AT&T picks up the BlackBerry Curve 3G and BlackBerry Pearl 3G as U.S. exclusives

Fresh out of AT&T’s mouth comes word that they’ll be taking two exclusive handsets off of RIM’s hands: the BlackBerry Curve 3G (left, above) and BlackBerry Pearl 3G.

The Pearl 3G, complete with WiFi 802.11b/g/n, optical trackpad, Bluetooth 2.1, and the titular 3G should hit the shelves come October 17th for 149 bucks a pop on a 2-year contract.

The launch date for the Curve 3G (9300) is a bit fuzzier, with AT&T only saying that it’ll be “in time for the holidays” for $99.99. As long as AT&T doesn’t start messing with the specs, it’ll come packed with WiFi, GPS, 512 MB of memory, a 2.0 megapixel camera, and 802.11b/g/n.

Wondering about what version of BlackBerry OS will be running on these things? Us too, to be honest. AT&T specifies that the Curve will be “BlackBerry® 6 ready” — but unless its omission was an accident, it sounds like the Pearl is stuck on BlackBerry OS 5.

RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T)

When you first lay eyes on RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T), the words "sleek," "sexy," and "cool" don't exactly to come to mind. At 4.5 inches high by 2.6 inches wide by 0.6 inch deep and 4.8 ounces, RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T) is bulky and wide, making for a bit of a tight fit in a pants pocket. It doesn't exactly take your breath away like the iPhone 3G, but that's not to say it's a bad looking phone. RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T) chassis and silver trim are attractive enough and the rounded edges give the handset a streamlined design.

Plus, if you turn the phone over, you'll notice that the back has a leatherette texture (no more slick plastic), providing a sophisticated look. If you want to customize your device a bit, RIM will sell replaceable backplates in different colors, including blue, gray, and red, for $29.99 each, which is a little pricey in our opinion. Now while the overall design isn't particularly flashy, the true beauty of RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T) lies in the display. The smartphone boasts a 2.75 inch half VGA, non-touch screen that shows off 65.000 colors at a crisp 480x320 pixel resolution.

It's quite possibly the best looking screen we've seen on a smartphone to date. The iPhone and HTC Touch Diamond come close, but we did a quick comparison between the iPhone and Bold and found that pictures on the Bold looked slightly smoother and crisper. Colors pop on the screen and video playback was truly impressive. With such a beautiful screen, we're glad to see that RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T) features an updated user interface, much like the RIM BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220.

Some of the new icons are a bit difficult to identify at a glance (e.g., downloads, applications, and settings), but as you scroll over, each item is identified by name along the bottom. As usual, you can customize the home screen with various themes, background images, font size and type, and backlight brightness and time out. Below the display, you get the standard navigation controls, which include Talk and End or power keys, a menu shortcut, a back button, and a trackball navigator. The one benefit of the phone's wider size is that these buttons are plenty large and easy to press.

RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T) has a QWERTY keyboard that RIM likened to a modernized Curve keyboard, but it reminded us more of the BlackBerry 8830. We know some 8800 series users had issues with the keyboard, but we didn't have any problems with the Bold. The keyboard buttons are of a good size and have a nice tactile feel to them. We were able to compose e-mails and text messages with minimal errors. They're also backlit for easy typing in darker environments.

On the left spine, you will find a 3.5 mm headphone jack, a mini USB port, a customizable shortcut key, and a microSD or SDHC expansion slot. The right side holds the volume rocker and another user programmable convenience key. There's a mute button on top of the handset, and the camera and flash are located on the back. AT&T packages RIM BlackBerry Bold - black (AT&T) with an AC adapter, a USB cable, a wired headset, a software CD, and reference material. For more add-ons, please check our cell phone accessories, ringtones, and help page.

RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8120

If you were to go on looks alone, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the original BlackBerry Pearl and RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8120. We can't really knock the lack of changes to the design either, since you're getting a full featured smart phone in a cell phone like form factor that's pocket able and comfortable to use as a mobile.

The Pearl 8120 keeps the same compact frame, measuring 4.2 inches tall by 1.9 inches wide by 0.5 inch deep and even weighs less at 3.2 ounces. And while the casing might appear to be black, it's actually an attractive deep sapphire blue. The overall design of the RIM BlackBerry Pearl 8120 remains the same as the original Pearl. You do, however, get new interface themes, graphics, and more, including this L-shaped menu.

On front, there is a 2.25 inch nontouch display with a 65.000 color output and 260x240 pixel resolution. It's also equipped with a light sensing technology that automatically adjusts the backlight depending on the environment. All these factors combined make for a sharp and vibrant screen, but RIM also made some enhancements to the user interface to make it more visually pleasing and easier to use.

There are new themes, including an L-shaped menu format, new graphics, fonts, and colors. The changes aren't anything to write home about, but they certainly make for a better user experience.

The SureType keyboard will admittedly give some users some trouble, but also features enhanced word completion for easier text entry.

Below the display, you'll find the same navigation array of previous Pearls, which includes Talk and End keys, the BlackBerry menu shortcut, a back button, the pearl like trackball, and of course, the SureType keyboard.

As we've said many times in the past, the modified keyboard isn't going to suit everyone (present company included), and there is a bit of a learning curve to the text entry. However, we understand that some concessions had to be made in order to fit a QWERTY keyboard into a smaller space. The SureType software also now features improved word completion and an easier way to correct misspelled words, though we didn't notice a huge difference.

Among other things, the left side of the smart phone holds a 3.5 mm headphone jack and microSD or SDHC slot that can accept up to 8GB cards. On the left spine, there's a 3.5mm headphone jack, a mini USB port, a microSD or SDHC memory card slot, and a push to talk button. Meanwhile, the right side holds a volume rocker and a camera activation button.

Both the PTT and camera keys can, however, be reprogrammed to launch other applications if you prefer. There's a mute button on top of the unit, and finally, the camera lens, self-portrait mirror and flash are located on the back.

BlackBerry Storm 9530

Designed to satisfy the needs of both consumers and business customers, the BlackBerry Storm smart phone offers a revolutionary touch screen that dramatically enhances the touch interface and enables easy and precise typing. The world's first "clickable" touch screen responds much like a physical keyboard and also supports single touch, multi touch and gestures for intuitive and efficient application navigation.

Whether traveling to Europe or Asia, the Storm provides globetrotters the freedom of reliable global connectivity with Verizon Wireless's reliable, high speed 3G CDMA network here in the United States and compatibility with GSM networks abroad. The SurePress touchscreen with tactile click response allows you to accurately navigate and type messages on the BlackBerry Storm.

The Storm's built in accelerometer automatically switches the screen between landscape mode and portrait modes as it rotates. It's compatible with the V Cast Music and V CAST Music with Rhapsody services, which enables you to purchase songs through your phone and download them via Verizon Wireless's fast EV-DO data network. You'll also benefit from the phone's A-GPS receiver, which enables you to access Verizon Wireless's VZ Navigator service for turn by turn directions.

Other features include a 3.2 megapixel camera and camcorder, Bluetooth connectivity for handsfree devices and stereo music streaming, 1 GB internal memory, MicroSD memory expansion to 16 GB, support for up to 10 personal and corporate email accounts, access to popular instant messaging services, and up to 6 hours of talk time.

RIM BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220

The Pearl Flip sports the new BlackBerry OS 4.6, same basic build as the new BlackBerry Bold. The most obvious improvement about the OS is the new wire frame default aesthetic theme. Though nice, the real benefits of the new OS lay elsewhere, though. Sheet To GoA quick jaunt to the Applications folder reveals a full suite of Microsoft Office like applications, known as DataViz Documents To Go.

The suite comprised of Word To Go, Sheet to Go, and Slideshow to Go is essentially mobile versions of their desktop counterparts which allow you to view, edit, save, and share documents of their respective types. For most users, being able to edit and resend an incoming document will be all the functionality you'll need, especially given the Pearl Flip's smaller screen.

However, if you want to create new documents and access more advanced editing options, you'll need the upgraded premium version, which costs $70.

As a bonus, this version comes with the PDF To Go viewer. The Pearl Flip also features a voice recorder and video recorder, in addition to the standard memo pad, task list, calculator, calendar, voice dialing, and password keeper.

Continuing through the Applications folder, you are treated to a selection of games.

The old standby, Brick Breaker, gets some aesthetic makeovers, but remains largely unchanged and largely unbeatable beyond the 30th level (amateur).

To enhance your leisure time or procrastination experience is Word Mole, an interactive search game, Texas Hold'Em, Sudoku, Klondike Solitaire, and Typer Trooper, which makes learning to type as much fun as it was in junior high. The call quality on the Pearl Flip was consistently satisfactory. A nice feature that this device incorporates is the ability to enhance the call quality by adjusting or enhancing the bass and treble during calls.

The user's selection will be saved and applied to subsequent calls. While making calls over Wi-Fi, the calls seemed to have a slightly higher quality it seemed easier to hear the other caller. Callers reported the device delivered good, consistent, clear sound quality as well. The in call features such as conferencing etc. are arranged differently than in other BlackBerry's, so there is a little bit of re-learning for you power users to do, though nothing too distracting.

BlackBerry Bold 9000

RIM has dramatically improved the looks of its devices in recent years, and the Bold is a new high point. Its rounded corners and leather textured back make it somehow both professional and sexy. And the higher resolution screen is great, too. The Bold has a 320 by 480 pixel display, which is at least twice the resolution of the earlier RIM models, like the Curve.

This is a beautiful screen that makes everything you do with the Bold look great, but especially watching movies. This smart phone is wider than many of its competitors, but it's also relatively thin. And its width allows the aforementioned screen to be larger, and also makes room for a bigger keyboard.

This isn't as wide as the landscape oriented keyboards you'll find on some smart phones, but it's large enough to be comfortable to type on. There's no separation between keys, but each key has a raised area that makes it easier for you to be sure you're hitting just one at a time.

Sadly, the Bold doesn't fix one of my biggest complaints with BlackBerry keyboards there are no keys dedicated to the most frequently used punctuation marks, including the period and the comma.

Between the screen and keyboard is the trackball. As the Bold doesn't have a touchscreen, you'll do much of your interacting with it through this, and it's up to the job.

After a couple of days of use, I began to think that a trackball is a better option than a D-pad and definitely superior to the old BlackBerry track wheel. There are programmable keys on both the left and right sides of this device, which is another thing I'd like to see on other smart phones. There's also a button on top you can use to mute incoming calls.

This doesn't answer the call or send it to voice mail, it just quickly shuts off the ringing sound. You can use this same button to put the Bold in standby mode, which locks the keys and turns the screen off until you hit this button again. It will still take calls, so it's a good way to carry your smart phone around.

RIM BlackBerry Storm

The RIM BlackBerry Storm features an innovative touch screen that provides tactile feedback to confirm your selection. The Storm offers dual mode functionality for world roaming capabilities as well as EV-DO Rev. A and UMTS/HSDPA support.

Other highlights include GPS and a 3.2 megapixel camera. The Storm's SurePress touch screen takes some acclimation, and the on screen keyboard is a bit cramped.

The smart phone can be sluggish, particularly the accelerometer and multimedia applications. Speakerphone quality was a bit choppy.

The RIM BlackBerry Storm may blow in a frenzy for Verizon Wireless subscribers wanting a touch screen similar to the Apple iPhone. However, die-hard texters, e-mailers, and corporate users may be better served with the BlackBerry Bold or other QWERTY device.

Features

• OS provided : BlackBerry Handheld Software Installed
• RAM : 128 MB
• Band / mode: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 (Quadband) / UMTS 2100 / CDMA 800/1900 (Dual Band)
• Dimensions (W x D x H) 2.4 in x 0.6 in x 4.4 in
• Weight 5.5 oz
• Built in devices Camera , Music player
• Installed RAM 128 MB
• Flash memory installed 1 GB
• OS provided BlackBerry Handheld Software
• Software included Microsoft Outlook , Web Access , Microsoft Exchange , IBM Lotus Domino , Novell GroupWise
• Email protocols supported POP3 , IMAP4
• Data services MMS , SMS , WWW , E-Mail , Yahoo! Messenger , AOL Instant Messenger , Windows Live Messenger
• Modem Integrated Wireless cellular modem
• Cellular enhancement protocol GSM , EDGE , GPRS , HSPA , UMTS , CDMA 2000 1X EV-DO Rev. A
• Battery installed ( max ) 1 Lithium ion
• Max supported batteries 1
• Talk time 330 min
• Standby time 360 h
• Power supply device Power adapter
  

BlackBerry 7130s

BlackBerry 7130sIt is now official, at least the FCC says it is, RIM is about to release new versions of the BlackBerry 7130.

So far, we knew the 7130e which is going to be completed by 3 models, the 7130c, 7130g, and 7130v.

These will all be GSM devices and should have quad band EDGE if we believe what’s on the FCC web site. Bluetooth 2.0, 64MB flash and 16MB RAM, and the usual mini USB port will be included. Cingular and T-Mobile will most probably carry them. No dates yet on the launch but we should know more soon.