2006 Awards

Baig's Best Award
The BlackBerry® Pearl™ smartphone was listed on Baig’s Best in 2006 by USA Today columnist Ed Baig. Baig’s Best awards are based on the columnist’s product reviews throughout the year and recognize innovations in consumer technology. In the review, Baig commented "In a year in which lots of companies tried to give "smartphones" mass appeal, Research In Motion (RIM) may have pulled it off".

PC Magazine 4 Star Rating
Sacha Segan from PC Magazine awarded the BlackBerry Pearl smartphone 4 out of a possible 5 Stars in October, 2006. Sacha praised the new trackball, commenting that it was well placed for one-handed use.

Network World 4 Star Rating
In 2006, Network World’s Keith Shaw awarded the BlackBerry Pearl smartphone 4 out of 5 stars. Keith called the improved SureType® very accurate and amazing to watch.

PC Magazine 4 Stars Rating
The BlackBerry® 8700g smartphone was awarded the coveted PC Magazine 4 Stars Rating in June, 2006. The BlackBerry 8700g smartphonewas selected by a panel of PC Magazine editors and leading industry experts.

Wired Test 2006
Wired called the BlackBerry Pearl smartphone the entertainer its forebears weren’t and awarded it 8 out of a possible 10 stars.

MTV's Best of '06
The BlackBerry Pearl smartphone was selected by MTV as a Best of ’06. The BlackBerry Pearl smartphone was recognized for winning over new users with its camera and multimedia capabilities. MTV had this to say: “If you are serious about your business, you carried one—simple as that”.

Basex 2006 Product-of the-Year
In December, the BlackBerry Pearl smartphone was named Product-of-the-Year for 2006 by Basex, a research firm specializing in knowledge worker management and productivity. Basex analysts selected the BlackBerry Pearl smartphone from a wide field of hardware and software solutions, citing its unique ability to combine the mobile telephone form factor with smartphone functionality via a single interface, through which mobile knowledge workers can surf the Internet and manage e-mail and calendar.

PC Magazine Best of 2006
The BlackBerry Pearl smartphone was named a Best of 2006 for its camera and multimedia features. PC Magazine commented, “We've always loved the BlackBerry®—and now we love it even more”.

PC World 20 Most Innovative Products of the Year
The BlackBerry Pearl smartphone was named one of the 20 Most Innovative Products of the Year for 2006. PC World stated, “We’ve seen business oriented smart phones and multimedia phones, but the BlackBerry Pearl brings those two worlds together and backs everything up with RIM’s network, which is still the best for always-on connectivity”.

Technology Fast 500 Award
RIM was listed on the Deloitte & Touche Technology Fast 500. The Technology Fast 500 ranks the fastest growing technology companies in North America, based on their average five-year percentage revenue growth.

Computer Shopper’s editors awarded the BlackBerry 7130c smartphone one of their Top 100 Products of the Year in 2006. The BlackBerry 7130c smartphone was named for its unbeatable combination of performance, features and value.