RIM's BlackBerry Bold Beats Apple to the 3G Punch
Posted by Jonathan Cremin on 12 May 2008 - 11:03 · 42 comments & 10596 views
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Full name: Jonathan Cremin
Forum name: Kudos
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Full name: Jonathan Cremin
Forum name: Kudos
Contact: via forum PM
Submissions: Normal · Headline
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(5 replies)
#1 Posted by Kudos on 12 May 2008 - 11:20
- While the iPhone looks cool, this phone is loaded with features I actually want.
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#1.1 Posted by sphbecker on 12 May 2008 - 13:01
- I agree, I have been looking forward to this device for a long time. Upgrading from the 8700 to the 8800 was little more than a cosmetic improvement, but this appears to be an exciting upgrade. I can't wait to get one.
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#1.2 Posted by C_Guy on 12 May 2008 - 15:34
- And what's more important to you? Appearance (perceived status symbol) or functionality?
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#1.3 Posted by Kudos on 12 May 2008 - 15:57
- (C_Guy said @ #1.2)And what's more important to you? Appearance (perceived status symbol) or functionality?
Who are you talking to? We both made statements about how great the functionality was. -
#1.4 Posted by excalpius on 13 May 2008 - 05:45
- The screen looks so much smaller. I gotta admit, Apple could pry my BB from my cold dead fingers if their new 3g version has a few extra special bonuses.
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#1.5 Posted by sphbecker on 14 May 2008 - 12:44
- The screen isn't any smaller than the 8800. It is an optical allusion, the top and bottom of the image being displayed are so close in color to the device that your eyes have a hard time finding the boarder. I am excited about the higher resolution. The screen may not be as big as an iPhone, but with the same resolution it can display just as much information (albeit smaller).
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#2 Posted by WolfDV on 12 May 2008 - 11:47
- I cannot wait until they launch the cdma version in canada (Telus with unlimited data)... as much as I love my Curve... this is one pretty blackberry.
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(2 replies)
#3 Posted by bucko on 12 May 2008 - 12:17
- But is it unlocked, this is what is annoying me about these phones, all the cool features and they have stupid contracts.
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(1 reply)
#4 Posted by Lord Zog on 12 May 2008 - 12:20
- Does Telus offer Unlimited Data?? I'm with Rogers with a 8700R and can't wait for unlimited, and a 9000,,
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#4.1 Posted by WolfDV on 13 May 2008 - 06:37
- (Lord Zog said @ #4)Does Telus offer Unlimited Data?? I'm with Rogers with a 8700R and can't wait for unlimited, and a 9000,,
Yep
The "older promo" for unlimited on data devices (BB/PDA) was $15, and included everything you could do on the device itself (no tethering), the current unlimited data feature is $30.
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(1 reply)
#5 Posted by Jelly2003 on 12 May 2008 - 12:26
- Blackberry phones suck and 3G is old so what exactly is good about this news?
(not flaming, this is a legitimate question)
I find the Blackberry interface clunky and annoying, and when I have to use a Blackberry it's always a chore.
3G has been out worldwide for ages, there are plenty of Windows Mobile, Symbian and other devices that work with HSDPA (my Samsung Blackjack and Nokia both use it).
The Apple is the more exciting product because it's a powerful device that combines stacks of interesting and useful features into a device that is easy to use. In the beginning I was never a fan of iPhone, I thought it was an underpowered yet cool looking device. With 3G capability and a proper SDK now real software can be developed for it, I think the iPhone'S potential will be unlocked.
I'd be interested to see how the interface is for this Blackberry but I really get the feeling that I will be disappointed as with the rest of the Blackberry devices.
Last edited by Jelly2003 on 12 May 2008 - 12:35 -
#5.1 Posted by sphbecker on 12 May 2008 - 12:52
- I will grant you that the Blackberry interface badly needs a refresh, but for someone who does a lot of email it is hands down a better device. As anyone who has used both will tell you, a touch screen just can't compete with a plastic keyboard when it comes to typing proficiency.
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#6 Posted by +Dakkaroth on 12 May 2008 - 12:46
- Wasn't too impressed with the iPhone. I'd like to get hands on with this though. Also would like to see how much it's going to cost as well.
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(8 replies)
#7 Posted by LTD on 12 May 2008 - 12:47
- LOL, and this will actually impact iPhone sales/popularity??
Riiiiight.
No OS X. No touch screen. And the iPhone look-alike silver band around the edge is plastic, not metal. Cheap.
But that's okay, I guess. This is perhaps the best iPhone-wannabe yet. RiM must be very proud.
You can judge the distance behind and overall cluelessness of iPhone's future roadkill by the amount they copy the iPhone's exterior... This ceaseless quest to dress up antiques in Apple veneer is pretty sad. -
#7.1 Posted by +macf13nd on 12 May 2008 - 13:08
- it probably won't have much of an impact on the iPhone's sales as the iPhone is not particularly suited to a business environment.
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#7.2 Posted by Galley on 12 May 2008 - 13:18
- (macf13nd said @ #7.1)it probably won't have much of an impact on the iPhone's sales as the iPhone is not particularly suited to a business environment.
Just wait until next month. -
#7.3 Posted by chaos_disorder on 12 May 2008 - 15:00
- (Galley said @ #7.2)(macf13nd said @ #7.1)it probably won't have much of an impact on the iPhone's sales as the iPhone is not particularly suited to a business environment.
Just wait until next month.
3G, Exchange, and Cisco VPN are good new features to have, but until the iPhone can read Office documents, it will continue to be a non-starter for a lot of serious businesspeople. -
#7.4 Posted by C_Guy on 12 May 2008 - 15:30
- "No OS X..."
One of the best features!
This phone won't impact iPhone's success much because there's very little work to do to beat it. And considering there won't be a monthly "Apple privilege" tax, this device will offer more features for far less money. -
#7.5 Posted by dp123 on 12 May 2008 - 15:32
- until the iPhone can read Office documents, it will continue to be a non-starter for a lot of serious businesspeople.
The iPhone does read Office and Excel documents and will read Powerpoint docs with 2.0... so you're saying that it is for a lot of serious businesspeople.
Last edited by dp123 on 12 May 2008 - 16:10 -
#7.6 Posted by chaos_disorder on 12 May 2008 - 18:02
- (dp123 said @ #7.5)until the iPhone can read Office documents, it will continue to be a non-starter for a lot of serious businesspeople.
The iPhone does read Office and Excel documents and will read Powerpoint docs with 2.0... so you're saying that it is for a lot of serious businesspeople.
Your post made me realize that I left out something important - the ability to edit Office documents. I don't believe the iPhone has that ability, even in 2.0. -
#7.7 Posted by excalpius on 13 May 2008 - 05:49
- You can always count on LTD for an unbiased opinion.
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#7.8 Posted by sphbecker on 14 May 2008 - 13:06
- (chaos_disorder said @ #7.6)(dp123 said @ #7.5)until the iPhone can read Office documents, it will continue to be a non-starter for a lot of serious businesspeople.
The iPhone does read Office and Excel documents and will read Powerpoint docs with 2.0... so you're saying that it is for a lot of serious businesspeople.
Your post made me realize that I left out something important - the ability to edit Office documents. I don't believe the iPhone has that ability, even in 2.0.
The Blackberry can't edit office documents either with included software and I disagree, that isn't a feature I really care about either. For me the non-touch screen keyboard is the Blackberry's bigest selling point (when compaired to iPhone 2.0 software).
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(1 reply)
#8 Posted by MMaster23 on 12 May 2008 - 13:01
- Oh yeah because the iPhone and Blackberry are the only competitors in the mobile market. *shake fist at ^*^@#$%@! PC world* ... WinMo has had 3G for years now..
. I cursed my WinMo device from about the second day I had to use it.-
(2 replies)
#10 Posted by ]SK[ on 12 May 2008 - 13:22
- I've had two previous phones and soon to change to my third. All have G3 already enabled. Why are these phones so long to have 3G?
I looked at BlackBerry but the need to have another physical server, Windows 200x Server just to run BES is alot of money. Thankfully my current Nokia N95 syncs everything with my Exchange 2007 Server via OWA. Blackberry's can also use OWA but they only sync mail. Why?
I agree with the iPhone, graet looking but poor with features. Blackberry's are starting to look nice but seeing Mail for Exchange (Free software) makes me angry. -
#10.1 Posted by Hiyan on 12 May 2008 - 15:29
- BES does much more than just send you your email. You should do some research into it.
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(1 reply)
#11 Posted by LTD on 12 May 2008 - 13:44
- Re the iPhone:
The features are coming. It's Apple after all . . . look at OS X's features.
Problem is, they're slow in coming.
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#12 Posted by LunarFalcon on 12 May 2008 - 14:19
- Is this the first BlackBerry to have 3G? I thought there was already a model with 3G. I used to have a pearl, and liked it a lot, but agree that the interface wasn't the best.
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#13 Posted by JiveMasterT on 12 May 2008 - 14:34
- If they release a pearl sized version of this... WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT!
I <3 my pearl.
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(1 reply)
#14 Posted by simon360 on 12 May 2008 - 15:10
- Wow... that phone looks really nice. The only thing holding it back, imo, is that the screen is small and there isn't a touch screen. But they won't do what Apple did, which is remove the keyboard altogether.
The question is which is the lesser of two evils: a small screen with a real keyboard, or a full, beautiful touch screen with an "ok" keyboard on the screen.
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(3 replies)
#16 Posted by plastikaa on 12 May 2008 - 16:00
- Samsung offers a phone which has a full decent keyboard and a full touchscreen, the biggest problem to some people is it doesnt have an Apple logo on it.
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#16.1 Posted by simon360 on 12 May 2008 - 18:36
- Does it have multi-touch?
Sure, multi touch doesn't seem that useful. But live with it for a few weeks and you'll see its uses. It's just more efficient.
Mind you, yes, to many people it is about the Apple logo. -
#16.2 Posted by PureLegend on 12 May 2008 - 18:48
- My friend has the one you're describing. I don't like it. It's got that Samsung feel :/
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#16.3 Posted by plastikaa on 13 May 2008 - 07:38
- No multi touch - ive used one a little bit, not enough tho to say its not useful... however anyone I know in person who has an iPhone tell me its great - but when asked then tell me they have never used single touch screens.
SGH-F700 is the name in the UK ... it has an updated version now I believe which is thinner and a 5mp camera, but I beieve the keypad has been moved to the screen similar to an iPod. The worst thing about them is because they rely on SDHC when browsing music it sometimes lags a little with the 4gb card I have in it - not awful as I rarely change music that much to annoy me, usually I play a whole album or playlist.
>> SGH-F700 Picture
Think there is a similar phone coming to the US - it might already be out.
Equipped with support for tri-band HSDPA and quad-band EDGE (which means that it will support the highest-speed GSM-family data networks wherever they are available worldwide), 802.11a/b/g Wi-Fi, stereo Bluetooth, and both assisted and autonomous GPS, the Bold could prove a formidable challenger to Apple's next-gen iPhone on connectivity alone.
It even looks a bit iPhone-esque, with its glassy display area, generally flat profile, and rounded corners. Still, the Bold comes configured with a hardware QWERTY keyboard, and it retains the general dimensions of its predecessors, so it's much shorter and somewhat thicker than the iPhone.