Research in Motion hopes to challenge iPhone 4 with new BlackBerry

While Apple may be satisfied with the hundreds of fans who lined up last night to get their hands on the new iPhone 4, rival Research in Motion is believed to be preparing to release a device that could challenge its dominance in the smartphone sector.

Wall Street analysts say next week will see the launch of RIM’s new touch-screen smartphone, after a number of press event invites were sent out to tech journalists. Speculation is rampant, with the company’s shares gaining 4.19% overnight.

As reported by the Wall Street Journal, while the invitations don’t actually specify what the event is for, “people familiar with the matter” believe the gadget of the day will be a new touch-screen BlackBerry locked to the AT&T network.

BlackBerry has attempted to launch a touchscreen model before, but it recorded poor sales.

Back of America analyst Vivek Arva said in a statement the company is likely to announced the BlackBerry 9800, along with the BlackBerry 6 mobile operating system, which will allow users to swipe through several different home screens (a feature already available on Android) and expand pictures through a “pinch and zoom” method.

“We expect 9800 shipments to begin in late August, with possible global launch in September,” he said.

Meanwhile, Morgan Stanley analyst Ehud Gelblum also said in a statement he expects the company will use AT&T to “promote the product aggressively”.

Rumours suggest the company will provide a slide-out keyboard, a universal search bar on the home screen and will include aggregated content from social media sources like Facebook and Twitter.

The launch comes at somewhat of a turning point for BlackBerry. It has tried to convince smartphone buyers it has a more sophisticated offering than the Apple iPhone, but so far it has struggled to gain traction outside of the enterprise market.

Opening the BlackBerry App World has helped, but not by much. According to Gartner, RIM held 19.4% of the smartphone market in the first quarter of 2010, down from 20.6% in 2009. Apple gained 4.9% during the same period.

Part of the problem is that BlackBerry apps are detailed and comprehensive, meaning they are more expensive as well, at an average of $8. Apple’s average app is only about $1-2, promoting a lot of impulse buys.

All of these are problems BlackBerry hopes to fix with its latest gadget, analysts suggest.

The Canadian handset manufacturer has also excited the blogosphere after it registered the “blackpad.com” domain name. The move comes after various trade rumours suggested the company was looking to manufacture and distribute a tablet computer, but those rumours have yet to be confirmed.

But if last night’s iPhone 4 launch is anything to go by, RIM has a tough road ahead of it.

Hundreds showed up for various launch parties last night hosted by the major telcos. VHA, Telstra and Optus all held different events with various musical guests and contestants from Channel Ten’s MasterChef.

VHA hosted a party in Sydney where customers could enjoy free food and drinks, while Telstra offered food prepared by contestants from MasterChef.

Dozens of people had already lined up for hours before the gadget went on sale, and hundreds more were queued outside Apple stores in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.