RIM and the 9900...why oh why
 

Let me start out by saying I've always been a RIM fanboy, its always been my primary smartphone. As a road warrior who absolutely depends on my smartphone, RIM has always delivered a solid reliable phone that ALWAYS WORKS.
With my 9700 always running out of memory, I couldn't wait for the 9900 to come out and after spending 642 including sales tax (I don't believe in contracts since always pay more in the long run), I can't say its worth it... Aside from the awesomeness of the keyboard, I'm not thrilled. Yes the touch screen is nice but the battery life is awful...how does RIM put a smaller battery in a more powerful phone? Tmobile stores will sell you the same battery the phone comes with for $50...REALLY??? I left it fully charged on my nightstand the 2nd night I had it and it was totally drained when I woke up.

The left side convenience button is gone (my old google maps shortcut) and the right camera button is way too sensitive, the camera app is always loading when I hold the phone. The mute button in between the volume keys is so misplaced. Half the time when I turn up the volume on a call, I end up pressing mute. Why not keep the buttons where they are? If you drive a Honda Accord, the buttons for the windows, locks, side mirrors, defoggers, a/c, etc. stay in the same place every model year. Why doesn't RIM keep their buttons consistent?

Battery life as we all know sucks, its worse than my large screen Galaxy running 2.2 which incidentally surfs way faster than the BB...Tmobile putting the 4G icon on top of the screen was idiotic. You can't switch between 2g, 3g, and 4g. Just 4g or 2g, and then it doesn't speed test over 1 mbps...my Galaxy downloads at least 1.5 mbps consistently. I don't care that their commercials say they have 4G speed, that's fine because as a customer I can attest to the 4G speed on my Galaxy. But this 9900 aint a 4G phone.

Then there's no native voice search integration so I cant speak my browser searches and today I encountered the back button issue while reading an email and had to reboot just so I can use my phone...unacceptable.

Sorry for the rant, it's a very nice looking and well built phone but I'm on day 5 and it looks like I'm going Android especially since I already own a Galaxy which incidentally doubles as a portable wifi router.

Re: RIM and the 9900...why oh why
 

There is an OS update (see here: http://www.blackberryforums.com/gene...languages.html) that word on the street indicates improves battery life substantially. Additionally, there is a possibility that a batch of batteries are defective, so it might not hurt to exchange the phone.

Other bugs are being ironed out. Update the OS to see if that helps.

Re: RIM and the 9900...why oh why
 

Personally I keep Bluetooth and WiFi off all the time which has improved my daily battery drain. By doing that and rotating three batteries with an external generic charger, I've had no problems but yes, I too would love to see an improvement regarding the overall power management of these smartphones in the future.:smile:

Re: RIM and the 9900...why oh why
 

Surely 3 batteries can take you safely to the 1 day mark even under heavy use.

Re: RIM and the 9900...why oh why
 

I average one battery a day. Primarily use email and web. I'm only good for about three to four voice calls a day averaging 10-15 minutes each. Heavy voice usage will bring that battery down in no time though I know.

Re: RIM and the 9900...why oh why
 

My 9700 and 8900 ALWAYS lasted the whole day. I used at least .5 - 2 hours of voice, moderate to heavy email, google maps, txt, and then still had enough for 2 hrs of music at night. How does the Torch or Storm do on battery?
It's ridiculous, rather Apple-like that RIM would use a lower cap battery than the 9700. And the thing is too slippery, the rubber on the back should be more sticky but then thats probably ideal for those of you who wear tight jeans. Although I love RIM they have been faking the funk with the Playbook (returned after a week) and now the Bold Touch.

Re: RIM and the 9900...why oh why
 

Here we go again.... Another battery thread, oh my..
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