As expected, BlackBerry maker RIM has announced the launch of two new BlackBerry Bold smartphones adding a touchscreen alongside the handsets usual QWERTY keyboard.

The new models, called the BlackBerry Bold 9900 and BlackBerry Bold 9930 will be available in the summer and run BlackBerry OS 7, which has also been revealed at the BlackBerry World expo.

The new phones, which will be virtually identical (it’s an antenna thing) will come with a number of “brand new” technologies for RIM including NFC and a 1.2GHz processor.

The phone will sport a 2.8-inch VGA (640x480) 287 dpi resolution screen.

For entertainment fans there will be 8GB of on-board memory with the option of expanding that via a microSD card.

In the UK we will be getting a standard 3G version, while the US will be getting a 4G offering. No network providers details have been given as of yet.

BlackBerry OS 7 promises new features over the current version 6 iteration. The main feature, according to BlackBerry, is a new improved BlackBerry Browser. The new browser will include JIT (just in time) JavaScript support and HTML5 support.  

BB OS 7 also adds BlackBerry Balance that, like previous Nokia handsets, lets you spilt out business and personal email accounts so you don’t have to feel that the BlackBerry your carrying in your pocket means you are always working.

The announcement confirms previous rumours that the company was launching a touch enabled BlackBerry Bold

Full specs of the new phones include:

- 115 x 66 x 10.5 mm, approximately 130g

- 2.8-inch VGA (640 x 480) 287 dpi resolution

- QWERTY keyboard and optical trackpad

- 1.2GHz processor, 768MB RAM

- 8GB on-board memory microSD card slot up to 32GB

- NFC

- 5 megapixel camera with 720p HD video recording

- GPS,

- Wi-Fi b/g/n

- Bluetooth 2.1

- BlackBerry OS 7

UPDATE: In the US T-Mobile USA has said that it will be stocking the BlackBerry Bold 9900 later this year.