[cairomerta]

pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2093347,00.asp

[Sparkomatic]

First time I've seen a Cingular branded 8800.

[backbeat]

Originally Posted by Sparkomatic

First time I've seen a Cingular branded 8800.

And soon they will be collector's items!

Pretty balenced review, IMO.

[kasperapd]

Here is the actual link for those like me who are too lazy to copy and paste:

Blackberry 8800: Full Review - Review by PC Magazine

[Sparkomatic]

Originally Posted by backbeat

And soon they will be collector's items!

Pretty balenced review, IMO.

LOL! I'm actually a little surprised they aren't at&t branded since they're on the rollout of the name change. Oh well, I'd rather have Cingular then at&t on my phone

[albiesf]

It's a balanced and fair review. I am surprised they brought up the Blackjack as being more suitable for power users but didn't discuss battery life for comparison.

[brucejr]

Originally Posted by kasperapd

Here is the actual link for those like me who are too lazy to copy and paste:

Blackberry 8800: Full Review - Review by PC Magazine

[backbeat]

Originally Posted by albiesf

It's a balanced and fair review. I am surprised they brought up the Blackjack as being more suitable for power users but didn't discuss battery life for comparison.

Battery life isn't a zero-sum litmus test. There are numerous ways to deal with power-related concerns.

[albiesf]

Originally Posted by backbeat

Battery life isn't a zero-sum litmus test. There are numerous ways to deal with power-related concerns.

Definitely not. There's usability/stability of the OS, the features, etc., but the battery life was the first thing that came to my mind.

[stac]

I've been waiting for months for the QWERTY pearl to break, and I'm really disappointed... I mean, everything I see written about the 8800 says BLAH, and I feel BLAH when I think about it, too. Trade a small form factor for a large, trade a camera for GPS and trade suretype for qwerty. Otherwise, just more of the same.

With the excitement of the iPhone announcement still making the rounds, could RIM really afford to release a new handset that was three tradeoffs away from something really good? What I mean is, what would it have taken RIM to give their initial release of their flagship handset everything the pearl has and more? With Crimson looking to be announced about the same time as the iPhone... is anyone really going to wait for the RIM offering?

You can say what you want about markets and demographics until you are blue in the face... but I feel like RIM had a chance to build on it's momentum that the pearl brought them, and they followed it with a Texas Leaguer...

Stac

[guinda35]

What's this mean in the article?

"Microsoft Office, and PDF attachments come through in a stripped-down form."

The great weakness of my Berry's email features is its inability to open many attachments -- especially pds files. I was hoping the 8800 would correct this, and make our email experience that much better. Am I whisteling Dixie?

Nother thing. I noticed that the article slams the 8800 for keeoing the same EDGE format. I agree. It's clunky and slooooow. But it mentions that the 8703 is not crippled in this way. Is the 8703 only for Verizon customers? I don't care about cameras, videos, music -- that's for non-business users. I want to be able to access a webpage quickly and easily.

[johnfromphilly]

Originally Posted by guinda35

What's this mean in the article?

"Microsoft Office, and PDF attachments come through in a stripped-down form."

The great weakness of my Berry's email features is its inability to open many attachments -- especially pds files.

Have you tried a 3rd party solution like Repligo? I know you might say RIM should include this function...well, they don't but you can add it for a very small cost. Look into it- I view PDFs (all faxes via MyFax) all day every day.

[Stinsonddog]

Ho Hum story IMO - The battery is stellar regardless of prior rumors. And while some may not think so, I think there are a good number of reasons to upgrade even for 8700 users. VAD is a huge safety factor in my opinion. Build it GPS too for me. Media will be fun but not essential. Not giving up my shuffle. If I get a quick way to convert You Tube or something for quick entertainment that will be ok.

[SUFan]

I think they hit the mark in that its still an EDGE device with no 3G or WiFi. I know that is also a Cingular issue but man EDGE seems to be getting slower and slower.

[estrov]

Originally Posted by SUFan

I think they hit the mark in that its still an EDGE device with no 3G or WiFi. I know that is also a Cingular issue but man EDGE seems to be getting slower and slower.

Hit the mark with EDGE? They missed it. How do you introduce a web enabled PDA in today's market without a current generation modem?

[mgerbasio]

Originally Posted by estrov

Hit the mark with EDGE? They missed it. How do you introduce a web enabled PDA in today's market without a current generation modem?

I agree. Still, I'm on the fence with the 8800. If the voice dial works without tags, like voice recognition, and the GPS works well, I may go for it. I'm more interested in using the GPS with google maps or berry411 rather than as a navigation device.

Most likely I'm holding out for the end of the year when we'll see 3G.

Regards-Michael G.

[SUFan]

Originally Posted by estrov

Hit the mark with EDGE? They missed it. How do you introduce a web enabled PDA in today's market without a current generation modem?

Did you not read my message or the article? I agree with the article about lack of 3G or WiFi

[tprime]

Originally Posted by stac

I've been waiting for months for the QWERTY pearl to break, and I'm really disappointed... I mean, everything I see written about the 8800 says BLAH, and I feel BLAH when I think about it, too. Trade a small form factor for a large, trade a camera for GPS and trade suretype for qwerty. Otherwise, just more of the same.

With the excitement of the iPhone announcement still making the rounds, could RIM really afford to release a new handset that was three tradeoffs away from something really good? What I mean is, what would it have taken RIM to give their initial release of their flagship handset everything the pearl has and more? With Crimson looking to be announced about the same time as the iPhone... is anyone really going to wait for the RIM offering?

You can say what you want about markets and demographics until you are blue in the face... but I feel like RIM had a chance to build on it's momentum that the pearl brought them, and they followed it with a Texas Leaguer...

Stac

I'm with you. RIM needs to step it up. The RIM staples (email, stable OS) are great but every new device runs circles around these new blackberries. EDGE is old news. And I guess we should be thankful they finally included a media player ...but its functionality is limited. Just when you thought the were going in the right direction...another tease.
True for some BB users this 8800 is definetly a step up. But I'm for one who is getting a little impatient with these "baby steps"

[TheBigNewt]

I read that you have to pay $6/mo. to use the TeleNav GPS feature 10 times a month ($10 unlimited)? WUWT?

[14pups]

Originally Posted by tprime

I'm with you. RIM needs to step it up. The RIM staples (email, stable OS) are great but every new device runs circles around these new blackberries. EDGE is old news. And I guess we should be thankful they finally included a media player ...but its functionality is limited. Just when you thought the were going in the right direction...another tease.
True for some BB users this 8800 is definetly a step up. But I'm for one who is getting a little impatient with these "baby steps"

I'm sure there is a reason RIM management hasn't gone whole hog into 3G yet.