The BlackBerry Curve Review

It has been a big year for RIM. Their profits are up, their devices have been getting great reviews and their subscriber base is growing by the day. Unquestionably, the big hit for RIM this year was the BlackBerry Pearl – the 8100. They quickly followed it up with the 8800 – bringing a much needed redesign to their corporate clients. Then the 8830 brought both GSM and CDMA into one device.

In steps the BlackBerry Curve to bridge the gap between the ‘corporate’ 8800 series and the ‘consumer’ 8100. The ‘Curve’ is smaller than the 8800, yet wider than the Pearl. It seems to take the best of both worlds, however – the big screen and great resolution of the 8800 and pocketable size and thinness of the Pearl. Add in rich media features and 2.0 megapixel camera and it looks like RIM has a huge hit on its hands. Read on for a thorough review. The BlackBerry Curve improves upon many of the features found in both the BlackBerry Pearl and the 8800 series. It is very solid to hold, has a full QWERTY keyboard, a big screen, multi-media features and famous BlackBerry email capabilities. The Curve adds some new features into BlackBerry’s arsenal like Push to talk, a 2.0 mega pixel camera and A2DP – Bluetooth Stereo Streaming capabilities.

About RIM

Research In Motion is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of innovative wireless solutions for the worldwide mobile communications market. Through the development of integrated hardware, software and services that support multiple wireless network standards, RIM provides platforms and solutions for seamless access to time-sensitive information including e-mail, phone, SMS messaging, Internet and intranet-based applications. RIM technology also enables a broad array of third party developers and manufacturers to enhance their products and services with wireless connectivity to data. RIM’s portfolio of award-winning products, services and embedded technologies are used by thousands of organizations around the world and include the BlackBerry(r) wireless platform, software development tools, radio-modems and software/hardware licensing agreements. Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario, RIM operates offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. RIM is listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market (Nasdaq: RIMM) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: RIM).


Features Available

The BlackBerry 8300 features complete functionality, including*:

Wireless email

Organizer

Browser

Phone

Camera

BlackBerry(r) Maps

Corporate data access 1

SMS

MMS 1

Next-generation media player

Instant messaging

64 MB Flash memory plus micro SD expandable memory slot**

Full QWERTY keyboard

Tethered modem capability – use your smartphone as a wireless modem for your laptop or PC*

Dedicated Send, End and Mute keys, a trackball navigation system, plus user definable convenience keys

Speakerphone and Voice Activated Dialing

Bluetooth(r) capability for hands-free dialogue via headsets and car kits – mono/stereo headset, hands-free and serial port profiles supported. Bluetooth stereo audio (A2DP/AVCRP)

3.5mm stereo headset capable

Integrated attachment viewing

Compatibility with popular Personal Information Management (PIM) software

High resolution, light sensing screen that adjusts lighting levels automatically for ideal indoor and outdoor viewing

Easy email set-up directly from your BlackBerry Curve via the set-up wizard

Enterprise friendly

The BlackBerry Curve smartphone works with your organization’s BlackBerry(r) Enterprise Solution to provide enterprise class functionality, including:

Advanced security features

Push delivery of data from corporate applications

Remote address book look-up

Wireless synchronization with corporate PIM tools

Single mailbox integration

Unlike traditional mobile phones, the BlackBerry Curve smartphone can be centrally managed and supported by IT departments.

The plethora of features are described in detail on RIM’s web site. Here are the highlights:

You love to be where the action is. So does the BlackBerry(r) Curve(tm) 8300 smartphone. At the hottest new club, a friend’s place or work – your messages find you so you stay connected to everything that matters.

Get your personal and work emails automatically as they come in

Open attachments on the go

Choose the account you want to reply or compose from – you can manage up to 10 (supported) email accounts

Text friends around the corner or around the world via SMS and MMS*

Day or night, you stay one step ahead with the organizer on your BlackBerry(r) Curve(tm) 8300 smartphone. Here’s just a taste of what you can do:

Fire off an email or make a call – right from your contacts list

Keep your meetings and appointments straight and update them on the go

Take notes on a call or record a great idea when it hits you

Check tasks off as you complete them – wherever you complete them

Experience pure synchronicity. Synch up with your computer for a single, up-to-date organizer.

With the BlackBerry(r) Curve(tm) 8300 smartphone, you’re always just a couple of clicks away from whatever you’re looking for on the web.

Get what you need fast with a dynamic, highly responsive Internet experience

Bookmark your favorite sites

Download cool ringtones and get the latest stock updates or sports scores

Surf effortlessly with trackball navigation

Can phone features really stimulate your senses? Only when they’re enveloped in the smooth, inviting lines of the BlackBerry(r) Curve(tm) 8300 smartphone.

Do some name dropping – with Voice-Activated Dialing (VAD), you can initiate a call just by telling your smartphone whom you want to speak to – it works seamlessly with the built-in speakerphone or a Bluetooth(r) headset

Hear and be heard with advanced sound technology that cancels out background noise and echo

Make your smartphone your own with polyphonic and mp3 ringtones

Fumble for the right button? Never. Dedicated volume and mute keys let you make adjustments quickly and easily

Take the BlackBerry Curve on a world tour – it’s a quad-band smartphone – so you can connect virtually anywhere across North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific.

Get your friends to strike a pose – then just snap and send. With the BlackBerry(r) Curve(tm) 8300 smartphone, you can send your latest pics across town or around the globe instantly via email, MMS or BlackBerry(r) Messenger*. You get:

2.0 megapixel digital camera

Digital zoom

Built-in flash

And hey, you can even upload shots to your Flickr(tm) account with Yahoo!(r) Go.

Get your fill of video and music with the media player on your BlackBerry(r) Curve(tm) 8300 smartphone. On a train. In a cab. Wherever your imagination takes you.1 Just plug in a stereo headset and kick back with your tunes while you reply to messages. Or download news or sports clips and watch the big, bright screen as you catch up on what’s hot. The expandable memory means you can save your favorites on a microSD card.2

Want to rip a CD? Convert and transfer your music and video files to your BlackBerry Curve? We’ve included a desktop media manager to make it easy.

1 All audio and video files must be transferred to the smartphone before playing. Files can be transferred via USB cable, smartphone browser application or Bluetooth.

2 The BlackBerry Curve accepts microSD cards; the amount of storage is determined by card capacity.

Whether you’re going to your client’s office or the latest downtown hot spot, BlackBerry(r) Maps makes it easy. Check maps for fast turn-by-turn directions virtually anywhere. Simply click on an address in your address book, type it or paste one in and you’re practically there.

You can make BlackBerry Maps even better with a Bluetooth(r)-enabled GPS receiver.

Don’t stress over storage space. Your BlackBerry(r) Curve(tm) 8300 smartphone uses a microSD card so you’ll have room to snap more photos and keep your music and videos with you.*

And when you want to transfer files between the BlackBerry Curve and your computer, it’s a snap. We’ve included a USB cable you simply connect to transfer content directly to or from your microSD card or internal memory. Or if you’re into Bluetooth technology, you can move files that way too.

* The BlackBerry Curve accepts microSD cards; the amount of storage is determined by card capacity.

Get online where you want to. You can upload and download large files using your BlackBerry(r) Curve(tm) 8300 smartphone as a wireless modem for your laptop – no matter where life takes you.*

Go ahead, browse the web and exchange files – and do it at the speed of broadband.

*Check with your service provider for supported features and services

Work smarter and play harder with third party applications built for BlackBerry(r) Curve(tm) 8300 smartphones.

Want to simplify your record-keeping? Track expenses as you go.

Into games? Play a new one every day and watch your stats improve.

Creating and editing documents when you’re away from your desk? Download fully functional word processing applications.

Need to track your hours from virtually anywhere? Download time and billing software and capture your time wherever your work takes you.

Sculpting your body? Chart your diet and exercise patterns.

Push to Talk Features

Availability status: Easy-to-read icons let you know when members of your contact list are available, not available, or have their status set to ‘Do Not Disturb.’ You can also set your own status to let others know that you’re busy.

Conversion to voice call: When a quick PTT call needs to be a longer discussion convert the call easily to a regular voice call. Works for one-to-one calls as well as group calls.

Quick groups: Save time on group calling by pulling up your contacts and simply ‘marking’ those you wish to include on a call. No need to set up and save groups before calling, unless you want to.

Contact alerts: Find out immediately when someone you’re waiting for becomes available.


Specifications:

Size (LxWxD):

4.2 x 2.4 x 0.6 inches
(107mm x 60 mm x 15.5 mm)

Weight:

111g

Memory:

64MB Flash memory, microSD expandable memory slot *

Camera:

2 MP, flash, zoom, self-portrait mirror


Voice input/output:

Stereo headset jack (3.5mm), integrated earpiece/microphone, integrated speakerphone, and stereo/mono headset, hands-free and serial port Bluetooth(r)
profiles supported

Notification:

Polyphonic ringtones, vibrate mode, LED indicator, MP3 ringtones


Video format support:

MPEG4 Part 2 Simple Profile, H.263, WMV

Audio format support:

MP3, MIDI, AMR-NB, AAC/AAC+/eAAC+, WMA, WAV

Approximate Battery Life:

Standby time – 408 hours (17days),
Talk time – 240 minutes (4 hours) **

OK – lot’s to talk about here – so……on to the review:

Design:

The BlackBerry Curve really does take the best of both the Pearl and the 8800 Series. People either love or hate the SureType keyboard on the Pearl and there were mixed reviews of the full QWERTY keyboard on the 8800. The Curve responds with a full QWERTY design with a wonderful tactile feel. Keys are similar in shape to the 8800 but with a much more ‘rubberized feel’ and great spacing. Two finger typing was better on the Curve than any other BlackBerry I have tested.

The screen is wider than the Pearl, but no taller – pretty much identical to the 8800. Colors were bright and beautiful.

On the front of the device, under the screen, there is the trackball – front and center – with the ‘Escape’ or ‘Back’ key to the right and the ‘Menu’ key to the left of the trackball. To the left of the Menu key sits the familiar ‘Green’ phone key which places calls or accesses the phone menus and to the far right is the ‘Red’ end or cancel key.

The top of the Curve has the traditional BlackBerry ‘Mute’ button on the left-hand side. There are Volume up and Volume down buttons along the right hand side of the device. Also on the right hand side of the device is a dedicated convenience key pre-programmed for the Camera.

Along the left hand side you can find the mini-USB charging port (The Curve can charge off an AC adapter, the PC or the car,) a full 3.5 mm earphone/headphone port and a dedicated ‘Convenience’ button which is by default set to the Push to Talk Program.

The Curve is designed with a full QWERTY keyboard. Each key can also double for a number or symbol with a push of the ALT key. The keys are close together – but not too close by any means. I also found them to be bigger and easier to push than the Treo keys. The keys are contoured with flat faces and rounded sides.

One very nice feature is the inclusion of the Micro SD card which sits in a dedicated slot under the back cover of the Curve. While this might be a little inconvenient, it is certainly better than the placement under the battery (which how the 8100 is designed.) In reality, I find that once I insert a memory card it stays there. If you frequently swap out your memory cards, you might find the placement inconvenient.

The intangible element which is hard to describe is how nice this thing feels in your hand. Heavy, but not really – more solid than anything. It has a nice rubberized texture on the sides and parts of the bottom and back. Where the 8800 felt sort of ‘cheap’ by blackberry standards, the Curve feels rugged and not fragile. It is also beautifully thin – as thin
s the Pearl. It is noticeably shorter and thinner than the 8800 fitting nicely in a pocket or purse.

The Curve as an Email Device:

BlackBerry devices are known for their email capabilities and the Curve certainly excels in this area. The Curve can handle up to 10 personal email accounts and also works with the BlackBerry enterprise Server for all your corporate email needs.

BlackBerry Internet Service
BlackBerry Internet Email(tm), part of BlackBerry Internet Service(tm), allows users to access up to ten personal and corporate email accounts (such as Yahoo!(r) and Microsoft(r) Exchange) from a single device

Wireless synchronization (optional setting)

Messages deleted on your handset will be automatically deleted from your email account.

Messages read on your handset will be automatically marked as read in your email account.

Messages sent from your handset will appear in the ‘sent items’ folder of your email account.

Account configuration features include:

Filters

Reply-to address

Friendly Name

Auto Signature

With BlackBerry Internet Service you can also create a special BlackBerry email address just for your device The device you are using has already been set up with a special address that looks like this: (name)@mycingular.blackberry.net.

BlackBerry Enterprise Server

Users can also select the BlackBerry Enterpriser Server option Users can use this option to associate the BlackBerry Pearl with a Microsoft(r) Outlook, IBM(r) Lotus(r) Notes(r) or Novell(r) GroupWise(r) work email account and to take advantage of advanced wireless data synchronization capabilities If a system administrator has provided an enterprise activation password, users can set up email using this option by selecting the I want to use a work email account with a BlackBerry Enterprise Server option in the setup wizard of the handset If the user does not have an enterprise activation password, contact the system administrator.

Email setup was a snap. I used the BIS (BlackBerry Internet Service) and had my email up and running very quickly. The BlackBerry was not able to automatically configure my IMAP account, but I was able to very easily input the settings and get that working perfectly.

When email arrives, the LED in the upper right hand corner flashes red. Simply navigate to the messages icon and there is your email. A simple push on the trackball and a click of reply and you can easily type in your reply. One more click of the trackball and you send your email. It could not be easier.

The full keyboard is a nice addition. Although, I find that my emails are just as quick using the Sure-Type keyboard on the Pearl, I must say that it is nice to use a full keyboard and not have to wonder if the right word will be displayed. They keys worked well for me – more responsive than either the 8800 or the Treo or MotoQ keys..

The Curve as a Phone:

I found the call quality of the Curve to be generally very good. I always had strong signal and never had a problem hearing callers. Callers on the other end told me that my voice sounded fine and clear. I did experience the dreaded ATT drop out a few times – but I blame the crappy network and not the Curve for that. The Curve is a full featured phone. You can make conference calls, use call forwarding, set individual ring tones and pictures for your contacts, access your call log – pretty much everything you need a phone to do.

The Curve also includes Voice Signal’s speech recognition ‘Voice Command’ software which worked quite well. Simply say ‘Call X’ and the Voice Command software confirms your selection, asks you whether you want ‘home’ or ‘work’ or ‘mobile’ and places the call. No voice training was necessary.

When a call came in, a simple press of the Green phone key or the trackball answered the call. The Curve also has an excellent speaker phone option which was loud and clear.

The Curve as a PIM (Personal Information Manager)

All your PIM needs can certainly be handled by this phone. Since this is primarily a business device (that many consumers will use) it handles calendar, address book, tasks, memos and attachments with ease.

The Calendar program is very easy to use and quite powerful. It easily Syncs with either Outlook or most other popular programs and it can import your data from a .csv or tab delineated format. It was easy to navigate to the date wanted with the trackball. Click the trackball and you can easily navigate down to put in the subject of the appointment, change the date, time, duration, set alarms and set recurring appointments.

The address book can also import your information from Outlook or other programs and can also import Vcard files. I found that it even imported the pictures that I used with my contacts from Outlook. One of the nice features of the BlackBerry address book is the ability to highlight your contact, then push the menu key and scroll to send them an SMS message, email them or call them. The BlackBerry software makes these tasks very intuitive. Contextual help built into each application can also guide the user through the various tasks and capabilities.

Tasks and memos can also easily be imported and were easy to use on the Curve. The nice amount of real estate on the screen and the bright, self adjusting light of the screen coupled with clear fonts made reading memos and tasks quite nice. One nice feature found on the Curve (as well as other newer Blackberries) is Voice memos. it is so easy to just record a message and send it to a contact. They receive a simple .wav file which most other phones can open easily.

The BlackBerry Curve is capable of viewing attachments in most formats – PDF’s, Spreadsheets, Document and Power Points (albeit scaled down) but it cannot edit these files or open them in any other form than from attachments. For most business users, this is adequate functionality. On the horizon is Documents to Go for the BlackBerry which, if priced similarly to the Windows Mobile version, will take the BlackBerry world by storm.

Multi-Media Features:

The Curve is much more of a ‘Media Centric’ device that the 8800 and it has better Media features than the Pearl. There are many media icons on the Curve – some linked to specific AT and T services. A click on the main ‘Media’ icon brings up a nice media screen with easy navigation between Music, Video, Ringtones and Pictures. Music sounded crisp through the Curve and the standard 3.5 mm jack makes plugging in your headphones a snap. You will want to think about using a combo Earphone/Microphone setup since you can take calls while listening to music,

There are icons on the Curve for shopping games, tones, music and graphics. There is also an icon for a ‘killer’ feature – streaming music. With the Curve, you can subscribe to XM satellite music and enjoy streaming music from several of their great stations. What is even cooler than that is that the Curve supports A2DP – Streaming Bluetooth Stereo. So, you can stream XM and listen through Bluetooth Stereo Headphones (look ma, no wires.)

As cool as this was – it was far less cool in reality – no fault of the Curve – but of the poor ATT network. In my neighborhood, although the Curve showed full EDGE service, the streaming music stopped to buffer about every minute or so with at least a 20 second pause before it restarted. This was just not acceptable for continued listening. I can only hope that ATT will improve their network and maybe RIM will take advantage of true 3G speeds available on other devices.

Music can be loaded using the desktop manager software onto the Micro SD card (to save space) into the Music subdirectory. Simply navigate to the music and play a single song, play all of your music, shuffle your songs and even show the playlist on the screen. Music is arranged by songs, artists, genres and you have the ability to shuffle your music as well. There are no audio controls except for volume – but music sounded very good on the Curve – certainly rivaling the sonic quality of pretty much any MP3 player.

The Curve ships with a sample video which was remarkably smooth. Getting my own videos to play was another matter altogether. While the Curve does support several different video formats, most videos had to be converted to work properly on the Curve. Fortunately, unlike the Pearl and 8800, the Curve comes with a Media Manager desktop program based on Roxio’s Media Manager software. There are options for Video conversion built in which made life much easier than on the Pearl and the 8800.

Assigning your MP3’s as ringtones was very easy, provided you have the song copied in the ‘Ringtone’ folder on either the Micro SD card or the device itself.

There are many free games, however, which can be downloaded from the BlackBerry Help bookmark in the web browser. I found Solitaire, a fishing game and several others which were easy to install, fun to play and looked great on the BlackBerry screen. With ATT you can download games over the air (are you listening T-Mobile) and they are billed directly to your account.

Web Browsing:

I do believe (and some disagree with me) that the BlackBerry web browser is tops in the mobile browsing field. Of course, the new iPhone (based on the Safari Browser) is providing a strong challenge to my theory. The BlackBerry browser loads text first and quickly adds the graphics. Web pages that took close to 30 seconds to fully load on a Windows Mobile phone with a 3G connection took almost half as long to load on the BlackBerry.

Setting bookmarks was very easy as was putting in an address to go to.

One nice feature of the BlackBerry is the availability of free ‘Push’ web services like weather, Reuters news and others. The BlackBerry will periodically go online and update the content and push it right to your phone.

I found the trackball great for web browsing – it was very easy and intuitive to move up, down, left or right on the screen using the trackball.


Bundled Software and Accessories:

The BlackBerry Curve come very nicely equipped – much better equipped than pretty much any other smartphone. In the box, you get the Phone, AC charger, USB charging/Data cable, an earbud headset, stereo earphones with a Microphone, a Micro SD card Adapter, manual and CD with a great video tutorial.

Software is pretty standard issue. BlackBerry does have lots of free downloadable add ons from the BlackBerry Home page or Help page of the web browser. News readers, Push content, games and free wallpaper and ringtones can easily be found if you look for them.

One other software feature I was not able to try out is ATT’s Push to Talk feature which is included on the Curve. For those who are accustomed to this feature, I am sure they will appreciate its inclusion on the Curve.

Overall Conclusions:

I love my Pearl. That being said, I think this is BlackBerry’s best device to date. The Curve is so nice to hold and use. It feels solid – there is no squeaking like the 8800 and the Pearl. The keys are very tactile and easy to use. BlackBerry Email just can’t be beat and it works flawlessly on the Curve.

Throw in a good 2.0 Mega Pixel camera and full media capabilities along with flawless Synchronization with Outlook and you have (almost) the perfect device. Powerful enough for the business user and die-hard BlackBerry user and fun for those looking to also use this as an MP3 device, Video viewer and Camera.

Bluetooth Stereo is a great addition and ATT give you lots of options for spending money on extra software, music and games.

My biggest gripe (this will sound familiar to iPhone users) is the ATT network. At my home, my T-Mobile Pearl only gets GPRS – but that was faster than ATT’s EDGE service. Web browsing was passable but streaming music was impossible.

Final Grade: A

Pros; Great size, feel and build quality. Nice set of features, great email capabilities. A good Media device

Cons: ATT network is iffy and slow, Call quality was good but not great.

The BlackBerry Curve is available for $199.00 from http://www.wireless.att.com/cell-phon … da-phones-smartphones.jsp with a two year agreement and for $75.00 with a rebate of $75.00 making it FREE from www.amazon.com.

Written by Gary