBerry Torch 9800 smartphone as competition in the mobile phone market starts to hot up.

The new device, which is targeted at socially connected consumers and features tools for the business customer, is the world's first smartphone to combine a BlackBerry QWERTY keyboard with a full-touch screen experience and the first to feature the new BlackBerry 6 operating system.

CellularOne expects the phone to be available at its stores from November 1, while M3 Wireless anticipates a launch date early next month.

"The BlackBerry Torch brings together all of the features customers expect from a BlackBerry smartphone into one unique smartphone," said CellularOne chief operating officer Frank Amaral.

"The slider design, the BlackBerry 6 OS with its new user interface, the full-touch screen experience and enhanced messaging and multimedia capabilities, have got customers extremely excited. Bermuda's been awaiting the arrival of the BlackBerry Torch and CellularOne is more than pleased to launch it on the island's premier 3G network."

Sheila Lines, CEO of M3, said: "M3 is very excited to launch the new BlackBerry Torch 9800 smartphone. We know customers have been eagerly anticipating its arrival. Touch screen devices have exploded in popularity over the last year. Combining a full touch screen with the BlackBerry keyboard gives customers the best of both worlds."

The new BlackBerry Torch includes combination of a large touch screen and optical trackpad with a backlit slide-out BlackBerry keyboard. It offers support for high-speed 3G UMTS/HSDPA networks globally as well as the latest generation in Wi-Fi (b/g/n) connectivity.

Its 5 MP camera takes pictures with flash, continuous auto focus, image stabilisation, scene modes and zoom, and it also supports video recording. In addition, it comes with a combined 8 GB of media storage out-of-the-box, and includes a microSD/SDHD memory card slot for total storage memory up to 36 GB.

CellularOne was the first company to launch the iPhone 4 in Bermuda at the end of September, with the 16 GB version costing $979 on a two-year term, and M3 Wireless following suit at the start of this month, starting at $799 for the 16 GB and $999 for the 32 GB models.

M3 Wireless will be holding a number of free BlackBerry Tips and Tricks seminars in November to help customers learn about all of the new features of BlackBerry 6. To reserve a place email blackberrylearning [AT]m3wireless.bm

For more information about CelluarOne's offering visit www.cellularone.bm or www.blackberry.com/torch