Blackberry Reviews

BlackBerry Curve 8310 Smartphone Review

The Blackberry Curve 8310, released in the year 2007, has turned out to be the most loved phone in the Blackberry Curve series. It is the Blackberry series with satellite navigation along with features like email, internet, 2 mega pixel camera and memory card slot. RIM have taken on a great idea by continuing to release models in the Blackberry 8800 series that keep the people of corporate sector happy and simultaneously the Blackberry Curve series which will keep the consumers sector happy. This time Blackberry has to face some fierce competition as the mobiles that run on the Microsoft’s Windows Mobile Platform are selling twice that of those running on the RIM’s Blackberry.

Blackberry Curve 8310 is the successor of Blackberry Curve 8300 which was released in the month of June, the same year. While both of them has similar looks and features, the major difference is the introduction of the GPS.

Smart, stylish design:

The design of the phone is exactly the same as that of its predecessor. One of the major things that the designers of the Blackberry Curve had to keep in mind is that, since this series, unlike the others, is consumer oriented, they has to design the phone in such a way that it is slim and stylish enough to attract the consumer community. It has a 2.5 inch LCD display. The Curve 8310 has managed to weigh an average 111grams that is just 12 grams more than Blackberry Pearl, that had two letters in each key. But 8310, being just 10mm wider at 60mm has managed to put on a full QWERTY keyboard. Hence, the designers have succeeded, making 8310 one of the most stylish device in the market.

Navigation:

The small keys in the QWERTY keyboard work much faster than the usual T9 predictive text available in the Pearl, once you get used to it. The main navigational button is the mini pearl like trackball that was in imitation from the Pearl. With this, you will see that scrolling through long pages is no longer irritating.  This smart phone has been designed ergonomically.

Menu usage:

The menus of the RIM Blackberry Curve 8310 are really a breeze to use once you get used to it. Blackberry key switch is used to switch between various applications and reassign items in the launcher. Once the application is opened, the same key brings up very useful drop down menus. The sat nav application was absent in the default programs list in the Curve’s launch bar, surprising! The phone has a simple navigation set up that aids you in a lot of means. The Curve lends itself particularly well for your email and browsing needs. There are no annoying home pages that you will have to go to and eliminating your need for entering the entire URLs of the sites that you want to visit. All that you need to do is, select Go To option from the drop-down menu where you can select whichever website you want to, when the browser application is active.

Satellite navigation feature:

You must have used the sat nav application in the other mobiles and said, “what is the great deal?” as all of them take ages to even pinpoint your current location. But the combo of the Google maps, Vodafone sat nav and Blackberry have done a great job. They get you your locations in just a few seconds. But Vodafone cannot actually take all the success of the sat nav feature as it had bought in a third party application from Telmap that had already proven to be successful. The Google map application is not custom designed to be used while driving and so, you will have to plot the route before you start driving and then start off by following the sat nav.

Sat nav menus:
Even if you are not familiar with the way Blackberry menus work, you will not be having any trouble working with it. All that you will have to know is that, if you click over the red arrow icon, the Vodafone sat nav application will be launched and then just select yes to admit Telmap to make use of the satellites to get the maps and locations for you. It will then take you to a screen that has options like “Where To“, “Place or Business“, “Where am I“ and “My places and Inbox”. As each of their names indicate, they work accordingly. For instance, the option “where am I” presents you with a 2D map of your current location and when you click over it with the central navigation button, it displays to you the address and geo-reference. You will also be able to save the location along with details attached to it like the place name and number. The only issue is that, we feel is that, the display is a bit on the smaller side for viewing the maps.

Sat nav operation:
If you choose to go to a particular place with the help of the Sat Nav, just enter the town name, suburb name or just the post code number. In just a few seconds, the complete route data will be downloaded, and you will be set to explore. You can move around the map with the numeric keys as was the case of the sat navs in the other Blackberry smart phones. The Google maps take some relatively long time to pick up signals in areas that are heavily built and in that case, by default, it tends to display to you maps that cover quite a large geographical area. In such a case, just move around the map and zoom-in and out will help you better making your work a little faster and easier. Your current location in the map will be indicated by a flashing blue ball and you can go back there by just pressing the ’0’ key. The navigation instructions are given by a female voice that is clear and authoritative but not bossy. In case you misinterpret the instructions, the error sound is just a gentle ping and not some irritating alarm like sound.

Lack of connectivity:

One of the major dis advantages of the 8310 is that, it lacks connectivity. The support for Wi-Fi that was available in phones like Blackberry 8820 is absent in this model. And like every other RIM Blackberry except the Blackberry 8320, this phone too lacks 3G. One of the major disadvantages of lack of 3G is that, you will be limited to the speeds of the GPRS and so, at times web surfing can be horribly slow.

Camera and memory:

A smart phone without a decent camera and memory card slot is sure to fail. The other Blackberry models that were designed without camera keeping in mind the security concerns, but since the Curve is consumer oriented, this feature cannot be neglected.

2 MP camera:
And so RIM has taken a wise decision to include a 2 mega pixel camera and a multimedia card slot to impress its consumer market. Though the fact that the resolution is just 2 mega pixels might limit the definition of the images, but the images taken have strong and natural looking colours. Photos you take can be saved and used as caller ID images. These images can be displayed on any external display of up to 1,600 x 1,200 pixels resolution. Flash is available and you will be able to zoom 200 percent. The flash that is provided is one of the brightest LED photo lights that we would have ever seen and hence taking snaps in low light areas is never going to be an issue. Micro mirror is available for you to take self portraits. In addition, you can also give interesting colour effects to your images.

Memory:
About 64MB of internal flash memory is available and the microSD card slot accepts cards of up to 2GB in capacity. You will definitely need to make you of the slot if you want to make use of the multimedia applications.

Email:

Our review is not complete if we do not list you systems and protocols that this mailing and messaging specialist has. Though, RIM is no longer having the virtual monopoly over the push email services, this device stands tall, unbeatable when it comes to messaging. The email application is very straightforward. It has the Blackberry Enterprise Server (BES) for Microsoft Exchange, IBM Lotus Domino and Novell GroupWise. It also integrates with an existing enterprise email account, personal email account and new device account. It also has the support for AES or Triple DES encryption when integrated with BES.

Battery:

Most of the smartphones in the current market have very poor battery lives. But thankfully, Curve gives you a good four hours of talk time and two and a half weeks of stand-by time. The satellite navigation feature drains off the battery of the Blackberry Curve like nobody’s business.

Availability:

Blackberry Curve 8310 smartphone is being sold exclusively with Vodafone in UK and the combo of GPS makes the smart phone complete. You will get a full year of Vodafone sat nav service with updates that are quarterly, which is included within the contract of the handset.

The Blackberry Curve 8310 comes with one year limited warranty.

Verdict:

RIM has done a great job with the Curve 8310. The Palm Treo 600v is a heavy competitor to the Blackberry Curve. The 8310 retains the core features that made BlackBerry into a household name and indispensable business tool, full keypad and push email. It also adds some new features that make the Curve more like a multimedia smartphone, a camera, media player and GPS satellite navigation.

Having solid built quality and adequate features why would not we recommend it. The Curve 8310 is an excellent value for money too.

Check Reviews of Latest Blackberry Phones, Blackberry Pearl Series reviews in this website.

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RIM BlackBerry Curve 8310 - Technical Specification Details

Manufacturer	RIM
Model Name	BlackBerry Curve 8310
Product Series	Curve Series
Form factor	Candy-bar
Screen size	2.5 inch
Colours supported	16 bits (65,536 colours)
Screen resolution	320 x 240 Pixels
Dimensions	107 x 60 x 15 mm
Weight	111 grams
Colours available	Grey, red
On-board memory	64MB
Memory card type	microSD
Memory expansion	Yes
Ringtones	Polyphonic, Real music
Camera resolution	2 megapixels
LED photo light	Yes
Video recording	Yes
Music playback	Yes
Supported formats	MP3, AAC, WMA
FM radio	No
Headphone socket	3.5mm
Messaging	Short Messaging Service Multimedia Messaging Service Internet browser WAP protocol supported 2.0 E-mail client Java
Connectivity	Bluetooth, USB, GPS receiver
Operating system	RIM BlackBerry
Synchronisation software	Roxio Media Manager for BlackBerry
Desktop software	Roxio Media Manager for BlackBerry
System requirements	Browser and Internet connection
Handwriting recognition	No
Security features	Password protection and keyboard lock Support for AES or Triple DES encryption when integrated with BlackBerry Enterprise Server FIPS 140-2 Validated (FIPS Validation) Optional support for S/MIME
Accessories Included	USB cable Wall charger
Warranty	One year

The Blackberry 8820 was the fourth hit of the year 2007. The other three were the Blackberry Pearl, Blackberry Curve and 8800 respectively. It is almost well known to all of us that a smart phone without Wi-Fi is really very hard to survive in the current market. That was one of the major reasons why the blackberry smart phones were not able to attain that coveted sell outs. Now, blackberry has come up with its first Wi-Fi enabled phone, a long awaited one. The 8820 is similar to 8800 in many ways such as the design, and features which have been just upgraded.

Design - a cloning of blackberry 8800

Talking about the design, it is a cloning of the Blackberry 8800. It feels quite bulky with the large QWERTY keyboard and with its dimensions being (H x W x D) 114 x 66 x 14 milli meters and weighs 134grams. The wide design of this smart phone make it very difficult for it to be held as a normal phone. It has a 2.5″ display which has a resolution of 320 x 240 pixels giving a widescreen viewing area. The display is very sharp and bright. Just below the screen you will find the basic four buttons and a track ball. The 8820 is entirely black with silver letterings and silver buttons in the sides. The trackball is white and is a real breeze to use, it makes scrolling through the web menus and selection of various icons in the menu very easy.

QWERTY keyboard:

The QWERTY keyboard is of great help when in comes to typing out your texts, and it feels to be a better system than that of the SureType predictive system that is employed in pearl. The keys are large and are placed side by side in ergonomically. The keys are flat which some people might like and some will not prefer it though. The blackberry pearl might be a good performer as a phone with its half qwerty keyboard but as a messenger and composing mails, 8820 smartphone from Blackberry does a better job.

Memory and memory card slots:

Only 64MB of internal memory is provided, you can expand it though using microSD cards. But since the slot is available under the battery cover you will not be able to swap cards without switching off your blackberry. It would have been a much better option to have the memory card slot in a more accessible fashion. But the happy news is that, blackberry supports the SDHC cards and hence you can increase you memory to up to 32GB.

VOIP facility:

Weather or not you can make voice over IP calls depends on what the phone is prepared to allow as blackberry uses the UMA protocol and not the SIP. The network will be in control and if you do have the facility, then blackberry 8820 switches automatically from Wi-Fi and GSM network to make voice and data connectivity.

Robust mobile email:

Similar to the other blackberry smart phones, you have several options for mobile email. You can use the internet services of blackberry to receive your mails of POP and IMAP for up to ten accounts in case you are a stand alone user and you can also opt to use the BES (Blackberry Enterprise Server) if you are in a corporate.

Wi-Fi - finally:

Setting up the Wi-Fi connections can be done in seconds. All that you will have to do is, just select the dedicated Wi-Fi icon in the menu then select the network and just enter your password, that’s it. When you start using the Wi-Fi you will sense the difference in the speed immediately. The pages get loaded much quickly and the browser feels far more responsive than that of a GPRS connection. The manage connections utility that had been added by RIM helps you to manage your Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GSM very effectively. The integrated GPS antenna and the maps application that was available in the 8800 can be found in 8820 also. When it is used in conjunction with the GPS, it is not as satisfactory as a stand alone satellite navigation system or that of a CoPilot in a mobile. It is extremely slow taking about five minutes at times. It gives a feel that these functionalities have been included for the sake of specification and much work has to be done with the implementation and its respective execution. Another fact that must be taken in to consideration is that, since the maps are being downloaded through air, depending on your tariff, this service can prove to be costly for you too.

However since the support for 3G is still unavailable, web browsing can be very sluggish and the pages on GPRS might be testing your patience.

Multimedia:

In Blackberry’s effort to change this mobile email device in to a device that is filled with features to compete with the current mobile and smartphones, RIM has also included a music player application whose performance is satisfactory. A full battery charge gives you just more than 10 hours of music which is quiet good for a mobile phone. You can also enjoy stereo Bluetooth output.

There is no camera in Blackberry 8820 from RIM, as was the case of 8800. The absence of camera is a welcome feature by big companies as for the security reasons. When it comes to the hardware, it is all similar to 8800. The blackberry 8820 operates on the Microsoft windows mobile operating system. The miscellaneous applications that are included are, address book, calendar, memo pad, task lists, alarm, calculator, voice dialling and mobile email. The software that is bundled along with the 8820 included the Roxio Media Manager that helps in file conversion and transfer.

Security:

In case of loss or theft of the BlackBerry 8820 SmartPhone, RIM provides you a lot of options to choose from. There is the password protection and the basic keyboard lock feature. Also there is a support of the AES or the Triple DES encryption when it is integrated with the BES. It is also validated with the FIPS 140-2 and has an optional support of the S/MIME too.

Battery:

The battery life of the RIM Blackberry 8820 depends fully on how much of the GPS receiver and the Wi-Fi features you use. On the whole, it is pretty decent giving you around six hours of talk-time and three weeks of stand by time.

Verdict:

The upgrading has done good for Blackberry. If you already own a blackberry mobile without the WiFi and looking for a replacement, another blackberry like this one will itself do the job for you as you will not be able to find better mobile email options elsewhere. The Blackberry 8820 Mobile Phone is a great option for the business users.

Read Blackberry Bold Reviews, Blackberry Storm Reviews in this website.

BlackBerry 8820 - Cheap, Best 10 Deals

RIM Blackberry 8820 Smartphone - Technical Specifications, Features

Manufacturer	RIM BlackBerry
Model Name	Blackberry 8820
Phone Series	8800
Colour	Black and silver
Form factor	Candy bar
Dimensions (H x W x D)	114 x 66 x 14 mm
Weight	134 grams
Screen and display	2.5-inch LCD screen
Display resolution	320 x 240 pixels
Main navigation	Track ball
GSM frequencies	900, 1800, 1900
GPRS facility	Yes
3G	No
Connectivity	Bluetooth, WiFi, USB and GPS receiver
Messaging facilities provided	Short Messaging Service (SMS) Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) Internet browser WAP 2.0 protocol supported E-mail client Java
Memory	64MB
Memory expansion	Yes - microSD
Phone features	Polyphonic, Real music ring tones Vibrating alert Calendar Alarm clock Speakerphone Voice dialling Voice recording
Audio playback	Yes
Accessories	Head phone, USB cable and the Wall charger
Security options	Yes
Battery	Lithium ion battery
Talk time	300 min
Stand-by time	528 hours
Warranty	One year

The BlackBerry 8700g is a fine blend of blackberry 7100g and blackberry 7290. Having the looks, speakerphone and polyphonic ringtones of 7100, it has adopted the QWERTY keyboard from the latter.

Undesirable design:

BlackBerry 8700g just a little smaller than the 7290 with a weight difference of just three grams. This phone has the terrible design of the traditional blackberry with a cheap plastic design. It does not for sure have the candy bar form factor, rather a squarish one, with its dimensions being 4.3” x 2.7” x 0.7” (H x W x D) weighing 4.7 ounces.

Good display:

On a good note, there are a few positive improvements when it comes to the display. The display being a spacious 2.5″ QVGA, is now bigger and brighter. It displays 65,000 colours with a resolution of 320 x 240 pixels. The higher resolution gives it a brightness that is miles ahead of the previous Blackberry phones. The display is visible only with the backlight on, whereas, 7290 always had the Tran reflective on the screen. This means, you cannot simply leave it on the desk and peek to have a look if there is any new mails, rather, you will have to fiddle it each time to have a look.

You can also adjust the backlight’s brightness and time-out settings, as well as font size and type, all through the Options menu. A small LED above the screen flashes different colours to alert you to various messages: green for network activity, red for message notification, yellow for low battery, and blue for Bluetooth connectivity.

The QWERTY Keyboard:

While typing, the Blackberry 8700g smartphone does a great job without any denial. It has incorporated new Send or End and soft keys are also found on recent BlackBerrys. The center soft key, or the front convenience key as RIM calls it, can be programmed to launch any application. The side convenience key on the left spine can also do the same job for you. The keyboard itself is fairly spacious, and gives you no troubles in firing off quick e-mails and text messages. Yet, while they are well backlit, the slippery and plasticky feel of the keys way not that enjoyable.

Ports and interfaces:

There is a USB port and a headset jack on the left side, while the right end sports the track wheel that we are already familiar of and an escape button. The keyboard has the alt button that allows you to toggle between different applications. This button is a familiar one, as it was already available in 8700c. Rounding out the BlackBerry 8700g’s chassis are power and mute buttons on top, as well as the speakerphone on the mobile’s backside. For the sake of connectivity, RIM has included a wealthy set of accessories like wired headset, a USB cable, a travel charger, a belt hose and an AC adapter.

The high speed EDGE:

The absence on 3G was disappointing but, RIM Blackberry 8700g has taken the privilege to be the first blackberry device to have EDGE support. EDGE too provides broadband like data speeds. But at the time when blackberry 8700g was released in UK, there were no UK networks with an EDGE service, now there is no problem though.

A faster processor:

blackberry 8700g’s new intel inside design allows it to experience speed like never before. This was achieved with the help of the PXA901 processor which runs at 312MHz.

Coming to multimedia, entertainment sector, Blackberry 8700g PDA Phone is nothing but awful. There is no MP3 player, no camera and hence no memory card slot. This is where, blackberry completely looses the normal consumer market. RIM might think that these are a loop hole for some of the secure information to be leaked but, we hope that a blackberry phone with more jingles with no compromise on the security features would sell more.

Great performer as a corporate device:

There is no question on the performance of blackberry as a complete corporate phone. It is on a music when it works with RIM’s BES (Blackberry Enterprise Server). The blackberry will be having a controlled access to the corporate network which in turn allows you to networks like intranet and LAN with BES’s Mobile Data System. Any of your browsing also goes via the BES that allows you to enjoy the benefits of corporate firewall protection saving you from other web prying eyes. This browsing comes out of your monthly blackberry data allowance, but you will be charged extra with a non-BES version. With triple DES encryption security is done for sure. Email messages are even encrypted at all points between the handheld and the corporate email account.

Centralised management is a cornerstone of the corporate BlackBerry platform. BES allows an array of policies which gives a remote control of what a handheld can and cannot do. The applications can be centrally pushed to the device. There are third-party softwares available too. An easy-to-use tool called MDS Studio, allows you to quickly build your own enterprise applications. And it is when running these applications that you really appreciate the extra speed of the 8700g over previous BlackBerrys.

Messaging:

The proprietary instant messaging client was one of the  consistent complaints of past BlackBerry models, but that ends with the 8700g. We are glad to see that RIM has added support for popular IM apps, such as Yahoo, ICQ, AOL, and MSN. Google Talk is also available for download, and the 8700g supports text and multimedia messaging as well.

Battery:

You might be thinking that all these great features included like brighter screen and a faster processor, all comes at the cost of the battery draining. You are wrong and the fact is almost the other way round. The new light sensor of the phone automatically adjusts the brightness of the display and keyboard according to the surrounding light conditions. Which in turn helps in saving the charge.

The previous blackberry phones were able to last for only four or five days where as, the 8700g from Blackberry was able to make it to a decent one week. This number is quite amazing for a device with permanently open data connection. It gives a standby time of 16 days with a talktime of four hours.

Verdict:

With the next generation QWERTY keyboard, intel processor, EDGE, Bluetooth2.0 and support for up to ten corporate or personal e-mail accounts. Blackberry 8700g is certainly more consumer friendly and easy to use compared to blackberry 8700c. The device delivers greatly as a phone, a mail machine and a handheld.

BlackBerry 8700g - Cheap, Best 10 Deals

RIM BlackBerry 8700g  - Technical Specifications, Features

Manufacturer	RIM
Model Name	BlackBerry 8700g
Form factor	Square like
Dimensions (H x W x D)	11 X 1.9 X 6.9 cm
Weight	134 grams
Display	2.5″
Colour support	16-bit (64K colors)
Display resolution	320 x 240 pixels
Input device	35-key QWERTY (Keyboard) Keyboard backlighting Thumb-operated trackwheel
Operating system	BlackBerry Handheld Software
Memory	64MB (Flash memory)
RAM	16MB - SDRAM
Processor	Intel 312 MHzXScale PXA901
Messaging	SMS
Internet browser	Yes
Bluetooth	Yes
Connector Type	1Headset , 1USB
Connector Provided	4 pin USB Type A
Security features	Password protection and keyboard lock Support for AES or Triple DES encryption when integrated with BlackBerry Enterprise Server
Phone features	Wireless email Organiser Browser Phone Corporate data access SMS MMS
Battery	Lithium ion
Talk time	240 min
Standby time	Up to 384 h
Power supply device	Power adapter
Accessories included	USB cable Wired headset Wall charger
Warranty	One year