BlackBerry Bold 9700
Phone Scoop Review
Nov 5, 2009 by Eric M. Zeman
Phone Scoop takes RIM's new Bold 9700 for a spin. Top-notch build quality and a solid software experience make this smartphone a better 'Berry. read review ›
User Reviews
Average Ratings
BOLD!!!
Let me start off by saying that I have been a Blackberry user for 7 years. Every once and a awhile I get the urge to switch to a different phone and I always come back to Blackberry. I just recently tried out the Nexus One, and although it is an amazing phone, nothing and I mean nothing compares to the efficiency and functionality of a Blackberry! In my opinion the 9700 is the best to date! If you are looking for a phone that is a text and email powerhouse along with some cool media stuff attached and not to mention works brilliantly as an actual phone, then look no further!!!!
PROS
Battery life
Full qwerty keyboard
Wifi with UMA
Blackberry Email (the best)
Bbm
Flawless Syncing
Cons
Web browser could be a little better by now. Cmon RIM it is 2010! Weren't we supposed to have flying cars by now? Lol :)
Its not bad...but its not great either
I have owned a Blackberry for the last 4.5 years. The 9700 has a nice screen and I love that RIM finally made a phone that you can customize individual text tones! Battery life seems good and signal is great even in EDGE areas. Sound quality is great and you can make the ringtones horribly loud which is awesome. The trackpad is amazing. much better than the trackball.
The Camera quality is ok but phone often gives a weird color tone to the pictures. It freezes often. The main reason I gave it a 3 is because it doesnt hold up very well to minimal abuse. I dont throw my phones around but i do drop them from time to time and the little silver divider between the key rows broke! the paint job on my keys looks shotty at best, and just overall doesnt feel like its put together well.
Better than expected!
I almost didn't upgrade to the 9700. I absolutely loved my 9000 and thought there just weren't enough differences or updates to be worth my while. It had every appearance of being a beefed up Curve 8900 with some characteristics of the Bold line.
I was wrong...It is a definite step up with twice the application memory, a much smoother and faster processor, a very nice software upgrade and the best overall camera package I have seen on a device to date.
Pros:
- Trackpad!!
- Processor/internet speed is faster
- 5.0 software
- Camera
- App memory
- Easier profile setup that makes more sense and has the vibrate and ring at the same time option.
- Threaded texting is so much better
- Built-in email flagging w/reminder option
- Dedicated keyboard lock
Cons:
- Miss the all leather back from the 9000. It was a much nicer looking and feeling phone.
- Keypad is a little too narrow (nothing I can't get used to)
- No stereo sound which was one of my favorite things about the 9000.
The 9700 is an amazing device and is the best overall Blackberry RIM has come out with to date. It works very well on AT&T's 3G and EDGE networks. I highly recommend this Blackberry!!
best blackberry i have owned soo far
good call quality. I had to get an unlock code from here http://www.unlockcellphonecode.com/product_info.php/code-unlocking-blackberry-mobile-cell-phone-p-76 so I could switch from T-Mobile to AT&T so I could use 3g in my area (Iowa)
speakers are not the greatest for music but not bad. It does have A2DP thank god, so i can use it with my stereo in my truck.
all in all i give it a 4 out of 5.
Good, not as great as advertised
One of the main reasons i switched fm my beloved 8700 was for the promised "much faster" 3G Tmo network, internet, etc
Let me tell ya: NOT faster
I have had the phone 48 hrs now, and i HATE the keyboard; hv been a BB user for 6 yrs now, this is one of the worst keyboards...
Aside from this, NOT much different from the 8700. I use the phone for email+internet, so my opinion is really based on the speed, and on how comfortable or not the phone is....I might still return it within the 14 day grace period. Will give it few more days.
For the business men and women that want style and reliability...
The purpose of a blackberry is to get your emails sent to you NOW. This phone does that with style. For those that complain about the web browsing experience, keep in mind. That's not the purpose of this phone. It is a business tool made with the business users in mind. Awesome phone. Blazing fast emails and texting on it is the best I have ever seen.
Another Great Blackberry
I think I'm hooked. For the last 18 months owned a Blackberry 8310 (AT&T) and enjoyed that phone very much. After that phone died, I went to windows mobile because it synced up with my work email. After 3 months of windows mobile torcher...went back to the beloved Blackberry with the Bold 9700.
It took a week of two to get used to the trackpad vs. the old roller ball. A little more sensitive (although adjustable) but overall...works like you would expect it to, no compromise!
PROS:
-Great Battery Life (i get 2+ days of normal usage)
-Flawless Trackpad
-Much better camera (3.0)
-Nice keyboard, but a little cramped vs. 9000 bold
-Very nice appearance
-Very fluid operating system, quick & reliable
CONS:
-Browser still not great
-Minor gliches with opening text messages (intermitten)
-Call quality seems a tad more rough vs. curve 83xx series
Although the mobile phone market place is testing our loyalty with amazing products hitting the shelves every month...This phone has guaranteed me as a Blackberry loyalist.
Graet Phone Good Job RIM
Well Being A Old BB Fan Then Going To Plam Pre Then A Few Android Phones Am Very Happy Going Back to Blackberry . PROS:
Call quality
BB App World
Battery Life This Battery Last All Day Long From 7am To 12am I Still Got one Are Two Bar's
Screen
Camera 3.2
And Video . CONS: Not Any i Can Think Of Right Now Besides A S/W Update Would Be Nice
Bold is an understatement.
So working for T-mobile I have had my chance to enjoy many different phones and blackberries. I do prefer this one and it actually made me cancel my verizon service I had for 5 years.
Pros:
Great camera for only 3.2 mp
Easily navigated
keyboard is easily used
decent web speeds even in EDGE area
Great email capabilities
Trackpad is DUUURTY compared to trackball.
(DUUURTY is a good thing)
Cons:
downloads can take some time
memory card in a very unusual spot (Thanks RIM)
Love It
Pros-
Screen
OS is amazingly fast and smooth
5.0 is a great improvement
Camera is superb compared to 9000
Appworld has plenty of apps but should come pre installed
call quality and signal strength are great. No dropped calls on at&t. Always seems to have full 3g.
multi tasking capabilities
Optical track pad
Cons-
Would like it to be between the size of the 9000 and 8900.
Needs better web browser.
Thoughts-
I absolutely love this phone. It is a productivity powerhouse. I tried a windows mobile phone for 4 weeks but after having to do battery pulls multiple times a day I gave it the heave ho. This phone is so smooth at everything. Windows Mobile is way behind the game.
