LABS GALLERY: RIM’s BlackBerry Tour 9630 Doesn’t Break New Ground

Available for both Verizon and Sprint networks, the new BlackBerry Tour 9630 provides voice and data coverage domestically (EVDO REv A./CMDA) and worldwide (GSM/GPRS/EDGE/HSPA).

The Tour (middle) breaks absolutely no new BlackBerry style ground. Seen here with the Bold (left) and the Curve 8900 (right), the Tour finds the middle ground in size.

The Tour includes a 3.2-megapixel still camera with flash and image stabilization. The camera also captures video.

The right side of the device holds (left to right) the MicroUSB slot for charging or desktop synchrinization, a button for easy access to camera functions, volume contols and a 3.5mm headset jack.

The left side of the device contains the speakerphone and a push-to-talk button.

Similar to the Curve 8900, the top of Tour houses low-profile mute and device lock buttons.

Underneath the back plate is a 1400 mAh lithium cell battery (rated for 5 hours of talk time), a MicroSDHC slot (with an included 2GB card) and a SIM slot for use with international networks (not needed for Verizon’s network, of course).

Unlike the BlackBerry Bold, the Tour’s Web browser cursor does not double as zoom control. Instead, users access zoom controls via the menu.

As with BlackBerry Storm, RIM did not put a Wi-Fi radio in the Tour. Instead, the Tour includes the GSM-family radios needed for world coverage. The Tour does offer support for Bluetooth 2.0 and A2DP for stereo sound.

The Tour integrated easily into the Labs’ new BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0 iteration.

The Verizon version of the Tour comes with a link to download a visual voicemail application (not a part of AppWorld). Once installed, users can log in and check their e-mail, then take certain actions from the menu-based commands.

Users can easily toggle the camera application between still and video capture modes.

The Verizon iteration of the Tour comes with two themes: Verizon Zen (top left) and Precision Zen.