RIM to launch updated BlackBerry Curve in US market

TORONTO – A new BlackBerry smartphone is headed to stores later this month, but it’ll look especially familiar to most users.

Research In Motion (TSX:RIM) says it will launch the BlackBerry Curve 9315, a slightly updated version of the keypad phones already on the market.

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The launch is exclusively through U.S. carrier T-Mobile, with a release date set for Jan. 23.

The phone runs on RIM’s existing BlackBerry 7 operating system.

The company is putting the finishing touches on its BlackBerry 10 operating system and a new slate of touchscreen and keypad smartphones that are expected to hit stores early this year.

The updated phones are considered by industry observers to be a last ditch effort by RIM to recover its eroding market share in key markets like North America and Europe.