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| 13 Aug 2008 - Be BOLD - Be Very BOLD | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Blackberry BOLD is something I have been talking about for what seems like an eternity. When it comes to new technology, things are normally rumored and then are either released or it is proven the rumors were false. The Blackberry BOLD is a little different. Rumors and information started to circulate many many months back. Then the obligitory ‘spy photos’ hit the web. Before long, a DEVICE appeared on eBay. One smart online blogger bought that device, and released an absolute exclusive review. Months before the official release let alone on sale date for the device. Since then, it seems an eternity has passed, until late in July when RIM (Research in Motion – makers of the Blackberry) ‘Launched’ the BOLD at a gala Sydney function. All well and good – but when can the public get their hands on one? In the next week or so is the answer. Depending on your carrier. I’ve been fortunate enough to have my hands on one now for a little over a week, and out of the box, this is one very impressive Blackberry. First and foremost, I must say, I really don’t think it hits the spot for what RIM was aiming for. The Launch talked about taking the Blackberry to the mainstream, looking at ‘hip’ ‘young’ ‘female’ markets – not exclusively of course, but certainly a better device for all. I don’t think THIS is that device. All those markets will be very impressed when the ‘new pearl’ is launched in the next six months. Expect that to be a flip form phone, much more suited to the ‘hip’ ‘young’ and ‘fashionable’. So, back to the BOLD. If you are currently using any Blackberry EXCEPT the pearl, this tick’s every box. (Pearl users are looking for smaller form, less keys; the BOLD is large form, with a full QWERTY keyboard) Let me wet your appetite.
For me, those are the TOP 11 reasons YOU should get a Blackberry (top 10’s are so yesterday, and besides, I couldn’t cull it) 3G Speed I am starting to really notice this is areas OTHER than browsing the Internet. You see I am not a big user of the ‘web’ on my blackberry. Searching Google is not something I have seen as being slow, even on Blackberry’s without 3G. Interestingly, I find the time it takes to ‘request’ a page is often the slowest part of the process on the BOLD. There is no doubt it is much faster, and you can notice the network speed when you download new applications more than anywhere. But also, sending emails with photos attached, they just fly away, and it gets you back into ready to receive mode so much faster. 3G has been around ‘so long’ relatively, it is hard to believe we are only now getting it. WiFi I’ve been basically begging for WiFi on my curve for ages now, I loved it on the iPod Touch, and it’s one of the things I did like about the iPhone. So I was very excited to get the BOLD. Problem is, I haven’t been able to get it working at home, or at a friends network. Both use standard netgear routers for setup, both with WEP security. Entering the code doesn’t help. But I know it’s me. As I write this, I am sitting in the Qantas Club at Melbourne Airport, and the BOLD has connected simply and easily to their Telstra wireless network. 2 minute’s work and I’m connected. Brilliant Camera As with other Blackberry’s, the BOLD has one great advantage over other ‘big name’ smart phones – the FLASH. It is such a crucial component and works so well. Sure, it’s not the greatest camera, but it does a great job. And straight after taking photos, you can Email or SMS them, or upload them direct to facebook if you desire. It’s an excellent feature. GPS Common among its siblings in the Blackberry range, the GPS is inconspicuous, but handy when required. Don’t rely on ‘Maps’ though; download Google maps for Australian info and mapping. Third party software is your only hope if you want turn-by-turn GPS, but seriously, get a Navman. The GPS on the Bold allows you to geotag your photos with their location taken, another simple but effective feature Amazing Screen At 480x320 this is not a BIG screen. But with the 65,000+ colour resolution, this is just amazing. It’s all you need for the most part, but perhaps taking more space above and below and moving the keyboard it could be even bigger. The next step for Blackberry is the full-face screen and touch keypad, which is in development. But for me, I need that keyboard, so to get THIS screen and a keyboard – great stuff. Why is it so good? Rich colour, bright colour, it just jumps out at you. Highly recommended viewing External MicroSD memory card slot I’ve had a 2Gb MicroSD stuck into the Curve now for a while, a fair few songs, and photos I take on the Blackberry stored there. But it’s never come out. It’s behind the battery. On the BOLD, the SD card goes right into the side, like most phones these days. I’ve put a SanDisk 8Gb MicroSD into my Bold, and at around $68, that’s value. It now has as much space as most mp3 players and many iPods, you just will not fall short. Convenience of the side slot makes this a real winner Keyboard The keys on the bold are molded upwards toward the center which at first feels strange, but once you get into it, you find the soft touch a class above the curve keyboards. Guitar fret like dividers between the rows add to the BOLD’s looks while the backlighting is now through the letters rather than the whole key. Another step up, and another TICK for the BOLD. Browser Miles ahead of any blackberry browser before it, this browser goes to a mouse style navigation using the trackball, with zoom in and zoom out to view website features. Rendering in almost PC like layout and combined with the 3G speeds, this is a much better experience. But it’s miles and miles behind other smartphones. Go to Google and the search box is tiny, you need to zoom in to get started, Zooming in and out is not as intuitive as I’d like, and the mouse navigation is sometimes not as easy as the trackball ‘tab’ style of the older versions. Regardless, it is a step up, but a long way to go before it becomes desirable as a browser of choice iTunes sync Blackberry Media Sync. Available to download from Blackberry, this small application (for WINDOWS) allows you to simply click playlists from your iTunes library and have them synched to your Blackberry. With 8Gb Sandisk MicroSD on board, I’m all for that. THIS could well be the killer app for Blackberry. Clock Software You see, I’m a very simple man. Easily pleased. The CLOCK here (choice of Analog, Digital, Flip Clock, or LCD Digital) is an application used to take up the whole screen, and act as a bit of a ‘screensaver’. I choose the FLIP CLOCK – Like the old fashioned bedside clock radio (Groundhog Day Style). It’s clear, and easy to read, plus, if you have an alarm set, that shows in the bottom corner. Add to that the great stopwatch with large numbers it’s a great application. BUT, the KILLER CLOCK APP is ‘bedside mode’. You can enter bedside mode manually, OR choose to have it activated when you plug in for charging. This mode shows the clock, the alarm time, dims the screen, dims the keyboard, and, if you choose, will also turn off the ‘radio’ – i.e.; no calls, no emails – a potentially marriage saver? My only advice to RIM – rather than ‘turn off radio’ why not add ‘turn off data’ so we can still receive calls, but NOT emails. HTML Email Finally, Email. At first, it was all the same to me. Then I logged onto the Blackberry BIS site FROM the BOLD, and it somehow enabled a new setting in EMAIL SETTINGS ‘Html Email’ Rather than No or Yes, I was looking for YES YOU DAMN WELL BEAUTY! Once enabled, this is just the most useful, and wonderful advance for Email since the Blackberry! Not 100% as you see on you PC, but certainly all the formatting, images, colour, text you could want, to really make things look more ‘normal’. I am as impressed with this as I am with the design, the clock, the speed and all the other great things about the BOLD. The Blackberry BOLD is not for people who thought the Curve was too big. This is bigger. But I feel more comfortable holding it than I do the iPhone, not to compare, but the iPhone feels expensive, and very breakable. The BOLD feels quality, but work like, so you are happy to throw it in your pocket, or onto the Table. The Flat shiny screen, the silver strips in the keypad, the metal ‘like’ border around the device, and the leather ‘like’ backing area all crowning design glories. I give this 9/10 as a Blackberry – 1 point off for the improvement required in the browser and the need for TOUCH. I do NOT want a full touch screen to replace the keyboard, but imagine the current screen was touch, and allowed you to easier select your icons, zoom the web, click the web. Those two things would make the ‘last blackberry’ – I’d never need to upgrade again. Available on all Mobile networks Mid August, check it out and upgrade today if you love your Curve, Or are still stuck on an old device. Oh, I should make that 9.2, adding point 2, because I forgot to mention - VIDEO - You can RECORD VIDEO in 3gp format. Other big name 'smartphones' will likely add that as their big thing in a year or so. Blackberry (and most good phones) does it now. Simple, and easy to use. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Share your thoughts: Added: Thursday , 14 Aug 2008 06:48 am
Danny, good question. The BOLD comes with "Word to Go" "Sheet to go" and "slideshow to go", Word, Excel and Powerpoint VIEWERS/Editors. You can BUY the software for it, which allows you to create NEW documents. I think this would be as good as the compact Word and Excel in Windows Mobile devices, HOWEVER, i find working in spreadsheets very very difficult on such a small device so keep that in mind. Simple Answer,I think the BOLD could do it as well as many others. Trevor Trevor Long, Artarmon Added: Wednesday, 13 Aug 2008 09:43 pm I'm looking at different mobile devices for work. Danny, Moss Vale, NSW Added: Wednesday, 13 Aug 2008 06:25 pm
Yes, yes it is. And yes, Optus have I think an $89 plan for this one (and all Blackberrys), not sure at what level the handset will be included though. Trevor Trevor Long, Melbourne Added: Wednesday, 13 Aug 2008 06:18 pm Is that you Trevor?? Drew, Sydney add your comment: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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