BlackBerry manufacturer RIM's most awaited Bold 9800 slider combines a QWERTY keyboard with touch-screen technology and in set with the new BlackBerry 6 OS will be launched in the middle of this year.

Research In Motion (RIM) will not let go of the pace with the recent launch of Pearl 9100 3G smart phone this month, which is predicted to be followed like greased lightning by a brand new form factor.

The all new BlackBerry Bold 9800 will be the first 'slider' from BlackBerry with a conventional QWERTY keyboard of Bold series placed under a touch-screen based on Storm 2.

Bold 9800 is anticipated to be the leading product for the new BlackBerry 6 operating system which includes a new Webkit-based browser with RSS feed viewer, tabbed pages, an integrated app for social network management, RIM's own Twitter client, and a more anvanced UI sporting multiple user friendly 'pages' on the main screen.

According to Australian Personal Computer, Boy Genius Report, a United States site, few sources inside RIM said the Bold 9800 will launch in the United States in June.

Habitually, RIM Australia has been very fast and impressive to roll out new models of BlackBerry locally, so it hoped that the track record will continue with the BlackBerry Bold 9800.