Canada launch set for RIM's BlackBerry Bold

TORONTO, CANADA: Rogers Communications Inc, the owner of Canada's biggest wireless carrier, will start offering Research In Motion Ltd's new BlackBerry Bold on Thursday, the telecom firm said.

The Bold is RIM's most advanced smartphone to date and is the first BlackBerry to support high-speed HSDPA cellular networks. It comes with integrated GPS, Wi-Fi and a host of multimedia features.

RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie told Reuters in May that the smartphone, aimed at the company's base of business users, will cost between $300 and $400. AT&T will be its lead carrier in the United States.

A Rogers spokeswoman said pricing details were not immediately available.

The smartphone is expected to be available with carriers around the world by the end of this week.

The Bold features the most vivid display ever on a BlackBerry, a 2-megapixel camera with video recording capability, and a media player for watching movies and managing music collections.