AT&T has started offering the RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8120, a substantially improved replacement for the Pearl 8100. The earlier model suffered from several problems, including locating the Micro SD card slot behind the battery, which had to be removed to swap cards; a non-standard headphone jack, and EDGE-only data service.

The 8120 relocated the Micro SD slot to the side of the phone for easy access, swapped in a standard 3.5 mm headset/headphone jack for the 2.5 mm one found in the 8100, and added Wi-Fi as a connection option. The new phone also ups the camera resolution from 1.3 megapixels (MP) to 2 MP.

This isn't the first Wi-Fi enabled BlackBerry sold, but it's the first model in the U.S. that's in the compact Pearl form factor, instead of the wider original BlackBerry shape, to include Wi-Fi for connections. The phone is still EDGE only, offering speeds of 100 to 200 Kbps downstream and far less upstream.

AT&T offers the Blackberry Pearl 8120 for $199.99 with a two-year service contract, but that requires a minimum $39.99 per month voice contract and the $30 per month unlimited personal or $45 per month unlimited corporate data plans. Rates can be higher for data depending on services. Push To Talk (PTT) is supported and requires an extra $9.99 a month fee.

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