Previously known as BlackBerry KickStart, RIM's first and only clamshell smartphone has just been officially presented, under the name of BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220. Part of the Pearl family, the new 8220 is quite similar to the other handsets from the series (save for the form factor, of course).

The new smartphone features: a 240 x 320 pixel internal display, a light-sensing external screen (for previewing incoming messages, emails and calls), a huge SureType QWERTY keyboard (perfect for texting and emailing), Wi-Fi with UMA support, quad-band GSM connectivity with GPRS and EDGE but no 3G, SIVR (Speaker Independent Voice Recognition) for Voice Activated Dialing (VAD), DataViz Documents to Go, BlackBerry Internet Service, BlackBerry Unite!, BlackBerry Professional Software, BlackBerry Enterprise Server (hence the handset has advanced email capabilities), full HTML browser, Music player with equalizer, Video player, Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, USB 2.0 and so on.

The 8220 further features a 2 MP camera with flash and video recording, plus support for microSD and microSDHC cards (up to 16 GB). The Flip BlackBerry weighs only 102 grams (3.6 ounces) and, when not open, it measures 99 x 48 x 17.8 millimeters (3.9 x 1.9 x 0.7 inches). A 900 mAh battery is included, capable of lasting up to 4 hours in talk-time mode or up to 14 days in stand-by mode.

Talking about the latest RIM product, Mike Lazaridis, president and Co-CEO at Research In Motion, stated, "The popularity of BlackBerry smartphones has grown tremendously around the world and the introduction of this exciting new flip phone will help extend the reach of the BlackBerry platform even further. The BlackBerry Pearl Flip is a full-featured smartphone with a unique and friendly design and it is a natural choice for flip phone users who want to start doing more with their phone than just talk."

The exact release date of BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 was not announced, but RIM says the smartphone will be available in the US first, via T-Mobile, sometime "this fall." Rogers will most probably release the 8220 shortly after, in Canada.

BlackBerry Pearl Flip's retail price is another detail that RIM has not disclosed, but users should hope it won't be a high one. Until the 8220 gets to be released, T-Mobile USA's subscribers can preview the smartphone at this address.