We are all baffled with the recent leak from BGR regarding the BlackBerry Aurora ID. There isn’t a single picture of the BlackBerry Aurora for us to see or any more info other than the ID found in the image below. The mention of an “Aurora,” indicated to be a member of the 8100 (Pearl) series, though its device ID curiously matches that of the BlackBerry Thunder / Storm so it’s possible that the two projects were merged at some point and the BlackBerry Aurora is now indeed the BlackBerry Thunder.
It’s also possible that the BlackBerry Aurora is a cross between a full fledge all touch screen BlackBerry Thunder and a much smaller BlackBerry Pearl. I wouldn’t mind for the Aurora to feature capacitive touch screen sized around 2.8-inches and no thicker than .48 or .5-inches. BlackBerry DOES NOT have a single touch screen smartphone on the market, so it will be interesting to see how the Aurora’s UI will look and feel to us.
As far as network support for the BlackBerry Aurora, I can only speculate that it will may also have the most technically advanced cellular wireless support ever, based on my understanding of the claim for the BlackBerry Thunder. Should the claim is accurate; the BlackBerry Aurora would include both GSM and CDMA with support for worldwide roaming. Owners of the Aurora will enjoy surfing on 3.5G or even pre-4G data and may support up to Ultra Mobile Broadband (aka EVDO Revision C) on Verizon’s CDMA networks. Download speeds can possibly be achieved up to 280Mbps in peak conditions, while adding full High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) on GSM services. So what does this mean? Basically, this support would allow the BlackBerry Aurora to work in nearly any country with 3G or better Internet access.
It is important to point out that the reported launch information contradicts with some of Verizon’s existing and future network rollout plans. Verizon currently operate on a somewhat slower EVDO Revision A service for data and has already announced plans to switch to LONG TERM Evolution (LTE) for its next generation wireless network. As a result, Verizon will drop CDMA entirely, which is then replaced by the 700MHz 4G standard that it will likely share with Vodafone, AT&T, and other GSM carriers. To date, Verizon has not announced plans to upgrade its EVDO network beyond revision A and says it will launch LTE by late 2009, with more coverage throughout the US by 2010. Vodafone currently supports HSPA and plans to switch to LTE around the same time.
Additional information about the BlackBerry Aurora will be available in the coming weeks. Make sure to visit Phone Magazine for the latest and great breaking news in mobile wireless technology.