BlackBerry looks for boost from launches

Mobile phone manufacturer Research in Motion (RIM) announced its "biggest ever launch" of BlackBerry handsets yesterday, days after it said it was cutting 2,000 jobs.

Five new phones were introduced at an event in London. They will all use the new BlackBerry 7 operating system, which RIM hopes will boost sales as it looks to contend with competition from Google's Android OS and a new iPhone model.

Two new versions of the BlackBerry Bold range – the 9900 and 9930 – can be used for "contactless payments", the company announced. It also released three revamped BlackBerry Torch models – the 9810, 9850 and the 9860. The devices will become available "in the coming weeks", with 225 carriers, a spokesman said. The BlackBerry Bold 9900 will be the company's thinnest model at 10.5mm.

RIM cut its workforce by more than 10 per cent and launched a review of its management structure in a bid to cut costs at the end of July.