BlackBerry Curve 8520 Free on Globe Plan 2500, P14,995 on Prepaid

The BlackBerry Curve 8520 is being touted as the most affordable RIM smartphone to date, but how affordable is it really?

I’ve just gotten word that it’s now available on Globe and it’s free on Plan 2500. Being a high-end plan, it’s understandable why its bundled free-of-charge, but if you’re getting the BlackBerry Curve 8520 on prepaid, you’ll be happy to know that it’s retailing for just P14,995.00. Now that’s what I call an affordable BlackBerry!

For the uninitiated, the BlackBerry Curve 8520 is one of RIM’s latest smartphones which comes with a 2-megapixel camera, WiFi connectivity, Bluetooth, dedicated media keys, 3.5mm jack, and an optical trackpad all packaged in an ultra-compact design. It’s doesn’t come with 3G connectivity, but with WiFi on-board, this probably much of a deal breaker especially at its price point.

Here’s the full press release of its announcement in the Philippines:

RIM Introduces the New BlackBerry Curve 8520 in the Philippines

The first BlackBerry smartphone with innovative touch-sensitive trackpad and dedicated media keys for easy navigation and control
Manila, Philippines – September 8, 2009 – Research In Motion (RIM) (Nasdaq: RIMM; TSX: RIM) today introduced the BlackBerry® Curve™ 8520 smartphone in the Philippines. The slim and stylish handset, a new addition to the BlackBerry Curve series of smartphones, is scheduled to be available from Globe and Smart at the end of September*.

The new BlackBerry Curve 8520 introduces an innovative touch-sensitive trackpad that makes scrolling and selection smooth and easy for an exceptional navigation experience. It is also the first BlackBerry smartphone to feature dedicated media keys, which are smoothly integrated along the top of the handset giving customers an easy, convenient way to control their music and videos.

The user-friendly BlackBerry Curve 8520 provides easy access to email, messaging (IM, SMS, MMS) and social networking sites (including Facebook® and MySpace), and features a highly tactile full-QWERTY keyboard for comfortable, accurate typing. It is also Wi-Fi®-enabled and includes rich multimedia capabilities with easy access to music, games and other mobile apps for entertainment on the go.

“Consumers are becoming more sophisticated when it comes to mobile phone purchase decisions. They want something that combines ease-of-use with extensive features and functionality. The BlackBerry Curve 8520 smartphone gives them just what they need,” said Gregory Wade, Regional Vice President, RIM Asia Pacific. “This new addition to the BlackBerry Curve series delivers all the great messaging, social networking and multimedia features that customers have come to love about BlackBerry smartphones.”
Key features of the BlackBerry Curve 8520 smartphone include:

• Easy-to-use full-QWERTY keyboard and touch-sensitive trackpad for reliable, responsive typing and navigation
• 256MB Flash memory and a 512Mhz next generation processor for enhanced performance
• Premium phone features including voice activated dialing and Bluetooth® (2.0) support for hands-free use with headsets, car kits, stereo headsets and other Bluetooth peripherals
• 2 MP digital camera with zoom and video recording
• Advanced media player for music, pictures and videos, with dedicated media keys and a 3.5 mm stereo headset jack, plus BlackBerry® Media Sync, which makes it easy to quickly sync music from iTunes® or Windows Media® Player with the smartphone**
• Access to BlackBerry App World™, featuring a broad and growing catalog of third-party mobile applications developed specifically for BlackBerry smartphones. Categories include games, entertainment, IM and social networking, news, weather, productivity and more
• BlackBerry® Internet Service support for access to up to 10 supported email accounts, including most popular ISP email accounts such as Yahoo!®, Windows Live™ Hotmail®, AOL® and Gmail™; and BlackBerry® Enterprise Server support, which provides advanced security and IT administration features for corporate deployments
• Expandable memory via hot swappable microSD/SDHC memory card slot, supporting up to 16 GB cards today and expected to support next generation 32GB cards when available; a 2GB card is included
• Built-in Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g)
• Quad-band world phone: EGDE/GPRS/GSM (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)

To learn more about the BlackBerry Curve 8520 smartphone visit: http://www.blackberry.com/ap/curve8520

* Check with carriers for specific information on availability and pricing.
** Certain music files may not be supported, including files that contain digital rights management technologies.