I bought one the day it came out for AT&T earlier this month. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t check for news on its US release a couple times a week for the last month or two. Yeah, I know. I’m not really one to obsess over such things and I generally find it amusing when people do, but if you understood just how bad my (second) BlackBerry Bold had gotten over the last year then it would make a lot more sense.
That last part is an important disclaimer about this post – it’s written from the perspective of someone whose smartphones have always been BlackBerrys. This is meant to be an honest review of someone who has made a serious upgrade in the mobile technology space and a real world review of the device. All the reviews I’ve read/watched are “ZOMG it’s so GREAT!” and end in comments spiraling down in to an Android vs. iOS debate… so I’m setting out to do neither. Let’s see how successful I am.
Positives
The screen is downright amazing. I remember how blown away I was when I upgraded from my Pearl to my Bold and this jump is even better. The colors are crisp and sharp and the resolution seems perfect for it’s size. Now I’m actually disappointed at how less-than-awesome things are when I’m using a regular monitor or my tablet.
Which brings me to my next point, the size. I was somewhat worried about fitting such a large phone in my pocket, especially since I’ve always had relatively small form factor phones. The interesting thing is the diagonal size of the phone really doesn’t make much of an impact and thickness is FAR more important. The phone is considerably bigger than my Bold and yet it’s less cumbersome because it’s so thin. I never would have guessed.
The Android interface and Google integration is pretty awesome. There are so many things that make using a smartphone easier that I was purposefully oblivious to. From getting all my contacts, calendar and emails set up instantly to the simplicity of getting new apps and organizing them… it’s all a vast improvement. Not to mention apps like Facebook and Yelp are SO much better on this platform. Things just work, which is more than I could say for the Bold. (Hey Mikey, I actually rented Fast Five [read: spent money] on my phone to watch on the plane ’cause I forgot to load my tablet up!)
The internets is way fast on this thing. Also, it doesn’t tell me webpages are too big and it’s going to close them.
Negatives
There are limited options when it comes to sound profiles. I’m one of those people who likes custom sounds for texts from different people and this isn’t possible. You can set custom ringtones, but who gets phone calls these days? BlackBerry also had the ability to create custom phone profiles like “Phone Calls Only” that would prevent all sounds, vibrating and flashing except for phone calls. This was great for night time use to ensure the only way it would wake you up was if someone called you… which is likely to be an emergency. As is, I’ve resorted to full silent mode, which isn’t ideal if someone is trying to raise me in the middle of the night. I also liked that I could individually set the number and duration of vibrations by application. One long vibration and I didn’t need to pull my phone out during a meeting. A bunch of short vibrations and I knew to step out to take the call. I don’t know, maybe I’m just too obsessive about that sorta stuff.
There is no notification light. Maybe people don’t actually want this, but I found it helpful to have that little flashing red light to tell me if I had something worth looking at. I think having to turn on the screen to see if you have a new… whatever… is overkill.
Whoever decided to make the phone ding (or vibrate in silent mode) and screen illuminate when the device is fully charged should be made to fetch coffee for the rest of the office. I don’t know about you, but mine seems to reach full charge around 1 am; a perfect time to have your phone going bonkers. I solved the issue pretty quickly by charging it face down on a soft surface, but this shouldn’t be the solution. I’m interested in seeing how it behaves in the dock, but the thing is going for $35 and I’m not really interested in paying that.
The soft buttons at the bottom aren’t very compatible with my bear paw hands. Either I need to learn how to hold it better or I need to get used to doing things I don’t intend when carrying/moving it around.
Bottom Line
There are some minor annoyances, but nothing too substantial. After using the phone for two weeks, with a serious amount of usage in Vegas, I’m hooked. Is it better than iOS and iPhone? Does it really matter? At this point they’re so closely matched, whatever platform works for you is the one you should buy. What I can say is I will never look at another BlackBerry again. It’s really quite sad considering they were the major player in the area for so long. I tried to stick it out but they just got left behind. Plain and simple.
Oh and all my worries about touchscreen typing? Unfounded… and even if they weren’t, touchscreen navigation makes it worthwhile.