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Review: BlackBerry Torch 9850

CR H. — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 03:10:34 +0000

Along with the new 99xx, RIM recently released an updated Torch, and a rebranded Storm – the Torch 9850. Is RIM’s third attempt at an all touch device a winner? Read on to hear our thoughts!

Hardware

The Torch 9850 is RIM’s third all touch BlackBerry, following the original Storm, and the Storm 2. Where the two previous Storms had a special “clicky” screen, which RIM dubbed SurePress, the newest Storm, err, Torch features a standard capacitive display. The screen is a gorgeous one with a resolution of 800×480 at 3.7”. It’s very bright and very vivid – as are most BlackBerry screens nowadays. The entire device has a very nice look to it, save for the comically large physical buttons right below the display. We really wish RIM had forgone shipping the device with physical buttons – they really do ruin the “waterfall” look RIM was going for.

As with the other BlackBerry OS 7 devices, the Torch 9850 features a 1.2GHz Qualcomm CPU, 768MB RAM, and 4GB of built-in storage. A 16GB microSD card is also included. The Torch is also a worldphone, packing in the standard CDMA radio along with a GSM radio. Keep in mind that you won’t get 3G on AT&T here in the US with an unlocked unit (you could grab a 9860 from our polar bear riding friends up North). The Torch was fast and smooth, as with all of the other OS 7 devices. The speed and screen were especially nice when using the newly revamped, and finally competitive, web browser.

Overall we found the Torch to be a great looking device, but the physical buttons below the display really bothered us. Maybe next go round RIM will go entirely touch.

Software

As with all of RIM’s other new devices, the Torch features OS 7, which was originally billed as a refresh of OS 6 – and that’s exactly what it is. The new browser is very nice, as is the overall look and speed of the OS. But as we’ve said previously, the spinning clock of misfortune is still showing up far, far too often (read: it should never show up), and managing apps is still a nightmare.

The Torch 9850 and OS 7 also feature RIM’s third attempt at a usable software keyboard. Thankfully RIM is making progress and we were able to type on the Torch without too much frustration. Unfortunately, the experience is still not on par with the likes of Android, Windows Phone 7, or iOS. They keys are very small, the prediction software is very poor, and there’s no feedback whatsoever when pressing keys (haptic or sound).

Battery Life

The Torch 9850 features a relatively small 1230mAh battery. Like the other OS 7 devices, it’s clear a very fast processor and new OS is taking a toll on the legendary BlackBerry battery life. While we could easily power through a day with the Torch, getting through a second day would be close to impossible. We imagine that most everyone that would classify themselves as a BlackBerry power user should grab a backup battery no matter which OS 7 device they choose.

Call quality, signal, etc.

As with any Verizon device (and Sprint, in this case), calls were crisp and clear. We did not have any calls drop, even in low signal areas. Data speeds were adequate, but we stuck to WiFi most of the time. Signal level was iffy at times, with the Torch often dropping down numerous bars while being held – but this isn’t anything new for us, as we’ve seen all of the BlackBerrys in recent history do the same.

Conclusion

RIM’s third attempt at an all touch device is a reasonably good one. The Torch 9850 is good looking (except for those pesky hardware buttons below the display), light, fast, and has a gorgeous display. Unfortunately, the OS 7 keyboard is still quite poor, and the overall OS is still far behind the competition. At the end of the day, Storm diehards will find the 9850 to be a reasonably sound upgrade. But for those on other platforms, we can’t think of any reason why the Torch 9850 would tempt you to become a BlackBerry user.

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Review: BlackBerry Bold 9930 (Verizon)

Dan H. — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 03:10:10 +0000

While companies like Google, Apple, and Microsoft have been pumping out new devices with modern features, RIM has been lagging behind. They’ve been saying that they’re bringing QNX to BlackBerry smartphones, but time is ticking away for the Canadian phone manufacturer. RIM responded to this with three new devices running their new OS, BlackBerry 7: the Bold 99xx, Torch 9850/9860, and the Torch 9810.

We have been using the Bold 9930 as our daily driver for the last few weeks, and we’re here with our full impressions of the device. Is it enough to hold RIM over until the QNX transition? Keep reading to find out.

Hardware

First, a little history on the “Bold” branding: when RIM launched the original Bold 9000 a few years ago, it was commonly called the flagship BlackBerry – it was a rather large device, but in return, you got a rather large display, and an incredible keyboard. When RIM launched the 9700, and later, the 9780, quite a few people disliked the smaller design, and wanted the original 9000 design back. But of course, RIM improved the design along the way. The 9900 series is the thinnest BlackBerry yet, and features an aluminum (no really, it’s not plastic!) ring around the side. It feels amazing in hand.

Well, RIM listened, and the 9930 is the 9000, but modernized and improved. On the front, there’s a 2.8-inch, 640 x 480 resolution display, which is also a touchscreen. No, it’s not the clicky SurePress screen, it’s a proper, non-clicking touchscreen. The display is fantastic, pictures and text rendered crisply. 640 x 480 in 2011 doesn’t sound exciting, but it actually looks pretty good – and that’s because the pixels are being squeezed into a 2.8-inch display.

If RIM does one thing right, it’d definitely be keyboards. Easily. And the 9930 isn’t any different. The keyboard on the 9930 is glorious. The keys are just the right size — big enough so you can type comfortably, but not too big so you get lost when you’re typing. The keys are also angled out from the middle of the keyboard, making keys easy to find.

If you’re a fan of good keyboards, the 9930 won’t disappoint. Above the keyboard, RIM threw in navigation buttons – Call, Menu, Back, End – with a trackpad placed in the middle, just like every other recent BlackBerry. A nice upgrade with the trackpad is an awesome backlight outline of it.

On the left side of the 9930, you’ll find a 3.5mm headphone jack, and a microUSB port for charging and sync. On the opposite side, there’s a mute button sandwiched between volume buttons, along with a programmable convenience key that defaults to Camera. On the top, you’ll find the sleep button.

On the back, you’ll find the 5MP camera (no auto-focus) + flash, along with a smudge-prone battery door that houses the NFC antenna, which unfortunately, isn’t enabled on the Verizon 9930 (at least with the stock OS).

Overall, the 9900 series is a very sound improvement over the original Bold 9000. Hardware wise, this is most certainly the very best BlackBerry to date.

Software

The Bold 9900 series, along with new Torches, ship with BlackBerry OS 7. While originally slated to be an update to OS 6, RIM decided to ship OS 7 as an entirely new OS, which will only run on new hardware. Unfortunately, there’s not tons changed from OS 6, besides a new browser that finally feels competitive. What OS 7 does bring, mostly because of the much improved CPU clock speeds on the new BlackBerry lineup, is some very smooth OS operation. Moving between home screen panels is buttery smooth, as well as zooming and scrolling in the browser.

The spinning clock of misfortune, which BlackBerry users are all too familiar with, is still very much a part of the OS 7 experience unfortunately. Installing apps is still a huge performance killer, as is using the browser in the background. App installation still requires device reboots far too often as well. But thankfully boot speed is much, much improved over any previous BlackBerry devices.

So, while OS 7 is a solid improvement over OS 6, we are still left waiting for the elusive QNX powered BlackBerry. Hopefully it comes soon, because we can’t imagine even the latest crop of BlackBerrys to do much for RIM’s slow bleed out.

Battery Life

With this being a BlackBerry review, you’re probably expecting us to report multi-day usage without issue. Unfortunately, that’s no longer the case with the new Bold 9900 series. RIM had to cut battery capacity in order to keep the slim form factor, and combined with the new CPU, the Bold was only able to get us through about one day of use. We imagine heavy users may have an issue getting through the night, but certainly a full business day is possible. So, for the very first time, we might recommend picking up a spare battery if you choose to go with a Bold 99xx device.

Call quality, signal, etc.

Our 9930 review unit was on Verizon’s fabulous 3G network, which means solid call quality, solid data speeds, and superb coverage. Calls were crisp and never choppy, and we certainly never dropped any calls. Signal level was iffy at times, with the Bold often dropping down numerous bars while being held – but this isn’t anything new for us, as we’ve seen all of the BlackBerrys in recent history do the same.

Conclusion

The Bold 9930 is an absolutely stellar BlackBerry, probably the very best one made to date. Those who are accustomed to the OS will find it a pleasure to use, with the touchscreen adding a pretty nifty way to interact with the OS and apps that was previously limited by the trackpad. But for those who are expecting a killer smartphone experience with apps galore, you won’t find it here with OS 7. RIM still has a very long way to go before they are completely competitive in the consumer smartphone space, and even their grip on the business market is slipping.

Additional reporting by CR H.

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BlackBerry PlayBook: One month later

CR H. — Tue, 24 May 2011 23:05:27 +0000

It’s been almost a month since we posted our full PlayBook review, and since then RIM has released a new OS, some new apps, and enabled BBM over Bridge. We thought this would be a good time to give our quick thoughts on the latest updates and the state of RIM’s tablet.

First up is the latest PlayBook OS, version 1.0.3.1868. Launched only a few days after our full review went live, we’ve had plenty of time to give the OS a thorough look. The biggest change with the latest OS is BBM over Bridge, which we think is fantastic. The BBM client on the PlayBook is excellent and really takes advantage of the larger screen size. We can’t wait until BBM can run on its own with the PlayBook, if RIM ever gets around to enabling that functionality. The ability to add browser bookmarks on the home screen was also introduced, which is another welcome addition.

Unfortunately, battery life has taken a turn for the worse with this latest OS, something which we’ve seen many others echo on Twitter. But while the battery life isn’t great, our PlayBook’s battery meter now correctly goes to 100% while charging. Unfortunately you still can’t charge with the PlayBook turned off, which we still find quite annoying.

Next up is the launch of RIM’s own Facebook app for the PlayBook, which is built on Adobe’s Air platform. We think the app is excellently done and really shows up what an Air-built app can do with the PlayBook’s OS. The app loads quickly, looks excellent (seriously – the UI is awesome), and every major piece of Facebook functionality is present, including the ability to chat with your friends. We hope RIM builds a native Twitter client, which we suspect would be very awesome going by the Facebook app.

Last, and most certainly the least, is the launch of a native video calling app from RIM. We were fortunate enough to receive two PlayBooks from RIM so we had a chance to try out the app. Unfortunately the trial didn’t go so well… Adding contacts is very straightforward, and starting calls is very easy. But once you’re in a call, the problems are numerous. Video and audio would be crystal clear on both ends of the call for about a minute before video would completely freeze. Audio would continue to work, but video was frozen. Switching cameras sometimes resolved the problem, but we would almost always get stuck on the rear camera with no ability to switch back to the front-facing camera.

Quiting the app completely was the only way to end a call most of the time. Upon relaunching the app, we would not be able to actually do anything. Rebooting the PlayBook would solve that issue, but is extremely annoying. The video calling app is also a huge battery hog, more so than we ever expected.

So, do we think different about the PlayBook almost a month after fire reviewing it? No, not really. We do appreciate the addition of BBM over Bridge, as well as an official Facebook app, but both of these items are really things which should have been included in the launch OS. RIM is still playing catch up. There is still no native email/contacts/calendar solution, and we are still weeks away from the launch of the PlayBook NDK. App World is still generally bare of good apps, and we don’t see that changing until RIM drums up more developer support – which we hope the NDK launch later in the summer will do. Unfortunately, we still can’t recommend the PlayBook to anyone big the biggest BlackBerry fans. At this point, HP/Palm’s TouchPad tablet may very well launch before PlayBook owners see native email, BBM, or an App World filled with great apps. And that says a lot about the state of RIM and their BlackBerry brand, we think.

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BlackBerry 9900 Headed To T-Mobile Later This Year

Matt P. — Mon, 02 May 2011 19:14:18 +0000

Shorty after Research In Motion announced the new BlackBerry 9900, T-Mobile decided to let everyone know via Twitter that they will be one of the carriers to receive this device “later this year”. Oh, and HSPA+ will be enabled! There you go T-Mobile customers, the first 4G BlackBerry coming your way.

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RIM Makes BlackBerry 9900/9930 Official

Matt P. — Mon, 02 May 2011 19:02:37 +0000

The device that many BlackBerry users have been waiting for has finally been made official from Research In Motion. The BlackBerry will come in two variations, 9900 for GSM carriers and 9930 for CDMA. The device is equipped with a 1.2GHz processor, 2.8-inch touchscreen above a full QWERTY keyboard, 5MP camera with 720p HD video recording, as well as 8GB of onboard storage. It should start hitting “carriers around the world” sometime this Summer. Press release after the break

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Review: BlackBerry PlayBook

CR H. — Sun, 01 May 2011 15:45:10 +0000

It’s pretty crazy to think that only a little over one year ago Apple introduced the iPad. Previous attempts at tablet computing by numerous companies had been complete failures. But Apple seemed to “get it” with the iPad and took the consumer electronics industry by storm, almost as they had done with the iPhone in 2007. Just as Google responded to the iPhone with Android and more recently Honeycomb on the Motorola Xoom to battle the iPad, RIM wants a piece of the exploding tablet market as well. With mind share rapidly declining for their BlackBerry smartphones, RIM needs to reinvent themselves to take on the likes of Apple and Google – not only in the tablet space, but the smartphone space as well.

With the introduction of the PlayBook, RIM is hoping to start their comeback while at the same time introducing consumers to their next-gen smartphone OS – the QNX OS.

How did they do? Read on!
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BlackBerry PlayBook hits the FCC

Matt P. — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 21:01:26 +0000

Don’t want an iPad(2)? Well looks as if RIM’s tablet is one step closer to hitting retails shelves with this FCC passing. This is just the Wi-Fi only version, so if you’re looking for the WiMAX enabled version it might be a little longer. But as you see, they’ve passed three different variations of it (16GB, 32GB, 64GB). Hopefully now we’ll get some official word soon from RIM about when this is hitting the shelves.

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Live photos of BlackBerry Bold Touch emerge

Matt P. — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 21:56:28 +0000

You may remember this from the leaked BlackBerry CDMA roadmap, but now we finally get live photos of this beauty. The device is sporting a 2.8″ touchscreen above the traditional keyboard, all around a BlackBerry 9000 form factor. No word on release date yet, but take a look at the rest of the rumored specs and a couple more photos after the jump, all of them at the source link.

Dimensions: 115 x 66 x 10.5mm
Radio: Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE; Tri Band UMTS
Display: 2.8″ diagonol – VGA 640 x 480, resolution 287dpi
Camera: 5mp – Flash – Image Stabilization – HD Recording (720p)
Navigation: Capacitive Touch, Optical Trackpad
Keypad: Wide QWERTY – Physical Send, End, Escape, Menu, Right Side Convenience Key, Volume Control
Memory: 8GB – 768MB RAM – up to 32GB MicroSd Card
WiFi: 2.4 GHZ b/g/n – 5GHz a/n – Mobile Hotspot
Connectivity: Micro USB – Bluetooth – NFC
Sensors: Magnetometer – Accelerometer – Proximity

Source: N4BB

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Leaked CDMA BlackBerry 2011 roadmap shows all

Matt P. — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 18:58:12 +0000

These internal RIM slides posted by CrackBerry.com shows us all what RIM has up their sleeves for 2011 and the CDMA side of carriers. Let’s start with the rumored device Montana, which is being called the Bold Touch. It’s said to include a Qualcomm 1.2GHz processor, 5MP camera with HD recording, the optical track pad, as well as a capacitive touchscreen going with the traditional keyboard. Now, the BlackBerry Monaco Touch (Storm 3), which also is said to have a 1.2GHz processor, HD video recording, and a full capacitive touchscreen with the optical trackpad. Both seem to go toward the higher-end level, but RIM has something for you entry-level Curve users. The BlackBerry Sedona is scaled down with a 800MHz processor and only 512MB of RAM packed under the hood. And now we have the Curve Touch (BlackBerry Malibu) and that falls inline with a Storm lookalike. Optical trackpad, 512GB RAM, 1GB flash memory, but still entry-level with the same 800MHz processor the Blackberry Sedona is packing. Hit the break to see the specification slides for all of the mentioned devices.

Source: CrackBerry

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Review: BlackBerry Bold 9780 from T-Mobile

Dan H. — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 04:36:26 +0000

The BlackBerry Bold 9700 was often described as the flagship device in RIM’s lineup, and we’ve got the successor in the house, the Bold 9780. We’ve had it for about two weeks, so keep reading for our full review!
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Forbes-Google Study On Untethered Executives

Marilyn Torres — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 16:46:10 +0000

As the results of a recent Forbes and Google study show, the widening scope of smartphone use has made an impact on the way people conduct business. “The Untethered Executive: Business Information in the Age of Mobility” has revealed a sharp rise in smartphone use among executives, including facts like 28% of the 300 executives surveyed carry both a Blackberry and an iOS or Android device.

The increase in usage in the executive demographic has likely affected the development of more versatile smartphones. Last year, LG introduced the LG Expo, a Windows Mobile 6.5 smartphone with a pico projector attachment. The small size of the projector and outdated OS may have kept the Expo from becoming the main tool in executives’ toolboxes, but the availability of a pocket-sized pico shows that business users want to do more with their phones than just check business email and read MS Office documents.

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News Release: Speck’s Fitted for BlackBerry Pearl 3G 9100 Exclusively Available

PPCApache — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 22:27:46 +0000

SPECK EXPANDS SUPPORT FOR BLACKBERRY SMARTPHONES WITH RELEASE OF NEW FABRIC-WRAPPED FITTED CASE FOR PEARL 3G MODEL 9100; AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY AT AT&T WIRELESS STORES NATIONWIDE

PALO ALTO, CA — OCTOBER 28, 2010 – Adding to its ever-growing collection of cases for the BlackBerry Smartphone family, Speck is pleased to announce an exclusive new Fitted case for the just released BlackBerry Pearl 3G 9100, available only at AT&T Wireless stores and ATT.com. For images, please visit http://assets.speckproducts.com/press/bb-9100-fitted/bb-9100-fitted.zip

The cool and chic upholstered style of Speck’s Fitted case designs can now be enjoyed by BlackBerry Pearl 3G 9100 customers. The new case provides low-profile hard shell protection with a trendy custom plaid fabric exterior that still offers complete access to all controls, buttons and ports. Comfortable and light weight, the durable two-piece hard shell case features a soft-touch finish and brings a clean, tailored look that even the pickiest case user will appreciate. Available now in Grey/White/Pink Plaid for $29.95 MSRP.

For more information about Speck’s Fitted case for the BlackBerry Pearl 3G 9100, please visit: http://www.speckproducts.com/smartphones/blackberry-pearl-9100/fitted.html

About Speck

Founded in 2001, Palo Alto-based Speck is a leading designer and maker of original, high quality cases, bags and packs for the latest popular portable electronic devices. The company is best known for its focus on creating refreshing designs that offer quality, thoughtful features, and distinctive style. For more information, visit www.speckproducts.com.

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Review: T-Mobile BlackBerry Curve 3G

Dan H. — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 02:53:38 +0000

The BlackBerry Curve line has been one of the top selling devices among smartphones. RIM has just updated their Curve line with the BlackBerry Curve 3G, and I’ve been rocking one for about a week. It’s meant as an entry-level device, and it’s bringing 3G (to the GSM models), and BlackBerry 6 support. Is it a worthy upgrade? Read on to find out….
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Tablets Coming from RIM, Sharp and…Amazon???

Zealot — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 13:21:19 +0000

This is life around the luxurious Mobilitysite offices these days…another week, another metric tonnage of Tablet announcements. This week we have more concrete information on the offerings from two anticipated new Tablet vendors; Research in Motion and Sharp. However, as the market scrambles desperately for some kind, ANY kind of differentiator for all these vaporware Tablets, each has a few surprises and a certain air of mystery about them.

The third rumored entrant this week in the “Next Tablet to Be Humiliated by the iPad” sweepstakes however came utterly, totally out of left field. In a further show that Jeff Bezos just MIGHT be a little cheesed off that Apple came in and started horning in on Amazon’s ebook turf and just might be a little bit crazy (this whole Tablet thing is getting more and more like a Coppola film everyday…”Apple sent us an iPaq box with old videotapes in it…what does it mean?” “It‘s a Cupertino message, Sonny. It means the HP Slate sleeps with the Betamax Tapes.”), Amazon appears to be opening their very own Android App Store….and just may be releasing their own Android tablet.

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Review: Blaq for BlackBerry

Dan H. — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 03:02:57 +0000

If you’re a BlackBerry user and you love Twitter, you’ve probably heard of Blaq for BlackBerry. Blaq is the newest BlackBerry Twitter app on the block, and it’s rocking a beautiful UI along with some pretty unique features. Let’s take a look!
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