BB Geeks » BlackBerry Bold

A look at AT&T’s BlackBerry lineup

Joe — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 16:30:31 +0000

It’s something I never thought I’d see. When browsing the BlackBerry listings on AT&T’s website I clicked around and clicked around, because it didn’t seem right. There is no standard-issue BlackBerry available for sale. There is no Bold 9000, no Bold 9700, no Bold 9780. It seems unfathomable that AT&T, the carrier that used to get all the new BlackBerry models before every other carrier, doesn’t have a standard issue one available on its website. Worst of all, they haven’t announced a release date for the Bold 9900, and prevailing rumors peg a release date in the October-November range.

Even stranger, the BlackBerry models that AT&T does offer, it offers cheaply. There isn’t anything over $50 on a two-year contract. This is at odds with other carriers. Verizon, for instance, offers the Bold 9930 for $250, which is more expensive than a typical smartphone. That at least makes the AT&T BlackBerry lineup a bit more intriguing. Let’s take a look at what they’re offering.

BlackBerry Torch

While AT&T does not have a flagship BlackBerry device, it does have one of RIM’s more hyped models. Last year they held a big event in New York to announce the BlackBerry Torch, a touchscreen slider device that was supposed to make business more fun. That is, it combined the fun of a touchscreen device with the BlackBerry keyboard that has become an essential for heavy emailers. They have the original Torch available for just $50, which is down considerably from the original retail price. That’s going to happen when a device has been around for a year.

More recently the Torch got an update. Not long ago we reviewed the BlackBerry Torch 9810 for AT&T. It might look nearly identical to its predecessor, but it has a ton more features under the hook. For a full look, make sure to read the review. Here’s the oddity, though: AT&T is offering the Torch 9810 for $50, same as the Torch 9800. The only difference is that you can get the old Torch in red, whereas you can only get the new one in white and gray. I’m sure this pricing issue will solve itself soon enough. After all, AT&T sells it other BlackBerry models for even cheaper than that.

BlackBerry Pearl 3G

One thing that I will never understand is why the Pearl 3G failed so greatly. People loved the original Pearl. In fact, there was a time when I knew more people who owned Pearls than flagship BlackBerry devices. It was small but still usable, with SureType providing an ample fill-in for the full-sized keyboard. The big drawback, though, was that the Pearl only ran on EDGE networks. That meant ploddingly slow internet speeds, which is always going to turn off potential customers.

The new Pearl brought it all. It was sleeker, had better screen resolution, had more memory, and ran on AT&T’s 3G network. Yet it took AT&T a long time to pick up the device. Maybe, as with the Bold 9000, it was a software issue. But given the lack of hype around the device and the low price point, it might have been an issue of demand. Which, again, doesn’t make much sense. If people loved the original, wouldn’t they love a better, faster update?

The good news is that if you did love the Pearl and want the newest version — which runs BlackBerry 6, you can get it at AT&T for just $20 with a two-year contract. It’s hard to find a better deal than that. And yet…

BlackBerry Curve 3G

The Curve at one time was BlackBerry’s “cool” phone. It brought the BlackBerry experience to a smaller, sleeker, more feature-rich phone. It was the first full-sized BlackBerry to contain a camera. But at the same time it suffered from the same EDGE issues as the Pearl. It just didn’t measure up to the 3G devices. Even the 8500 didn’t measure up. It was basically a stripped down Bold, without 3G. But the newest Curve changed that.

RIM brought the same basic specs to the Curve 3G, but with two notable differences. First, it contained more memory, which allowed it to run BlackBerry OS 6. Second, it added a 3G radio, which allowed it to stay apace with all the other new smartphones hitting the market. Yet it still had a too little, too late feeling to it. the Curve 3G apparently didn’t sell well at all with AT&T — when they finally decided to pick it up.

It’s the closest thing to the flagship BlackBerry available on AT&T, and it’s set at the lowest price. They’re selling them for just a penny with a two-year agreement. If you have an upgrade coming and want a smartphone, but want to do so on a budget, you can grab this one essentially for free, and use the $15 per month data plan. Combine that with $20 unlimited messaging plan and the $40 monthly service plan and you get a two-year ownership cost of $1,800. You’re not going to find many more deals like that for a smartphone.

This post originated at BBGeeks.com - home to all things Blackberry! Also a great source of info about AT&T BlackBerry.

A look at AT&T’s BlackBerry lineup

The Bold 9930 is here for Verizon

Joe — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 15:04:22 +0000

What you see in the image above is the BlackBerry Bold 9930, the newest BlackBerry device for Verizon. The last we saw from Verizon they were releasing a pair of underwhelming BlackBerry devices, the Bold 9650 and the Curve 9330. I’m about to toss my 9650 into oncoming traffic, so the timing of the 9930 couldn’t be any better. One of these puppies awaits review at BBGeeks HQ, and so we should have more on this in the coming days. But, for those interested in getting it now, here are a few key things you need to know.

It’s fast

Older BlackBerry devices had slow processors when compared to the industry standard. The 9650 processor was 624 MHz, and the 9930 is 1.2 GHz. That is, it’s almost twice as fast as its predecessor. That will allow it to run more powerful software, but that’s not the greatest benefit. It will benefit you the most, because it will stop lagging and run the apps you already use a ton faster.

It has a nicer screen

Clearly, the biggest selling point of the new Bold is that it has a touchscreen interface. It’s a nice addition to the normal BlackBerry layout. In fact, I can’t think of many downsides to simply making the normal screen touch. The screen is also of a higher resolution than older Bolds. The 9650, for example, had a 480×360 pixel display. The Bold 9930 has a 640×480 pixel display. That means better video quality, and all-around screen quality, for you.

It’s more expensive than normal

It seems that all new BlackBerry devices fall around the $199 or lower price range. The Bold, the Tour, and the 8830 all dropped around that price, so that’s what was expected of the 9930. Apparently that is not the case. The BlackBerry Bold 9930 will cost $249.99 with a new two-year agreement. I’m not sure why they’ve increased the price, but they have. Hopefully you’re just upgrading and can keep your unlimited data plan with Verizon. New customers will only get 2GB for their $30 monthly data fee.

Again, we’ll be reviewing this unit in the coming days and will have a more detailed report soon. But for now, these are the essentials with the Bold.

This post originated at BBGeeks.com - home to all things Blackberry! Also a great source of info about AT&T BlackBerry.

The Bold 9930 is here for Verizon

A tale of two expensive BlackBerrys

Joe — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 12:26:25 +0000

As a friend of mine would say, holy crap-moley! We’ve got a little tale of rich and obsessed BlackBerry fans for you — spread over two different new models, no less. First up is the BlackBerry Bold, via Boy Genius Report. You know, that device that’s made us tap our foot and glance at our watch. Turns out, some guy in New York got his hands on five bolds, and unloaded them for $1,299.99. His name, as described by BGR, is “Joe at BlackBerry Business,” which sounds like a radio-show caller. They are sold out now, though I’m not sure anyone reading this is particularly disappointed. I mean, thirteen-hundred dollars! Pic of the listing, and another expensive listing, after the jump.

Next, via BlackBerry News we get the results of a pre-release Pearl 8220 on eBay. It sold for $1,725.00. I am speechless. I only hope this doesn’t turn out like Kevin’s episode with the pre-release Bold. Not that it was bad — he got an exclusive review just before the announcement at WES. But ask him if it works right now. In any case, congratulations to the winner.

This post originated at BBGeeks.com - home to all things Blackberry! Also a great source of info about AT&T BlackBerry.

A tale of two expensive BlackBerrys

Pricing info on the AT&T Bold and Rogers 8220

Joe — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 12:25:59 +0000

We’ll start off with the juicy BlackBerry Bold info. I caught this on BlackBerry News, though they got it through Gizmodo. Rumor is that the Bold will hit AT&T shelves on September 12, and carry a $299 price on a two-year contract. So it’s just like Rogers, except minus a year of commitment. Let’s hope they got that 3G reception issue worked out. The Boy Genius is hearing October 2, but he admits that this isn’t “double or triple confirmed.” Let’s hope BlackBerry News is right.

Kevin delivers some bad news. You know those scintillating rumors that the BlackBerry Pearl 8820 would come in with a low price point, possibly $50. Sorry. Looks like $149.99 on a three-year deal with Rogers. There’s still hope with T-Mobile, I suppose.

C’est la vie.

This post originated at BBGeeks.com - home to all things Blackberry! Also a great source of info about AT&T BlackBerry.

Pricing info on the AT&T Bold and Rogers 8220

BBGeeks BlackBerry Bold Wallpaper

Cooper — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 15:15:04 +0000

So we finally got our hands on the Bold yesterday morning and we are VERY excited. This device was touted as an iPhone killer and has been hyped to no end by the legions of devoted RIM enthusiasts around the world.

After a little bit of hands on time, we have to say that the BlackBerry Bold delivers on most fronts (minor issues with browsing the web) and we are thoroughly impressed.

BBGeeks Loves the BlackBerry Bold

It is for this reason that we would like to share a special wallpaper with you, our loyal readers.

Please feel free to download this custom BBGeeks BlackBerry Bold wallpaper and show your support for the site whenever you are showing off your new gadget.

The wallpaper has been designed specifically for the half VGA resolution of the BlackBerry Bold, but if you have an older model we would be glad to whip you up a version that is suited to your particular device.

BBGeeks Custom BlackBerry Bold Wallpaper

Swapping your BlackBerry Bold wallpaper

Swapping out the default Bold wallpaper for our new custom BBGeeks image is really easy and can be accomplished in a few short steps.

Save the custom BBGeeks wallpaper to your desktop or another easy to remember location. Be sure to click through and get the full sized image)
Email the image to yourself or transfer the image to your BlackBerry Bold via USB to your PC.
Save the image in your Photos folder or any location you choose on your BlackBerry Bold.
On the Bold, navigate to the BBGeeks wallpaper image and press the BlackBerry menu key.
From the available options, choose “Set as Homescreen Image” and exit the menu.

Thats it, you now have the custom BBGeeks.com BlackBerry Bold wallpaper profiled nicely on your homescreen. Thank you for downloading it and showing us some love!

This post originated at BBGeeks.com - home to all things Blackberry! Also a great source of info about AT&T BlackBerry.

BBGeeks BlackBerry Bold Wallpaper

Video reviews of the BlackBerry Bold

Joe — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 13:05:01 +0000

With the release of a new phone normally comes a slew of unboxing videos and video reviews. The BlackBerry Bold, despite its delayed release, has generated a decent level of hype. At least as enough for Kevin’s unboxing video to get approximately 80 bajillion links across the Internet. His isn’t the only one, though. Mobile Syrup has a hands-on review of the device which focuses on its multimedia aspects. Magawhat.tv also did a hands-on, specifically to see if the Bold measures up to the iPhone. We’ll embed all the videos after the jump.

First, the CrackBerry video:

Before we get into the Mobile Syrup video, a particularly praise-worthy paragraph a about the Bold:

This has a 2 megapixel camera with 3x zoom (iPhone has a 2 megapixel and no zoom), WiFi and 3G for surfing the web, a video recorder (iPhone has no video recorder), music player that has wicked sound and can now sync with your iTunes (BlackBerry Sync)… also, the screen features 480×320 resolution (twice as much as the BlackBerry Curve).. which makes for great viewing when it comes to your movies, videos etc.

And finally, from Megawhat.tv:

This post originated at BBGeeks.com - home to all things Blackberry! Also a great source of info about AT&T BlackBerry.

Video reviews of the BlackBerry Bold

BlackBerry Bold roundup

Joe — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 12:59:24 +0000

In celebration of the BlackBerry Bold launching on Rogers, marking the first North American release of the device, we’re going to take a short tour of the Internet to find out a bit more about the Bold. Some is good, some is not so good. But it will be entertaining. I can promise that.

First up is Douglas Stoltys of BlackBerry Cool. He’s put together what he calls the ultimate review of the Bold. I thought it would be tough to top David Flynn’s monster, but Doug has left no stone unturned. Check it out for yourself. You might become overwhelmed when you scroll to the bottom: nine pages of pure Blackberry Bold review.

Might the Bold be experiencing 3G reception issues? jkOnTheRun takes a look at the issue. It seems that these are issues similar to those experienced by iPhone 3G users. Hopefully, it’s a kink that can be worked out. Maybe it helps explain AT&T’s reluctance to release the device. You can also find the ballyhooed Bold vs. iPhone browser battle, though I’ve seen that it’s really the 2.5G iPhone vs. a pre-production Bold. What’s the point of that?

Want to disassemble your Bold?

Of course, you’re going to want to put it back together, right?

Thanks to Kevin for linking to those videos.

Finally, Carlo Maglinao hits us with the final BrickBreaker level. Has anyone been this far yet?

This post originated at BBGeeks.com - home to all things Blackberry! Also a great source of info about AT&T BlackBerry.

BlackBerry Bold roundup

BlackBerry Bold gets official on Rogers

Joe — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 15:24:44 +0000

It’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for. Well, at least those of us north of the border. We heard earlier this week that the BlackBerry Bold was to hit Rogers today. Then again, we’ve heard rumors like that before, only to see the date come and go with nothing to show. Not this time. Head over to Rogers Website, where you’ll find it sitting there for $399.99 with a three-year contract (voice and data plan required). Don’t want to sign a contract or extend yours? The price is looking like $599.99 and the device is delivered via UPS in 3 to 5 business days. But in any event, Happy Bold Day everyone!

This post originated at BBGeeks.com - home to all things Blackberry! Also a great source of info about AT&T BlackBerry.

BlackBerry Bold gets official on Rogers

Your BlackBerry broke when you dropped it? You don’t say.

Joe — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 14:22:27 +0000

Funny how one person posts a story, and the entire tech-loving Internet picks it up. Turns out that the Boy Genius dropped his BlackBerry Bold over the weekend. Nevermind the fact that he actually has one. He says it happened while opening his trunk, and that it was from two feet high. Unless he has a smart car, then no, it was higher than two feet. And guess what? It cracked. That’s usually what happens when an electronic device meets asphalt. So a ton of articles pop up on various blogs, asking if the Bold can really hold up.

The moral of the story (and BG agrees): get a skin for your BlackBerry. And not just the Bold. Or, at least, if you don’t get a skin, don’t complain when you drop the thing and it breaks.

If you want to see the damage for yourself, head over to the photo gallery. It actually doesn’t look all that bad.

This post originated at BBGeeks.com - home to all things Blackberry! Also a great source of info about AT&T BlackBerry.

Your BlackBerry broke when you dropped it? You don’t say.

BlackBerry Bold: Expensive, more expensive, and delayed again?

Joe — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 12:38:34 +0000

Update: Looks like Rogers will be carrying it on Thursday the 21st. Hat tip to DigitalJournal.com.

It seems Rogers customers, or potential Rogers customers, have been dealing with three weeks of bad news. So many reports had the BlackBerry Bold set to launch through them on July 25, or some date close thereafter. It is now August 18, and that has not happened. Not only that, but we’re now getting word on the pricing, and it ain’t pretty. Rogers best price, which includes a ridiculous three-year contract, is $400. It could be worse, though. You could pay $650 through Tiger Direct, though the upside is that there’s no contract with that.

Oh yeah, and one source suggests yet another delay for AT&T.

According to Mobiledia, the Bold is slated for a mid-September release. Last time I checked, September 1 was not mid-month. Remember when people were rabbling over a mid-August release? Yeah. We’re well beyond that.

RIM had announced a summer release for the Bold, but issues with chips and battery life caused a delay. It unveiled the Bold in Chile on July 22 and in Germany on Aug. 6.

The good news, at least, is that it taps the Rogers release for late August. Hey, that’s almost now!

This post originated at BBGeeks.com - home to all things Blackberry! Also a great source of info about AT&T BlackBerry.

BlackBerry Bold: Expensive, more expensive, and delayed again?