RIM shows in-car speaker, in-line remote at CTIA
updated 07:00 pm EDT, Wed April 1, 2009
RIM In-Car at CTIA
RIM at CTIA has been showing a pair of largely unknown in-house accessories for BlackBerry phones and gave Electronista a look at two of them. The company's unnamed in-car Bluetooth speakerphone (pictured) has a unique design resembling the BlackBerry Pearl and is meant as a companion piece for both music and phone controls: while it has specific buttons for music and routes stereo sound over Bluetooth, its "screen" serves as an all-encompassing button that lets users voice dial and answer incoming calls. It also has an unusually long 13-hour battery life that RIM says is enough for most people to only recharge the speakerphone's built-in battery once a month.
It's not known when the add-on ships or what price it will have; RIM doesn't list it among its current accessories.
Additionally, the company highlighted its relatively new Premium Multimedia Headset for newer phones like the Bold, Curve 8900 and Pearl Flip. Like some third-party alternatives, they center on an in-line remote with play, skip and volume controls that let it both navigate music and take calls on a similarly built-in mic. They use in-ear tips to provide a level of passive noise cancellation as well as to boost the overall sound quality.
RIM currently sells the Premium set for $90 through its own site.
