In the wake of the rave reviews for Research in Motion's new 7100T wireless device, some sober thought is being given about its potential impact with consumers. The 7100T is RIM's boldest move to produce more of a telephone-like product, and a real move away from its e-mail-centric Blackberry product. The tech world is excited about the size and shape of the 7100T and - most important - its consumer-friendly US$200 price tag. That said, analysts are now pointing at the 7100T's weaknesses. In particular, there are issues about user frustration with RIM's innovative keyboard, which uses predictive technology to help create words. UBS analyst Michael Urlocker is also concerned about the lack of a digital camera and a flip phone feature, and the relatively short battery life. Granted, this is RIM's first crack at making a telephone, and it's an impressive first move. You would expect a smart company like RIM to address many of the analysts' concerns with its next-generation product.

Now that Rogers Communications Inc. has spent nearly $2-billion to acquire AT&T Corp.'s 34% stake in Rogers Wireless Inc., where does that leave Microcell Telecommunications. It now seems rather unlikely Rogers would make a run at Microcell, which has been sitting in limbo since Telus made a $29-a-share bid for it earlier this year. Rogers likely doesn't have the financial appetite to spend $1.5 billion or so for Microcell, even though a deal makes some sense given they use similar technologies, and consolidation in the wireless industry would be healthy for Rogers, Telus and Bell. As Microcell, Canada's fourth largest wireless carrier, tries to carve out a viable business, it has been desperately trying a variety of marketing tactics to retain and attract customers - the latest being unlimited incoming calls. As this happens, questions are starting to be raised by analysts about whther Microcell's churn rate is significantly higher than what the compoany admits. Microcell appears to be waiting for two scenarios to materialize: its business gains momentum as some of its marketing tactics resonate in the market; or it waits until another suitor (Rogers, Craig McCaw?) come to the rescue. At any rate, the Rogers-AT&T deal should not be last major news of the year.