BlackBerry Bold 9000
Average Ratings
A Sad Disappointment
I've been through two of these devices and a third one is on its way. The call quality has been a major let down from the start, also its ability to retain a signal, even EDGE, has been a joke. However, when it does work, properly, it's wonderful. I love the speakers and it's media system, it's always been good to me. Also, it's email and internet have been strong, again when it works properly. Buyer beware, if you want this phone, do some serious praying for a good one.
First Blackberry...
This is my first Blackberry and I am very impressed. I have been bouncing back and forth between my iPhone and Bold. The device I prefer depends on what I am doing.
Pros:
--Call quality
--Volume
--Speaker sound and volume
--Size (I know that some view this as a negative, but it makes for excellent emailing and texting)
--Email
--Keyboard
--Well made
Cons:
--Browser
--Wish it had more customization
Most Complete Phone Out
I had the iPhone at the start of last year, got sick of the bugs and being locked down so I switched to the Curve and just recently went to the Bold. It will take a SWAT team to get me away from this phone. Let me start off saying that this is the most complete phone I've ever used.
Pros
- Blazing fast, especially when I use the opera mini web browser.
- E-mail on this phone is absolutey increidble, so much nicer interface.
- The 3rd party apps that are installed work perfectly. Flycast, Vlingo etc.
- Ringer is incredibly loud (one thing I hated about the iPhone.) Mp3 ringtones have never sounded so amazing.
- Streaming video from youtube and celluar video are great. I love watching The Office episodes I miss on this thing.
- It's nice not having to reboot your phone every day (hint:Apple phone)
- GPS works perfectly, I don't use google maps I just use the regular att navigator
Cons
Battery life a little weak, but managable
Price is a little steep but well worth it
Need more themes, but update will fix that.
This phone is aboslutely worth the price. It is the most complete phone out on the market.
Get it.
the Bold...BEST BLACKBERRY EVER! sorry BB Storm
This phone, by far, the best phone I ever owned. I just came off the BlackJack II, which is a great phone as well, but it can NOT compare to the BB Bold. The only thing I miss is that I can not download the Skyfire web browser. Best web browser for PDA/smartphones. But anyway, the Bold has the BEST call and sound quality that I heard on any phone. The picture and video quality is great as well. This is a smooth BlackBerry. Very easy to use as well.
NO CONS....
Great Blackberry
I have some mixed feelings on this phone:
I have the Bold as my Company unit, and the iPhone 3G as my personal device:
The Bold, at least in my area, gets NO BETTER reception, and is SLOWER to pick up/acknowledge 3G signal than the Apple. Battery life, again, is NO better while using WiFi and bluetooth all day. My iPhone is a far better multimedia device, especially in terms of internet browsing; Safari trumps IE/BlackBerry/Firefox emulation on either WinMo or RIM products. I am in no way an Apple fanboy, and honestly never thought I'd own the stupid iPhone.
The Bold feels wonderful in the hand, has a GREAT screen, keyboard, and a fantastic speakerphone. Audio sounds pretty kick-ass on the Bold.
Battery life is drastically improved by turning off bluetooth and WiFi, to levels we all expect from RIM.
Call quality is equal on both, but the volume nod going to the BB. The onboard GPS/at&t navigator is relatively slow when compared to the iPhone's Google Maps app; I am also running BBmaps on it, though it does not speed up the process.
The addition of Doc's to Go is grteat, though you have to purchase the full eiditon for $69.99 to actually "create" a new .xls/.xlsx.
The negatives aside, the Bold is a wonderful phone, deserving 4.5-5 stars. Most people expect phones of this echelon to last days without charge while still offering 3G radios and Wifi, but for us realistic folks, it's a solid piece!
Bold not so Bold
I am on my fourth bold in little over 30 days. First one overheated and turned itself off. Had to do battery pull in order for it to start up again. Second one kept dropping calls when switching from 3G to EDGE. Third one would turn off and when turned back on it would wipe/delete everything with 507 error to install OS. Fourth one locks up requiring battery pull to unlock/unfreeze.
On the bright side the screen is clear and size is great. When working calls are very clear. Keyboard is great.
If you happen to get one that does not have any problems you will be one of the lucky ones. My switch to Motorola.
Not Quite Perfect
I completely understand why people would love the Blackberry Bold. The screen is absolutely brilliant, it has WiFi, and many Blackberry aficionados have been waiting a long, long time to get something like this.
I've just finished a two week trial with this device, however, and I have to say that it's not for me. Although it's an older design that doesn't have all the features the Bold has, I prefer the Q9h, and I have gone back to using it as my main device.
The battery life of the Bold pales in comparison to the Q9h. In regular field use, it clearly does not last as long as the Q and the battery wears down within one 8 hour work day. If you try to use the much vaunted WiFi capabilities, you can wear the battery down almost while you're looking at it.
The audio quality is very good. The RF signal capture capabilities are not quite as good as the Q9h, but the Q9h is probably about the best there is.
The keypad is good, but, again, not *quite* as good as the Q9h. If you do a lot of emailing and texting, you are going to prefer the feel of the Q9h. It's also a little bigger than the Q, which adds a little to a perceived and admittedly subjective awkwardness.
If you like and want the Bold, I'm not going to argue with you. Its 3G capabilities are great, and the screen is truly, wonderfully brilliant and delivers media almost like you're watching a movie.
This particular user, however, cannot escape the conclusion that the Q9h is the better device, overall, for the typical PDA owner.
Way too big
A lot of these great reviews here must be contrived. Under 'Cons', nobody mentions the size of this phone. Its huge! How nobody could even mention it lets me know these people work for RIM. I switched from the Curve and the Bold is MUCH BIGGER and almost too big for my pocket.
With that said, the Bold has everything else I am looking for. The screen is the best any phone ever made. Blackberry has the best email service by far. But Apple still has much better internet service.
Anyway, I wish they made this phone smaller, then it would be 5-stars.
Blackberry Bold 9000
Everything else is good except for the battery... It sucks...
you see, when you buy a china phone (clone phone) or whatever else they call it... the battery last for a minimum of 3 days or so... no matter how often you use it... how come original blackberry phones has a weak battery life?
Blackberry, Bold, And Beyond
Blackberry in whole is a great company, everything from products to techs to customer service. So its no wonder that they brought out the most spectacular smartphone ever! The Bold is in one word INCREDIBLE! I have owned my Bold for about 5 months and it seems there is nothing it cant do. If your looking for a phone that does it all this is it!
PROS:
phenomenal screen quality
keyboard
browser
wifi
ease of use
customizable
call quality
applications
3.5 headphone jack
and much more its a Blackberry whats not to love.
Cons: I just wish they would've brought out the 3.2 mgp camera on the Bold but the 2mgp is still very good.
Conclusion: If you buy a different smartphone your missing out the Bold is the BEST!
