Sprint Nextel announced that a new version of the Research In Motion BlackBerry Tour 9630 will be released next year to support Wi-Fi, as Sprint expects consumers to keep craving mobile devices capable of accessing the Internet.
As major U.S. wireless carriers continue to roll out new smartphones, the lack of Wi-Fi in many new smartphones has left both users and carriers frustrated. The RIM BlackBerry Tour has received extremely solid reviews, but many reviewers criticized RIM for not including Wi-Fi in the first generation of the phone.
"It is now a requirement for all our PDA equipment suppliers to include Wi-Fi," Jeff Clemow, Sprint director of business product marketing, noted in an interview with Fierce Wireless. Clemow, however, didn't note when handset makers will have to comply with this demand.
It should be interesting to see if Sprint subscribers interested in the latest BlackBerry phone will wait for the Wi-Fi version of the phone, or purchase the non-Wi-Fi device now.
Verizon, which is the other wireless provider to carry the BlackBerry Tour, declined to comment about the Tour's lack of Wi-Fi -- but the company did express interest in having additional handsets with Wi-Fi support in the future.
As a smartphone owner for the past couple of years, I think it'll be nice to see a growing number of handsets support Wi-Fi. Phone owners have noted Wi-Fi access -- when connected to a decent Internet connection -- is typically faster than Sprint and Verizon 3G networks -- and it's even more evident when inside some buildings, due to occasional lackluster 3G coverage while inside.
Assuming manufacturers are able to ensure flawless transition between 3G and Wi-Fi, then mobile phone owners will be the ones to benefit.
