BlackBerry 8800 Smartphone Review

For a long time, BlackBerry devices were seen primarily as business tools, however, the consumer-friendly BlackBerry Pearl shed the image. Now the BlackBerry 8800 combines a sleek look and a host of multimedia features reminiscent of the Pearl’s with a full QWERTY keyboard. 8800 retains RIM’s business to focus, but by omitting extras such as the camera is available on the Pearl.

At first glance, it looks more like Samsung BlackJack than like a BlackBerry. It waived the typical wide curved shape of most BlackBerry devices for leaner, straighter lines and a squared-off look. It measures 4.5 inches tall by 2.6 inches wide and just under 0.6 inches thick, making it slightly larger than the Blackjack.

The result is a well-looking phone that feels solid in your hand. By 8800, however, is slimmer design a full-keyboard: The keys are much closer together than they were in previous models, each has a raised edge so that it differs easy, and we found it easier to type on them than on most other phones’ keyboards. Like the Pearl, the missing 8800 a jog wheel on its right spine for navigation, but it comes with a trackball situated directly below the screen. Though the trackball is easy to use and allows multidirectional scrolling, I have a jog wheel for navigation prefer.

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At 4.7 ounces, the 8800 heavier than some competing models, but also so reasonable is comfortable for long conversations. Voice quality during the call was statick occasionally, and sometimes I have noticed an echo, but overall it was satisfactory. The speakerphone is easy to access but the maximum volume is not particularly impressive. Also the 8800 supports Cingular’s push-to-talk network (priced at an additional $ 10 per month). Talk-time battery life was superior: The phone was still a long way in our lab tests when we reached 10 hours – our test ceiling.

Although the 8800 lacks a camera, it contains the music and video player, visit the Pearl. You can transfer media files to the phone via the included Desktop Manager software. The phone has a microSD card slot for additional storage, but the phone ships without a card, you must buy your own. The integrated music player is passable, allowing you to create play, pause, stop and songs, and basic Playlists. Audio quality was adequate but hardly exceptional – both through the external speaker and through the included headset. The quality of video playback was much better; content looked at the 2.5-inch, 320 x 240 resolution screen size.

8800 provides an integrated GPS functionality, and my review unit came with the TeleNav GPS Navigator service (available for $ 10 per month from Cingular) preinstalled. If you frequently move, this could be the phone’s killer app. It requires no add-on devices, simply start the app and go. The service occasionally in the achievement of its first satellite signal loafed, but once it was up and running, it worked very well.

Like all BlackBerry devices, the 8800 handles e-mail extremely well. It is ten accounts, including POP3, IMAP 4 support and Web-based e-mail, and by a breeze. For personal accounts, simply enter your username and password on the phone or online, and within minutes, messages are delivered directly to your phone. For business accounts, you can sync the BlackBerry Enterprise Server with Microsoft Exchange, Lotus Domino or Novell Groupwise.

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Instant messaging options are less numerous: 8800 supports only the BlackBerry Messenger client. Support for a consumer-level client such as AIM, MSN Messenger or Yahoo Messenger would have been a nice gesture.

Since the 8800 does not support fast HSDPA network of Cingular, you have to rely on the slower EDGE network for surfing the Internet. The BlackBerry does not offer Wi-Fi support either, but it does include Bluetooth.

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The BlackBerry 8800 strength – in particular, its battery life, excellent e-mail handling and built-in GPS features – outweigh disadvantages. If you do not need a camera with your PDA phone the 8800 is worth a look.

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