BlackBerry Pearl 8130
Average Ratings
This thing is a winner!
I waited a couple of weeks and ACTUALLY USED THE PHONE before I made a review.
I have been pretty happy with my PPC 6700 as a secondary device waiting out Sprint to get me a solution that allowed me to just carry ONE.
The basic phone itself is a breeze to use, and the voice dialing works fantastic and gets great signal.
The 1x EVDO data is wickedly fast, and the browser, while not being a full IE-type, allows you to get everywhere you would want, and
even condenses the pages to allow you to get around it.
PROs
Signal
Speed
ease of mailbox setup (YOU DON'T NEED
ENTERPRISE MAIL TO MAKE THIS WORK GREAT!)
Form Factor
Sure-type is great when you get used to it.
Sprint Music with a 6gb card? PRICELESS
Regular phono jack for headphones
SPRINT Telenav blows away my Tom Tom
Camera is great along with ease of access to photos
BlackBerry messenger is a blast.
Call Quality is fantastic.
Screen is great.
TONS of software available to customize to whatever you need.
CONS
If you get into a heavy email, the suretype can get a tad frustrating... So if you are doing that a lot, the 8830 or the Curve when it comes out may be whats best for you. (A lot of my emails are pretty short, and I love the form factor of this thing... It's a pro's phone)
BATTERY LIFE is a tad disappointing, but I am a 3000 minute, heavy text, heavy email, heavy browser and it lasts all day without a problem.
Phones like this will make people stop yapping about Sprint's network.
The Best Phone I have Ever Owned
I have owned several phones in my time. Here are a few:
LG VX6000
LG VX9800
Samsung i730
But the Blackberry Pearl beats them all hands down.
When my contract was up with Verizon I had planned to switch over to AT&T to get the iphone. But for my phone and business needs there were to many disadvantages. Then Verizon came out with the Voyager, Venus, and the Pearl. I looked very had at all three devices and determined the Voyager and Venus were good media devices but that only filled half of my needs. Then I looked into the pearl. WOW all of my business and media dreams were taken care of.
Pros:
1) Excellent business device. The desktop manager comes with the ability to sync with Lotus Notes (the first phone I have found to do this without a third party software).
2) Unlimited data plans for $29.95. With all other Verizon PDA/Smartphones you will pay $44.95.
3) GPS. I have read many reviews stating you need to pay for VZNavigator or Telenav in order to use the GPS. This is not true if you own (or purchase) a GPS receiver (also know as a puck). I found a free software program called Nav4all that works great with my slim 236 receiver. You can find it at Nav4all.com. The software isn't the best but it does have turn-by-turn voice command and it's free until 1/1/2010.
4) Media is good. Would be better if it offer itunes and would sync with itunes.
5) All of the free themes and third party software available.
6) Voice dialing is the best I have had.
7) Reception and signal strength are great. I've been told callers hear nothing but a clear signal when they talk to me.
Now for the cons:
1) The battery is poor. I get about 12 hours per charge (but then again I use it almost all day).
2) Verizon has blocked the internal GPS receiver which means if you want to use the GPS function to operate any Navi software other than VZNavigator you will need to purchase an additional GPS receiver.
Overall this is an outstanding Personal, Business, and media device.
Great phone!
The RIM 8130 is a great phone, with minor and some major improvements over the original pearl (8100).
First of all, this phone internet browsing is a lot quicker because of Sprint/Verizon "EVDO" v.s. AT&T/T-Mobile "EDGE".
The 3.5 mm headphone jack is very useful for headphones and auxillary port's to play through your car stereo or home theater speakers.
The access to the micro sd is very easy.
The camcorder is pretty useful.
The flash is exceptional!
Mp3 player is easy to use and plenty loud.
Picture quality is a great improvement over the 8100.
Great Phone So Far
I've had this phone for about 3 weeks now, and so far I've really enjoyed it. My previous phones were LG VX8000 and a Samsung model I don't remember (it was over 3 years ago). The LG had been a pretty solid phone but I was ready to upgrade. I considered the LG Voyager and Venus and the Samsung FlipShot, but decided the Blackberry was more of what I wanted since I didn't plan on watching videos or listening to music too much or taking pictures on my phone.
I considered other smartphones, but decided they were too big and bulky for me. I had considered switching to the iPhone on ATT, but didn't really want to be with ATT service and most of my family/friends are on Verizon, so free minutes. Plus, with a new every 2 $100 discount, a $100 discount for upgrading to an advanced data device, and a $50 rebate (sorry, ended 11/26), this phone only cost me $50. Monthly, it will add about $30 to what I was paying before (data plan), but I was willing to accept that. One other consideration is that I am a Mac-user, and while reviews said it didn't sync perfectly as well with PCs, it seemed to work well enough for my needs.
Pros:
Size
Productivity (email, web, etc)
Install 3rd party software
GUI is nice
Decent camera/video option
Decent music player
Bluetooth (though not all profiles)
Custom ringtones
Signal strength
Syncing (so far so good)
Add more memory
Call quality
Cons:
Keys are a little small, but getting used to it
Battery goes pretty quickly
As far as the navigation/GPS goes, I do agree with other reviewers that it stinks you have to pay extra for that, but there is a map utility on the phone and you can install Google Maps to get directions. You just can't get turn-by-turn directions or find out your current location very well (Google can approximate your location).
Overall, I recommend this phone. One caveat is that this is my first Blackberry/smartphone, and thus have nothing to compare to except my previous phones.
Sprint version of 8130
Even though the 8130 was launched on Black Friday for Sprint, I couldn't find any stores with it in stock until yesterday. I've only had the phone for a day, but here are my first impressions:
PROS:
Battery life seems okay, could be better
Sound quality - seems pretty clear, not like the person was standing next to you, but better than other phones I have owned.
Gmail Apps & Google Maps is a really handy tool
2 customizable buttons on the sides
The Blackberry holster is really neat. It uses a magnet to detect if the BB is in the holster and changes your profile accordingly.
The trackball is good to use when using Opera, as you can use it like a mouse.
The size - you barely notice it in your pocket.
Plays movies,mp3, etc. It even pauses when someone calls.
CONS:
Still getting use to the trackball, not as fast as I would like it.
Suretype - it has killed my text messaging speed. But i'm sure after 2-3 weeks, I'll become a fan.
Speakerphone isn't as loud as I would like
I'm still trying to find a fast way to port over all my contact.
New Sprint Blackberry Package - $30:
Includes unlmited texts, unlimited internet, BIS, Sprint TV an Sprint Nav. The Sprint Nav was extremely cool (not as good as blackberry maps imo)! It took a minute or two to pinpoint your location, but after that it worked pretty well. I was paying $22 for internet and txts, but felt this was just as good
Overall:
This beautiful phone is a great addition to Sprint's lineup. I've already had one person switch to it within the first 24 hours. I'd give it a 9/10.
WINNER
Improvement over my 7130e in every way. Takes a day or so to get use to the ball vs. trackwheel. Has a few bugs to work out. LED problem (I know all about how to set notifications, not the problem). I have no issues with battery life. I do get a strong signal in DC. Seems faster internet than 7130e even though it shouldn't be.
cons;
case is worthless - hard to pull out phone
GPS locked to only work on Verizon $10 app
VZ tech support not knowledgeable yet
suretype is a little different than on 7130e
im not in love with new email look
latest gmm won't run (yet)
pros;
better browser (much better)
form factor is great
camera (free to email pics)
voice commands great
can make folders for organizing icons
slightly smaller but better screen
Pearl 8130
This is my third Blackberry (I'll never stray), and by far the best one yet. I've been anxiously awaiting this particular phone because I crave a phone with a camera (just in case) and the ability to MMS. This phone is perfect, perfect, perfect.
The form factor is amazing. It fits perfectly in my hand (although if you have big hands/fingers this may be a problem for you).
The camera is good, email is a breeze, and reception is remarkable.
The only *slight* gripe I have so far is the battery life isn't the greatest, but I am a heavy user so I may just need to buy a backup battery.
GET THIS PHONE PEOPLE. It's seriously amazing!
Adjusting
Have used for 2 days now and will use every bit of my 30 days carefully to see if I'll keep...
I use a cell phone primarily as a talking/texting device and call quality, reliability and customer service are why I stay with Verizon. I am new to BB but have been waiting for the small and attractive Pearl. I am still getting used to the Suretype, but:
Pros - call quality, speakerphone, good volume controls, great vibe, easy, fast email, small form but feels substantial not cheap, trackball is fun, excellent camera and flash, very decent battery life, no ugly VZ red!
Cons - suretype takes some getting used to, keys are very tiny, why qwerty on this device? Having to pay on top of the data pkg for Navigator is a huge ripoff!! And only the monthly plan at that? Come on Verizon - play NICE.
iPhone to Curve to Pearl - Awesome!
I had been with Verizon for several years. Then it happened - the iPhone came out. Being a Mac guy, I was all over it! I jumped to ATT (although I kept my VZW account, thankfully).
The iPhone is an insane techno-toy! But, that was just it...a toy. Nothing bad to say about it, except low volume issues which kept making me miss emails/texts because the notifier volume was very low.
So, I saw the Curve 8310 come out. Knowing VZW would not be getting the Curve, I opted to get it on ATT.
Then, the new Pearl 8130 came out on VZW. I had never really been a fan of a Pearl because of the keyboard setup. I was one of those who always said, "gotta have that full Qwerty keyboard".
I got a Pearl 8130 for my wife, and wound up playing with it more than she did the first night we had it. The TrueType keyboard is absolutely awesome! In less than an hour, I was typing on it with ease.
So, next day I head to VZW and picked up my Pearl 8130 and today took back my Curve, and will be canceling out my ATT to stay with the "best" network.
I'll just tell you, calls sound soooo much better on a CDMA network phone!
This new Pearl is the bomb! I LOVE the size/form factor, call quality, email/texting, volume of ringers, great screen, ability to add 3rd party software (can't do that on iPhone), 2.0mp camera and a video camera that the Curve does NOT have.
I also love the VZW Navigator, which is very comparable to ATT's Telenav.
I could go on and on, but suffice to say after only a day, I LOVING my Pearl 8130.
No cons worth mentioning.
Worth the switch
I hope this info helps someone out. I have had the 8703e the 8830 and now the 8130. I love this one the most. There a a ton of pros:
small size
great reception
more than decent battery life
camera+ plus it zooms
video camara.
Really does take nice photos has flash.
Micro sd card outside the phone no need to remove battery to place card in.
Track ball the bomb!
Cons:
No full keyboard(But Suretype is easy to use trust me give it a day and your set)
Would be nice to get a silcone case included for people who don't strap it on there belt.
Really this phone is the best like i said before I had the others the 8703e big bulky but works no track ball. Nice keyboard though
The 8830 nice phone looks like a pearl on steroids but full keyboard is cramped and hard to type on. Sd card is under battery door and a pain to put in. Battery is the same on this as the 8130.
Ok back on the 8130. It is worth it really. Some people are complaining about how it is not a full internet. Ok it is a phone get a laptop it will do more than what you need tobe doing on a phone anyway.
Vz navigator is nice and worth the money if you travel alot. If not you can pay as you go per day access.
Vzw also has changed there plans it has lowered the price to $29.99 unlimited access. There is a 10mb plan also for 24.99 a month. VZW also offers insurance on these were as ATT does not.
Great phone no problems if you want to read more check out the blackberry forum site at blackberryforums.com it will give you real peoples questions and situations on all blackberrys it is free.
