The Globe and Mail

1999 - RIM950: A pager with wireless Internet and e-mail. It ran on an AA battery.

2002 - BlackBerry 5810: Similar to RIM's earlier pagers but it was also the first BlackBerry that could make and receive phonecalls.

2003 - BlackBerry 6210: Introduced BlackBerry messenger.

2004 - BlackBerry 7100i: RIM makes a BlackBerry that looks like a phone. It also worked as a long-range digital walkie-talkie.

2004 - Blackberry 7510: Another phone/long-range digital walkie-talkie.

2005 - BlackBerry 8700

2006 - BlackBerry Pearl: Slim and trendy, this phone was targeted at consumers rather than at business clients.

2007 - BlackBerry 8800: Thinnest handset yet with built-in GPS with voice and on-screen driving directions.

2007 - BlackBerry Curve 8300: Its QWERTY keyboard was touted as the smallest and lightest full keyboard BlackBerry to date, with much-improved screen resolution.

2008 - BlackBerry Pearl Flip: First BlackBerry to fold up.

2008 - BlackBerry Bold 9000: The first of the Bold series featuring rounded corners, aimed at high-end corporate users.

2008 - BlackBerry Storm: The first time RIM gives up the physical keypad for a large touch screen with 'click' technology, unlike the iPhone. But the original model was plagued with software problems. Early criticism from reviews included, ‘The camera takes forever to focus. Calls sound choppy on speakerphone. Static mars the sound on Bluetooth headsets. And everything feels slow.’ When it was released, Engadget wrote, ‘On paper it sounds like the perfect antidote to our gripes about the iPhone, and in some ways it lives up to those promises -- but more often than not while using the Storm, we felt let down or frustrated.’

2009 - BlackBerry Tour 9630: RIM introduced it as a 'world phone,' which means it can easily access voice and data services on networks outside the user's home country. This has proven popular with business users in the past. To appeal to the retail market, the Tour is loaded with multimedia features similar to those found in the BlackBerry Curve and Pearl, including a photo and video camera and media player.

The new Blackberry Torch 9800 smartphone is seen after being unveiled at a news conference August 3, 2010 in New York City.

The latest version of the Blackberry Bold 9900-9930 unveiled Aug. 3, 2011.

The newest version of the Blackberry Torch 9810. Revealed Aug. 3, 2011, RIM expects the new phones to play well globally in markets such as Indonesia and Latin America.

RIM's newest touchscreen phone, the Blackberry Torch 9860-9850. The company is counting on the new devices launched Aug. 3, 2011 to help get it through the transition to the more advanced QNX software platform in 2012.