Friday, December 12, 2008

BlackBerry Bold Vs. Curve 8900


After a bit of play time with the BlackBerry Curve 8900, now available through Rogers Wireless, I must say that I'm thoroughly impressed. While I'm still a 3G gal (once you go 3G, you never go back!), I can safely say that the 8900 is a viable upgrade for current Curve owners, or even as a step-up for Pearl users. And if having the absolute fastest speed isn't of grave concern to you, it might even be a better option than the Bold.

My first impression upon taking the device out of the box was "wow": as an objet, it's probably the nicest-looking BlackBerry to date. Sorry to disappoint you, my current Bold, but you look like a massive clunker next to the new Curve! The 8900 is tiny, almost feather-like in weight, and has a slightly higher-resolution screen than the Bold. To accomplish the device's small stature, however, the resulting screen is not as wide, and the keys are slightly smaller.

I started to type, and my eyes lit up even more. The buttons are spaced out and raised in a petal-like design. Motions aren't as fluid as they are when typing on the Bold, but it's still a comfortable experience, nonetheless. The quiet "tap, tap" that emits from each key as I spell a word is just as reassuring as the tactile feedback you feel with touch-screen models like the Samsung Instinct (and similar to the experience with the previous-generation Curve). The one drawback: the soft-keys for "menu" and "back" are stiff, requiring that I push down on them much harder than is needed for the Bold. Since these are often-used buttons, this could get frustrating over time.

Despite the sleeker and sexier look of the new Curve, the fact that it operates on the slower EDGE network is a deal-breaker for me. Surfing sites side-by-side, the Curve always took longer to load a page. Sometimes, the difference was minimal (e.g. 23 seconds for the Curve vs. 18 seconds for the Bold). In one instance, there was even just a two-second difference between load times. But when surfing particularly image-heavy sites, the difference is much more telling. For example, the Curve took 47 sec. to load the homepage at http://www.hereshow.ca/ in its entirely vs. just 23 secs. for the Bold.

Still, if you don't often surf the Web or stream content on your mobile device and can deal with slightly slower speeds, the EDGE network might suit you just fine. And keep in mind that, like the Bold, the Curve has WiFi as well, so you can latch on to hotspots whenever they are available. As an aside, the Curve also has a much better camera at 3.2 MP vs. 2 MP, along with flash and image stabilization.

Bottom line: if you're a speed-demon who surfs the Web often on your phone, you're better off getting the Bold. The Bold might also be a better option if you have large hands or thumbs, and hate manipulating tiny gadgetry (which I know many guys hate to deal with!) But if you want small, lightweight, and multifunctional, I'd opt for the Curve 8900, even over the Pearl. It's only slightly larger, but affords the ability to manipulate a full QWERTY keyboard instead of using SureType.

As with anything else, to each his own. But if the Curve was 3G, I'd have a hard time convincing myself that I needed the Bold instead.

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31 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great review! I think I'll be getting the 8900 over the bold. I have small hands and I'm not a speed demon haha

Anonymous said...

That's EXACTLY the comparision I wanted. Only outstanding questions are the cost differential and the battery consumption differential between them.
Now, I just have to wait for AT&T to get the Curve 8900.

crsmejia said...

After coming from an iPhone that is now lost, damn! should've got the 8GB, I got the 8900. This Blackberry is really slick and beautiful. Very easy to hold, and very light and powerful for what I needed; mainly email, data send and receive, some media and of course text+calling. Browser could be better but then again it's no MobileSafari so you cannot expect too much. Opera Mini is a great alternative that I use, it's very good I think better then that stock browser because it will display mobile pages instead of full pages that aren't made for the Blackberry Browser. I chose this model over the Bold because of the Bold's many tech issues. I don't regret getting this BB at all.

Anonymous said...

I love my BB Bold but this 8900 looks like a stunning alternative!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for a concise comparison of the Bold and the Curve 8900. This is exactly the information I needed to help a client make a decision as to which one to purchase.

Paparazzi said...

Is there any difference in processing speed going from menu to menu on the Curve over the Bold? I notice that my curve 8310 was much slower than my Bold... on device speed is more important to me than surfing speed -

Overall - great review.

Joe

Anonymous said...

can you compare the 8900 with the iphone?

Anonymous said...

Is the fact the Bold has 3G the only advantage over the curve? I mean you say the curve is better looking, easier to type on, has a better camera, brighter screen etc...

How is the battery life? Im looking to get my first blackberry and cannot decide. I've never owned or used a phone to surf the net and I doubt I will surf much since I use my laptop for that anywhere I go and so is the Curve good enough for the occasional google search and facebook visit?

Pixalife said...

Wonderful review, i was getting sick of reading large reviews, that gave me nothing to decide. Thanks :D

Unknown said...

Best comparison that I have seen and read to date. I have been painfully comparing the two devices as I am still undecided, but with your views and comparison, I am opting for the Bold for sure. Thanks for the excellent, detailed review! :)

Anonymous said...

I need bbry for my work. not to surf and play. I have both Bold and Curve 8900 and I also have iphone. The reason i switched from Bold to 8900 is that the battery (like at any 3G mobile) doesn't last much.
To surf and Play I prefer iphone 3G.

Anonymous said...

finally... really needed a review like this, beeb brainstorming for a while on wheter to get the bold or the javelin(8900) now i'm definitely getting the 8900. thank you!

Jawad Khan said...

Excellent review. I am currently using Blackberry 8700g, and keen to upgrade. However, I am bit confused about the email integration. Does BB Bold support multiple email integration like 8700g? I have BES for corporate email and I do check my gmail and hotmail on the go on 8700g.

Appreciate your help.

Jawad Khan said...

Excellent review! my plan to go for Blackberry Bold. However, multiple email integration feature is bothering me much. I am currently using 8700g and have 3 email accounts configured on it. Can I have the same on the Black Berry Bold or Curve 8900 will be the best choice for me.

Appreciate your help.

Anonymous said...

amazing review!

thanks for sharing :)

Anonymous said...

daamnnn , this is a reallly nice review,
i guess id b getting the curve :)

Anonymous said...

I was considering the bold because it is 3G.. but this review sold me on the curve..

- best review I've read!!

Unknown said...

Wonderful review I have ever read. It was too difficult to decide between Bold and Curve 8900. But after reading this review I finally bought Curve 8900. This is surely a wonderful phone as I am not speed demon. Beside 3G, it has everything including looks and trendy style. Buy curve 8900 and trust me it will make you very confident and dashing personality!!!!

Anonymous said...

finally the perfect review of the phones. gr8 job. now i can go ahead n buy the curve. excellent review.

Chris Allen said...

Excellent Review, thanks alot for a great comparison! I have realistically been looking at purchasing one or the other for a while now and I think you may have just swung my opinion to the 8900.
Thanks!!

james said...

Just wanted to say thank you. I'm through with my iPhone, I'm going back to being a power user and I could not decide between the Curve and the Bold.

I've done a lot of research and this is the best review I've seen. You stick to the basics which is exactly what most users want to know.

Thank you!

Unknown said...

what a great sexy review!

Unknown said...

I'm going for the 8900, thanks for the sexy review

Anonymous said...

If you are only using regular wifi for the blackberry, does having 3g even matter then?

What I mean is, If I am at school and do not connect to the carriers service but use free wifi, are the speeds between the curve and bold the same?

ms. myndi said...

great review! thanks! ive had the bold for 3 weeks - trading it in tomorrow for the 8900!

mocha latte said...

thanks for the simple yet understandable review for BB blunders like me ;) you solved my problem. has been thinking abt bold vs curve 8900 for along time. now i know what to get.. curve 8900 ;)

Anonymous said...

this is really a great review..i'm a nokia phone user..but i'm planning to try the blackberry..been so hard to choose between the two..at first i was considering the price..what i was thinking was if the price is higher, it's much better.. but because of this review will most probably go for the curve..thnx a lot!! really a great help for me..

Anonymous said...

Good review, surfing the web on a blackberry is painful, even on the Bold - My Bold just went for a swim in my pool the other night so I have to replace it, perhaps it will be an 8900. I went back to my old 8700 in the meantime.

Anonymous said...

woww it sure hard to choose between 'em two, I'm on iPhone 3G now and thinking of getting a blackberry so my choice is the bold till I read much about 8900 and now I have no clue on which one to get.... peeps pls help me choose
xoxo
P

Anonymous said...

Fantastic Review...i was lost on which phone to get, before i read this review they were pretty much identical to me, other than the size obviously. but now i think ill definitly go for the 8900...once again thanks for the excellent review

Anonymous said...

Great review! Best one I've read to date. Actually very helpful. Really helped me make my decision...that is the 8900