RIM’s Blackberry Bold has finally found its way to the U.S. With a favorable review from Engadget, this sucker is poised to compete with the iPhone. Standing in its way? A $300 with contract, after rebate pricetag. Ouch. Here are some clips from the glorious unboxing, courtesy of Engadget.
 

Finally in that gorgeous, orange AT&T packaging… 

A comparison shot with the G1 and the iPhone:

And a video unboxing…

And while you feast your eyes on these pics and video, Engadget also lets us know that yesterday the Bold showed up in AT&T stores earlier than expected. Meaning you didn’t have to wait all the way to election day to drop over $300 pre-rebate with-contract on a cell phone! And for those of you looking to save some gas money so you can try to afford the Bold, you can also pick the phone up online at AT&T’s site, and have it shipped right to your door.

 Thanks to Engadget for the scoop and the pics, and to YouTube.com for the video link!

Two big news stories for RIM today - a possible Motorola take-over, and a surprising jump on successors to the Storm.

According to a Reuters article written yesterday afternoon, the recent drop in price of RIM’s (and everyone else’s) stock makes them vulnerable to a much-discussed potential takeover from Motorola. The company is worth only slightly more than a third of what it was a year ago - stocks going for $60 per share as opposed to nearly $150 a share. While the Blackberry manufacturer’s value has dropped in today’s market, this would be a great move for Motorola as it has been struggling in the shift from simple cell phones to smartphones.  (Thanks, Engadget!)

On the flip-side of things, rumors are also abounding that Blackberry is working on new and improved versions of the Storm - the touch-screen Blackberry that hasn’t even debuted on the Verizon Wireless network. The drive? To compete with other superphones, such as the HTC Touch Pro. Rumored characteristics of the BB smartphone? 5 megapixel auto-focus camera, 1GB of RAM,and a “near-HD quality” screen to improve upon all of those other Blackberrys that are coming out first. Looks like the financial crisis isn’t scaring everyone. Right on RIM!