The BlackBerry Torch 9850, the CDMA brother to the BlackBerry Torch 9860 phone will be shipping in the states on Sprint and US Cellular sometime soon, but unfortunately a price or release date has yet to be announced by the US carriers but I’m sure it will not be long before we hear word on this.

Due to the excessive BlackBerry activity as of late, do Research In Motion stand a chance of clambering back up to where they once stood, firmly at the top of the smartphone world? You have got to admit, the new handsets ranging from the NFC-enabled BlackBerry Bold 9900 to the QWERTY-free BlackBerry Torch 9860 are a step up from what we have been expecting from RIM as late, but is it really enough?

The BlackBerry Torch 9860 is another smartphone that ships with a “waterfall” screen design measuring 3.7-inches WVGA (800 x 480) touchpanel, five megapxiel “zero-shutter-lag” camera, 720p movie mode, inbuilt GPS and a 1.2GHz processor to boot. The handset also comes with RIM’s latest operating system – OS 7 which should wet the lips of BlackBerry enthusiasts around the US of A, and we can tell you that every single new BlackBerry device that we have seen on show with OS 7 provides excellent speed and performance upgrades compared to that of previous OS builds by RIM.

You can find out more information regarding the BlackBerry Torch 9850, which is coming to Sprint and US Cellular via Engadget who also have the whole Press Release for you to dissect. Currently we have no information regarding prices and release dates, therefore we will have to keep you posted. Check out this video to see what you can expect from this impressive smartphone.

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Let’s start with the LG Genesis, this smartphone will arrive on June 8th and will cost you $149.99 when you take into consideration a $100 mail-in rebate. You can find out all about this unique smartphone over at AndroidCentral, with two touchscreen displays it should certainly attract some interest. Just to recap you get a 3.5-inch external display, a 3.2-inch internal display and a 5 megapixel camera, it ships with Android 2.2 FroYo and features a physical QWERTY keyboard.

The HTC Merge is available from U.S. Cellular today, it also costs $149.99 when you take into account a $100 mail-in rebate and is quite similar to the HTC Desire Z. You can find out all about the HTC Merge over at the official HTC website here. The Merge ships with Android 2.2 FroYo and features a 3.8-inch display, a side-sliding QWERTY keyboard and a 5 megapixel camera.

According to IntoMobile both handsets will receive Android 2.3 Gingerbread updates in the future, to be honest with you we can’t choose between the two offerings because they are both pretty similar in terms of specs, perhaps the Merge has the edge in terms looks and design, but the Genesis has the edge in terms of processing power and has those two touchscreen displays.

Which of the two would you choose?

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What’s more is that the release date and price have also been revealed. According to a recent article by Robert Nelson over at nexus404.com, US Cellular announced via their Facebook page that the HTC Merge handset – which runs on Android 2.2 Froyo – will be available as from May 31st.

The HTC Merge has been priced up at $149.99, although we do have to point out that price comes after a $100 mail-in rebate and with a 2-year contract. As a reminder, the handset is powered by an 800MHz Qualcomm MSM7630 processor and comes with a 3.8-inch WVGA touch screen display.

Other specs include a slide-out QWERTY keyboard (ideal for those that don’t like using virtual keyboards), GPS, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, a 1400 mAh battery, a 5MP camera with flash and HD video capture, the latest version of HTC Sense and a microSD card slot with an 8GB card included.

Will you be picking up the HTC Merge smartphone from US Cellular on May 31st?

More About: Google Android OS, HTC Merge, US Cellular

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